His name broke through her ire.
Kira pivoted to him. Her eyes widened. Oh, no!Oh. Hell!
“Nik tracked him,” Týr said, his gaze gliding over her face in a caress. “But he’s one slippery lad. He ducked Nik before he caught him and vanished. We will find him, Kira.”
All she could do was nod. And stare. Thoughts of apologizing for getting mad at him vaporized like mist.
His hair. His beautiful, wheat-blond hair had slashes of striking crimson streaked through the strands. Crap! She was in so much trouble.
Thathad never happened before.
Then it hit her. She’dtouchedhim during her fit of temper. But then no one pushed her buttons like he did. And as nervous as she was, a smile started. Hastily, she bit her lower lip, struggling not to give in to temptation.
A frown creased his brow. “What?”
With a quick shake of her head, she shoved her fidgety hands into her jeans’ pockets. “Er, nothing. I should go have my coffee.”
Those assessing eyes narrowed in suspicion. “You’re up to something.”
“Me?” she asked innocently, walking backward, her gaze flickering to his hair.
Týr reached up to touch some strands. Darn, he must have noticed her glances. Now it was imperative that she put distance between them. Fast. “I’m real thirsty is all—”
He dematerialized. Dammit, Kira grimaced. With her escape to the house cut off, she contemplated hiding in the forest. Two heartbeats later, the front door opened, and he stalked out—nope, he didn’t walk. He stalked. Yeah. He knew.
Man, with each prowling step he took closer to her, her tummy knotted further.
Hurriedly, she stepped back. With no idea what to make of his silence and unreadable features, she blurted, “Týr, look—”
“You think this is funny?”
“It wasn’t deliberate,” she protested. “I didn’t know that would happen. Honest.”
“Then remove it.”
She bit her lip. Even with red-streaked hair, he was so damn alluring. And that stare. She wanted to kiss him.
Dammit, Kira, concentrate. “Okay, okay—fine.” She shut her eyes and focused hard.Please, please, God, let the color be gone.
She peered through one slit eyelid. Crap, still there. “It won’t go away,” she moaned.
A low growl erupted. She pivoted and ran.
* * *
More amused than annoyed, Týr went after the little she-devil. It felt damn good to have the upper hand with her. Somehow, she always blindsided him with the things she did or said, with a smile he wanted to own.
He could have flashed and caught her, but the chase was exhilarating. Before she rushed headlong onto the lake and skidded into trouble, he leaped through the air and took her down into the soft snow.
The breath whooshed out of her, her hair spilling like a reddish, corkscrew halo around her head. His heart thudded in his chest looking into those shiny, hazel-green eyes. This woman was his. Now to show her what she meant to him—
“Dammit! Your back.”
“I’m fine. I checked it this morning. Scabs formed over the slashes.”
Still, he rested on his elbows, keeping his weight off her torso. Then, stunning all hell out of him, she brushed back his hair. “I’m so sorry. I really am.”
“You laughed.”
