Burning Ember (12 page)

“Thank you.” Archer returned the smile, then snagged Scarlet’s hand before she could say anything about the name, and led her out the door to the SUV.

“In,” he ordered.

“Will you choke if you say,
please
?” she asked, then seemed to forget that question as he settled into the driver seat next to her. “
Benicio Del Toro
? Seriously? Isn’t that the guy who played the wolf man in that movie?”

“Yes.” His monosyllabic answer must have annoyed her, because she blew out a puff of air.

“Punny, I will admit, but why not use your real name?”

He didn’t answer as he pulled into the parking bay in front of room thirteen. He went around to the back of the SUV and unpacked the duffels, taking three at once, then climbed the stairs to open the door to the room.

“You need an invitation done in gold calligraphy?” Archer asked Scarlet who was standing next to the passenger side door.

She walked to fetch her bag before going into the small dingy room. She eyed the double bed with apprehension.

“I wonder if it has bed bugs.”

“Don’t be so melodramatic. It’s not that bad a room. I’ve seen worse.” He deposited the last bag on the floor in front of an antiquated TV and went to lock the door. Then he did a circuit around the room, pulling the curtains closed, and checking the security of the place. “This will be fine for a day. One entrance means they can only come at us one way.”

He made sure the small window in the bathroom was locked, then came into the room.

“We’ll be leaving first thing at sunset. So get some shuteye.”

“There is only one bed.” Scarlet pointed at the piece of furniture, as if she was saying the butler did it.

Archer tilted his head, giving the bed an apprising look. “It’s a double bed. So you don’t want to share?” He was teasing her. There was no way he was going to let his beast share a bed with this woman. She’d wake up…well she’d wake up in an unexpected situation.

Scarlet looked at him up and down as if deciding how much of a threat his massive body posed.

“Relax, I’ll crash on the floor,” he said before she could make up her mind to tell him
no
. He didn’t want her to reject him, even if it were for something as simple as sharing a bed with him.

To sleep
, he told his beast when heated images started playing around his mind. To sleep, you damn horn-dog.

* * * *

An hour later, Scarlet was lying on her back as stiff as a corpse in rigor mortis. She listened to the soft sounds Archer made as he rolled over on the sleeping bag he’d hauled out of one of the duffels he’d carried into the room.

The presence of the sleeping bag confirmed her suspicions that he didn’t have any intention of giving her the privacy of her own room. It had to be that he felt guarding her meant he had to be in the same room as her when they slept. That was why Scarlet hadn’t pressed the issue of two rooms.

She understood security was important and that was why he was keeping them moving. They were vulnerable now that they’d left the safety of Outsiders Inc. —and she hadn’t even told Archer about Geo’s dream intrusion. So she would shut up and do what Archer told her to do. She had to admit she felt safe with Archer near, but there was a problem.

She was attracted to the man—no, male—in a in a way she’d never experienced before. She’d had a few lovers before, but the heat Archer created in Scarlet far overpowered anything she’d ever felt. Having to be in his presence constantly was awkward as hell.

He rolled again, and some mean part of Scarlet hoped he was suffering with sexual frustration as acute as hers was. That thought almost caused her to laugh out loud.

Who you trying to kid, chicky? He so doesn’t feel anything like that for you.

She tried to point out to the voice in her head that he’d gotten hard around her more than once. She squirmed a little in the bed as the memory hit, causing a surge of wetness to pool at the juncture of her thighs. The voice in her head belayed that in a hurry, pointing out that Scarlet couldn’t compare a man’s natural instinct to real sexual attraction.

“Spoil Sport,” she muttered aloud as she rolled, and punched her pillow, annoyed that her inner voice had just ruined an intriguing fantasy.

“What was that?”

Archer’s deep voice had goose bumps racing over her skin.

“Nothing,” she answered, feeling her cheeks heat.

“Sleep…you are gonna need it.”

