Hotter After Midnight (Midnight 1)

“Why’d they jump you?” The cop who’d radioed in their information cast a level stare Colin’s way.

Because I’m getting too close. Colin shrugged. He had to be careful now. He couldn’t very well reveal that the demons didn’t like him sniffing around their territory.

Ah, but his presence had sure made someone nervous.

And that was good. Very good.

Emily crossed to his side. She’d picked up her glasses, and she was rubbing the lenses against her shirt.

“Is he still here?” he asked her, pitching his voice low so that the patrolmen wouldn’t hear him. She’d said the watcher was a strong Other, and Colin wondered if the guy had stayed around to catch the rest of the show.

She shook her head. “No. He left right after the patrol got here.”

Colin grunted. Figures. “Well, Doc, looks like we’ve managed to catch someone’s attention.” He flexed his fingers, feeling the newly healed flesh stretch lightly.

“Yes, I guess we did.” She gazed at the dark end of the alley. “Are we going to heed their warning?”

She’d put a nice, subtle emphasis on the we. “What do you think?”

She pushed her glasses onto her nose. “I think I don’t like it when jerks in black ski masks jump me in an alley.”

He fought the curve of his lips. “Yeah, I don’t like that too much either.”

“I also think it’s good that someone’s nervous out there.” She lifted her chin, still gazing into the darkness. “It means we’re on the right track.”

His lips tightened. “It’s a dangerous track, Doc.” And he didn’t like her being in danger. When that bastard had put his hands around her throat—

“Despite what you think, Gyth, I’m not some delicate flower.” She finally looked at him. There was determination in her eyes—

determination and, unless he was mistaken, excitement.

He realized the doc liked the thrill of danger. She enjoyed the hook of adrenaline that came from staring straight into fear.

Oh, but he could really like this woman.

“No, you aren’t delicate,” he agreed, remembering the way she’d attacked the guy who’d tried to jump him from behind. The bastard was probably still tasting his balls.

The doc was a hell of a lot stronger than he’d originally thought, but the fact remained that she was human. And the guys who attacked him, the demons, they could easily kill her.

As for the shifter, the “Night Butcher,” well, he’d be even worse. A human would never stand a chance against a guy like that.

Emily would never stand a chance.

“You’re not going to shut me out,” Emily said, and he wondered for an instant if she’d used her powers to read his mind. “Threats from two-bit demons aren’t going to make me run.”

Threats might not, but what if those demons got ahold of her? What if they caught her when he wasn’t around, when he couldn’t protect her?

But she burned out a demon once, he reminded himself. She burned out the guy who’d tried to attack her—

And nearly wound up in a coma.

No, the doc wasn’t cut out for fighting demons or shifters.

But she was in this thing now. The demons knew about her involvement.

“It’s only going to get rougher from now on,” he warned. The closer they got to the killer, the more dangerous the situation would become.

“I know.” Simple, clear words. No hint of fear.

He held out his hand to her, palm up. She glanced down at his offered hand for a moment, her brows wrinkling. Then slowly, very slowly, she placed her palm against his.

His fingers instantly curled around hers. “You ready for everything that’s going to happen?” And he wasn’t just talking about the case. About the danger. He was talking about them. About the hot tension he felt every second he was with her.

Emily gave a brief nod. “You’re going to need me, every step of the way.”

Oh, he didn’t doubt that. His body was already hard with need for her. The leftover battle-ready tension still coursed through him.

But she was right about the case too. Whether he liked it or not—and he most definitely did not—he needed her special gift to unmask the killer.

Together, they’d keep hunting the Night Butcher. Be partners, of a sort.

He’d make absolutely certain he watched her back. At all times.

The uniforms were talking quietly behind them. The siren no longer blared into the night, but the blue and white lights still lit the alley with a swirl of color.

He wanted to get the doc alone. Wanted to get her out of that damn smelly alley. Wanted to get her home, where she’d be safe.

Where he could hold her, strip her. Take her.

He’d leashed the beast when the uniforms arrived. Managed to stop the shift. But the adrenaline in his body was running thick and hard through his veins, and it was feeding the monster. Making it stronger. Making it want, making it need…

Emily.

His fingers tightened around hers. It was definitely time to call it a night. While he still could. “Come on,” he muttered, “let’s get the hell out of here.” They could talk to the cops more later.

Emily glanced back along the alley. A small shiver worked its way over her body. Colin fought the urge to pull her against him, to warm her, to hold her.

Don’t want the uniforms to see me do that. Gossip spreads in the PD like wildfire.

“The other person I sensed—” Emily bit her lip for a moment. “He was strong, Colin. Very strong.”

“Was he a demon?” She’d mentioned Niol before. Had it been him? Had he been angry that they’d invaded his precious club? Had he sent his errand boys to try and give them a scare?

“Yes. A level ten, at least.”

Again with the levels. He still wasn’t sure what that meant, but he figured there was no way being a level-ten demon could be a good thing.

He needed to learn more about the demon world, and he needed to learn fast.

Colin started walking toward his Jeep, pulling Emily along with him. He couldn’t see his vehicle, and he sure hoped the demons hadn’t trashed his ride.

“Hey, Detective Gyth, wait, we need to—”

Colin threw a hard look over his shoulder. “I’ll call the station,” he snapped, cutting across the uniform’s words. They’d been out in the open long enough. He wanted to get the doc to safety, and he wanted to get some answers from her.