CHAPTER FOUR

 

 

Seth walked her all the way to the department’s door. He suppressed a grin as he listened to her thoughts. She was about to tell him she was a big girl and didn’t need an escort. He would derail that train before she got it out of the station.

“While you finish your day, I’ll scout the area of the last attack. I hope to pick up his trail and plan a location for an ambush.”

“All right. Be careful.”

He gave her a wink. “Always.”

Fang snorted and rolled his eyes.

Seth ignored him. “What time will you be ready to go home?”

“Six p.m., unless there’s a call, then I’m on the scene for however long it takes.”

Seth presented his palm. “May I see your cell phone?”

Sara frowned and wrapped her fingers around her phone. “Why?”

“So I can add my number to your contacts.”

She hesitated but eventually pulled it from the clip on her hip and handed it over.

Seth entered his digits and pressed send. Instantly, his cell rang. “There. Now we can contact one another. If you’ll be late, please call.” He gave her a peck on the cheek and waved as he walked away.

Smooth. Very smooth. Fang gave Seth a toothy grin. You’re learning, young padawan.

Star Wars? Really?

Fang chuffed I couldn’t resist.

Seth whistled a happy tune as he made his way to the site of Paul’s latest kill. He’d found his mate, and she was incredible. The curvy little homicide detective wasn’t exactly what he’d expected, but that wasn’t a bad thing. She was smart, really smart, and self-confident. The two sexiest attributes a female could possess. Damn, he was a lucky man. He would have to thank Luperca if he ever spoke to her again.

He and Fang were proficient at judging people and had watched Sara intently. Body language and scent were dead giveaways that always told the truth no matter what came out of a person’s mouth. He’d frightened Sara at first, but she had quickly gotten past her fear of being a shifter mate, and now seemed to be inching her way toward accepting him. That boded well for their chances of survival.

Seth chuckled as he recalled her expression when she informed him that in no uncertain terms would she be his mate. Her eyes had narrowed, deepening the fine lines at their corners. A spark of defiance had flared in their depths, brightening them to a vivid green. For a moment she matched his dominance, something no one but his father had ever done. She was one hell of an alpha female.

And will be one hell of an alpha wolf, Fang added.

He parked his rental car a block away from the site and took a moment to scan the area before exiting and walking the rest of the way. The last thing they wanted was to lose the element of surprise when hunting a rogue.

The coast is clear, Fang said, echoing his assessment.

Within minutes, they located a blood trail. Sporadic drops became brown ribbons of dried blood. Great splashes of gore marred the beauty of the autumn colors. Seth scowled. Fang’s nose wrinkled. This was an unforgivable blasphemy of Gaia, of Mother Nature’s grandeur. The rancid odor of fear and madness made him sneeze, a nasty pungent smell to which he never became accustomed. One of the many things he wouldn’t miss after the final hunt was over.

He shuddered at the thought of Sara seeing the ugliness when it had been fresh. Jesus, what she must have witnessed when Paul killed her brother. If it were possible, they would destroy the rogue over and over for that alone.

Using a systematic sweep of the perimeter, they mapped out the deadly encounter, visualizing the attack. What he saw made him sick to his stomach.

Fang growled. The bastard toyed with the victim, tormenting the human before delivering the killing blow.

His behavior is disturbing on many levels. Rogues are incapable of such control. What the hell is going on?

I don’t know, and I don’t like it.

Seth stared at the evil stain of carnage, hands on hips. They had to plan this hunt carefully. This rogue was like no other they’d ever gone after. He and Sara could easily become the hunted. He and Fang had never pitted themselves against a rogue with the ability to reason.

First things first, Seth looked about to verify no one would see him shift. A second later, Fang shook off the change and walked around the edge of the crime scene until he stood at the rogue’s exit point. Step-by-step they tracked Paul to Minnehaha Creek where the trail went cold. Their prey could have gone any direction from there. The creek, which was better described as a small river, ran twenty-two miles from Gray's Bay Dam on Lake Minnetonka through the suburban cities of Minnetonka, Hopkins, Saint Louis Park, and Edina, to the city of Minneapolis where it emptied into the Mississippi.

