Temptation's Kiss (3 page)

“Sure,” Scarlet said softly. “But love is more complicated, more mysterious, then a set of requirements to be checked off like a grocery list. The last thing I wanted was to be with a guy in the Guard. You know that. But look at me; Rowen’s the one. He just is. And nothing else seems to matter in the face of that.”

Seven

Kane steered the Rover toward the offices of the Clifton Record, Ivan next to him in the passenger seat. Kane had been surprised when the other man hadn’t pulled rank to drive. Not that Ivan was any higher up on the ladder of the Guard than Kane.

Not technically, anyway.

But he was Ambrose Montgomery’s son, and there was a certain amount of pull you had when you were the boss’s son.

“So tell me why we’re seeing this reporter again?” Ivan asked.

Kane pulled onto Broad Street, slowing as they came to the sterile glass building that held the newspaper’s offices. “Margaret O’Reilly has been one of the more persistent members of the press since Mikhail’s body was found. We need to see if she can I.D. someone Rowen and I saw coming out of the armory.”

“I take it we’ve already checked the criminal databases?”

“Yep. Turned up nothing, which just means the guy doesn’t have a record,” Kane said, taking a ticket from the parking attendant in the Record’s garage.

“What makes us think this reporter will be able to I.D. him?” Ivan asked.

“Absolutely nothing,” Kane said. “It’s a last ditch effort. If it doesn’t work, we’re going to have to hope the guy shows up again so we can case him. He’s the only unexplained connection we have to the armory.”

“And the armory’s the only connection to the glaive found in the revenant’s body,” Ivan added.

“You got it.”

Ivan nodded.

Kane stole a glance at the other man, wondering what Ivan would think if he knew Kane had been fantasizing about his little sister non-stop since that moment in her bedroom the day before. Fantasizing? Hell, that was putting it lightly. He was alternately aroused and lovesick, unable to concentrate on even the most mundane tasks, hoping he’d run into Lily in the halls of the house like some lap dog.

They parked the car and headed inside, taking the elevator to the fifth floor. The interior offices of the Record were as non-descript as the exterior of the building. They were met by the receptionist, a young brunette who led them through a sea of cubicles to one that stood in front of a glassed-in office.

The receptionist leaned toward a redhead talking on the phone, a riot of curls falling to the back of her chair.

“Here they are,” the receptionist mouthed.

The woman nodded, holding up a finger. She finished her call a moment later and stood, extending her hand. “Kane Dawson?”

Kane nodded, taking her hand.

“I’m Maggie O’Reilly,” she said, shaking Ivan’s hand. “And you are?”

“Ivan. Ivan Montgomery.”

She raised a finely arched eyebrow. “As in Ambrose Montgomery’s son?”

“That’s right.”

Kane was surprised that there was no display of ego. If anything, Ivan seemed sheepish by the admission.

“Interesting,” she said. “Let’s take a walk.”

She led them downstairs to a terrace at the back of the building where they took a seat at a metal table. There were a few other people outside, eating from brown bags, insulated lunch boxes, and take-out containers.

Maggie turned her hazel eyes on them. “So, I’m guessing you’re not here to hand-deliver a groundbreaking story that’s going to get me out of this place.” She laughed. “What can I do for you?”

“We’re working on a case,” Kane said, withdrawing the photo of the man from the armory. The plan was the same as always when dealing with any outsider; maintain their identity as members of Shadowguard Security LLC, a firm specializing in corporate security services. “We thought we might broker a trade.”

“A trade?” Surprise was evident on her face. “I’ve been trying to get an inside line on your work forever. Why the sudden interest?”

Ivan looked at Kane. “Let’s not blow sunshine up her ass.” He turned his attention back to Maggie. “We need something. You’re the only person we can think of to ask. And I’m pretty sure you’re not just going to give us something without getting something in return.”

Amusement showed in her smile. “Smart man.”

Ivan shrugged. “So you ask around, tell us if anyone knows this guy, and we’ll make you our exclusive press contact.”

“Define exclusive.”

“You get the story first with a twenty-four-hour window before it breaks to anybody else.”

