Captive's Kiss (10 page)

Tanner sprinted forward to catch Saige before she collapsed. He gathered her in his arms, cradling her to his chest. “Saige. It’s over. You’re safe.”

Soft brown eyes gazed up at him, shining with relief and something else he couldn’t name. But hell, he didn’t care, as long as she was out of danger. “Tanner,” she whispered, digging her fingers into his shirt like she’d done in the library. “You did it.” She nuzzled his chest, and the tiny gesture sent his heart into overdrive. It was familiar and possessive, and he liked it.

“We all did. Things are still kinda chaotic.”

Her head jerked up and she looked around. “Logan?”

“I’m okay, sis.” Her brother’s voice rumbled from the other side of the corridor. He stepped forward to grab her hand. “I’m okay. We’re getting out of this.”

“You’re hurt!” She reached up, hand hovering but not touching the massive bruising around his eye.

Black eyes would heal quickly, but Tanner wasn’t taking any chances. “You both need to see a healer. I want to take you back to Watcher HQ.”

Saige turned back to him and nodded. “Whatever you think is best.”

I think it’s best if you stay with me.
Tanner looked down at her sweet, marred face and wanted to kill the Vipers, over and over again. But the noise from the arena had died down. He had no clue how many teams Arawn had sent, but it had been a lot. “You were so brave today,” he murmured.

“I don’t feel brave,” she whispered. “What about the Lash males I lured in here?”

“We’re getting all the captives out. The innocent ones, like them, will go back home tonight. The rest, if they’re known criminals…” he shrugged. “Depends. We’ll deal with them on a case-by-case basis.”

Logan stalked back over to the wall and sat down. Saige flicked a glance to him, then turned those doe eyes on Tanner. She didn’t speak, just looked at him like he made the sun come up every morning. “Thank you,” she whispered.

He moved to set her down, but she shook her head. “Can you…just hold on to me for a bit?”

Hell. He had the sudden feeling he needed to hold her for eternity, but that feeling was out of the blue and too soon. They barely knew each other. She’d been through a living nightmare. But he grinned, loving the feel of her against him. “Might be a little longer than a bit.”

“That’s okay,” she said shyly.

Shy. His heart melted a bit more. After they’d fucked against a wall at Hades, of all things, she had the sweetness to be shy. But she was so young. An adult, but so damn young. Another reason not to rush her.

Ian paced the hall, talking on his phone. Actually doing more listening than talking, so Tanner guessed he was talking to Aleksai. Ian shot a glance at him, then Saige and Logan. “Any broken bones?”

Saige and Logan both shook their heads.

“Good.” Ian went back to his call.

If bones had been broken in the scuffle, getting home sooner was essential. Lash demons healed so quickly, if their bones started to set incorrectly, the healers needed to re-break them in order to allow correct restoration of motion. Not fun for any of them.

Ian returned, shoving his phone in a pocket. “Okay, Aleksai needs us to help transport the missing Lash back to HQ. They match up with the names and photos of the ones we’ve been looking for. Families are being called now.” He gave a chin lift to Tanner. “Can you take both of them?”

“Yeah, but I need an amulet.” The Vipers had taken that, along with his weapons.

Ian handed him one. “I’m sure someone has extras. Take mine.”

Tanner took it and the rest of his team departed back toward the arena. He shifted Saige higher in his arms and glanced at Logan. “You two travel much by portal?”

“No,” they said in unison.

He hadn’t thought so. “Logan, stand next to me and hold my arm. I’ll hold Saige. It can be disorienting, and you may feel sick for a minute afterward. It’s all totally normal.”

Logan nodded and stood close. “Let’s get out of here.”

Saige wrapped her arms around his neck. Tanner recited the Demonish words to a spell that would open a portal, and in seconds the shimmering ring appeared. Logan grabbed on, Tanner counted down from three, and they all stepped in.

