Slow Burn (9 page)

Her heart sank to the pit of her stomach. She shook her
head, looking at the paper though she had no focus anymore.

Not until Derrick’s hand on her shoulder realigned her
energy and balanced her. “Fuck.”

“So my brother hired you both to protect me?”

“No, he hired Derrick. I’m the big guns in case shit
happens.”

Her eyes widened. “Let me guess.” Sonja groaned. “Shit
happened with my kidnapping.”

Max nodded.

She took a final look at the paper, then dropped it. This
couldn’t be anyone else’s fight. Innocents would get hurt because of what she
was—who she was. She couldn’t bare dealing with that knowledge. Instead, she
started to shake, clutched her shoulders tightly, and rocked back and forth.
The images of those men she’d killed earlier—all that blood spilling from
whatever wounds they had—truly disturbed her now. In her mind’s eye, she saw
each horrified face, every wide eye, and the explosion of flesh all around
before the bodies dropped and she blacked out. Shit. She’d almost killed
Derrick and Max, and whoever else might have been in the area near her. Her
unstable power was becoming a liability before she’d even realized it.

Derrick’s warmth enveloped her and, for a moment, she felt
that balance restored. This time she didn’t fight it. How in the clarity of her
fogged brain was he able to do that for her?

She didn’t want his comfort after he’d lied to her. “Go
away.” She tried to shove him but he wouldn’t budge.

Derrick shook his head. “Your brother hired me to protect
you. I failed.”

“And we recovered you.” Max interjected.

She glared at Max. “Don’t help him. He’s already in enough
trouble. Where’s my brother? I need to call Rob and—”

“No.” Max shook his head. “This is now an official op. And
Derrick and I are both involved.”

Derrick looked at Max.

Max offered a stiff smile. “It wasn’t my call. I would have
left you out if I had the power, and you know it.”

Derrick glared harder; annoyance poured off him in steady
waves that somehow Sonja managed to neutralize before she even realized it.

“At any rate, you’re involved, Derrick. Just like the good
ole days.”

Preposterous. “What if I don’t want or need your help?”

Max crossed his arms over his chest, shifted his weight, and
looked down at the floor before meeting her gaze. “Too bad, Sonja. You’re in
over your head and this is now an official op with my people.”

She finally forced herself to break free of Derrick’s
protective grasp. She felt a sense of dread from the lack of touch, but she had
to force herself to stand her ground. “You lied to me, Derrick.” She threw her
hands up in frustration. “This is bullshit!”

“Not entirely. Just a few details.”

“Major details! Why didn’t Rob tell me? Why didn’t you?”

“In my former line of work, the less you knew the better. I
was just doing what was asked. I didn’t expect—”

He stopped short.

“Yeah, me either. Right.” She had called him from the stage
last time they performed, she was the one that had picked him out of the
audience a few times and had a feeling about him, but she had hoped it was just
hormones.

“You liked it.” Derrick grinned. “Besides, I—”

“Derrick’s not the one who lied to you.” Max cut him off.
“He seriously thought this would be a routine guard duty detail, and at the
beginning he’d have been right. But back at the cigar club in California—”

“Wait. You were discussing me there?”

Derrick remained silent.

“Erick had concerns for the shifters…with your power and
your past. And your power has shown itself to be unstable, and that’s a
dangerous thing regardless of who is pulling the strings.”

She turned to face Derrick, then averted her gaze to focus
on Max’s hardened expression. “But he…” Shit. Max didn’t know how much sex had
changed things. Dammit! That meant her brother had been keeping things from
her. The issue of sex even seemed to encompass the anger she felt about Max
calling her unstable, not that it was a lie. She hadn’t used her power in full
force nor had she spent enough time training to understand it better. The band
and music came first, the fans were her world, and not because they bought
records. “How long have I been receiving threats my brother didn’t tell me
about?”

“Long enough that he asked a retired spy, who happened to be
a regular in his bar, to step in and watch over you.”

That meant these two new threats happened over some period
of time. She sighed loudly, slumped against the pillows. “This isn’t the first
time.”

“Exactly. It’s not the last either. Not if you plan to
continue making music.”

“No one…” She glared at Derrick, then made sure Max saw the
fierceness of her stare, too. He didn’t flinch. “Will take away my joy or
purpose.” Power leaked into the air until she felt Derrick’s hand on her thigh.
It settled her nerves, but stirred other things.

