Hearts and Minds: An Impulse Power Story
Page 10
David leaned against a wall, taking a deep drag on his cigarette. He’d seen Kira and Raf’s brief exchange—the air seal was transparent—but he hadn’t been able to hear them. It didn’t matter. Seeing was enough to make his blood boil. Her grin didn’t help his state of mind any.
He took another deep pull on the cigarette, waiting for her to notice him. When she did, her step faltered. She slowed, moving toward him with a wary gaze.
“I think there are a few things you’d better explain to me,” she said.
Her hard tone made him bristle. “I was going to say the same thing.” He puffed at the cigarette again, the glowing tip almost to his fingers. He dropped it to the floor, smashed it beneath his boot heel and lit another.
“Me first,” Kira said, ignoring his glare. “What was all that about Ennoren killing Raf if he thought he was my lover?”
“A fact,” David answered with a shrug. “The commander would kill him for the simple fact that he was having an affair with you.”
Her brow creased. “I doubt that. He might kill Raf, but not because I was having an affair with him.” She stopped, her gaze unfocused and turned inward, then quietly said, “Unless he thought it would hurt me. Then he might kill him.”
“Would it?”
“What?”
She snapped her gaze back to his face, and David felt the strength of her golden eyes in his every cell. “Would it hurt you if Raf were killed?”
She dismissed the comment with a wave of her hand. “It always hurts me when someone I know gets killed.”
“But would Tygran’s death hurt you especially?”
She puffed out an impatient breath and paced away. David could see the conversation wasn’t going the way she wanted it to. He didn’t care. He needed these answers.
“I don’t know what the hell you’re talking about, David,” she said. “And it doesn’t matter anyway. I want to know why you didn’t want Ennoren to think you were here last night. You tell me I’m keeping you a prisoner—”
“You are.”
“But you warn me before I go to talk with your commander,” she continued over his interruption, “so that I’ll make a specific effort not to mention you.” She stopped and turned to face him. “Why? I could have slipped. I could have given away that I knew where you were. He’d have a warrant to search the mansion within minutes if he thought I was keeping you here. Why would you give me a warning you must have known would put me on guard?”
“Why would I want him to know I’m here?” David countered, throwing his half-finished cigarette to the ground and stalking closer to her. “You said you’d release me within the week. Why would I want Ennoren, of all people, to find me here when I know he’d kill me on sight?”
The statement made her gasp. “What…?”
He got in her face. “I told you already. I don’t want him to think you’ve slept with me. He’d kill me for that as easily as he’d kill Raf for it.”
“First, why would he assume I’d sleep with you just because you were here?”
“After our meeting at the blockade, he has every reason to suspect that you wanted more from me than conversation.”
“Oh! You arrogant son of a bitch,” she nearly shouted in indignation.
David grabbed her chin, none too gently, and lifted her face. “Don’t dare deny your attraction to me, Kira. There were two of us involved in that kiss in the canteen.”
She jerked her head out of his grip and stalked off. “You’re as delusional as Ennoren.”
She stopped abruptly and David, following close behind her, almost knocked her over. He grabbed her shoulders to balance her, but as soon as she steadied herself, she wrenched away from his touch.
“None of this has anything to do with anything,” she spat. “Whether I’m attracted to you or not, whether Raf is my lover or not, has nothing to do with anything. I have less than three days now, and I don’t have time for this pettiness. You don’t want Ennoren to find you here? Fine! He won’t. I’ve got—”
David grabbed her shoulders again and hauled her close. “Is he?”
“What?” she demanded.
“Is Raf Tygran your lover?”
Her mouth dropped open. “I can’t believe you’re still…” She expelled a disbelieving breath, shook her head and shoved away from him.
She started to walk off again, but David kept pace with her easily. “Answer the question, Kira.”
“It’s none of your goddamned business!”
His arm dropped like a bolt against the steel-plated wall beside her, stopping her retreat. She turned, her golden-eyed gaze sparking like lava. Her breath came in deep, angry heaves that made her chest rise and fall sharply. And David felt his blood reaching critical heat. “I’m making it my goddamned business,” he answered, his voice low and rough. “Are you having an affair with Tygran?”
She lowered her gaze and pushed against the arm that blocked her retreat. “I don’t have time for affairs,” she mumbled. “With anyone.”
He gripped the back of her neck, barely maintaining his control against the storming desire riding through him. Forcing her head around, he tilted her face up, bringing her lips only a breath away from his. “Make time,” he whispered hoarsely, then covered her mouth with a hard, desperate kiss.
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