by Amelia Jade
Suspicions was a mild way of putting it. He’d detected the scents at the scene. Andrew knew exactly what had happened. It was fairly obvious.
“Here,” he said, showing her into the kitchen and dining area. “Food or just water for now?”
“Food is good,” she admitted as he found some junk food and poured a glass of water. “Ice?”
“Sure,” she said with a shrug.
Once she was seated and eating he took a seat across the table from her. Clasping his hands together and resting his elbows on the heavy wood furniture, he caught her eye.
“Bear with me,” he began. Once she’d nodded her assent, he began. “Do you know how I came to be the Cadian envoy to your town?”
Karri shook her head, her mouth full with a hunk of fresh bread that she’d torn from the piece he gave her.
“Well, you know that Fenris declared war upon Cadia two years back, correct?”
The roll of her eyes told him that yes, she was likely more than familiar with it. Most residents were, after all. During the course of the war between their two shifter territories, Fenris had actually invaded Cloud Lake, using it as a staging location to launch attacks upon Cadia itself. After recovering from the surprise attack, Cadia had retaken the town, but a lot of the damage had already been done. The Fenrisians were not very nice. Cadia had worked long and hard to rebuild not only the broken town itself, but also the trust that had once existed between shifters and humans.
“During the war, much of the fighting was done by the Green Bearets,” he explained. “They are the most numerous shifter species, and thus had the most troops available. Others participated, lending their support, even the dragons. But not the gryphons,” he told her, noting the way her eyes widened and then narrowed at his words. “Not officially,” he said with a smile.
“I was one of four who defied the orders of our superiors and fought anyway. It was the right thing to do, and I don’t regret it at all. But,” he said with a grimace, “it did lead to some unfortunate after-effects.”
“But if you got in trouble, why did you get promoted to be the ambassador?” Karri asked, speaking as she finished her current mouthful.
“Exactly,” he said. “How indeed. The answer to that is a little difficult, but try to look at it this way. Cadia pulled back inside its borders after the conclusion of the war, trying to avoid another conflict with your government.”
Karri nodded. “Right. There were hundreds of you here at one point, and then the next day poof, almost none of you were left.”
“Only myself and a few others. Generally there are no more than two dozen shifters in Cloud Lake at any given time now, including my guards and staff. To those back home, this is not a prestigious post.”
“You were exiled here.”
He smiled sadly. “Essentially. I played a prominent enough part in the war that they couldn’t not acknowledge it. But the gryphon elders put a lot of pressure on the Cadian Council to prevent me from receiving anything back home. So they compromised, and exiled me out here under the guise of a promotion.”
“That’s horrible.”
“Not as bad as you might think. I’ve met a lot of nice people here. Some that I’ve even grown close to.”
Andrew was barely able to keep the shock from his face as Karri closed off completely at his last statement. Walls were drawn up around the depths of her eyes and her features slowly flattened into an expressionless wall.
What the hell happened?!
“Anyway,” he said, hurrying on before things got even more awkward. “I think it was widely assumed that I would take the position for a few months, maybe a year at best, then resign so that someone more deserving could have the role, with the purpose of making it a prestigious post.”
“But you haven’t resigned.”
He shook his head. “No, I haven’t. I like my job. I think I’m doing a good job at it, and that both Cadia and Cloud Lake are benefitting from my tenure here.”
“I can’t find fault in that,” she admitted. “You have made an excellent ambassador.”
“Thank you. Unfortunately, the pressure recently has increased upon me to finally resign. It all came to a head the night we met.”
Karri’s eyes grew dark as she thought back upon his meaning. “Al? That shifter you pulled off of me in the dark?”
He nodded. “The one and the same. He’s actually well connected back home. Very well connected. I tried to prevent him from coming here by denying his application five times until it was approved at a level above me. I knew he was scum.” He looked away angrily, still annoyed with himself. “What I didn’t know, was that he was likely sent here with the expectation that something just like that would happen. They wanted me to do what I did to him. They expected it,” he snarled, slamming his fist so hard into the table that Karri’s plate jumped six inches in the air and came back down to shatter. The table itself cracked, splitting open in a jagged line nearly two feet long with his fist imprint the epicenter.
“And I walked right into their trap.”
“What does that have to do with me?” Karri asked, seemingly uncaring about his problems.
Where did this antipathy come from? Why does she hate me all of a sudden? This can’t all be about her car…can it?
“I scented wolf at your car tonight,” he replied. “It was very strong. I think…I think that this was a warning.”
“A warning?”
“Yes.” He squeezed his fingers together in a fist, his bicep bulging. “I think it means that if I don’t resign, they’re going to go after you.”
Chapter Fifteen
Karri
She stared at him in shock.
Oh, this just kept getting better and better! So now not only had she gotten tangled up with a man who would outlive her by centuries, she’d gotten herself smack into the middle of his little family feud.
Perfect. That was just perfect.
“Thank you for that.” She didn’t know what else to say. “Really appreciate you mentioning the whole threats and stuff at the start.”
Andrew was staring at her, and she knew he was trying to puzzle out why she was acting the way she was. It was the only thing she knew. If she was soft and tried to let him down gently, she wouldn’t be able to. She’d cave and let herself fall for him. So instead, Karri had to be hard and cold, walling him out and not letting him back inside her. Her defenses had to be perfect, or else they would crumble. He had a hold over her, but she had to break it. Break it before it got too strong.
