Touched by Light

by Spangler, Catherine

  One thing about bad boys—they really knew how to kiss, and it was so much more than just tongue action. Sean’s large hands cradled her face perfectly, his fingers sliding up into her hair. He knew just how to tilt her head to mold his lips to hers. Knew just the right pressure, how to tease and retreat, and then ramp up the heat with deeper tongue thrusts.

  Oh . . . mega wow! She was definitely in. She managed to get onto his lap. He was definitely in, too—and up, for that matter. The kisses became more intense, escalated by roaming hands, and her sweater and bra leaving the scene. Sean was already wonderfully bare beneath her hands, and she took full advantage.

  Somehow, they made it to his bedroom, kissing and circling, fumbling with zippers. They finished stripping each other and fell naked across the bed. Sean sat up, pushed her back against the pillows. “You’re a natural brunette,” he murmured, looking at the dark curls farther down. “Who’d have thought?”

  “All you had to do was ask. But I like this disclosure better.”

  “So do I.” He moved his attention to her breasts, cupping one in his hand. “You are one fine lady.”

  “You’re no slouch,” she told him, her breathing ragged. That was an understatement. He was amazing. The gods had been extremely generous the day he’d been formed. “Actually,” she amended, too honest to play games, “you’re beautiful, like a work of art.”

  He smiled and ran his hand down her body. His gaze followed it, heated and appreciative, capable of melting steel. As she was mere flesh and muscle, she was currently dissolving into a quivering mass.

  Rising to his knees, he slid his hands over her thighs, and pushed them open. He stared at the intimate, moist flesh between her legs with a frank, masculine admiration that melted her even more. His gaze flashed up to her face, molten fire. “Baby, I’m going to make you scream.”

  She certainly hoped so.

  He lowered his head, and that was her last coherent thought.

  IT was midmorning Friday before Adam was able to leave San Antonio. Matt was well on the way to recovery, at least physically. He still had an uphill battle with his grief and alcohol addiction, but Sean would be there for him. When Adam left the hospital, both Matt and Sean had been asleep—Matt in his hospital bed with all the medical monitors, and Sean in one of those hard vinyl chairs indigenous to all hospitals.

  Adam was fairly certain not all of Sean’s fatigue was from lack of sleep; he suspected Miriam White had a role in depleting Sean’s energy. He couldn’t say he disapproved. Miriam wasn’t a conductor, but she had strong psychic gifts and had jumped right in to help them. She had grit and intelligence, and he liked her very much.

  Before leaving the city, Adam had done as much damage control as he could, had answered the last of the police questions this morning. It helped that one of his Sentinels was a captain with the San Antonio police force.

  That, and the fact that Officer Olvera had been the one firing on the Riverwalk, and David Gains had been the shooter at SeaWorld, made it easier to convince the investigators that Matt Stevens wasn’t involved in the shootings. Which was true, actually, since he hadn’t been in control of his body or the Belian at the time.

  Now it was on to the next challenging matter—Julia Reynolds. She had managed to catch him off guard—again. No waiting for him to drive her back to Houston, or even for him to return to the hotel room. Just an impersonal e-mail:

  Dear Adam, I am returning to Houston today. I need to get back to my classes and resume my life. I think it best that we end our association now, as I don’t wish to be further involved in Sentinel activities. Have a safe trip to Corpus Christi. Sincerely, Julia.

  Association? Is that how she thought of their relationship? He might not be completely up on current vernacular, but he was fairly certain that when a woman opened herself to a man’s touch and then to his body joining with hers as willingly as Julia had, when she called out his name as she climaxed then lay in his arms afterward, allowing tears that revealed her vulnerability—those actions didn’t constitute being associates.

  Try lovers, mates, or to take it one step further, soul mates. He and Julia had been bound to one another long before this lifetime; he was certain of it. That was the only explanation for a Sanctioned having a matched conductor.

  She was his. That might be archaic and chauvinistic, when he generally considered himself enlightened and egalitarian, but it was a fact. It was also balanced by the fact that he was hers. It was joint ownership, and nonnegotiable. The Universe didn’t make mistakes.