Nose to the ground, Fang searched the bank both upriver and down but found no sign of Paul’s passing. He must have crossed over to the far side.

Backtrack to the edge of the tree line, and we’ll shift back. I’ll use the rental car to get us to the opposite side of the creek.

Several hours later, they hit another dead end. Paul’s trail vanished into thin air. There was nothing to do, but stake out the area and wait for the rogue to return or make another kill. Sara was right about the beast heading north to the metropolitan population. He checked his watch and headed for his car. It was time for Sara to knock off for the night.

As he walked into her office, she glanced up from an open file to his face, expectation shown in her eyes.

Releasing the fingernail she was nibbling, she stated, “I was worried about you out there alone. He could have attacked you, and I wasn’t there to help.”

“You were worried about me?” Seth’s heart swelled, and Fang rumbled his pleasure. If she was concerned, she felt something for them. Happiness erupted from the depths of his heart and soul. The pleasant emotion made him laugh out loud.

“Why are you laughing?”

“I’ve never had anyone worry about me before. I like it.”

Sara snorted as she grabbed the phone from the desktop and tossed it in her purse before she dug out her keys. “Of course I was worried. I’ve seen the beast in action. Let’s get out of here so you can bring me up to speed.”

He stepped aside and waited for Sara to precede him. “I’ll follow you home. We can talk there.”

 

 

Seth smiled and relaxed into the driver’s seat. Sara was taking him to her home without an argument. He had expected resistance and gotten none. It was a small thing in the grand scheme, but he would take it.

Richfield’s streets were pancake flat compared to his mountain lifestyle. Where he was used to a vertical variation and switchbacks, these roads were downright foreign. Commercial and retail structures gave way to house upon house. How did humans live this way? He sucked in a breath as if there wasn’t enough air to go around.

Under the stench of exhaust and pollution was the much more agreeable scent of autumn flowers. He smiled again. The city wasn’t entirely unpleasant. The morning sun had given way to gray skies that leaked like a faucet in need of a new rubber gasket. Not enough precipitation to use the wipers, just enough to make everything wet.

They turned left off of a two-lane road onto a residential street. The homes were older but well kept and equally well built to stand the test of time. He was pleased that his mate lived in a safe neighborhood. Otherwise, he would have packed her off to his place.

Sara hung a quick left, and as he followed, he noted the name of the street. Lifting his foot off the gas, he read the street sign a second time. “Nice.” He chuckled and sped up again.

Most appropriate for our mate, Fang agreed.

Seth parked on the street in front of Sara’s house, opened his car door, and pulled up short. The iron tang of freshly shed blood permeated the air. He glanced at Sara as she exited her vehicle but wiped all traces of concern from his expression. He hadn’t caught the scent of a shifter lurking about, so she wasn’t in immediate danger. The blood could be the result of any number of things.

Strolling to her side, he grinned. “Queen Avenue?”

“What?” Sara lifted her head to look at him over the mail she was sorting.

“You live on Queen Avenue.”

She frowned and went back to pulling junk mail. “Yeah. What of it?”

“It’s very appropriate that my queen lives on such a street.”

Her gaze shot to his again and she snorted. “Does that pick up line actually work for you?”

The grin faded from his face. “It wasn’t a line,” he grumbled.

Sara turned the key and pushed the door open. “Make yourself at home. I need a cup of coffee, would you like some?” Sara spoke over her shoulder as she took a moment to disarm the alarm system.

“Yes. Please,” he said absently as he took in her space, evaluating the level of security. He was pleased with what he saw: a solid door with a strong deadbolt, a security system, and bulletproof windows. To most, it would seem like overkill, but Seth thought it was perfect. She’d done well.

