His Darkest Embrace (5 page)

Her voice trailed off and he could see she was upset. “They had a prisoner; he looked pretty roughed up but was alive.”

“Was he a tall blond man?”

The look of yearning in her eyes left a bad taste in his mouth and Jagger swallowed hard before answering.

“No, it was an older gentleman.”

Her audible sigh of relief was short lived; she quickly ran to what was left of a large tent. She reemerged a few moments later and tossed a worn pair of jeans, boots, and T-shirt at him.

“These belong to Finn. You’re about the same height and build.”

He raised his eyebrows but accepted the clothes nonetheless. The small flesh wound she’d inflicted on the inside of his thigh was already healing, and he caught a blush forming as they locked eyes. She looked away, muttering, “don’t expect an apology.”

Once he was fully clothed, he stood silently watching her while she gathered up a few more things from the scattered remains of the camp. Jagger could tell she was trying to act nonchalant, but it was obvious she was dying to get her hands on the satchel and all of the maps and detailed notes that were safe inside.

When she was done, he held out the satchel, his dark green eyes holding hers with a direct stare.

“Do you want this?”

He could feel her heartbeat and the rush of blood begin to churn throughout her system, and it only confirmed what he was starting to suspect. The notes held information that the DaCostas were willing to kill for.

She paused as if afraid to speak and jumped when he continued speaking. “I’ll give it to you, on one condition.”

“And what’s that?”

“I need a name, I want to know what the hell you are,
and for the record
you still owe me.”

Her blue eyes flashed in anger and she very nearly spat at him. “Owe you? What the hell do I owe you?”

Jagger smiled softly. “If we’re gonna be working together I’m thinking we need to start this operation
even Stevens.”
He watched her eyes narrow as he moved toward her, and admired her spunk when she refused to move.

“You sound like we’re fifth graders out playing some stupid game at recess.” Her gaze fell to his lips and he smiled.

“It may be stupid, but I’m thinking my earlier injury requires a bit of payback.” Her eyes lowered and his grin widened even more.

Her voice was husky. “What is it that you wanted?”

“Let me show you,” he murmured, and without hesitation claimed the mouth that had been taunting him,
calling to him,
awakening a hunger that was so deep it was almost painful.

He groaned softly into her sweetness, and deep inside, the cat growled in pleasure.

Chapter 4

T
he feel of his lips against hers was like the sweetest sin imaginable. What the hell was she doing? Skye opened her mouth in protest and his tongue immediately plunged inside. To say she was shocked would have been an absolute understatement. She was stunned. Horrified, actually. And
that
was because the sensations that slid over her body sent shivers spinning out from deep inside, until her flesh broke out in a mess of goose bumps.

She
liked
the feel of his mouth skating across hers.
A lot.

Reality had taken a vacation.

An alien had invaded her body.

Surely that was the reason she had lost control of her faculties. If she
were
in control, there was no way she would let the jaguar get this close to her.
Again.

And man, he was close. His scent was potent, pure, raw and full of power. To make matters worse, he tasted even better than he smelled. She fought against the waves of pleasure that sprang to life, and against her will, she felt her insides melt at each pass of his tongue.

For a second, everything faded away, and there was nothing but his hardness,
his incredible maleness,
and a raw need that clawed at her in a most painful way.

But then, like a slap in the face, reality came crashing through the dense fog that had clouded her judgment, and she fought him, her fingers digging into his forearms in an effort to push him away. She could feel his reluctance and sighed raggedly when his arms left her body and his mouth slowly fell from her lips.

What the hell was wrong with her? Skye knew that she should be running as fast and as hard as she could in the other direction.

Jaguars bad—eagles good; plain and simple, they were her enemy. That’s what she had grown up believing.

It had been her mantra for as long as she could remember. But, there was something about this particular jaguar that gave her pause. And that was rare.

This tall, dark, sexy specimen … what was it about him that changed all of that? She couldn’t explain it, even if she tried. There was an intangible feeling that he could be trusted, and truth be told, it’s not like she had any other options at this point.

The camp had been attacked. Sam was a prisoner, and Finn? A sob caught in her throat as she thought of her brother. She could only hope and pray that Finn had managed to escape unharmed and at this very moment was hidden in the undergrowth—waiting and biding his time.

