Street Game

CHAPTER 9

Mack stood at the window and stared down into the choppy, white foam-tipped waves as the water lapped at the pier below. Jaimie had left him, all right, but she’d put herself in harm’s way because she felt she had to protect them all. He swallowed the lump blocking his throat. That was exactly what Jaimie would do-go after anyone she thought was harming her family. He should have known. Kane had known, but Kane hadn’t come to him. Was he really so arrogant and stubborn that he wouldn’t listen to the people he cared about most?

He had been so hurt when she left him. He’d been stunned-shocked. Totally caught off guard. And with him, hurt always manifested itself in anger. He’d come home and she was gone. She’d left him with nothing. He hadn’t considered that he would ever be without her. That he would go to bed and not be able to sleep. That he would hate his empty house. That he would listen for the sound of her laughter. He hadn’t realized how often he turned to her to discuss every topic, how much he relied on her knowledge. Jaimie had been as much a part of him as his breathing. And then she was gone and he hadn’t understood why.

Mack pushed a hand through his hair, a little surprised to realize it was unsteady. Stupid pride hadn’t allowed him to run after her. That was all it had been. Pride. Ego. Jaimie was supposed to worship him, and he hadn’t wanted to believe she could make it on her own without him. He was certain she would come back-only she hadn’t. She’d gone her own way and, worse, she hadn’t contacted him to let her know where she was. That was painful too, to have to search and go through channels, so everyone had known he’d been frantic, had known he needed to keep a hand on her. That had been humiliating in itself. Sergeant Major had called him in twice and asked him if he could still do his job.

He shook his head. He should have handled things differently. She’d been so traumatized the night of that first interaction with Doomsday. He’d felt so guilty, recognizing that everyone who mattered to him could have been killed. As it was, three had been badly wounded. He had been directly responsible. Jaimie freaking out on him, ranting about conspiracies, hadn’t made sense at that time. He was wallowing in guilt, desperate to get medical aid for everyone, including Jaimie. She’d been a mess, her brain bleeding. He’d been certain he was going to lose her too. He’d wanted her quiet.

Mack shook his head, pressing his fingertips to his eyes, unable to even recall exactly what he’d said to her. When she’d fallen silent, he’d been happy, not alarmed. Not warned. And then that quiet question, “Where are we even going with this relationship, Mack? Home? Family? Children? The whole thing is based on trust.” He’d heard children. He’d asked her if she was pregnant. Her expression should have been a warning sign, but damn it all, she was bleeding from her mouth and nose. Even her ears. His mind shut down, refusing to let the image back into his head. He was responsible for that too. What the hell had any of it had to do with a botched mission and wounded men?

He turned abruptly. “Kane. You and Javier finish making that lasagna while I go talk to her. She’d be upset if all that went to waste.”

“Whoa there, boss man.” Kane drew back, both hands in the air. “I agree you need to talk to her, but I don’t cook. And this is everyone’s favorite. If I mess it up, one of them is likely to shoot me.”

“If she cries because it isn’t done, I’ll shoot you myself.”

Javier grinned at Kane and shrugged his shoulders. “Guess we’re cooking. Doesn’t this thing have cheese in it?”

“She has all the ingredients right there. I think the two of you can figure it out.”

“Why is it you always get the girl, Top?” Javier asked.

“Because you’re still wet behind the ears,” Mack said.

Kane gingerly picked up a large spoon and stirred the sauce. “It smells good. We probably could shred the noodles and just make spaghetti.”

Mack paused at the top of the stairs and glared at them. “You can make lasagna.”

Kane winked at Javier. “You got it, boss man.”

“She went down to the first floor to be alone, Mack, but don’t count on her staying there. She’ll be back rigging her computers again. She won’t be able to let it go. Hell,” Javier said, “I want to go down and work with them and I didn’t set off her trap. I’d love to see who these bastards are and how she set the trap for them.”

“Thanks, Javier.” He waited until Javier looked up at him. “You risked your relationship with her for me. I won’t forget it.”

“I love her, Mack. We have to protect her. I figure we’re all in this together.”

Mack nodded and hurried down the stairs. Behind him he heard Kane mutter, “I got a punch in the jaw for being underhanded and I was protecting her too.”

