Shadow Touched (Shadow Roamer #1) Read online

  Their grinning gazes met and for a moment the world stood still. It was one of those moments where nothing really happened and yet there was meaning to it. A connection. A missed breath and heart beat shared.

  “You guys coming?” Scuro stuck his head out the elevator he was holding for them.

  Right. It was time to head out to meet the others.

  As the sun was about to set, setting the western sky aflame with streaks of small feathery clouds glowing pink, the whole gang gathered in a small alley a few streets away from the Tower. The moment Stella saw them she couldn’t help but think that at a first glance they looked like the kind of group she normally would have avoided at night. Now she knew better and although she would face dangers tonight, she wasn’t surprised to realize that she had never felt safer in her whole life.

  Trevas, a cigarette between his fingers, whistled when he saw her, his grinning eyes sweeping her from head to toe, appreciating. “Looks like the little one is ready to rumble.”

  Ombra nodded, “Damn girl, I knew these boots were made for you.”

  Nero’s eyebrow arched. “You picked them?”

  “Uh huh.”

  Now grinning he said, “Remind me to give you a raise.” Flushing under their gazes, Stella was grateful when Nero finally went to the business at hand, “Patroller Ombroso’s team’s back on the streets and want the west so…Trevas and Nebbia you’ll take the Lower North and Four Points tonight, while Ombra and Scuro patrol the Heights. Stella and I will have a look at Riverside and Hunter’s park. Afterwards we’ll meet at the Fool’s Head. First round’s on me. Okay?”

  After a round of eager nods, the others…disappeared.

  Eyebrows hitting her hairline, Stella turned to Nero.

  “Remember when I told you I walk the shadows, the night we first met?” After her nod, he continued, “Some call it jumping shadows as well. It’s how we move about. Teaching you this is better done outside and not in the close quarters of our training room.” He took her hand in his, and she liked the feeling of his being so warm and strong and sure. “With the sun about the set, the shadows are growing. Twilight is our time of the day. Dusk and dawn are our playground. You see the shadow over there?” Nero pointed to a big warehouse father up the street that was darkening the entire alley. “Close your eyes.”

  Only a moment had passed when he asked her to open them again, and when she did, she was stunned to find they were now standing in the shadow of the warehouse. They had…walked the shadows.

  Looking up at Nero she demanded, “Okay, how the hell did you do that?”

  “It’s almost like pulling shadows to you, only this time it’s the other way around. You go to them.”

  Her body felt naturally drawn to the shadows, so picking them out and moving from one to the other, especially when darkness was gaining turned out to be a piece of cake. After only ten minutes of practice Stella wished the rest of the training would be just as easy as shadow walking was. Probably because when jumping from one dark spot to another she was using the shadows but not manipulating them. That sudden realization made her pause and rethink her whole approach of the shadow-as-a-weapon thing.

  “I knew you’d like this,” Nero said, pulling her out of her thoughts. “Come on, let’s head towards Riverside.”

  “Race you!”

  Stella grinned at him, before taking off. The breeze of dusk was caressing her skin as she ran from growing shadow to shadow, she herself nothing more than one. From time to time she felt Nero brushing against her, a cold and yet warm touch. Laughter, like a bubble in her heart, wanted to escape and burst free. She had never felt so good before.

  All too soon they reached Riverside and slowed their pace to walk the roofs of the buildings along Quay Street, staying to the shadows but keeping an eye out for creatures that would soon reign throughout the night. In the west the sun had lost the forever waging battle and its last light touched the sky, turning it an incredible shade of turquoise.

  “It feels good doesn’t it?”

  Stella looked at Nero, who had watched the sky as well and was now facing her. “Yes, it feels…right.”

  Nero smiled softly and then admitted, his voice low and deep, “I remember my first patrol. I didn’t want the dusk to end.”

  “How did it go? Did you fight demons?”

