Page 76 of Under a Wicked Moon
His eyes got teary, which he hid by looking away fast. This woman turned him into a total sap at the mere thought of her happily doing things like saving worms and following will-o’-the-wisps.
Get it together.
“Nice to meet you, Vivi.” He nudged Roman with his shoulder as his brother walked by. “Nice of Roman to introduce us.”
“Vivi and I don’t think you guys should go to Namibia, not with everything else going on. Feels like a waste of time.” Nova hugged Roman.
Roman said, “We’re going to check it out. Should be a quick trip. Then we’ll deal with the incarceration facilities and FenCor.”
“Why’s it so important?” Nova asked.
Roman sighed and met Ky’s gaze. “We’re questioning our handler’s loyalty. He says he’s on our team, but after the business with Slate in London, I don’t know. This is our chance to gauge if he’s setting us up to be killed or it’s something legit.”
“We were ordered to go,” Ky added. “Means we’ll have to go atsome point.”
“Tell me there’s another easy way to know if he’s on the right side or not.” Roman closed in on Nova and snagged an arm around her waist and pulled her in for another kiss. He whispered low to her. She giggled.
“Suppose you’re right,” Nova said.
“You hear that, Ky? She said I’m right.” Roman grinned.
“Doesn’t happen often.” Nova kissed him.
“Are they always like this?” Ky asked.
Vivi rolled her eyes and nodded. “It’s disgusting. They can’t keep their hands off each other.”
He lowered his voice conspiratorially. “I’ve never seen Roman like this. Him all mushy is new. He’s usually bristly and barking orders, and all about right and wrong.”
“I think they need alone time, or we’ll be privy to some strip poker.” Vivi grinned, which made her so beautiful, he stopped breathing.
Roman called from the adjoining room, “We don’t need poker to strip, Vivi.”
“Want to help me give the fairies the crowns and chocolate?” Vivi’s deep blue eyes, so clear of trauma, sucked him in. Her eyes were mysterious, gorgeous… He could happily get lost in them.
“Come on. Best time of the day to find them is at sunset.” She loaded the crowns into a small backpack. “I’m not allowed out without someone on guard duty, which I’m not sure is for my actual security or to protect me from myself. Figure you can be my bodyguard this time. At least you won’t make me feel like I’m out of my mind talking to the will-o’-the-wisps.”
His heartbeat thrashed inside his ears. If he spent time with her, he might open up to this new, bright-eyed woman who was already beneath his skin.
But he couldn’t.
The logical side of his brain argued Nova and Roman weremaking it work. They seemed happy.
He was so screwed up in his head from his time drugged and incarcerated that he wasn’t sure exactly what he felt for her. Friendship? Fondness? Attachment? Maybe even love?
In reality, the connection they’d shared ended when she forgot her past. She didn’t remember him. She couldn’t help him with the panic attacks or the nightmares. Last thing he wanted was her pitying him for being messed up, and him being unable to explain its root cause.
Seeing her in person wasn’t about his personal issues. He’d needed to confirm she’d recovered and didn’t remember the horrors of the past. Best if she’d forgotten him, too. So it hurt to think she couldn’t remember anything of him or them? He’d done this to protect her from those who dictated his life.
…
Stop staring at his ass.
Vivi wasn’t sure what’d gotten into her, asking a relative stranger to go into the woods. Or the fact she was dying to touch him. Especially after she tripped and he caught her against his hard body. His thigh felt so strong under her touch. Solid as a rock with no cushion.
She’d wanted him to touch her, maybe kiss her. Somehow, she suspected he’d be alpha, demanding and unlike anything she could imagine. She glanced back, noticing how his fingers curled around a tree branch to pull himself up the small hill. His grip on her would be powerful. Possessive. Addictive.
But she didn’t know him. Or did she?