Javier’s laughter was in Mack’s ears as he made the second-floor landing. A single light illuminated the bank of computers and screens. Jaimie stood frowning, bent over, inspecting something intently. He had always loved that particular expression on her face. He knew she was figuring out a problem, just by the little frown lines between her brows. She glanced up at him-of course she’d known he was there-and her expression changed to wariness. He didn’t want it to, but that obvious change hurt.

“I’ve got work to do.”

It was a clear dismissal. She’d never really done that before. She’d always been glad to see him and because he knew she was serious, the words cut deep. “We have to work this out, Jaimie.”

Her gaze slid away from him. “I know. I’m just not ready yet. I still feel a little raw from the last time.”

“I don’t want to fight.”

She shrugged, her fingers moving over the keyboard, her gaze fixed on the screen.

“We seem to fight whether you want to or not. I’m not going to agree with you on this, Mack. There’s no reason to keep going at each other.”

Mack crossed the room, knowing she was aware of his every movement, although she didn’t look up again. He came right up behind her and peered over her shoulder. It didn’t matter. The code racing across the screen meant nothing to him. It should have bothered him, but he was used to Jaimie and took pride in her abilities.

“I’m staying until I know you’re safe, so we have to work this out.”

She did look up then. “Really? What do you think is going to happen next, Mack? You’ll be sent out on a mission. All of you.”

He studied her face. “You believe Sergeant Major is involved.”

“I know he is.”

He tried not to let the instant anger in his gut surface. He was good friends with Griffen and she knew it. Griffen had been instrumental in Mack making the decision to test for the psychic program in the first place. He’d also been the one to keep them all together. Jaimie had never been comfortable around Sergeant Major, but then, she wasn’t military. She loved the boys and Rhianna, but stayed away from everyone else. Her soft laughter was without humor. “You have such a closed mind. I can tell you’re already building arguments against anything I have to say, so really, Mack, what’s the point?”

“I’m listening,” he replied. She always had been astute in an argument. Jaimie caught nuances others didn’t. “It isn’t easy to hear bad things about friends.”

Jaimie caught up a pen and wrote “Whitney” in the middle of a piece of paper. Above his name she drew a line, put a question mark above that, and drew another line and wrote “White House Who?”

“Someone is giving him a great deal of support. We know that or he wouldn’t still be in business. He can pull in GhostWalkers, and military personnel. He can land on military bases. We know he’s being protected and even warned when anyone gets too close to him. He has supporters, Mack. Big ones with lots of power.”

“I’m aware of that.”

“When Kane and Brian both came back from their assignment to Whitney, what did they do? What did they tell you?”

“That there were irregularities. That Whitney was involved in illegal experiments.”

“But Kane wouldn’t discuss it with you. You’re more than his best friend. Brian has looked up to you his entire life, yet he didn’t discuss it either.”

“No. They wanted to keep me out of it. They were afraid Whitney might target them and didn’t want me involved. I arranged a meeting with Sergeant Major Griffen. They reported directly to him. There were two others who came forward as well. A pararescue Team Four GhostWalker by the name of Malichai Fortunes and…”

“Antonio Martinez from Team Two, the SEAL GhostWalker team. All of them made their report together to Sergeant Major,” Jaimie finished. “But what happened to the chain of command, Mack?”

“You have been digging for information.” Mack didn’t know whether to admire her or shake her. “Did you see the actual report?”

“It was a closed meeting, Mack, and all of them-and you-trusted Griffen would take it higher and something would be done. The men turned over all their evidence to the sergeant major as they were supposed to. Did you think it strange that Kane and Brian were sent out on a mission alone not long after, when your team always works together?”

Mack shook his head. “Not always, Jaimie.” But his gut was churning again, always a bad sign. “All the teams are assigned to support one another at times.” But he had thought it strange. The order had raised a red flag in his mind and he’d sent Javier and Gideon as backup. He’d kept that to himself.

“Things didn’t go as well as expected.”

“They completed their assignment and they made it back.”

“And Sergeant Major has sent all of you out on assignments with specific orders on how to run the operation. Brian and Kane were always put in harm’s way.”

“We all were. That’s the name of the game.”

