Checkmate (14 page)

Immediately she’d wanted money from him. “Just a little,” she’d pleaded.

Sitting at the interminably long red light, he smiled the same feral smile he’d given her back then.

He remembered crouching in front of her kneeling, begging figure and burning two hundred-dollar bills with his lighter, right in front of her eyes.

She’d spit on him. “You stupid son of a bitch. You never was good for nothin’. I shoulda aborted you when I had the chance.” When she’d put her hands on the floor to brace herself to stand, he’d stepped on them to prevent her.

Carefully he’d reached for the half-empty bottle of whiskey and poured the contents onto her back. She’d screamed, berating her worthless, piece-of-shit son, spittle shooting from her mouth. He’d flicked the lighter again and held it in front of her eyes.

The sudden silence had been deafening. The flame had danced in her dull eyes.

“What’re ya doin’, ya jackass? Lemme up!”

“Go to hell, Momma,” he’d growled softly. With a flick of his wrist, he’d touched the edge of her ragged shirt with the flame. Immediately the whiskey-laden cloth caught fire and with a whoosh, she’d been engulfed. He’d let her hands go then and watched as she staggered to her feet, howling in fear and pain.

She’d careened off the walls of the tiny house. The wallpaper, yellowed and stained with age, had caught fire as quickly as her clothes. Eventually the shrieking had stopped and her body had slumped to the floor with a thump. Her skin melted off her face and he’d watched with complete indifference.

Slipping his hands into his pockets, he’d leaned against the doorframe and watched the ball of fire consume his childhood dwelling, mesmerized. It had been exhilarating. And not a bit bothersome.

Somewhere in his focused attention, sirens broke through. He remembered thinking, “Hmph. Someone had actually called the fire department.” He hadn’t thought anyone would even bother in that neighborhood. Not with as many shootings and drug crimes that happened on a daily basis.

In the long run, the place had burned to the ground, destroying any evidence with it. No one had connected the man he was with the son he used to be. He’d never even been contacted and informed of his mother’s death. Such a shame.

A horn blared behind him, jerking him back to reality, and he realized he was sitting at a green light. Somehow he’d made it through the last several lights in an almost unconscious haze. Looking in the rearview mirror, he saw that he didn’t even remember driving the long stretch of Chestnut Street.

He shrugged. Just as well. He pulled into his numbered parking spot. Someday soon he’d be first. As it stood, he was high enough on the totem pole to get out of work for a few days when he needed to without questions, to play his games. It wouldn’t be long before he was at the top of the pole.

He smiled and got out of the car. A smudge of dirt marring the black finish caught his attention. He stooped to rub at it with his finger before striding into the building, whistling.

* * *

“We need to talk about something, E.”

Eli glanced up from his paperwork. “What’s up?” His twin had a bizarre look on his face. Resigned almost.

“I just talked to the detective assigned to Nikki’s case.”

A sick feeling filled Eli’s stomach. “Tell me they’ve found the fucker,” he gritted out.

Caelan plopped into the chair across the desk from Eli. “No. Well not the murderer.” He waved Eli off. “I’m talking about the detective in charge of her attack eight months ago.”

The pencil snapped in his fingers with an angry crack. To say he was a tad pissed about the bastards who’d done so much emotional and physical damage to Nikki-Raine was the understatement of the century. “What did he have to say?”

“They think they have them in custody.”

“And?”

“And they want Nikki to come down to identify them,” Caelan answered.

“Shit.”

“Yeah.”

“Did you explain to them why she’s out here in the first place?” Eli dropped the two halves of the pencil and pushed them around absentmindedly. He wasn’t even sure Nikki-Raine would agree to go face-to-face with her old attackers. And damn it, he’d come too far with her to set her back now.

“I did. He promised to talk to the detective in charge of that case so they could work something out.”

“There’s nothing to work out, Cael. I’m not putting her life in jeopardy for those pea-brains. They’ll have to do it some other way. Webcast or pics or something.”

Caelan nodded. “I told him that. I don’t want to put her out there any more than you do, E.”

Eli relaxed in his ergonomic chair. He trusted his brother implicitly. Neither one of them would do anything that might harm their mates. “Fine. Get ’em to send me a lineup and I’ll have her look at it.”

