Chapter 10
Týr stood on the porch,still reeling from the sensation of Kira’s mouth on his.
That kiss…
Hell! He rubbed his face, cutting a quick look across the frozen lake where a she-wolf and pup gamboled playfully to slide across the smooth surface before bounding off into the trees.
The moon slipped out from behind the dark clouds, casting a silvery glow over the landscape. Týr jogged down the steps, his boots sinking into the soft snow, and scanned the forest surrounding the cabin.
The warning prickles abrading his psyche grew stronger. If it were the shadowy bastard from the alley tracking him, Týr hoped the fucker would show himself. As much as he would have preferred to keep Kira out of this mess, the scum had probably marked her, too.
He tramped to the backyard and moved around the generator shed, the chafing sensation disappearing as abruptly as it had appeared. All remained still once more as he made his way to the front of the cabin. A faint hint of Kira’s light fragrance drifted to him.
That damn kiss!
He glared across the icy lake, frustration and need crawling through him. Only for her to tell him to forget about it, dismissing a moment that had almost had him on his knees.
In his millennia on this realm, he’d never kissed a female. He hadn’t cared for the intimacy of looking into someone’s eyes. Any encounters in the past had always been hard and fast, always about trying to fill the deepening pit inside him. But nothing ever had. Thenhermouth touched his…just her mouth. It was as if she’d crept into his soul and released that innate light she harbored within herself into him, soothing those desolate places.
Hell, he was dangerous, and shouldn’t even be thinking about her, but only with Kira, did the endless nightmares clawing at his mind ease, and he didn’t feel like shit.
He could understand why the other warriors went gung-ho for their females, refusing to let anything stand in their way when claiming them as mate. But Kira wasn’t his to claim. No matter how much Blaéz taunted him, the Celt had no idea of the bitter truth.
His obsidian dagger, the one only his so-called destined mate could summon once she touched it, remained with him.
Týr slowed down near the edge of the frozen lake. The bitter cold didn’t bother him, and out here in the wilds, he didn’t have to pretend to blend in with humans. He scanned the area once more. But recalling those brutal slashes on her back, his gut clenched in anger.
By the damn Fates, why would she do something so reckless as to put herself in danger’s way to protect him—a warrior?
Because you can’t protect anyone. Not Jora, not Inara and her handmaidens, and certainly not the female you want,the cynical part of him mocked.
He didn’t need a fucking reminder of his damn faults!
Týr hunkered down near the lake and braced his arms on his thighs. Yeah, he’d made mistakes, and bad ones, too, but he couldn’t afford to do so with Kira. If anything happened to her…the very thought had his heartbeat faltering in terror.
He glanced over his shoulder to the cabin. Soft light backlit the windows and glowed in welcome, like her.
In his long life, he’d never met anyone who embodied sunshine. She was always smiling or laughing, with a spring in her step as if she were dancing when she moved…except for when she saw him.
Since last night, there hadn’t been a single smile—just pain and tears. Because of him.
He’d destroyed sunshine.
But that’s what he did, didn’t he?
His psychic senses stirred. A familiar shift of air, and Hedori, with several boxes and two bags, took form on the porch. Týr rose. Their butler stood there for a moment, probably checking the wards, then turned as he approached.
“I have the things you requested. The wards here are intact and strong,” the Empyrean said. “Kira?”
“She’s fine. I’ll keep her safe. Happy?” With that bark, he undoubtedly sounded like some demented idiot.
Hedori’s startled expression morphed into a bland one. “I’m certain you will.”
“Don’t start,” he muttered. He was already in a shitty enough mood.
“Wouldn’t dare do so.” A twinkle appeared in the wiseass’s orange-green eyes. With a slight incline of his head, Hedori dematerialized.
Biting back a frustrated growl, Týr piled the boxes together, tossed the bags on top, and carried everything inside. Kira got to her feet from the stone step, wearing his jacket and a towel. A vision that seared his mind—shiny spirally hair cascading down her back and those long, sexy, tan legs visible. And all he could think of was them wrapped around his hips…his head. Hell, he wanted to taste every damn inch of her, from those luscious lips always spewing shit at him to the heaven between her thighs.
