Chapter 7
Toni turned over, seeking something in her mostly asleep state. Something was in bed with her, but she couldn’t figure out what it could be. Maybe she’d bunched up the comforter in her sleep. She’d done that more than once, so it wouldn’t surprise her. She moved her leg, kneeing something soft and squishy.
“Ow. Mother humper.”
Eyes wide, she sat up, gasping in surprise when she found Nik DeWitt clutching his balls in her bed.
However, what really startled her was the slide of silk over her skin. “What the fuck?” She glared at Nik as she realized she was wearing silk pajamas over naked skin. “You bastard!”
Before she could really slap him one, he was across the room, hunched over in a chair. “I used magic. I never saw your skin.” His voice was husky and pained. His dark hair was messed from sleep, and he wore only his boxers.
Holy. Hell. That broad chest was lightly covered in dark hair. His nipples were hard, either from losing the warmth of the covers or from something else. She refused to believe her scrutiny was the cause. His broad shoulders were hunched, his smooth skin inviting her touch.
No matter how yummy he looked, he was in her bed without permission. “Nikolas.” She growled, her fingers twitching. Damn it, she should have put her gun under her pillow before she collapsed. “You were in bed with me. Uninvited.”
“That was no reason to nail me in the junk.” He sat up with a wince, his biceps flexing.
She smirked at him. “What would you like me to do if I found someone else in my bed uninvited?”
His silver eyes flashed as his brows lowered. “Knee him in the junk.”
She shook her head, ignoring how much his possessiveness pleased her. “This is Edward levels of creepy, Nik.”
He had the audacity to look confused. “How so? And who the hell is Edward?”
Toni shook her head. “Welcome to the twenty-first century. Edward and Bella? Twilight? All those still-a-better-romance-than memes?”
“Oh. That.” He shook his head and stood. “You were curled around me all night. Every time I moved away, you would chase me across the bed. So who’s the Edward here?”
Toni wanted to smack something as her cheeks heated up. “I did not.”
His brows rose. “Have I ever lied to you?” He held up his hand. “Other than not telling you that I was a god. And even that didn’t last very long.”
Shit. “No.” Man, she hated admitting that.
Nik shot her a smug look as he picked up his pants. “Well then.”
Grr. Instead of answering, she got out of bed and headed for her bureau. “Get out, Nik. I have to get dressed and get to work.”
He gathered his clothing and left the bedroom. Hopefully he was on his way back to his condo—after he got dressed, of course. No need to do the walk of shame when nothing shameful had happened.
It was almost too bad that she’d been forced to kick him out. The fact that she’d apparently felt him up in her sleep and couldn’t remember a damn second of it was a fucking shame. Miles and miles of warm male skin and she couldn’t recall how good it felt. Gah. Frustration overload was imminent.
But if she let Nik in, if she let him act on his possessive nature, she’d never be a police detective again. She’d be forced to give up the work she loved because Nik couldn’t stand the thought that she might be placed in danger. How was she supposed to deal with that? She refused to give up her job, but her desire for Nik was growing by the hour. She could barely control the urge to chase him down and invite him back into her bed.
Then again, if she guessed right, either she was already immortal or soon would be. Staying in her job wouldn’t be feasible in the long run. Detectives had a bad habit of noticing anomalies, and the fact that she didn’t age would be one hell of an anomaly. It was something she’d have to figure out. Maybe she could work for Travis and his detective agency, taking her retirement at forty-four? Or maybe she could work with Nik as a detective with his business.
This wasn’t something she had to figure out right this minute, but the thought of leaving the department depressed the hell out of her. She needed coffee and breakfast and to solve this damn case, then she could move on to worrying about her future.
Toni got dressed and moved to the bathroom, where she did her morning routine. She still had yesterday’s makeup on, so she quickly washed and reapplied a light layer of mascara and some lip balm. No need to stress her skin out with her regular routine. Last but not least, she strapped on her gun, picked up her badge and grabbed a jacket from the closet. The jacket would hide the gun. She stuffed her badge into the pocket along with the lip balm.
She left the bedroom, her boots clacking on the hardwood floors. She made her way into the kitchen, so ready for the coffee she could clearly smell. It was likely to be another long day looking for Sydney, and she needed the jolt of caffeine to start her brain.
Wait.
Toni stopped and stared. Nik was in her kitchen, wearing a new set of clothes, his hair neatly combed instead of the cute wreck it had been when he woke up. He was wearing an apron and cooking something that smelled suspiciously like a Spanish omelet.
“Have a seat.” He waved his hand toward her dinette set. “This will be done in a minute.”
Toni sat. Who knew a man could look so adorable in a white apron with ruffles along the edges? And he wore it like it was nothing, like this was something he did every day.
