Full Moon Rising

“He was in St. Kilda trying to find out why hookers were being snatched off the street, and got snatched himself.”

Liander carefully placed Rhoan on the bed, then touched his neck, checking for a pulse before he began taking off my brother’s clothes. “So where did he end up?”

“The Moneisha Research Center. We think they’re a collection point for nonhuman sperm and eggs.”

He shot me a surprised look. “Really?”

“Really.” I walked across to the small washbasin area and grabbed a soft cloth and a small bowl, then flicked on the tap and waited for the warm water to arrive

“Well, that certainly explains the bruised and swollen state of his genitals.” He shook his head. “No moon dancing for this young wolf this month, that’s for sure.”

“And won’t that piss him off.”

Liander gave me a grin. “Truly,” he said, as his gaze skated down my body. “Can I just say you’re looking wonderfully tarty for a change?”

“Thanks.” I added some soap to the warm water, then carried the bowl and cloth over to Liander. “He doesn’t seem to be hurt.”

I was looking for reassurance more than anything, and Liander wrapped an arm around my shoulder, giving me a light squeeze. “I’d say he’s just dehydrated and tired. There don’t seem to be any injuries other than bruising, but I’ll get a friend over to check, anyway. She’s a doctor.”

“Good idea.”

Liander took the bowl and cloth from me and carefully began to wash Rhoan down. I fidgeted for a moment, then walked across to the small window, staring out at the moonlit sky. The force of the heat that shivered through my body was a warning that I better get to one of the clubs sooner rather than later

“Go,” Liander said, reading the surge of desire, not my thoughts. “He’ll be fine with me.”

I swung around. “You’ll ring the minute he wakes?”

“You know I will.”

I walked across the room and kissed his cheek. “Thanks.”

He smiled. “I’ll buzzer you out when you near the door.”

I headed out. Once down on street level again, I grabbed the cell phone and called Jack

He answered on the first ring. “You safe?”

“As houses. Rhoan’s unconscious, though, so I haven’t been able to question him.”

“Then perhaps you’d care to tell me why you decided to knock Qui

“Well, he was insisting on taking Rhoan to Sydney. And I’m sorry, but I’m not going to fully trust the man, no matter what you say, until I talk to my brother.”

Jack laughed. “Darlin’, you are going to make such a wonderful guardian.”

“Not in this lifetime, I’m not.” I hesitated. “How is Qui

“He’s got a sore head—and he deserves no less for being so foolish as to turn his back on someone he barely knows.”

“So he’s there with you?” I paused. “Actually, where are you?”

“I’m back at the Directorate for the time being. Qui

At least he’d be safe there, as most of the vamp hotels guaranteed the safety of their patrons. “Which one? I need to return his car.” I didn’t want to leave it at Liander’s, simply because whoever was behind Moneisha might have recognized the car and be looking for it. For the same reason, I didn’t particularly want to drive around in it. Besides, given my less-than-spotless driving record, it wasn’t a particularly good idea to be driving a car I could never afford to fix

“He’s at the Gatehouse,” Jack said

Which was in Little Collins Street, and not all that far from the Kingfisher. I wondered if Talon would be there yet. “I’ll get Rhoan to ring you once he’s awake.”

“Do that. And Riley? Be careful out there. Rhoan may be safe, but I doubt the danger is over for any of us yet.”

“Will do.”

I hung up, then stared at the car for a few seconds, debating the option of ringing Talon as opposed to simply going to the club. Talon might be up to something, but I doubt he’d actually hurt me. Whereas, if I went to the clubs and mated with strangers, I had no such assurance

In the end, that was what swayed me. Talon was the only man I could class as safe just then. I dug my phone out, and called him

“Little wolf,” he said, voice a throaty growl. “This is a pleasant surprise.”

“Can you meet me at the Kingfisher in twenty minutes?”

He chuckled. “By the sound of your voice, the moon rides you hard.”

“You have no idea,” I muttered. “Let’s forget breakfast.”

“Good. Niceties were never my style anyway.”

Which is why I would have called him rather than Misha, even had Misha been available. At that moment, I didn’t need niceties. I just needed the ache eased as quickly as possible—and if Talon could be depended on for anything, it was quickness

“I’ve already booked the penthouse suite. I’ll be waiting in front of the hotel.”

I hung up, jumped into the car, and zoomed into the city. After giving the car and keys to the Gatehouse’s parking attendant and leaving instructions for Qui

I undid my coat as I climbed the steps toward him, and his desire swirled around me, hot and strong and demanding. I welcomed that heat, breathed it deep, letting it mingle with the urgency already pounding through my veins. Sweat broke out across my brow, and it was all I could do to restrain the desire to rip off his clothes and taste his readiness right there on the steps of the hotel

“Like the boots,” he growled. “Those I think you can keep on for a while.”

He caught my hand and we hurried into the hotel, all but ru

“Private elevators,” he said, swiping a keycard through the slot. “It’ll take us direct to the penthouse.”

I couldn’t wait for the penthouse. My blood burned, my heart hammered like a steam train, and the ache was all-consuming. I wanted sex, and I wanted it now

The doors slid open. Not waiting for him to take control, I pushed him inside, pressed him against the wall, then, with one hand, pulled him down to claim his mouth. With my free hand, I undid his pants

He growled deep in his throat, and lifted me. I wrapped my legs around him and pushed him deep inside, a groan escaping at the sheer glory of it

“You feel wonderfully tight, little wolf. It tells me you didn’t have any lovers last night. Tells me I’m your first this morning.”

“Shut up,” I said, my voice breathy, “and just fuck me.”

He chuckled softly, then got down to business. The elevator began its ascent, and the whine of machinery mingled with the rasp of our breathing, the slap of flesh against flesh, and the grunt of need. The moon’s heat was fierce, and so was I. I rode him hard, desperate to claim every inch of his rigid heat, to feel him fill me. A pressure began to build low in my stomach, fa

And still I drove his flesh into me, deeper and deeper as his breathing became harsh, his tempo more urgent. His urgency pushed me into a place where only sensation existed, then he pushed me beyond it

He came with me, his warmth spilling into me as his body went rigid against mine

The elevator came to a stop. For a second, neither of us moved. His breath fa

The door opened. He put me down, zipped up his pants, then pulled me into the corridor. We were barely inside the room when he took me again