About the lifemate business. I’m quite willing to hand over your soul and leave it at that.
It had to be said. He needed to realize that she had no intention of becoming his wife. Again, he gave her the faintest of smiles in his mind. No expression showed on his hard features. A glint of shine appeared in his obsidian eyes as if that rock were highly polished.
You have no idea how it works?
She didn’t. Not really. She should have learned as much as she could, but she’d swept the knowledge that somewhere out in the world was a man who had a claim on her far from her mind. Again, she lifted her chin.I had other, more important things to worry about. As long as I kept you safe, that was what mattered. No one, demon, vampire or Lilith, was going to take your soul from me. I knew it would be intact when you came to claim it.
Those unblinking eyes stayed fixed on hers.You have half of a soul. I have the other half. It is one soul, not two.
Exactly. Tell me how to return it to you and we’ll be golden.
He knew things she didn’t. She should be rude, the way he was, and examine his memories. She might learn what was hidden from her. She had the feeling pieces of the puzzle were missing and she desperately needed them.
“We’ll leave you two to get acquainted,” Nicu said, rising. He made a small courteous bow toward Fenja. “Thank you for allowing us into your home. And once again, Silke, we appreciate your removing the demons.”
Tora waited for the four Carpathian hunters to get to the door before she spoke. “No one has given an explanation for not simply coming to us and introducing yourselves.” It was a challenge. She leveled her gaze at Benedek when she made the statement.
The triplets exchanged a brief look, shot Benedek a quick grin and sauntered out. Nicu shook his head. “Would love to stay and help you, but I think you’ve got this.” He followed the triplets.
I am going to follow them and see what they’re up to, Tora said. Aloud she added, “I have an appointment. Will catch up with you later.” Lifting a hand, she went out the door.
Benedek didn’t seem in the least intimidated by the two women. If anything, he looked more comfortable than Silke felt. He was a big man. All muscle. It was the quiet way he held himself. Watchful. Observing everything. Missing nothing. She was certain if she asked him to close his eyes and describe the room, he could do so in perfect detail.
It was Fenja who broke the silence. “You didn’t introduce yourself to my daughter on your arrival?” Her voice was soft. No reprimand. No judgment. Just a willingness to listen to his explanation.
Benedek inclined his head respectfully. “With the exception of Mataias, we were compromised, ma’am. We were fighting inclinations we hadn’t felt in centuries. We know a war is coming, and to win it, we must be here for all of you to have a chance.”
He ignored the slight shake of Silke’s head and the way she shifted her body uncomfortably in the chair, but she knew he took in the signs of dissension.
“On the other hand, because we had been compromised and a dark temptation was on us all with the exception of Mataias, we deemed it better to stay away from the village until we knew we had driven out the parasites causing the compulsive urges.”
Silke couldn’t take her eyes off him. He was…extraordinary. She could see the warrior in him. The predator. The killer. He was definitely top of the food chain. This was a dangerous man, and Fenja and she were trapped inside a home with him. She had always been the one in authority, even when she was very young. She’d been born with the knowledge of her ancestors imprinted on her. She also was very aware she was extremely intelligent and her mind solved puzzles at a rapid rate. Silke was determined to be honest with herself. Did she reject the relationship with him because she knew he would always be the leader? It would never be a true partnership.
And then there was the romance. She was physically attracted to him. Who wouldn’t be? A woman would have to be dead not to want to be with him. It wasn’t that he was gorgeous in the sense of handsome. He had too many angles and planes, a little too much ice and stone in his eyes and too much cruelty around his mouth.
He had scars, one particularly intriguing one that wrapped around his throat as if, in the past, his throat had been cut. She couldn’t imagine anyone getting that close to do that much damage. The scars only enhanced his dangerous looks. Just looking at him brought every nerve ending in her body alive.
Silke didn’t trust her physical reaction to him. It was out of character for her. She was never going to be the kind of woman who would hold his attention. Not ever. She didn’t know the first thing about men in that sense. Even if she tried to please him, she had no doubt that throughout his long life, he’d had many women who were excellent lovers. There would always be a comparison.
She threaded her fingers together and placed her hands carefully in her lap to keep from giving away the fact that she was trembling. She wanted a home and family. Children. She’d come to that realization and even confessed it to Fenja. Now she knew it was an empty dream. This man was supposed to be her fate. Her destiny. A walking legend among his people. He was supposed to be her husband, the father of her children. Fate had played a very ugly joke on her. Sheknew if she missed this chance, she would never have another one, and she would have to pass on him. She didn’t have a choice.
She was too young for him, and that wasn’t because of age. It was because she would never catch up to him. She knew herself. She would knock herself out to take care of him. To give him everything he needed. She’d be in the exact same position she’d been in all her life. But there would never be safety. She’d always be lonely, but it would be worse because he would be there but not. It was far better for her sanity and peace of mind to stay to herself.
She glanced at her mother. Fenja had precognition, whether she wanted to admit it or not. She knew. It was there on her face when she looked from Benedek to Silke. If she wanted grandchildren, the man sitting across from them, looking like a lethal weapon, was her only hope.
“I understand why you wouldn’t want to be around the villagers, but why would you come unseen to our home and then follow Silke to the Bootsma home?” Fenja persisted in that same nonjudgmental tone.
Silke knew that tone and found herself nearly smiling despite the circumstances. She’d heard it a million times. Fenja would persist until she got an answer. She would be kind and sweet, but she would get her answer.
Benedek didn’t seem to be in the least uncomfortable. He didn’t even bristle at having the older woman question him.
“I’m not a trusting man.” He made it a statement. “I have lived centuries, and in that time, I have known betrayal often. I wanted to see the woman fated to be with me.”
“As you can see, she is beautiful.” Fenja gestured toward her daughter. If she was disappointed in Benedek’s answer, Silke couldn’t hear it in her tone, but she saw it on her mother’s face.
Color rose under Silke’s skin. She couldn’t control the blush no matter how hard she tried. At Fenja’s statement, Benedek turned his entire focus back on her. It felt like being in the hot glow of a spotlight. This time his gaze drifted slowly over her, as if committing every inch of her to memory.
“You misunderstood me,” Benedek said. “But you are right, she is indeed quite beautiful.”