His startled expression conveyed an instant understanding.
“Rob said you’d act like this. He gave me all the background information, as
long as we’re confessing.”

“Smart move.” She smirked.

“Last week. And everything else has been honest. I do love
your band’s music.”

“I can attest to that. Guy’s a regular death metal fan.” Max
took a puff on his cigar and let the smoke leave his mouth very slowly. “This
wasn’t any one person’s doing. There have been factions my people have been
dealing with for the last few years; all of them were trying to hone in on you.
It’s just lucky your brother found Derrick rather than one of us having to
track you down and convince you with some wild story. Just remember, we’re all
a cog in some big plan.” Max puffed on his cigar again, filling the air with
the rich sweetness of maduro leaf and coffee.

She huffed. Derrick’s musk and the heady scent of their
lovemaking—
sex
reared its head. The feel of his arms around her gave her
stability, steadying her worrisome mind. Exhaling, she turned around to face
Derrick. She couldn’t hide the irritation that became her expression, so she
didn’t try. “What now?”

“Well, we could use Sonja here to lead them out into the
open. My sources tell me it’s not a large organization. Yet.” He punctuated the
air with his cigar.

Derrick gritted his teeth. “Max!”

She shifted behind him and slithered a leg along his. Deeper
contact against him distracted her.

Derrick stiffened. “We have to have other options. Since
when have you been one to send untrained—”

Fuck that shit. No one was going to control her fate but
her. She huffed louder, crossed her arms, and cut him off. “I’ll do it.”

Derrick stared at her with a hidden knowledge she suspected
had more to do with the puma inside, rather than his human feelings, and she
swallowed hard. The puma had found a mate, it thought.

“What?”

“Look…” She sighed. “I’ve been a pawn my whole life. I know
what to do and how to handle myself. If they want me, guess I’ll have to show
them who has the bigger balls.”

Derrick opened his mouth to speak but stopped. A cloud of
smoke hovered above his head.

“Look, you two talk it over. I have your clothes on my
floor, her underwear…” He turned toward Sonja. “Very cute by the way.” He took
another puff on the cigar. “And dead Spetznaz soldiers to clean up. One of whom
happened to be a big player in black market weapons. His goal was a standard
play. Arm the soldiers, send in the troops, and when they’ve made inroads, send
in the heavy hitter…” He nodded at Sonja. “…to clean up and finish things off.”

Her stomach lurched at the thought of being used as a
destructive tool when all she’d ever done was use her voice to help others.
“Fuck.”

Max’s eyes went wide. “We don’t have much of a choice.”

Still stiff against her, looking irresistible, Derrick sat
up. “You’re serious, Max?”

Max nodded.

Derrick fell back against the pillows.

“That sums it up, doesn’t it, man?” Max turned, set his
cigar in an empty tray. “This is our only play.”

Derrick sighed and shifted his weight against Sonja. “I
don’t like it.”

Regardless of whatever was happening between the two of
them, he needed to know that she wouldn’t back down from a threat. Nor would
she run from a fight, even if the odds weren’t in her favor. She’d made a life
of being her own woman and no one would take that from her. “I know.” Sonja
brushed back sun-kissed strands of red hair. “But I’m familiar with this
situation. I can handle it, Derrick.”

She noted how Derrick avoided meeting her direct gaze, then
remembered she was naked beneath the sheets. His erection, while not visible to
Max, pressed against a thigh.

Derrick’s voice held an unspoken threat. “Can you keep her
safe?”

Max slid his hands in his pockets. “I can do the best I can.
That’s all anyone can ask for. While her magic may be uncontrollable, we’re
puma shifters. You haven’t forgotten any of your old training, I trust.” He
made it a statement.

Sonja noted the pain in Derrick’s expression at the mention
of his training. She’d have to ask, if and when it mattered. Later. Not now.

“I haven’t. But like last time, what if something goes
wrong? They seemed to know to expect us, and where to find us.”

Sonja shifted beneath him, twining a leg around his. An arm
wrapped around his waist and held him. She gave him a light squeeze with her
thighs. “We don’t have to use surprise. They’re going to expect something like
this, right? If they’re smart enough to know how to play the political field,
then they’ll be prepared for any assault you bring in.”

Max nodded.

Derrick glared at her, irritation plastered all over his
handsome face.

An eyebrow rose. “What?”

“Your voice has that magical lilt to it again, sweetheart.
It’s…distracting.”

