by Kay, Sharon
Ashina wrapped an arm around her. “I’m sorry, nihja. Do you have someone special…a boyfriend?”
“No,” Alina muttered, but the comfort of sleeping in Caine’s shirt rushed back to her. She leaned back into the soft cushions, her whole body aching with confusion. “I’m just a pawn, then? I was healed only because my skills are needed.”
“Many things in our world come with a price, child. But I don’t think you are a pawn. Without you, the other Solsti won’t be able to defeat the coming evil. You’re a crucial part of the safety of the realms. And your element recognized that.”
“So I’m destined to live alone.”
“You have us.” Ashina laid a hand on Alina’s forehead. “Your dad and me, and Raniero, and your sisters. I can’t put into words how badly they wanted to find you.”
“They didn’t know I was alive!”
“They knew the fourth Solsti existed. And that was enough to give them hope.”
Alina rested her hand over her heart, feeling the steady reverberations through her skin. Damaged and then healed, but also claimed. She swallowed hard. “What about my cloaking ability?”
“I suspect that is a shadow talent that you were born with. It happens,” Whysper murmured.
“So, Sebastian.” Ashina turned. “You found her in…” she pointed to the wall, now void of images. “That cave?”
Her dad nodded. “Yeah, it was a ways underground, but there was a tunnel I followed.”
“How did you know to look?” Ashina asked.
“I picked up on the increase in ley line activity in the area. Figured there had to be some powerful magic, and possibly something worth stealing.” He returned to his chair and sat down. “Imagine my surprise at finding her there. She was cloaking and uncloaking herself.”
That part, Alina remembered. Aware that another creature approached, she’d waited, knowing three things. It was time for her to leave this place she’d been in. She had the ability to cloak herself in shadows. And she knew her name.
Sebastian had crept warily into her cave, dagger out, but put it away when he realized she was a child. He’d grabbed a shirt from his pack and tossed it to her, then gave her water and asked about her family. When she’d told him she had none, he told her they should stick together, and she jumped at the chance.
He’d fed her and clothed her, and showed her how to pick pockets. He hadn’t masked his delight at her ability to sneak in and out of places, describing the things they could have if they worked together. After that, they posed as father and daughter everywhere they went. It helped that they both had blond hair and were petite.
She didn’t understand that stealing was wrong, at least not right away. But when she questioned him, he explained that they were taking from criminals and corrupt men who had stolen in the first place. Plus, he’d educated her about Torth, its history, and especially the discrimination against vampires. She absorbed everything, grateful for his protection, guidance and, eventually, love. Maybe he’d begun their time together wanting to use her for her cloaking ability, but the father-daughter relationship had become real to both of them.
He had taught her one trick after another in the art of breaking, entering, and stealing, until they operated as a flawless team. Dysfunctional compared to the other families she’d observed in her work? Maybe. But the only family she knew.
Getting up, she knelt by his chair and threw her arms around him. “I’m so glad you found me. You’ll always be my dad.”
His arms went around her shoulders. “I love you, little one. No matter what your future holds.”
“Thank you, Whysper,” Ashina said.
The old witch stood and brought her bowl to a table at the far side of the room. “You’re welcome. I found the Solsti’s story fascinating. Though I’m sorry about the price.”
Exhaustion seeped into Alina’s muscles and she lay down on the red couch, her feet in Ashina’s lap. “I’d like to just lie here for a while, if that’s okay.” Her brain was spinning and overloaded, and she wasn’t close to being ready to see her sisters. She knew they were anxious for details of her life, but she needed time to let all of this sink in.
“Of course.” Ashina rested two fingers on Alina’s inner wrist. “You rest. Stay here as long as you like. I don’t think Whysper’s doing any more regression spells today.”
“Stars, no,” Whysper muttered from her spot at the table. She sat with Melixa, wrinkled hands punctuating the air with gestures and her soft voice explaining the mechanics of the spell.
