by Marie Harte
“Another half hour and we’ll be there,” J.D. announced over the intercom.
“Good,” she muttered. “One more step away from Mr. I’m-in-Charge.”
Typical woman, sniping because she didn’t like him telling her what to do. He annoyed her? Good. Because she bugged the shit out of him.
The rest of the ride passed in steady, if not comfortable, silence.
THE NEXT MORNING, ALEX groaned as the doorbell rang. She glanced at her alarm clock. At least whoever had decided to visit had waited until nine. She walked by her spare bedroom, where Cole had insisted he stay to play bodyguard. She snorted. As if. He’s sleeping like the living dead while I’m getting the door. In his defense, he had put in a full night bartending to continue his cover.
“Coming,” she called when the bell rang again. Through the peephole, she saw her uncle. She opened the door in surprise. When she’d arrived at Buchanan Investigations yesterday, Christine had given her a note to expect her uncle at her house later the next afternoon. Not before coffee.
He hugged her, easing her tension in the familiar warmth of his arms.
“I was worried about you, girl,” he said gruffly and walked with her into the living room. He looked around him with a question. “No coffee?”
Alex huffed and made a fresh pot while her uncle waited in the living room. After a few minutes, the coffee perked. Alex poured him a cup and joined him on the couch. “Not that I’m not glad to see you, but what’s up, Uncle Max? This doesn’t feel like a social visit. I’m not screwing up the case. Everything’s fine. So give.”
Max sighed. “I’m worried about you, Alex. You and Hunter don’t seem to be getting along, which could jeopardize your safety the deeper we dig into this investigation.”
Alex stared at her uncle, torn. At this point, she was in too deep to be pulled. Perhaps the time had come to ask Max about her odd connection to Hunter.
“Uncle Max, I have a question for you.” She drew a breath and let it out slowly.
“Yes?”
“Hunter and I seem to react to each other in an...odd way.”
“Desire isn’t odd, Alex. It’s a natural response between people who are attracted to one another.” The smile in his voice embarrassed her.
“It’s not that. I mean, it is. I think he’s attractive. But it’s more than that. Something strange happens between us, something we can’t control.”
Max lost his humor fast. “Tell me.”
“Well, I’ve tasted strawberry when I should have tasted coffee. And he tasted coffee when he should have been eating a strawberry pastry.”
“What?” Max’s soft question stirred the hair on the back of her neck.
“It’s like I can experience what he’s sensing, and vice versa. But they’re flashes of feeling. And I’m not doing it to him on purpose, no matter what he thinks,” she muttered. “I’m telekinetic, but that’s it. I’m not a telepath or empath, so I don’t understand this new ability.”
Max watched her. “Has this happened with anyone else?”
“No.”
“Damn.” His lips twisted and he sighed. “It just figured you’d find someone so—”
“Uncle Max? What are you talking about?”
“Nothing you need to concern yourself with right now. Once this operation is over, I’ll explain it all to you. This comes from your father’s people, honey. The Saintes have a strange ability that passes through the generations. It appears that it’s showing in you. From what I gather, once you and Hunter accept these occurrences, they’ll soon stop.”
“It’s a little off-putting to be doing one thing and feeling something else. The one time I concentrated on not thinking about him, the weirdness vanished. But it seems to come back at odd times, especially when we touch.” She coughed to cover her embarrassment.
He gave her a dry look that suggested he did know something of male-female relationships. “Alex, if you feel something for Hunter, my advice is to listen to your heart.”
“Didn’t you warn me away from him?”
“He’s solid, and I’m sure he won’t hurt you. You just have to accept that you two have more in common than you might think. If you fight it, Alex, you’ll both suffer for it.”
“Suffer how?” she asked.
“Just trust me on this. Look, honey, you don’t have a typical brain. And I doubt we’ll ever understand how your brother’s brain works,” he murmured. “But I do know that your father and mother experienced the same sensory sharing when they first met.”
