But then the guy surprised her when he said, “Will it be too much for you?”
Her jaw dropped. Maybe.
Screw this. Jade rushed for the back door. They could play coy and settle the tension between them later. Now was the time for running.
Her feet thudded down the wooden steps, and Az rushed right behind her. They hit the edge of the swamp at a run, ducking and dodging fallen trees and branches. The heat beat down on them, and Jade didn’t even want to think about the snakes that were probably lying in wait.
She hated snakes.
The thick scent of vegetation surrounded them. A line of dark green water, covered by algae, waited to the left. A log—no, not a log, a gator—drifted lazily in the sludge.
Her heart shoved into her ribs. Faster, faster, she zipped through the swamp. Northwest. Three miles wasn’t so much.
Except it seemed like a whole hell of a lot when you were running through a damn creature-infested swamp.
Then Az grabbed her wrist and jerked her against him.
“What—” she began, panting.
He covered her mouth with his hand.
“Someone’s following us.” His whisper.
And she heard the thud of pounding feet—coming quickly toward them.
A shifter would be able to pick up their scent and follow them perfectly in the swamp. But if it were just humans . . . humans wouldn’t be able to track them even half as well.
Her hand pressed against Az’s chest. His gaze held hers. They waited.
Humans . . . or shifters?
Az pulled her deeper into the shadows of some swaying trees. His hand slipped away from her mouth. They stood close, bodies brushing. Neither dared speak.
“Dammit!” A man’s angry shout seemed to echo through the swamp. “I saw them run out here!”
“Now I don’t see a f**kin’ thing,” came another voice. Also male. Also pissed.
The sound of her breath seemed far too loud to Jade. And those voices were too close. She rose up on her tiptoes, and, over Az’s shoulder, she caught sight of the men.
Uniforms. “Cops,” she whispered. Cops who were heading in their direction.
She felt the tension in Az’s body. His head bent toward hers. “I can take care of them.” Barely a breath of sound.
No doubt he could. But, if possible, she’d really like to avoid adding the assault of two police officers to her already extensive résumé. So Jade pulled Az closer and tried not to make a sound.
Go away. Head back in the other direction.
“Shit, they could be anyplace by now,” one of the cops snarled.
Not just anyplace. She’d gone northwest. She’d scouted before she picked this house as a retreat spot. She knew how to mark the directions. And this way—it led to the old dirt road that cut around and looped through the back of the swamp.
The cops kept talking, but the sound of their voices grew softer. They were moving away. Going back to the house. Muttering about not getting paid enough to dodge snakes.
She waited until those voices faded away completely. Then she took a deep breath. Jade glanced up and found Az’s eyes on her—well, on her mouth.
Her hand was still on his chest. Right over his pounding heart. She cleared her throat. “I . . . uh, think it’s safe now.” Though the cops could return with reinforcements anytime.
He nodded and stepped back.
Get a grip, girl.
She turned away and headed straight ahead, away from those sheltering trees.
“You sure that you know where we’re going?” He asked.
Glancing back, she tossed him a real smile. “I’m good with escape plans.”
His eyes narrowed on her.
She shook her head. “Come on, angel, let’s get moving.”
They didn’t speak again, not until they’d cleared the swamp. The motorcycle waited under a weeping willow, just where Tanner had promised.
This is too easy. Has to be a setup.
After years of running and struggling to survive on her own, now she suddenly had an angel and a cop who wanted to help her?
No way. Fate wouldn’t smile on her like that.
Az climbed onto the motorcycle. Of course, he looked good—better than good—on it. Hot sex on a summer day better.
But she knew just how dangerous a sexy man could be.
The weight of the gun she’d taken from Tanner pressed into her lower back. Had Az seen her grab the gun and slip it out of the cabin? Maybe. Maybe not. Either way, she wasn’t exactly defenseless anymore.
Jade cocked a brow. “I get that you’re the big, tough supernatural and all.” She lifted up the keys. “But I’m the one who knows the area, so I’ll be the one doing the driving.”
He blinked at her.
Jade grinned. “Move on back, angel.”
She slipped in front of him. Started the engine and enjoyed the purr of the motorcycle.
Az’s thighs pressed around her. His arm slid around her stomach.
“Hold on,” she told him and shot away from the tree. A cloud of dust followed in her wake. “Things are going to get rough.”
Just the way she liked them.
CHAPTER SIX
Ten minutes until midnight.
Az stared up at the tombs as they rose over the heavy, brick wall that surrounded the cemetery. The scent of flowers teased his nose, but he knew that scent wasn’t coming from some floral tokens left on the graves by mourners.
You can always catch the scent when Death is close.
A tell-tale sign that an angel was nearby. Death Angels were at their strongest when they were about to take a soul. In those few moments, humans could catch the sweet scent of flowers.
A death scent.
Death didn’t really smell like decay and rot. That smell just came to the bodies after the souls were gone.
Tonight, death was close. Following him.
His eyes narrowed as he scanned the darkness. Who’d be dying tonight?
“Okay, this is as far as you go.” Jade crossed her arms over her chest and stared at him. Her eyes seemed to shine under the light of the moon and stars. “Now you take the motorcycle and go someplace safe.”
His lips twitched. How . . . charming. She thought to protect him once more. She kept doing that, despite what she knew of him. “Trying to get rid of me again?”
She shook her head. “Look, I don’t even understand . . . why do you want to help me? I’m nothing to you!”
Anger stirred within him as the mild amusement vanished. She was hardly nothing.
“I appreciate the white knight routine, believe me, I do, but why?” A faint line appeared between her brows. She stood just a few feet away, on the cracked sidewalk, and asked, “Why do you want to help me? Why are you risking your life for me?”