“Get a room, you two. A different one. Not mine. Or at least
wait ’til I’m out of the fucking building.” He looked away and forced a thick
cloud of smoke into the air.

The grin that slid over Derrick’s face enticed her. “He’s
right. We should boot his old ass out.”

Max turned around and glared at the two of them.
“Seriously.” He muttered something beneath his breath. “I know we’ve seen
things, man, but dammit.”

Derrick pulled the covers over Sonja and slid an arm around
her waist.

She reluctantly went to him, thankful for the release of
chaotic energy swirling around her head. She remembered briefly the moment
she’d killed those men, heard the screams, and almost fell into the abyss of
darkness until Derrick pulled her back from the precipice.

His every movement had been a comforting factor, made her
wonder about their actual relationship when this was all over. Could they deal
with one? Would he remain on pins and needles when she was on tour?

She shut the train of thought down. No way was she
relationship material.

“Look, I have some contacts that would pay to see me go
under. I can play decoy and use Sonja to lure them out into the open. I have a
few scores that need settling anyway. You two talk it over and get back to me.
Out of my bed.” Max turned and headed toward the door. “I’ll be back in an hour
with something for breakfast, provided my stomach can function.”

He opened the door, frowned at them, and walked through it,
slamming it behind him.

Chapter Five

Derrick grinned and looked back at Sonja, making sure to
project only the arousal he had for the woman sitting before him with her mouth
parted and that sweet, pink tongue darting over her lower lip. Her eyes held
strong determination to make this right at whatever cost. He could respect
that. What bothered him was that he had no idea what he’d do if this went bad
and she ended up dead. In such a short time span, they’d grown close, closer
than most couples, thanks in part to her being able to see in his head and not
run.

Of course, he’d shielded her from the really painful
memories.

He didn’t know if they could fit together in life or how
it’d work if they tried.

“You’re thinking.” The sheet fell slightly, exposing pale
flesh and the tender tops of her ample breasts.

He licked his lips and his body hardened again at the sight
of her. Despite her distracting look, he wasn’t going to lie to her. Whatever
their relationship was, honesty demanded he be straight with her. Except for
when it came to his background as a former spy. “Yeah, I am.”

“What about?”

He studied her face. She didn’t want to do this now, did
she? The intense gaze in her eyes appeared to teeter between lust and
curiosity.

“Come on. Tell me.”

He tilted his head to the side and studied her. Her hair had
fallen over one side of her face, adding to her already sultry look. Pressing
her naked warm skin against his body made him even more voracious.

The air around him smelled like her, sweet and spicy,
reminding him of oriental tobaccos with their rich spiciness and smell of
opium-den sex.

Her arousal rolled over him.

“Talk to me.” She rolled her body against his, pillowing her
full breasts into his chest.

He wanted to take them in his mouth, suckle them to lovely
points, and then fill her again. Her body tempted him. But the magic she used
prodded against the walls of his mind. It felt like someone pounded loudly at
the door he’d set up to keep others out.

“You’re using magic. You should know better than to think I
need convincing to sleep with you again.” He slid out of her a moment ago. His
erection pressed against her soft thighs.

“Oh.” She trailed a fingernail along his bare chest.
“Sometimes it can’t be helped. It isn’t intentional.”

Excitement thrummed through his body and blood rushed
straight to his cock, not like it didn’t already ache from being near her in
the first place.

“It’s not?”

“No. I can’t always control it. With you, it’s more stable
and all I think of are two things.”

He reached for her, set a hand on her now bare hip. “Yes?”

She blinked. Her voice dropped several notches and came out
as a raspy sound. “Death and fucking you.”

Derrick shuddered. Fingertips gripped her skin. Her voice
didn’t hold any inflection of magic, just pure lust. “Death, I’d prefer to
avoid. But you fucking me, I’d love that.”

She didn’t respond verbally. Instead, she rolled herself
onto him and pressed her chest against his. “Should we move to another bed or
space?”

An eyebrow arched. “Fuck that. Max owes me. He can burn
these sheets if we don’t first.” His grin widened.

Sonja’s pink tongue darted over her bottom lip. Her eyes
widened, her body pressed closer to his.

His cock nudged the wet warmth between her closed legs.

Her mouth fell on his, her fingernails dug and scratched
him, piercing the skin.

Derrick growled into the kiss, wrapped his arms around her,
and slid his hands over her ass. A hand came down against her soft curve.

She yelped and bit his lower lip. “No spanking your queen.”