With a cup in each hand, Sara walked carefully so as not to slosh onto the hardwood floor. She found him in the living room staring out the picture window.

His dark ponytail was long and straight, hanging about a third of the way down his back. Her fingers itched to pull the leather thong free and comb it out. She wanted to feel the texture of that thick mass. Sara bet it was soft and silky. Thank God her hands were occupied. With that thought, she made the mistake of looking lower and sucked in a breath. Dang. His leathers hugged his incredible ass like a second skin.

Seth turned before she had a chance to raise her eyes. Damn. Busted. The rumble of his chuckle sent shivers up her spine. Double damn. She didn’t have time for nor did she want shivers.

Sara cleared her throat and handed him a cup without meeting his gaze. “Um… here.”

“Thank you.” He took a sip and sat the cup on an end table. “I need to check on something outside. I’ll only be a minute.”

He made for her back door but stopped when she followed. “Cher, you should stay inside.”

She gave him a sarcastic smirk. “The hell. I’m coming with you.”

“Fine, but prepare yourself. It may not be pleasant.”

She waved him toward the door. “I deal with unpleasant every day. Lead on.”

Ten steps into her backyard, she paused to take in her small lot. Sara followed Seth’s gaze to a mutilated animal laid out along her fence line and gasped. “I think that was my neighbor’s Shepard.”

Blood soaked the ground and surrounding fauna. The wooden privacy fence glistened with smattered arcs of arterial spray. Based on the dried blood, the attack had taken place a few hours ago, and the eviscerated dog’s perforated bowel permeated the air.

Fang growled. Such a grotesque, and brutal waste of a beautiful animal.

The rank stench of pain and fear saturated the dog. Sara didn’t know that the animal had been alive when the rogue mutilated it, and he wasn’t going to tell her. The poor beast had died a horrific death no creature should ever endure.

She stayed close to him, making no attempt to investigate the crime scene. “Was it Paul?”

“Yes,” Seth growled through clenched teeth. He glanced around the yard until he found what he was looking for. “May I bury him over there?” he asked indicating a patch of bare earth that appeared to be an old garden.

“Absolutely. Let me get a shovel from the shed.”

He accepted the tool and propped it against the fence. “You may want to go inside while I take care of this.” He didn’t look to see if she took his advice, she would stay or go of her own accord. Crouching down, he touched the dog’s shoulder, and a feeble whimper filled the silence.

Seth pulled his knife and quickly put the dog out of its misery. He swallowed hard to keep his stomach contents where they belonged. The agony the beast had gone through made him gag.

Sara choked on a sob. “He left it alive?”

“So it seems.”

She glanced around the yard as if the rogue would leap at them from behind a bush. “Is that normal behavior for a rogue?” she asked, her voice lowering to a whisper.

He cleaned his knife on a rag he carried with him, then resheathed the blade. “No. Never. This isn’t the first time he has acted out of character.”

Fang battered at him to allow a shift. His wolf wanted to track the beast immediately. But he was surrounded by houses and was sure to be seen. Besides, he had Sara to think of. As her mate, his focus was her health and happiness. The rogue knew she was hunting him and had left the dog as a warning. A first shot over her bow, so to speak. They needed to stay close, on the off chance the rogue returned.

Without speaking another word, the two of them gently laid the neighbor’s dog to rest. Seth sprinkled the last shovel of earth over the grave and wrapped his arm around Sara’s shoulders. He closed his eyes and recited prayers to speed the dog’s soul along its path to the source of all things. They had a moment of silence before he returned the shovel to the shed and followed her to the house.

Seth pulled the thong from his sweat-dampened hair and shook it loose as he watched Sara closely. She sank into what must be her favorite chair and wrapped her arms around her middle.

Our mate is in pain. We must go to her, Fang urged.

He sank to his knees before her and searched her eyes. “What can I do to help, mon amour?”

Sara shook her head. “There’s nothing you can do. You can’t bring Grant or the dog back.” Her hands rubbed up and down her arms. “We need to stop him before he hurts anyone else.”