A flash of annoyance crossed her face. “That’s your problem, Mack. You think this is all some massive chess game. The human lives you’re playing with are your family.”

“That’s such bullshit, Jaimie.” Now he was furious. “I keep them alive. I don’t take my men blindly into a combat situation. And I don’t let anyone else plan my missions, not even Sergeant Major.”

“Which is why Kane and Brian are still alive. Fortunately for Antonio Martinez, the leader of Team Two seems to be just as good at planning and so far has managed to keep him alive. As for Malichai, he’s been wounded twice. The missions for the pararescue team are much more sensitive and harder to get to, but often only three men are sent out together and unfortunately they have no way of knowing he’s a target. He’s going to have a difficult time staying alive.”

Mack was silent, turning over her information. His every instinct told him she was right. For all he knew, Jaimie might be able to hack into the Pentagon computers. She had skills that were incredible. She wrote programs and codes that others couldn’t seem to compete with, and the military used her programs. She could look at a report, a picture, and see inconsistencies or patterns long before anyone else. If she said someone was targeting those four men-there was no question about it.

“You hacked Sergeant Major. Maybe someone else did.”

“He reported everything to Colonel Wilford, Mack. Colonel Wilford consulted with someone other than the next in the chain of command, someone I can’t get to yet. That man turned over all the evidence to Whitney. He’s running the teams and he believes in the GhostWalkers, but he’s fanatical the way Whitney is. The end justifies the means. If they lose a few along the way, too bad as long as the end results are the super-soldier they believe is the wave of the future.”

“You believe Griffen is actually trying to kill four GhostWalkers.” He made it a statement.

“I don’t know exactly what he’s doing, but he takes his orders from Colonel Wilford and Wilford takes them from someone who consults with Whitney. What do you think? I’ve studied Whitney. He’s very removed from human feelings. He isn’t going to kill his soldiers outright. If they die, they weren’t good enough to live. But he’s going to keep putting them in harm’s way because they’re the most expendable. He knows Griffen gave them an order. He told them they weren’t to discuss what they saw at Whitney’s compound with anyone. And they haven’t.”

“Kane told me there’s a breeding program.”

“Because the rumor was already going around. Team Two has a woman from the program married to one of their members. That isn’t exactly news.”

Mack sagged against the desktop. Had he trapped them all in a web of intrigue? He wasn’t the intrigue type. Point him at a target and he could take it out without hesitation. He was hell on wheels in a fight, but not this kind of deceit. Friends betraying friends. There was a code of honor. A standard. Sergeant Major was the man who directed his team as well as a personal friend. They relied on each other. Nothing worked if there wasn’t honor.

Jaimie moved closer to him. He felt the warmth of her body, inhaled the scent that was uniquely Jaimie. Her fragrance brought back a flood of memories. He wrapped his arms around her before he could think too much about it, and pulled her into his body. There had always been something peaceful about Jaimie he had never found anywhere else. His body always wanted action, but with Jaimie, he found a haven, a place of quiet where he could truly relax, where the coiled tension in his body simply let go.

Jaimie. His refuge. His secret sanctuary that always gave him renewed energy and strength. His everything. She’d walked out on him and he’d been so shaken at the realization that she’d been the one to have the hold on him, not the other way around. He had been determined to live without her unless she’d come back to him on her own. She’d just about killed his ego and pride and everything he believed himself to be. The leader. The untamable. He was not anything he’d believed himself to be. Jaimie was stiff at first, but he refused to let go, simply holding her, asking nothing at all but comfort. She relaxed into him, her body all soft curves and heat. He missed her so much. He missed this. Simply holding her. Having her next to him. Breathing her in. When she smiled, everything in his life turned to sunlight. She could make him see the world in an entirely different light. One touch of her fingers on his body wiped out every bad place he’d ever experienced. He’d thought she’d always be there. He’d taken her for granted. It had all been so easy when she was with him. He buried his face against her soft neck, his hands tunneling through the waves and curls of her hair. Turning his head, he kissed the side of her neck, lingering to savor the feeling of her soft skin and the scent of her.

For a moment, Jaimie leaned into him, but as if catching herself, she pulled herself straight, almost rigid, and stepped away from him. Mack looked down at his hands for a moment, working at keeping his mind and body under control. Abruptly, he changed tactics.

