'I had to wash myself clean,' she said softly. 'I could smell them. On me. In me.'
A sentiment he could certainly understand. He'd done the same thing himself once or twice over the years, though admittedly, he'd chosen a hot shower rather than an icy ocean. 'So what happens now?'
'Now we need to get some breakfast and take it back to the motel. You know a bakery open at this hour?'
'I'm a cop. We know the opening time of every bakery, deli and fast food chain in the whole damn city.'
She looked at him. 'Really?'
'Really,' he said solemnly, glad to see her smile had finally touched her eyes.
'Then take me to your favourite, and I'll buy you breakfast.' She hesitated. 'Unless, of course, you'd rather go home.'
He had nothing — and no one — to go home to. And he wasn't leaving this woman's side until this case was solved. Though he might not believe in psychics and witchcraft, the last few hours had certainly proven these two not only knew everything the police knew, but had an innate ability to be one step ahead of the pack. Right now, that's exactly where he needed to be.
And if he could get into her bed as well, all the better.
Gwen was asleep on the sofa by the time they got back to the motel room. Kat dropped the bags of cinnamon rolls and pastries on the small table and walked over.
'Gran?' She kept her voice soft, not wanting to startle the older woman.
Gwen sighed and opened her eyes. 'My feet feel like bricks. You'll have to massage them before you do anything else.'
'I'll do that,' Ethan said behind her. 'You go get breakfast ready.'
Kat looked up in surprise. 'You sure?'
He nodded. 'Mom had arthritis, too. We all used to take turns massaging to ease the aches for a while.'
'Well, before you touch my feet you're going to have to provide a proper introduction.' Gwen's eyes twinkled despite the echoes of pain. 'I can't keep calling you Detective Morgan if we're going to get so friendly.'
He smiled, and Kat's breath caught. She had a feeling he didn't smile much, but when he did — wow.
'It's Ethan, ma'am.'
'Gwen Tanner. Pleased to meet you.' She shook his offered hand. 'The oil's over there by the sink.'
He retrieved it then sat on the coffee table and eased her feet onto his legs. If the relief on Gwen's face was anything to go by, he certainly knew his way around a bottle of massage oil. Maybe that was something she could put to good use later…
He chose that moment to glance at her and for several heartbeats Kat found herself pinned by the power of his gaze. What passed between them was a recognition of fate. Of inevitability. But more than that, it was a promise of passion and satisfaction and something else, something she couldn't quite define.
A tremor ran through her. She'd never felt this strong an attraction to anyone, and in some ways it was almost scary. The pull she felt had nothing to do with the allure of a werewolf in the middle of moon fever, and everything to do with the man himself. By the same token, she was positive the moon had everything to do with his attraction to her. But that didn't matter. What did was finding time alone without interfering or jeopardizing the case.
She lowered her gaze and got down to the business of making coffee and setting out breakfast. 'Gran, you coming over to the table, or would you prefer to remain where you are?'
'I'll stay here.' She patted Ethan's hands. 'Thanks, pet.
That feels much better.'
Kat tossed him a hand towel then brought over Gwen's coffee and cinnamon rolls. 'So what's the plan today, beside rest?'
'I'll try to do another reading this afternoon. I've got a feeling this thing is not going to hang around for much longer.'
'Because the police are closing in?' Ethan asked.
Gwen gave him a wry look. 'The police haven't a clue.
Present company included.'
He raised an eyebrow. 'You don't believe we'll catch the psycho behind this?'
'No, because none of you truly know what you're up against.' She glanced at Kat. 'Why don't you explain to the man?'
Kat sighed and cupped her hands around her coffee mug.
'The thing that's killing these kids is what we've termed a soul sucker. It's a vampire of sorts, but instead of blood, it feeds on souls.'
His expression was blank, but she could feel his disbelief as easily as she'd felt his desire only moments before as he said, 'Vampires don't exist.'
'As werewolves don't exist? Get real, Detective.'
'Ethan,' he said automatically, then added, 'That kid last night was torn apart. And the first kid discovered had been drained of blood.'
Kat nodded. 'Neither of which was the actual cause of death.'
'The coroner says otherwise.'
'The coroner can't psychically see the gaping hole this thing created when it ripped their souls from their bodies.'
'How can you even see something like that?'
She shrugged. 'I told you before. I'm empathic. I see and feel emotions. A soul being torn free and destroyed is a pretty emotional event, believe me.'
He stared at her for several minutes, then shook his head.
'I can't. Sorry.'
'Then believe this,' Gwen said. 'That thing is not working alone. At the very least, it still has a werewolf working with it, and I suspect there are others. It saw Kat last night, and it now knows we're on its trail. That puts us in great danger.'
He glanced at Kat. 'You want me to arrange police protection?'
'No,' Gwen answered. 'Their attempts to protect us would mean as little as their attempts to find this thing.'
He flexed his fingers then picked up his coffee. He didn't like being told his department was useless. Refused to believe they couldn't handle the killer.
'Then what do you want?' His voice held an edge of harshness.
'You want to find this killer fast, and you're not particularly fussy on how you do it. We need additional protection. Two very compatible needs, I should think.'
His gaze flicked from Gwen to Kat then back again, but in that brief moment Kat saw the surge of triumph. He'd had no intention of leaving anyway, she realized. He would have done all that he could — even using what was flaring between them — to keep close. It should have annoyed her, but it didn't, simply because she understood his motives.
She just had to hope she was one of the more pleasurable stones in his path.
'If Benton sees me anywhere near the two of you I'm history.'
'Then make sure you're not seen.'
'Easier said than done. The captain's got a nose for this sort of stuff.' He scratched his chin, the sound harsh in the silence. 'If I step into this, I expect to be made a full partner. No secrets.'
'Don't worry Detective, you're going to learn a whole lot more than you bargained for on this one.'
Gwen's voice was dry, and Kat shot her a quick look. If her amused expression was anything to go by, she wasn't talking about the case, but something else. Something more personal.
A thought she didn't like one bit. When it came to matchmaking, her grandmother was almost as bad as Seline, the Circle's head honcho. Both had been saying for years it would be so nice if Kat could find a man who could be a true partner — in work and out. Insinuating, in Kat's opinion, that the men she'd been with over the years either weren't manly enough, or hadn't a hope in hell of being able to work with her let alone live with her. And if she was being honest, the latter was certainly a half truth.
