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We rounded the building until we were out of the public eye. Julian opened the stairwell door and headed down, the major following. I caught the door just before it clicked shut and slipped inside as well, then placed my heels outside to stay as quiet as possible. When I caught up again, they were a floor down, Julian paused and looking up at her as she loomed above him.

His hand gripped the thin bar between the twenty-six-story drop down the center and the metal steps. I’d already retrieved the syringe from my garter and, without hesitating, I sent it through the air, using telekinesis, until it stuck out from the back of her neck.

Whipping around and grasping at the now empty needle, the major glared at me.

“Kill her!” she yelled.

“Oooh, that’s not going to work,” I said, practically bouncing down the steps toward her. “Actually, you’re going to listen to me this time, Marcia. And Julian, you are free of any mind-bending she put you under.”

“How dare—”

“Shut up,” I snapped. “And hold still.” I stopped three steps up from her to put us at eye level. “You will destroy all evidence collected from the psychic that escaped with Julian. You will forget this happening and forget she even existed. Then you will quit being such a bitch and working for MorningStar. You will no longer use your abilities to hurt others.”

I stopped short of telling her to punish herself like I had with Carmichael. Something inside told me it was all too plausible that command had been the cause of his death. I swallowed hard.

Julian didn’t notice, just beamed at me from behind her. “Good work, Doctor.”

“Thank you,” I said with a small bow, then I turned back to her. “Now give me my shoes, then go back to the party. You can put on the heels just outside the door to the roof. As far as you know, Julian got away.”

She nodded and left my boots on the step as she passed me on her way back up.

“You did it,” he said, stepping up to meet me.

“We did it,” I said. “See? We work well together. So from now on—”

Julian’s mouth smashed into mine as he lifted me from the ground and spun me in a circle. I melted into him, losing myself in the feel of him, the scent, the adrenaline of the moment. My hands sifted through his dark curls as he pressed me to the wall and cupped my ass, encouraging me to wrap my legs around him. My dress rode up over my hips and he growled even as he continued our kiss, thumb sliding up to tug the thin strap of red lace aside. When he found me slick and ready, he wasted no time slipping one then two fingers inside of me, swallowing every moan I made.

He shifted and must have freed himself from his trousers using superspeed because just as I whimpered at his removal of his fingers, he replaced them with something much better. I often wondered if it was a vampire gift or just the way Julian was always built, but he did not disappoint, stretching me with just the right amount of pressure and pace until my back bumped against the wall in a steady rhythm. His thumb circled the tender spot between us, and gods help me, I was ready to come faster than I ever had before.

Julian…I’m…I’m I stammered through our bond.

Come for me, love.

Those words purred inside my mind, sent me over the edge. Instead of letting up, he increased both his pace and pounding, and I groaned against his hungry mouth. He lifted one of my breasts from the tight confines of my dress and rolled the hard nipple between his fingers. You drive me mad, Charlotte.

At that point, I could no more form words than a coherent thought. He released my swollen lips, letting my head fall back as he trailed his fangs down the skin of my neck.

Julian, no. What if I’m still poisoned?

But he sank his teeth inside, timed with a deep thrust that hit my G-spot perfectly. Euphoria washed over me, and all I could make sense of was the places we connected and the spasms of my body as an almost painful orgasm rocketed through me in waves that never seemed to ebb. I screamed out his name and several other incoherent words as he also cried out in release, lifting his face from my neck, eyes closed in ecstasy while my blood trailed from his lips. His hips slowed and he rocked inside of me, drawing every last shudder from my body. He licked the wound closed and clean as he withdrew, lowering me gently to the ground.

I felt like my bones had melted as I stumbled slightly against the wall, trying to recover. Julian adjusted his own clothing and then helped me reassemble myself before backing me into the wall once more, this time smoothing my hair and gazing down at me with glowing indigo eyes, flushed cheeks, and so much love my heart fluttered.

“I’m sorry,” he said.

“For what?” I asked, grinning like an idiot. “It was amazing.”

“You deserve more than a stairwell, Charlotte. You deserve more than me.”

“Let’s go back to our hotel,” I suggested, wrapping my arms around his neck before he started brooding again. “Then you can show me exactly what I deserve, and I can show you the same. Let’s repeat our tango in that big bed.”

He smiled my favorite smile, kissed me much more softly, and lifted me into his arms like he was about to carry me over the threshold. Then he ran us back to the room as I nibbled on his neck. When he stopped, he tossed me onto the mattress where I bounced and laughed, holding out a palm to stop him from climbing over me.

“Let’s dance,” I said, and he offered his hand with the look of a hungry lion. In this case, I didn’t mind being the lamb.

Shivers of anticipation cascaded down my spine as he pulled me to my feet with a tug and I crashed against him, chest to chest. He raised my hands to his neck and slid the back of his hand slowly down my side, brushing over my breast on its way to my hip. I swallowed as he swung me suddenly around and then dipped me back.

“There’s no music,” I breathed as he pulled me back up to face him, a whiff of bergamot and spice warming my insides.