  But convincing her of that wouldn’t be easy. She was independent and stubborn, and she didn’t think she had a future with any man. Bennett had done that to her. Adam’s hands tightened on the steering wheel as he felt renewed fury. Bennett would pay, at some point in time; the Universe had an ironclad karmic checks and balances system. Adam simply planned to speed up that process.

  He took the ramp to Interstate 10, heading for Houston. Julia didn’t know it yet, but she had a date with destiny—and with him.

  JULIA didn’t go to the university until Friday morning. She’d been worn-out when she reached Houston Thursday afternoon, right during rush hour—what fun. The lunch with Dr. Curtis had taken longer than she expected, although she felt the meeting had been a success. So had the defeating-the-Belian-and-saving-Matt mission.

  And maybe even the ending-Julia’s-twelve-year-celibacy challenge—although she seriously doubted there was much, if any, sex in her future. Especially since she didn’t think anything could compare to the mind-blowing sex she’d had with Adam, compliments of the Sanctioned/conductor link.

  But she wasn’t going to think about Adam anymore. Put it away, she told herself.

  She was immediately soothed when she stepped off the elevator and headed for the main office of the math department. The familiar décor and sounds and scents surrounded her like old friends. She reached the reception area, and Tami Lang greeted her with a big smile.

  “Dr. Julia! I didn’t expect you back yet. Adam said you wouldn’t be here until next week.”

  “Did he?” Julia forced a smile on her face, walked over to check her mail slot. It was overflowing. She sighed, tugged out papers and periodicals. “When did you talk to him?”

  “On Tuesday, when he called to warn me about your disgruntled student.” Tami hailed from Alabama, and her voice held the charm of the genteel south.

  “Oh, yes.” Adam had told Julia that Bennett was being tailed 24/7, and about Luke’s phone call while she was in the hospital. He’d also informed her he’d called Tami. “I’m sorry about that,” Julia said.

  “Oh, don’t be. I would never give out personal information on any of our staff without specific permission. But your student showed up all right. Said his name was Bill and he wanted to talk to you about office supplies. What a lame excuse.”

  Julia felt chilled to the bone. She shouldn’t be surprised that Bennett had actually been in the math department, since he now knew where she taught, or that he had been on campus talking to her students. But it was still a shock, a personal invasion, and left a sick knot of fear in the pit of her stomach. It took a moment to calm enough that her voice wouldn’t shake. “What did you tell him?”

  “I told him to give me a minute and then I stepped to the back and called security. But he was gone when I came back. I called the physics department and warned them he might be going there, which Adam also suggested.” Tami huffed and went to her desk. “I didn’t like that Bill guy. He looked like a criminal to me.” She gave Julia a reproving look. “You need to tell me when you have problem students like this.”

  “Uh, this was something that happened a long time ago. I didn’t expect it to be a problem. As I said, I’m sorry.”

  Tami waved her hand. “Oh, don’t worry about it. Students these days. They want good grades just handed to them, without having to do the work. So, how was the funeral? Adam said it was nice.”

  This was great. It appeared Adam ha
d become Tami’s newest source of information. And he probably thought he could pump Tami for details on Julia. She’d rectify that situation as soon as she got her balance and her life calmed down. “It was a funeral,” she said. “And I’m glad it’s behind me.”

  Tami’s eyes glowed with compassion. “I’m sorry you had to go through that, but at least Adam was there with you. He’s your cousin, right?”

  Oh, yes, “kissing cousin” Adam. Julia felt like screaming. Instead, she said, “We’re distantly related.” And it was going to remain distant. “Is Dr. Moreno in? I met with Dr. Curtis yesterday, and I wanted to share the results of that with him.”

  Julia had liked Dr. Curtis very much. The woman was quite brilliant and her education and experience were impressive. She was very interested in the position with UH, and Julia would make a positive recommendation to Dr. Moreno.

