Page 72 of Midnight Hunt
They had the right facilities to keep him imprisoned and full-time staff to pressure him into revealing more information. Bill Andrews, the warlock Sheriff from Maine who’d helped us imprison Arrow and several witch elders last year, had agreed to meet them halfway and transport the hunter to one of the SCA’s high-security prisons.
He would stay in touch with any new information he learned about the hunters and even assured us that their field operatives would start searching for the missing hybrid females right away.
It was a relief knowing that they would help, but the world was a vast place. The hunters could be keeping the femalesanywhere.
Poor Desirae. She must be so frightened right now.
Bone-deep exhaustion suddenly swept over me, and I nearly dropped the plate of cookies.
“Okay, time for Vi to get some sleep,” Nora said, taking the plate and glass of milk from me and setting them on the nightstand. “We can talk more after she’s rested.”
I gave her a sleepy smile, barely able to keep my eyes open as she, Brielle, and my mom tucked me in.
Before leaving, Nora leaned down to give me one last hug and whispered in my ear, “I’m so happy for you and Griff. He absolutely adores you.”
Sudden emotion clogged my throat, robbing me of speech. Thankfully, she didn’t wait for a reply, sweeping from the room to quietly shut the door. As silence settled over the familiar space, I closed my eyes and waited for sleep to drag me under. I was exhausted, so exhausted that I couldn’t think or see straight. Falling asleep should beeasy.
But several minutes ticked by, and sleep wouldn’t claim me.
I was too . . . tooalone.
My body needed physical contact, neededwarmthfrom another. Needed the comfort of their scent and presence.
There was only one person who could give me all of that, one person who could put my fears to rest with a single touch.
Do it, Sable softly whined.I miss Whiskey too.
I locked my limbs in place, desperately trying not to give in. It wasn’tfairto him. Seeking Griff out now would only send the wrong message. This was my chance to fix things, not make themworse.
But as time crawled by, my need for him overrode common sense, and I shoved my blankets aside. On autopilot, I stumbled from bed and crossed the room, pausing at the door to listen before opening it and slipping into the hall. I could hear faint sounds down below, probably Mom getting the kitchen ready for breakfast, but no one was in sight.
Soundlessly shutting the door behind me, I stole down the hallway like a guilty thief, hugging the rectangle-shaped banister until I neared the bedroom directly across from mine. I paused a moment more to make sure no one was watching, then silently opened the door and slipped inside.
Right away, I noticed that the door to the attached bathroom was closed. The sink faucet was running, and I could hear Griff brushing his teeth. I almost left then. Almost sneaked out with my tail between my legs, Griff none the wiser for my slip. But something on his king-sized bed caught my eye, and I couldn’t help but smile.
Tucked between his pillows was the replacement teddy bear Melanie had gifted him this past Christmas. Teddy the Second, she’d named him, after the first one had been lost in the house fire.
I took a moment to inspect the rest of his room, realizing I hadn’t been in here since we’d rebuilt. The walls were slate blue, and the black, silver, and gray decor was decidedly masculine. There was a TV mounted on the wall and a weight bench in one corner, but nothing about the space screamedGriff. He used to have nerdy sci-fi posters on his walls and little action figures. Silly stuff that I used to tease him about yet stick in his Christmas stocking every year. They were all gone now, casualties of the fire that had destroyed our home.
I’d have to rectify that. His room needed a makeover pronto.
Curiosity lured me to his walk-in closet next, and I quickly poked my head inside. Nope. No sex doll. Unless he kept it under the bed.
A familiar-looking bag on one of the shelves drew my eye, and I picked it up with a gasp.
“Yeah, you weren’t supposed to find that,” a voice from behind me drawled.
I whirled to discover a shirtless Griff in the closet doorway, a sheepish grin on his face. Thank heavens he was wearingpants, although they were the gray sweatpants that hugged his dick, making it really hard to focus. Still, I shook the lingerie bag in my hands and hissed, “Griffin Hayes O’Neal, I lookedeverywherefor these. Why are they in your closet?”
Leaning against the doorframe, he rubbed the nape of his neck before admitting, “I couldn’t stand the thought of Reid seeing you in them. Especially the purple one.”
My mouth fell open. “You . . . You were jealous?”
“Ah c’mon, Vi. You bought that lingerie while thinking of another male. You wanted him to look at you, to lust after you, to havesexwith you. Of course I was jealous. The thought of him eyeing you in that getup made me crazy.”
I blinked at him stupidly, unable to stop my stomach from fluttering. “Oh. Well, um . . .” I cleared my suddenly dry throat and tried again. “You could have just tossed it.”
A small laugh left him. “That would be a waste of perfectly good underwear. Just because I don’t want Reid to see them on you doesn’t meanIdon’t want to see them.”