  He rubbed his chin. “Yeah. A cat at first and it went pretty well, too well maybe since I got cocky and didn’t pay as much attention as I should have been when a ghost started toying with us a little later in the night. Erm, it was a mess to be honest but in the end I got the job done.” He glanced at her from the side. “You know that house with the collapsed roof on Royal Street, in the French Quarter?”

  Faltering in her step she gaped at him. “Everyone knows that one. I believe it’s even part of the tours through the Quarter.” Then she started to laugh. “That was you?”

  It was difficult to tell in the growing darkness but it almost looked as if he was blushing. “Well, the ghost did most of the damage, but yeah, that was me.”

  “Huh. Never would have thought it actually was haunted.”

  Their night turned out to be rather quiet. Whenever they came across a demon Nero wanted her to stay put given the fact that she had only been training for a week and took care of them on his own. Stella didn’t mind at all, watching him fight was a treat for the eyes she didn’t want to miss. There was always this alertness, this presence, about him, even when they laughed and joked, but when a demon was near he switched into total warrior mode. And it was sexy as hell. His focus, the way he moved, powerful and silently, a predator in the night.

  Only after they reached Hunter’s Park did real trouble find them.

  A teenaged couple was using the park as their hide-away to steal some kisses and gropes, when a group of blood demons showed up.

  Stella had only ever seen demons of prey before and not this kind. While the formers were hideous hybrid creatures, these looked like ordinary humans. At first she wondered why Nero would stop, but then she noticed it. There was something about the way they moved and carried themselves as they approached the couple, acting as if a bit drunk and just having fun. It was…odd, too robotic and fake. And then their eyes turned red and their fangs dropped down.

  Nero jumped off the roof of the carousel they’d been perched on and right into the middle of the fray.

  Before Stella could follow him down to make sure the kids were okay, she saw them running away as fast as their legs could carry them and shrugged. Getting their asses home was probably the best way for them to stay alive anyway. When she returned her attention to the fight below, her breath caught in her throat.

  Two more demons were sneaking up on Nero from behind. Five against one.

  Dropping from the roof she landed right in their path, taking the newcomers by surprise and using that to her advantage as she attacked. Maybe it was the adrenaline her heart was pumping through her veins, maybe it was the darkness or the fact that Nero, the man who had opened her eyes and showed her another world, was in danger…whatever the reason, but keeping the shadows with her and shaping them into a weapon against these demons was easy. The shadows, suddenly forming the sword in her hand, were an extension of her arm and it came as natural as wanting to slap them. Real danger, real motivation…and her instincts took over, while during training it had been her mind trying to figure it all out.

  Strike. The shadow sword in her hand was writhing and moving and didn’t weigh a thing, but somehow, the edge of it was as sharp as any blade’s edge. Duck…feint and strike. It was a dance her body somehow knew and exhilarated in. Never had she felt as alive as in this moment, conscious of her body, trusting it and using it. It was incredible. After the first one went down, she was surprised to find Nero taking care of the other demon.

  Five down.

  Breathing heavily, she couldn’t help but smile. And it went right into her heart when his was as wide as her own and filled with pride and respect.
>
  TEN

  “At this rate, girl, you soon gonna to make us look bad.” Trevas flashed his handsome grin at her, a shot of tequila in his hand. “To the rookie, for bravely kicking demon ass!”

  “And saving mine,” Nero added, making the others laugh before they all downed their drinks.

  Stella’s cheeks were flushed, her eyes sparkling and everything about her seemed to glow. He wondered whether she knew that she was part of this team now. Only members were called rookies, and so Nero was glad they had gathered at the Fool’s Head.

  The bar was run by roamers, but humans and roamers alike came and went, without the humans ever knowing the truth about them. From time to time they would finish their nights here, happy that all have them had made it through the patrol and just in need of a drink or two to wind down. When he had suggested it earlier, he wouldn’t have thought they would have such a great occasion to celebrate. But Stella had surprised them all, jumping into battle when needed, standing her own and killing her first demon. Not bad after one week of training. Really, not bad at all.