  Dr. Moreno was available, and she had a brief meeting with him. He was in an amenable mood, apparently still charged up about the sizeable bribe—camouflaged as a donation—that Adam had given the department.

  Finally, Julia was able to go to her Friday class. Miriam wasn’t there, which surprised her. She hoped Matt hadn’t taken a turn for the worse, and decided to call Miriam later.

  Teaching the class was the highlight of her day. She’d missed this terribly. She was in her element in the classroom, discussing theorems and practical applications, watching the comprehension dawning in her students’ eyes, encouraging active discussion. She announced there would be a test next Wednesday, ignored the groans and the whining that her class had been stuck with Dr. Richards for the previous three classes and he wasn’t nearly the good teacher Julia was.

  “Deal with it,” she told the class. “You know my office hours. I’ll be available Monday and Tuesday, if you need help. See you next week.”

  As she packed up her papers and books, several students wandered by to tell her they were glad she was back. Obviously, Richards wasn’t a favorite. He was a better theorist than he was a teacher.

  After her students were gone, she thought about working there in her office for a few hours. But the Friday afternoon rush hour had already started and would only get worse. Plus she’d have to face a deserted parking garage, since most staff left early on Fridays. Besides, she had to go home sometime. She’d been fine yesterday evening, hadn’t received any more calls from Bennett.

  She was scared, no sense in denying it. Maybe even bordering on terrified. But she couldn’t—wouldn’t—put her life on hold. She’d soldier on, with precautions. She slipped her gun into her coat pocket, where she could reach it quickly, loaded up her case and purse, and headed for the parking garage. There was no way she’d run into Bennett there, not with him being tailed by Adam’s people.

  Right now, she was grateful for that safeguard, but she’d soon have to tell Adam to call off the watch. He couldn’t protect her forever, and Bennett wasn’t going away. Sooner or later she’d have to deal with him. But it was nice to feel a little bit safer, at least for the weekend and maybe next week. It gave her time to get her life back in balance.

  She saw nothing suspicious on the way to her car, but she breathed a big sigh of relief once she was locked inside and pulling out of the garage. There is no way Bennett could know where I live, she told herself. She used her address at the university for her driver’s license and vehicle registration. It wasn’t legal, but she’d felt it a necessary precaution.

  He couldn’t very well follow her home if he was being tailed—surely she’d be called on her cell phone by whoever was on watch duty if there was a danger of that. Besides, according to Adam, Bennett was currently using the Metro bus system to get around. So, until such time as she told Adam to back off, she was safe.

  Now, if she could just stop thinking about Adam so much.

  I really am clever, he thought, watching Julia exit the parking garage. He’d been to Hoffman Hall on Tuesday, had scoped out the area and knew where the staff parked. He also knew Julia taught a course on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday—compliments of the student who’d shared her phone number.

  He’d taken the bus back to the university on Wednesday, but hadn’t seen her. Then he’d decided the bus routine was stupid bullshit. He hadn’t been able to do anything about it yesterday, because he’d had to meet with his fucking parole officer. What a joke. Look at a list of rules longer than a football field, agree to be a good boy, and salute the goddamn eagle.

  He was supposed to start work at the sheet metal plant on Monday, but he couldn’t worry about that. He was a man on a mission to get the lying bitch who had put him in jail, and make her pay. Hard to do that when he had to ride the bus.

  So he’d stolen a car from an apartment complex four blocks over from his brother’s apartment. He’d also been smart enough to take the plates off a broken-down car of a similar make and model from yet another complex and put it on the car he’d stolen, before he drove it anywhere. Less chance of being pulled over by the cops if the plates on his vehicle didn’t hit on stolen when they were scanned.

  Then he’d parked the car near the staff garage entrance, just out of range of the security cameras. He stationed himself behind a nearby Dumpster, so he wouldn’t draw attention. He used binoculars to watch people coming and going, and it had paid off. There she was—bitch Julia. He was surprised to see her limping and using a cane; then, remembering the sound of her leg cracking when he’d smashed it with his hiking-booted feet twelve years ago, he felt a fierce satisfaction that he was responsible.

