He’d woken from the coma the same day Tam had left four weeks ago. It’d taken all of his restraint to let her drive away, only two days after the last two men had tried to kidnap her.
In those two days, he’d done everything he could to stay away from her because he knew if he so much as touched her, he’d hold on and not let go. And that wasn’t what she wanted.
So he’d kissed her hard then watched until her car disappeared down the lane. And then he’d run himself to exhaustion so he’d be able to sleep that night.
“Kyle.”
Realizing he’d been staring into space, he focused on Cole, staring at him with raised eyebrows.
“What?”
“That’s not what’s eating you.”
Kyle tried not to want to hit his king but the guy saw too much. “You don’t need to worry about me. I’m fine.”
“Have you heard from her?”
Kyle gritted his teeth but kept his expression blank. And ignored Cole’s question. “If I’m going to chase down whoever shot you, you’re going to need to give me more information.”
“And I told you, I’ve got that covered.”
No, it just meant Cole was hiding something. And Kyle hadn’t been able to get it out of him yet. But the lucani were much more organized, much more determined than they’d ever been to keep their young king safe.
And if it wasn’t the Mal…
Vaffanculo, he didn’t need this shit.
“I’ve had people checking on her,” Cole said, his tone casual. “Cat begged me to make sure her new friend was okay so I asked a couple of friends to keep an eye on her.”
The first week after she’d left had been hell. He honestly thought he’d go crazy, torn between investigating Cole’s shooting and worrying about Tam.
Images of her kidnapped, terrified, broken and bleeding tormented him night and day. Only sheer force of will had kept him focused enough to maintain his sanity.
Kyle was either going to throttle Cole or kiss him. Maybe both.
“She’s fine, by the way,” Cole continued. “Keeps to herself. Goes to class religiously. She’s pretty damn smart, apparently. You know, Dane’s been looking for a nurse.”
Kyle froze, biting back a snarl. “You know I’d kick your ass if you weren’t still injured, right?”
Cole snorted. “You could try, old man. So, when are you going to go to Philly and beg her to take you back?”
After a long sigh, Kyle shook his head. “It’s just not that simple.”
Cole shrugged, eyes rolling like a teenage girl. “Well, it could be if you don’t try to take over her life.”
Kyle reached for his patience and found it crumbling. “Which is why I’m waiting for her to contact me.”
Cole’s raised eyebrow had Kyle stifling a growl. “Do you think maybe she’s waiting for you to show you’re not always such a controlling asshole?”
No. He figured she was trying to put her regular life back together, without werewolves and goatmen and teenagers who could perform spells.
Fuck.
Could he have been a bigger asshole to her? He hadn’t called, hadn’t texted. Nothing.
But it still didn’t change the fact that she needed something from him he might not be able to give her.
“Sure you don’t want a few days off?” Cole asked.
Kyle gave Cole the finger. “We need to talk about the proposal I made.”
Cole’s sigh spoke volumes but younger man just shook his head and, thankfully, let Kyle change the subject. “So you want Nic, Duke and Kaine?”
“Yeah. I think they’re the best suited for what I want to create.”
“A surgical strike team,” Cole said.
Kyle nodded. “I’ve worked on my own too long.”
Cole’s snort let Kyle know exactly what he thought about that. “Yeah, no shit.
“So,” Cole’s expression hardened, “did you get anything from our guest? He give you any leads?”
Their guest was the one man Kyle hadn’t managed to kill that night at the cabin.
“Yeah, a phone number they were using to contact whoever hired them. We might’ve caught a break there. It’s registered to a real person. We’re tracking it down now. And we’re going to bring Tira in to read him before I dispose of him.”
Cole’s eyes narrowed. “I don’t want him killed. Just wipe his memories. Have the streghe spell him then put a couple of men on him. Maybe he’ll lead us back to his employer.”
Kyle had considered that but hadn’t wanted to release the man to possibly threaten Tam or Cat again. He thought about arguing with Cole but knew it was the right decision.