  And she had been a sight to behold. He would never forget that moment, when he had turned around to see her using the shadows as if she had done so all her life, slicing away at that bloodsucker. And in these boots no less.

  His eyes trailed down her long, shapely legs. Oh yeah, he would definitely give Ombra a raise. When his gaze traveled up again, she was watching him, and he looked right back at her, not even trying to hide what he had been up to as he took a swig of his beer.

  More shots were lined up and Ombra, Trevas and Scuro prepared for a battle of a different kind. Nero volunteered as score keeper, while his eyes followed Nebbia and Stella as they walked to the dance floor. Her hips were swaying gently, naturally and not in that exaggerated way some women would use to draw attention to them.

  He watched her, and poured for his brothers-in-arms when necessary. The way she moved with her eyes closed…slow, sure and lost to the music, it was captivating. Then her eyes opened as if she had sensed his gaze, and there it was again, that connection; that awareness throbbing between them, much heavier and much more sexual than what he had felt earlier when he had picked her up before heading out tonight. It was like a fist to the gut, a challenge and a promise all in one, and he wanted nothing more than to walk over there, bend her over his arm and kiss her until the world slipped away.

  “Next one,” Trevas commanded, pulling him out of his fantasies and to the task at hand.

  “Of course.” He poured, but always kept an eye on Stella. God, that woman could move.

  After another song ended she came to their table and plopped down in a chair beside him, their thighs touching. Her eyes were like starlit midnight as they met his. “How many did they have?”

  “This was shot number twelve.”

  He saw Stella’s brow rise as Scuro waved a sure hand for Nero to pour another one, while Trevas gave up, his head dropping onto the table. Oh yeah, Scuro was the silent guy with a friendly face, but he could drink them all under the table without batting an eye.

  Nero held up the bottle and looked at Ombra questioningly. She grimaced, “Mommy.” Then she straightened in her chair, elbows resting on the table like anchors keeping her in place, and nodded. “’kay. Pour.”

  It wasn’t long after that they all made their way home, some having more trouble than others setting one foot in front of the other. But once outside Stella couldn’t keep from staring at Scuro who was strolling down the street as if he’d just watched a game of foot in that bar and not downed fourteen shots of tequila. And that with his arm around Trevas no less, who really had trouble staying upright.

  “I don’t know whether to be awed or creeped out.”

  Nero smiled at her. “Yeah, me neither sometimes.”

  “At least his eyes are a bit glazed over, otherwise it would definitely be creeped out.”

  Fifteen minutes later it was once again just the two of them in the elevator, after the others had gotten off at their floors, eager to crawl into their beds. Nero accompanied Stella to her door, aware of her body beside his. He had been aware of her ever since they had met and that awareness had only grown. But even though she had wielded a shadow sword as if she had been born with it tonight, they still had a lot ahead of them. She had worked the shadows when in danger but still needed to do so, simply on command…and she needed to survive the Council’s test. He had to make sure of it. It was his responsibility to prepare her for whatever they would throw at her.

  When they reached the door to her room, she turned and before he knew it she grabbed his neck, pulling him down to her mouth. She kissed him with a thoroughness that made his blood turn molten heat in an instant and he had her up against her door in the next. Tongues dancing and teeth nipping they got lost in the intensity of the desire blazing between them. His hand slipped under her sweater, caressing the smoothest skin until cupping a lace-covered breast. He craved her, needed more. Wanted to sink into her with his cock and his teeth - and wanted her fangs inside of him at the same time. Something he had never experienced. Either he had taken blood or the woman had, but never together.

  Finally coming up for air and pulling back, Nero stared into her midnight eyes, saw the invitation and the hunger there. And just like that his mind went blank, his resolve… everything crumbled like a house of cards.

  Grasping for the last slivers of control he had, he said, “You don’t know what you’re doing, you drank too much in the bar.” It was the first thing that came to mind, but he knew he was wrong.