He leaned in and held her as best he could. “We will. Once Fang and I pick up his scent, I can track him.”

She settled at his touch. “Good.” Determination wiped away her pain. “I want that bastard dead.”

“Soon, cher. Very soon.” He kissed her cheek before settling onto the couch. “Perhaps now would be a good time to tell you about my past and why I’m qualified to assist you with this hunt.” He patted the cushion beside him. “Come, mon amour. Sit with me.”

“I can hear perfectly well where I am.”

“Please.”

Sara sighed and crossed to the couch. Before she could sit beside him, he swung one leg across the cushions and pulled her down to sit between his legs. Her back to his front. “It will help me tell the tale if I’m holding you. Much of my life hasn’t been altogether pleasant.”

Fang rumbled his approval when she didn’t argue or pull away.

“For this to make sense, I should start at the beginning. While my birth mother was pregnant with me, a curse was put upon her. She wanted fresh raspberries to make a pie for my father, and the only bushes within walking distance of our home were on the property of a dark witch. My mother was caught picking the berries and condemned to die the moment I drew breath.

“When her time came, a midwife came to our cabin and assisted with my birth. The tale she tells is that when I sucked in my first breath, my birth mother stopped breathing as if I stole the air from her lungs. Even though my father was in excruciating pain, he assisted the midwife as they tried in vain to revive her. When they were unsuccessful, he requested that I be delivered to the king and queen of the shifters. He then forced the woman to leave with his newborn son swaddled in nothing but a tattered blanket. She tells that the last thing she heard was a wail of despair and then the entire forest became silent.”

“You were orphaned at birth?” Sara asked in a quiet voice.

He rubbed his chin on the top of her head. “Yes. But it wasn’t entirely a bad thing. The royal family took me in as one of their own and gave me their name. Never once have I been treated as less than flesh and blood. I’ve lived a life I never would have, had I been raised by my birth parents. Plus I had a brother to play with. Isaac and Emma Le Beau, the king and queen, had a one-year-old son of their own when I was brought to them. I had a wonderful childhood. Cade and I grew up together and have always been close.”

“You miss him. I hear it in your voice.”

“Very much. But I’ll see him again soon.”

“So how did you become a rogue hunter?”

“That is another tale of tragedy.” His breath ruffled her hair on a shaky exhale. Seth’s strangled voice was barely above a whisper. After almost two centuries his heart still clenched each time he spoke of Gerard and his family. He blinked back the tears that threatened to fall. He hadn’t allowed himself to think of his boyhood friend and that terrible day in a very long time.

Sara reached back and buried her hand in his hair. Her touch was exactly what he needed. She didn’t know it yet, but she was an anchor that kept him tethered in an emotional storm.

“When I was a boy, my best friend lived on the plantation next to ours. His family was indentured to the plantation owner and working for their freedom. Though they were poor, they always set an extra plate at the table for me. I ate there more than I did at home. One afternoon, a foul odor assailed my nose as I drew near their shack. That was the first time I smelled agony and fear. It’s not a scent I will soon forget.”

Her fingers slipped from his hair to caress his neck. “What caused the smell?”

“A rogue had attacked them. All were dead except Gerard. The beast had pinned him with tree limbs to a wall of the cabin. His arms and legs were stretched out like a hide to be tanned. I ran to help him and as I opened my mouth to scream the rogue sliced him open from neck to pelvis. His screams still haunt my nightmares.”

“What happened to the rogue? Did he go after you?”

“He would have, but when he turned on me, a hunter rushed from the forest. As I tried to push Gerard’s organs back into his belly, the hunter fought the beast with a skill I’d never seen. In the end, the rogue escaped, and my best friend was dead. Leo, that was the hunter’s name, feared I would be injured when the fight ranged too close to where I stood, so he let the rogue go. He saved my life and then stayed with me for hours. Leo helped me lay the family to rest, and as we dug graves, he told me about the hunters and what I would need to do if I wanted to be accepted into training.