Alex had a moment’s relief before his words registered. She stared at him in horror. “Are you saying I’m going to marry Hunter Greye?” She felt lightheaded, and her heart raced.
“No, no,” Max hurried to reassure her. “I’m just saying that different people have different reactions to your unique chemistry, that’s all. Don’t fight it. Just accept it and eventually you and Hunter will ease back into normalcy, or what’s normal for us. And, do me a favor, don’t tell your brother about this.”
“Why not?”
“Because Cole’s a lot like me in some ways. He’s stubborn, and he likes to think he’s always right. Let’s let him come to me for the answers, hmm?”
She didn’t understand what harm it could do, so she nodded. Besides, this way she wouldn’t have to tell Cole anything about her interactions with Hunter. The less said in that direction the better.
Max and she spent the rest of the morning talking about family concerns. Thorne had returned to the small security firm he worked for with Luc and Storm. Her cousins were top-notch problem solvers. Ran in the blood, she thought with a smile. She wondered how long it would take Max to get them working for him. He’d been trying for years.
A little after noon, she kissed Max goodbye and promised to see him at the meeting at five o’clock sharp. She shut and locked the door behind him, then sank back into her couch, wondering about her uncle’s bizarre advice.
When he’d mentioned the similarities between her parents’ marriage and her situation with Hunter, she’d panicked. She couldn’t imagine being in such a volatile relationship with a man. Hunter made her heart thunder and her brain scramble. She remembered her parents being a team, a trusting pair who worked and loved together.
With Hunter, Alex continually found herself in a lesser role to the larger-than-life predator. He intimidated her on a physical level. But it was her overwhelming response to his nearness that bothered her the most. Because she wanted to soothe his aches, to salve his pain and make him feel better. With just a kiss from the hardheaded man, her mind and body became not her own.
Alex didn’t want a controlling relationship, and especially not with a man she barely knew. Granted, the sex would be hotter than hot, but at what price? And wasn’t she stepping just a bit outside herself? Hunter hadn’t made any pretense about wanting her, but that was about her body. Not as a girlfriend, for God’s sake. He’d tried to make damn sure she knew her place. Under his thumb and at his beck and call.
She didn’t date men she couldn’t control. Alex’s few boyfriends had treated her like gold, agreeable to anything she wanted. Men she found amusing, fun, refreshing...and men she ultimately left behind.
Hunter was ruthless, powerful, and controlling. He had an honesty and forthrightness about him that J.D. admired. Max said he came from a good family. The man obviously knew his way around the bedroom. She frowned, not wanting to think about where he’d learned his expertise.
But for all his many faults, when Alex thought about Hunter, she felt safe, protected, and dammit, cared for. If Max had the right of it, they shared a special bond, one she needed to accept. That didn’t mean she had to fall in love with him.
Sudden thoughts of a future with Hunter stirred longings she’d thought long dormant. Alex scoffed at herself. She had a job to do. A job that meant life or death for real people. Acting like a starry-eyed schoolgirl would get her nothing but trouble.
Speaking of trouble... A trip t
o the spare bedroom showed Cole had made a mess of the covers. He half sprawled on the bed, his big feet hanging over the side in an uncomfortable-looking diagonal spread.
Trust Cole to make even sleeping look hard. Perhaps her uncle had a point about her brother. She loved him dearly, but at times his stubborn arrogance landed him in more trouble than she wanted to handle. He really did take after Max.
Two psychic wonders with alpha tendencies. It was enough to make a poor girl take stock before diving into the deep end. Her subconscious took note. So what was Hunter but another psychic wonder with alpha tendencies? He might as well be family. Horrified at the thought, she left Cole and promised herself that she’d spend the next week gearing up for the auction, her concentration on the mission.
Without Hunter Greye.
Chapter Nine
“You want us to what?” Hunter asked with astonishment as he stared at Jurek.
