Compartmentalize.

“Anima is planning something else,” Emma said. “Something big.”

I’d figured, but confirmation managed to rip me apart. “Do you know what?”

She nibbled on her bottom lip, shook her head. “All I know is this—what happened last night was only the beginning.”

Chapter 9

PREY FOR ME

I told Cole what I’d learned from Jaclyn, and what I’d learned from Emma, and his reaction was similar to mine. Shock, anger...agony. It was hard, watching him suffer. Worse than dealing with my own riotous emotions.

He fisted a handful of his own hair, yanking at the strands as if he meant to pull them out, and stalked around my bedroom. His boots thumped against wood, then rug, then wood again. He stopped in front of the wall and, with an animalistic growl, punched a hole in the plaster.

He’d done that before, the day he’d broken up with me. His emotions had been too strong to contain.

“We can’t lose another guy, Ali. We just can’t.”

I’d had the same thought, but in reality we’d deal with whatever we had to deal with. That was life.

“There’s a good chance we’ll see them again,” I said, hoping to console him...and myself. “They’re Witnesses now, just like Emma.” Dead, but not gone.

He punched another hole in the wall, standing in the dust of the aftermath, panting.

“Cole,” I said gently. “C’mere.”

He stalked to the bed, plopped beside me. He was like the lion with the thorn in its paw, and I had to proceed carefully.

Bleak violet eyes lifted as he said, “Remind me that I’m alive.”

Without hesitation, I climbed onto his lap, braced my knees at his sides and pressed my lips against his. “You’re here. You’re mine. And I’m yours.”

He opened his mouth to let me in, and our tongues thrust together. It wasn’t an easy kiss. Or a gentle one. But then, comfort didn’t have to come that way. This wasn’t even a slow build to something more. It was hard, and it was harsh. It was a conflagration.

He clung to me as if I was a lifeline.

Actually, no. That wasn’t true. We clung to each other, reveling in the moment, the sensations...the pleasure. Losing sight of the world and its pain.

He twisted, taking me with him, and pushed me against the mattress; his muscled weight pinned me down, but he didn’t give me another kiss. He lifted his head. His panting grew worse, his nostrils flaring with every deep inhalation. A thin sheen of sweat covered his brow. Tension branched from his eyes.

“Ali. I have a present for you.”

I wanted to cry out in denial—I knew he wasn’t talking about the present I really wanted. Him. I knew how his mind worked. He’d stopped the make-out session before it could reach a point of no return and had no intention of starting up again. But I didn’t cry out. This wasn’t about me, but us.

“Show me,” I managed to say.

He leaned forward, slid his hands under the pillows and brushed against me. Wicked sensation sent me into a tailspin.

Maybe I’d cry out after all.

He straightened with a snap. Our gazes locked.

I remained silent. Good Ali. But I did lick my lips in wicked invitation. Bad. Bad!

He watched, tensing, and leaned down—only to straighten with a snap again. A growl rose from his chest. “You are too much of a temptation.”

Clearly, I wasn’t enough of one. Whine, pout.

“These are for you.” He spit the words like weapons. Which was kind of funny, considering the fact that he was actually holding weapons. In each of his hands was a small ax. The dark metal gleamed in the light, and I could see words etched into the bellies.

I sat up, taking the weapons to study them more intently.

One read There Is No Place Darkness Can Hide When Light Shines.

Okay. That was seriously beautiful.

The other read Cole Belongs to Ali, Now and Always.

And that, well, was seriously beyond beautiful.

“Oh, Cole.” I met his now-unsure gaze, and my heart absolutely melted.

“I had them made for you. They arrived a week ago, and I’ve been waiting for the right moment to give them to you.”

“But...how...? Your house.”

“They were in the backpack.”

The million-pound backpack he’d refused to leave behind. Tears beaded in my eyes.

“Thank you,” I whispered and clutched the weapons to my chest before setting them aside. I wrapped my arms around him and hugged him tight.

The hug led to another kiss—yes!—and I suspected the kiss would have led to something more if a knock hadn’t sounded at my door. He wouldn’t have been able to resist, not again...surely.

“Meeting. Ankh’s office. Five minutes,” Frosty called.

Sighing, Cole clasped my hands and helped me up. “It’s probably for the best.”

“Not my best,” I grumbled.

He gave me a small smile.

As we trudged to the door, my cell phone beeped, signaling a text had just come in. I checked while I walked.

Nana: I’m safe.

Thank God!

Me: I’m sorry 4 what I did 2 U, but I’m happy UR safe. I luv U.

Nana: You are forgiven. I would have done the same thing to you—drugged you and sent you away—but you beat me to it. Kick some zombie butt, dear. For sheezie.

I laughed. Nana and her “hip teen-speak” always brightened my day.