“Fine. I’ll have Margie arrange the wipe.”
Cole’s smile was all teeth as Kyle turned to head for the door.
“And Kyle… Go see her. You’re not doing yourself or her any favors by ignoring her. Even an old dog can learn new tricks.”
* * * * *
“Are you sure you don’t want to come out with us tonight? A few drinks and some karaoke, maybe a little dancing. It’ll be fun.”
Tam didn’t have to force a smile for her friend, Gina, but there was no way in hell she was going to a bar.
“Thanks for the offer but I’m swamped. I’m so far behind because of the transfer. I really need to catch up.”
Gina grimaced, but her dark eyes were kind. “I getcha. No problem. Another night, okay?”
“Sure. Another night.”
Never gonna happen but it was nice to have someone ask.
Waving goodbye to her fellow student, Tam opened the door to her apartment and slipped inside. With a sigh of relief, she dropped her bag on the floor.
Tuesdays were always a long day. Five hours of classroom work and another three hours in the lab.
Only three more months. That was her mantra this week. In two weeks it would be, only two and a half more months.
But then what?
She’d have her degree. But what did she do with it?
The answer to that wasn’t as simple as it had been a year ago. Before…everything, she’d planned to get a job in a hospital, maybe in trauma or emergency, something fast-paced with long hours. Where she could fool herself into believing she had a life if she filled it with work.
Like her mom had.
Now… She knew where she wanted to be.
The problem was, she hadn’t heard from Kyle for weeks. Not one text or call. She’d been texting Cat almost every day, which made her want to cry and warmed her heart.
Damn it, she missed them. Missed him. She wanted to finish her damn degree and—
What? Crawl back to him? Well, she wouldn’t crawl. She’d walk up to him and then she’d throw him on the nearest flat surface and crawl all over him until he…what? Agreed to be someone he wasn’t?
Argh.
At least no one had tried to kidnap her again. She wasn’t sure if that was because whoever had tried before had moved on to someone else or because of the watchers she sensed sometimes when she went out.
She knew they weren’t there to hurt her. And, if she was honest with herself, they made her feel safe. And she wondered if Kyle had assigned them to her, which pissed her off and made her want to hug him.
With a sigh, she headed for the apartment’s tiny kitchen to throw something together for dinner. She’d just pulled out the makings of a salad when someone knocked at her door. Which meant it had to be someone who lived in the building. Otherwise, she would’ve gotten a call from the guard booth.
Peering through the peephole, her breath caught in her throat.
She had no idea how he’d gotten past security but she didn’t care.
Sucking in a deep breath so she didn’t pass out, she pulled open the door.
Kyle stood in the hall, staring at her with dark, steady eyes. Dressed in jeans, a white button-down shirt and shitkickers, he looked like everything she’d ever wanted in the whole world. Someone to love her. Someone who put her above everyone e
lse. Who cared enough about her to send her away because that’s what she’d told him she wanted.
God, how stupid had she been?
Of course, maybe she should see what he wanted before she made any assumptions.
She had to swallow before she could speak. “Hi.”
“Hi. Can I come in?”
She shivered at the sound of his voice, at the way every muscle in her body quivered as it seeped through her skin and wound around her heart.
“Sure. Is everything okay?”
He stepped through her door, his gaze skimming around her apartment as she closed it behind her.
Then his gaze arrowed onto her. “I should be asking you that.”
“I’m fine.” If you call missing someone you’d left behind so much you ached, then yeah, she was fine.
His eyes narrowed, like he knew she was lying. Then he crossed his arms over his chest.
“I’m sorry I didn’t call and tell you I was coming. I figured you’d tell me no. Now, I’m thinking I should’ve come three weeks ago.”
Then he reached for her.
Swallowing back a groan, Kyle wrapped his arms around her shoulders, pulled her against his chest and sealed their lips together.
