Beg Me to Slay Read Free

and—”
    She grabbed his wrist, and already had her other hand ready to lever his elbow back into place.
    “You’ve done this before.” He gripped the desk with his free hand.
    “And it hurts like a son of a bitch.” She tugged hard.
    Sparks lit around the edge of his vision while he screamed a few choice words. Finally a loud pop echoed through the room and she let go of his arm.
    Gabe moved it a little, tentative.
    “You need to ice it.”
    “I’ll be fine.” And he would. He glanced at his new client, impressed. “You’ve got skills.”
    She almost smiled. And he caught himself waiting for it, wanting it. Something about this woman was intriguing as hell.
    “I’m a black belt, and I own my own dojo.” She walked around to the other side of his desk. “This isn’t my first dislocated elbow.”
    He opened and closed his hand. The pain was already receding, his body healing itself. Sunglasses in hand, Gabe snatched his jacket with his good arm. “Let’s hit the road. I want you to show me exactly where you saw him.”
    “Okay. You can follow me down to my place in—”
    “Nope.” He took her elbow.
    Tegan yanked it free, stepping away from him. “Excuse me?”
    “You hired me to help you find this guy. Until I do, I don’t want him finding you first.” He gestured toward the door, but his new client remained frozen in place.
    “It’s been four years since he attacked me in Los Angeles. I doubt he’s still looking for me.”
    “He came to San Diego, right?” He leaned against the doorframe.
    She shrugged. “Coincidence.”
    Gabe straightened, struggling to keep a grip on his patience. This woman obviously had no clue how dangerous a Hingo demon could be. It was similar to an incubus, but instead of impregnating a woman with his bastard half-demon spawn, her body became a living cocoon for another demon. Women didn’t survive Hingo attacks. They became demons. At least, until now.
    He shook his head. “I don’t buy it. Let’s get out of here. I’ll drive.”
    Her jaw went slack for a second, her hands balling into fists at her sides. “Last time I checked, I hired you . You don’t get to order me around.”
    Gabe sighed, glancing down before meeting her eyes again. “You hired me because the police don’t believe you. I do. Let me do my job.”
    He waited her out, watching her frustration settle into wariness. Seeing the shadow of fear creep back into her eyes pained him. He caught himself wanting to protect her, to make the damned demon pay for causing her pain.
    This couldn’t get personal. This was just another job. Plain and simple. He shoved the unwanted emotions aside and allowed an easy smile to curve his lips. “You’re not going to make me say please, are you?”
    …
    Tegan rubbed her hands down her face. She couldn’t be seriously considering getting in a car with this guy. “I can’t just leave my car an hour away from home.”
    “It’s locked, right? I’ll make sure Martie keeps an eye on it for you.” He walked over to her and held out his hand. “You came here for a reason. Let me help you, Tegan.”
    He’d said her name. Correctly. Her knees did their best to give out at the small gesture of attention, but her will was stronger. She walked past him without making any contact. Gabe met her in front of Martie’s desk in the lobby.
    “Are you a meat-eater?”
    Tegan’s jaw dropped, her eyes narrowing. Did he just…?
    “Excuse me? But that’s not—”
    “Burgers? We need to get you some food before we get started. You look like hell.”
    “You’re one to talk.” She narrowed her eyes, but followed him outside the building anyway, still promising herself she wouldn’t get into a car with him.
    He walked to a shiny black ’69 Mustang and opened the door for her. “Consider this a business meeting. You can fill me in on your case while we eat.”
    Her conviction wavered. They did need to talk. She might as well eat, too.
    Tegan took a breath and gave