Page 30 of Blood Bearon
Rachel was taken aback by the cold fury of his words. The rest of his face betrayed no emotion, but his words were another story entirely. She could have written a novel based on how much emotion they contained. Not just his anger at Korred and she guessed others who had tried similar things, but also his dedication to his Queen, and the sheer reverence he gave…to a position.
It sounded similar to some fanatics she’d heard before talk about the men who guarded the President. The Secret Service detail were expected to be like this man—loyal to the office first, regardless of whoever sat in the chair. It was remarkable to encounter that elsewhere. Just whowerethese Ursa? How come she’d never heard of them before?
She hadn’t said anything earlier, but after looking at the map and all the possible targets that Khove had laid out, it became apparent that House Ursa, whoever they were, owned roughly a third of Plymouth Falls. It was unbelievable, to say the least. There had been nearly two dozen marks on the map, between the ones already hit and the remaining “large” businesses. Whatelsedid they own?
It was likely any inquiries into them would be shut down, given the pull they seemed to have in town. The ease with which they’d convinced Sheriff Dottner to assign a civilian to help her—no matter how highly trained—was probably an indication that she’d politely but firmly be told to cease her investigation into their business.
“Are there a lot of people like K-Korred?” she asked, her teeth chattering at the last word.
Khove shifted. “You’re cold,” he remarked.
She decided to let his avoidance of the question go. For now. “Itisthe d-dead of winter out here,” she said, unable to hold back another shiver. “Despite your seeming indifference,” she said, indicating his lack of blankets and layers compared to hers.
“I generate enough heat,” he rumbled, eyes flicking between her and the screen, ensuring nothing was missed while she was glaring up at him. “I don’t need it.”
“Must be nice,” she muttered, returning her gaze to the screen.
A moment later, a large arm dropped over her as Khove came closer, into her personal space. Rachel was about to protest when heat came flooding into her, banishing the cold as she tucked in close to his side. It was amazing. He seemed to be surrounded by his own personal heat bubble.
“You weren’t kidding!” she exclaimed quietly. “You’re sowarm!”
Khove nodded and she felt his entire body move under her.Underher. Rachel stiffened, suddenly very acutely aware of their proximity. She was practically resting on his chest now, the impossibly broad, powerfully-muscled chest…
It reminded her of their other recent closeness, the way their hands had seemed to find each other’s on the planning table a few hours earlier. And—as always when she entered into his personal space—with that proximity came a sense of calm and peace. Safety, like tranquility, was dangerous in its relaxing nature. She had to blink several times, forcing herself back to high alert.
Who is this guy? How was it that he made her feel so at ease?
Another burst of wind blew straight across the roof at them, and despite the arm around her shoulder, Rachel found herself shivering again. She tightened as Khove moved next to her unexpectedly.
“Relax,” he said, the words coming unexpectedly close to her right ear.
With a casual ease that she knew shouldn’t be possible for even the strongest of people, Khove slipped an arm between her back and the wall and under her curled up legs, and casually lifted her up and put her in front of him.
She froze, unsure of what to do as his bent legs formed walls to the sides, and his arms came around to hold her back to his chest.
Sapphire-blue eyes went wide. If beforehand she’d felt warmth, now there was ablastof heat that beat back the windchill with ease. Rachel gasped despite her best efforts. The man was a bloody walkingfurnace! How was any of this possible? More importantly, why was shelettingit happen?
“Khove.” Her voice was tiny.
“Shhh.”
Rachel frowned. Nobodyshushedher! Not even this fiery colossus. She opened her mouth to give him a piece of her mind, but a giant hand clamped over her lips.
“Shh,” he repeated, and the other meaty hand lifted, a single finger pointing straight ahead.
At the screen.
Rachel stopped moving instantly, watching closely as her eyes picked up the red blobs creeping out of the forest on the back side. They had done it. They had picked right, this was the target.
Reaching up, she grabbed his hand and pulled it away from her mouth, too busy to focus on the screen to remember to let go of it once her mouth was free.
It was time to do her job.
16
Watching regretfully as Rachel extricated herself from his grip, Khove cursed the attackers for their poor timing. His brain was still trying to process why he was frustrated at that when another thought went through him.
The shapes on the screen were generating heat signatures. Fae were creatures of magic, beings from another plane. They would show up on video, or on motion detectors, but they didnotgenerate any heat. Silently, he rose up into a crouch and peered over the wall. His sharp eyesight almost instantly picked up the trio of humans.
