“Don’t worry,” he murmured against her mouth, “I won’t do anything you don’t want me to do.”

“I know.”

He was so big, dominating, and possessive, yet his sensitive, gentle streak surrounded her like a satin ribbon, making her feel feminine, sexy, and wanted. And when he slid his tongue inside her mouth and began a penetrating, thrusting motion that mimicked something much more intimate, she was the one who wanted. Wanted so much more than she could ever have.

For now, though, she’d take what she could get.

He rocked against her as he made love to her mouth. She felt herself go wet, and as if he knew, he growled deep in his chest and dropped one hand between their bodies. His fingers found her core, and she nearly came from the light, sweeping contact.

“Oh, damn,” he rasped against her lips. “I can smell your arousal, and it’s killing me. I need to taste it. If you don’t want it, you’d better tell me now.”

Her breath left her in a rush as his raw words sank in and the images, the fantasy, began to fill her thoughts.

“No objections, then,” he rumbled, sliding down her body to pull off her underwear. Slowly, like a great cat, he prowled from her feet back up her legs, his muscles bunching and shifting fluidly under his skin. Her breath came in labored spurts as he spread her thighs.

She wanted this so badly, but he was looking at her and she was nervous and afraid she’d made a terrible mistake, when he whispered, “Gods, you’re beautiful.” Gods? Gads, maybe. Didn’t matter what strange word he’d used, because she went light-headed and at the same time, heavy with a deep-down ache.

Closing his eyes, he inhaled, and when he opened them again, she swore they glowed gold, but he dropped his gaze so quickly she couldn’t be sure. “Your scent is so sweet. I could spend all night between your legs.”

His hands slid up from her thighs to part her slick lips, and she held her breath as he lowered his head slowly, so slowly she wanted to scream. And then she did scream when his tongue made a tentative sweep from her core to her clit.

“Josh. Oh… oh, wow,” she breathed.

A purring sound vibrated through her body, and his hot breath bathed her in sensation. “If I hurt you or you don’t like this, tell me.”

Not like it? Was he crazy? “I don’t think that’s going to happen.”

“Don’t want to get carried away… you taste so good, and I’ve never done this before.…”

Her jaw dropped, but she didn’t have a chance to say anything before his mouth was on her again, kissing and sucking, bringing her h*ps off the bed. Nothing in her dreams or fantasies could have prepared her for this. Exquisite sensations broke across her body with every stroke of his tongue, which swirled and stabbed until she was grinding herself against it, pumping her h*ps wantonly. And when he caught her cl*t between his lips and suckled, she finally flew apart. Into a million pieces that shattered her mind.

Josh’s voice floated somewhere above her, and dazed, she opened her eyes. “That was… oh, damn,” she sighed.

He watched her with awe and not a little cockiness in his expression. “You’re so sexy when you come. Let’s do that again.”

Though she scarcely had the energy to breathe, she managed a laugh. “As much as I’d like to—”

“Why not? Is it your head?” Now he was watching her with concern, his blue eyes bright. “Serena? Are you okay?”

“Oh. Yes. I-I’m fine.” Which was a lie, because she wasn’t fine at all. She was falling for this man, and that was definitely not fine. But she was light-headed, and she could use a nap.

“Shit. We shouldn’t have done this. You’re injured and you need to rest—”

“Shh.” She touched his face, shutting him up instantly. “You sound like a doctor.”

“A side effect of working in a hospital and having one brother who is a paramedic and another who is a doctor.”

She smiled weakly, because she was still recovering from the mind-blowing cl**ax. “Must be nice to have medical people in the family.”

“Yeah, well, you haven’t met my brothers.” He eased onto his side and stretched out against her. “Go to sleep. We’ll discuss why brothers are major pains in the asses tomorrow.”

She snuggled against him and didn’t bother hiding her yawn. “Tomorrow, then.”

“Tomorrow,” he said, and for some reason he sounded… sad.

Sixteen

Wraith and Serena slept until after noon. Well, Serena had slept. Wraith mainly kept guard, pacing the suite and the hotel floor. Nothing was going to get past him to Serena. Nothing.

He’d called his demoness contact to let her know he needed a cure for a Mara disease and that he’d pay any price, but hadn’t heard back yet. He also knew what she’d require for payment. His body. For days.

For the first time in his life, screwing a beautiful demon nonstop didn’t appeal to him.

