His Darkest Embrace (Jaguar Warriors 2)

He turned and indicated they head to the rig

ht, back to where they’d come from the night before. “We need to hook up with the others first.”

“No!” Skye uttered the word before she had time to filter her mouth.

Jagger frowned and crossed over until they were merely inches apart. His male scent, a tantalizing musk, tickled her nostrils, awakening something inside of her that was totally inappropriate, considering the circumstances.

She wanted to look away but found that she couldn’t.

And that pissed her off.

“We have a posse of fucking DaCosta warriors on our tail, not to mention the whole Cormac connection. Who knows what the hell he has up his sleeve. Seems to me we need all the help we can get.”

Skye looked away and said nothing. She knew it was a huge waste of time to argue with the man. She’d have to be smart. Bide her time.

Why not let them help her find the portal? Once she had it in her hands she’d escape. It was probably best that no one be around when she sealed it, however.

“Fine. I just don’t trust Declan, is all. He does have Cormac’s blood running through his veins.”

Jagger exhaled before he spoke and when he did, the deadly serious tone indicated just how passionately he felt about the men. “Declan, Cracker, and my brother are honorable men. I don’t give a rat’s ass who Dec’s father is. He’s one of the good guys, and that’s something you shouldn’t forget.”

Skye shrugged her shoulders and remained silent, pushing aside her anger at the impossible situation she’d found herself in. Christ, who would have thought, forty-eight hours ago, that she’d be working with a couple of jaguars, a sorcerer, and some dude named Cracker?

Skye actually giggled, earning a surprised glance from the jaguar. Her smile widened as she headed into the thick, already hot jungle.

Good, she thought. I’ll have to do my best to keep him on his toes.

They hiked through the dense foliage for well over an hour, bypassing the waterfall and pond from the night before. Skye refused to look at it and tried her best to banish the image of their bodies sliding through the cool liquid. Her naked flesh against his hard body.

What the hell was wrong with her? She was in crisis. The world was on the verge of destruction from demon forces unimaginable and she was getting all hot and bothered over some attractive man-meat?

He was a jaguar warrior to boot, an enemy, even if at the moment he seemed to be on her side. Most were not to be trusted. She’d have to be careful.

Skye pulled out another granola bar and grudgingly ripped it from the wrapper, shoving the entire piece into her mouth without thinking. She chewed it hard, ignoring the man beside her.

It was difficult, but she managed to focus her thoughts and eventually relaxed enough, so that the tight band of tension along her shoulders disappeared altogether.

They climbed higher and the air changed as the sun encroached and kicked the moon out of the sky. It was still early morning but the humidity carried with it the hint of rain. Skye inhaled deeply, loving the scent of the Caribbean Sea that drifted on the breeze.

She was secretly hoping the others had taken off and felt a huge stab of disappointment as they crossed a small river to find the three men waiting for them on the other side.

All of them looked at her as if she were an insect that should have been crushed beneath Jagger’s boots.

She lifted her chin and met their gazes full on. She addressed them, her voice nonchalant. “Gee, I was hoping your manners would have improved a bit with a full night’s sleep, but I can see that would be mistaken.”

Cracker’s pale eyes regarded her in silence. She held his gaze even though there was something about the man that put her on edge. He made her nervous in a way the others didn’t.

She could tell he was still pissed that she’d escaped from them before, after they’d rescued her from the DaCosta compound. But there was no time for bruised egos. She needed to take the bull by the horns, so to speak.

She needed to gain their trust.

Skye took a few extra seconds, even as the silence became a heavy weight that made the air hard to breathe.

“How is Libby?” she asked finally, noticing the whiteness around Cracker’s mouth as he tightened his lips.

She refused to look away.

The older man spit to the side and answered gruffly, “Libby is fine. She’s in Canada with Jaxon and their boy, Logan.”