“When we finished, Leo took up his sword to track the rogue and finish him. I followed, refusing to turn back until he agreed to take me along.

“I was an adolescent and untrained, yet he let me hunt down that rogue and make the kill. Standing over that rogue's dead body with a bloodied sword in my hand, I vowed to kill as many rogues as I could. That evening as I trudged for miles to get home, Luperca the creator of the shifters appeared to me. She and I struck a deal. She would allow me to train as a hunter, but only once I turned twenty-five and completed my education.”

“And have you? Killed enough of them, that is?”

“Yes. Paul will be my last hunt. But he’ll be your kill. I know the need you’re feeling. The gnawing ache to bring justice to the beast that took your kin. I would never take your retribution from you.”

“I appreciate that.” She turned in his arms and laid her palm on his cheek. “I’m very sorry you lost your friend.”

“Thank you, mon amour. As I am very sorry you lost your brother.”

She nodded and glanced away as tears gathered in her eyes.

He held her a minute longer before he spoke again. “Do you have plans for dinner or should I order pizza?”

Sara brushed her fingers over the wetness under her eyes. “Pizza sounds good to me.” She got her phone from her purse and scrolled for the pizza shop. “What do you like on your pie?” As she spoke, she initiated the call.

He grinned and rubbed his belly. “Whatever has the most meat. Get two. I’m a growing boy. Oh, and something to drink.”

She lifted her brows, humor accentuating the tiny laugh lines at the corners of her eyes, but rattled off the order as requested. “Hold for a moment.” She turned her attention back to Seth. “What would you like to drink?”

“Do they have beer?”

She held up one finger. “Could you add both beer and Coke to that?” There was a pause. Finally, she rattled off her address and ended the call.

The couch cushions dipped as she sat beside him again. “We have about twenty minutes before dinner arrives. Do you mind if I ask you about the training you went through as a hunter?”

“Of course not. It was the day after my twenty-fifth birthday. I woke up bright and early and went for a run in wolf form. While I was running through the woods, Luperca appeared to me. She gave me one last chance to change my mind. When I stayed the course, she told me I had one week to get my affairs in order and say my goodbyes.”

Seth took a breath and rubbed his jaw. “I figured the training would be rigorous. It had to be. It was more brutal than I ever imagined. At first, we concentrated on physical fitness and strength. At the end of six months of running until we dropped, climbing rock walls until our fingers were bloody stumps, and a whole list of other requirements, there was an entire day and night of pass/fail testing. The majority of my fellow trainees failed. That was the hardest twenty-four hours of my life.”

“What did you have to do for the test?”

“I had to partner with an Elite hunter and kill a rogue. The thing was, the rogue was someone I knew.”

“Why would the Goddess do that to you?”

“She had to be sure we could make the kill regardless of who the beast had been.”

“Were you sent out after that?”

Seth barked out a laugh. “No. Weapons training and hand-to-hand combat started the next day. We weren’t given a recovery period because a rogue sure won’t let you catch your breath, and we had to learn how to deal with exhaustion. I excelled at weapons because of my gift. I can make anything into a tattoo on my body and call it forth at will.” To prove his point, he stood, reached behind his neck, and pulled a sword from under his shirt.

“Holy, shit!” She reached out to touch the blade. “Is that real?”

Seth pulled it away before she made contact. “Yes, cher. And take care. It’s razor sharp.”

“Were any of the trainees injured, or did you use fake weapons for training?”

“There was nothing fake about training. I’ll never forget the feel of a blade slicing through my body when my focus slipped.”

Sara covered her mouth with her hand and sucked in a breath. “Did anyone die?”

“Thankfully, no. On the first day of training, the students are given the unique gifts of a hunter. Some of us call them a curse.”

“Why would the Goddess curse her hunters?”

