Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Ren palmed the small of Lacey's back and pulled her closer, making her heat slide deliciously the rest of the way up his thigh. He ground his erection against her stroking hand and deepened the kiss with a harsh growl, moving in an erotic rhythm that she was willingly matching. Most of the demons had moved on, allowing him to slowly come down off the paranormal power surge but he was unwilling to let her in on that little secret just yet, due to the new high he was caught up in.

Lacey stilled when she realized she was no longer feeling the creepy sensation down her spine that had been caused by the demons outside the window. Remembering the demons had a domino effect on her… reminding her of the fact that only a few moments ago, Vincent’s arms had mysteriously disappeared from around her. The scene flashed in her mind making her flinch.

The second she stopped riding his thigh and returning the kiss with such abandon, Ren released her lips and pulled back enough to stare down into her eyes. Seeing the startled look on her face, he lowered his leg, letting her slide down his body until she was standing there trembling, forcing her to hold onto his shoulders for balance.

“I was just trying to calm you down,” Lacey said breathlessly. She silently wished for her own chill pill now that her thighs were once again going up in flames. Trying to distract herself, she peeked around Ren to where Vincent would have been, if he hadn’t vanished. “Where did Vincent go?”

Ren ran a hand through his bangs when it dawned on him that she’d only kissed him to keep him distracted. He sighed, attempting to block out the fact that Nick and Gypsy were still below them… going at it like bunnies. His lips thinned figuring it was the power of PIT members he was still feeding off of, since the demons seemed to have scattered.

“Storm took him,” Ren informed her, as if he couldn’t care less.

He refused to move back from her, causing her to have to slide out from between him and the window. He stared at the bloody handprint on the window then moved his gaze from the glass to follow her movements around him.

“Took him where,” Lacey whispered, now that she had her back to him. She felt an almost imperceptible shiver when he stalked up behind her.

Ren dipped his lips close to the shell of her ear and returned the whisper in a husky voice, “I hear Hades is nice this time of the year. Maybe Storm teleported him there for a nice long vacation.”

“He probably just took him to the castle,” Lacey corrected a little too loudly as she spun around to face him rather than let him do that again. Damn, that had about made her knees buckle. “He could have given us a teleport too,” she mumbled, feeling her cheeks flame as she wondered if Storm had seen her sexual assault on Ren and decided not to interrupt.

“What’s your rush,” Ren asked, not ready to reunite her with her dead lover just yet. He did a bad job of hiding his smirk knowing he could turn that fictional thought into reality as many times as he wanted considering the jerk would be dumb enough to revive every time.

Lacey glanced down at the floor, accidentally getting a lock on Gypsy and Nick again. She felt the heat spread back across her cheeks. “There’s only one bed here and I think it’s taken. Besides, I want to make sure Vincent is safe.”

“Vincent’s just fine,” Storm informed her, having teleported them into the castle office before she even finished her sentence. He was quick to teleport himself over to the desk so he wouldn’t be so close to Ren's anger at having been interrupted. It wasn't his fault that Vincent fearlessly stayed within the danger zone.

“Twenty-five minutes and thirteen seconds,” Vincent said, glaring right at Ren.

“What?” Ren snapped, feeling his temper spike now that the idiot was back in his sight.

“That’s how long it takes to revive from a broken neck,” Vincent smirked. “Sorry to put a damper on your curiosity.”

“Ren wasn't exactly himself,” Lacey said, stepping in between them, but the fact that her back was to Ren made it obvious just whom she was taking up for.

Vincent watched the slow devious smile appear across Ren's lips… too bad Lacey couldn’t see it. That was okay, he knew how to pop things that were full of hot air. “I assume Ren isn’t himself quite often, seeing as how he’s a succubus and hanging out in a city that’s infested with bloody demons. I wouldn’t trust him as far as I could throw him.”

“Well… too bad, since he helped save both our lives tonight,” Lacey countered stubbornly.

“I don’t need anyone to save my life… or have you forgotten my little disability,” Vincent thundered, stepping closer so he could glare down at her. He watched her lips part with her sharp intake of breath and instantly regretted the fact that he knew exactly how to hurt her the most.

