Читать книгу Demon Wolf - Bonnie Vanak - Страница 12

Chapter 5

Dale hadn’t been in his own basement since before the incident. Cupping his gun, he crept down the stairs. Sweat trickled down his temples. This was his home, damn it, and he’d tolerate no intruders. But his pulse rate tripled and he struggled to swallow past the panic rising in his throat.

Memories assaulted him. The terrified little boy held in a demon’s cruel grip. “His life for yours,” the demon had cackled.

And then Dale had willingly become the Centurion’s captive, as they tied him down and tortured him until his voice grew hoarse from the screams....

A soft whimper sounded behind him. Keira was just as terrified. Dale straightened and motioned for her to stay back. Damn it, he was a navy SEAL, not some wimpy ass scared of entering his own damn basement.

He flipped on the light switch. Soft white light illuminated the downstairs. When he reached the bottom step he heard singing.

“I don’t think demons sing,” Keira whispered.

He lowered the gun, relief making his knees weak. “That’s no demon, but an imp from hell. What his mother calls him, anyway.”

Dale rounded the corner to the section he’d built as quarters to house his men when the Phoenix Force needed to discuss ops in private. He flipped the safety on his weapon and shoved it into the waistband of his shorts.

Grant “Sully” Sullivan lay on the carpet, singing a bawdy song. Dale inhaled and recoiled.

“Jesus, Sully, what the hell?”

The ensign struggled to sit up, and fell back, the odor of whiskey clinging to him like cheap perfume. “Sorry, Curt. I’m a little...little drunk.”

“And you came here to sleep it off? Or escape from a lover?” Dale squatted down beside the young SEAL.

Keira entered the room and looked at Sully. Dale sighed. “Keira, meet Ensign Sullivan, one of my men. Sully, this is Keira, my new housekeeper.”

Sully opened one eye and held out a hand. “Pleased to meet you, ma’am.”

Her mouth quirked. “It’s a pleasure since you’re not a demon.” Her gaze whipped to Dale. “Although I’ve heard you’re an imp.”

“That’s what Mom says. Of all her eight kids, I was the worse. Worst.”

Dale wiped his clammy palms on his shorts to hide them from Sully. Even drunk, the man was sharp. Of course. He’d trained the SEAL himself. “Why did you teleport here?”

“My sis. Cassandra’s worried about you. Made me promise to warn you in person, Curt.”

“Who’s Curt?” Keira asked.

“It’s my team nickname.” Dale glanced at the kitchen. “Could you get him a glass of water?”

As Keira headed for the sink, Dale sat beside Sully and lowered his voice. “I told you, I’m fine.”

The last thing he needed was Sully’s well-meaning but nosy older sister fretting about him. Did the whole world have to fuss over him?

“Cassandra saw a vision in her crystal ball.”

Keira handed the glass to Sully, who gulped down the water. “Your sister has a crystal ball?”

“Just for fun. Doesn’t need it.” Sully set the glass down and looked slightly more alert. “She sees her visions in her mind. She came to my place and yelled at me for drinking too much. Jeez, I hate when she yells at me. Like I’m eight again and she’s my bossy older sister nagging me. Well, I was a mess, but damn, I didn’t expect company, sorry for swearing, ma’am....”

Trying to follow a line of conversation with Sully when he was soused was like trying to read Latin backward. Dale pointed two fingers at his eyes. “Focus, Sully. Why was your sister at your apartment?”

“Cassandra was worried about you. Came to tell me. Saw a vision in her crystal ball of you dancing with a demon. Not your ex-wife, either.”

Dale’s mouth quirked. He glanced at Keira to see if she absorbed the joke, and saw blood drain from her face.

He wondered what it meant. Then she smiled, but it seemed strained.

“What kind of demon?”

Sully frowned. “She started bitching... Sorry, ma’am, I mean, complaining, about how messy my place was and how I drank all the whiskey.”

“The demon?” Dale asked.

“My sis.”

“Why did you drink so much?” he asked gently, already knowing the reason.

“Ever since Miranda broke up with me, my life’s been a wreck. I loved her and no one will ever be as sweet.” He sighed. “’Cept maybe Paulina. She was amazing....”