“Just for the next few days. You and Alex need to take what little time you have to grow more comfortable with one another,” Jurek repeated patiently. “You need to trust each other. This is Wraith we’re talking about introducing you to, a man the Feds haven’t managed to arrest after a decade’s worth of crime.”
More comfortable with one another? Hell. Hunter didn’t like the direction this meeting was taking.
“I was thinking she and I could use a break away from all this.” Away from each other.
“Yeah,” Alex agreed wholeheartedly.
Why her agreement irritated him so much he didn’t know. A glance around the room showed Cole in agreement, while J.D. and Max took Jurek’s side. Thorne, apparently, had finished his part in the investigation, because he hadn’t shown for this meeting.
Max shook his head. “When Omaney calls you with details, you won’t have much time to move. Alex will have to be with you. So, whether you like it or not, you two need to know how each other thinks and works. It’s crucial to this mission and to your safety that you feel a degree of comfort and trust with one another.”
“They can do that without living on top of each other all week,” Cole protested.
After a moment, Alex sighed. “I’m okay with it. How about you, Hunter?” she challenged, her eyes sparkling.
God, he wanted her. Though it galled him to admit it, even to himself, he was falling for her. The whole package. The stubborn beauty, the sexual temptress, the telepathic wonder. Shit.
“No problem on my end.” He shrugged. He’d be damned if he’d look like the weak link here.
“Good, then it’s all settled. I’ll arrange for you two—” Jurek began, only to have Hunter interrupt him.
“We’ll stay at my place. I’ve got the facilities to accommodate us both and keep track of what’s going on with Westlake. No one but you knows where it is, so we’ll be perfectly safe.”
“You’d better be,” Max added, his voice gruff. “That’s my niece you’re taking with you.”
“And my sister,” Cole said.
J.D. grinned but had the sense to remain quiet. The little pissant.
Alex frowned. “Maybe I’ll be looking after him. Did anybody think of that? Just because he’s bigger doesn’t mean he’s badder.”
“The guy can bench press you, Alex. So give the women-power, rah-rah speech a rest,” Cole muttered. “Just make sure you keep your head down. Anything seems off, you call us.”
“I’m not a kid, Cole. I know what I’m doing.”
Cole glanced from her to Hunter, his gaze dark. “I hope so, Sis. I really do.”
Hunter turned to Jurek. “And you’re still looking into Romero, right? I don’t buy Omaney or Wraith hiring him. Something about that hit felt off, disconnected from this case.”
Jurek frowned. “I know. Rafe’s looking into it for me.”
“I thought he was on another case.”
“He is, but he told me he’d see to it personally.”
Hunter felt better, knowing Rafe had his back. “Good.” He glanced at Alex, wondering how the hell they’d make this work. I’m a professional. I can do this. His gaze unerringly fell to her lips, and his most recent fantasies filled his mind’s eye. Shit.
The room fell into an awkward silence, and Hunter hoped like hell Max wasn’t reading his thoughts.
Jurek said slowly, “Well then, no time like the present. Alex, Hunter, good luck to you both. I’ll be in touch throughout the week. But the biggest thing you two can do to help is develop some trust. Remember, Rebecca’s depending upon you.”
They stood and nodded. Alex looked like Hunter felt—grim but resigned.
Cole looked as if he wanted to belabor the point, but Max gripped him by the arm. They stared at one another for a moment, but neither said anything.
“I’ll see you in a week.” Alex hugged her brother and uncle. “Don’t worry. I’ll be fine. Just make sure you’re ready to go in once we find out where he’s keeping them.”
Hunter waited for her. They left the building together in a quiet procession.
“You brought your car, right?” Hunter asked to break the awkward silence.
“Yes.”
“I’ve got your address. Why don’t you take some time to pack while I take care of a few things at home? I’ll pick you up around seven tonight, okay?”
Alex nodded and he left, mentally listing what he’d need to be ready for her arrival.
AT SEVEN O’CLOCK, HE rang her doorbell. She answered him promptly, and he entered, expecting her to be ready. He sighed when he saw that no suitcase sat by the front door.