His features softened when she reached out as if to touch his cheek, but the resounding smack that echoed across the room caused his frown to return full force. Fine… maybe he deserved that, though he couldn’t fathom why.

“That’s for killing yourself right in front of me you heartless ass,” Lacey said harshly, before adding a little louder, “and just because you don’t remember it doesn’t mean I forgive you.”

“Duly noted,” Vincent responded sarcastically when Lacey spun on her heels and strode to the desk Storm was sitting behind.

Lacey placed her palms on the desk top and leaned forward to whisper to Storm. “Sorry… I wasn't supposed to say anything about that… was I?”

Storm tried like hell to keep eye contact with her but, even in doing so, he could still see almost all of her breasts because of the way she was leaning forward in the sexy little dress he’d picked out for her. Sometimes he outsmarted himself.

“Someone was bound to mention it to him sooner or later,” he answered, having teleported beside her but now facing the other two men. He rubbed his chin to hide his smirk when Lacey slowly turned her head to stare at him but didn’t rise up from her sexy little position. “Ren, how about filling in the database on tonight’s undertaking.”

Ren was suddenly behind the desk, startling Lacey enough for her to jerk her gaze up to him, only to find that he wasn't staring at her face. She glanced down in confusion then stilled, seeing just what he was staring at… her breasts. Refusing to take the embarrassment, she gave him a wicked smile before slowly rising up and turning her back on him.

Storm cocked an amused eyebrow when Ren turned to look at him accusingly. That little slice of eye candy wasn't his fault… at least he’d shared a tasty bite. He returned his attention to Vincent, who was still standing there stroking his chin thoughtfully while watching Lacey.

“I don’t want to talk about it,” Lacey informed him, ending the line of questioning before it could even start.

Vincent raised his hands in surrender, “Fine.”

“Did you agree to join PIT,” she asked, softening her voice. She tried not to pay attention to the fact that one of his cheeks was now several shades redder due to her temper.

“I reckon I did love,” Vincent responded, now knowing Storm had gotten him good on that little deal. She obviously hadn’t been in any danger at all and the Time Walker would have known that for a fact.

“Hey, I told you she was fine,” Storm defended himself with a shrug, when Vincent gave him a brooding look.

“What’s the catch,” Vincent asked, not really all that upset he’d been tricked into making a deal that bound him to a legendary Time Walker and the elusive PIT organization.

“You have to have a partner,” Lacey quickly answered, remembering the reasoning behind the rule.

“Are you offering?” Vincent smirked, liking the deal more and more by the minute.

“No,” Ren answered for her. “She’s mine.”

Lacey blinked at the possessiveness in Ren’s voice, but she didn’t call him a liar. She glanced over at Storm curiously. “Has there ever been a threesome?” She didn’t catch the wrongness of the question until she noticed Vincent’s right eyebrow rise several notches and heard a low growl coming from behind her.

“Oh geez, get over it you perverts. I didn’t mean it that way and you know it,” Lacey insisted, crossing her arms over her chest. She blinked, having to block out all kinds of dirty thoughts that were suddenly trying to become images in her dirty little mind.

Storm rubbed his temple trying not to laugh. Someone had to come to her rescue, and it looked like it was going to have to be him. “Sometimes PIT teams do go out together in groups, but even then, you have that one special person that you keep an extra eye out for, and vice versa. I happen to know the perfect temporary partner for Vincent, since it just so happens that person’s partner is missing in action at the moment.”

“Well, it doesn’t sound like this person kept a very good eye on his last partner… now does it,” Vincent pointed out, feeling a bit sarcastic and not caring if they liked it or not. He frowned at Lacey wondering when he’d become so attached to her. The fact that he’d seen red when Ren had boldly announced ‘she’s mine’ was not a good sign.

“It’s kind of hard to keep your eyes on a shape shifter that’s gone into stealth mode. I’m sure Trevor is around here somewhere, but in what form even I don’t know,” Storm defended.

“A shape shifter… really,” Vincent asked, feeling like he was suddenly in a paranormal candy store with all kinds of exotic flavors. He understood true shape shifters weren’t fables but the demons in the thievery ring had searched for one forever and never been successful in locating such an enigma.