She thought about it, picking the picture up off the table. “I’ll get back to you.”

She stood and left. Ivan’s eyes followed the sashay of her hips until she disappeared into the building.

“Interested?” Kane asked him.

“I don’t know,” Ivan said, turning to look at him. “You interested in my sister?”

Kane sucked in a breath. “Listen, man—”

Ivan held up a hand. “It’s cool. No need to apologize.”

Kane held his eyes. “I wasn’t going to.”

Ivan nodded. “It’s pretty simple; Lily deserves to be happy. If you hurt her, I’ll kick your ass.”

“And did you have this same little chat with Rowen Black when he started dating Scarlet?”

Ivan laughed. “I didn’t have to. Scarlet would kick Rowen’s ass herself if the situation called for it.”

Kane grinned. Maybe Ivan wasn’t such a dick after all.

Eight

Dinner was a disaster. Lily had been preoccupied all afternoon, staring out the kitchen window, thinking about Kane and everything Scarlet had said, instead of watching the food.

The result was over-salted stew, leaden rolls, and cookies that were mysteriously undercooked in the middle and slightly burnt on the outside. She must have had a lot of goodwill banked with the Guard. No one said a thing, and to their credit, they even cleaned their plates.

But it was torture to sit across the table from Kane. His presence had somehow gone from comfortable and reassuring to unsettling and distracting. She couldn’t take her eyes off his big hands as they lifted the spoon to his mouth. Couldn’t stop imagining the feel of his palms on her skin, his fingers entwined in her hair. When he took a drink of water, she wanted to lick the moisture from his lips, plunge her tongue into the cool depths of his mouth.

He caught her staring several times, causing her cheeks to flame with heat as she hurriedly looked away. But she was surprised to find that there were just as many times when she looked up to find his eyes on her.

She was shocked no one else seemed to notice. Surprised to hear the conversation going on around her like she wasn’t about to burst into flames, or drown in Kane’s blue eyes. How was it possible no one else felt the electric tug of his body to hers? The magnetic pull between them like some kind of cataclysmic force, destroying the ground that had been solid under her feet only days before.

But no. Rowen was staring into Scarlet’s eyes just like always, like they were the only two people in the world. Declan and Ivan were discussing the weight of the new glaives, Braden and Eva interjecting every now and then, while Gregor ate in silence. It was just like every other night in the house.

For everyone but Lily, anyway.

By the time dinner was over, she was more than happy to hand over cleanup duty to Sylvia, the gray-haired woman who helped with the house. Lily said goodnight and ducked out of the dining room at the first opportunity, wanting nothing more than a bath and a chance to banish Kane from her thoughts.

Back in her room, she took a deep breath. Fortified by her distance from Kane, from his muscled body and blue-sky eyes, she was determined to get her act together.

She ran a bath and stripped off her clothes, walking into the bedroom while the water steamed up the bathroom mirror. Pulling open the top drawer, she came face-to-face with the purple lace bra and silk thong from La Perla. The sight of it sent a rush of desire slamming into her body. She suddenly saw Kane, standing right where she was standing now, his body only inches from hers, his eyes bright with desire. Her bare skin was alive with need, every nerve ending buzzing with energy, and her nipples were erect, although the room was plenty warm.

It was him. Kane. Standing naked thinking about him was a million times worse than thinking about him in the dining room, fully clothed and flanked by the rest of the Guard. Her body was on fire for him, her core slick with wetness, ready for him when he wasn’t even there.

She slammed the top drawer shut and went into the bathroom, lowering herself into the water. She had a moment’s regret that she hadn’t made the water colder. Isn’t that what men did when they were too turned on for their own good? Take a cold shower?

The water caressed her skin and she closed her eyes, running her hands over her naked body, imagining that they were Kane’s hands, that his body was sliding against hers in the warm water. She touched her nipples, a jolt of arousal spinning through her body.

What was she doing? This was the last thing she needed. She opened her eyes and moved her hands away from her body. She was twenty years old, a virgin, and almost delirious with physical need. Her mind was so steeped in the fog of her desire that it took her a minute to register the dripping sound.