“I want you to do a little experiment for me, Jaimie.” Mack sank back onto the computer desk. “I want you to find each of the men. All of them. Exact position.”

“Why? You know I can.”

“But not Gideon or Spagnola. I want to find out why. If there are two of them, there could be more. I need to know. And I don’t want the others to know. Don’t document it.”

“Or tell Sergeant Major?”

Shadows crept into his eyes. “No one.”

“Whitney would take them, wouldn’t he?” Jaimie guessed.

“I believe he would and if you’re right and Griffen is working with him, then he can’t know. We’ll figure out how they’re hiding from you ourselves.”

“It has to be their energy, Mack. Nothing chemical or genetic that Whitney did to them. I read energy. I can feel how someone is feeling. For instance, Javier and Kane are upstairs in the kitchen area and they’re amused. It’s genuine amusement.” She shared her first real smile with him since he’d come to talk to her. “I fear for the lasagna.”

“They’d better not do any of the things they were suggesting,” Mack said. Jaimie sat on the computer desk beside him and swung her feet. “I’ll bet both Joe and Gideon have similar psychic abilities and something they have naturally protects them from me reading their energy. And if they have a natural protection, someone else will too. Of course, no one will know it because as far as I know, no one else can pinpoint location in the same way I can. That’s why Whitney was so interested in getting his hands on my data and why Joe is protecting me.”

“Wait a minute.” Mack scowled at her. “I thought you said Whitney wanted you dead.”

“Not him. Neither does Sergeant Major. Maybe the ones above them do, but they aren’t going to let anyone kill me. They want answers. I opened a can of worms when I began searching out Whitney’s supporters. They don’t want to be exposed. One of them wants me dead.”

“I want to try something, Jaimie. Just go along with me,” Mack said, hopping off the desk and holding out his hand to her.

She hesitated just one moment and then with reluctance put her hand in his and allowed him to tug her off the desk. Mack chose the center of the room where it was open, away from the windows and the spill of light around her computers. She sank down onto the floor where he indicated and he settled across from her, sitting, knees touching.

“I want you to do it again, but this time, really concentrate on Kane and Javier. I want to see how much you can read what they’re doing. How they’re feeling. Anything at all you can pick up.”

She frowned at him, but didn’t pull away. “I’ve never gotten anything other than happy or sad energy and a location.”

“I know. But I think you’ve grown stronger. I think you can do a lot more than you’re aware.”

“But what about the aftermath?” There was fear in her voice.

Mack framed her face with her palm. “I think when we’re together I’m stronger. I think our energies merge in some way. Do this for me. If you get in trouble and I can’t shield you enough, we’ll stop.” He wanted her trust. Even if it was just in that moment. He had to feel it again, the same way he’d felt her closeness. She was afraid. She’d just gone through a horrific night and he was asking her to risk another one. Jaimie took a deep breath and nodded. She closed her eyes and allowed her mind to expand, to encompass the two men above her on the third floor. She always remained aware of her surroundings, and this time she was particularly aware of Mack. His energy surrounded her as it had never done before. It felt masculine and warm, almost hot, like his skin. The feeling was tactile. Her body tingled, grew warm, and the heat spiraled outward to mingle and merge with her own energy as she directed it away from herself.

She encountered Kane first. She knew his exact position, bending over the stove, as if the energy surrounded him and sent back an echo so that she could “see” him. He was stirring something. “He’s overcooking the noodles,” she murmured, but the humor faded just as quickly. She felt Kane’s emotions. His sadness. His guilt. A huge burden that weighed on him. His fears for Jaimie’s safety. Kane could barely breathe as he dipped a spoon almost absently into the boiling water.

Jaimie jerked away from him before realizing she wasn’t really catching his thoughts and invading his privacy. It was the energy surrounding him she was reading. She took a breath and let it out, reaching further into the room to touch Javier. His energy was strong, but like Kane’s, a mixture of emotion. She’d never noticed those strands before, woven tightly together to form around each person. She had never tried separating the various threads to read them more in depth.

“I thought Javier would have a lot of humor in him, Mack,” she mused, “but he has a lot of violence and sadness in him.”

“Where is he?”