“Yeah, yeah.” She decided not to point out that he wasn’t sleeping either, and curled up in a ball trying to relax her body so she could fall asleep.

Scarlet was in a dreamscape that kept changing, first in the desert, then in an oasis, then in the mountains, with snow chilling her bare feet. Then the scape shifted again, and she was standing in the middle of a baseball diamond.

She looked around trying to figure out what kind of weird dream she was having.

“What’s with the musical landscapes?” Geo stood with his legs spread shoulder width apart, as if he were bracing himself for the shifting scenery. He had his fingers hooked in the loops of his belt, his blond hair blowing in an unfelt breeze.

“You, again.” Scarlet rolled her eyes. “Didn’t I tell you to stay out my dreams?”

“I’m sure you did, and I’m also sure I told you that wouldn’t be happening. So, how about answering my first question?”

“Which question was that?” She was stalling, trying to wake herself up before Geo got a lock on their location.

“Why are you shifting scenery?” As he spoke, the landscape changed again, this time to deep in the forest, a clearing that had her frowning with an eerie sense of déjà vu.

“I thought you were doing it?” She plastered an innocent expression on her face and hoped like hell it worked.

Geo’s response was to arch a perfect eyebrow, “You are lying.”

“No. I’m standing.”

“And that was childish, and beneath you.” He seemed to be getting annoyed.

Scarlet was getting annoyed herself and put her hands on her hips to show it. “You don’t know me, so you can’t say what is beneath me. I never asked you to pop into my dreams and try and find me, and if you think I’d make it easy for you, you know even less about me than I thought you did.”

His expression altered into something that made Scarlet take a step back. Not because he was scary, but because he looked like he was going to try to charm the information out of her.

Geo was beautiful. Scarlet was not going to deny that, and as he moved closer, he oozed sex. His scent became something divine—a mixture of spices that made her body react even though her mind was screaming no.

“You are going to tell me where you are, Scarlet.” He stalked closer, like a wild cat—all grace and boneless movement. “Focus baby, let me know where you are and I’ll reward you…”

“With what?” She stepped back again. Had her voice just sounded breathy?

She was going to bolt in a second, running as fast as she could, because if the angel touched her, Scarlet was afraid she might tell him where she and Archer were.

Archer.

With his name in her thoughts, his face appeared in her mind’s eye. The longer front of his dark hair caressing the sharp lines of his jaw re-ignited her courage. Geo would not win her over that easy. It wasn’t just her in danger—Archer was, too.

“A kisssss.” The sibilant ess sounded elongated as Geo spoke the word.

“Ha. More like a knife in my heart. No thanks.” Scarlet held her ground as Geo stepped right up to her, his body a breath away from melding to her curves.

“Tell me.” Above them, the sky was dark with a million stars, and an icy wind blew off hard-packed ice at their feet. “Tell me where you are.”

“No,” she said again, this time adamantly.

Someone was growling. Scarlet could hear
growling
.

“What is that?”

Geo’s brow folded down into a dangerous frown. “I’m being forced away. How the hell is he doing it?”

She watched Geo’s body get flung away from her, as if something had grabbed the back of his shirt and was yanking him backward at terminal velocity.

“What the—”

Scarlet woke up.

Chapter Eleven

Archer shredded the sleeping bag with his claws, sending PermaLoft flying all over the room. Then, he was up, his claw-tipped fingers curling, and his shoulders hunched. His beast was in full control as he scanned the room, searching for Geo. He could smell the Enforcer.

Archer and his beast picked up the scent of Geo in seduction mode, and there was only one person Geo could be seducing.

Scarlet.

Archer found her on the bed where he’d left her, tossing and turning in the light. His glowing yellow eyes filled the room, and he could feel her fear.

The beast launched Archer’s body on to the bed and straddled Scarlet’s form. He pinned her on her back so she couldn’t move. Archer lowered his head toward her neck.

Geo’s smell was strongest right by Scarlet.

“Dreams.” The beast spoke in a low growl thought Archer’s lips and then pulled forward a memory in Archer’s mind that he had forgotten long ago.