“It’s already on its way.”

“Then why the hell are we having this conversation?” Eli rubbed a hand over his face. Was it just him, or were they going around in circles?

“That’s only part of the problem.”

The dread returned.

“If it is them, she’s going to have to testify against them.”

“No fucking way.”

Caelan sighed. “They killed a woman this time, E. Without Nikki’s testimony they might get away with it.”

Eli saw red. His fangs lengthened, ready to explode right along with the rest of his wolf. The urge to tear the bastards to bits nearly crushed him. “If the cops know they killed this woman, they don’t need Nikki.” No way would he subject her to a public trial for nothing.

“There’s no evidence. Just hearsay. If they can get Nikki to tell what happened to her, it will set the stage. Tell the jury that they’ve attempted to do this before.”

“He’s right, Eli.”

Eli stood at Nikki’s words, shoving his chair over in his hurry. Caelan twisted also.

“How long you been standing there, sweetheart?” Damn, but she had a way of tempering even his worst moods.

“Long enough.” She sauntered into the room, her belly peeking out beneath the hem of her shirt.

Eli licked his suddenly dry lips. His cock hardened as it always did in her presence. If she’d walked in here before Caelan had, he’d have laid her over his desk and buried himself inside the tight heaven of her pussy.

She stood at the edge of his desk and lifted her chin, her eyes daring him. “I have to do this, Eli.”

“No.” He shook his head. “Hell no.”

“Yes.”

“I’m not going to fucking argue with you on this, Nikki-Raine.”

She snorted.

Eli’s eyes widened at her blatant disregard.

“It is my life, Eli. I…
need
to do this. So I can put it behind me once and for all.” Her gaze dropped to his desk. “And if they’ve killed an innocent woman like they almost did me, they can’t be allowed to get away with it.”

“Something else will come to light, Nikki. I’m not risking—”

“It’s not up to you.”

Eli charged around the corner of the desk nearest to her. “It is goddamn—”

She pressed her fingers against his lips and shook her head. “It’s not.”

Caelan rose. “I think I’ll just go check on Tieran.”

Neither one of them saw him leave.

Closing his eyes, Eli took a deep breath and held it. He released it with a whoosh, but it was another few seconds before he could look at her again. Little minx.

“I have to get over my fear, Eli. I should have done more when it happened, but I took the coward’s way out. Now I have to live with the fact that they’ve killed someone.” She stabbed at her chest with her thumb. “I could have prevented that if I had just been a bigger person back then.”

“No,” he said, grabbing hold of her hand and pulling her to him. “You did everything you could at the time, Nikki. This is
not
your fault.”

She gave him a sad smile and whispered, “But it feels like it is.”

Fuck.

How could he deny her when he knew in his heart what she had to do? It went against every protective instinct of his being.

“Damn,” he sighed, hugging her to his chest. His fingers tangled in the black sea of her hair and he kissed the top of her head.

She let go of his hand and wrapped her arms around him. Her belly pillowed his growing erection, making him think of more important things they could be doing instead of arguing.

“Are you always hard?”

See? She was thinking the same thing.

Eli swayed with her. “Wouldn’t be very useful if it was soft all the time, would it?” He kissed his way down her hairline to her ear and nibbled the soft flesh, inhaling her delicious scent.

Nikki cocked her head, giving him access to her neck. As if she could deny him. Tumultuous thoughts still knocked around her head. No matter what Eli said, if she’d sucked it up all those months ago and given a better description or some more details, then that woman might not be dead right now. And she wouldn’t feel this inexorable amount of guilt. She shouldn’t be making out right now. She should be at the police station picking out faces.

Eli’s tongue lashed out, licking her from tender shoulder to earlobe, making her shiver. The man had one hell of a talented tongue. Talented enough to make her forget everything for a moment. His lengthened teeth nipped at her throat and her knees went weak.

If he wasn’t holding her up, she’d probably hit the floor.

“I could take you on my desk right now,” he growled, sending a whole new set of goose bumps parading down her arms. “I can smell your arousal, sweetheart.”

“Mmm.” Any kind of rational response fled. His hands wandered over her fevered body, down her sides, around her butt cheeks, up her ribcage, surrounding her breasts.