She took a few more moments to catch her breath and watched him move away, his hands still holding fast to the satchel.

“I believe you have something that belongs to me.”

At her words the jaguar warrior raised an eyebrow and smiled rakishly. “I believe I need a name first.”

She narrowed her eyes, not liking the little game he was playing, but she answered him, the word falling from her lips softly. “Skye.”

“Does Skye have a last name?”

“Knightly.” She reached for the satchel but it was held just beyond her fingertips.

There was no time to waste and if she had to beg, so be it.

“Please, I … I don’t have a lot of time.” She knew she sounded desperate but didn’t care. She watched his green eyes darken as he regarded her in silence, and then he handed the bag over.

She grabbed it quickly to her body. The soft leather felt good against her skin and a plethora of emotion threatened to break free as her fingers clung to the worn satchel.

The man continued to study her with his dark, fathomless eyes. They were unsettling.

His voice when he spoke was low and the timbre that rang through his words was full of strength.

“We need to get going. The jaguars are furious that two DaCostas were killed last night.” He paused. “Guess we’re both responsible for that.”

“We?” she asked softly, not liking where things were headed.

Skye felt the beginnings of panic in the pit of her stomach. It was like a lead ball that stuck hard and fast to her insides, and she felt queasy from the force of it. She tried to quell her anxiety, but her breaths came short and fast and she was beginning to feel light-headed. She closed her eyes and centered herself, reaching deep for a sense of calm.

Now was not the time to fall apart and as the moments ticked by, she welcomed the brave eagle that lay in wait, so very deep inside of her. It was time to meet her fate head-on, and to carry through her mission.

There was so much left for her to do and if she failed … Skye shuddered at the thought, slamming the door shut on the wanderings of her mind. She couldn’t go there. She
would not
fail.

She would succeed or die trying.

She grimaced at that thought. How ironic, really, considering she would
have
to die in order to succeed. To seal the portal and keep the demon underworld from invading the human realm, she would have to give the ultimate sacrifice.

Her very life.

She turned away from the warrior, not wanting him to see any form of weakness, but when his warm hands grazed her back she froze.

“I won’t let them hurt you.”

For just one moment, Skye wanted nothing more than to fall back into his chest and wrap herself around his strong, warm body.
Just for one moment.

But then she shook such feelings aside and pulled away from his touch. There was much to do. “We’ll need some food … and I need a name too.”

The smile that was still lingering around his handsome face was starting to irritate her, but when he spoke, there was no denying the animal magnetism the warrior possessed.

“The name’s Castille, Jagger Castille.”

Skye stilled and her eyes widened. The dude was a joker. Not what she would expect of a jaguar.

“I know what you’re thinking, but what would you say if I told you my favorite drink was a martini, shaken and not stirred?”

She smiled in spite of herself. A Bond joke, no less. His electric green eyes seemed to glisten and sparkle as he raised his eyebrows questioningly.

“I suppose you drive an Aston Martin as well?” Crap. Was that her voice? What the hell was wrong with her? The grin that lit his face was devastating and Skye felt her mouth go dry. She gave herself a mental shake, and cleared her throat. “I’d say you were full of shit.”

His laughter echoed into the quiet jungle. It was hearty, intoxicating in its freedom. “Actually, I prefer whiskey and I drive a battered pickup truck.” He winked at her, and just like that, Skye admitted to herself that she, an elite eagle knight, would accept help from her natural born enemy.

She turned from him abruptly and ran to the tattered remains of one of the tents, reemerging a few minutes later loaded down with two large bags of supplies. She threw one at Jagger and hiked her satchel securely around her shoulder, grasping the remaining bag of supplies in her other hand.

“So, do you have a hideout or something? They already know of your cave.”

She watched Jagger as he paused before answering, and tried to ignore the sexy ghost of a smile that touched his incredible lips.

“Yeah, or
something.”

Something caught his attention then and he whipped his head around, his entire demeanor suddenly changing. Power and danger clung to his hard frame like a second skin. He reeked with the potency of it. She could see a muscle working along his jaw and the air between them exploded with energy. It rippled through the air in waves. His nostrils quivered as an eerie howl rent the air, echoing down into the valley from the large mountain that loomed in the distance.

