by Wendy Stone
“You’re going to have me embarrassing myself,” he whispered as he lifted his head, staring down and into the dreamy green of her eyes.
His words broke the spell, reminding her that he was naked and that they still had to make it into the house. “It must be a real bitch not being able to hide your feelings,” she teased, making him grin.
“I’d put up with any embarrassment if it made you smile like that again,” he said softly, brushing his mouth over the petal-like softness of her ear.
She shivered in reaction and he laughed, delighted. Blushing bright red to the roots of her hair, she pulled away from him and started toward the house again, only to notice that the Weres had given them privacy while they were kissing. They were alone.
Emotions bubbled to the surface, feelings she’d been hiding away for a very long time. Resentment and anger burned in her gut and she turned back toward Kadian. “Don’t touch me again,” she growled, drawing him up short.
“Charisma?”
“I didn’t give you any sign that it would be okay to kiss me, did I? I didn’t ask you to do it? You just did it. It’s my body and you should ask if you can touch me before you do.” She could hear her words but it was as if they were coming from a long distance. Her anger wrapped her in a cocoon of rage and she was seeing red. Reaching up between her shoulders, she unsheathed her sword, holding it at the ready. “You’ve taken a lot for granted since I first met you, Mr. Kadian James, superstar! Did you ever think that maybe I didn’t need rescuing, that maybe I could have gotten out of that tunnel myself? Did you ever think that maybe Gerald and I had come up with a plan long before you decided to stick your pretty nose into my business? I don’t need you. I don’t want you kissing me. Try it again…” she let her sword slash through the air in an obvious warning.
Then she turned, heading inside the house and slamming the door behind her.
“Whoa, hell, what was that?” Kadian said softly, staring at the door. She’d blown up good and proper, putting him in his place with a sharp tongue.
He took the few steps to the back door of the manor and pulled it open. Charisma stood just inside, a shocked look on her pale face. Her sword was sheathed and she moved to the side to allow him to enter.
“I’m sorry,” he said, reaching for one of the robes that lined the wall. He’d have to raid Lukah’s closet for clothes to wear. Lukah was almost as much a clothes horse as he was. The thought would have made him smile, except for the wary girl that watched his every move.
“I promise. I won’t kiss you again unless you ask me to.”
It seemed with those words all the starch that had been holding her up dissolved. She seemed to grow even smaller. She nodded once, feeling like the biggest jerk in the world for blowing up when he’d only wanted to help. Besides, she’d enjoyed every second of that kiss and wouldn’t mind feeling that way again. Now she’d have to ask him. God, why couldn’t she keep her stupid mouth shut?
“Charisma?” he said softly, not touching her. “Am I forgiven?”
The rest of her bravado fell away and she turned like a lost child, pushing her face against his chest. “I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I don’t know what came over me. You’ve been nothing but kind and decent to me and I blow up like that.” Lifting her head, eyes drenched by tears that she refused to let fall, she looked into his.
“You’ve had a pretty emotional few months,” he said softly. “We do need to discuss what is going on between you and Hood if I’m going to help you.”
“Not tonight, okay?” she asked, almost begging. “I don’t want to think about it tonight.”
“That’s fine,” he said, wishing he could stroke his hand through her long hair and feel its silky texture and the way the curls seemed to almost grab at his palm, as if alive. “Let’s go find out where Lukah is putting us.”
They walked out of the small room that held the robes and a couple of shower stalls, walking on beautifully tiled floors into a large and spacious kitchen. The design had a Spanish feel, from the color of the walls to the exquisitely designed floors. Charisma wished she could explore. It had been such a long time since she’d been allowed to tinker in a kitchen. She missed it.
In the center of the room were their host and hostess. They seemed to be in the midst of a heated battle. Charisma watched as the redheaded beauty stood her ground against the huge man who would be her mate. Marissa even went so far as to poke her finger in his chest.
