Page 27 of Bared

And his new handler?

Absolutely not Gervais.

This human was too big. Too mighty. Too daunting. A T-Rex to Remy’s bull. A beast who persisted in shoveling the naughty puppy treatment at the man. Remy only had time for a dazed grunt before the man hurled him against the bricks like he’d peed on a Persian rug. The bastard’s broken form crumpled along the wall before collapsing into a puddle of strange yellow liquid. No more snorts or growls from him now. Instead, the bastard spilled a string of slurry French pleas, plunging both hands over his crotch. Understandable, if the man feared what fate the force of nature might deal to his family jewels.

Not that his opponent noticed. Or cared.

Jayd was conscious of her mouth dropping open as the interloper paced over and twisted a hand into Remy’s greasy hair. Remy whimpered as T-Rex forced him back to his feet.

Their new position turned them directly beneath one of the wan alley lights. In the tube of that ghostly glow, the force of nature smiled down at Remy. Though the look was feral, it only strengthened the man’s rugged beauty. A crescent of brilliant white teeth. Deep creases that ran at right angles to his formidable jaw. A gaze of deep cobalt brilliance, glittering with primordial-grade power. He was raw. Savage. Mesmerizing.

And why was she noticing all that about him?

She had no traceable idea.

Maybe considering his attributes above his shoulders was easier than watching what he did with the body below them.

How his massive shoulders rippled as he re-secured his grip on Remy. How his equally huge thighs flexed as he employed them for the action. How every speck of him was so ideally served by his formfitting dark-blue Henley and black denim bottoms.

No, she told herself. No more.

But what else was there to focus on? The man was all the way across the alley but might as well have been right there in her personal space. She breathed in and received his incredible scent—yes, even from here—all cloves and cedar and suede. Even Gervais’s swearing and stampings were insignificant in the shadows of this forceful giant.

And who was she kidding? Forceful?

This man was more than just force. He was…

Ions. Atmosphere. Oxygen. Carbon. Subliminal but elemental. A nucleus split a million times, then formed into a human being.

If he even was human.

What. On. Earth?

There was the question she could not evade—the demand that thundered, over and over and over again, as the stranger moved again. The one way she prayed he would not choose.

With one hand still on Remy, he turned. And stared right at her.

Into her.

Rendering her eyes incapable of blinking. Her nerves helpless of all feeling. And her mind numb and incoherent. Paralyzed…

Until Emme’s shriek broke open the air once more.

“Run! For the love of the Creator, Jayd! Run!”

Chapter Four

Shit on a fucking shingle.

The line erupted from the spaces between Brick’s teeth like broken glass. Appropriate, considering the matching texture of his bloodstream.

He hated foot chases. Especially in cities like this, filled with the remnants of streets built by triple-digit civilizations. Kind of like Baghdad. And Kandahar.

But despite how well the princess had laid down the first of these douchebags, Gervais seemed determined to stumble right after Jayd Cimarron and her screeching maid.

“Goddammit,” he snarled, pivoting back to the asswipe still trapped beneath his hand. He’d been looking forward to having some sport with the gnat before setting him free and watching him run, but his friend had dashed that hope. “I hate it when this happens.”

“M-M-Me too,” the asshole stammered.