“She didn’t actually curse us. She made us temporarily immortal and gave us enhanced healing abilities. Each hunter is assigned a geographic area and hunts alone. As long as a hunter remains in her service, he or she can’t perish from an injury. We can suffer a hell of a lot and not die.”

“So, you’ve lived alone all these years?”

Seth nodded. “For over a hundred. The first fifty or so I tried to stay connected to society. But that was a lot of work and painful when I had to kill a friend.” He shrugged as if he wasn’t saying horrific things. “So, I just stopped making friends and moved into the mountains where there weren’t humans to bother me.”

She raised a brow and repeated his words. “Bother you?”

He sighed. He couldn’t change what he was or how he’d lived. Out of necessity, he was cold-blooded and antisocial. “You know, talking, hanging out. That kind of behavior leads to friendships.”

Sara nodded. “I can understand your avoidance of relationships when they could lead to hunting a friend. That would suck, big time. So, do you have a house in your mountains?”

“Since my induction into the Elite Hunters, I haven’t had anything that was mine, save my sword and a change of clothes. I lived alone in an abandoned one-room cabin, hunted alone, and moved often. For almost two centuries, I’ve done my duty to my people at the expense of my wants and needs. Don’t get me wrong. I didn’t have to join the team. It was my choice to live the life of a hunter. My parents tried to talk me out of it, but hunting was something I needed to do.”

He stopped talking when she lifted her palm to his face. She studied him. His eyes. “Is it that you don’t like to be around people, or you’ve gotten used to doing without the contact?”

“I’ve gotten used to having Fang as my only companion,” he said solemnly, then he turned his head to kiss the center of her palm and smiled. “But I like being around you.”

Sara gave him a shy smile. “I sorta like you, too.” Then she cocked her head. “Who’s Fang?”

“My wolf. Over time, I developed a slightly different relationship with my beast than other shifters have. All shifters communicate with their animal soul, but the interaction is on the beast’s level. As far as I know, Fang is the only wolf soul that has learned to talk and exist as an equal with his human half.”

“That’s amazing.”

“I like to think so.”

Fang rumbled with pleasure. She thinks I’m amazing.

Get over yourself. She thinks our relationship is amazing.

“Speaking of my wolf and the training I’ve received, it would be safest for all concerned if you were a shifter when we go after the rogue. I would prefer to take the time and woo you, but our circumstances prohibit that luxury.”

Seth suppressed a grin when Sara fisted her hands in her lap and resisted the urge to toss him out on his ear.

“Mon amour, hear me out.” Seth reached out a hand and hesitated, assessing her response as he pressed it against the center of her chest. “Listen to my words with your heart and soul to discern the truth. I can promise you two things. One, there are few creatures deadlier than the one before you. And two, you’re my cherished mate. If you’ll permit me to protect you, I’ll never allow harm to come to you. Claiming and converting you to a shifter is a key element of that protection. You will need shifter speed, strength, and accelerated healing to survive the coming battle.”

“I’ve already told you that isn’t going to happen.”

“In that case, I can ensure your safety by hunting and killing the rogue tonight. But I know that isn’t what you want. For you to gain closure, you need to be the one to do that. Killing Paul on your behalf isn’t what you need from me. The safest way for you to dispatch the rogue is to give you the tools you’ll require. Those tools come part and parcel with a shifter soul.”

Seth removed his hand and sat back to observe her expression as he awaited a response. He had spoken more in one day than he’d done in the past year and his throat ached a little.

Sara scowled. The sincerity in his voice did little to cool her temper. As far as she was concerned, he could talk until he was blue in the face. She would never be a shifter mate. Ever. There had to be another way.

Her eyes moved over his face. Watched him. She stayed very still, pushing her gift back as it threatened to erupt. Anger wasn’t conducive to control. A churning volcano of energy crackled and snapped in preparation of an explosive release. The lights flickered, dimmed, and then resumed their natural glow. The growing power was there in the room with them, the static charge raising the hair on her arms. It became a non-sentient entity that manifested as tiny sparks dancing along the floor.

