A little guilt made her hesitate. Jeremy had always been in the background. He hadn’t approached her before now on a personal level. Is he the stalker?
The nervousness and fear beginning to churn in her gut now put the idea more firmly in her mind. If Jeremy did have something bad planned, maybe he’d back off if she mentioned Alex’s profession.
“What is his Aelfir ability?” Jeremy took another step closer. His eyes locked on her.
“Alex is a Hunter, a Protector, but his family has ties to both gem and metal abilities.” Chelsea shrugged. His abilities as an Aelfir had never mattered to her. The connection between them held much more value than matching talents.
“He’s not even an earth or plant Aelfir. You have nothing in common.” Jeremy’s eyes narrowed.
“What we have in common is more than Aelfir abilities. It’s values, interests and desires for the future.” She smiled. Plus attraction and the love. Their ability was part of them, but if their personalities clashed, a marriage based on similar talents would still end horribly.
His fist hit the side of the planting table. “Earth Aelfir stay with Earth Aelfir.”
She jumped and stared at him wide-eyed. It suddenly occurred to her that Joy hadn’t planned to meet with her. She hadn’t sent that message.
Where had everyone else gone? Madness glowed in Jeremy’s eyes. Her eyes darted around searching someone, anyone, to keep him at bay. She needed a buffer between her and this man.
Her mouth dried. Fear ratcheted to a higher level. She eased around the end of the table. A barrier. She had to get something solid separating them to keep him at distance.
Some Aelfir believed that each particular type of Aelfir should stay with their ability set. Alden Glen was the last place she expected to find that type of radical belief. That type of hate hadn’t touched this city in hundreds of years.
Chelsea didn’t understand it. People had been intermarrying for centuries. It had no effect on the ability strength as the people with extreme beliefs thought.
She held up her hands. “Calm down, Jeremy. Let’s talk about this.”
“There’s nothing to talk about. I warned you to stay away from him.” Jeremy’s hand swept his hand out and knocked flowers from the table.
Her eyes locked on the plants on the ground for a moment, but her gaze cut back to the crazy man when she saw movement. A nagging tingle within her pulled her toward the injured plants. The call to heal them almost turned her attention from the man in front of her.
The danger kept her focused in the moment and on Jeremy. He hadn’t ever been anything other than a coworker to her. She’d never have guessed he was freaking insane. How the hell could she stop him from unleashing that anger on her?
“I didn’t know who sent them though.” She slid her foot back, not wanting to trip on any hoses or tools.
His hand closed around a pot containing a flower. He lifted it off the table. Her eyes locked that pot.
His hand tightened. The pot cracked. Soil trickled to the ground. He glared at her and took an aggressive step forward. Fear tightened her throat. She swallowed hard. She jumped back so he couldn’t grab her. He’s going to kill me.
“You have so many men in your life that you don’t know who’s sending you notes?” His hand drew back and threw the pot at the last word.
She didn’t have time to dodge. She was much too close to him. The pot slammed into her head. Bright light flashed in front of her eyes. Dizziness swamped her. She stumbled to the side, hitting the table laden with potted plants.
The edge of the table dug into her knee. Pain lanced up her leg. She lost her balance and tumbled to the ground. Her flailing arm struck a few plants. They fell off, landing on the concrete beside her.
A dark shape moved above her. The disorientation and blurred vision raised her anxiety and terror. Her hands lifted to protect her head. Something hit her arms, knocking them to the side. She rolled, but a hand on her shoulder shoved her to her back.
“No, Jeremy!” She lifted her hands shoving at the man looming over her.
“You should have heeded my warning,” Jeremy rasped the threat. He straddled her, pinning her to the floor.
Those words came a moment before his weight shifted. A blow struck her cheek, snapping her head to the side. She struck back blindly. Her fists swung at the blurry shape above her. Her clenched hand slammed into his side. A grunt sounded from the man above her. Her knuckles stung, but he didn’t stop hitting her.