Keira gave him a questioning look. “How did you break in?”

“Teleported. Never break in.”

She gave Dale a questioning look. “He teleported over. Sully’s a Light Mystic.”

“Which is Curt’s polite way of saying I’m the bastard son of a Mystic Witch and a psychic human. Unlike Cassandra, who’s a pure-blood Mystic.” Sully rubbed at his face.

She tensed visibly. “Mystic Witches have visions of the future.”

“Cassandra’s are usually spot-on, which is why I need to know more about this one.” Dale turned back to Sully. “What did your sister see?”

“Oh, Dale, let the poor man sober up. He looks hungry.” She smiled at Sully. “Have you eaten?”

Sully ran a hand through his thick hair. “No, ma’am. Was gonna grab leftovers or something out of a can.”

“I made stew. There’s plenty. Would you like dinner?”

Dale shot her an incredulous look, but she ignored him and focused on Sully, who brightened, his boyish face lighting up like a Christmas tree. “Gee, thanks. I love real home cooking.”

He didn’t like the idea of Sully dining with them. Dale ruminated over this. It wasn’t the thought of Sully treating him with kid gloves or asking him again and again how he was healing.

Dale disliked the idea of sharing Keira’s company with another man.

Interesting. He rubbed a spot on his chest, his scars itching suddenly. Or was the itch much deeper, the burning wish to enjoy a quiet conversation with a woman who didn’t look at him with either fear or desire in her eyes?

Sully scrambled to his feet, swayed a moment and then caught himself. Dale stood as well, wondering about Cassandra Sullivan’s cryptic message. Her visions in the past had proved correct. But no way in hell would he ever dance with demons.

Dale headed for his study and locked his weapon in the safe. When he returned to the dining room and retook his seat, Keira had set a bowl of stew on the table before Sully.

The SEAL began to eat. “Wow, this is terrific,” he said around a mouthful of stew. “Maybe if Curt fires you, you can cook for me.”

She sat, looking amused at Dale’s scowl. “I just got hired. Why would he fire me?”

“You’re not his type. Too nice.” Sully waved his spoon. “He likes tall, model types with sharp tongues.”

“Ensign,” Dale warned. “Tell me about your sister’s vision. What did this demon look like?”

Keira choked on her wine. Dale glanced at her. “You okay?”

“Fine.” She coughed. “Drank too fast.”

“Sis said the demon’s face was blurred, but she had pretty hair. Silky.” Sully squinted at Keira. “Kinda like yours, ma’am. No offense. Didn’t mean to compare you to a demon.”

“No prob,” she said quickly. “Care for some wine?”

“Think I’ve had enough to drink. Wouldn’t wash down well with the finest whiskey this side of—”

“Ensign,” Dale interrupted. “The vision?”

“Cassandra said that the demon is closer to you than you’d ever realize...a demon in disguise—”

“More stew?” Keira persisted.

Sully shook his head. “Could use coffee, though, if you have any. Need to sober up.”

Her smile was bright. “Sure. Would you like dessert? I made chocolate cake.”

“From scratch?”

Keira had already vanished into the kitchen. “Dale, would you help me? I can’t carry this by myself.”

He went into the kitchen and carried out the cake as she set up the coffeemaker. Keira scurried after him into the dining room.

As she began to cut slices of the thick cake, Dale shook his head. “I’m full. I’ll save it for later.”

He aimed a stern look at the ensign. “Sully, your sister’s vision.”

“A sad demon. Weird. A demon who liked to dance and invaded your house to get close to you, the devil in disguise. She said your future depends on vanquishing the demon.” Sully dug into his slice of cake. “This is great. Thank you, ma’am.”

“Keira,” she said. “Dale, I think the coffee is ready. I couldn’t find anything to serve it in. Do you mind?”

Dale bit back his impatience as he returned to the kitchen. Damn it, why couldn’t Cassandra have clear-cut visions instead of sounding like a Chinese fortune cookie? What demon? Why would he allow a demon into his own home?

Then again, he’d changed since the time in the basement. Dale pressed a hand to his temple. Things that were normally clear before had grown muddied in his mind. He needed to get his act together.