“I’ll just be a minute more. If you’re thirsty, there’s soda in the fridge.” Alex disappeared into her bedroom before he could say a thing.
He helped himself to a drink and moved back into the living room. He and Alex had been ordered to get to know one another better. Fine. He studied the area around him, looking for more details into her personality. The last time he’d been here he hadn’t noticed much past Alex’s obsession with cleanliness and her body covered in bubbles.
The place was still just as clean as it had been. She didn’t have much clutter, and in that they had a good bit in common. She liked comfort, but not opulence. To his surprise, he realized she would probably like his place, since their tastes seemed compatible.
“I’m ready,” she breathed as she returned to the living room with a large duffel bag. Without asking, he plucked the large bag from her hands and headed for the door.
“Let’s go,” Hunter grumbled. “I just hope we don’t kill each other before it’s all over.” And that I can keep my hands, and my dick, under control. Because just being near you makes me hard.
Forty-five minutes later they passed yet another farm and turned down a dirt road in the middle of nowhere. Hunter cast a side-glance at his passenger, but could see nothing except curiosity in her study of the woods around them. He drove down the road until he came to his property.
A decent-sized farmhouse that he’d completely gutted and refurnished sat next to a three-car garage that he used to house his exercise equipment and vehicle.
The woods surrounded his house, providing a lush wall of protection from prying eyes, though his nearest neighbor lived some five miles away. Just behind the house sat a small lake. He’d purposely built the place on it. On his few days off, Hunter spent his mornings staring out over the water, watching as the sun rose like a warm watercolor over his land.
“It’s nice,” Alex said, looking surprised.
“You thought I lived in a shack in the woods, maybe?” he asked and saw her blush.
“Very funny.” She grabbed for her bag. Again, Hunter plucked it out of her hands and ushered them both toward his front door. He entered a series of codes before it opened and waited for Alex to precede him.
The moment she stepped over the threshold, he realized how much he wanted her to like it here. She was the first woman to see the place since he’d built it after his breakup with Anna. Even his mother had yet to visit, simply because he was rar
ely home.
Simple and plain, his walls and furniture held none of the brightness of Alex’s home, yet retained the same sense of comfort. It had a rustic look—cream-colored walls, wooden beams for support, and hardwood flooring covered the front rooms.
Paintings of battles lined his walls, his only foray into art collecting. He watched Alex examine his house, moving around to note the fine film of dust coating the neat stacks of newspapers and clear tabletops. Crap, he knew he’d forgotten something. She tested out the soft leather chair and sofa with thoughtful consideration.
“Are you through yet?” he asked, amused. When she glanced up at him with a grin, his heart raced. He had a sudden urge to show her his bedroom.
“You know, Hunter, I never would have pegged you as a guy with such a tasteful home.”
“Thanks,” he said wryly.
“But I have to admit this place is comfortable. Show me the rest.” She stood and waited.
Hunter took her through the kitchen—a large, open room with a counter overlooking the living room. They briefly toured his study and then ventured down the hall to the bedrooms.
“You have a choice,” he rumbled, thoughts of beds and Alex making him twitchy. “You can sleep in either of these spare rooms.” He motioned to twin rooms connected by a bathroom.
The rooms, like the rest of the house, were done in neutral tones. Both had carpeting in a thick tan weave. Simple oak dressers and closets were all that stood in the rooms beside the full-size beds.
“Not too creative in there, eh?” Alex teased.
He shrugged. “My room’s down the hall.” When they walked back out into the hallway, Alex looked toward his room but made no move to approach. Hunter could feel the subtle change in her and knew she felt as he did, uncomfortable with her body’s wants.
“Okay.” She turned to face him. “I’ll take this one.” Nodding, he grabbed her bag and dropped it in with her.
Their solitude suddenly smothered him, and he felt an urgent need to escape, to tamp down his desires.