No. This couldn’t be happening. She didn’t want to lose her chance with Alex. Not when they had settled the largest problem between them.
“I can’t let you weaken the Earth line.” His hand closed around her throat.
Chapter Eleven
Alex followed officers into Ash Floral company’s offices. There had been someone standing outside Chelsea’s office yesterday while she talked with Joy. He hadn’t gone past the room. He’d lingered near the door. Before anyone noticed him, he’d turned and hurried back down the hall. Thanks to Chelsea’s brother, they’d identified the man. Jeremy Deeks, a man who worked in the building and according to the time clock, was supposed to be here.
The thought of Chelsea in the same building as the man who stalked her sent a burst of fear through him. That feeling though magnified to monstrous proportions when Caleb had called back saying that he couldn’t find Chelsea. A little later, he’d revealed they’d lost track of Deeks as well.
“Spread out and begin searching. We need to find both of them.” Gallagher directed officers to different parts of the building. “Alex, you come with me. We’ll be searching, but Caleb is meeting us. Maybe he has some idea where she could be.”
Alex wanted to tear the place apart, but the logical part of his mind knew that ripping through the place wouldn’t help. It needed to be searched. He tried to calm down, but his woman was in danger. That made functioning as a Hunter harder than it had ever been before.
He saw Caleb striding down the hall toward them. Alex hoped he’d found Chelsea. He didn’t care where or how, but he wanted her safe. Alex put his hand on his belt and the dagger resting there.
The service weapon on his other side might come in handy. That probably wouldn’t be needed though. His first inclination was to go to the weapon that he’d used on countless hunts of tainted Aelfir. This man couldn’t be sane.
“Have you found her yet?” Gallagher asked.
“No, we haven’t found anyone who’s seen her yet. I finally thought maybe she got a message. Joy’s checking her email. They know each other’s password.” Caleb said.
Caleb’s phone buzzed. He swiped his finger across it. His face blanched as he listened to the person on the other end of the phone.
“What?” Alex leaned forward.
“She got a message from Joy to go to the greenhouse. Joy didn’t send her anything. She’d been out at the field office until I called her,” Caleb said.
Alex didn’t wait for the end of the explanation. He already raced down the hallway. Gallagher sprinted right behind him.
Alex’s chest tightened as if a band wrapped around him, contracting with every step. She had to be all right. Gallagher radioed for backup. Alex rounded the corner and headed for the large metal door leading to the greenhouse.
He hit it at full speed. It slammed open. He ran through and scanned the room, looking for people. At first, he didn’t see anything, but then he spotted debris on the floor. Almost without his notice, calmness swept over him. The Hunter mindset took over. His focus centered on the danger and finding person who caused it.
Movement to the right of that drew his gaze. He saw the shoulders and bent head of a man. He’d seen the video of Jeremy Deeks. This man had blond hair just like the man in the image.
Is this Jeremy the stalker? When he found Jeremy, Chelsea should be close by. He had to force his mind away from thoughts of what the other man had done to her.
Alex couldn’t make a move yet. He eased around
the end of the long table full of potted plants. On the floor, beneath the man, Chelsea lay unmoving. The man’s hands wrapped around her throat.
In a smooth movement, he pulled his dagger and threw. Even as the blade flew through the air, Alex ran forward. The blade sliced into the man’s shoulder. Jeremy Deeks jerked upright.
Alex hadn’t ever felt what Jeremy was going through, but knew magic slammed through his body in searing waves. Jeremy’s hands jerked up to the knife, trying to rip it out. Alex grabbed the man and ripped him off of Chelsea. He gripped the dagger and pressed it in.
Although he knew it hurt the man more, he kept the magic flowing. If the man could be saved, the pulsing magic given off by the blade could help. It might burn away some of the taint within him. At the moment, Alex didn’t care if the other man lived or died. His concern centered on Chelsea.
“How is she, Gallagher?” He struggled to keep from looking over at her. As much as he wanted to check on her, the man who’d attacked her needed to be held.