When he returned, carrying a silver service and three cups, Keira was eating her slice of cake. Sully snapped his fingers.

“That’s what Cassandra said. I forgot. She said the devil you dance with is the devil in your house, the demon you’ll fall hard and fast for, the devil you’ll bring to your bed....”

“Oh, my God,” Keira cried out.

They both turned. She was licking frosting off her fork, her tongue slowly stroking the tines. Dale’s jaw dropped. Holy crap, the woman turned eating cake into carnal art.

“Oh, my God, this is so good! Chocolate,” she breathed. “I haven’t had any in months. You must try this. I used dark and milk chocolate.”

Keira took another bite. Eyes closed, expression ecstatic, she looked like a woman in the throes of orgasm.

He forgot all about Cassandra’s vision. Forgot about why Sullivan came to his house. All his focus centered on the woman eating a slice of chocolate cake with such sensuality, his blood thickened.

Dale hungered to see her looking this way again, only naked beneath him, her pleasure visible to his eyes only.

Sully stared at her with wide eyes, a pulse beating wildly in his throat. The man was clearly turned on. She licked the fork slowly, and Dale had the oddest feeling she was truly savoring the meal, but also distracting them.

Why? Did she see Mystic Witches as a threat?

Keira flicked her tongue over the tines and slowly slid the utensil into her mouth. Out. Then in again. Sweat trickled down Dale’s back. He gulped down his wine, his gaze riveted. Beneath his shorts, his cock hardened.

Stunned, Dale set down his wine. He hadn’t experienced arousal since his torture. Now his new housekeeper, with her innocent air and pouting, full mouth, had given him an erection. He narrowed his eyes at Sully.

Leave us alone. Now.

The SEAL wasn’t stupid. Sully suddenly pushed back his plate. “I’ll be going. Thanks for the meal.”

He stood and stretched out his arms as if to teleport, but began to sway. Dale bolted out of his chair. Damn it, he was so tuned into Keira’s little display, he’d forgotten his first responsibility—to his men.

“Downstairs, Ensign. You’re not headed anywhere. Either I get you a taxi to your apartment or you stay here. Last time you teleported someplace drunk, you ended up inside the lingerie department of a department store.”

“I do love the ladies in silk.” Sully sighed.

Dale helped him down the steps and watched him collapse onto a bunk bed, covered him with a blanket. Then, as an afterthought, he left a lamp burning.

No one should be left alone in a basement with the lights off.

No one should be left alone in a basement with the lights off and the sound of his own blood slowly dripping onto the cold concrete floor.

His erection deflated. Dale climbed up the stairs, needing to return to the brightly lit kitchen.

A soft, sweet voice hummed a tune he recognized from the sixties. Keira’s arms were plunged into a sink filled with soap suds. Disappointed, Dale cocked a brow. He wanted to watch her eat more cake, with him as her only audience. He wanted to slide chocolate frosting over her mouth and slowly lick it off, then trail his tongue down her neck and lower...

What the hell was wrong with him? All he could think about was sex. This was the woman he’d hired to clean his house and keep Keegan Byrne the hell out of his personal life. Dale drew in a deep breath, then another, and folded his arms.

“I have a dishwasher,” he told her.

At her questioning look, he pulled open the stainless-steel door and slid out a rack. A most becoming blush tinted her round cheeks.

“Runs on electricity, saves time,” he added.

“Some things are done best the old-fashioned way. Save the planet.”

His irritation grew. “Hope you’re not into only candlelight and battery power like most New Agers and I’m going to wake up to find organic sprouts for breakfast instead of bacon and eggs. I don’t eat sprouts and I’m not into peace and love.” Dale fetched a clean dish towel and began to dry the plates she stacked on the drainer.

Keira’s lovely mouth wobbled. “Are you making fun of me?”

His stomach churned at her woebegone expression. He set down a plate. Damn it, had he lost all his manners? Since when had he been so rude?

He took another deep breath, wrestling for control, feeling his life was spinning away from him again.

“I’m sorry. I’m rather bad-tempered these days.”

Especially when facing a woman who really turned him on, and made him feel even more out of sorts because each time he was around her, all he could think about was getting her naked.

