Red Moon Secrets (Deadly Beauties 3)

"Gladly. You want anything to drink?"

"No, but I want something sweet. I don't know why, but I'm craving sugar."

He laughs lightly, and then sits down beside me to await the dark user's arrival.

"You're in luck. We always get a pie from the diner on red moon movie nights. I'll bring you a piece."

"A night stalker's idea of a red moon evening is slasher films and pie?" I muse, wiggling in a little closer to him.

Snarling and howls come from the basement as the moon rises to reach its highest peak. Now I can tell the door to the basement is open.

Kane listens attentively for a second, making sure the two lycans downstairs don't break free. The cage rattles but holds steady, so he brings his attention back to me.

"Night stalkers have a terrible sweet tooth. I'm surprised you didn't notice all the sweets we devoured while you were living here."

Those weeks were so good. Falling asleep and waking up in his arms was incredible. I can't believe I was willing to just toss it all away.

"I noticed, but I didn't really link it to night stalker behavior. When the hell did you drink blood?"

He looks down, grinning, drawing my hand to his lips and then giving me a one-shoulder shrug. "Mostly when you slept, sometimes when you showered without me, other times when you'd talk on the phone. I've grown accustomed to keeping my secret, so it was easy to hide. I was going to tell you though."

"Speaking of telling me—why did you go after Castine? Why'd you delete all those pictures of the book I brought you?"

He takes my hand in his, flipping my wrist over so that my faded mark shows–Castine's locator mark.

"This. I'd seen this mark in the past on several of her victims, but I didn't know what it meant. I quickly began reading, furiously searching to find out what it stood for. Then I found out it meant that she could find you anywhere, especially when she was close. I was pissed you didn't leave like I told you, but I don't know if it would have done a bit of good with this thing strapped on you. I would have died if anything had happened to you because of me."

I kiss his chest, feeling close to him again—even closer actually.

"Alyssa, there's something...I've been trying… damn," he grumbles.

The doorbell interrupts him before he can continue—a frantic dinging sounding out repetitively.

"Showtime," Deke calls out.

Kane never bothered to put his shirt on. I'm sure that's partly to rub it in Gage's face what we've been doing. I hate that he's doing that, but maybe it'll make Gage more inclined to leave me alone.

"I'll be back. You can put the leather pants back on, but otherwise, I want you just like this," he teases before kissing me softly and climbing out of bed. "You'll have to let him in. I'm sure he's figured out by now that he can't just materialize in here."

As soon as the door shuts behind him, I wrap up in the sheet and move to listen in. It's pathetically cowardly of me to hide like a mouse from a lion, but he shouldn't be here.

Gage can come in.

"Where the fuck is she?" Gage blares as the door slams shut behind him.

I cringe at the fury in his tone. He's acting possessive, more so than he should be. I didn't plan this out too well. Of course, I didn't plan out any of this at all.

"She's in bed... resting," Kane says with his smug tone.

I roll my eyes at the pissing contest in play.

"Get her out here right now, or I'll go in after her."

Crap.

"This is my house, the last time I checked. You try to go in and I'll drag you out. She asked me to handle this."

With a wave of my hand, the abandoned clothing appears on my body. If he comes in, I sure as hell don't want him to see me in a sheet. It would only hurt him worse.