I was somewhat confused by the concern in her warm brown eyes, but I cautiously did a quick internal check and replied, “Good. Why?”
“Ryder has been going out of his ever-loving mind since he met us at the medic ward. I think they were glad to let him bring you home. They couldn’t wait to get rid of him.”
“The medic ward.” I let that sink in a moment.
That’s right!
Memory returned in a messy, tangled flood of sound, color and texture. The marketplace, the Brausiian warrior who was going to gut me—these were all things that had taken place, along with a host of other equally terrifying events.
Yes. I’d survived them all. They were all lovely things I would be able to add to my résumé. Visited foreign planet...check. Defeated big, nasty warrior with cool ninja mind trick...check. I smirked, feeling like my life had become one big sideshow.
“Don’t worry. Aside from a minor scratch from the dagger he pinned you with, nothing is broken, and you’re just fine. You slept like the dead, though. Nothing could move you. No one could connect with you.”
“Connect?” I assumed she was referring to dreamwalking or mindwalking, but I didn’t get confirmation on it. Cynthia wasn’t listening to me. She seemed a bit distracted, almost absently continuing her monologue of what had occurred while I was out.
“So the Brausiian was removed, people were saved, but you were out cold. The medic unit arrived with a stretcher, and we got you all checked out. I called Nick so he could let Ryder know what had happened, and he showed up at the ward all crazy with worry.”
As an afterthought, she added, “What have you done to that man? He’s become certifiable. He has only ever behaved calmly, logically and with a cool head, but not today. Ryder was barking orders at everyone, ripping on the medical team for not curing you. No one knew what to do, and the general consensus was to let you sleep it off, since your vitals appeared fine, but that wasn’t enough for Ryder. Nick had to physically remove him from the examination room, which almost caused a fight between the two of them, when the medics were checking you out.”
“What have I done to him?” The question bemused me. Like I had the power to do anything. He was a big, powerful male, probably used to getting his way in all things. There wasn’t anything I could do to influence him one way or another. “I’m sure he just feels responsible for me.”
She shook her head exasperatedly, obviously in disagreement. “Anyway, we now have this big investigation to conduct. The tapes were retrieved and reviewed by the council over the last few hours.”
“Tapes?” I knew I was sounding like a parrot, but there was nothing else I could contribute.
“We have all public places surveyed continuously.”
It sounded very Big-Brotheresque to me, but who was I to criticize? I didn’t live here.
“It’s been an eventful afternoon.” Cynthia finished her recitation and paused.
“How long have I been out?” I sat up and scooted back to lean against the blue-stone wall, noting with relief that I was in Cynthia’s clothing and that no one had felt the need to put me in something else.
“About five hours. Ryder’s been with you the entire time. He only left the room a few minutes ago because Nick told him the high court needed to speak with him immediately.”
Poor Ryder, so used to being in control. My heart warmed. It was probably his worst nightmare to lose the ability to handle a situation where danger was afoot. More somberly, I figured this was particularly true, knowing what I knew about his sister. His sister. I couldn’t even imagine what it would feel like to lose a sister. Did you ever get over that? My mother was still alive, yet I still mourned her.
I didn’t quite understand why any of them were worried, though. So what? I was asleep. What was the big deal?
I felt him before I saw him. Ryder. My dark, mysterious knight. Standing in the doorway of the bedroom, his body tense, his energy thrumming. There was a wild look to his pale eyes. They roamed my face searchingly, almost desperately, like he was assuring himself that I was okay. I barely noticed when Cynthia left the room, muttering about getting food put together. I wasn’t paying her any attention. I just wanted to look at his face, memorize the lines of care and concern.
This was addicting. This was dangerous. Tenderness warmed my heart, but with that came my warning voice.
I wanted him, but he had the power to hurt me.
I’d never wanted anyone before, but he was making me care.
Was I ready for this? I didn’t seem to have a choice. I was enthralled by his intense, pale green gaze. It refused to let me look away.