“You’re going to put him with Chad,” Ren asked, though he wasn't really against the idea if it got the other man away from Lacey.

“Think about it… they both seem to have the same affliction,” Storm pointed out helpfully knowing Ren would catch the hidden meaning.

“You mean he has a fetish for dying?” Vincent made a face since that was the affliction Storm had rightfully accused him of having. He ignored the sharp glare Lacey was suddenly giving him. She hated it when he talked about dying as if it was no big deal. “If you were going to put me with a demon, then why didn’t you just leave me with the demons I was already used to?”

“Chad is one hundred percent human but Storm is right. He was murdered recently… stabbed in the heart.” Ren paused, seeing a warning look from Storm and secretly tapped into Storm's inner voice only to find out he wasn't to say a single word about the Fallen… neither Kriss nor Dean. He had to concentrate to keep a straight face as he connected the dots.

Returning his full attention to Vincent, Ren continued. “Chad is back up walking around and still just as human as you are. So far, Chad’s only died once and that was against his will, so I wouldn’t call it a fetish.”

“The next time he dies he could stay dead… or not,” Storm offered. “Either way, I’m not allowed to tell spoilers.”

“Yeah right,” Vincent said, feeling his sarcasm kick back in.

“He’s not lying,” Lacey insisted, stepping closer to Storm. “If he tells someone what’s going to happen in the future or even hints at it, he starts to bleed from injuries we can’t even see.”

She turned to gaze up at Storm and reached out to tenderly touch his upper arm. “I’ve seen it happen,” she said sadly. “You broke the rule and bled for me. Those horrible things went all of the way through me tonight. I would be dead right now if you hadn’t warned Ren of what was coming.”

Storm tried to keep the love from shining in his eyes as he stared down at Lacey and felt her gentle touch… but he did love her dearly, so it was hard. “You being here right now made it worth every drop,” he said honestly, before lifting his gaze to lock with Ren's. “Besides, the consequences of you dying seriously sucked and that’s not a spoiler since it didn’t happen.”

“But it obviously did happen and you erased it.” Lacey gave him an adoring smile before pressing herself against him and giving him a heartfelt hug. “You and Ren chose to save me,” she amended before backing away to look at Vincent. “If Storm wants you with Chad, then there’s probably a very good reason for it.”

Vincent sobered, suddenly getting it. These two powerful men could protect Lacey way better than he ever could… they’d already proven that fact. Who was he to take that kind of safety away from her?

Sighing dramatically, he fluttered his eyelashes at her. “Fine, you’ve sold me. We can both be fan girls of the Time Walker.” He purposely left Ren's name off the fan list because he wasn’t sold on the big guy being her boyfriend… just a damn good bodyguard.

Ren ignored the fact that he could hear Vincent’s inner thoughts loud and clear. As far as he was concerned, he’d already won the war for the mere fact that Lacey hadn’t begged to be Vincent’s partner.

“So, you agree to be teamed up with Chad,” Lacey asked with a happy smile. She couldn’t stay mad at Vincent if someone paid her… not when she adored him so much. She flinched when the screen of the huge monitor on the wall to her right suddenly cracked loudly and sent sparks cascading down to the floor.

Ren rubbed the bridge of his nose before glaring at the broken monitor long enough to use his powers to quickly fix the damage he’d just done to it.

Vincent sent a suspicious glance in Ren's direction before returning Lacey's smile. “Sure, for all I know, Chad was scratched by a demon’s pet cat and now has nine lives… oops, eight lives,” He corrected and shrugged. “I guess I can show him the ropes.”

He strode right up to Lacey and fearlessly placed his arm around her shoulders before turning them to face Storm. “So what exactly does Chad do for PIT?”

“Chad’s a high ranking cop, though he’s one of the only human cops left in the city. With a lot of the 911 calls coming in being more than a little on the strange side, we’ve had to fill the city with paranormal police officers, along with infiltrating the rescue workers, hospitals, and fire departments,” Storm answered.

“That’s understandable,” Vincent nodded, silently doing the math of just how many paranormals it would take to pull a citywide trick like that off. “After the stampede I witnessed tonight outside the Witches Brew, it’s a wonder the humans aren’t dropping like flies.”

