Page 276 of Flirting with Darkness

Nova stripped his pockets, any identifying jewelry, and pocketed all of it.

Looked like she was in for a long night.

“I’ll take care of it,” Dex growled. “Just go.”

“No offense, but I don’t trust you enough to take care of a dead body for me.” Nova gripped the wolf and heaved, tossing him over her shoulders in a fireman carry. Then she stood slowly, getting used to the weight. “I’ll handle it myself.”

She glanced back at him, terrified to look at his face again. Nova had no idea why she reacted to him like she did, but Dex did things to her common sense that should be illegal. “Seems you have shit to take care of too.”

Dex didn’t look back at the body, or the heart lying next to it. He just stared at her and her purple eye, but his face was carefully blank.

It felt weird to walk off without another word.

Where was she even going to take the body?

“Come with me then,” he finally said, looking up at the wolf across her shoulders, and then back down at her. “I have access to an incinerator.”

Nova hesitated, but then nodded. What other choice did she have?

Dex walked by the body he’d mutilated as if he didn’t care if he got caught, but she didn’t think that was it exactly.

Nova followed him farther down the alley, questioning her life choices once again. This was probably the stupidest thing she’d done all night.

But if the Council had to clean up one of her messes on day one, she’d get pulled on her first mission. Nova refused to let that happen.

Dex stopped at a door to a building that had no sign or designation. He shoved the door open and then took the body from her like it weighed nothing, slinging it over his shoulder. “You can come with me or stay out here.”

Again, she hesitated.

If she went into that building, she didn’t know all the entrances and exits. He could easily kill her, but if she didn’t see him dispose of the body properly, he could use it to fuck with her.

Nova studied the sharp lines of his face, the slanted upturned eyes, and his full lips as if they would give her the answers she needed.

If he wanted to kill her, he would have done it already, or he would have let the wolves try to kill her.

“I’ll come with you.”

Dex smirked at her and it was the first time she could see his whole face when he did it.

Nova couldn’t breathe.

He stepped into the building and she gasped when he disappeared into the darkness.

What exactly was it about him that shocked her brain into shutting down?

Paranormals were beautiful, generally speaking. Shifters were physical perfection, and so were hunters. Witches were ethereal and terrifying in the way they could just smite you out of existence – commanding nature like the old goddesses.

Nova had never seen an ugly paranormal.

Except her.

She brushed her hair over her face, and realized her cap was gone.

“Wait!” She ran back outside and checked the alley, making sure nothing else of hers was left behind.

It was a risk not to clean the area, but she’d take care of the body first. Then Nova would figure out what to do next.

She ran back inside and froze.

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