  “No, not the kind of drink I’m craving anyway.” Her gaze fell to his neck.

  ELEVEN

  When his hand went behind her to open the door while his mouth dropped back to hers with a growl, Stella could have sighed with relief if she had had the breath. Her need for him was a deep, aching hunger.

  He gently pushed her backwards and inside her room, his foot kicking the door shut so silvery, moonlit darkness enveloped them. They bit and nipped and licked while trying to tear each other’s shirts off.

  When her breasts were bare to his gaze, her chest rising and falling in an uneven rhythm, he bend her over his arm and dropped his head to suck one tight little nipple into his mouth. Then he used his teeth. Crying out Stella arched into him, wanting more of the pain and pleasure. His other hand came up to cover her other breast, caressing her in a languid, slow way that was a stark contrast to what he was doing to her with his mouth, and turned her knees to butter. Surely she would have slipped to the floor if not for his arm hooked around her waist. When he lifted his head and their gazes met, her breath caught at the intense heat there.

  Desire blazing through her, Stella never looked away while she moved onto the bed behind her. His eyes traveled the length of her and stopped at her boots, a wicked glint sparking in their dark depths.

  “Mm, I really like them.” His voice was deep and husky, tugging at her insides. He bent down, his hands deftly taking them off. “Almost a shame, maybe another time we can leave these on but now I want to see those long legs of yours.” Her pants and panties quickly followed.

  And then his hands were on her, caressing every inch of her calves, her thighs. Her head dropped back as she felt his tongue play along the sensitive insides and liquid desire flushed her in the place she needed him the most. When his hands gripped her legs at the knees and pushed up and out, baring her to him, she bit her lip as the near physical touch of his gaze and anticipation were almost enough to push her over the edge.

  His moan as he finally tasted her mingled with her own and soon she could only arch her body into the voracious hunger of his mouth, growing closer and closer to that abyss of bliss.

  When he pulled away, she almost whimpered, but was quickly pacified when she saw him taking of his clothes. The moon had risen in the sky and its silvery light spilled through the windows and caressed the body her hands craved to touch. The strong arms and muscled chest, those abs. She was about to get
up on her knees, but he finally came to her, taking her mouth and pushing her back into the mattress. Their tongues danced, a dangerous and oh so erotic dance as they played with fangs.

  The blunt tip of his erection nudged her entrance, almost parting her most delicate flesh, but not quite. Writhing with need, she rocked her heat against the exquisite hardness of him and apparently it felt as good to him as it did to her, given the sexy sound escaping from deep within his throat. She did it again and again. And then he drove into her, making both of them hiss at the pleasure.

  When he began to move, it was slow and deep and making her crazy. His thumb joined the delicious play, circling her clit until her eyes rolled back inside her head. He flicked it and fire scorched her veins, waiting to explode and swallow her whole.

  Pulling him close, her tongue flicked out to lick his neck as another hunger clamored inside of her. Without a thought her fangs pierced his skin, making him shout out as they sank into his flesh. “Fuck.”

  His delicious groan vibrated against her chest as the metallic sweetness of him, the taste of a city sunset, hit her tongue. Life swept through her and then all pretenses were gone. He bit her neck as well, connected them with an intimacy she had never felt before and suddenly he was pure male demand and thrusting hips.

  His body slick and hard and driving deep, he sent her hurtling into the stars. Crying out she gripped him with her body and took him with her.

  TWELVE

  Nero awoke to the bliss of finding them entangled in each other. Their legs entwined, her back snuggled up against his front and his arm holding her close while his hand cupped her breast…it was soft, warm heaven. Her silky hair was spilling over the pillows, glimmering violet in the early morning light, and he inhaled her scent. His nose tickled her neck and then his lips found that sensitive spot beneath her ear while his thumb brushed across her nipple, eliciting a lazy moan from her. Stretching and arching her back languidly, he had to bite back a moan of his own as her ass rubbed deliciously against him.