C
HAPTER
9

T
ANNER STALKED DOWN THE UNMATED
demons’ quarters in the middle of the night, unable to sleep. In the three days since he’d brought Saige and Logan here, he had shown them around the place, but also tried to give them space. The healers had examined them and, luckily, had released them that same night.

Now they slept in the guest quarters. Hopefully that would change soon. Logan relentlessly asked about starting Watcher training, and when he did, he’d be living on the same floor as Tanner.

And if that happened, he’d bet that Saige would stay too. Their sibling bond was tight and precious, and he was glad they had each other to lean on.

He wandered down the stairs, drawn by a need he couldn’t explain. Emerging one floor below, the guest floor, he drew a deep breath. There were usually several guests staying at HQ at any given time, and tonight several scents mingled together, including Saige’s.

The sweet jasmine lingering in the air wasn’t recent. He knew she’d met Melixa and another witch, Whysper, today. They planned to start working with her on honing her incredible skill and achieving enough control to not black out after using it.

His boots thudded on the smooth marble floor. He wouldn’t go into her room-it had a lock and he was sure she used it. But he’d just walk by. Just to hear her breathing steadily, hopefully sleeping peacefully.

He passed Logan’s room first. Right next to Saige’s, the carved wooden doors matched and gleaming silver doorknobs reflected the fire bulbs along the ceiling. Taking a deep breath, he continued to her door…and frowned.

His acute hearing allowed him to detect her breathing even through the door, and it wasn’t steady. Punctuated by loud sighs and grunts, her choppy breaths were anything but peaceful.

A nightmare? Shit, he wouldn’t be surprised, after her ordeal.

She cried out, and he instantly laid his hands against the carved wood. “Saige?”

A gasp carried to his ears and he detected the rustle of cotton sheets. A deep sigh echoed through the door, as if she were catching her breath.

“Saige? Are you okay?”

Rapid, light footsteps padded across the room, getting louder as she neared the door. The lock clicked as she yanked it open. The light from the hall made her blink, scrunching her beautiful face and stepping back. “Tanner? What are you doing here? Is something wrong?”

“I wanted to check on you.” It might sound lame, but it was the truth. “Are you okay? I heard you cry out.”

“I had a nightmare.” She shoved a hand through her sleep-mussed hair and gazed up at him, looking weary but vulnerable. A soft pink tank top clung to her slender torso, and white gauzy wide-legged pajama pants swallowed up her legs. Only her bare toes peeked out, decorated with a coat of bright yellow polish that he didn’t remember seeing earlier in the day. She leaned her head against the doorframe as her eyes roamed his shoulders. “Can you come in?”

“Of course.” He followed her into the dark room and closed the door behind him. Wrapping her in his arms, he allowed her scent, her nearness, her touch, to saturate his senses. Gods, it felt good to hold her. “Want to talk about it?”

“Actually, no,” she murmured into his chest. “It was about being back at the Vipers’ place.” She shuddered. “I can never thank you enough for getting us out of there.”

“Like I’d leave you to those assholes. I’d kill them again if I could.” His grip tightened. “Have you had many nightmares?”

“Not really. I’ve had dreams the last two nights but not bad enough to wake me up.” She yawned against his T-shirt. “One of the healers told me this might happen; that it’s normal after a trauma.”

“True.” He rubbed her back. “I’m glad you talked to them about this stuff. Is there anything I can do?”

She pulled back to look up at him, brown eyes soft and sweet. “Could you…stay?”

Primal pride flared in his chest. He knew in that moment that he could never say no to her. “You got it.”

She climbed into the king size bed and scooted over, making room for him. She looked so small in it. He kicked off his shoes and socks and got in beside her, pulling her against him, his chest to her back. Her hair was silk against his cheek and her jasmine scent surrounded him.

Lying next to her, feeling her soft curves, stirred his cock. But that’s not why he was there. He sensed the trust she had in him, and it roused something powerful in his heart. “You have a good day?”

