She took a deep breath and looked him in the eye, not moving. “I promise.”
Something inside him, deep and unfathomable, relaxed. “Good. Thank you.”
“Anything else?” Her voice was just flippant enough to speed up his heart rate.
“Aye. Promise you’ll learn how to heal yourself and that you’ll see the queen when she returns. Just to make sure everything is okay with you.” It wasn’t too much to ask.
She nodded. “I already have an appointment scheduled. No worries there.” She covered a yawn with her hand. “I can’t understand how you’re so casual about dying.”
“I’m not.” He pushed off the wall. “We’re going to do everything we can to keep from dying, but the odds are great. When you’re a soldier, especially one of the Seven, you weigh the risks against the possible rewards, and the rewards are worth it in this case. But I want you to be prepared.” There was a great distance between them, and it was his fault. He could’ve spent time getting to know her, but he hadn’t wanted to hamper her progress or muddy his path. Sometimes, life was what it needed to be. “Okay?”
“Sure.” She didn’t sound sure. “I really don’t want you to die.” She looked down at her knees as she said the words.
His heart took the hit. “I don’t want to die, either. Benny and I are good at our jobs, and we work well together.” The fact that Ben was nuts helped in battle, actually. There wasn’t a door he wouldn’t crash through. “One more thing.” Adare moved to the desk and took out a black photo album he spent too much time looking at when nobody else was around to judge him. Or give him a hard time about it. Some things defied logic.
“What’s that?” she asked.
He moved to sit by her on the bed, and his weight caused her to fall his way. She laughed and planted a hand on his thigh to keep from leaning. Lust, hot and brutal, rushed up his thigh to his groin. He laid the book on her lap and opened the cover. “Your sister sent this to me and sometimes she sends more pictures to update it.”
She frowned at the first photograph. “I took that shot of her when she graduated from medical school. Long before we knew of this weird immortal world.” Grace looked sideways at him. “Why do you have this album?”
He lifted a shoulder and turned the page.
Grace looked down and smiled. “This was last year at Christmas. See how happy she is?”
How was it possible Grace didn’t see her skill? Her enhancement? “Compare the two pictures,” he said quietly.
She pursed her lips and frowned. “Okay.” Then she flipped back and forth, looking at the two pictures. “Well, she’s older in this one, but she looks happy in both.”
“Go deeper, Grace.”
She stiffened. “I don’t know what you mean.”
“You know exactly what I mean. Stop hiding from who you are or thinking you’re crazy.” He planted a hand on her thigh. “We like crazy around here. You know how much everyone adores Benny.”
Her laugh was small and unwilling, but then she nodded. “Okay. I see your point, and I can also see the differences in the pictures. My sister looks different with the passage of time.”
Stubborn female. He grasped her chin between his thumb and forefinger, careful not to cause a bruise, and turned her head to face him. She was unique and special, and she had to know that fact before he died. “You have the ability to capture who people really are, and it’s right there in front of you. You know it, you feel it, and it’s time you owned it.”
Her small nostrils flared. “You’re saying I capture the soul. Through my camera.”
A soul? It wasn’t how he’d put it, but okay. “I’m just saying that you’re the only person in the world who could’ve captured that essence of your sister, and deep down, you know it. Soul, essence, being…whatever. It’s a gift, Grace. One you could really hone if you wanted. You look past the shield to who people are, and you use a camera to do it, but probably don’t need the device.” She surprised and impressed him, and both were nearly impossible to do after his centuries upon centuries of living.
He saw the instant she decided to withdraw rather than deal with the situation.
“Okay.” She shut the book. “I’m ready for bed now.”
He wasn’t sure whether it was her stubbornness or her softness, but he tightened his hold on her chin and leaned in. Her eyes widened.
His true nature took over, full force, and his mouth covered hers.
* * * *
The intensity of his kiss pushed her back on the bed, and she clamped her hands on his T-shirt, pulling him down with her. With a slight whisper, the photo album slid harmlessly to the floor.
Adare growled, low and deep, the vibrations resonating down her throat to zing around her chest, tweak her nipples, then head directly south to land below her abdomen. He kissed her with a gentle but insistent strength, his tongue sweeping inside, and his lips curving over hers, possessive and demanding at the same time.
He dug both hands into her hair, holding her in place on the bed, partially rolling over her and landing on one knee, crouched above her and working her mouth as if he’d been starving for a taste.
