by Lisa Kessler
Look at me.
She lifted her head. The sight of his smile stole her breath. He’d arrived at her cottage tonight a different man. There was no trace of the bitterness and suffering now.
You have a beautiful voice, and hearing you laugh is a gift.
Losing herself in his eyes, she swallowed a lump of emotion and spoke. “Colin.”
He lifted his head and kissed her lips tenderly. She hummed into the kiss, enjoying the freedom of letting her guard down. His body tightened as he sat up, taking her with him. He pulsed deep inside of her, warming her all over. She started to wrap her legs around his waist when her brain kicked in. Suddenly she froze.
Condoms. I got so caught up, I forgot. I… She moved out of his arms, separating their bodies, while she mentally berated herself for thinking with the wrong body part.
A little late for that now, he said in her mind as she hustled through her bedroom. She turned on the bathroom light and opened the medicine cabinet. I think I have a box. I hope they’re still good. Do condoms go bad?
Colin appeared in the doorway just as she lifted the lid on the box. I cannot make you pregnant.
She turned, foil packet in hand. There are worse things than getting pregnant.
He raised a brow. You think I have a disease?
I didn’t say that, but I already did something I never dreamed I’d do when I slept with a man before I knew his last name. She smiled holding the condom package out to him. I think I’ve taken enough chances for one night. She paused and then shot him a sexy smile. Ready for round two?
Colin stared at the foil packet in her hand. He’d never in his long existence used a condom. He understood how they worked. In theory.
Taking it from her, he followed her to the bed. Juliana’s dark-red hair spilled over the white pillowcases like fire as she lay down, smiling up at him.
She gave him no choice.
He tore open the foil and fumbled with the rubber ring. She sat up, taking it from him. Let me help you.
Her fingers stroked his length until he pulsed with desire again. She looked up at him from beneath her lashes as she slipped the condom in place, making the nuisance into a sensual tease. He lay over her, sinking back into the warmth of her body. He loathed having the thin barrier between them, but he pushed aside the thought and concentrated on memorizing the sexy curves of her body while fighting to keep his thirst at bay.
Every pulse of her heart became a temptation.
Chapter Seven
Juliana’s breathing slowed as she dozed in his arms. He watched her face, stroking his hand down the length of her silky hair. What was he doing? What happened to learning her secret and then vanishing from her life? Now he was in her bed, hiding from the world, hiding from the truth.
He sighed and stared at the ceiling. He’d lived a solitary existence for centuries. A relationship with a mortal would only lead to an eternity of heartbreak when he lost her. If she still wanted anything to do with him once she knew the truth, that is.
That he wasn’t a man at all. That Muriel was dead because he didn’t do his duty.
Maybe she never needed to know any of it. She could live a happy life, in peace that way. But deep down, he knew that was the wrong thing to do. She deserved to know.
Sunrise was coming. He needed to get back to the farm. He brushed a kiss to her forehead and carefully laid her beside him in the bed. She shifted but didn’t awaken. After he got dressed, he found her pad and flipped to the next page.
He wrote a note and slipped quietly out the door.
Juliana stood alone on the beach, the wind whipping like a tempest around her. In the distance, the banshee still wailed, sending a shiver down her spine. She walked along the rocky shore and noticed a woman in a white dress wading out into the angry waves.
“Come back!” Juliana shouted, but the woman didn’t seem to hear her. Juliana ran, the sand grabbing at her feet, slowing her pace.
The woman was up to her waist in the ocean as Juliana reached the edge of the tide, the cold water jolting her to a standstill when it licked at her ankles. “Wait! Don’t go!”
The woman stopped and slowly turned around.
Juliana screamed, sitting up in her bedroom. Her pulse raced like a fox hunted by horses and hounds. She pulled her hair back from her face with shaky hands.
It was only a dream, she told herself.
But there wasn’t much comfort in that knowledge. Not for her. She went into the bathroom and stared into the mirror. The same woman from her dream, the one in the ocean, looked back at her.
Her arms broke out in goose bumps. The banshee was calling for her.
Benedict sipped his coffee, staring at the newspaper without reading a word. The Night Walker would be hidden until nightfall. This was his chance to plan his next move. Or maybe Colin had a moment of clear thinking and had accepted his offer. Perhaps he’d fled back to his own country already.
Doubtful. During the thousand years he’d butted heads with the Night Walker, Colin’s noble streak never faltered.
However he seemed different somehow. He’d stood and fought Benedict as a man, no hiding and shifting and flying. But why?
He took a bite of his scone, washing the bland bread down with his black coffee. Food held no taste or fulfillment for an aughisky. Human flesh sated his hunger, but he had to keep up appearances.
The woman from the pub had been a spontaneous kill. In truth, he hadn’t even been hungry, but after discovering the Night Walker inside Juliana’s florist shop, he’d walked away agitated. Only two things released his aggressions: killing and sex.
The woman from the pub had helped him with both.
He’d come through her doors for a pint to collect his thoughts, but he hadn’t been able to help overhearing her talking to an old man at the bar about her cousin, Juliana. It had seemed Colin, the outlander, was taking his Juliana on a date.