Kadian watched Charisma. She seemed to flinch, to pull into herself as she heard the raised voices and watched as Lukah and Marissa argued. When Marissa pushed her finger into Lukah’s chest to make a point, Charisma took a step back and averted her eyes, as if afraid of what would happen. “Are we interrupting?” Kadian asked loudly, his hands going to Charisma’s arms, but not holding her. He didn’t know if she’d run or not, but she seemed about to.
“I was just informing Marissa of the fact that besides her room, there is only one other room available in the house for the two of you.”
“So what’s the problem? You stay with him, don’t you Mar?”
Marissa flushed, turned to glare at her mate. “Tell him the rest of it, Lukah,” she ordered.
“Ah… well…you see, Marissa wanted to have an old fashioned kind of ritual and she did some digging…”
Kadian began to laugh. “How long?” he asked.
“Since the day after you brought her back,” Lukah answered, a snarl on his lips as he stared at his friend. Kadian was almost choking, trying to hide his laughter.
“That was almost two months ago,” Kadian said, trying to sober under Lukah’s irate gaze but having problems doing so. “Two months without touching each other? The mating can’t get here soon enough, can it?”
“There’s the problem,” Marissa said, reaching out and punching Kadian in the arm. “Smart ass. If I go and stay with Lukah tonight, there’s no way he’ll keep his paws off of me.”
“I told her I could. That’s what the whole argument is about,” Lukah growled.
“You can not,” Marissa growled. “Every time I get near enough to breathe on you, you almost jump me.”
“I could too,” Lukah growled back. “Besides, it takes two to tango, Marissa. What about all those times you tried to jump me? Don’t those count?”
“I did not,” she snapped.
“Whoa, guys, hold up here.” Kadian held up his hands then glanced down at Charisma. “We can spend a couple nights in the same bed, can’t we?”
Charisma glanced between Marissa and Lukah. “Yes,” she whispered. “Please don’t argue about it.”
“A solid argument is good for a couple,” Lukah said, smiling down at the apparently worried woman. “Gives you a reason to make up.”
“Like you need a reason,” Marissa huffed, but she reached up and stroked his cheek, a sign of extreme affection between a woman and her mate. “We put you in the blue room, Kadian, the one you stayed in last time. I’ll go up and see what I can find that might fit your Charisma.”
Lukah took a pair of sweats and a hooded sweatshirt and handed it to Kadian. “Will this do for tonight?”
“Yeah, it’s great. Listen, Luc, thanks for doing this. You’re probably going to hear some bad things about me starting tomorrow and most of its probably true…”
“Kadian, I know what’s inside your heart. You don’t have to prove yourself to me. You did that the day you brought my mate back from the dead. She told me what terrible risk you put yourself in to do that. Anything you need, anytime, anyplace, and it’s yours.”
“Luc, I didn’t bring her back to make you feel beholden to me.”
“I know that,” Lukah interrupted. “But that day, you didn’t just save one life, you saved two. I couldn’t have lived without her.”
Kadian let his hand fall onto Lukah’s shoulder, squeezing gently. “You and your clan saved my life when you took me in, Luc. Consider it my debt repaid.”
Lukah nodded, but Kadian kne
w the man the panther lived in. He would consider himself indebted to Kadian anyway. “Come on, your lady looks to be about all in.”
Kadian turned, glancing in surprise at where Charisma had sunk down at the tiled table, her head resting against her arms. He went to her, surprising her as he scooped her up in his arms. “Rest,” he said, as she tried to struggle against him. “Let me do this?”
She nodded, more out of exhaustion than anything else.
“You can find your way up?”
“Yeah, I think I can find it,” Kadian said. He took the stairs easily, going up them two at a time, her slight weight not slowing him at all. Turning down the long hallway, he went through a door at the end to a flight of stairs. He went up those swiftly, opening the door at the top. Another long corridor lay ahead of them, but he stopped at the first door and pushed it open.
The blue room was gorgeous. It was sumptuous with thick-piled white carpeting that ran wall to wall. A door was covered by thin white sheers and led to the upper story balcony that ran along the back of the house. In the center of the room, on a raised dais under a huge skylight, was the bed. It was covered with a multicolored satin comforter and looked as big as a lake.
