Page 40 of Twilight Longings

And then his eyes narrowed. Dammit, he’d hurt her feelings when he would have bet Morgan Creek and everything he owned that she didn’t have any. “I’m sorry,” he said, with a sigh. “But I can’t do it. Do your worst. Destroy me if you have to. But Kadie is my wife. I can’t betray her, not for you or anyone else.”

Eleni turned her back on him, her hands fisted at her sides. Her power moved through the room like a tornado, breaking the lamps and the TV, shredding the curtains,crushing the coffee table. But it didn’t strike Saintcrow. “Go on,” she said. “Get out.”

“What about Kadie? You won’t …?”

“Get out!” She screamed the words at him, her fury shattering the mirror over the fireplace and everything else that hadn’t already been destroyed.

He wisely left the hotel before she changed her mind, but not before he checked Kadie’s room to make sure the wards he had set earlier were still strong and in place. They might not keep Eleni out, but they would warn him if she tried to cross them.

Chapter Twenty-Five

Luca Sasan strolled through the plaza, his expression pensive. He was a necromancer, the most powerful in the land. Why was he wasting his time pretending to be a bartender? Sure, he had a nice house, a female he kept to satisfy his lust and clean up the place from time to time. But there was no excitement in his life. He was getting soft, lazy, spending his time watching insipid movies when he should be practicing his magic, concocting new spells, hunting the two vampires who had put him through hell. Not to mention seeking revenge on the one who had killed his beloved Katya.

Katya. Chanting softly, he summoned her image and she stood before him, a ghostly figure with golden hair. She held out her arms, her brown eyes filled with pain and a plea for help as a vampire drained the life from her body.

Blinking the tears from his eyes, Luca returned home and went down to the basement where he worked his magic. He chanted the words to summon Kincaid’s whereabouts, cursed long and loud as he realized the vampire must still be wearing the witch’s talisman that blocked his magic, preventing him from finding Katya’s murderer.

But there were other ways, other spells, and he wouldn’t give up until he found the right one. It was time to start acting like the powerful wizard he was. Time to quit that stupid bartending job and do what he’d been born to do.

“Be patient, Katya, my angel,” he murmured. “He will yet pay for his treachery.”

Chapter Twenty-Six

Kadie sat by the window, staring out into the night. She searched her mind, hoping to find some trace of her past but it was like staring at a blank wall. Her only memory was of waking up in a strange room with a strange man to learn that she had been stricken by some rare virus. At least, that’s what he’d said.

Of course, he could tell her anything he wanted and she wouldn’t know if it was the truth or a lie. He’d said they were friends. The idea of being friends with such an intimidating man was intriguing and frightening at the same time. He oozed sex appeal and testosterone. He didn’t seem like the kind of man to have a woman for a friend unless it included extra benefits.

She shivered at the thought. Had she been his mistress? That would explain his concern for her well-being, why he was willing to put her up in an expensive hotel, buy her a costly new wardrobe.

Kadie shook her head, refusing to believe she would ever have agreed to be any man’s mistress. She wasn’t that kind of woman. Or was she? How was she to know?

Feeling suddenly exhausted, she went into the bedroom and changed into her beautiful new nightgown, brushed her teeth, and slipped into bed.

She lay there a long time, staring at the ceiling. What if her memory never came back?

What if she was better off not knowing who she was? What kind of person had she been?

Kind? Selfish? Had people liked her? Or despised her? Did she really want to know?

Overcome with worries and fears of an unremembered past and an uncertain future, she rolled onto her side and closed her eyes. Rylan Saintcrow’s image flashed across her mind as sleep carried her away.

Saintcrow materialized beside Kadie’s bed. His gaze caressed her. She was so beautiful. He knew every sweet curve, every secret hollow. How many times had they made love over the years, each time better than the last?

Unable to resist, he let his mind touch hers. In her dream, she was standing on a deserted beach, taking photos of a glorious sunset. It was all too easy to slip into her dreams …

Kadie smiled uncertainly as a man came up beside her. A man who looked remarkably familiar.

“Beautiful night,” he said. “Do you come here often?”

“Yes.” She smiled. “I love to photograph the sunsets. Isn’t it amazing that no two are ever the same?”

“Indeed. Is photography a hobby?”

“Sometimes. But this shoot is for an outdoor magazine.” His eyes were inky black, filled with dark fire, and she felt the heat of his gaze caress her as he moved closer. She didn’t think she had ever met him and yet she had the strangest feeling that she knew him, had always known him.

She didn’t object when he took the camera from her hand and set it on the blanket at her feet. Nor did she protest when he reached for her. Instead, she moved into his embrace,her eyelids fluttering down when he lowered his head to claim her lips with his as the fire in his eyes flowed through her. Somehow, they were lying on the blanket, their bodies entwined. He murmured that he loved her, would always love her.

“Remember me,” he whispered fervently. “Please, Kadie, remember me.”

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