Before she knew it, he had her top off and his fingers were plucking at her nipples.

Eli rotated, turning them so her butt brushed against the edge of the desk. His mouth devoured her, laving her face and neck to her chest and the soft flesh there. She needed to feel his skin, to run her fingers over his abs. Nikki pulled at his T-shirt, tugging it from his waistband. She slipped her hands beneath and smiled when he hissed in a breath.

She knew from the rock-hard cock against her belly that he was more than ready to take her, just like he’d said.

With his hands cupping her ass, Eli lifted her and set her on the desk. He brushed the papers off by sweeping his arm across the top. Nikki attacked his button-fly. The buttons weren’t easy as strained as they were over his cock.

“Damn, I can’t wait to be inside you. Hurry.”

“Impatient pup.” She laughed when he growled.

“I don’t see no pups around here. Yet.”

Nikki’s breath caught and she lifted her head to look at him. His eyes glittered with desire and…hope? He wanted a child? She’d heard him call some kids pups at one time, and why not? They were the children of shifter parents, would someday be able to become a wolf themselves.

“Yes, Nikki, I want a baby with you. Lots of them.” His dimples deepened.

She swallowed and imagined her belly big and round with his baby. Hell yes, she wanted the same thing.

Nikki attacked his buttons with renewed fervor. The third one was stuck. He flipped her fumbling fingers out of the way and tore the fly open. His cock sprung free and she wrapped her fingers around his velvety length.

Eli leaned forward and rested his forehead on hers. “Harder,” he whispered, his eyes closed, his tongue dipping out to lick his lips. A glistening drop of pre-come seeped from the slit. Nikki used her thumb to spread the moisture. His cock jumped when she hit a nerve-filled area and he gritted his teeth.

“Damn that feels good. Fuck,” he grunted when she twisted her hand up and over the head.

“Stop.” Eli pulled back. “I’m gonna come all over your hands and I want to be buried inside you first.” He pushed her back until she was lying on the desk and slowly unzipped her jeans.

His warm hands slid into the top of her panties and pried the material over her hips, taking the jeans with them. He stripped off her pants, leaving her naked and panting. His cock jutted proudly.

Eli kneeled before her and spread her thighs. Nikki scrambled to prop herself on her elbows.

“Relax.”

“I want to watch.”

His eyes widened and glowed, his nostrils flared.

She wanted to watch but couldn’t because the minute his tongue touched her pussy, her head dropped back and her eyes closed. Small delicate licks became long swipes from her anus to her clit. Nikki dug her heels into the side of the desk, her thighs quivering.

Within seconds he had her begging. He sucked at her clit but not with quite enough pressure for release. She whimpered. His tongue lashed deep inside her and she squeezed his head between her legs.

She glared at the top of his head. “Please,” she cried.

Eli lifted his gaze to hers. “That’s what I wanted to hear.” He smiled and inserted two fingers into her channel, scissoring them so they caressed her inner walls, nearly making her jump off the table. “So wet,” he crooned. “Mine.”

His tongue returned to her clit, flicking and torturing it until the nub was ready to explode. At the last second he pulled it completely out of its hood and pressed the tip of his tongue to it.

Nikki’s entire body seized. Tingles shot to her curled toes, and her nipples throbbed. Head flailing back and forth, she slapped at the desk. It was the most intense orgasm she’d ever had. All the while Eli assaulted her with his mouth and fingers, wrenching every last drop of the orgasm from her body.

He rose after she stopped shaking, a grin splitting his face.

“My turn.” His voice was guttural. Eli stepped between her thighs, lifted her legs around his waist and placed the plum-shaped head of his cock at her entrance. The most tender look crossed his face. “Are you ready?”

Nikki nodded. “More than.” She reached both hands up and laced her fingers with his. Tieran had told her that shifters could sense when a woman was ovulating. Was this one of those times? Could Eli sense her heat, so to speak? She didn’t think it was, but obviously a shifter’s nose was more reliable than a calendar.

He pressed in, inch by delectable inch. Her body bowed off the hard surface as she took all of him. When she glanced to his face she could see his control slipping. Sweat dripped from his forehead to land on her belly, and his neck muscles corded.