Midnight Craving: Midnight Vice, Book 1 (6 page)

unique services. “Go and God be with you.”

“Thanks.”

Isla focused on Jace and teleported back to him. He paced the front yard, shouting into his phone as he

watched black smoke boil from the interior of his SUV. She heard sirens in the distance and gestured for

Jace to wrap up his call to the Midnight Vice headquarters.

Jace cut short his request for a BOLO on the Porsche. He stared at her extended hand. “Where are we

going?”

“To get my car and kick some demon ass.”

Jace sagged as his feet finally touched solid ground in what appeared to be a parking garage. He hated

teleporting. It just wasn’t natural for bodies to move through time and space like that. It was also an

irksome reminder of the stark differences between them. While demons and archangels could appear

anywhere at will, only the descendants of demons inherited that trick. It had to do with the laws of

temptation.

Isla patted his back and told him to breathe. He shot her an annoyed look. Before he could offer a

snappy retort, his eyes landed on the silver ’69 Chevelle SS right behind her. “Whoa!”

“My baby.” A broad grin on her face, Isla fished a key ring from her pocket and unlocked the passenger

door. “It was Daddy’s project car. He never got around to fixing it up while he was alive. Took me years to

learn enough to do it myself.”

“Why have I never seen this before?” Jace ran his hands over the wide black racing stripes on the hood.

“I would have noticed this in the parking lot at work.”

Isla shrugged. “This is my pleasure vehicle. Besides, it’s just easier to skip between work and home. If I

wasn’t so damned tired, we’d make chase like that, but I just don’t think I have the energy today.”

At her weary tone, Jace gave her the once-over. She looked a bit deflated and haggard around the eyes.

“I don’t want you expending yourself, Isla. Renata’s likely to put up a hellacious fight. You’re going to

need your strength.”

“And supplies.” Isla walked around and popped the trunk.

Jace whistled as he took in the stockpile she had hidden there. “And here I was worrying we’d have to

hit up headquarters for a resupply.”

Smiling, she snatched a backpack from the trunk and shoved it into his hands. “I’d prefer it if you

didn’t open any of the demon-vaporizing powders and potions in there. It’s windy and a face full of that

shit really stings.”

Jace nodded as he rifled through the backpack and considered the finer points of fighting demons with

a half-demon at his side. He pulled out a handful of bullet clips. “I’ll stick to the modified rounds.”

“Good choice.” Isla slammed the trunk closed. “
Vamos.”

Jace slid into the passenger’s seat and exchanged some of his vampire-killing weapons for demon-

vanquishing ones. The car roared to life, his seat vibrating beneath him. He heard the snap of Isla’s lap belt

and glanced over.

Her eyebrows lifted. “I’d buckle up if I were you.”

Jace didn’t have to be told twice. He dropped the clips in his lap and grappled for his lap belt. He’d

barely snapped it in place when Isla pressed the clutch and gas and shot out of the parking space. She sped

down the curving levels of the garage, wheels squealing, feet moving back and forth between the pedals

with the barest of pauses.

When they reached the exit facing out on a busy downtown street, he expected the vehicle to stop—but

it didn’t. Eyes wide, he pumped an imaginary brake. They raced onto the street, the tail end of the Chevelle

swinging wide before it snapped straight. Miraculously, they fit into the tiniest space between speeding cars.

“Jesus Christ!”

“Calm down,” Isla chided, her hand effortlessly guiding the gear shift as she depressed and released the

clutch. “You know I can
see
things.”

“I don’t care.” Jace gripped his lap belt and eyed the dashboard. He cursed the lack of airbags. “For all

we know, the curse has fucked with your radar. I’d like to not find out you’re off by a few seconds when

we’re T-boned by a semi.”

Isla rolled her eyes and zipped down the bustling street toward a northbound I-45 on-ramp. He breathed

easier at the thought of more space for her jarring maneuvers but his relief was short-lived. She punched

the gas, moving through the gears as she tried to outrace the semi barreling toward them in the merging

lane. Like a bat out of hell, she swerved onto I-45, cutting a hair’s breadth in front of the semi and sliding

across two lanes of traffic to an opening.

“Where the hell did you learn to drive? The James Bond School for Stunt Drivers?”

Isla snorted. “I wish.”

The Chevelle gained speed quickly, bypassing the already-speeding vehicles surrounding it. Isla weaved

the car in and out of traffic, making up lost time in their pursuit of the demons who had firebombed his

Tahoe. Jace didn’t have to ask where they were heading. The last house on the list wasn’t actually in

Houston but on the shores of Lake Woodlands, an extremely wealthy enclave just north of Houston. Unless

the Porsche was stopped by one of the Midnight Vice patrol units, it was almost a given the demons would

beat them to Renata’s last hideout. And that was a bad thing.

Isla flicked on the stereo. She picked up the iPod stuffed into the console organizer straddling the

floorboard hump and plugged an adapter into the cigarette lighter. Seconds later, eighties pop—German

eighties pop—filtered through the speakers.

“‘99 Luftballons’?” Jace couldn’t help but laugh. “Weren’t you still in diapers when this came out?”

“Yeah. Not so much.” Isla checked her rearview mirror. “I didn’t make my debut into this world until

three or so years after this song hit the big time.” She frowned at him. “But, really? You’re going to laugh at

my choice of music? Dude, how many times have I heard you belting out ‘Pour Some Sugar on Me’ in the

showers at work?”

Embarrassment gripped his chest. Was he really that loud? Who else had heard him singing? “What are

you doing hanging around the guy’s locker room anyway?”

Isla giggled at his defensive tone. “Well, you know me, Jace. I’m all about the sausage fest.”

From anyone else, he would have been appalled, but from Isla it was par for the course. He barked with

laughter.

She quirked a mischievous smile. “My quips, they slay.”