Her peaches-and-cream complexion looked creamy and smooth, like fresh milk. The pink-and-green-flowered frock floated around her calves, hugging every inch of her curves. With her huge green eyes and the dark curls tumbling down her backside, Keira looked more like a forest nymph than a housekeeper.

“Why?”

That voice, it stroked over his clammy skin like velvet. So lush and melodious. Seductive and yet without the artifice of his sometime girlfriend, Melissa, who knew how to use her feminine skills to get her own way.

Keira was his housekeeper. It was none of her business why he was bad-tempered. She was his employee, nothing more.

Dale braced his hands on the counter and looked her in the eye.

“I told you before that I was in the hospital. It’s only been two weeks since I returned to active duty. I’m still trying to find my feet again and learn to be civil.” His mouth twisted. “Hard to be social and polite when you spend days and nights bare-assed, needles and tubes snaking out of your body, nurses waking you up every hour to check and see if you’re still breathing.”

Sympathy shone in her green eyes. “Why were you in the hospital?”

He dragged in a deep breath. Sooner or later, she’d hear the rumors. “I was tortured by demons.”

She flinched.

“But I made it, and thanks to one of my men and his girlfriend, who saved my ass and got me airlifted to a hospital in time, I’m going to be fine. Great. Terrific.”

“Do you remember anything?”

“Not much.” Dale picked up the dish towel and began folding it into thirds.

“The man and his girlfriend who saved you, do they remember anything?”

He frowned. “Shay and Kelly told me there was a girl in the basement, but she vanished. His memory and Kelly’s both got fogged. But he’ll never forget the girl’s face.”

She drew in a deep breath. “Where is this Shay and his girlfriend? Maybe they can help you.”

“They got married. Shay’s away on training, took Kelly with him to live near the base. They won’t be back for a few weeks.”

Keira’s expression remained shuttered. He stared at the counter, willing the memories to become stronger.

“I remember the little boy the demons threatened to torture and kill and how they said they’d make him die slowly if I didn’t take his place. I’ll never forget his name. Joshua.”

“Josh,” she murmured.

Dale studied her and Keira flushed again. “Most boys with that name are nicknamed Josh. What else do you remember?”

“There was a wolf there, a black wolf. And a woman. I think. I remember her scent.” He rubbed an aching spot behind his throbbing temples. “Citrus and wood chips. No, maybe it was lilies and honey. It’s a blur now.”

Keira rummaged in the freezer, found a bag of frozen peas and handed it to him. “Here. This will help your headache.”

“Thanks.” He pressed it against his pounding skull. “How did you know my head hurt?”

“Your face is all compressed.”

The cold bag felt good against his throbbing head. “I thought you were going to say my aura is red and black.”

“It is.” Keira dried her hands. “But I know you’re not into that woo-woo stuff.”

He had the grace to feel ashamed.

Dale tossed the peas back into the freezer and stuck out a palm. “Let’s start over. I’m Dale Curtis, lieutenant commander of the best team of SEALs in the U.S. Navy, sometime classical pianist and foot-in-the-mouth jerk.”

A tentative, sweet smile touched her mouth as she offered her hand. “Keira Solomon. Roving gypsy, Luminaire and quirky New Ager. Oh, and I happen to detest bean sprouts.”

Her palm felt soft, the bones delicate beneath his big hand. Dale caressed it very gently, feeling the bandage he’d placed there, feeling loath to release her. The delicious scent of cookies, vanilla and almonds drifted from her, tendrils wrapping around him and invading his senses. She smelled like freshness and innocence.

She smelled like home.

Dale hadn’t been home in a long, long time.

His guts clenched as he dropped her hand. She did not move but moistened her mouth, staring at him.

Riveting his gaze on her mouth, he moved closer. Closer still, his own lips parting. Hungering to sample her, see if she tasted as delicious as she smelled.

Dale reached for her, ready to cup her cheek and lower his mouth to hers.

A sharp scream cut through the air. Keira blinked, and paled.

Downstairs. Sully.

The SEAL never had nightmares. Ever.

“Oh, God, get it off me! Please! Someone help me!”