She tasted hot and salty, her tears slicking their lips, and he let himself get lost in her. He forgot what he wanted to say, what he needed to say. Emotion roared up, hot as a solar flare, threatening to incinerate his good sense.
Prizing her lips open, his tongue pressed past her lips. Her tongue slid along his as she started to devour him. Her hands gripped his shoulders as she went on her toes.
Still not close enough.
Grabbing her waist, he lifted her, not breaking the seal of their lips. It eased the strain on his neck and had the added benefit of pressing even more of her body against his.
And when her legs rose to circle his waist, he turned and pressed her back to the door so he could get even closer. Wrapped tight to him, she didn’t fall when he released her waist to cup her ass, his fingers grazing the back of one thigh.
She moaned at the brush of his fingers and tilted her pelvis until the seam of her jeans brushed against the tip of his rigid erection.
He wanted her naked, wanted her gasping his name as he thrust inside her body. Then he wanted to find a bed and spread her out beneath him, completely cover her with his body. But first they needed to talk.
She wriggled against him, making him groan. Before he could totally lose his control, he pulled away, gratified when she followed him to try to maintain the contact.
Sucking in much-needed air, he watched as she opened her eyes and shook her head, as if trying to clear her head.
“I’ve missed you.”
He didn’t bother to disguise the yearning in his voice, didn’t want her to have any doubt about his feelings, and watched her eyes widen and tears form in the corners.
“Did you find out who’s after me?”
He shook his head and tightened his hold on her when he felt her loosen her legs. “No, not yet. I’m not here because of that. I’m not here because I want to put you in a safe little box and cage you in. I’m here because I love you and I’m willing to do whatever it takes to make sure you never doubt that.”
Her expression went completely slack with shock, her lips parting to draw in a short gasp.
Shit, not exactly the response he’d expected when he told her he loved her. Something he’d never said to a woman before. And wouldn’t again.
He didn’t know what he’d expected her to say or do. Wasn’t sure how to interpret the rush of tears in her eyes or the flush on her cheeks.
But when she started to flat-out cry and dropped her forehead to his shoulder, he panicked like a pansy-assed kid.
“Hey, sweetheart. Don’t cry. It’s okay. Forget I said it—”
Her head popped back up and her expression shut him up faster than a blow to the head.
“Don’t you dare take it back.” She reared back and smacked him hard on the chest. “I’m not crying because I didn’t want to hear it. I’m crying because I didn’t think I’d ever hear it.” Her lips curved in a wavering smile and her gaze softened. “I never thought I’d find a man who’d take me as I am. Never thought I’d find someone I’d want to spend my life with.”
Relief spilled through him like adrenaline, making his heart pump as if he’d run a marathon. He moved to kiss her again and found her already leaning into him. This time, he didn’t devour her. He took the time to savor her, the thrill of knowing she returned his feelings making him feel like a goddamn kid.
And he didn’t fucking care.
They still had issues, but who didn’t? He was lucani. She was eteri. Those two last facts could prove more difficult than any others to overcome. There were some lucani who’d want him to let her go, to mate someone from his pack.
And he’d tell them all to fuck off. Tam was his.
Weaving his fingers into her now-dark-brown hair, he let the baby-fine strands slide against his skin like satin as his tongue tangled with hers. His other hand splayed over her ass.
When she finally pulled away and looked up at him, she still had worry in her eyes. “I want to finish my degree.”
“And I’m not telling you not to. I would never tell you that. I’ll just be making a few extra trips to Philly every week. We’ll figure it out.”
And they would. Even though he hated cities. Too much damn concrete and the smell… He had no idea how any lucani managed to spend more than a couple hours in a city. But he would. For her.
Her smile brightened his whole damn world. “Then you won’t be angry if I decide to get a job at the Reading Hospital?”
“Whatever you want.” And if she just happened to get an offer from the lucani doctor, that’d be even better. “I only want you to come home to me from wherever you are. And know that I’ll be by your side always. I will gladly give control of my life and my heart and my pelt to you if you’ll have them.”
