that.”
“I haven’t felt this good in a long time,” she admitted, tidying up the countertop because she wanted Raze to like her place and feel comfortable in it. “A part of me thinks that’s stupid. I’m a mature, successful, professional woman. I shouldn’t have such a crazy mood boost over a guy I’ve known less the twenty-four hours. But that’s the way it is. I needed him and he was there.”
Delia tucked a strand of her chin-length hair behind her ear. “What will you do if you still need him after he’s gone?”
“I don’t know. I guess that’ll be up to him and whether he’d like to keep in touch or not.”
“When does he leave?”
Kim glanced at the digital clock on her stovetop. “Too soon, whenever it is. I have to get ready. He’s going to be here in an hour and a half.”
“You could convince him to keep in touch with you.” Sliding off the stool, Delia straightened the skirt of her flirty blue dress.
“I don’t think anyone can convince Raze of anything once he’s made up his mind.” Kim’s chest tightened at the thought of having even a tiny hold on Raze.
“Think about it. You’re not his type. He walked into that bar looking for a back alley screw or something like it. Then you walked up and rocked his world, just like Roz said you would. He let you into his personal space, fed you, took care of you. You’ve got him already, Kimmy. You can keep him, if you want to.”
“If that’s true, why did you give me the third degree and say all that stuff about something being wrong with him?”
Delia grinned, and pinched her thumb and forefinger together. “Maybe I’m just a teeny bit jealous. But mostly I wanted to make sure you were thinking things through and not getting blindsided by a gorgeous, dangerous-looking man who’s a god in bed.”
“You suck. Thank you for caring.”
Coming around the island, Delia lifted to her tiptoes and pressed a kiss to Kim’s cheek. “Have fun tonight. Call me tomorrow and give me all the deets.”
“Are you going out tonight?”
“Oh, absolutely. You’ve inspired me to find my own Mr. Awesome. He’s got to be out there somewhere. Hopefully tomorrow I’ll have some juicy news to share with you. Wish me luck.”
“All the luck in the world,” Kim assured her as she walked her to the door. “Thanks for hanging out and shopping with me today.”
“I loved it. We should do it more often. Gives me an excuse to augment my own lingerie collection. Bye!”
Shutting the door, Kim engaged the locks and leaned back against the paneled wood, examining her living room as if she’d never seen it before. Her new place was smaller than the one she’d shared with Janelle. She had started over from scratch, replacing everything, including the frames on her pictures. While her previous home had been a riot of color, her new place was softly neutral with occasional dashes of blue. She couldn’t bear to have red anywhere.
Imagining Raze in her private space, a place she’d yet to invite a romantic interest over to see, was deeply personal. She could say in all honesty that she couldn’t imagine inviting any other guy over to invade it, aside from her coworkers. She really hoped he felt comfortable while he was here. She wanted him relaxed and at ease, open. She wanted him as naked emotionally as he’d been last night. She craved that intimacy as much as she craved his hard, muscular body.
Thinking of the stuff she’d bought on her shopping trip with Delia, Kim smiled.
“I’m not done rocking your world, Mr. Awesome,” she murmured, setting off down the hallway to get ready.
“Forest and Lake got the Fallen blood via a courier delivery this morning,” Raze said into the screen of his iPad. “An unmarked blood bag they shared between them.”
Vash frowned into the camera. “That’s a problem.”
“I emailed the info I got from Lake’s memory of the package and receipt. Let’s hope Torque can track it down to its source.”
“Are we looking for a mole here? A minion smuggling out Fallen blood?”
Because the Fallen couldn’t be everywhere at once, it was necessary to fortify minions to pick up the slack. All of the Fallen routinely stored blood for that purpose. “We need to look closer at that video of the murder. Not just at who’s in it, but where. That body was fresh. She killed him nearby and someone sheltered her while she did it. They also knew me well enough to gauge the best time to dump the body. Maybe that’s why she wasn’t at the meeting at Wrigley Field.”
“She should’ve gotten back to Chicago before you.”
“Not if she was waiting on Fallen blood to take back with her.”
Vash growled. “Fuckin’ A.”
“Yeah…” He glanced at the clock. “I have to go.”
“Why? Clue me in. Do you need backup?”
“It wouldn’t hurt. We’ve definitely got some cleaning up to do in this city. But that’s not why I’ve got to run. I have to get ready for a date.”
Her brows rose. “Is that what you’re calling your suck-and-fucks nowadays? Dates?”
“Shut up. The last I heard, dinner and movies constituted a date.”
“Jesus.” She slumped back into her chair. “Maybe whatever Grimm’s crew has got is contagious and you caught it when you bit Puddle.”
“Lake. I’m signing off now, Vash. ‘Night.”
Raze was out of his chair and moving into the bedroom a heartbeat later. He was dying to get to Kim and he’d have to wander all over Chicago first to be sure he didn’t drag a tail with him. If he’d been thinking straight that morning, he would’ve had her come to him again. Nice and anonymous. If someone was watching the hotel, she’d just look like a guest herself with her bag and direct beeline to a room as if she was a registered guest.
But she wanted him at her place and he wasn’t going to disappoint her or make her think he just wanted to get laid by changing the plans now. Last night, she’d made sure to have her own transportation and to meet at a public place when she hooked up with a stranger. To go from that level of wariness to the trust of inviting him over to her private space was important, and he didn’t want to fuck it up. He’d just have to be real careful. No problem.
For the first time in a very long time, Raze was looking forward to a beginning rather than an ending, which was the inevitable result of hunting.
As he headed into the shower, he was whistling, anticipation a heady warmth in his veins.
CHAPTER 7
When the doorbell rang, Kim felt her stomach flip. Putting a hand to her belly, she took a deep breath, then ran to the door. She looked through the peephole and even through the distortion from the rounded magnifying glass, she felt that same punch of need that had hit when he’d first walked into the jazz club and her life.
She pulled the door open. “Hi.”
He crowded her in and kicked the door closed, his mouth on hers before the latch clicked shut. She’d never seen a person move so fast, it stole her breath. Then his passion kept her from regaining it. His lips slanted across hers, his tongue sliding deep and making her shiver. As he bent her backwards, she clung to his broad shoulders, feeling the warmth and strength of him through the cotton of his black T-shirt. Behind her back, the white roses he’d brought her tangled with her hair, but she didn’t care.
“Hi back,” he growled, nuzzling his nose against hers. “Christ, I missed you all day.”
Kim grinned, her dazed eyes noting the way his irises seemed to glow from within. “It’s crazy, I know, but it was the same for me.”
