"I've missed you."
If he weren't such a bastard, she would have missed him, too.
The guy was very good in bed.
He was also funny.
Smart.
But as deceitful as they came.
She was counting on that deceit right now.
Maya looked into his perfect eyes. So gold. So deep.
His mouth lowered toward hers. His lips pressed lightly against hers-
"What the f**k?" Adam grabbed her arm and jerked her down three steps. He stepped forward, putting his body between her and Tim.
Tim stared at him, and for just a moment, his pretty-boy face didn't look quite so perfect.
Rage.
Then the emotion smoothed away and he looked over at Maya, one golden brow quirked. "Got a new friend, do you, love?"
"You can never have too many friends." She cleared her throat. The pounding music was starting to make her head ache. "We need to talk. Privately." Away from the avid humans with the curious eyes.
"Send the new toy away and we can talk…privately for as long as you want."
"No, sorry, that's not the way it's going to-" Maya broke off, nose twitching. What the hell? Was that sulfur she smelled? It was an unusual scent, one she remembered back from her days in high school when a chemistry experiment had gone dismally wrong.
Sulfur. She touched Adam's arm. What would cause…? He drew in a deep breath, seemed to relax a bit.
The scent faded as abruptly as it had appeared.
"The lady ," Adam spoke in a hard, tight tone, "doesn't go anywhere without me."
Tim grunted but turned and climbed back up the stairs. "We can go to my office." He tossed a knowing glance back at Maya. "You remember where my place is, don't you, love?"
"Vaguely," she muttered. She'd fed from him there once. On the black leather couch.
She'd been a vampire only six months then, and she'd still been fighting against hunting humans.
Since Tim wasn't exactly human and he knew the score from the start, she'd felt safe with him.
Stupid mistake.
One she wouldn't make again.
Adam stopped in front of the gold-lettered door marked VIP. He leaned in toward her as she passed him, caught her hand. "What are we doing here?"
Tim had good hearing, very good , and she didn't want to give away her plan. "Trust me," she barely breathed the words to him as she passed, but her fingers clung tightly to his.
His jaw tightened, but he didn't question her again. He followed her inside, slamming the door shut behind them.
Tim walked over to the leather couch. Lowered his body onto the plush cushions. "That's better." He smiled again, this time flashing a perfect set of dimples. "Now tell me, what brings you to my side of Hell tonight?" The whites of his eyes began to darken.
The darkness of the demon, usually hidden by glamour.
Or in Tim's case, half-demon.
"I need a favor," she said baldly, meeting that cloudy stare head-on.
"Hmmm. I don't usually offer favors."
No, he didn't. But in this case-"Help me, and you'll get the chance to screw over a pack of wolf shifters."
His smile stretched another inch. "Tell me more."
"Six are on our trail." Could be more, but not really the point . "I need to ditch my bike. Get a new ride and go as far and as fast out of this city as I can."
His fingers began to stroke the leather arm of the couch. "Running, Maya? I didn't think that was your style."
Adam didn't speak-a very good thing right then-but she could feel his tension. "I'm not running from them."
"Running to something, are you?" His fingers began to tap, tap, tap , on the couch. "Must be something important if a wolf pack's involved."
"Um." He didn't need to know any more about that.
His stare flickered to Adam. "Why do I think this 'something' has to do with your new friend?"
"'Cause you're a f**king genius?" Adam drawled.
Tap. Tap. Tap. His nails began to grow. His attention drifted back to Maya. "Where are you heading?"
"Texas. The border." The lie came easily. They always did.
Adam's head jerked toward her. "Is that where she-"
Luckily, she still had ahold of his hand. Her claws dug into him.
He got the message and shut up, fast.
But she knew the damage had been done.
"The border." Tim nodded. Tap. Tap. "All right. For old times' sake, I'll help you." Another smile-this time, one that showed a lot of sharp teeth. "And I'll enjoy the hell out of screwing over a pack."
He stood, walked over to a desk, and jerked open the top drawer. He tossed Maya a set of keys.
"The black Jag down the street. Garage 812, slot 13."
Her fingers closed around the keys. "And my bike?" She hated to lose her baby, but there wasn't a choice.
"I'll take care of her."
She freed Adam's hand and walked across the room. "I knew I could count on you."
His fingers brushed down her cheek. He always did that. Always stroked her cheek with the back of his hand. A tender caress.
So it seemed.
"We need to go, Maya," Adam said, his voice cracking like a whip.
Tim's eyes began to lighten. "When you get tired of the new toy, come back for a visit. I'll be here."
Adam lunged across the room, got toe-to-toe with Tim. "She's not coming back, demon."
But Tim just flashed those dimples again. "We'll see."
Adam growled and spun on his heel. He didn't speak again until they were out of the bar and once again on the crowded street.
He stopped at the edge of the building, casting her a hard stare. "You've had sex with him."
Ah, hell, so not the time .
He blocked her path, used his body to trap her against the cold brick wall, but he didn't actually touch her. Not yet. "You screwed him, didn't you?"
"How is this your business?" she snapped. They had more important things to deal with at the moment. Her ex-lover was really low on the totem pole of priorities and-
Adam kissed her. A hard, deep, demanding kiss. His tongue thrust into her mouth, claimed hers, even as his hands clamped around her waist and jerked her against the thick heat of his arousal.
And the man was most definitely aroused. She felt every hot inch of his c**k pressing against her.
Her sex began to cream.
He tore his mouth from hers. "This is why," he growled, his forehead resting against hers for a moment, "because I can't even breathe anymore without wanting you ."
Oh. Pretty good reason.