“He’s by the window, standing to one side, staying very still. I’ve never felt anyone so still, but he’s coiled for action.”

“Is he alarmed?”

“Not yet. But he’s watching the wharf. No, the water.”

“Can you encompass the water?”

She took a deep breath again and let it out. Usually by now, using so much energy, her head would be hurting, and she’d feel little pinpricks of pain throughout her skull. She only felt Mack’s energy. Stronger. Wrapping her up as if in his strong arms. She actually felt safe and secure, instead of spread thin, her energy slowly seeping out until she had nothing left.

The water gave off a cold rush that she felt flashing through her veins. It was almost electric, tiny sparks spreading over her skin, while her body temperature cooled. Instantly she felt the energy around her shift, adjust, blanket her to warm her. She became so aware of Mack she actually felt the air moving in and out of his lungs and each separate beat of his heart. His energy immersed her in him until she felt a part of him.

Mack held his breath. His mind expanded with hers, locked together in some weird way he didn’t understand, but she was taking him with her out over the sea, as if the two of them were soaring free above everything. It was beautiful. Mystical. Like another dimension or realm she’d tapped into, yet he knew they were firmly anchored in that room.

The water’s energy sparkled like diamonds and he felt the lick of flames along his skin. The cold rush turned hot so that his blood surged and ebbed in time to her heartbeat. He could almost feel her skin brushing along his, inflaming his senses until he felt her very breath.

A boat rose and fell with the waves and inside two men huddled against the biting cold, peering through the fog, cursing their luck of drawing a bad assignment. Neither was happy, both miserable and both a little angry.

Jaimie looked up at him. “They’re watching the wharf, not this building, Mack. I think your Doomsday unit is tracking the weapons and found they were off-loaded on this wharf. Javier spotted them. That’s what has captured his attention.”

“You’re sure?”

“I don’t feel hostile energy, more like misery. They don’t like their assignment. And one is feeling queasy. That will get worse soon. Both are very focused on watching the area, but my guess is, they aren’t alone. They’ll have sent someone to watch the street.”

“Keep going. Spread out to find the others and our team.”

Jaimie glanced at his face and then away, as if the way he was looking at her made her shy. Maybe he was looking at her like a wolf might. He felt hungry, edgy, needy. She touched her tongue to her bottom lip. “Ethan, Brian, and Jacob are playing cards in a small room just opposite the bank of windows facing the street. They’re on the second floor. Ethan is facing the window and he has a clear view of the street. Brian and Jacob are very competitive. Ethan’s seen something outside that’s caught his attention and doesn’t have his mind on the game.”

“How do you know that?”

“His energy is directed outside. Brian and Jacob both have their energy surrounding the table and toward each other.”

“Can you tell what they’re feeling?”

“Brian’s moody. It comes across very strong that he has someone he’s thinking about. A female. He’s not worried about her, exactly, but he misses her.”

Mack frowned. “How can you possibly know he’s thinking about a woman?”

Brian had never mentioned a woman to any of them.

The color crept up her neck. “There’s a thread of sex mixed in.”

“I want you to be certain.”

Jaimie sighed and rubbed her temples. Mack leaned closer to her, then realized he was trying to physically shield her and relaxed and allowed his energy to expand to enfold her. Now he felt her moving against him, mind to mind, sharing her world of energy. It was exhilarating and intimate, more intimate than anything he’d ever experienced with her. As if he was not only buried deep in her body, but also in her mind. Every part of his body recognized hers, as if they were part of each other. Mack had no idea if Jaimie felt the same heightened pleasure or if it was just him, but her energy was all feminine and swirled through his own, so that the electricity rushing through his body was like flash lightning. He could taste her in his mouth. She filled his lungs. Was that normal? He knew it wasn’t, but now that he’d experienced the joining of energies, he knew he would crave the feeling.

“He’s definitely thinking of a woman. Ethan is very distracted now. He’s moved to the window, and is looking toward the street, down the block where you believe the guns are stored. I’m picking up another energy in the room. Heavy guilt. Secretive, very furtive.”