She followed the sound to the ceiling, where water was dripping from the plaster. No, not dripping.

Pouring.

She barely had time to register the sound of running in the hallway and distant shouting. Then someone was banging on her door.

“Lily? Are you in there?”

“I … I’m in the tub,” she called out, wondering if whoever it was could hear her over the commotion coming from the hallway. “I’ll … I’ll be right there!”

She stepped out of the water and threw on a robe. All hell was breaking loose in the hallway, which is what she was thinking about when she opened the door to Kane, the silk robe plastered to her still-wet body.

Nine

The broken pipe was on the third floor. The water had soaked through the walls of the extra bedroom before leaking into Lily’s suite of rooms. By the time they isolated the problem and shut off the main, Lily’s carpet was so soaked it squished under her bare feet when Kane went with her to pack a bag.

“I can’t believe this,” Lily said, throwing stuff into a small suitcase.

“Is there anything I can do?” Kane asked.

Take you to my room?
he thought.
Take you to my bed? Take care of you forever?

He felt like a dick thinking like that when she was being displaced because of the flood. But ever since she’d opened the door to him, her body very wet and very visible through the thin fabric of her robe, it had taken herculean effort not to pull her into his arms, slam the door, and carry her to the canopied bed, wet carpet be damned.

And the truth was, he hadn’t been able to get her out of his mind for days. Weeks, even.

But his attraction to her had reached a fever pitch in the past few days. Now, he was barely able to be in the room with her without his temperature rising. Hell, he’d been turned on all through dinner, and she’d done nothing more than sit across from him, her eyes repeatedly catching his in an almost painful dance of what he could have sworn was mutual hunger.

She smiled a little. “I just appreciate the ride to the hotel. Are you sure it’s not too much trouble?”

The Guard currently had two overnight guests—dignitaries of the Alliance—which put a dent in their extra space. With the upstairs room out of commission, Lily would either have to bunk with Eva or stay in Scarlet’s suite of rooms. Lily had rejected both ideas. She loved Eva, but the girl talked non-stop. And staying in Scarlet and Rowen’s love nest was … no. Just no.

“No trouble at all,” Kane said.

“How long do you think it’ll take to clean up?” Lily asked. She looked around the room. “Hotels are nice, but … well, there’s no place like home.”

He nodded. “I know what you mean. The cleanup crew will be here first thing in the morning. The place should be ready for you by tomorrow night.”

She sighed, summoning a smile. “Well, it’ll be an adventure, right?”

He grinned. A night in a hotel with Lily was his kind of adventure.

Too bad he wasn’t invited.

“Right. Definitely.”

She closed her suitcase. “I guess that’s it.”

He took the suitcase and the small train case that held her toiletries and they closed the door to the room. He’d parked the black Land Rover out front, and he opened the door for her on his way to the driver’s side.

The city was dark and quiet, the street lights casting a soft glow on Lily’s face as they drove toward the inn she’d requested when it became obvious she would have to find other quarters for the night. He glanced over, oddly happy just to have her next to him.

Sure, he still wanted her. But it was more than that. More than just animal lust, although there was plenty of that. It was a deep-seated sense that she belonged with him. To him. That she filled a space in his life he hadn’t realized was empty.

When they arrived at the inn, the clerk at the front desk checked them in quickly and handed Lily a key to her room.

She turned to Kane, reaching for the suitcase. “I can take that.” A lick of heat crackled to life when her fingers brushed his, and she pulled away as if burned.

He shook his head. “I’m not leaving until I know you’re safe and sound in your room.”

She smiled. “Thank you.”

They took the mahogany stairs to the third floor and headed down a hallway carpeted with exotic runners. Kane understood why Lily had chosen the place. It wasn’t unlike Shadowguard headquarters. The soft spot that had been growing in his heart widened for her further.

She liked home. She liked their Guard family, as unconventional as it was. Given the opportunity to stay in the five-star hotel downtown, she’d chosen the homey little inn instead.

“This is it,” Lily said, eyeing the brass letters marking the room. She inserted the key into the lock and pushed open the door.

Kane followed her in, smiling at her reaction when she saw the big curtained bed.