Thankfully, the decision of the man’s fate wasn’t in his hands. He wouldn’t be able to decide if the taint had been cleansed even after he’d been treated. Coughing penetrated his focus on Jeremy. Relief swept through him at that raspy sound.
“Come tend to your woman, Alex. I’ll hold onto him.” Gallagher put his hand over the top of the hilt.
Alex left the man without a word. He moved over to Chelsea. She’d rolled onto her side. He eased up beside her and carefully looked her over for injuries. Dark blue already rose on her cheek and temple. She’d been hit and strangled. He brushed his fingers across her hair, not wanting to touch her face for fear he’d hurt her.
“Baby, we’ve got help coming for you. Where do you hurt?” He leaned over her.
“Head hurts, can’t see.” She reached out. Her hand gripped his arm.
“Can’t see at all or is it blurry or double vision?” His eyes narrowed.
He peered at her eyes to check her pupils. He didn’t have a light to check the reaction, but he did see them following his movement. Did she have a concussion or even worse?
“Blurry and double.” Her fingers tightened and she held onto him.
“I hit him with a pot, but he didn’t even seem to feel it,” she whispered.
Deeks probably hadn’t felt any pain when the madness took over. Alex didn’t say that though. She didn’t need anything more to add to her fear.
“They’re here, Alex. You need to let them take care of her.” Gallagher tapped Alex’s shoulder. “Deeks is being taken to the hospital in a separate bus. They’ve taken him out of here until she’s on her way. Your weapon will be taken to the station as evidence. You’ll get it back.”
Alex nodded, not concerned about Deeks or his dagger. It wouldn’t be any problem to take it to the Forge and get it re-imbued with Aelfir fire magic. He worried more about Chelsea than his dagger. How badly had Deeks hurt her?
The healers would focus on the internal injuries first. Concern began to eat at him. He wished he could do something to help her. At this moment, he’d give anything to take away her pain.
He eased back from her when the EMT’s pushed forward to assess her. After a few moments, they put her on a stretcher. His hands clenched when she groaned. He wanted to scoop her up and run, but knew that it would hurt her even more than they were.
“Come with me, Alex?” Chelsea’s voice carried over the noises of them strapping her onto the gurney.
“Gallagher would have to restrain me to keep me out of that ambulance. He can take my report at the hospital. I’m not leaving you.” Alex moved into her line of sight.
She relaxed back on the gurney and closed her eyes. He followed the EMT’s out of the greenhouse and down the halls of the office building. Once they got her in the ambulance and were on their way, Alex could only sit, look at her and think. He could have lost her.
The “ifs” began to swarm through his mind. If Joy hadn’t found that email. If Caleb hadn’t identified Deeks from the picture. If they’d been five minutes later.
Chapter Twelve
Alex strode into his house. His eyes roamed over the kitchen counters, noting the keys on the counter. Chelsea’s car was parked at the front of his driveway. He’d half-expected the vehicle and her to be gone.
He didn’t want any distance from her. She’d mentioned it was safe to go back to her house now. Although she hadn’t tried to leave yet, he thought that she would soon. Especially now that she’d gone back to her normal life.
It had been over a week. She’d walked out of the hospital after a full day and night of observation. They were always cautious with head wounds. She’d had a few lingering yellowing bruises on her face, but to him, she’d looked gorgeous. Her smile and laugh had loosened the knot of fear in his gut. He was still recovering from the scare.
Alex didn’t want her leaving. He liked her things around his home. Even the assorted bottles and containers which somehow migrated from the bathroom counter to his dresser. The scattered belongings kept accumulating, like some sort of feminine territorial claim. He treasured those signs of intimacy.
She was his woman and he loved her. He knew she loved him as well. She simply hadn’t admitted it. Is she ready to make that commitment?
She may not be prepared to take that step. On the other hand, he couldn’t let her leave. He was pushing her, but he wanted to grab their future.
Somehow, he had to get her to see they belonged together. Tonight, he planned to start doing that. He wasn’t above using sex to get her attention focused in the right direction.
