Page 41 of Burn for the Dragon
He squeezed his eyes closed as his fingers dug into her supple flesh. “Don’t say it,” he whispered, knowing full well she wouldn’t hear him. “Don’t say it.”
But she did say it. And every word made his breath quicken and his petrified vampire heart pound with new life, longing for something that wasn’t now, and would never be, possible.
“I don’t want to leave you, Hawke. I’ve never felt so…” She faltered, and then the words poured out, tumbling over themselves. “At home as I do in your arms. I’ve never felt so much a part of someone as I do when you’re inside of me, when you take my blood inside of you. I’ve never been with a man I feel so safe with. I trust you completely, with my safety, with my body, with…everything. I’m not naïve, Hawke. I’m not a young girl who just loves to be in love. But I think…no, I know, there’s something between us that doesn’t happen everyday.” Her stomach rose and fell as she took a deep breath. “And you’re a fucking idiot if you don’t think it’s worth fighting for. I’m not giving up that easy.”
He stayed where he was, knowing the moment would have to end and he would have to crush her dream—again—of anything happening between them.
“I’m not giving up on you. And I’m not giving up on my brother.”
Fuck.
Hawke removed his hands from her hips and leaned back in the chair so she could see what he was saying. He spoke slowly, pronouncing every word distinctly, so there would be no misunderstanding. “That’s not happening, Everly. Not with me. And not with your brother. You have to let him go.”
She shook her head, red curls swinging. “No. I won’t.”
“Everly.”
“No!” Covering her face with her hands, she took a few breaths. “I’ve been alone my entire life, Hawke,” she said through her fingers. Then she dropped her arms to her sides. “Don’t you get it? Do you know what it’s like to be alone? To not have anyone?”
“I do,” he told her. But she’d already turned away.
A tear slipped down her cheek as she watched her brother smash his head into the glass wall. It didn’t so much as crack it. “I just found him,” she whispered. Tearing her eyes from the screen, she looked at Hawke. “I just found you. And I’m not going to give up either of you without a fight.”
The door opened and Kohl walked in. He quickly took in the scene in front of him. “Am I interrupting something?”
“No,” Hawke answered as Everly walked around the desk and fell into one of the other chairs. He watched her for a moment before lifting his eyes to his friend. “No. We’re just having a disagreement on how to deal with Matthew here.” He pointed with his chin at the computer screen.
Eyes going back and forth between them, Kohl walked around the desk. “No change? Wait.” He leaned in closer. “What the fuck?”
Hawke stood so he could have the chair. “It looks like they’re getting somewhere with their experiments.” Though he spoke to Kohl, his eyes were on Everly. He wanted to do something to comfort her. Hell, he wanted to do more than that.
The thought appeared: he could fight for her. And once it was there, it wouldn’t go away. If he didn’t, she would go. Kohl would allow her to leave, eventually. He was sure of it. She was no help to them. Once they were sure her brother was out of the picture and Parasupe was taken down, he would let her leave. He might request she leave town. Maybe he would help her find her Thunder. But she would go.
I can fight for her. The only danger she posed was to herself. She would need someone with her to help her get through her first transitions.
Kohl waved his hand in front of his face. “Hey! You listening to me, man?”
His thoughts dispersed into little wisps of dreamlike smoke. But like smoke, the stench stuck and wouldn’t be easily removed. “Sorry, what?”
“I was just saying, this is happening tomorrow night. Devon was in here most of the morning, and she thinks she got through the security. I’d like the coven prepared tonight. Everyone is in on this, other than a few essential vampires who will stay here and work the club like any other normal night. Dev’s gonna work from here, too. When we get into position, she’ll disarm the cameras and alarms remotely. Once we have the go ahead from her, we’re taking these fuckers down.”
Hawke glanced at Everly, but she was staring down at the desk, lost in thought. He turned his head away, just in case. “What about their prisoner?”
Kohl paused for a long time, and Hawke could feel his hesitation. But when the order came, his voice didn’t waver. “He goes down with the lab.”
Even though he knew it had to happen, and he’d just been telling Everly the same thing, Hawke wished there was another way. For Everly’s sake. “I’ll take care of him.”
Looking over the computer monitor, he met Everly’s tear-filled eyes.
Then she got up and left the office, slamming the door behind her.
His first instinct was to go after her, but he knew he couldn’t. She needed to deal with the reality of the situation. Hawke let his head fall back, then he took a calming breath before meeting Kohl’s stare.
“You know what you have to do,” Kohl told him. “I’ll call Devon and have her keep an eye on Everly until we can decide what to do with her. I’ll have Andrew stay with them, also.” He paused. “I’m sorry it has to be like this, man. But I don’t see any other way.”
With a nod, Hawke said, “I’ll go get the rest of the coven prepared for tomorrow.”
Chapter 20