  She was heavier, which made her curvier, sexier. She probably thought that would attract more men, which stirred his rage. Whore. Her face looked pretty much the same, but she’d cut off the long wavy hair he’d liked so well. There would be an extra punishment for that.

  Oh, yeah, there’ll be a whole lot of punishment.

  He ran for his car, started it, and followed her off the campus.

  ADAM clicked off his BlackBerry and pushed away from his laptop. He’d spent much of the drive to Houston, and then another two hours once here, dealing with his private investigations agency matters, daily Sentinel reports, monitoring possible Belian activity in Texas, and shifting duties. He had to allow for the manpower he’d delegated to tracking William Bennett, and for the fact that he was currently down two men—Matt and Sean—in San Antonio.

  He wanted Sean to stay with Matt until he was steadier. He was grateful Miriam was staying until Sunday afternoon, as she appeared to be a calming, stabilizing force for Sean. She would help see Matt out of the hospital and settled in Sean’s apartment. Matt wasn’t returning to the house for the time being. There was too much negative energy there. Adam had arranged for the house to be repaired and thoroughly cleaned, but still thought it best for Matt to stay with Sean for a while.

  Adam went to the wet bar and poured himself a scotch straight up. He sipped as he strolled to the window and looked out over the Houston skyline view afforded by his suite at the Four Seasons Hotel. It was midafternoon and traffic was already snarled, but then it was Friday.

  He stared at the sleek and shiny buildings reaching toward the clouds, but didn’t really see them. Now that he’d handled the pressing duties, his focus returned to his most intriguing challenge—Julia. He wasn’t sure exactly how to deal with her, a frustrating first for him, as he tended to be very decisive. Oh, he had no doubt of the outcome, but getting there might take some finesse.

  Damned if he didn’t miss her, and it had only been a day since she rabbited. It wasn’t just her sharp-edged mind and wit, her heart and amazing courage he missed, but also her scent, and the feel and taste of her. They’d only had sex twice, and one of those times had been a wild conduction, but already he craved her touch, the sensation of being inside her and claiming her in the most elemental way.

  Since he’d always maintained total control over his physical and mental appetites, he found her effect on him disconcerting. But he accepted it, because his meditative visions had s
hown him this was coming, that it was meant to be. One thing he’d learned in his many lifetimes: Never argue with the Universe’s plan. Besides, he wasn’t at all unhappy with his fate. Julia, however, probably wasn’t going to view their soul mate bond in the same light.

  His phone rang, and he walked back to the desk to retrieve it, saw it was from Luke. He clicked it on. “Hello, Luke, what’s going on?”

  “Bad news, Adam. We have an injured Sentinel, and we’ve lost Bennett.”

  “Tell me what happened.”

  “Bennett walked away from his brother’s apartment around noon today, and Davis followed him by car. After they went a few blocks, a kid in a souped-up Charger ran a stop sign and broadsided Davis. He was pinned in his vehicle, and he suffered a broken leg and a concussion, and was unconscious for a while. When he came to, he was in an ER trauma unit. He couldn’t get anyone to call me until just now, so I didn’t know he was out of commission. We have no idea where Bennett is.”

  “What’s the prognosis for Davis?”

  “It’s good. They’re going to set the leg, then admit him overnight for observation, but don’t expect any complications.”

  “Have you called Julia to warn her about Bennett?”

  “Both Marla and I have been trying, but our calls go into her voice mail. Marla said it’s probably turned off, since Julia teaches on Friday afternoon, and always turns off her cell for classes. What do you want me to do?”

  Adam had a very bad feeling about this. “Let me try to call Julia. If I don’t get her, I’ll call the math department, and have them hunt her down. I’ll get back to you.”

  But Julia didn’t answer, and he got a recording for the department. Damn it! That didn’t give him any information. For all he knew, Julia was still in class or in her office, but he didn’t have that phone number. He tried her at home, didn’t get an answer there, either. He grabbed his coat and called Luke as he left the suite and strode toward the elevator.