He put the bag of food he’d bought from a local restaurant on the counter. He hadn’t wanted to be distracted by anything, much less cooking. Tonight, she was his only focus.
He looked around for Chelsea. At first, he didn’t see any sign of her. He peeked into the living room. Intent on finding her, he searched room by room. She had to be here somewhere.
He hoped she wasn’t packing. Even the thought of starting tonight with an argument made him wince. The discussion might lead to one. They’d definitely argue if he told her she wasn’t going anywhere.
He found her in their bedroom. She strolled out of the bathroom. Her hair hung in wet ropes around her shoulders and a towel wrapped around her body. A big smile curved her lips when she saw him.
“Hi, Alex, did you have a good day at work?” She strolled over to the bed and a pile of clothes she’d left there.
Those weren’t the clothes she’d worn to work. She rifled through the clothes coming up with a pair of panties bunched up in the shirt. She grabbed them and pulled them on.
“Normal day, quiet, just the way we like it.” Alex smiled.
“You’re early. I hoped to surprise you tonight.” Chelsea headed over to the dresser and grabbed her lipstick.
He blinked at her. What surprise did she have in store for him? He hoped she hadn’t planned one last night before she intended to go back to her home. He took a deep breath to quell his automatic negative response that thought.
Time to get things in hand. He had plans of his own. Perhaps hers would go along with his, but he wasn’t waiting to find out.
“Well, baby, I have a few plans too. I brought dinner. We can warm that up later. I’d like to talk now.” Alex smiled.
She blinked at him and frowned at him, her confusion obvious. “Let me get some clothes on and I’ll meet you in the living room.”
“I’ll see you in a few minutes.” He nodded and left the room.
He’d like to stay in the room and watch her dress, but knew it would lead to touching. Without giving in to the temptation, he went into the living room and dropped onto the couch. He wanted to try to talk about this before moving to persuasion.
She strolled into the room wearing a pink top and black pair of shorts. That delectable outfit wouldn’t make it easy to concentrate. The neckline of that pink sleeveless shirt dipped down so low he wondered if her nipples would show if she folded her arm
s across her chest. His cock hardened. Damn, lust already distracted him and they hadn’t even begun to talk. He wanted her, desperately.
She slid onto the cushion beside him. He took a deep breath. She was so close. Maybe they’d get through the talk before he gave into the temptation to peel her out of those clothes.
She drew her hand over his thigh. The fingers brushed over the ridge of his cock. He exhaled roughly. He wasn’t going to last.
“Baby, we need to talk.” He grabbed her wrist, but before he could pull it away, her fingers had tightened, giving his shaft a slight squeeze.
“We can talk after.” She smiled. “I planned it that way.”
He ripped his eyes up, away from her hand. She planned it that way. Sneaky little witch. He had plans, too, but his were going to have to wait. Especially since she was working his zipper down. Caressing through clothing was one thing, but if her fingers touched the skin of his cock, he wouldn’t be backing away from her until they were panting and exhausted.
She seemed to know his limits, because she wasted no time freeing his cock. Her hand wrapped around it, giving it a long slow stroke. He stiffened. His grip on her wrist pressed her hand more firmly to his cock.
He threaded the fingers of his other hand through her hair. With a tug, he urged her close for a kiss. Her mouth opened as his lips brushed hers. He tried to give her a sweet, slow kiss. Although his mind screamed “fuck her,” he wanted to give her a little romance and then make love to her.
Again, she seemed to have another idea. Her teeth nipped as his mouth rubbed back and forth across hers. She pushed for more when he wanted to excite her slowly.
He pulled back and looked down into her crystal green eyes. They gleamed with hunger. She strained up to him. He stopped resisting. His mouth covered hers, claiming it and her.
He released her wrist and drew his hand up to her breast. He cupped the firm flesh through her shirt. The nipple hardened beneath his hand. He rubbed his fingers back and forth across the peak.
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