“Wow,” Charisma whistled. “I’ve never seen anything like this.”
“Yeah, that was what I thought the first time I stayed here. Wait until you see the bathroom.” He carried her through the room and another door, placing her on her feet against the cool terra cotta tile. The pale rust and leafy green color scheme was restful and relaxing on the eyes and she couldn’t stop staring at the tub that sat in the middle of the bathroom floor. It was round, wide and deep, with jet sprayers.
“I think I could swim laps in that,” Charisma said, her eyes huge.
“Wanna race?” Kadian teased. “Here, why don’t I start you a bath and then you can relax for a while. I have to go back downstairs anyway, find out what the news is saying.” He leaned over and turned on the water, which fell from a deep gold waterfall faucet. It poured into the tub while he pulled soap, shampoo and conditioner out of one of the cupboards, as well as two huge, fluffy towels that looked as if they would go around her two to three times.
Checking the temperature of the water, he began to leave the room. “Don’t fall asleep in the tub,” he warned, closing the door behind him.
Charisma was stripping before the door clicked shut. She couldn’t wait to be clean again. It seemed ages since she’d last had a chance to bathe, and never in a tub like this. Usually, she’d go to a shelter and use the showers there, or she’d head over to the YMCA and sneak in. It was enough to keep her from turning the gray color of most homeless people, but not often enough for her liking. She tried the water temperature with her toe before stepping in and letting the water caress her body.
“Oh my God,” she moaned, stretching decadently in the fragrant water. She hadn’t noticed Kadian putting bubble bath into the water. Now, watching the mounds of bubbles bob over the water disturbed by her movements, she couldn’t help but appreciate them. Their scent was fresh, not overpowering or too fruity or flowery. They held a hint of violet and maybe a touch of lavender, absolutely delighting her.
She’d just reached out and turned off the water when there was a knock on the door, startling her. “Who is it?” she called, her voice a bit panicky.
“It’s me, Marissa,” came the answer through the door. “I brought you something you could wear to bed and a cup of tea that might help with the strangeness of all of this.”
“Come in, it’s not locked,” Charisma called, pulling the bubbles up around to hide her nudity.
Marissa pushed open the door. Over her arms, she held a bunch of clothing and in her other hand she held the cup of tea. “Its chamomile,” she said, “and very hot so you might want to let it cool a bit. I found a few different things,” she said, laying the pile on the counter by the two sinks. “I didn’t know what you would like.”
“Thank you, this is very nice of you, considering you don’t know me. I could be some mass murderer that Kadian brought into your house, for all you know.”
“Nah,” Marissa joke, “we keep them in the cellar. Gotta feed the young around here you know.” She burst into laughter watching Charisma’s face as the woman stared at her in shock. “I’m just kidding,” she said.
“Oh,” Charisma said. “Uh, sorry.”
“It’s okay. I know how strange we must all seem. It wasn’t very long ago when I felt the same way. My first run in with the panthers was a bit different than yours. Lucinda, Lukah’s cousin tried to attack me. He saved me.”
“These guys seemed to have a thing for saving people, don’t they?”
“Yeah, whether we want saving or not,” Marissa grinned. “You’ll do fine here, Charisma. That is such a pretty name.”
“Thank you.”
A small uncomfortable silence fell between the two women and Marissa broke it quickly, backing toward the door. “If there’s anything else you need, just yell. I’ll leave you to your bath.”
“Thank you, Marissa,” Charisma said, amazing herself by how much she meant it.
* * * *
Downstairs, Kadian was shaking his head as he watched the news. Disgust welled inside of him when he saw Charisma’s picture flash across the television screen. It was accompanied by a well made up woman who was telling everyone how dangerous Charisma was and how she’d killed three people as well as attacked policemen.
“She didn’t attack those police, I did.” But of Kadian and his involvement, there was no word. “What the hell,” he growled. He clicked off the television and tossed the remote on the couch. “I fucking don’t believe this. I attacked those police, I broke her out of the tunnel. They aren’t mentioning my involvement at all.”
