“Ryan has to somehow explain the impossible to her, Trip.We leave it with him.We can’t do shit until he manages to tell her what we are to her.Hell, it goes deeper than that.She has to learn about Shifters and everything.”
“You think I don’t know that?”It was Trip’s turn to throw that back at Marc.“I just… I can’t believe we’ve found her.”
“I know.It’s insane.But let’s not rush things.We need to take them slowly so as not to freak her the hell out.”
Trip scrubbed a hand over his face.“I want to meet her,” he whispered into the receiver.
“We both do.This is…” Marc’s blown out breath shot down the line.“We’ve been waiting a long time for this moment.But patience will set us well.Look, we arranged for the jet to take off two days from now, but in light of this, I want to be there.I’ll make arrangements to fly out as soon as I can get the crew out of standby.”
Trip gulped and nodded, then realizing his Triad brother couldn’t see him, croakily said, “Yeah.That’s probably for the best.”
“Stay out of their way,” Marc advised.“You’ll only want to meddle.”
“I know you’re right.”
“Yeah?That’s a first.”Marc snorted.“I’ll speak to you when I’m back in LA.”
“Sure.Safe flight.”He cut the call and stared down at the monitor.
Temptation.He’d experienced it several times in his lifetime, but never this strongly.Never with such an intensity that it overtook everything.
Knowing it was for the best, he switched off the monitor recording his mate and other Triad brother.Though it killed him, he forced himself to focus on the numbers and dates in front of him.As always, he found a kind of peace when he worked and he used that to get through the agony that was waiting to be able to get near the one woman who would complete them.
Who would set them free.
The handunder her elbow wasn’t overzealous in its grip.
And if anyone knew what an overzealous grip was, El did.She’d been roughhoused more times than she could count thanks to her security hauling her around the place like she was a bag of potatoes.Bruises, even cuts sometimes.Being safe came at a price.
She’d been through hostage negotiation training sessions, spoken with the police countless times and dealt with hundreds of agents in the process of living her life… she could defend herself with her fists, knew how to use a knife effectively, was trained to wield guns, and knew the very depths of depravity a person would sink to all to get their hands on her family’s money.
And yet, in the many things she’d seen in her thirty-one years, of the many things she’d learned in all that time, nothing compared to what she’d just witnessed.
It was why she was allowing the man she’d met less than twenty minutes ago to guide her out of his restaurant and to his car.
Her security approached her before she could even hit the doors.To her lead man, McNamara, she said, “It’s okay.”
He shook his head.“You know the score, Maryellen.”
It always pissed her off when he wouldn’t use her nickname.“Give me a moment,” she ordered them.“We won’t try to leave.”
McNamara eyed her warily, but she knew he’d trust in her track record.Unlike her brothers, she’d never once tried to cut out on her protection.They’d run off from home several times, evading their guards to go to stupid frat parties.That had never been El’s style.
She was too boring for that.
Sighing at the fact she was so predictable, her security found no issue in stepping away as she’d requested.She turned to Ryan with apology written into her expression.“They have to scan anywhere I visit.”
“Okay,” he replied softly, his smile gentle as he lifted a hand and cupped her cheek.
The move was tender, intimate.Not one that reflected the short space of time they’d known one another.She was a fool, she knew it, but El let her chin tip into his hand so that he could better caress her cheek.
His thumb moved, swiping along her cheekbone before angling down to tap the corner of her lips.“We can travel in your vehicle, and they can go into the house before we do.”
“Y-You don’t mind?”
“Why should I?I’m breaking all kinds of protocol by doing this… I haven’t even fed you yet.”
She bit her lip.“S-Should we stay?”
