Dying to Date(44)
“You were testing me,” she sighed. “Seriously?”
“I wanted a sense of how this would play out when we reached the city, yes.”
“Hope you got what you wanted.”
“Somewhat.” He glanced at his watch. “Get under the covers, Melissa. We cut it too close today.”
Dawn already called to her, reminding her of her limitations. She kicked off her shoes and slid into her bed. Tarian walked over to draw the curtains and ensure she was protected from the sun.
“What happens when we reach New York?” she asked.
He sat on the edge of her bed, placing a hand on either side of her body as he leaned closer. “What do you mean?”
“Say this plays out exactly the way you are hoping. Do we shake hands and go our separate ways?”
His blue eyes flashed in the dim light. “What’s the alternative?”
“I don’t know.”
He studied her for a long moment in silence. “Would you regret never seeing me again, Melissa?”
It was her turn to think. There was no denying the complications of a necromancer lover, but the man she’d learned about tonight was one she’d lament losing.
“Yes.” The word hung in the air between them. One that opened possibilities they’d both been trying their best to ignore.
There was no joy in his eyes at her confession, and she understood why. It didn’t really matter what they wanted in the grand scheme of things. Not when the safety of their people had to come first.
Reaching out a finger, he traced the curve of her cheek. “Walking away from you will be the hardest thing I’ve done in centuries.”
The edges of the curtain glowed with the rise of the sun, and Melissa fought to keep her eyes open, wanting to see more of the tenderness she read on his face. Had anyone ever looked at her with such longing? She couldn’t remember. Couldn’t think of any man she’d been with before Tarian. He eclipsed all challengers without even trying.
“Sleep,” he said, pulling up the cover. “We’ll talk more tomorrow.”
Tomorrow. Her last full night with him. Whatever decisions they might make about their fate, tomorrow was the time to make them.
Her eyes slipped closed as Tarian settled the covers over her head. One more night with her maddening man.
Perhaps the last one they’d ever share together.
Chapter Eleven
Every instinct in his body screamed at once. Tarian shot awake, scanning the room for threats. Nothing so far, but it wouldn’t stay that way.
He launched himself out of the bed as he checked his watch. Sunset would come soon, but not soon enough. Melissa was still dead to the world.
For a moment he debated waiting the few minutes it would take her to wake but knew they didn’t have that kind of time. Grabbing the covers, he ripped them off the bed and looked down at his companion.
She looked peaceful in sleep. Completely unaware that their enemies were creeping closer with every passing second.
“Forgive me,” he said as he pulled her up and slung her over his shoulder, fireman style. Abandoning the bag with their changes of clothes and toiletries, Tarian opened the door and glanced down the hallway. Empty. For now.
Some might accuse him of being paranoid, but he felt the familiar itch in his mind of a necromancer moving closer. He didn’t know how the hell Dominic had managed to track them, but he wasn’t waiting around to find out.
Pulling the door closed behind him, he jogged down the hall. Elevators were out. There was no telling who’d be waiting when the doors opened.
He paused to check one of the fire evacuation plaques stapled into the wall and located the nearest stairwell.
Melissa shifted on his shoulder, life infusing slowly into her body.
“Hold on, sweetheart,” he murmured as he set off for the stairs.
He rounded the corner just as his powers flared. Whoever was after them, they’d stepped onto their floor.
Tarian crashed into the stairwell and started running down the stairs. Just their luck that they’d stayed on the very top floor.
“Tarian?” He heard a sleepy voice say.
“I’m here,” he replied, smoothing a hand over the back of her legs as he jogged to the next landing.
“What the— Tarian Drake set me down this instant!”
He heard the indignation and smiled. “Just a sec.” Gripping her tightly, he allowed her to slip down his body and back to the ground.
Melissa blinked up at him, her eyes cloudy with sleep. “Want to tell me why I was over your shoulder and not in a nice soft bed?”
“Dominic found us,” Tarian replied. He looked up the twisting stairs to make sure no one had come after them. “I don’t know how he did it, but just before sunset I felt the presence of necromancers moving closer.”