He chuckled. “My queen, eh?”

“For the time, yes.” Sonja bit his neck.

He arched against her in response. The puma inside him
swished its tail back and forth in anticipation. In his mind, he heard the
feral cry that suggested mating.

Sonja shifted against him and centered on his cock. “In me.”

Derrick drove himself without thought into her. Like a fist,
she gripped him, stroked him with each thrust, and coaxed him on with rapacious
moans.

She rode him, scraping pointed nipples against his chest.
Her hair spilled down her back.

Derrick tangled his fingers through her silken curls and
tugged her head to expose the curve of her neck.

He lifted himself up, stopped mid thrust, and bit her
collarbone.

She cried and flung herself back against him, joining them
so closely that one couldn’t tell where she started and he ended.

Derrick continued pumping into her, enjoying the feel of her
sweat-soaked skin against his. His pulse sped; his orgasm drew near.

He wouldn’t climax without giving her one, so he slowed his
pace.

He arched his hips, rolling into her, and was rewarded with
her purring. With a free hand, Derrick gripped her ass and gave it a good, hard
squeeze before dragging fingers over her hips and pressing against her clit
with his thumb.

She bucked against him.

Derrick sat up and took a luscious breast in his mouth.
Sucking hard, he arced into her, felt the sparks between them.

Her first orgasm rolled through her body hard enough to
shake him. Moaning louder with each thrust against him, her muscles squeezed
every inch of his length. “Come for me, Sonja.” Derrick wrapped his arms around
her waist and tried to roll his hips against her.

Her mouth sealed around his, she inhaled. No doubt, she picked
up the scent of cigars, of his lust and heady sex.

If he wanted to, he could overpower her, roll her on her
back, and make her submissive, just what the puma wanted. But he wouldn’t.
Stubborn, it’d only piss her off. There was no need to force her submission
when she distracted him beyond delight by merely holding his shaft tightly.

She squeezed him and slammed down on him. With a free arm,
she pushed against him and had him on his back.

The puma growled in annoyance.

Derrick could give a shit. Creamy heat enveloped his shaft
and drew him closer to his own release with each pump. Each breath, every moan,
brought them closer together.

It took only a few more thrusts to drive him crazy. His
heart slammed in his chest, his mouth fell on her neck, and he closed his eyes.
Warning bells went off in his mind as his release drew nearer.

And his emotions began to spiral out of control.

Sonja gasped and froze.

Derrick opened his eyes, saw the panic on her face, and
became faintly aware of her stillness. “What, baby?”

His stiffness and the serious expression on his face showed
he sensed the problem before she spoke.

“You…” She pointed at him. “My orgasm was so close. And—”

“Next orgasm.”

She frowned yet it did nothing to erase the panic-stricken
look from her face. “I can read your emotions loud and clear. Why…”

Derrick realized his mistake and tried to rein in his
emotions. “I’m sorry. I…”

“You’re in love with me.”

The fact that his eyes only closed partially and a loopy
smile formed on his face that he quickly tried to hide confirmed her thoughts.
She probed his mind, hard. He was uncertain if it was love tried and true, but
it felt like it. He’d never really known and she picked up the loneliness he
carried and let it swirl around her before she shut down the mental link.

“I can’t ever lie to you, can I?”

* * *

Damn her luck! She had to find the one puma that rocked her
world with intense sex, who didn’t make her feel creeped out because of her
witchcraft or her career. He had to be the one who steadied her emotionally
when it came to her power.

And he lay beneath her, filling her cream-soaked pussy.

She ran a hand through her hair and looked down at his
chest. Naked, it gave her a glimpse of a washboard stomach and pectorals that
rippled with each graceful movement he made. Broad shoulders tapered down to a
trim waist.

It didn’t hurt that he behaved like a gentleman.

Except that he broadcasted his emotions all over the place
just after she’d agreed to play guinea pig and lure out the bad guys who
kidnapped her last night.

“This is just a fling because of the danger we’re in.” She
lied to herself.

Derrick coughed. He arched his hips into her, driving
himself deeper into her. “I don’t think so.”

The movement sent a pleasurable tremor through her.

She bent forward and set her hands flat against his
well-muscled chest. “No.” Her voice shook with apprehension. She wanted to
finish herself, and get him off, too. He deserved that much. For the love of
the goddess, he’d come to rescue her last night.

“It’s more than that. Or…” He turned away. “It can be.”