“Yeah.” Her voice was quiet and drowsy. “I like it here. There’s so much going on, and everyone has been nice. I just hope...”

Her voice hitched on the last words and he guessed the reason why. “No one will hold what happened against you.”

“I just feel so guilty,” she whispered.

“Everyone here understands why you had to play along with the Vipers’ sick game,” he murmured. “We deal with kidnappings and coercive situations often, unfortunately.”

“Yeah?”

“Yep. The realms can be brutal, as you know.” He stroked lightly up and down her thigh, feeling smooth muscles through the thin cotton of her pants. “And by the way, the staff and Watchers are kinda blown away by your power. Mind control is rare but so damn amazing. You’ll get better at it.”

“I hope so. I’d like to stay here and so would Logan.”

“You can.” He smiled into the dark, vowing to make that happen as seamlessly as possible. He slid his arm across her waist to grip her hand. “Arawn is wrapping up meetings with the families and will give an official statement tomorrow. And he believes in you.”

“I still can’t believe he knows who I am. That’s surreal.”

Tanner nuzzled her hair. “Have you met him yet?”

“No! I’m too scared.”

He gave a low chuckle. “He doesn’t bite. Well, only Ria.”

“Good for them. I’ll just, you know, hang out in the background, trying not to pass out.”

He released her hand only to brush her hair away from her ear. Unable to resist, he dropped a quick kiss to her cheek. “If you work with Melixa and Whysper, you’ll be fine. They’ll come up with a plan and a pace that works for you.”

“I hope so.” Her delicate fingers tugged his arm, and he slid it beneath her head, pillow-style. She held his hand between both of hers. “I’m glad you’re here.” Her voice was barely a whisper.

Hell. There’s nowhere he’d rather be. “I’m all yours, Saige.”

Her breathing evened out, and in minutes she was asleep. Peacefully.

Had she heard those last words from his mouth? If she had, then fine. He didn’t feel like trying to hide anything from her. And lying beside her felt more perfect than anything he could imagine. He didn’t remember the last time he’d lain with a female and not fucked her. But Saige wasn’t any female. He’d do anything she needed, whether it was busting her out of a hellhole, or simply tucking her against his body.

It went beyond the need to protect. This was deeper and he didn’t understand where it was coming from, but this female filled every inch of him with her sweetness, and he wasn’t about to let it go.

Early morning light tried to force its way into the room, pulling Saige from a warm and blissful sleep. As her sluggish mind roused itself toward conscious thought, three things registered with clarity and made her grin and want to stretch out like a contented cat.

First, the light told her she was in a room with a window. No more Viper basement, surrounded by concrete and angry shouts. A real room. Even on this third morning of freedom, she still wanted to pinch herself.

And one with a bed that felt like a cloud, with sheets so soft she wanted to keep brushing her hand across them. Anything this soft had to be no more substantial than a butterfly wing or a gossamer web, right?

She grabbed a fistful of exquisite cotton and started to bring her hand up to her chin-and bumped into the third, and best, thing. Another hand, draped across her waist.

Tanner.

Her body heated and she was glad no one could see the huge smile that had to be pulling her mouth upward. He’d stayed with her all night. He hadn’t snuck out. She hadn’t been sure if he would try to or not, but now all she wanted was to savor this wonderfully private time with him. She took a steady breath and thought about every inch of his legs, which were entwined with hers. Her mind conjured his broad chest and narrow hips, pressed up against her backside. She glanced down at his strong fingers, relaxed against the white cotton sheet.
He stayed with me.

Gods, could there be a better way to wake up?

Not that she could imagine.

Joy bloomed in her heart, and in the glow of dawn, she didn’t fight it. Being close to him warmed her inside and out, and it wasn’t just physical. She’d been here three days and couldn’t seem to get enough time with him, though she knew he was busy. The last thing she wanted was to be needy.

But in this moment, she’d take advantage of every second.