But then he ruined the whole damn thing.
I could almost see the fear become replaced by anger. His voice shook as he growled, “What the hell were you thinking?”
“What do you mean?” My mind was in such a different place, it took a moment for me to catch up.
“What the hell were you thinking, to put yourself in danger? You took on a Brausiian warrior, Taylor!” He stalked the length of the room toward me, his body throwing off suddenly fierce energy.
“You’re mad because I stopped terrorists from bombing your marketplace?” Incredible. He was going to be mad about that? I glared at him, feeling my anger begin to simmer. What was wrong with him? He made no sense.
“Don’t be ridiculous! You know why I’m mad.”
He did that thing where he braced his hands loosely on his hips. It was such a guy pose, and really sexy, like calendar sexy. Even with his mad look on, where his eyes were, like, blazing at me, I was momentarily disarmed. It stalled the flow of irritation that I was ready to unleash on him because I was suddenly focused on his lips. They were great lips. Really kissable lips. All right. I had to admit it. I was E.Z.
I sighed. “You’re being irrational.” That was apparently a bad thing to say to an angry guy.
“I’m irrational?” His look was one of disbelief.
“Yes, you are. I’m sitting here perfectly fine and no one died, but you’re stomping around here, huffing and puffing—”
“Huffing and—”
“Puffing. Yes, that’s what I said.”
“You don’t get it!” He scrubbed his fingers through his hair in agitation.
“No, I don’t.” It dawned on me that I didn’t want to argue with him. There wasn’t anything to argue about. Normally I would have been all, “Screw you, pal, and the horse you rode in on,” but I just wasn’t feeling it. More than that, I was confused. What was he really mad about? That was the part I was missing.
“Dammit! Was it rational to attack a man almost three times your size when you didn’t have a weapon or any training? I saw the guy, Taylor. Are you fucking kidding me?”
“I have some training,” I protested, but more as a muttered aside, because I was still trying to figure out what was setting him off. Again, that seemed the wrong thing to say, because his exasperation became almost tangible.
“Your gym class with Rico isn’t training. The heavy bag doesn’t hit back.”
“I tagged you out, didn’t I?”
“Only because I didn’t want to hurt you! You’re a menace to yourself,” he bit out. “Here comes danger, and there you go running for it!”
He was mad because I hadn’t been cautious? His concern was me? My personal safety? That was the missing link. He was...maybe...starting to care for me? And just maybe, it had freaked him out to imagine the worst that could have happened, and maybe he just needed time to calm down and everything would be all right.
Was there really anything worth getting mad about? Could I be mad that he’d worried about me? No. I decided to try something new. Taking a deep breath, I pulled my legs up and sat cross-legged. Maybe we could just...talk.
“Ryder, will you please come here? Sit with me?”
/>
He glared at me warily a moment, and I wondered if he was going to ignore my request. Then he closed the gap between us with one step and sat ultraclose, facing me on the bed. There were mere inches separating us. His voice quieted. “He had a knife on you, Taylor. He was going to fucking kill you.”
“But I’m okay.”
“You were supposed to let Cynthia alert security. They would have been there in seconds to handle the situation.”
“It’s over now.”
“You don’t understand. I had to watch you lie there, unmoving, for five hours. I didn’t know if you were sick or hurt. No one could tell me why you were catatonic. I kept checking to make sure you were still fucking...breathing. There wasn’t a fucking thing I could do. It was like you were...” He bit off his words, looking off to the side as emotion seemed to close his throat. I saw it working as he tried to swallow.
Emboldened by the knowledge that he’d been so worried about me, I reached up a hand to cup his whiskery jaw, compelled to touch him, soothe him. His eyes met mine with fierce emotion, remnants of anxiety keeping his muscles revved. Leaning forward, I pressed a gentle kiss to the side of his mouth and looked up at him. His breathing slowed. I kissed the other side of his mouth. His pale, green eyes burned brightly, and he turned his sinful lips to my palm, pressing a kiss into it, which sent lovely tingles up through my nerve endings.