Angels could dream hop, tracking their prey or charges through their dreams, and Geo was making full use of the ability to get into Scarlet’s head.

Archer didn’t know what to do. It wasn’t as if he could climb into Scarlet’s dream and beat the shit out of Geo, something he was beginning to wish he could do as she thrashed with more violence in his arms.

He was using a lot of strength to keep her still. He sent a fervent prayer up that she wouldn’t bruise, or she’d be wearing a nice purple and black shirt by tomorrow.

“Mine!” his beast growled out. He kept using Archer’s voice, and that meant Archer was on the verge of completing the change to his wolf-man form. He knew he had his claws and he knew his eyes were glowing. He could feel his upper and lower fangs had shot out, and the skin itch was starting to get intense.

Scarlet bucked under Archer, then said his name in her sleep.

Archer wanted to scream in helpless frustration, which turned to panic as his claws disappeared into his fingertips, and his jaw got lighter as his fangs vanished.

“What the fuck?” His beast was withdrawing, leaving him. This had never happened before in Archer’s life. Once his beast had started to emerge, he had to beat it back to get it to leave.

He felt something rip inside of him. Archer’s back curved and his hands clawed at his breast bone where the intense pain radiated from, setting his skin on fire.

Archer watched in awe as a glowing shape started to come out between his fingers. Shifting hues of blue raced through the creature as it took the form of the front half of a wolf. The back part of the wolf stayed buried in Archer’s chest as it paused and looked at him over its shoulder for a moment, its expression one of pain.

Then, it turned toward Scarlet, its teeth bared in an ominous snarl, and Archer found himself pulled forward as the blue wolf dove into Scarlet’s body.

He could still hear his beast in his head, its growl reverberating down his spine. With a sudden snap, the wolf emerged from Scarlet’s chest and disappeared back into Archer’s, leaving Archer to gasp in pain.

Scarlet’s eyes snapped open and locked with his.

There was shock in her gaze, shock that became heat as she looked down the length of her body and took in Archer lying on top of her. It was obvious she was getting aroused.

He was still breathing hard from the pain of his beast’s return, but her sudden lust had him groaning and dropping his head to capture her lips in a kiss.

God her lips are soft
.

He slanted his mouth over hers again. Unsure of his welcome, he was hesitant to force his way inside. Then, Scarlet opened her mouth with a soft moan that he felt all the way down to his cock.

He didn’t wait for another invitation. He let his tongue start to explore the warm velvet of her sweet mouth.

Soon, the kiss became almost frantic and he rolled onto his back. Ignoring the pain that still beat like a drum in his chest, he pulled her up into his arms. He’d never felt anything as wonderful as the feeling of Scarlet in his arms. It felt so right.

He slid one hand up her side, counting her ribs with his finger tips. She squirmed a little, causing him to smile into the kiss.
She’s ticklish
.

He ran his big palm up her spine to cup her head and pull her down for a deeper kiss.

Scarlet moaned and climbed higher on him, her hand pressing down on his breast bone. He felt a tremendous flare of pain, then the world started to fade out as Archer began to lose consciousness. The last thing he heard was the roar of his beast’s disapproval, and everything went black.

* * * *

Archer’s arms became slack on her body and he stopped kissing her, so Scarlet leaned back to ask, “What’s wrong?”

His head lolled to the side and Scarlet shot up. “Archer?” She climbed off the bed and went to the side he was lying on so she could slap his cheek with a soft touch. Her eyes scanned his body for injuries. He had his jeans on, but there were no wounds on his bare chest that she could see.

“Archer?” she asked again, but he remained unresponsive.

A small frown creased her brow as she detected the feint smell of metal—no—blood. Scarlet looked back down at Archer and gasped when she saw a bruise spreading under his skin, across his breast bone like a dark cloud.

“What the hell is happening?” she muttered out loud. Then she reached down to touch the bruise and he cried out in pain.