Shadow's End (Elder Races, #9)(33)

“Don’t misunderstand, I’m not ashamed to be with you,” he said against her lips. “If our lives were even marginally different, I would shout about this from the rooftops. But as things stand, I’m not sure Charleston would be the best idea. If word got out, frankly, I believe the world would put a great deal of pressure on us to stop seeing each other, and I don’t ever want to give you the slightest reason to turn me away.”

“No, I could never be ashamed of being with you either.” She stroked his rough face as her mind raced over options. “And you’re right. While Calondir might have no interest in the fact that I may be sleeping with someone else, he would hate to know that I had developed a liaison with one of Dragos’s sentinels, let alone . . . oh lord and lady, let alone how everybody else would react. Perhaps I could buy property a short distance outside the city, a small house with enough of a garden so that you could land or launch in privacy.”

His gaze seemed to turn inward. “I might be able to live with that,” he murmured. “This might give us a solution that we can both live with.”

The way he had phrased that first sentence seemed odd. Her brows drew together, but before she could puzzle at it too deeply, he kissed her again, slanting his mouth over hers and driving deep into her mouth with a rapidly escalating hunger.

His kiss was so scorching, it burned away coherent thought. Clinging to his shoulders, she kissed him back wildly, causing him to growl low in his throat. Instead of cradling her head, he gripped her neck, a gesture so possessive, it thrilled through her.

He pulled away just far enough so that he could talk, nose to nose with her and staring deep into her eyes with a fierceness that set her heart to pounding. “I don’t want to wait to see you again. You’ll be in London at least for the next couple of days, correct?”

She nodded, as much as his hold would let her. “I have engagements for at least the next week,” she told him unsteadily. “When we return to London, I’ll look at my commitments and cancel everything I possibly can.”

“I will, too. And as soon as you return to South Carolina, you’ll begin looking for that house.”

“Absolutely.”

“I’ll pay for the house.”

“Thank you, but there’s no need.”

He frowned. “I don’t like for you to assume all the financial burden.”

“It won’t be a hardship,” she assured him. As he continued to frown, she stroked his hair with a smile. Gentle though he might be with her, he did have his share of masculine pride. She promised, “I’ll start searching the day I return. With any luck, I’ll find something suitable very soon.”

Dismissing the subject of finances, his face creased with an answering smile, and he kissed her forehead. “I can arrange things so that I get at least a couple of days together, every month. We can plan for that. It will be difficult to wait, but as long as I know that I will be able to see you, I can manage.”

The sweetness returned, spreading through her limbs. It felt remarkably like joy. She breathed, “Think of it—we’ll see each other every month. That sounds almost too good to be true.”

“Well, it’s far from perfect, and realistically, my life as a sentinel can get unpredictable. There will probably be times when I can’t make it, and I won’t be able to notify you. If I sent you a letter or a note, it would take weeks to reach you.” His mouth twisted wryly.

“I don’t care.” She laughed under her breath. “That’s not true. I do care, but I understand, I promise. No doubt sometimes I’m going to feel horribly disappointed when you don’t show up as planned. But right now, I’m just so happy I don’t know what to do with myself.”

“I know how you feel. I feel the same way, and believe me, I’ll do everything in my power to make it happen—” He broke off abruptly. As he looked around, his expression changed.

Suddenly he appeared so different, his features hard and edged, and completely unlike the tender man who had smiled down at her a moment ago. This time, when her heart started to pound, it wasn’t in delight but in alarm.

“What is it?” She looked around the clearing as well.

As they had talked, the light had grown much brighter, and dawn had arrived in earnest. The rose-gold color caught on the dark bare branches of the trees surrounding them.

“I don’t know. I could have sworn something brushed past us, but I don’t scent any other creature. I don’t hear anything either.” Releasing her, he prowled around the edge of the clearing, sharp-eyed and cat-footed. “Do you sense anything?”

Frowning, she pivoted in a circle, searching the scene as he had.

Everything appeared as it should. Their things lay scattered where they had left them—her cloak, his coat that they had used for a bed, and both their swords lay beside the log they had used as a seat. She cast her awareness into the woods, but the only creatures she sensed were small, furry animals, tucked deep into winter nests.

Just when she had convinced herself they were alone, something invisible brushed past her cheek, carrying with it a sense of ill will.

A figure solidified in front of her. It took on the appearance of a handsome man, with a face like an angel, with golden hair and eyes that shone like sparkling diamonds, but the appearance was a lie. He was no physical man, but a Djinn.