Two could play this game, so she nibbled back. Creases on the sides of his face told her he enjoyed it. She wanted sex to be playful and fun, and Hugh seemed to agree.

Without taking his eyes off her, he grabbed the bottom of her shirt and yanked it over her head. After tossing it over his shoulder, he took in every inch of her exposed flesh and let out a low, guttural sound.

“You’re unbelievable,” he breathed. “The most gorgeous thing I’ve ever seen.” His gaze paused at her hip and a devilish smile took hold of his sexy mouth. He’d noticed her own tattoo, peeking out of her jeans.

“You’re not too shabby—”

He cut her off with another fierce, greedy kiss. He made love to her mouth with firm, teasing caresses from his lips and tongue, and her toes curled. Everything inside her tingled times a thousand. He kissed from her lips down to her neck, where he stroked and nuzzled, making her head fall to the side so he had easier access. He put his hands on her waist, moved them up her sides and slid them around to her back to unclasp her bra.

Then very nimble fingers skimmed over her shoulders to lead the straps down her arms. The kisses to her neck never stopped. When the bra hit the floor, he licked his way to her shoulder before pulling back once again to check her out.

Tess never paid much attention to her body. She wasn’t blind to it, but she was so comfortable in her own skin she rarely looked at it. Watching Hugh rake his eyes over her now, she was glad she’d been blessed with what she had because he seemed to be rendered speechless.

To make him drool just a little bit more, she arched her back, pressed her shoulders against the door. Okay, so she wasn’t oblivious to her feminine wiles. The gesture had the desired effect and he swooped in to capture her breast in his mouth. While he suckled one, his hand massaged the other, rubbed her nipple between his fingers, traced her areola.

Her head fell back against the door. The best, most arousing vibrations ever surged through her system and woke up every nerve ending in her body. God, it felt good to have his mouth on her, to have him groping her, fondling her, learning her curves. She moved her hands to the back of his head, ran her fingers through his silky soft hair.

Leisurely, he made his way down her abdomen, dropping kisses along the underside of her breasts, her sides, her belly button. His hands roamed to her backside, cradling her ass before moving to her button fly.

After popping two buttons, he hesitated. Traced the tattoo on her lower abdomen and she guessed he was wondering about it.

“I’ll tell you about mine if you tell me about yours,” she said.

“Later. I don’t want to talk right now.”

“You mean you’re not going to whisper sweet nothings in my ear?”

He resumed the button task. “Anything I might say in the next hour is not going to be sweet.”

Tess shuddered. “Hour?” Holy shit. “That’s the sexiest thing you could say right there.”

He slid a finger along the edge of her panties and she sucked in a breath. His touch dipped lower. Unthinking, she widened her stance. He drew slow, lazy circles over the thin cotton, over the nub swelling with each unbearably good stroke of his finger.

“Please, Hugh. Get me naked.”

“Soon.” He slipped his finger underneath the material and she let out a moan. Pressed her palms against the door.

“Now.” She wanted his fingers inside her, his other hand all over her, his mouth sucking her nipple. And that was just the start.

“Impatient, huh?” he said, voice ragged with eagerness too. He gripped her jeans. She wiggled to help ease them down, but halfway there the phone rang. The sound interrupted his momentum. He paused, listened to the second and third rings before saying, “Fuck.”

“Don’t answer it.” Tess knew—she knew—if he answered the telephone their extracurricular activities would end. And she desperately wanted to continue.

“I have to. It could be important.” He stood, and she almost whimpered at the sight of the erection in his pants. He adjusted himself and went to the nightstand beside the bed.

“What?” he growled, bringing the phone to his ear.

Tess smiled. He didn’t want to stop either. His frustration at being interrupted matched hers.

“You’re sure it’s going down tonight?”

Not what she wanted to hear. She pulled up her jeans, picked up her bra. Her body still thrummed from his ministrations. His taste, smell, handprints, lingering.

“Repeat that location, would you?”

She let out a deep breath. It sounded like they had the lead they’d been waiting for. After being cooped up in the house for a week, this tip-off was what they’d wanted, but the timing sure sucked.

Or maybe it was a blessing in disguise.

“I’ll meet you there.” He hung up and turned his incredible body in her direction. He frowned when he saw she’d dressed.

“Where we going?” She tried to ask the question to his face but couldn’t keep her eyes off his chest.

He grabbed his shirt and covered himself before answering. “I’m going to meet a few Night Runners. It looks like we found where the Wolf Seekers are keeping Trey.”

“By I you mean you and not me?” Bye, bye, residual lust. If he thought he’d leave her here while he went out to fight or do whatever it was he planned on doing, he was sorely mistaken.

Big Bad Night Runner Hugh added his watch to his wrist. “That’s right.”

“And what makes you think I’ll agree to that? I thought you knew me better.” She sure knew him. Knew he’d try and protect her, do things the way he always had. By himself.

“It’s not open for discussion.”

“Exactly. I’m coming with you.”

She stood in front of the door, blocking his exit. Reading his mind wasn’t difficult. His wandering eyes were trying to figure out a way past her without engaging in force. Because if he tried to get by her before agreeing to take her along, she sure as hell would put up a fight. And win.

“Tess.” His voice softened, his disposition mellowed. “I need you to stay here.”

Foolish man. “And what bullshit do you plan to fling my way to convince me of that? Come on. You know I’m not staying here.”

“This isn’t a Banoth we’re up against.” He ran a hand through his mussed hair.

Remembering her fingers in his mane, she tripped over her first attempt to reply. “Oh thank God. That thing stunk.”

“I don’t need your help.” He took a step toward her.

Wasn’t that just the bane of his existence? “I know. You don’t need anybody’s help. I don’t either. So that makes us even. I won’t help you. And you won’t help me. Deal? We’ll just team up as equals only looking out for ourselves. At the very least I can prove to be a distraction, don’t you think?”

“That’s the goddamn problem.” His hand went to his mouth, where the back of his knuckle wiped at his bottom lip.

Oh. “What I meant to say was diversion. I can divert the bad guys.”

He shifted his weight, growing impatient. “And who are the bad guys, Tess?”

She was about to answer Wolf Seekers, but stopped herself. The Wolf Seekers were humans. The Night Runners wolfen. Who did she think the bad guys were? Her goal here was to help him find Trey and in return get his help in finding Dobson. A wolfen. A bad guy. A guy that had killed. If the Wolf Seekers had hurt Trey, what did that make them? The line dividing humans and Veilers continued to blur.

Too many damn questions swirled in her head.

“I told you I’d help find Trey and that’s what I’m going to do. I’ve seen and done a lot of things, Hugh. I know I can offer assistance that no one else can, given my background. It’s to your benefit to take me with you.”

For a long moment, they stared at each other. The kind of stare that made her believe a link between two people was stronger than spoken promises and terms of endearment. She knew looking at him that he believed she could take care of herself. He only had to give up any rights to her. Rights he didn’t have to begin with.