Ashina pulled a soft chenille throw within Alina’s reach, then got up. “I’ll be around, looking for any demons to heal. There’s a phone on the table over there. Call if you need me. My number is listed in the contacts.”
“Okay, thanks.” Dimly, Alina registered everyone leaving the room. But she didn’t feel alone. No, she felt like there was a presence inside her, watching and monitoring, that she was just now aware of. Her heart, which had failed her body once, now represented the Achilles heel of her existence.
Would it fail her soul?
Can’t fall in love… Images of Caine swept through her mind. Strong, honorable, drop-dead sexy. But now, the lightness that went hand in hand with thoughts of him was weighted with foreboding.
Though it wasn’t as if she were planning on mating him or anything. Or anyone else. But for reasons she couldn’t explain, just knowing that the option had been taken away left a bitter sadness in her veins.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
CAINE WALKED OUT OF HIS briefing with Arawn covered in dirt and needing to wash the stink of Serus demon off him. But getting information to his leader always took precedence over things like showers.
He punched the elevator button and waited, hands on his hips. He’d gone straight to the meeting, where he’d not only reported his assignment but had learned that the other Solsti were here with their mates. Alina’s father too.
The brushed metal doors opened with a ding, and he stepped in and hit the button for his floor. Was Alina happy now that the rest of her biological family was here? From what Arawn had said, it sounded like it had been a reunion worthy of an Earth soap opera.
He reached his floor and started walking down the marble hall to his room, when he was slammed with a wall of olfactory sensation. Moonflowers.
Alina.
What was she doing in the unmated Watcher quarters? Was she in another male’s room? The thought pissed him off, and the fact he was pissed made him more pissed. He didn’t have a claim on her. Just a promise from her that she’d wear those sexy-ass boots.
With each step closer to his room, her scent intensified. But it wasn’t fresh. He could tell the difference between the scent rolling off her tight little body when she was near, and the trace of it left behind. Like on that gate at Mulvari’s party, and on the manicured grass bearing a trail of her blood.
Thank the gods that she was safe and unharmed after that ordeal. Not the most conventional way to meet a female. Then again, neither of them was conventional. He unlocked his door, noting her scent clung to it, and stepped inside.
Holy hell.
As he slammed the door shut behind him, his cock roared to life.
The air in the room was saturated with her essence. He closed his eyes and inhaled deeply, drawing her into every cell. Blood rushed to his groin as desire over-rode the question of why she’d been in here, knowing he was gone.
She’s a th—
No. His mind crushed the thought before it could fully form. She wouldn’t take anything of his. He knew it. And if she had, he’d find it. Find her, since she was staying under his roof.
Needing a tangible connection to her, he strode to his dresser and opened the top drawer. He didn’t have a lot of possessions, and that was how he liked it. Weapons that served a purpose—now those were something he would collect and save. He pushed aside a pile of T-shirts and felt around until his fingers touched a small velvet bag. He took it out and loosened the silk cord that held it
s precious contents safely inside.
A lock of Alina’s hair lay nestled in the bottom.
He wasn’t sure why he’d kept it. When he’d gone looking for her after the explosions at Mulvari’s house, his senses had led him to the back of the property, to the gate she’d climbed with that bangle-rope she’d told him about.
Too bad she’d fallen down the other side, apparently sliding and scraping against the rough wood in her descent. When he’d gotten there she was gone…save for several golden strands caught on the unfinished panels. Haunted by their too-brief encounter, he’d plucked them free and saved them.
If any of his colleagues knew he had this, they’d think he was a nut or a sap, and give him complete hell.
Shaking his head, he tucked the bag back under his clothes and shut the drawer. He unholstered his blades and set them down on the dresser’s surface. Later, he’d give them a final wipe down and put them in his safe—
His eyes snapped to his closet and he stalked over to open the door. Holy shit. She’d been in here too. Her scent lingered on his clothes, as if she had touched each one.
What was she looking for?