The sweetness in his voice hit her hard. She felt the
squeeze of joy around her heart and wanted to cry. She couldn’t have a
boyfriend, lover, or partner. Not with her life in constant danger. And to have
it be a possessive puma? No way!

Derrick turned his head, dark curls spilling down his
forehead. “This can be more. But right now…” He arced into her again, filling
her and sending more tremors through her. “It’s about sex.”

She had felt the buildup of his emotions earlier. When he
pressed them down again, she noticed. His ability to control his responses made
her grateful since any overwhelming feelings tended to knock her off balance.

She had weakened her shields deliberately. It helped her
serve her greater destiny in life. To help humanity, she had to keep her guard
lowered, thus allowing a better flow of power from her to the recipients.

Her status as a singer and piece of eye candy allowed the
men in the crowds to trust her more based on primal hormones.

They shared a destiny now. “How can I keep
you
safe?”

Derrick sat up, still buried inside of her. “You don’t have
to. You only have to enjoy for now. He leaned in close, nuzzled her mouth with
his.

Sonja sucked in a breath, taking in the scent of raw man,
puma, and sex. Hints of tobacco hung in the air, too, but her lungs filled with
the masculine power of Derrick.

That first night, she’d been so vulnerable. She had to strip
off most of her clothes to rid herself of the excess baggage she took from the
crowd. Derrick hadn’t been lewd, he’d been comforting.

Right now, his fingers were walking a delicate, arousing
line up her spine. Goose bumps prickled her flesh. Her libido kicked into high
gear. Her mind fought her heart.

Thankfully, Derrick’s mouth took that thought from her when
he suckled her nipples.

Goddess, the tingles racing up her spine made her writhe
against him. She wrapped her hands around his head, ran her fingers through the
thick softness of jet-black, almost waist-length hair.

He continued suckling.

Her hips resumed a pace of their own, rolling, bucking
against him. Taking him in and out of her, she felt the swell of his cock
inside as another orgasm built and tightness centered around her stomach.
Warmth spread like wildfire throughout her body when she impaled herself on his
steel cock.

Derrick’s relentless sucking didn’t stop. He pulled off one
breast with a pop and claimed the other, grazing the nipple with his teeth
before pulling it deep into his mouth. He laved the fullness of her breast with
his tongue. A free hand massaged the other breast delicately, but with enough
pressure to send ripples of pleasure through her.

Emotionally, he’d stopped broadcasting anything other than
sex. Pure, unadulterated lust so hot and deep it would burn miles away.

It all centered on her.

Orgasm forced her focus back to the wonderful things he did
to her.

White-hot flames licked at her flesh, the heat of passion
consumed her, making it impossible to hold back screams of pleasure.

Derrick bit her neck, scraped his teeth down her breast
while hips pumped harder into her.

She met every thrust with one of her own.

Her grip on his shoulders tightened, nails dug into taut
muscles.

She shuddered.

A hand spanked her ass.

The pain spiking through her added to her elation.

Seconds later, Derrick’s cock jerked inside her, his climax
filling her deep within. Her name spilled off his tongue with abandon.

She screamed, louder and louder, her voice filled with
violent sultriness similar to when she sang. Magic spilled out from her and
surrounded them.

The air grew heady and filled with sex, power. Lust.

And his emotional leakage of romance singed the other raw
feelings.

She clung tightly to him. Tears streamed down her cheeks and
her head felt light.

Derrick’s strong arms cuddled her; large hands stroked her
back, shoulders. He ran a hand through her hair, whispered in her ear. “We’ll
deal with the emotional thing later. I promise. Right now, focus. Calm down.”

She hiccupped, tried to stop herself from crying. The
outpouring of emotions eased as he continued to hold her.

Despite his lack of energy, he remained rock hard, amazing
her. Having a powerful sex drive for a human, she’d found no normal man able to
keep up with her needs.

“You’re bleeding emotionally, it’s okay. I can’t guarantee I
can stop it, but I can slow it and dull the pain if you’ll let me.” His voice
cut through the fog of depression in her mind.

No one could help her. Humans didn’t understand the power
she wielded; shifters only wanted it for themselves. Her career wouldn’t let
her remain anonymous nor would it allow her time to recharge as often as she
truly needed.

She’d been on the road for so long. Her band mates asked if
she needed a break after the last tour.

She’d declined.

“Let’s go into the studio,” she told them. “I have some
ideas.”