Page 62 of An Unending Claim
“Baby, we are territorial motherfuckers. I love seeing my mark on your shoulder just as much as I love knowing that everyone who sees your stomach knows you’re mine. And my male pride gets a nice boost from knowing I did my job as a man and knocked up my woman.”
Peyton was staring at me as if I’d lost my mind. “I know that’s incredibly sexist. And I should probably be pissed and offended…”
I grinned. “Except it made you hot, didn’t it?”
Her answer was to throw her arms around my neck and seal our mouths together.
It was a half hour before we finally left the exam room. On the way out, I left a wad of cash on the counter to pay for the table we’d broken.
Peyton was slightly more relaxed when we left the doctor’s office, but as we drove through town, tension creeped back into her posture and expression. It made me mad as hell that there was not a fucking thing I could do about it except give her more orgasms, but like last time, when real life intruded, the worry and stress would come right back.
I’d spoken to Scott as soon as we’d found out about the warrant for Peyton’s arrest on suspicion of murder. Before he could quash it, an overzealous detective—a human—had taken the request to a judge who’d signed off. Scott was looking at options, but until he came up with something, he’d told Peyton to stay in Silver Lake and keep her head down. It would take some time to connect her with me, and even then, it was a flimsy tie since they’d only be able to link us via a one-night stand. Hopefully, we’d be able to take action on Xavier and Bane before that happened.
We were approaching the main security checkpoint in town when Asher called. “Jude’s visitor is here. He has E.V.I.E. credentials.”
“He showed you his ring?” Asher, Tanner, and Jax were the only ones who knew about the enchanted gems that allowed people to traverse realms, so I was glad Asher had been the one on duty.
“Yeah, and Rowan confirmed it’s real.” Rowan would know since she was one of the few witches who could create the spell that gave the stones this particular power.
“Have someone bring him to my cabin.”
“Will do.”
“I forgot about the slayer he said would be coming,” Peyton said after I hit the button on the steering wheel to hang up. “Why would he think we need a slayer’s help? Neither Bane nor Xavier are vampires. The only one who is really a part of this case is Melinda. But she’s dead and not from his realm.”
“I don’t know, baby. But Jude doesn’t do anything without thinking ten steps ahead first. If he sent this guy here, he had a reason.”
I turned onto the gravel path that led to my house and watched in my rearview mirror as a dark sedan followed behind me. Once we pulled up to the cabin, I pulled into the garage and shut it before Peyton exited the car.
“Go on inside, baby. I’ll go talk to him and find out what’s going on.” I trusted Jude, but that didn’t mean I was going to expose my pregnant mate to an unknown, probably very lethal, stranger.
“You’re hilarious!” Peyton laughed as she opened her door and hopped out of the SUV, which she knew irritated the fuck out of me.
“You’re going to have to stop doing that when you’re farther along,” I muttered.
“Until then, you can suck it up and deal with it.”
“I believe that’s my line.”
Peyton stopped in her tracks and stared at me for the second time that day as if I’d lost my mind. Although I couldn’t help noticing that her eyes had also sparked with heat and the air around us thickened. “I can’t seem to get used to the glimpses of your hidden sense of humor.”
I gestured toward the car. “You just said I was hilarious.”
“Yeah, but I was being hyperbolic.”
The ring of the doorbell cut off my response and caused the sensual fog to dissipate… mostly.
I held out my hand. She smiled and closed the distance between us and put her palm in mine without hesitation. I glanced down at our threaded fingers and realized how natural that had become. Sexual attraction and foreplay were completely different from this kind of connection. More and more, I’d found myself desiring Peyton’s touch, even if it didn’t lead to sex. I’d never have guessed that anyone would inspire this kind of affection in me. Hugging my parents and kissing my mother’s cheek had always been the extent of my physical interactions. However, I couldn’t stop touching Peyton whenever she was near, and it had become as natural to me as breathing.
“It’s weird. Right?” Peyton blurted, drawing my gaze to her face.
“Pardon?”
“The way we gravitate to each other and find comfort in simple touches between us. It’s never bothered me, but with you”—she shrugged—“it’s almost like a compulsion.”
“I’m your mate, Peyton, why would it be weird for physical affection to be instinctive?”
“Because you’re a hardass and I’m a badass,” she deadpanned.