Page 52 of Grayson’s Challenge

He forced himself to rip his gaze from her because looking at her for a second longer would give away how he felt about Monique.

He was glad when Zach approached. “Hey, Grayson. You said you’ve got a lead on one of Abel’s men?”

Grayson cleared his throat. “Yeah, John recognized him from a photo in the prison records. Name’s Rufus. Thomas just texted me his last known address here in San Francisco. Your sister and I will check it out. Doubt he’ll be there, but we might find something in his flat that could give us a clue as to where they’re keeping Cain and Samson.”

“I hope we’ll find them soon,” Zach said.

“You and me both.”

“We’ll be back as soon as we can.”

It took a few more minutes until Savannah arrived. When she and John disappeared into a room, so John could feed from his mate in private, Grayson put his hand on Monique’s lower back.

“Time for us to go.”

“Yeah.” She looked at her brothers and the Stealth Guardians. “Stay safe.”

23

“Do you think my brothers suspect anything?” Monique asked as they sat in Grayson’s car and drove along busy Mission Street.

Grayson glanced at her from the side and put his hand on hers, squeezing it. She let it happen, the touch soothing her frayed nerves.

“Would it be such a disaster if they did?”

His voice was coaxing, tender almost, and so very different from how she’d imagined him when she’d found out that her father had tried to set them up. This was a different side of him. But could she trust her gut that the Grayson she was with now was the true Grayson, the man behind the façade?

“I guess not,” she said hesitantly. “It’s just that I don’t want to have to explain to anybody… I mean… after everything…” She couldn’t finish her sentence, not sure about anything anymore. What if what she felt right now was an illusion because of the trauma they were going through?

“Babe,” he said softly. “You don’t have to explain anything to me or to anybody else. I didn’t mean to put you on the spot. But I want you to know something…”

She looked at him from the side, her heart pounding all of a sudden.

“The last forty-eight hours with you top every experience I’ve had in my thirty-two years. And I’m not saying that so you’ll sleep with me again.” He chuckled. “Though, trust me, I do want to sleep with you again…”

His words made her chuckle involuntarily. “Are you trying to tell me that you enjoyed having sex with me?”

“Having sex?” He shook his head. “Monique, we didn’t just have sex. It was more than that. Or are you saying that I’m the only one who felt the connection we had when we made love?”

Her heart beat uncontrollably. He’d felt that too? When he’d made love to her and bitten her, drinking blood directly from her breast, she’d felt a high that couldn’t be explained by sex alone. It had been more than that—something more personal, more intimate.

“I could feel you as if I was inside you,” Monique murmured. “Even though it was the other way around. I know it sounds crazy.”

“Not crazy.” Grayson pulled her hand to his lips and kissed her knuckles. “I felt close to you. And I want that again.” He took his eyes off the road and met hers.

His eyes were shimmering golden, and the sight made her heart skip a beat. He guided her hand to his thigh and rested it there. Monique felt his muscles twitch under her palm and loved the heat emanating from his body.

“You’re so different from what I thought you’d be like.”

“I hope that’s a good thing.” Grayson suddenly stepped on the brakes and brought the car to a stop.

In front of them, a cable car had broken down in the middle of an intersection, and an ambulance and a taxi were blocking the road. In the distance, she heard a siren, but it seemed far away. Monique perused the scene, and noticed what looked like a mangled bicycle stuck underneath the front wheels of the cable car.

“Oh my God,” she said putting her hand on the door handle. “I think a bicyclist might be trapped underneath the cable car. We have to help.”

She jumped out of the car and heard Grayson kill the engine, while she hurried to the cable car. The few people who’d been riding it, had gotten off and stood around, the cable car operator directing them away from the accident scene. Shock was written on their faces.

The EMTs were crouching down near the front of the cable car, trying to reach underneath it.