Her eyes widened in shock and he thought he’d pushed her too far, too soon before she started to laugh and cry at the same time. He had a brief second to think, Shit, you’re an idiot, before she threw her arms around his neck and kissed him so hard he thought she might’ve split his lip.
“I love you, too” Another kiss. “But I want your word,” and another, “that you have backup from now on. No more lone wolf.”
“I won’t need a partner, sweetheart. I’ll have a team. No more solo missions.”
Her bright smile was his reward as he dropped his mouth close to hers again.
“Love me, Tam. Everything else will work itself out.”
Chapter Ten
“So this isn’t really a marriage ceremony?”
Cat chewed on her bottom lip as she contemplated Tam’s dress and her question. “Well, since I’ve never been to a church wedding, I can’t really say. I think it’s more like Dad’s laying claim to you and you’re agreeing to let him.”
Margie choked out a laugh as she watched from a chair in the corner. “Ah, yeah, that’s not exactly how I’d describe it. What my daughter is trying to say is that the ceremony is more like an exchange of vows. You’re pledging yourself to Kyle as much as to the lucani today. It’s actually been a while since they’ve had one of these ceremonies. The last was mine and Dan’s.”
Tam caught Margie’s warm gaze in the mirror. “Thanks again for the dress.” She brushed a hand down the bright blue silk of the slip dress Margie had brought with her today. “I didn’t exactly come prepared for a…a ceremony.”
It’d only been a week since Kyle had told her he loved her but Tam had never been more certain of anything in her life. He was meant to be hers forever. So this ceremony, whatever it was, was just a formality for everyone else. She and Kyle had already made their vows.
“Honey,” Margie said. “Kyle wouldn’t notice if you were wearing a burlap bag and fuzzy slippers. The man loves you.”
Tam smiled. She knew that, but i
t was nice to hear someone else say it. Even if it was the mother of his only child. Still, Margie had become a good friend in such a short time. She’d introduced Tam to the women of the pack and to Kyle’s family in a way Kyle couldn’t have. Apparently Margie’s seal of approval went a long way toward getting the lucani to accept her.
And she wanted to be accepted. For Kyle’s sake. He was a well-respected, well-liked member of the lucani’s community. And apparently he’d been a highly prized bachelor among the women. She’d caught a few jealous glances tossed her way even though everyone had been nice to her face.
“You look beautiful.”
She smiled at the sound of his voice and turned to see Kyle standing in the doorway, staring at her with those beautiful topaz eyes. He wasn’t smiling but she knew exactly what he was thinking when his gaze slid down her body then back to her eyes, caressing every inch of her along the way.
Her grin widened. “Thank you. You look pretty amazing yourself.”
Actually he looked edible but she couldn’t say that with Cat right here. But the man couldn’t look any more gorgeous unless he was naked.
Barefoot and dressed in black slacks and a white silk shirt, Kyle looked devastating. Her heart began to pound and her mouth dried. If he wasn’t hers so completely, she’d go to battle for him.
No wonder all those women had been giving her the evil eye. She’d have to fight them off with sticks. And she’d win. It didn’t matter to her that they had claws. He was hers.
She walked toward him, taking the hand he held out to her. Everything else fell away when he wrapped his fingers around hers and pulled her close. He bent and kissed her, his lips warm and firm against her.
When his arm wrapped around her shoulders, she pressed against him, her breasts crushed against the hard planes of his chest and her stomach took that freefall that always happened when he kissed her.
After long seconds, he pulled back and stared into her eyes. “Ready?”
“Absolutely.”
He waved her out the door and waited until Margie and Cat exited.
Dan met them on the path, newly covered in autumn leaves that cushioned her bare feet, and took Margie’s hand while Cat practically skipped ahead to the sanctuary.
Kiss of Moonlight (Lucani Lovers Book 1) Page 17