“It’s probably ASP’s doing,” Nashe said from the doorway of the room.
Kadian turned. A smile curved up the corners of his mouth and he hurried across the room to draw the man into a hug. “Nashe, man, it’s been too long.”
“Yes, it has,” Nashe said, hugging Kadian just as hard. “I see you still have your flare for getting into trouble.”
“Me? What’s this I hear about Terry being knocked up? And here I didn’t think you had it in you.”
Nashe’s chest puffed out and he looked pleased as punch. “I know, could have knocked me over with a feather when she gave me the news. Imagine, me, a mate as well as a father.”
“You’ll be a fantastic father,” Kadian said, slapping Nashe on the back. “How’s Terry doing?”
“She’s good, getting rounder as well as having some very strange cravings. She woke me up the other night, wanted tacos and strawberries, but not as two separate courses.” Nashe shuddered as he remembered watching Terry smear hot sauce on the bright red fruit she’d added to the tacos. “I’m just hoping this stage of her pregnancy doesn’t last long.”
“Having trouble stomaching it?”
“You would too. So, what kind of trouble are you in that ASP called me to ask if I’d seen you? That Carmella is one straight shooting lady, by the way.”
“They got Carmella involved? Dammit all, she shouldn’t have to pay for the things I get involved with just because she’s a dragon too.”
“Well, at the time, I told her truthfully that I hadn’t seen you. So what have you done?”
Kadian leaned down and grabbed the remote, clicking on the television just as they posted Charisma’s picture once more. “That’s what I’ve done,” he said.
“She’s a babe. You fucked her?”
“No, Nashe, get your mind out of the gutter. I helped her escape.”
“Kadian James, that woman is wanted for murder and for attacking police officers. What the hell are you doing helping her escape?” Nashe actually sounded shocked.
“She hadn’t done anything. She killed the three men because they were mob-connected and trying to take her back to their boss. I was the one that attacked the police. Charisma was just trying to protec
t herself.”
“Uh oh,” Nashe said, glancing at Lukah with a raised eyebrow. “Did you hear what I just heard?”
“Yeah, it was unmistakable,” Lukah said, grinning even as he shook his head.
“What are you two going on about?” Kadian snapped, glaring at both his friends.
“You tell him, Luc. You were the first of us to fall.”
“That was the unmistakable sound of another bachelor falling and hitting the ground hard,” Lukah said, grinning. “You’re in love with her.”
“It’s not like that,” Kadian growled. “We don’t have that kind of relationship.”
“Whether you think you do or not is really pretty much moot,” Nashe said. “You’re gone, around the moon. You might as well give up now.” He looked at Lukah, tipping his head as if considering something. “Think we could make it a triple mating?”
“Will you two quit?” Kadian snarled. “All I’m doing is trying to help her.”
“Yeah, and all I meant to do with Marissa was save her from a bunch of human males who were trying to rape her. Look where that got me?”
“You’d better say it got you everything your heart could possibly desire,” Marissa said, coming in with Terry following her. Terry was a tall, gorgeous blonde with blue eyes that seemed to see through any bullshit. The only difference since their last meeting was the roundness at her belly.
“Hey, gorgeous,” Kadian said, coming up to give her a hug. “You’re here just in time to corral your husband-to-be before I end up taking him outside to teach him a lesson.” He let his hand rest for just a moment against her belly. “You’re well?”
“As well as someone could be who’s craving chocolate-covered sardines,” she growled low in her throat. “I’m beginning to disgust even myself.”
“Well, I’d have to say, that one is out there, Terry. But you’ve only got a few more weeks and then you’ll have your litter and life will be wonderful.”
“This rushed gestation period is for the birds,” Terry said. “I mean, I’m only two months along and look seven. I can’t go to the doctor because I don’t think he’d understand if the ultrasound showed three puppies inside of my stomach. The midwife I’m seeing doesn’t believe in drugs and wants me to have a water birth, completely natural. And I’m not even married!” She threw her hands in the air, pacing the floor.