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Beforemystartledscreamhad even faded into silence, there was a loud metallic screech and a crash behind me. Nick was suddenly pulling me back through the door and behind him, as he brandished a switchblade at the darkness shadowing the hallway. I had no idea where he’d gotten it from. It wasn’t something I’d ever expected to see him holding. Although I already knew he was reckless about his own safety if he thought he could help someone.
“Glad to see you’re putting my courting gift to good use,” River said to Nick, in a voice as dry as the desert. He was crouched low against the wall opposite the door, in a patch of shadow between the lights from the doorways.
Courting gift? What the hell was he talking about?I breathed heavily as I tried to calm my nerves and make sense of what was going on in front of me.
“Was this a test?” Nick asked as he carefully closed the knife and slid it into his back pocket. I didn’t know why that was so damn hot. Maybe because it drew my attention to the delectable curves of his butt. Nick could wear the hell out of a pair of jeans.
“No,” River said, humor lacing his voice. My eyes slid back to him, and he shot me a wicked grin.
“Then what are you doing there?” I asked River, more than a little breathless as he rose from his crouch in one long, fluid movement and stepped towards us.
“I saw you try to sneak off and followed you.” He was completely unapologetic. So much for giving them the slip.Had he been here the whole time?“Shall I walk you back?”
He held out his hand to me, a flicker of vulnerability sparking in his eyes. I recalled the last time we’d been in a darkened hallway together, less than a day ago. It had gone a different way than I’d hoped. My breath caught as I stepped around Nick and up to River, feeling his tension ease as I took his outstretched hand. I didn’t blame him for being the bearer of bad news yesterday. I was glad it had come from him, and not from a stranger. Although, I suddenly felt bad for the way I had run from him. It hadn’t been him I was running from, more the walls and the Palace itself.
“Bye, Nick,” River said, his eyes still on me.
Shoot. I was completely ignoring the man I’d just been kissing because another one had dazzled me. I really needed to figure out this multiple men thing.
“Uh, bye, Nick,” I said as I gave him a smile over my shoulder
“For now,” he said as he winked at me and turned to walk back through the door. He didn’t seem the slightest bit upset, which had me relaxing.
River was quiet as he pulled me closer to his side and led me toward the stairs leading up to the main level. He gestured me ahead of him when we reached the bottom, but kept hold of my hand. I got halfway up before I spun around and halted him in place with my free hand on his chest. His heart beat frantically beneath the fabric of his shirt, and the heat of his skin warmed my chilled hand. I wasn’t sure what I wanted to say. Or if there even was anything to say. I just needed a moment with him. Needed to breathe him in after missing him for so long.
He was a step below me, but he was so tall, it put us almost at the same height. He searched my face silently, tracing my features, until his gaze landed on my lips.
“My little bird,” he whispered, almost like a prayer. “Do you have any idea what it does to me to see you mussed up and your lips swollen from kissing?”
“Not so little anymore,” I said, breathlessly, as I released his hand. I ran my fingers across his hip and up his stomach to join my other hand on his chest, before I traced a slow path up to his shoulders and wrapped my arms around his neck. It was a dream to be touching him so deliberately. Everything felt hazy as my movements pulled him closer to me. His hands instantly grabbed onto my waist, and the heat felt like a brand against my skin. Goosebumps rippled up my sides as he traced slow circles with his thumb. “Does it bother you? Knowing I was just kissing Nick?”
“No. I like you being ours. As long as you’re mine, too. Are you mine, little bird?” he asked. The burning need in his voice almost had my knees buckling as heat raced through me.
“Always, River.” His eyes darkened and his lips parted on a breath. His body may have changed since I knew him, but his eyes were the same. Unfamiliar emotions were reflected in them now, but it was still River looking back at me. He’d always had a determined glint, but now there was a new hardness. It slowly disappeared whenever he looked at me, though. The blazing desire was new too, but I didn’t mind that at all.
He was too still, as if he was waiting for me to make a move. I swayed towards him, and my breath hitched in my chest as it grazed his.
“There you are,” came Lexie’s voice from the top of the stairs. “Why are you hiding out here…oh. Crap on a cracker.”
A dark chuckle came from behind her that sounded like Sam, as River growled low in his chest.
“Sorry, we were looking for Angel. We’ll go. Carry on,” Lexie said in a rush. “Come on, you little sprite.” I could hear muffled giggling.
“Actually, I was looking for you, too, River. Damon needs to talk to you about security,” Sam called down. “I contacted the Network, and they asked us to send some men into the mountains to rescue their stranded leader. We’re the closest unit, so we’ve already sent three of our alphas who were in town. It will leave the town, and possibly the farm, exposed though. We may need to pull some guys from here tonight.”
I could see the frustration and conflict in River’s eyes. He wanted to help sort out security, make sure we were safe. Yet he also wanted to stay with me.
“I’m not going anywhere,” I whispered. “We can finish this later.”
“I’m going to come for you, if you don’t find me first,” he said, on a low growl that skittered over my skin. It was pure, potent, alpha and had me shivering.
I had no words, as he leaned forward and grazed his lips over my cheek. His lips left a burning trail across my skin before he pulled away too quickly and led me up the stairs. His expression was murderous as he let me go and glared at Sam, getting up in his space and forcing him back slightly. “Let’s go. If I have to, so do you.”
Sam was undaunted, but he backed away from the top of the stairs with a confused frown on his face. “Will you two promise not to get up to too much mischief while we’re gone?” he asked Lexie, who was just outside the door, with a firm grip on Angel.
“Nope. It would just be a lie,” Lexie sassed, and he growled at her in exasperation, but he couldn’t help his smile popping through either.
As soon as they were gone, Lexie whirled on me. “I’m so sorry.”