His. Due to her hearing loss, Juliana was immune to Benedict’s hypnotic voice. She was a rare challenge. A chance to win a prize without using his powers. This woman would love him of her own accord. He’d gained her trust through short visits in her shop, visits he had come to look forward to. She’d seemed to enjoy his company, as well, and not because she was under his spell. He’d earned her affection on his own merits. Talking to her had become a bright spot in his days.
And now the Night Walker had swooped in to steal her from him.
When he’d left the pub with Juliana’s cousin, his intention had been to have sex with her to relieve his frustrations. That was all. But while he’d sated his appetite for physical pleasure, a plot had formed, a beautiful way to wound the Night Walker, and at the same time, turn Juliana against Colin.
He’d shifted his form and carried her cousin to a watery grave. A murder he would lead Juliana to believe Colin had committed.
Folding his newspaper, he threw away his coffee and stepped into the sun. Time to set his plan in motion.
Her dream left her so dazed that she almost didn’t notice Colin was gone. Almost. She sipped her tea at the table, rereading the note he’d left:
Please forgive me for leaving before you woke. I did not want to disrupt your dreams. I have business to take care of at the farm today, but I need to speak with you about Muriel’s disappearance, and… My angel, there is so much I need to tell you. Tonight. Wait up for me, and please be careful.
All my heart,
Colin
Muriel. She closed her eyes, sending up a prayer for her cousin’s safety. With a sigh, she read the note again. She had plenty to tell Colin, too, about her dreams. Again, he’d slipped away before she could warn him.
But after last night’s dream, she was fairly certain the banshee’s call was for her and her alone. Colin and Benedict hadn’t haunted this dream, just her spirit, surrendering to an angry ocean.
Taking another sip of tea, she forced the vision from her mind and focused on Colin’s note again. She tried not to obsess over the words
my angel and all my heart, reminding herself that she only met him a few days ago. But after the intensity of their union, she was starting to believe her grandmother’s old stories about the heart recognizing its true mate right away.
How else could she explain the depth of emotions she’d experienced in his arms, the honesty in his eyes when he’d bared his scars? In turn, she’d trusted him with her voice, and he’d freed her of her inhibitions. She’d never experienced such a deep emotional connection. Ever.
Outside, birds fluttered past her window to their feeder, oblivious to the sudden changes in her life. The world appeared unchanged, but she would never be the same. Juliana folded the note and tucked it into her apron, praying for a busy day in the shop; otherwise she’d be a prisoner of the clock—again—waiting for the sun to go down. Waiting to hear from Colin.
The morning rushed by with bouquet purchases and a get-well floral arrangement. Phone orders came to her through a service that took the verbal sales and then emailed them to her to be fulfilled. It wasn’t ideal, but she was grateful for the work. Busy hands calmed her mind from her worry for Muriel and Colin. She practiced how she would tell him about her dreams so he would understand the danger instead of deciding she was insane. Tricky.
As the afternoon passed by, the shadows lengthened outside. The shop door opened, pulling her from her thoughts. She looked up and smiled at the familiar face.
Benedict! You’re early.
He grinned and gave a playful bow, keeping his face turned upward so she could watch his lips. “And you, my lady, are a sight for sore eyes. You look lovely today.”
Her skin flushed. Could she still be glowing from her evening with Colin? For once she was grateful for the need to write out her conversation. It gave her something else to focus on.
Thank you. What can I get you today?
He glanced at her note and sobered. He moved closer to the counter. “Actually, that’s why I came by early. I’m worried about you.”
Worried? She frowned. Why?
“I heard your cousin went missing. Muriel? She owned a pub, right?”
Word traveled fast. She sighed. The police think she ran away with a man she met on the Internet.
“But you don’t.”
She shook her head. One of the regulars saw him with her. He’d never seen him before. If Muriel had met a handsome man, she wouldn’t have been able to keep him a secret. I would’ve known, and she would’ve brought him around the pub to show him off.
Benedict placed a large hand over hers, giving it a gentle squeeze. “You might be right. That’s why I came to warn you.”
Warn me? Her dream popped back into her head, and she realized she should probably warn him, too. There was a good chance he wouldn’t believe her, but she had to try.
“I came by last night, but you had a gentleman at the counter. It was near closing so I didn’t come inside. I didn’t want to keep you late.” He paused. She raised her gaze from his lips. Concern lined his dark eyes. “Later, when I was leaving a restaurant, I saw that same gentleman from your shop walking with a woman with blond, curly hair. After hearing about your cousin, I realized the resemblance.”
Juliana shook her head, writing frantically. That’s impossible. Colin was with me.
“Did he leave you to search for her?”
Her blood chilled. She nodded slowly, remembering Colin’s note. He had something to tell her about Muriel.
“This is going to sound crazy.” Benedict sighed. “But that man you were with last night, he isn’t what he seems. I…” He shook his head.
You know Colin?
“I know of him.” His eyes narrowed. “You will need to see him in action to believe it.”
In action? She wrote, pausing. What was he talking about? On the farm?
“No, he doesn’t hunt there.”