“Something like that.” Jace wiped the corners of his eyes. He had to admit the day had been enjoyable

despite the absolute absurdity of their circumstances. He was beginning to understand why some officers

left SWAT for patrol or detective work. There was obviously something nice about spending one’s nights

with the same person, working the same leads and cleaning up the streets. Usually he balked at the idea of

leaving the often chaotic but always fulfilling world of SWAT. Entertaining the idea of being assigned a

partner like Isla didn’t.

His gaze drifted to the setting sun. Another half hour and it would be dark. Renata would be loose on

the town. Even with the dragnet keeping her contained to Houston, there was just too much ground to cover

in such a short amount of time.

Jace snuck a furtive glance in Isla’s direction. The relaxed expression she’d worn after their laugh had

vanished. Tension radiated throughout her features. Her right knuckles were nearly white from gripping the

shifter. Her left hand shook against the steering wheel. She swallowed hard and kept her focus forward on

the traffic.

Over the last few hours, he’d learned to recognize the signals. She needed him. Now.

Without a word, he unbuckled his seat belt and slid across the bench seat to the middle spot. He

snapped his new belt in place and cupped her neck before pressing a kiss to her temple. “Can you keep

driving?”

She gulped. “I think so.”

“We can pull over somewhere.”

Isla quickly caught his gaze. “We don’t have time.”

Jace nodded and kissed her neck, a teasing grin curving his lips. “Try not to kill us.”

“No guarantees,” she murmured.

His hand drifted down her front, outlining the curves of her breasts through her tee shirt. As he slid his

hand along her torso, he felt hard horizontal ridges beneath the cotton. “What is this?”

Isla swatted him away. “Never you mind.”

Any other time, he would have continued with his exploration but he had different priorities than

uncovering all of her secrets. His fingers deftly unsnapped the buckle on her tactical belt. It fell away,

sliding down around her hips on the seat. He flicked through the button at the top of her jeans and lowered

the zipper to reveal purple polka dot panties. She shifted her weight as his hand slipped under the

waistband of the cotton and gave him the extra room he needed to get the job done.

The musky scent of her arousal bloomed in the car. Jace licked a sensitive spot on her neck and sucked

gently against the skin. His fingers moved down over her mound until they dipped between her slippery

folds. Isla sucked in a short breath as his fingers ghosted over her clit. Her juices slicked her skin and

soaked through the cotton of her panties. He could almost taste her salty sweetness and wished there was

some way to get his mouth on her again.
Later
, he thought, and concentrated on rubbing the stiff nub.

Isla bucked against his hand. Her nostrils flared as she breathed deeply, rhythmically. Jace increased the

pace of his circular moves and sucked harder on her neck. She groaned and wantonly pumped her hips. He

could see her thighs tensing and relaxing. Her foot faltered on the gas pedal and their speed dropped a few

miles before she punched it back into high gear. Jace’s gaze skipped from her face to the road ahead, ready

to grab the wheel at a moment’s notice.

Her hands grew jittery. She gulped hard. “Oh, fuck, I’m going to…”

“I know, baby,” Jace cooed against her ear. “Let it go.”

A guttural sound emanated from her throat. Eyes wide, body undulating, Isla gripped the steering wheel

hard. Her foot stomped the gas and they lurched forward for a few seconds. She drew dangerously close to

a truck loaded down with construction supplies before regaining her control and reigning in their speed.

Jace kept his hand against her sex, cupping her heat as she panted and swallowed.

When she’d calmed down, Jace slowly removed his hand. He brought his shiny fingers to his lips and

licked her sweet cream from his skin. She shuddered at the sight. He rubbed his thumb over her lip as his

hand slid around to caress her jaw. He leaned over and kissed her, pulling back far too soon to suit him.

For their safety, though, he couldn’t keep her occupied with his mouth. Still, he knew she craved intimacy

after their trysts. He could sense she needed to know he wasn’t just providing a service.

So he stayed in the center seat, riding bitch, as he’d crudely heard it referred to in the past, and slid his

arm around her shoulder.

Isla shot him an amused smile and patted his leg. “You’re such a sap,” she teased.

“Only for you, baby,” Jace joked. Deep down inside, he knew differently. It wasn’t a joke but the

absolute truth. He wanted to say something, anything, to help her understand how he felt, but then their exit

came into view. Abruptly, he dropped his sentimental thoughts and embraced his business side. “There.

Lake Woodlands Drive.”

“I see it.” Isla cut across traffic to get in the proper lane.

They slipped onto the service road and drove a half mile or so until they reached another on-ramp. The

sun sank ever lower in the sky. His hands knotted in his lap. They were cutting it really close.

A few turns and curves later, they slowly rolled down a street lined with the sort of Tuscan or French-

countryside-influenced homes Jace found incredibly pretentious. That the guard’s hut was empty bothered

him. Isla slowed down as they passed but there were no signs of a guard anywhere. He could only hope the

demons hadn’t offed the guard or worse.

Faux gas lamps dotted the meandering sidewalks and bike paths of the upscale neighborhood. The

houses sat back from the street by fifty yards or more, their lawns and landscaping meticulously

maintained. Every mansion seemed progressively larger and more opulent than the last.

At the end of the street, just off to the right, sat the most ostentatious of them all. Its rear property line

backed up to the lake, where the final rays of the sun shimmered on the purple surface. There were no

lights on in the house but the occupants definitely had company. His core bristled at the nearness of black

energy. Sitting just inside the driveway was the silver Porsche.

Demons and vampires? Oh yeah. It was going to get ugly. There were too many normals living in close

proximity not to err on the side of caution.

Isla eased into the driveway and killed the engine. Her hands were shaking again, but Jace knew it

wasn’t the need for sex. She was scared and rightfully so.