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       THE MOST DANGEROUS OF OTHERS

      I tried to find the words to speak, to tell Royce to stop, but all I could manage was a feeble cry when he took hold of my wrists, pulling my hands off his chest and pressing them to the wall. He said nothing, simply studied me while that gibbering terror romping through my mind didn’t want to acknowledge that he hadn’t hurt me yet. It only wanted to focus on the fact that I was pinned, he looked ravenous, I was the only human in sight, and his fangs were literally inches away from some all too vulnerable parts of my body. Places where the blood runs hot and fast and close to the surface of the skin.

      Why was he doing this? What did he want from me? Panic clawed at my throat, and as he leaned in, his lips brushing against the side of my neck, I found my voice again, letting loose with a shriek as I twisted away. He was going to bite me!

      “I’d never hurt you,” he whispered, his voice low and soothing. He didn’t touch me save for the velvet soft brush of his lips against my skin, followed by the brief rake of fangs. Hinting at penetration, but never quite sinking in. It was enough to drag a little cry from my lips, too breathy to properly be called a scream. I thought I might just die of fright right then, closing my eyes and trying to remember how to breathe as my heart tried to pound its way out of my chest.

      “You could stay young and beautiful and strong forever,” Royce whispered. “With me. Think about it …”

       Books by Jess Haines

      HUNTED BY THE OTHERS

      TAKEN BY THE OTHERS

       Collections

      NOCTURNAL

      (with Jacquelyn Frank,

      Kate Douglas, and Clare Willis)

       Published by Kensington Publishing Corporation

       TAKEN BY THE OTHERS

      JESS HAINES

      

All copyrighted material within is Attributor Protected.

      ZEBRA BOOKS are published by

      Kensington Publishing Corp.

      119 West 40th Street

      New York, NY 10018

      Copyright © 2011 by Jess Haines

      All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means without the prior written consent of the Publisher, excepting brief quotes used in reviews.

      If you purchased this book without a cover you should be aware that this book is stolen property. It was reported as “unsold and destroyed” to the Publisher and neither the Author nor the Publisher has received any payment for this “stripped book.”

      All Kensington titles, imprints, and distributed lines are available at special quantity discounts for bulk purchases for sales promotion, premiums, fund-raising, educational, or institutional use.

      Special book excerpts or customized printings can also be created to fit specific needs. For details, write or phone the office of the Kensington Special Sales Manager: Attn. Special Sales Department. Kensington Publishing Corp., 119 West 40th Street, New York, NY 10018. Phone: 1-800-221-2647.

      Zebra and the Z logo Reg. U.S. Pat. & TM Off.

      eISBN-13: 978-1-4201-2251-0

      eISBN-10: 1-4201-2251-7

      First Printing: January 2011

      10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

      Printed in the United States of America

      Contents

      THE MOST DANGEROUS OF OTHERS

      Books by Jess Haines

      Chapter 1

      Chapter 2

      Chapter 3

      Chapter 4

      Chapter 5

       Chapter 11

       Chapter 12

       Chapter 13

       Chapter 14

       Chapter 15

       Chapter 16

       Chapter 17

       Chapter 18

       Chapter 19

       Chapter 20

       Chapter 21

       Chapter 22

       Chapter 23

       Chapter 24

       Chapter 25

       Chapter 26

       Chapter 27

       Chapter 28

       Chapter 29

       Chapter 30

       Chapter 31

       Chapter 32

       Chapter 33

       Chapter 34

       Chapter 35

       Chapter 36

       Chapter 37

       Chapter 38

       Chapter 1

      I don’t usually have people pointing guns in my face. Or in my direction at all, really. I’m a private detective, so I know some people have certainly thought about shooting me after I reported their illicit activities to my clients or the cops, but looking down the barrel of a .45 was a new experience for me.

      “Jack, can we talk about this without the gun?”

      Jack was precisely as I remembered him. Tall, slender, with close-cropped blond hair and the coldest blue eyes I’d ever seen. His long-sleeved flannel shirt was rolled up to just above his elbows and left unbuttoned for easy access to his shoulder holster. He’s clean-cut, looks like the poster boy for some white bread good ol’ boy magazine, and crazy as a loon. He belongs to a group of extremists and vigilante vampire hunters who call themselves the White Hats.

      His thin lips quirked in a polite smile. No real emotion shone through the empty mask. I was praying he was just using some of his psycho scare tactics

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