She was frowning, her mind moving further away, yet taking Mack with her, so he could almost see the room, the table and cards, the filmy window and shadows moving along the walls. He couldn’t read the energy, but through her, he shared it. As it swirled around them, he began to feel the ravenous hunger, the way it subtly attacked Jaimie, seeping into her open mind and battering at her. Immediately he was able to shift, to block the energy’s backlash. She had no filters the way he did, nothing to protect her, yet he could do it, fitting with her, as if they were one person instead of two.

Mack shifted closer to her, trying to feel where the other energy was coming from. He couldn’t tell. He felt it, although he never would have if she hadn’t caught it; it was further away and subtle. He was a little shocked that she’d picked it up at all.

“The new kid. The one with a chip on his shoulder. He’s sitting in a corner, back to the wall. He doesn’t want anyone coming up behind him to see what he’s doing.”

Mack went very still, alarm spreading through him. “What is he doing, Jaimie?”

He kept his voice low and easy, not wanting to chance bringing her back to the room with him.

She frowned and rubbed her temple again. He was there immediately, blocking the attacking energy, refusing to allow it into her brain. The flow came from all directions, tracing back on the route she’d used and stabbing at her brain with spikes, but he kept his own energy in place like a wall. The negative energy continued to circle Jaimie. He could feel it looking for a weak spot, an opening, wanting to rush in and strike.

“He’s on a computer. I feel the heat. The way he’s striking the keyboard, he’s upset, but trying to be quiet so Ethan doesn’t notice him.”

“Do you know who he’s writing to?”

“It doesn’t work that way. He doesn’t want to get caught. That’s all I’m picking up.”

Brian. I want you to get the kid’s computer. Confiscate that laptop and put him under guard until I give you the word to bring him here. The energy in the room changed abruptly. Became aggressive. Hostile. The surge around Jaimie was shocking, actually battering at her. It was so unexpected, several spikes got through before he could thicken the shield around her. Jaimie gave a soft moan of distress and he almost pulled the plug on the experiment, but as he became more sensitive and aware, it enabled him to keep building the barrier protecting her.

“They have Paul. He’s angry and scared. Ethan didn’t even turn around, Mack. He’s at the window. Do you want me to try to figure out what’s got him so upset?”

“If you’re up for it,” he hedged, wanting her to make the choice. His body was going crazy on him. He actually felt as if he were inside of her, all that soft heat surrounding him. Every nerve ending seemed to be centered in his groin, until he was full and hard and pulsing. His jeans were far too tight, the pressure of the material against him hurting. Little beads of sweat dotted his forehead and trickled down his chest.

He felt her energy expand like waves, racing out and away from her, stretching further, encompassing the streets and surrounding buildings. Surprisingly, her energy was like the ebb and flow of the sea, strong and rhythmic, and the very feel of it sent currents of electricity snapping through his body, wrapping around his cock like tight fingers.

“I can feel Lucas in a doorway just at the end of the street. He’s sitting hunched over, but he’s very alert. Whatever Ethan’s seen, so has he. There are two others with him on the steps. Both older. One sick.” She looked at Mack with a quick frown. “I hope you’re not providing booze to drunks.”

He didn’t reply, simply waiting. Jaimie could go off on a tangent of moral community responsibility. She’d spent a lot of time in the homeless kitchens and shelters volunteering even as a young teen. She and her mother had spent a great deal of time in both places before Stacy had gotten her teaching credentials and a decent job.

Jaimie sighed and went back to scanning the area. “Marc isn’t far from Lucas. One, no, two doors down. He’s just inside, standing at the window. He’s watching Lucas more than the street and he’s worried. Very worried. Something’s really caught their attention.”

Mack felt her push her energy along the street, sweeping the buildings up and down the street on either side. Her breath caught in her throat. “There. On the pier by a fishing boat. Three fishermen next to them, but those two aren’t in the least interested in fishing. They’re very interested in the warehouse on the end of the block.”

Gideon, you on this? Aloud he said to Jaimie, “Find Gideon.”

“You know I can’t find him.”

“I think you can.” His voice grew hoarse with need.

He shifted, trying to ease the pain in his groin. It only grew worse, heat radiating down his thighs and up into his belly. He had to try to ease the building tension, his hand dropping to the front of his jeans, stroking absently.