Skye swallowed thickly and tried to ignore the slash of terror that shot through her body. The jaguars were on the hunt and she had,
maybe,
an hour or so head start.

“We head east.” Jagger spoke softly, but the steely resolve that laced his words lent credence to the severity of the situation. For the first time, she realized just how much shit this man was getting himself into.

“You don’t need to come with me.” She shook her head, trying to get him to understand. “In fact it might be better if we just parted ways—”

“You’re going to have to try a lot harder than that to get rid of me.”

Her eyes followed him as he turned to the east, his handsome face lit with a harsh smile that was anything but subtle. The man was certifiably crazy. He
looked
like he was actually enjoying the whole experience of being on the run with a total stranger, just one step ahead of a pack of rabid jaguar shifters. When he paused and raised his eyebrows at her, indicating that she should follow, Skye knew she was in trouble.

Christ,
was she in trouble.

It had nothing whatsoever to do with that fact that her life was in danger, or that if she didn’t complete her father’s mission, well, mankind would suffer the consequences. Yeah,
that
was deep shit.

But this—this was something else entirely, and it had everything to do with the fluttery butterflies that were winging their way through her already unsettled stomach. Those pesky little butterflies were there because of the tall, dark man who was still staring at her in a way that made her insides tremble.

She exhaled softly and without another word followed him, praying to every god imaginable that she wasn’t making the biggest mistake of her life.

He was fast and she was happy to see that she had no trouble whatsoever keeping up with him. They literally flew through the dense underbrush and more than once she silently wished she could call to her eagle and take flight, but the sun had already begun to fade and evening was fast approaching.

Besides, she believed that Jagger truly had no clue what she was. Oh, he was curious and he obviously knew that she was not human, but so far, he’d not pressed her further.

They began to make their way up the side of a steep mountain. The going was rough and the trail they took tricky, but they kept up a demanding pace, knowing that the jaguar warriors were somewhere below, hunting and tracking. They swam through several streams and one fast-flowing river, and Skye was confident that their trail could not be followed.

Well, at least not easily.

A few hours later, darkness had indeed fallen, coating the jungle in its velvety softness. Jagger stopped just ahead of her and she came up beside him, her chest heaving after the rough climb up. A flicker of annoyance crept over her features when she noted the man had hardly broken a sweat.

He pointed a few hundred feet higher, and even though her raptor eyes afforded her enhanced vision, she was puzzled.

“I’m not sure what I’m supposed to be looking at.”

Jagger grabbed her and pulled her after him, his enthusiasm reminding her of a child who had a secret to share.

“Where are we going?” Skye knew she sounded petulant but damn it, she was tired, running on fumes, and for some reason he was irritating the crap out of her.

“This is my
something.”

A flash of white drew her attention to his incredible mouth, and the smile that slashed through the night was devastating. Her belly did a little flip, as slowly, her eyes wound their way up to his, and she swallowed hard. The man was like a freaking god; all hard muscle and chiseled features. Why were the dangerous ones always so incredibly sexy?

“Um,
your something?”
God, did she have to sound like a complete idiot?

He actually laughed at that and she found an answering smile gracing her own tired features.

“My hideout.”

A lightbulb suddenly went off in her head and she studied the rock formation more closely, for the first time noticing that the shadowing was different amongst the layers.

There was an opening there!

Adrenaline pumped through her body and she eagerly followed him up toward the entrance. After climbing along a steep ledge she followed him through an opening that was only wide enough to allow one body at a time. You could literally blink and miss it.

It really was the perfect hideout.

Once inside, cool air wafted over her and she was suddenly blind from a wall of darkness. It weighed heavily on her. She felt claustrophobic and her heart rate sped up as she struggled to inhale a deep breath.

“Take it easy, breathe nice and slow.”

Skye felt Jagger’s breath on her face and was startled at his close proximity. Heat spiraled up from her belly spreading fire in a slow burn. It didn’t sit well with the intense feelings that were messing with her head. Instead of feeing reassured that such a strong ally was close by, she felt incredibly vulnerable. His fingers slid from her cheek to her shoulder and down along her arm until he grasped her hand tightly.