He shifted his gaze to Serena, who was just finishing up a phone call with her boss.

She caught him staring at her as she hung up and made her way across the lobby. “We need to take a detour on the way to the train. Val wants me to drop off the coin with the local Aegis Regent.”

Wraith broke out in a cold sweat. What if the Aegi knew what the real Josh looked like?

“Why?”

“Because if Byzamoth is after me, the coin is also in danger, and we can’t let him get it.”

“We can’t let him get you,” he growled. “We need to get on the train and get the hell out of Aswan.”

“It’ll only take a minute. The Regent lives just a few blocks from here. And if he has a computer, I might be able to do a little probing into Byzamoth.”

Well, shit. “Fine. Let’s go.”

They walked, Wraith scanned their surroundings. He’d also loaded up on meds before they left, and as they approached the Aegis dwelling, he wondered if he should up the dosage. He was tiring out more rapidly and severely now, and he needed to be on top of his game.

Eidolon had given him a month to live, but Wraith could feel his health deteriorating, and his gut told him he had a couple of days.

A bone-deep ache had settled into every cell in his body, but even though his mind fuzzed out sometimes, it didn’t want to roll over in defeat. Which was strange, given that he’d pretty much lived his entire life nursing a death wish.

“It should be just ahead,” Serena said, studying her map.

The breeze picked up, bringing with it dust… and the scent of human blood. A lot of blood. Wraith jerked to a stop, slapped hard by a wall of evil. “Serena.”

“What is it?”

“Demons.”

Her head whipped around. “Where?”

“I don’t know. But something felt weird on Philae, and I’m getting that same vibe now. How close are we?” he asked, and she pointed to a house a dozen yards away. “Okay, let’s get out of the open, see if this passes.”

She didn’t argue. She let him take her hand and lead her to the house, but as they drew closer, the coppery odor of blood grew stronger. It was coming from inside the Regent’s place. The hair on his neck stood up, and though his mouth should be watering at the scent, it went dry.

“Serena,” he said, “I need you to stay here on the porch while I check inside.”

“But—”

“This isn’t up for debate. I have a really, really bad feeling, and my gut is always right.”

“Okay.” Her voice was firm, strong, but he picked up the sound of her heart rate doubling. “Okay. I trust you.”

He wished she’d stop saying that. “Just stay here, and yell if you need me.” He kissed her, and it felt like the most natural thing in the world to do.

Cursing to himself, he tried the door. Unlocked. It swung open with a creak, and the stench of death hit him so hard he took a step back. Not just death, but misery. Blood. Bowels. His stomach lurched as he moved cautiously inside. His senses didn’t pick up the presence of others, but that didn’t mean he was alone. Many creatures didn’t have heartbeats or physical bodies. And some could conceal their life forces.

He cast a quick glance over his shoulder to make sure Serena had stayed put. She had, but the way she shifted her balance and worried her bottom lip told him she wasn’t going to stay there for long.

He found the Regent in the bedroom. And the bathroom. And the kitchen.

He lost his lunch in a garbage can, and as he splashed water on his face and rinsed his mouth in the kitchen sink, he became aware of the fact that he wasn’t alone. He whirled around and found himself face to face with Byzamoth.

“Humans are so… fragile.” Byzamoth smiled and licked the blood from his fingers. “We’ll see how Serena compares. I do hope she’s intact. For both your sakes.”

Wraith smashed his fist into the male’s face. Twice. He followed with a knee to the groin and an elbow to the throat. Byzamoth didn’t have time to be surprised. He went down hard.

“That’s what I’m talkin’ about.” Wraith delivered a kick to the demon’s privates. “Oh, yeah—oof!”

Byzamoth had swung his legs out, catching Wraith in the knees. Wraith slammed into a cabinet, barely kept from hitting the floor. The demon hit him with a full-body slam, and Wraith’s skull cracked hard on the wall, putting a dent in the plaster and putting his temper into orbit.

With a roar, he rammed Byzamoth into the counter, sending glasses and dishes crashing. The guy was stronger than most, and it didn’t take long to realize that in his weakened condition, Wraith might, for the first time, not come out on top of this.

Byzamoth’s hand closed around Wraith’s throat and squeezed. A vise grip of pain tore all the way to Wraith’s spine. He fumbled behind him with one hand, seeking the knife block he’d seen on the counter. Byzamoth’s face was a mask of evil, his teeth bared, blood staining them red.