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And that, I suddenly realized, was the whole point of this exercise. Impressing the council, making them believe that keeping me alive was a far better option than killing me. This wasn’t about the Rakshasa or the vampire killings. This was about Hunter strengthening her power base.
And I was one of the foundation stones.
I rubbed my head wearily. If I’d had the energy I would have cursed long and fluently. But the truth of the matter was, I’d brought this on myself by agreeing to her terms back in that forest, and now I had no option but to deal with it.
“I don’t give a fuck whether the council are impressed or not. I just want to find this thing so I can concentrate on the business of finding the remaining keys.”
And with that I hung up. It might not have been wise, but I was way past tired and beyond caring.
“Then get some sleep,” Azriel suggested. “I will wake you when it is time to return to the club.”
My gaze rose to meet his. That thick sense of heat and desire still swirled within me, but stronger than that was the need to be held. Just held.
He took half a step forward, then stopped and clenched his fists. “Go,” he said, his voice holding a rough edge. “Rest.”
I briefly closed my eyes, and half wished Lucian was here. He, at least, would have understood the need for contact and comfort that wasn’t sexual—although truth be known, while he might have held me, it wouldn’t have been for long. He was a sexual being, and that’s where it would have ended.
What I needed, I thought bitterly, was a straightforward relationship with a normal everyday man.
Someone like Jak—only less work oriented and more trustworthy.
But an ordinary man was not something I was likely to find anytime soon. Nor was it wise to bring such a man into my current situation.>“Well, no, but any storage facility with power would be suitable.” He gave me a somewhat wry look. “Do you know how many of those there are in this city?”
“Hundreds, if not thousands. But we can still do a search for one under the name of Nadler, just on the off chance that we find it.”
“It seems unlikely he’d be so stupid, but I guess it can’t hurt—and if we do find one, maybe I can raid the security tapes and see who has been accessing the unit.”
“My thinking exactly.” I finished the rest of the bitter coffee and stood. “As ever, let me know if you find something.”
“As long as you don’t forget the dinner you owe me.”
“When this is all over—”
“Forgive me if I’m being a little picky, but this might not be over for months. Years, even. A wolf could starve in that time.”
I grinned. “So, next week then.”
If, I added silently—and somewhat grimly—I was still alive in a week’s time.
“Date,” he said.
I glanced at Azriel. He took the hint and whisked us out of there. Once we’d reappeared at home, I walked into the kitchen. Stane’s bitter coffee had woken me up, but I really needed something to eat if I was going to get through the rest of the evening.
I zapped a large helping of leftover lasagna in the microwave, then grabbed a fork and headed into the living room. Azriel was standing in the middle of it, his arms crossed and his pose watchful. Ever the guard, I thought, and wondered if reapers even knew how to relax.
“Not in the sense that humanity does,” he answered.
I dropped onto the nearest sofa. “As usual, that reply is not very informative.”
He half smiled. It sent a hum of delight swirling through me. “In very simple terms, we mingle energies and recharge.”
“Mingle energies? That sounds almost sexual.”
“There is no ‘almost’ about it.”
So in their free time, reapers basically ran around having sex? And they called werewolves horny bastards. “How different is it from human sex?”
This time the smile was full-blown and sexy, and it didn’t just swirl, it stormed, leaving me breathless and aching.