Colin hadn’t mentioned being a hunter. Of course, she hadn’t spent much time with him to find out what he did when he wasn’t shearing sheep.
Benedict held out his hand. “Let me buy you an early dinner and I’ll show you what mean. If I’m wrong about your new friend, no harm done, but if I’m right, I want you to be safe.”
Colin’s note also warned her to be safe. She reached up to grasp the Celtic triangle pendant around her neck, tracing the knot with her fingertip. The banshee in her dream had called for her. A warning, not an inescapable omen.
She stared at Benedict’s hand. He was mistaken about Colin. He would have told her if he’d seen Muriel. Benedict had to be mistaken.
Plus, Muriel didn’t leave the pub with Colin. He’d been at dinner with Juliana when Muriel had vanished. But if he’d freed her from her abductor later…
What was she thinking? The man who’d bared his scars to her and admitted he wanted to protect her would never have harmed Muriel. He’d come to her upset, needing healing. There was no way he’d do something like that.
Benedict waited patiently. He’d never given her any reason for concern. She’d been alone with him in her shop more times than she could count. What could a bite to eat hurt? They’d be in a public place, and after they found Colin, he’d explain what happened to her and Benedict both.
She didn’t take his hand. She picked up her pen again. Give me a few minutes to put the flowers away and lock up.
He smiled and stepped out of the way, but something in his eyes unsettled her. There was a trace of smugness in his smile, like he’d won something. As she lifted buckets into the refrigerators, she also slid her pepper spray and the utility knife from her apron pocket into her jeans. Other than casual chats in her store, she didn’t know Benedict at all.
It never hurt to be cautious.
Chapter Eight
She was beauty in motion. The blossoms paled in the presence of her smile. Benedict glanced at his watch. For his plan to work, he needed to be sure he had Juliana out before sunset. He was betting Colin would hunt before he went to see her. The Night Walker’s skin was cold without an influx of fresh blood.
Benedict was well aware of Colin’s penchant for criminals and shady businessmen by the docks. If Juliana witnessed him feeding, saw his fangs for herself, she’d understand that below the skin, the Night Walker was truly a monster.
She’d run to Benedict’s arms for comfort.
She would be his.
If the Night Walker didn’t leave Ireland, then Benedict would relish taking everything from him, almost as much as he would enjoy killing the Mayan god himself.
If he could figure out how.
Juliana stood before him, breaking his train of thought.
He smiled. “Ready to go?”
She nodded and led him out. After setting the alarm and locking up, she made a note on her pad. Where to?
“There’s a great restaurant on the waterfront near the docks. Their Bangers and Mash is amazing.”
Sounds good.
He offered his arm, but she pretended not to notice, fiddling with her pen and pad and walking ahead of him. He ground his teeth. The damned Night Walker had already charmed his Irish rose. He matched her step. If the filthy Mayan had touched her, he’d rip his arms off. And then he’d give Juliana a lesson in loyalty.
The restaurant was a good six blocks from her shop. Since she couldn’t write and walk at the same time, Benedict lost himself in the swell of revenge brewing in his gut. With the restaurant finally in sight, he pointed it out and guided her to the door.
After they were seated, he ordered for them both. For his plan to work, he’d need to lure the Night Walker in and catch him in the act. Inebriated men, hungry for extra money, were exactly what he needed.
Benedict reached for his silent cell phone and frowned. “Juliana will you excuse me for a minute? I need to take this call.”
She nodded, and he made his way to the door, the dead phone pressed to his ear. He didn’t bother speaking into it; she couldn’t hear him anyway. Once he was outside, he made his way across the parking lot to where a live band played.
Boisterous laughter echoed through the alley. Benedict almost smiled, pocketing his phone.
He jogged to the door and slipped inside the pub. The reek of beer, fried fish, and sweat assaulted his senses. Benedict walked through the crowd, parting them without effort. Reveling in the grumbles and threats from the men cast aside, he reached the bar. He scanned the patrons and spied two men at the end of the bar, preening like drunken peacocks.
Benedict put himself between them.
“Git out of the way ya bloody arse!” The tall blond man shoved Benedict, frowning when he didn’t move.
“I have a proposition for you blokes. There’s money in it, and you’ll still get to beat the shit out of each other. Interested?”
The dark-haired one shook his head. “Yer full o’ shit.”
Benedict withdrew a few large bills from his pocket. “And there’s more where this came from.”
The first man took a step closer. “An’ all I gotta do is kick the ever-lovin’ crap outta him?” He pointed at his mate.
“More or less.” Benedict shrugged. “Meet me in the alley.”
He turned around, heading for the back door. He didn’t check to see if the oafs were following. They’d practically drooled over the cash. He had no doubt they’d be trailing after him like a couple of starving puppies.
When he got to the back alley, he stopped. The blond crossed his arms. “Money first.”
Benedict handed each of them some bills and then produced a switchblade. “I’ll leave this here for whoever grabs it first.” The weapon clinked on the pavement, echoing though the empty alley. “To make things more interesting.”
He walked away, smiling when he heard the punches land. With any luck, blood would flow soon.