Page 25 of Bearing Secrets
“We should be okay,” Kirell assured her. “This is neutral territory.”
Neutral territory? What the hell have I gotten involved in?“So why are they staring at us like we would make a delicious snack?”
“I’m not entirely sure.”
He wasn’t telling the truth. Her ears couldn’t tell if it was an outright lie, or that he had a suspicion but didn’t know for sure; either way, she was sure Kirell knew more than he was letting on.
“What exactly should we do, then? I’m not overly fond of getting between you four.”
“Just keep dancing.” Putting action to words, he twirled her gently. “I’m not the only member of my House present tonight. Things should be just fine.”
“Should be?” she squeaked. “That doesn’t sound very positive. Are things normally not?”
Kirell’s face darkened. “In the past it would have been perfectly fine, but things have changed lately. I’m not sure what to expect.”
The storm of emotions associated with what he’d just said threatened to overwhelm Natalia. Until now, Kirell had been mostly calm and always collected. With the two sentences he’d just spoken, however, she’d been nearly washed away by the torrent of feelings he showed.
Kirell must have recognized it too, because his face cleared up immediately, replaced by the immobile mask she saw most often.
“Should we leave?”
“No,” he said forcefully. “I’m not letting those mutts see any weakness.”
Mutts? What the hell is he talking about?She was starting to notice that when Kirell got distracted or let his emotions shine through, he started talking weird. Like earlier, he’d said he wasn’t the only memberof his Housein attendance at Leblanc.
Something weird was going on and Natalia was having a hard time deciding if she was comfortable with continuing or not. There were too many unanswered questions and unexplained occurrences for what was supposed to be a simple transaction between the two of them.
“Uh, okay.”
So—she just kept dancing. The song finished and another one started. Two more went by before she saw that the men had finally left their post. A casual glance around the room didn’t show them anywhere.
Thus, she wasn’t surprised at all when Kirell stepped back from her as the current song ended; he gave a little bow. Surprised, she managed an awkward curtsy before letting herself be led from the floor.
So formal.
“I guess now is as good a time as any to leave.” He glanced over at her. “I apologize for cutting short the dancing.”
“Short? I had a great time. Thank you. I haven’t danced like that in a long time.”
They collected their jackets and left. On the way out, she saw Kirell exchanging friendly nods with several other males, all of whom had a similar look to himself. They were tall with muscled bulk filling out their suit jackets. They could have been cousins; they looked similar enough.
“Members of your House?” she asked, putting an emphasis on the last word. She wasn’t sure why, but it felt right to pronounce it that way.
“Yes.” He didn’t elaborate.
They made it to the car without trouble. Forgetting that Kirell was big on chivalry, she went for the door herself, only to find him doing the same. She tried to step to the side to allow him to open the door, but her foot caught on her dress. Pulling it would probably have ripped the dress, and she hesitated.
It was the hesitation that was her downfall, because momentum kept moving her upper body, and in the blink of an eye she was unbalanced. The pavement came toward her swiftly. Bracing herself for the impact, Natalia winced, sticking her hands out, but something stopped her short.
Opening her eyes, she found one of Kirell’s arms wrapped around her waist as he held her above the ground. He was bent over her, his face mere inches from her own. She gasped at the proximity.
“Thank you.” She was nearly breathless, shocked at his reaction. And at his closeness.
Her eyes were watching his, while his watched hers. A burst of adrenaline raced through her as she realized he was drifting closer. They were going to kiss, she could feel it. It was one ofthosemoments.
Then, just like that, his mouth was there, covering hers. His warm lips pressed against her, and she responded, arching slightly into him, kissing back.
It was crazy! She barely knew him or anything about him, yet here she was, being held a foot off the ground with one arm locking lips with a man she’d met at a club the night before. That was most certainly not her style, but it didn’t matter. Kirell was blasting aside her defenses, the heat of his touch melting her walls down even as it warmed her against the slight evening chill.