“What is it?” I whispered, still puzzled as to why he was so anxious. Not even Cynthia had been all that concerned. “I don’t understand. I’m not hurt. Everything is fine.”
In a quietly gruff voice, he said, “You were out for five hours. Not moving. It was like you were—” he paused a moment to take a steadying breath, scowling, “—dead. I couldn’t reach you. I tried to find you in sleep, but you were just...gone. I couldn’t feel your energy anywhere. I couldn’t find you.” He looked briefly tortured, and my hand slid down to stroke his chest soothingly, wanting to take away that look from his face.
“You were trying to find me?”
“I needed to know you were okay.”
He released a breath of air, like he was letting go of some of his tension. Then his arms snaked around me fiercely, pulling me tightly into the warmth of his body. His hands ran up and down my spine in a way that seemed more to soothe his peace of mind than anything, which was all I’d really wanted all along. My body sighed into his as he shoved his face into my neck and took a deep breath. It was like he was grabbing a lungful of me. There had never been a time when I’d affected someone in this way. I liked it.
“I’m okay.” I stroked his back, tracing fingers along the muscles in his shoulders. It was so hard to believe that this was the same man who’d so coldly told me he was going to take me to high court for torture earlier. Frowning, I felt some of my pleasure dim.
Yes, he was that same guy.
But then he distracted me, and I forgot my line of thought.
He nuzzled my neck, rubbing his whiskers gently over the soft skin there. Oh... The rough, prickly hair along his jaw set off little nerve-ending explosions that made my blood thicken and my breath catch. “Ryder,” I whispered.
“What are you doing to me?” he said roughly. “You make me...fear.” His lips took lingering, sensual kisses from my neck, the act making me feel weak and languorous. I couldn’t stop the soft sigh from escaping my lips. Butterfly wings set to flight in my stomach, and heat spread gently like warm molasses.
“I don’t know, but it’s happening to me too,” I admitted in a hushed tone.
His lips dragged up my neck, prickly whiskers marking the way with burning tingles of sensation. Our eyes connected for the space of a breath, a heartbeat, green into blue, smoldering. I could feel my energy reaching out to his, intertwining, and I was drawn helplessly into the delicious abyss of need.
“Ryder, please,” I murmured, not sure what I was asking for specifically.
“I love hearing you say my name.” His deep voice turned husky. It vibrated on the air between us.
Caught in his spell, I could only watch his lips descend to mine with tingling anticipation. I needed to feel them on me. I’d been thinking about them, remembering them, wanting them. They paused a hairbreadth from touching, teasing me with a promise, but I didn’t have to wait long.
His lips took mine, and the heat sparked a breathy cry from my soul. It was so hot. I was on fire. Ryder swept my mouth with his tongue, slanting his lips roughly, taking possession like a master, owning me, and the fire burned out of control. I was burning up. My womb spasmed, and I moaned with the wonderful, primal feel of it. I didn’t want it to go away.
I wanted more. He’d teased me last night with a deep, hot kiss, but today, I would take.
Feeling bold, I got up on my knees and fisted my hands in his hair, to hold him where I needed him. My tongue lightly lapped at his lower lip in warning, loving the hot feel of him, before pushing inside, tangling with the heat of him. He groaned deep, which was a totally sexy sound that got me freaking wet. His hands ran down my spine and found their way under my shirt, sliding up my sides, branding my skin with his touch.
A knock sounded just outside the room. I pulled away abruptly, my eyes clouded with desire, my lips swollen and heated from his kisses. I was back to shallow breathing. Ryder tightened his grip on my waist to keep me from pulling away any farther.
“What is it?” Ryder snapped over his shoulder, but he still looked down at me hungrily.
