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“Aw,” Nadir pouted. “Tease.”
“For you, always. If you need anything, you know how to find me.”
His lips brushed across hers, capturing the moment with the heat of passion.
When he ported away, Nadir was left alone with the bats and wind. A pang of loss rang through her, a reaction from the succubus or her heart? Nadir couldn’t separate the sensations.
Breathing in a bittersweet freedom, Nadir jogged home at an easy, carefree pace, the weight of the sancre swinging heavy in her pants pocket.
CHAPTER17
ERIN
Erin woke up late, head cloudy from the night before, crammed onto the tiny cot in her apartment. She’d slept right through her alarm clock, and now she’d have to rush through showering and drive into work instead of bussing or biking, which meant paying for parking. She jumped into the shower before the water warmed up, ducking her head under the stream, and taking a moment to luxuriate in the heat.
Her boss, Maria, didn’t tolerate tardy employees. Perhaps if Erin skipped makeup, no one would notice.
Oversleeping meant another dent in her finances she couldn’t afford, especially after losing her job last night. How she’d picked a fight with the corporate bastard still wasn’t clear in her mind. Erin usually kept herself well-schooled, only allowing her real self out to play when she escaped to the mountains on the rare weekend getaway.
How had he intuitively known so much about her? His questions about her time in the forest mirrored her own. She rinsed out her hair and turned off the water, giggling as she remembered Daniel’s threats issued from a beaten face. One she’d given him.
Inspecting her knuckles, Erin didn’t notice any scuffs or scrapes, nor had they stung under the water. Perhaps the damage had looked worse in the dim lighting of the club. Rolling around on the floor, she’d probably just got him dirty, not bruised.
She toweled off and wondered about his threat to report her. How would he or hisfriendBlaine even know how to find her? Erin rolled her eyes, hurrying through her morning routine. She towel-dried her hair into a messy, less controlled look than her norm, but it bounced in such a cute, flirty way so she left it. She didn’t try new things often, but lately she’d been breaking several of her typical rules. One more wouldn’t hurt anything.
Consumed with rushing through her routine, she almost missed the dark splotch across her tanned shoulder. Drawing close to her reflection over the chipped and stained basin below, Erin touched the purplish marks snaking over her skin. The oddly vein-like pattern wasn’t typical for bruises, but when she applied additional pressure from her fingertips, along the wine-stained lines, the tender flesh ached. Perhaps she’d rolled over something during the fight, causing the bizarre pattern.
She checked her watch.Crap.There’d be time to worry about a little bruising later.
Erin pulled out one of her standard business attire outfits from her cramped closet, a plain linen white blouse and skirt, and quickly donned the pair. Her boss preferred the entire company dress in white, so it was basically a work requirement. This set had a pleasing woven texture to the fabric and breathed well, even in the heat of the fading Autumn. Flat white shoes completed the look. A glance at the clock firmed up her choice to skip makeup. Erin grabbed her white leather purse from the hook just inside the closet door.
Erin had to side-stepped through the narrow corridor on her way to the kitchen. She grabbed an apple and thrust it into her purse. Not much of a lunch, but perhaps she’d be able to get away and grab something later. A defeated sigh escaped her lips. She’dnevercatch a break at work. Maria watched her time like a hound after a bone.
Erin shot down the stairs to the parking garage underneath. Scuffs and scratches marred the faded light-blue paint of her car, yet despite the age, wear, tear, and frequent mountain trips, she kept it clean. She opened the door and slid behind the wheel, gunning the engine as she clipped her seat belt into place. The tires squealed as the sedan rushed out of the cave-like garage. Erin paused for the briefest of moments at the exit to ensure she didn’t run anyone down before careening into traffic.
She cut off a small, white, expensive import, knowing they’d yield. The driver honked and gesticulated wildly, but backed off and rode her bumper. Erin waved happily back at them.
A buzzing emanated from her purse, and she scrambled to retrieve the earpiece for her phone one-handed while rounding the corner onto 18th west, taking her on a straight shot to downtown.
Sliding it over her ear, she activated the unit. “Hello?”
“Erin? Have you made it into the office yet?” her boss’s voice rang out in censure. Erin checked her watch. 7:45 am.
“No. I’m having parking issues.” Why did Maria keep demanding her in early, anyway?
“We need to have a talk about your tardiness. When you get here, can you finalize the Avant files for their meeting at 8:30? Do you think you can handle that?”
Erin gripped the steering wheel and blew out a slow breath before answering. “No problem, Maria. They’re on my desk and ready to go. I just need to set them up in the conference room.”
“I’m unclear why you didn’t prep the room last night? Your lack of foresight and planning impacts all of us. I’ll see you shortly, yes?” Maria’s string of rhetorical questions hung in the air as Erin cut the corner and took a hard left into the parking lot across the street from work on Washington St.
“Yes, Ma’am,” Erin bit out.
The line cut out and Erin ground her molars together. That woman got under her skin! She hurriedly parked in the first available spot, paused at the terminal long enough to pay, and then ran across the street, dodging cars. When she burst through the front door of Pythia, the receptionist, Ted, shot her a dour look from behind the expanse of the naturally finished pine lobby desk.
Everything in the modern lobby felt calm and outdoorsy; it was why she’d wanted to work there in the first place. From the white suede couches to the pale green area rugs and pictures of aspen hanging on the walls, Erin could almost imagine herself in the mountains. Unlike Maria’s obsession with white clothes, Erin liked her penchant for nature pictures and simple, clean lines in the office. No doubt the furnishings were just as expensive, but they didn’t come off as wasteful or indulgent like so many corporate offices.
“It’s 8:05. You’re late again,” Ted pointed at the clock on the wall.