He backed into the room and yanked off his grubby T-shirt, dropping it on the floor. He eyed his bed, rumpled as usual because he never made it. Had she lain down there?
The thought made his cock painfully hard against his zipper. He leaned over his rumpled bedding. Teasing tendrils of her scent danced up to meet him, taunting, screaming, “She was right here!”
A dark curse escaped his lips and fuck, he needed to find her. But he was covered in fight grime and sporting an erection so hard, being near her might not be a good idea. She was sexy and tough, and if that wasn’t enough of a turn on, he’d tasted those sweet lips. Had her on his lap, soft and willing. And now, at one of his species’ fertile times, he walked close to the edge of his control.
He quickly shucked his boots, socks, tactical pants and boxer briefs, stalked into the bathroom and turned on the shower. Ice cold. That’s what he needed to crush his rampant thoughts of taking her hard and fast. She was a Solsti, for fuck’s sake. She had a role to play, as all four did. She was practically a goddess.
Stepping into the shower, he welcomed the icy blast on his skin. Too bad his dick didn’t seem to notice. Memories of Alina poured into that bustier at Hell’s Gate assaulted his mind. Tight leather pants. Getting her alone in the anteroom, with the scent of sex all around them…
He gritted his teeth and rocked his hips, need riding him hard. Grabbing the shampoo, he lathered it into his hair roughly. He needed to get her off his mind. He also needed to talk to her, find out why she’d broken in. But he couldn’t do anything with his cock swollen like a fucking rocket.
No, it would be better for her, and for anyone else he may have the misfortune to run into, if he took care of things right here.
Soap coursed down his body as he scrubbed, leaving his cock for last. He reached down to take himself in hand, fingers slick with suds sliding over the proud insistence of his arousal. Alina’s body would be this slick, this warm…Closing his eyes, he pictured her breasts plumped up in black lace, heaving with short breaths as he teased her ear at the club.
Another minute more and he would’ve traced that lacy edge, eager to feel her creamy white skin contained by only stitches and hooks. Then he’d grab her ass. Spank her for parading around in such a fuck-me outfit. Those leather pants were a wet dream waiting to happen…
He pumped harder, remembering her slight weight as she straddled him on the balcony. Full lips framed a mouth that tasted like honey and she’d welcomed him in. Greedy Solsti. And then she’d been in his fucking bed…he imagined her there now, naked, writhing, legs parted for him to taste every inch of her. She’d be sweet and hot. Would she scream his name when he made her come?
His orgasm barreled through him without warning, making his hips flex as hot jets of fluid landed on the tiled floor. It went on and on, as he imagined fucking her here under the shower spray. She was so tiny he would be able to hold her, moving her up and down his cock until they were both sated.
He let out a breath and turned toward the cold water, bracing his hands on the wall as his heart rate came back down to normal. Holy gods. He needed another taste of her. But maybe now, he’d be able to speak coherently and not hunt her down like prey. Though hunting her down was all the primal demon in him wanted.
Alina woke alone in the quiet room, her stomach empty and ravenous. She stood up and stretched, wondering what time it was. Checking the clock on a nearby table, she saw she’d slept for six hours. Wow.
Crossing the room, she exited and had to blink away the bright afternoon light in the marble hall. Kitchen. Where’s the kitchen? She knew she’d passed it on the way to Whysper’s quiet room. She looked left and right, pretty sure she remembered coming from the left.
Creeping silently out of habit, she made her way to a wide arched doorway. Yes! Inside were three large worktables, three six burner stoves, and four ovens. It looked like it was built for feeding an army. She walked in, padding across the stone floor in search of a pantry. White marble counters gleamed, reflecting the fire bulbs overhead. Only two were on, and Alina kept it that way, seeing just fine in the dim light.
She walked to an entrance near the opposite wall and sucked in a breath.
This pantry was bigger than her room in the last house she’d shared with Sebastian.
