Victor fought to keep his speed at a pace that was fast but not unduly so. His insides churning with the need to get his Bloodmate to safety but also to remove the barrier between them. He’d never felt such a yearning before, the material of the coat around her felt like a brick wall instead of the thin linen that it truly was.

Her heart thudded in her chest, each beat reverberating in his head as he dodged around the humans in his path who stared wide eyed at the spectacle of him racing through the park with Flint and his security team around him. Victor could clearly hear the furious clicks of cameras the entire time, causing him to snarl at several that dared to step in his way. One of the fools was on a bike, pedaling like a madman while attempting to take pictures. Unfortunately, he’d fell afoul of an angry father when he’d careened toward him and his children and the dad had given the bike a hefty kick, sending it and the rider flying off onto the grass where the paparazzi had screamed obscenities about his precious camera being ruined.

Flint had grinned as they’d rushed past, saluting the downed man with two fingers as a final insult before they disappeared from his sight. His friend speeding up to get a few steps ahead of Victor, glancing back over his shoulder. “Almost there, Victor. Just hold on for a few moments longer.”

He knew him so well. Flint was obviously aware how close he was to losing it entirely. Victor was barely holding it together and all he wanted to do was use every ounce of his power and speed to get Kimber to safety while flashing out bolts of power toward any threat that came near. He didn’t think that would go down well with the Directive if it were splashed across the entire damn world though . . . leaving the charred and smoking remains of a human in his wake would definitely be the biggest PR nightmare of his entire life.

“Send a man ahead to get the door open,” Victor ground out, his jaw aching as he kept it clenched tight to stop him from shouting at everyone around them.

Flint nodded at one of his men who raced on to do his bidding, leaping over the gate instead of winding through it to save precious seconds, and Victor thought he’d have to give the man a bonus just for that alone. Victor held tight to his cherished cargo, whispering down to her, “We’re nearly there, baby, I’m going to jump over a gate. Don’t be afraid, it’s just quicker than me having to slow down and go around and through the dang thing. Okay?”

“I’m fine,” she replied quietly. Her hands tangled in Flint’s coat and gripped the front of him, her touch sending shockwaves through his entire system and making him wish they were already home . . . and alone.

Flint dashed forward, waving his arms and shouting, “Clear out of the way, folks. Coming through!”

Far too many faces were turned their way, some wide eyed in surprise and shock, while others were hungry with that look only the press held. Or worse, people who knew him or wanted something from him. He tried to ignore them all, focusing on the buildings in front of them: his buildings. The one in the middle was the one they were heading to: his home. The place where she’d be safe, where he could finally release her from the cocoon and feast his eyes on her beauty once more. Inhaling her scent and losing himself in her impossibly emerald eyes was what he was imagining over and over again in his mind. Her eyes were the most unique he’d ever seen in his entire life and he’d seen just about every shade there was, but none compared to hers. They were beyond beautiful, they were glorious and he wasn’t sure he could wait the mere seconds it would be before he could tear the coat from her head. He leaped over the gate in one fluid motion, landing softly on the other side, a long sigh escaping him at the thought of being that much closer to losing himself in her gaze.

The traffic was now busy on the street, causing a curse to fall from his lips as his eyes darted back and forth. His supernatural abilities would be his normal way of dealing with such an obstacle but with so many eyes—and cameras—focused his way he knew that was not possible. Victor’s head swung left and right, his chest heaving with turmoil as he sought a way through to the other side and the sanctity of the building that was so close he could see the doorman already opening it in readiness.

“Fuck this,” Flint motioned to two of his men before stepping out in front of a cab, his hand held up to halt the car that was flying toward him.

“You’re mad,” Victor hissed at the same time as thanking him inside with every cell in his body as the cab’s tires screeched together with other cars on the street. The other guards followed Flint’s lead, sprinting onto the busy road to hold up the traffic, their large bodies standing firm, legs spread wide and immovable, loud gasps and several shouts from bystanders ringing out until finally they halted the cars and Victor darted across the road as quickly as he could with his precious cargo.

When he passed Flint, his friend winked over his shoulder cheekily. “You can thank me later, boss.”

Victor gave him a curt nod as he whisked behind him, his focus on the doorway held open for him by his doorman who kept his normal business-like look on his face. Completely non-plussed with the debacle he’d witnessed, as if it were an every-day occurrence that his employer ran inside with a covered body clutched to his chest. As he ran inside, the panic that had followed him throughout his frantic dash through the park subsided, his doorman giving him a nod.

“Good morning, Sir. Is there anything I can help you with?” he greeted him in his usual calm voice.

Victor skidded to a halt, turning to acknowledge the man. “No, thank you.”

“Very well, Sir. If I can be of any assistance you know where I am.”

Flint and his men ran inside, his friend grinning like a lunatic. “That was fun. I’ve always wanted to hold up the traffic on a New York street. That was straight out of a damn movie. Bet I’d look good on the big screen.”

“You’re insane, Flint,” Victor snapped out. “You could’ve been hit by one of those damn vehicles and that would’ve been all over the news in no time at all.”

“Yeah, I know, but what else were you gonna do?” Flint retorted. “Stand there for ages and wait for a break in that traffic? Anyway, I would’ve healed and it might’ve taken the heat off you if those paps caught that.”

Shit, he was right. Victor shook his head before motioning to the elevator banks. “Come on. I want to get Kimber away from here. They can still see her if I take this damn thing off her here and that reminds me . . . I want all glass on these floors to have some sort of reflective coating added. I don’t want the risk of having any pictures taken through them. I have that on my own floors but I didn’t think to do that here . . . stupid of me.

“Not stupid, Victor, you just didn’t envisage . . . this.” Flint grinned.

“True,” Victor exhaled, shaking his head. “I’ll get Suzette to get it organized and there’s going to be other changes too. We’ll need more security for starters. That’s something you can organize and I want that sorted as soon as possible. Around the clock, Flint. I don’t want to take any chances with Kimber’s safety. She’s not only my Bloodmate, but she’s a Dragon. We must ensure her safety and I’ll spare no expense in doing that. Understand?”

“I hear you, my friend,” Flint replied, his eyes steely. “I’ll get on that straight away and we’ll do whatever it takes. I plan to go over the building’s security system too. Don’t think for a minute I’m not taking this seriously, because I am. I’ll lay down my life for her as I would for you. But if that happens can you make sure I have a hell of a send-off? I mean, if I die in the line-of-duty I deserve a fucking fabulous funeral, don’t I?”

Victor stared down at his friend. The man that had been by his side for centuries. The one that had fought beside him too many times to count and had made him laugh, and riled him to anger just as many times. “I appreciate that. More than I can say and if that happens I’ll throw the biggest damn party New York has ever seen. I promise you that, my friend.”

“Good.” Flint smirked. “And make sure there’s plenty of sexy women there to weep for me too.”

“I will, after all, you’ve gone through plenty.” Victor raised an eyebrow. “Now, enough with this, can we get going?”

Flint turned to his men first. Ordering, “Keep watch and don’t let those sharks anywhere near here,” then he dashed to punch in the code for their personal elevator.

Victor marched to the elevator, his long legs eating up the short distance, his arms tightening on a now struggling Kimber, her muffled voice asking, “Are we safe now?”

“Yes, my darling. You’re safe . . . you’ll always be safe with me.”

“Can I take this off now?”

“Soon,” Victor replied. “Just a few more seconds.”