Her Vampire Ward by Britten Thorne Read Free Book Online Page B

“Want to fool around a little?”
    I
contemplated it. Ian and I had been sort of involved on and off for
almost as long as we’d worked with each other. We weren’t
really compatible and we both knew it, but kept waking up together. I
guess we should have taken it as a sign that we were both working way
too much.
    “ All
right,” I said, rolling onto my back. It wasn’t as if I
was going to get any sleep either way. “Let’s get
complicated.”
    Ian
chuckled. His dusty blonde hair stood in all directions - he looked
the way I felt. “Let’s try to avoid that.” He
kissed my neck, placed a hand on my breast and gently squeezed. I ran
my fingers through his hair with a sigh. He was warm, familiar, and I
finally started to relax as his lips worked their way up to my jaw,
and then my mouth. He tasted like peppermint candies, as always. I
kissed him back, taking in the sweet flavor.
    He
pulled away to kick his shoes off, then laid on his side next to me.
He wedged a knee between my legs and planted his mouth back on mine.
We’d tried to make more of this than it was in the past, but we
were at the point where we could finally accept that this was nothing
more than a comfort. A winding-down after intensely stressful days.
    His
hand found its way under my shirt and bra to knead my breast. It was
a clumsy move beneath all the layers of clothing, especially with the
harness I was wearing to hold my knives. But we couldn’t start
stripping while on call. It was enough to get me going, though the
adrenaline still helped. Warmth bloomed between my legs, and I moved
closer to press myself against his thigh.
    God,
was I worn out. It was such a relief to let myself fall into his
kiss. Sucking on his tongue, grinding against his leg, it awakened a
very simple need in me and put the day’s complications far in
the background.
    The
lights dimmed, and the first alarm sounded. It was a low hum through
the building, meant to alert us without alarming the clients. Ian and
I both sprung into action, neither of us hesitating or saying a word.
He stamped his feet back inside his shoes as I left the room.
    “ Report?”
I asked as I burst through the door. I retrieved my weapons and
checked them - gun with the silver bullets, loaded. Gun with the
wooden bullets, loaded. I strapped the holster across my waist.
Sword, loosened in its sheath, slung over my back. I didn’t
bother strapping it on just yet. I peered over Joel’s shoulder.
Daniel was on his feet in the room, but Alek was still asleep.
    “ Just
a probe,” he said. He indicated a different monitor. The hotel
was a bright green dot in a sea of darkness. A very dim cloud, also
green, appeared from one end of the screen and slid across, passing
right over us. “Coming from far away,” he continued,
“It’s got to be the warlock. He isn’t getting a
lock on us or anything. Yet. But the dude’s got quite a range.”
    “ I'm
back!” Carolyn burst into the room. The short blonde woman
entered behind me and squinted at the green monitor. “Gimme my
seat, Joel. You and Ian go patrol outside. Keep the fires lit. I’ve
got the room from here.” The two men left. Carolyn flipped a
switch on a small panel below the monitors and spoke into a tiny
microphone, “Can you hear me, Daniel?”
    I
watched him on the monitor as he spoke. He kept his voice low. “I
can. Report?”
    “ Magical
probes, from a pretty good distance. Nothing to get alarmed about
just yet.”
    He
was silent for a moment. “No. We remember this guy. I’d
rather be proactive now. Is Eve there?”
    I
leaned over Carolyn’s shoulder. “I’m here.”
    “ I
want to set off the decoy wards. Come take my place in here.”
    “ I
can just go deal with them.”
    “ Let
me,” he said, “You did all the driving tonight so far.
Chill out here, it won’t take me long.”
    “ Okay.
Be right down.” He was right; after the adventures earlier in
the evening, I was probably a little too tired to drive around