Toni watched as he plated two omelets. He brought them to the table, then turned and made them each a cup of coffee and poured two glasses of orange juice. He took off his apron and sat across from her. “Eat up.”
Toni took a bite of one of the best omelets she’d ever had. “Oh my god, this is so good.”
Nik smiled sweetly. “You’re welcome.”
They ate quietly, neither of them speaking until their plates were clear. “Thank you for breakfast, Nik.”
He nodded and stood, gathering the plates while she sipped her coffee.
“Leave the dishes. I’ll do them once I’m done.” She took another sip. “I’ve got to find a lead on Sydney.” She frowned. “Something was bothering me last night, and I think I’ve got it figured out.”
“Oh?” He sat across from her again, picking up his juice.
“You can’t view anything in Frederica’s space, right?”
“Yes,” he drawled, watching her over the rim of his glass. Those silver eyes were actually reflective. The orange of his juice colored the lower half of his irises. It was so pretty she found herself staring at the color. “Toni?”
She shook her head, getting it back into the game. “Is that the only place you can’t look into?”
The glass froze at his lips as his eyes went wide. The glass lowered. “Honestly, I didn’t think to check.” The silver flashed, looking metallic for just a second. His voice, when he spoke, was filled with annoyance. “There’s another spot.”
“Where?” Toni leaned forward. Her gut was telling her that she’d finally found Syd.
“Nadine walked out of a blank space. Hold on.” He got up and went to her desk, grabbing a Post-It and a pencil. “The addresses around it are clear, so it shouldn’t be difficult to look up.”
Toni took her half-empty coffee over to her desk and sat. She brought up Google Maps, ready to do a quick search. “Gimme.” He handed her the note and she typed in the address. “Okay, we’ve got…” She switched the view to Earth rather than map, and her heart jumped. “Look. You’ve got a run-down liquor store at that spot, and next door is…” She looked up at him in satisfaction. Bingo. “An abandoned grocery store.”
He scowled. “She took Syd to New Jersey.”
Toni shuddered. The only part of Jersey she’d loved had been the shore, and that stupid show had ruined even that for her. “So we go in, get her back and come home.” She stood and grabbed her cell phone, keys and wallet. “Who’s driving?”
His brows rose as he stood. “I am.”
“Cool.” His car was in the spot next to hers. His black sports car looked sweet, and just like something she expected Nik to drive. “Let’s go.”
They took off toward the elevator. Toni stopped long enough to greet Slade, who was standing in his doorway. “Good morning.”
Slade smiled gently, his raspy voice almost gone. “Hey.”
Toni frowned, the urge to check him over keeping her from moving forward. “Throat hurt?”
He nodded wearily.
She tsk’d. “Let me see.”
He tilted his head back, baring his throat. “Thank you,” he whispered huskily.
“Next time, come looking for me. I don’t mind doing this for you,” she reprimanded gently. Really, there was no reason for Slade to suffer when she could help.
Warmth encased her hands as she wrapped them around his throat. She envisioned Slade’s throat healing as much as it could, all things considered.
Slade was Sleipnir, one of the children of Loki. He was the eight-legged horse of legend. Unfortunately, he’d been taken by Grimm as a personal mount and had been forced to hide the fact that he could shift into a human for centuries. Logan had been devastated to realize that Grimm hadn’t just used Sleipnir as a mount but had tortured him as well. Slade’s voice was irrevocably damaged by the screaming he’d done for over a millennium. Most of the time it didn’t hurt, but there were days when the damaged vocal chords and larynx just couldn’t handle the stress of speaking, much less screaming. And Slade still screamed in his sleep, much to Sylvia and Magnus’s grief.
“Another nightmare?” Toni finished her healing and patted the gentle, sweet man on the shoulder. Slade was only a badass where his mates were concerned. To everyone else, he was a teddy bear begging to be hugged.
He nodded and sighed in relief. “Thanks, Toni.” He hugged her tight, his voice husky but no longer pained, and much stronger. “I’m glad you’re family now.”
She hmph’d. “Abduction adoptions are still illegal, ya know.”
Slade laughed and patted her on the head, like she was the sweet one. “Yes, Toni.”
“Grr.” She spun on her heel and glared at Nik, who was trying not to laugh. “What?”
Nik held up his hands in the classic don’t shoot me pose. “Nothing, dear.”
Slade laughed. “Give her coffee and she’ll do much better.”
“This is on coffee.” Nik backed up slowly. “But we could stop by Starbucks.”
Nik had the gall to look surprised when she was suddenly standing in the elevator. “Let’s go, bucko. Starbucks is calling.”
Slade collapsed laughing in the doorway. “Did your feet even touch the ground?”
Toni tapped said foot on the floor. “Star. Bucks. Move it, buddy.”
Nik moved it.
Good. Maybe the man could be trained after all.