Jaimie’s energy stroked him as well, with heat and fire, causing sparks to arc off his skin. The energy was soft and feminine like her skin, cupping his cock and balls, massaging him. He swore for a moment he could even feel her tongue licking at him. His cock jerked. Pulsed. Spilled droplets. His mouth filled with the taste of her. He wanted to strip off her jeans and bury his face in the fire of her sheath, devour her until she was writhing and screaming beneath him. He couldn’t stop the erotic images flooding his brain. His breath came in ragged, harsh gasps.

Jaimie’s lashes drifted down. There was a slumberous, sensual look on her face, her full lower lip in a sexy pout. Her breasts rose and fell beneath her thin tank. Her nipples were taut, two tight pebbles beckoning him, and her skin was flushed. Mack found his hand sliding from the front of his jeans to her thigh, where he traced soothing circles. It took several minutes of searching and he could feel her energy expanding, and with it the rushing in his veins continued.

“I think I’m picking Gideon up on the roof across the street, on the building where Ethan and the others are. It’s so faint, but his energy is different. Unfamiliar. A completely different pattern, almost camouflaged the way his skin is. He could be lying down, watching the street, very focused. He blends in with other energies around him. He’s getting uncomfortable, Mack. I think he feels mine.”

“Pull back,” Mack ordered. He didn’t want her energy, as sexual as it was, as hot and potent, blending with anyone but him.

“Do you want me to try to find Joe?”

He did, but he didn’t want Joe feeling her, not like this, not in a heightened state of hunger. Jaimie had opened her thighs so that his slow circles had climbed higher. He could feel heat coming off her in waves. Hunger was sharp and relentless, an endless, brutal erection that seemed to be bursting his skin. His fingers fumbled with the zipper of his jeans, desperate for relief from the swelling, throbbing pain in his cock.

“Yes”-he could barely get the word out-“but pull back the moment you think he senses you.” He massaged his thick, bursting erection, his mouth watering for the taste of her, his palms itching for the feel of her soft skin. He had to touch her soon, had to fasten his mouth to the hot, sweet core of her and draw her honey into his mouth, feel her explode as he kissed her as intimately as possible. Jaimie was faster finding Joe and he told himself it was because she knew where he was staying now, in that room directly across from her building, three stories up. He couldn’t really think anymore, not with the roar in his head and the taste of honey in his mouth. He remembered her unique taste. The cream he loved to feed on in the morning, her breathless cries, the way she gave herself to him unashamedly, without reservation.

“He’s eating at the table and going over something”-she frowned-“a report, I think. Something in it bothers him. He’s restless. He just got up and paced to the window, but he’s standing to the side of it so no one can see him. His energy is as low as Gideon’s and has that same strange blending quality.”

Was there a caressing note in her voice? One of affection? Or was it just his sensitive state? He only knew he felt a vicious punch in his gut and something dangerous moved inside of him, something he didn’t much like. He took a steadying breath and let it out. She was doing what he asked, and he’d been the one to let her go.

If she found someone else… He drew in another breath and looked at his hands. He was shaking. This wasn’t normal, not any of it, but his body said differently. The energy enfolded him, lapped at his skin like a thousand sensual tongues, teasing and dancing so that he could barely think with need. The intensity shook him.

“His energy nearly matches Gideon’s, Mack. The threads are woven differently than anyone else’s, almost like the waves react differently. I don’t know how I’m picking either of them up, and in a combat situation, without knowing what I was looking for, it would be nearly impossible. I had an idea where to look.”

He couldn’t answer her, his voice was too gruff, his body consumed, burning, so desperate for her he could no longer sort out actual words, but he knew the moment Joe felt her. Something masculine and challenging brushed against her energy. He caught the nape of her neck and jerked her into him. “Break away.” His mouth came down on hers. Hungry. Demanding. Giving her no choice.

She was lost in him instantly, just as he knew she would be. Her breath caught, a sound that shook him. He curled his fingers around the nape of her neck and kissed her, over and over, his tongue sliding over the seam of her lips to demand entrance. There was no thought of her refusal. The need was too strong, too urgent, far too intense. He needed her the way he needed air to breathe. He devoured her mouth, the silken heat and honeyed taste, but it wasn’t enough to sate the fire leaping through him, and the feel of her only inflamed him further.