“High council needs you. They won’t be put off any longer,” Nick said firmly, not the least bit intimidated, though he remained respectfully out of sight.
Cursing sharply under his breath, Ryder replied, “I’ll be right there.”
I did have at least one sane voice left in my head that was telling me this interruption was a good thing. Taking time to think and consider what was happening was smart. My sex kitten hissed at my sane person, and I had to ignore both voices and just breathe.
Ryder looked up at the ceiling with exasperation, closed his eyes and inhaled deeply, as though he needed to get a grip. He exhaled and ran his hands over my arms, gently.
“You will be the death of me,” he murmured gravely, looking down at me again.
“Me?” I gave a wide-eyed look of innocence.
“I have some comfortable clothes you can sleep in. They’ll be big for you.” He gave me an unexpected, crooked smile that snuck in under my guard. It was so rare to see him smile. My heart warmed, and my lips curled, mirroring him.
“Thanks,” I said quietly. I still wanted to understand his behavior from earlier, get some feel for how he could go from one end of the spectrum to the other in so short a time, from enemy to love interest, but now wasn’t the time to ask.
Maybe when we were alone again we could talk.
I was likely going to get hurt in this, but there seemed to be a momentum building between us that was way beyond my control. Maybe the universe had a plan here, because I didn’t. There was nothing usual about this situation in the least, and all I could do was have faith that I could manipulate whatever hand of cards I was dealt. I’ve always been a survivor.
In for a penny...
Chapter Twelve
I’d expected to feel sore after everything I’d been through the last few days—much less the last few hours—but as I got out of bed, I felt surprisingly good. Restored. Plucky, even.
“Call out if you need anything,” Ryder had stated, leaving reluctantly. I’d gotten an eyeful of his lean hips and gorgeous backside as he walked out, and I’d felt like giving off a bawdy whistle. My world was feeling A-OK once again.
The sex kitten in me mocked me. See what a hot guy can do for you?
Shut up, I replied, then smirked because I was actually telling myself to shut up.
Besides, he wasn’t just any old hot guy, he was Ryder. I�
��d been around other good-looking guys before. I mean, c’mon, I worked in Hollywood. But they’d never put me in such a strangely confused, overly emotional, unreasonably lustful state of mind before.
My summation made me smile. I guess I was feeling better.
The floor-to-ceiling window overlooked the forest below. Sunlight slanted at an extremely low angle across the sky, letting me know it was early evening, evidence that I’d truly slept a chunk of the day away.
This time, seeing the green canopy of massive trees didn’t frighten me. Seems I was getting used to being there. If I stretched my imagination, I could even imagine being in a tropical place, maybe on vacation with Ryder in a rain forest back on Earth, just the two of us trying to get to know each other better.
That was a pretty far stretch, though. Curiosity got the best of me. Taking a moment to wander was too hard to resist. A big soft bed dominated the center of the room, with quilted covers making it ultrafluffy. I would kill to have a bed like that at home. It would be dangerous, of course, because I’d never want to get out of it. All I’d need would be a TV and someone to bring me food.
Like the rest of the dwelling, the walls and floor were the same vibrant blue polished stone. It was calming. I liked it. Various floating shelves were nailed into the walls, holding books and knickknacks, and there was a large, floor-to-ceiling bookshelf built into a chiseled-out wall nook in front of Ryder’s bed. Man, this guy really liked books. I found myself running fingers along the spines of the books, most of which were in foreign languages. I recognized ones in English and saw that others were in Spanish and French.
How many languages did he speak? And not just speak, I realized, but also read and—I assumed—write in? He must have had to study for hours and hours. How unexpected. I guessed I could see him turning all that intense focus on his studies. For all his hot maleness, he was a pretty serious guy, not a party guy. He wouldn’t have been the beer-bong-drinking, fraternity-pledge kind of guy on Earth.
Quicksilver Dreams (Dreamwalkers) Page 24