Jars and baskets of fruits and vegetables sat on neat wooden shelves. Nuts, breads, pastries, and spices arranged on movable wire racks made her mouth water. Her stomach growled loudly.
Grabbing a loaf of bread, she turned to go back into the kitchen to make a sandwich—and ran straight into a wall of muscle.
Caine.
She sucked in a breath. “You’re back!” She clutched her bread and fought the urge to throw her arms around him.
“And you…” He took a half step closer. “Were in my room.”
Shit. How did he know? She’d locked up after herself. She hadn’t moved anything…wait, the gray T-shirt. Had he noticed it was missing? She did her best to feign confusion and pasted a you-must-be-confused look on her face. At least, she hoped that’s how she looked. “Your room?”
He nodded, dark eyes unreadable.
Was he angry? A delicious mix of soap and woods and man wafted from his skin, lulling her and ramping her up at the same time. He stood so close she had to tilt her head back to look him in the eye. She backed up. “I don’t kn—”
“I don’t mind.” One brawny arm braced above her head, and she realized he’d backed her up against the shelves. Wall or shelves—it didn’t matter, he had her caged between him and a hard place. Again.
“You don’t?” Her voice came out as a whisper-squeak.
“No.” He leaned down, lips almost touching her ear. “I may have liked it.”
Tingles shot across her skin and she resisted the need to turn and meet those sinful lips. “W-what do you mean, may have?”
“Depends on why you were there.” He took the bread out of her hand and set it on the shelf by her hip. “So how about fessing up?”
She swallowed hard. She’d have to let him win this one. And she’d have to be sneakier next time. “I missed you.”
“Yeah?” His deep voice rumbled straight through her.
“Yes.”
“Then I definitely liked it.”
She took a deep breath to steady her racing heart. “How’d you know?” A thief always strove to hide her tracks.
“Your scent.” He straightened.
Her shoulders sagged. “Damn it. You guys have way better noses than me. I wasn’t even there very long.”
“It was long enough. Your scent was on my door. Inside and outside.” One hand skimmed her hip, tracing a slow pattern up her waist.
She froze as her entire body forgot everything except his touch.
“And in my closet.” His other hand cupped her nape. “On my weapons safe.”
She met his eyes, unable to put up a façade. Every line of defense fell with each caress of his strong hands.
“And in. My. Bed.” With each word, his hands tightened a fraction more.
She gulped a breath, dizzy from his nearness and damn near incoherent from the raw masculinity pouring off him.
He leaned down again, on her other side this time, lips skating over the shell of her ear. “You know what time of year it is.”
No, she didn’t know her own name right now. “Um, December?”
“You in my bed, at our fertile time…some would take that as a blatant invitation.”
Oh god, that’s not what she had intended. But his words sparked an ache deep in her body. Her breath came in short bursts. “I…”
“Is it?” The hand at her waist slid up her ribs, stopping beneath her breast.
Her stomach clenched at his touch. She couldn’t think. “Is it what?”
“An invitation.” The word was growled, as if he held on to his control by a thread.
No. Yes. I don’t know. She knew she had only seconds before he took her hesitation as a rejection, and he would put distance between them. But she couldn’t form a sentence to save her life. So she did the one thing her body screamed for, and turned to press her lips to his.
It was like dropping a match onto bone-dry kindling, igniting a need so urgent it stole her breath. Like the past two days had been two years, both of them lost in a desert. Alone and apart. He yanked her flush against him so swiftly she gasped, and he took advantage of her parted lips. Thrusting his talented tongue inside her mouth, he kissed her with devastating possession, and all she could do was hang on.
He threaded a hand into her hair, gripping it so he could angle her the way he wanted. She slid her hands up his biceps, greedy fingers caressing the hard muscles that strained against his sleeves. His hair was thick and soft, and she knotted her hands in it as she melted against him.
His tongue tangled with hers, exploring her mouth with erotic flicks that she knew he would mimic on other parts of her body. That thought made her thighs clench against the liquid heat pooling between her legs.