Storm was becoming drained from flickering in and out of the room so fast that no one would catch on to what he was doing. Thankfully, Ren was too busy to notice his weakening state, since he was concentrating on the fact that Vincent was once again touching Lacey.

Focusing back on the topic, Storm continued. “It’s because of PIT’s combined efforts that the human casualties have been kept to a minimum, but even that amount has the city morgues overflowing. The demons are trying to stay off our radar but don’t get me wrong… it’s a very dangerous job and right up your alley.”

“Yeah, the worst thing that could happen is you get painfully killed… constantly,” Ren agreed, making it sound like the best thing in the world. Who knew he could be so petty.

“Ooh… I think I just got one whole goose bump… try harder,” Vincent responded to the barb in his most bored tone.

Storm interrupted their verbal war before it escalated into Vincent’s first painful death as an official PIT member. “With your expertise on the different types of demons and what their weaknesses might be, you’d be a lot of help. And don’t worry… you will have an arsenal of weapons and I’m not talking about standard police issue… we have the kind that tends to ruin a demon’s day.”

Lacey glanced at Ren when Storm mentioned weapons. The truth was… she was looking at their best weapon, yet after what happened back at the Witch’s Brew, she understood that he was also the unstable fuck-bomb that could take them all out if he lost control. Remembering just how she’d given him that control back, she blushed and looked away.

“But don’t forget,” Storm reminded Vincent, “your number one job is to keep Chad safe until Trevor comes out of hiding. If you get careless and taken out by a demon, that leaves Chad without true backup until you revive.”

”Speaking of weapons,” Vincent said and gave Storm a slow smile. “Once the babysitting job is done, I suggest me and you team up and go retrieve some very unique items I know of… things the demons have hidden away.”

“You honestly think you’re going to be teamed up with Storm,” Ren asked, with an arched eyebrow, again feeling an overpowering need to rip Vincent to shreds.

Lacey frowned at him once again, hearing the jealousy in his voice. The man seemed to have a possessive streak a mile long and obviously didn’t want to share her or Storm.

“Stingy,” she accused.

Ren shrugged, “It just amazes me how highly the newbie thinks of himself.”

Lacey rolled her eyes. “Oh get over it, what are you… five?” She moved away from Vincent and approached Ren, watching his face for any sign that it would improve his mood and prove her theory right.

“I’m a lot older than you,” Ren mocked, with a wide grin now that Vincent was left standing alone.

“You made the water heater break while I was in the shower,” Lacey countered playfully, now that she had proof of her nearness being the equivalent of his chill pill. “So mentally, you’re a lot younger than me.”

“Shall I take you to meet Chad,” Storm asked, trying to distract Vincent and keep him out of trouble. Lacey was quickly learning how to calm Ren's dark side but Vincent was a hell of a lot slower on the uptake.

“Is it safe to leave them alone,” Vincent whispered, then daringly raised his voice to get their attention. “By the way… I’m pretty sure I’m older than either one of you and you’re both grounded… though I might let Lacey off with a spanking, if she agrees to play nice.” He gave her a suggestive little smile when she swung around to look at him with wide eyes.

Storm quickly reached out and teleported Vincent out of harm’s way, making a point to remember the expression on Ren’s face. Maybe he would make a special trip back with a camera while he was at it.

Unable to ignore the strange flash of light that went off right in his face, Ren blinked. Instead of grabbing the idiot he had been aiming for, he wound up gripping thin air and staring at a piece of paper left fluttering in front of him. He snatched it from the air with a frustrated growl.

“What’s that?” Lacey asked, completely at peace with the fact that Storm had once again disappeared with Vincent. At least she trusted Storm to keep him safe and alive.

“It seems your ex-partner is going to be out of range for the rest of the day,” Ren frowned, when the note suddenly vanished and was replaced with a snapshot of his face distorted with rage. Ha… Ha. Storm was just a barrel of laughs lately. He gave a wicked smile as the snapshot turned to dust and slipped through his fingers.

Ren turned his head to look at Lacey and noticed her eyes flashing with humor. She was still staring at his hand where the picture had just been.

“Liked that did you,” he asked with a cocked eyebrow. She was making it hard for him to hold on to his anger. Her nodding vigorously was just way too cute.