“I expected them to come after me. I was ready for that. Going after my mother was the worst thing they could have done. I found out who started the fire. I killed them both. But that made the others retaliate, and they almost killed me in an alley. Will found me there, dying. Maybe he smelled the blood. He offered to Turn me. All I was interested in was making the others pay. So I said yes.”

“I hope they paid in full. With interest.”

His expression took on a faraway quality. “I could hear her screaming.”

Oh, God. I scrambled onto his lap, straddling him, and tucked my head under his chin as I leaned into him. His arm curled loosely around me.

“One of the neighbours called me when the fire started. I couldn’t get inside. I told my mother that I’d get her out. She kept screaming for me, but when she stopped screaming…Shit, I’m not sure which was worse.”

Now I understood what Fletcher had meant by Salem’s grief and need to atone. He hadn’t been able to save the people who he cared for, so now he was determined to save as many others as he could. It also explained the intensity of his protective streak. And I was obviously going to have to handle it, because it wouldn’t ease.

“I told you I’ve done a lot of bad things. I meant it. One of the very few good things I’ve done is join the legion. And Will just took it, twisted it, and tried to make it into something bad.”

I pulled back to meet his gaze. “But it didn’t work. He just showed himself for the envious, spiteful shithead that he is. He wants what you have, and he resents you for that. He was goading and punishing you.”

“Like Gina was goading and punishing you.”

Yeah, and it had partly worked. Of course I’d been quite aware that he wasn’t a virgin. But knowing Salem had a past and actually being face-to-face with that past – hearing the things he and Gina had done together – were two very different things.

My jealousy must have been apparent in my expression, because his eyes narrowed and he gripped my chin with his thumb and forefinger. “I told you the night of the beach party, she doesn’t matter to me. Only you do.”

I believed him, which was why her goading had only partly worked. “Good.” I pressed a light kiss to his mouth, and it was like lighting a match – he immediately took control; cupped the back of my head and ravaged my mouth with his lips, tongue, and teeth. Nobody had ever kissed me the way Salem did, greedily feasting and claiming. He didn’t coax or tempt, he demanded and took.

He was also pouring every ounce of his anger and guilt into the kiss, like I could make it better. I wanted to. As I shifted out of his hold and rose from the sofa, his hand snapped out to snag my arm.

“Where are you going?”

In answer, I grabbed one of the cushions he hated – and repeatedly tried to bully me into binning – and placed it at my feet. “I’m hungry.” Then I kneeled between his legs.

As understanding hit Salem, heat and need began to emanate from him; buzzing against my skin and feeding my own hunger. Jaw clenched, he watched through hooded eyes as I leaned forward and exhaled heavily against the fast-growing bulge in his jeans. Keeping my movements agonisingly slow, I tackled his fly under his heated gaze. His cock, semi-hard and all mine, bobbed free. I licked from base to tip, and swirled my tongue around the head before dipping it into the slit. His rough groan made me smile.

“See, these cushions have their uses.” Over and over, I licked and nibbled and teased, until he was so hard it had to be painful. When his warning growl told me he’d had enough of the teasing, I took him into my mouth and sucked hard enough to make my cheeks hollow.

“Fuck, that’s good.” Fisting a hand in my hair, he began guiding my movements – which was surprisingly kind of hot. “Keep that mouth wrapped nice and tight around me. Yeah, just like that.”

Determined to bring him to the edge of his control, I sporadically danced my tongue around him, or grazed him with my teeth, or glided the flat of my tongue along his underside, or swallowed around him. I wanted him to lose himself, to forget all about what was haunting him. Soon, he was lifting his hips, surging into my mouth.

“I want inside you.”

I was expecting him to pull me up, rid me of my jeans, and then impale me on his cock. Instead, I found myself kneeling on the sofa, my back to Salem, as he whipped off my tank top and ripped off my jeans. A hand on my lower back pushed me forward, and I grabbed the back of the sofa to steady me. I gasped as a finger shoved inside me.

“Wet and ready, just the way I like you.” His bare chest plastered to my back, he looped an arm around me and lifted me slightly as he put his mouth to my ear. “Hold on.” Then he plunged inside me, stretching me, causing the most exquisite burn. “All of it, Ava.” His second thrust drove him balls-deep, giving me exactly what I wanted.

He rode me hard, forced me to feel every inch of him. His pace was frenzied, and each plunge of his cock was ruthless…building the friction until I was practically sobbing with the need to come.

Feeling his teeth nip my shoulder teasingly, I moaned. “Bite me.”

Growling, he sunk his teeth deep into my shoulder just as his finger circled my clit. That was all it took for my climax to barrel into me, tearing a scream from my throat. He pounded into me once, twice, and then slammed himself deep as his cock pulsed inside me.

With a satiated sigh, I slumped; thankfully, his shuddering body held me easily. “Bastard, I’ll be damned if I don’t get to keep my cushions.” His mouth curved against my neck.

At dusk, we were called for a meeting with Sam and Jared. They, along with the rest of Salem’s squad, were already waiting inside the conference room when we entered. We had no sooner taken our seats than Sam was speaking.

“Evening, all. You will be pleased to know that our researchers came up with three possible suspects for the brothel owner. All are Pagoris, all are rumoured to have identity-protecting gifts, all have reasonably small nests of their own, and all have Sires that live in Manhattan – perfectly matching the profile.”

Jared spoke then. “We could sit here and waste time by reviewing all three of them, or Sam and I could skip to the third suspect, who we are pretty sure is the woman we’re looking for. Which option do you prefer?”

Chico frowned. “That all depends on how sure you are about this third suspect.”