In a last-ditch effort, Sara rose and walked across the room to stand at the front door. If need be, she’d dissipate the energy outside where there would be minimal damage. Taking a deep breath, she concentrated on calming her emotions. Without turning she pressed a hand to the wooden door, using it to ground the energy. “I haven’t had such a lack of control since I was a child. You seem to bring out the worst in me.”

Sara flinched in surprise when warm hands gripped her shoulders and turned her. She chanced a glance at his face and knew she was losing the battle that warred in her heart.

When Seth pressed his lips to hers, she returned his kiss. And just like that, the strength of her resolve wavered. His lips left hers, and the weight of her hair was swept aside. Then he gently nipped at the crook of her neck. When Seth kissed her frantically beating pulse, and she tipped her head to give him better access, she knew she was screwed.

She didn’t step from his embrace. She should have. Her mind screamed run, but her soul whispered stay. Her entire body warmed, and that was just… terrifying. In equal measures, she wanted to strip him naked and run for her life.

“Sara.” The tone of his voice was as much a caress as his lips and fingers moving over her skin. “Mon amour, our soul connection ensures our attraction to one another. You can try to reject it, but in the end, it won’t be denied. I know you understand what you are to me. You said so at the coffee shop. What you don’t know is that I spent decades searching for you. All shifters know there is only one person who can complete them. I knew the moment I saw you, heard your voice, and smelled your delicious scent. You felt it too. Now that I’ve found you I can’t let you go. You can’t give a man a glimpse of heaven and then walk away. Can you?”

She sighed. “All I can promise is that I’ll think about it.”

“I can live with that.”

As if on cue, the doorbell rang. Seth kissed her lips lightly and stepped back. “The pizza is here. If you would get the plates and napkins, I’ll get the door.”

Sara blinked. Somehow, kissing him caused a three-second delay between her ears and brain. “Alright.”

As he reached for the doorknob, it was all she could do to step aside. Her lack of cognitive functions when in close proximity to the man didn’t bode well for fighting the rogue together.

Sara shook off the fog and forced her feet to get a move on. Forks and knives were pulled from the silverware drawer, two plates from the cupboard, and a small pile of napkins plucked from the holder. Taking a deep breath, she walked back to the living room.

Seth gave her a smile as he flipped open the first pizza box and took a piece. He placed it on her plate and took another for himself. “This smells amazing.”

“Wait until you taste it.”

Feeling eyes on her, she glanced at him. Seth wore a goofy smile as he chewed. “What?”

“How do you make eating pizza look so sexy?”

Sara snorted. “I think you need glasses.”

“I’ll have you know, I have exceptional vision,” he said with a wink.

She took a careful bite of the pizza, chewed, and then pointed at him with the slice. “We need to talk strategy and ground rules. I hate to admit it, but being around you affects my ability to function.”

“That should clear up once we’ve done the claiming ritual. Right now, our attraction is running amuck in an attempt to encourage the bonding. Don’t get me wrong, the desire will always be there but much more controllable.”

“Then we have a problem because I haven’t agreed to that.”

He cocked an eyebrow but didn’t respond.

They polished off the entire pie in silence. Popping the last bite into her mouth, she set her plate aside and wiped her hands with the napkin. “That was the best pizza I’ve gotten from that restaurant.”

“I totally agree. It was very good.”

Seth grinned at her when she covered her mouth to stifle a yawn. Stretching, she stood to clear away their drinks and plates. “You’re planning on going to your hotel tonight, right?”

He looked her in the eye and shook his head. “No. Paul has been here at least once today. After the message he left for you, he’ll be back. I intend to be here when he returns.”

Sara scowled. She didn’t like anyone but her family sleeping over. The really annoying thing was, he was right. Not that she’d tell him that. “Fine. I’ll get you some blankets and a pillow. You can sleep on the couch.”