She would have taken another route if she knew one, but she couldn’t risk failure. Not by taking a chance that she might decide to throw away everything she’d been working for her entire life and be with him. It wasn’t just herself that she was doing it for, either. It was the dozens of workers at her father’s company. If she let it be known she was with a shifter, her brother Liam would take over, and he would run it into the ground. All those people would be out of work, because of her selfish decision.
That wasn’t something Karri was willing to do.
“I’m sorry,” he apologized. “I didn’t think they would go so far as threatening a human. That is a serious offense if they actually do something, punishable by death if there is any proof they harm even a hair on your body.”
“It’s not my hair I’m worried about, as fabulous as it looks,” she said, pulling out her ratty bun with a sudden reminder that it had been up there. The dried crusty locks fell down, her fingers catching in tangles as she worked it out. “It’s my life,” she said, looking up after several seconds. “A life which now seems to be in jeopardy.”
Flustered, she looked away. “I guess I’d better look into a bodyguard now then. Thank you for that added expense.”
“You…have a bodyguard,” he said slowly.
“No I don’t.”
He just stared at her. “You absolutely do,” he corrected, apparently not willing to back down from this point.
“I do
n’t,” she said, then she jerked upright in the chair as his point sunk home. “Unless you’re talking you? In which case no way. Not happening.”
“I was, in fact, referring to myself, believe it or not. Why is that idea so appalling to you?”
She could sense his curiosity, his desire to understand the sudden shift in their standing toward one another, but now was not the time nor the place for her to go into that. She had herself and nearly fifty other people to think about before she could consider his feelings.
“Because I’m not going to have you following me around all over the place for starters,” she told him, crossing her arms.
“You make it sound like I’m some sort of stalker,” he complained.
“Listen,” she said. “I—”
“No.”
Karri reared back in surprise at the sudden decisiveness in his tone, the commanding way in which he uttered the single word. It was so unlike Andrew, a departure from his normal easygoing manner. She saw in him now the person who had fought in the war to defend his country, the man who had distinguished himself enough to earn his current posting, and the man who had defied his superiors for two long years, continuing to hold the job despite their wishes.
He’d always been strong to her, but that had been a physical thing, born of his superhuman strength and endurance and driven home every time she saw his arms bend or his chest rise and fall with a breath. This though was a strength of personality, a show of force that he had clearly hidden from her, until now. Until he was forced to.
So why had he let it shine through just now? She analyzed that question while giving him a long look, trying to figure out what was going on between those eyes. It was obvious he was aware that something had changed between them, but it was just as clear that he had absolutely no idea what. Karri would have to tell him at some point once her own resolve had hardened some more. Right then she was just too vulnerable still, even with the knowledge of all that was riding on her shoulders.
She was only just human after all.
I am human. There is no “just” in there. I simply am. No, I’m not a shifter, but that doesn’t make me less of a person. I’m no less important than he is, simply because I can’t change into a mythical half-lion half-eagle creature that can fly. Although that would be pretty damn cool to be able to fly.
Andrew had always respected her and her wishes. He’d given her space, trusted her, all without being asked to. Never before had he encroached on her personal space or insisted on something. The difference between him and other human men had been astounding in that department. He was almost too trusting that way, though she had no intentions of betraying his trust like that. Others might though, which would likely destroy him if he opened up to those who would take advantage of his trusting nature.
All of which brought her back to the point of why he’d become adamant now. After weeks of not. Was this the way he normally was, and only now was she finally seeing it? It was possible of course, but Karri didn’t think that was the answer. Really, there was only one reason she could see, and that was that he felt she was making the wrong choice. That by turning him away, she was putting her life in serious danger. He had been respectful to her this far, and if he felt she didn’t need his protection, then he wouldn’t insist.
“Is it that serious?” she asked, relenting just slightly.
“I hope not. But I’m afraid that I’m going to be wrong in that department. Look at your car after all.” He looked up at the ceiling in frustration. “I’m sorry about that.”
She waved it off. “Thankfully I am in a position in life where I’m not concerned about that. I know I’m blessed for it, but it isn’t the material that concerns me. It’s the threat you say that has been made against me.”
Andrew stood. “That’s exactly why you must let me stay near you. I promise, you won’t even know I’m there.”
Karri scoffed. “Seriously? You’re six and a half feet of walking muscle that makes every woman drool. You put on a suit and walk around the office with me and it’ll be even worse! Not to mention I’ll have to answer all the questions of where I got a bodyguard in the first place. And if my father ever found out—” She cut herself off abruptly.
“Why is that a bad thing?”
Leaning back in the chair, Karri sighed. She hadn’t wanted to go down this topic of conversation. Still didn’t want to. But maybe she could answer him, and kill two birds with one stone. If she told him the truth, maybe it would give him a hint toward backing off from her and a solid reason why he couldn’t follow her around all day.
“You don’t have to tell me if you don’t wish,” he said, holding up a forestalling hand before she could start to speak.
“I know,” she agreed. “But you should know.”
Andrew must have sensed that it was a serious story because he settled back into his chair, giving her his full attention.
“During the Fenris occupation of Cloud Lake, you know that things were…not good,” she said bluntly. “They basically ransacked our little town.”
“I’m aware. I spent many months helping rebuild the physical damage, and I’m still working on rebuilding the emotional hurt that was inflicted.” He looked pained, embarrassed by what his kind had done to her town, though none of it was his fault in the slightest.
“You’ve been doing a wonderful job,” she said, meaning every word. “But some damage can’t be undone. Some things can’t be fixed, because they’ve been lost. Permanently.”
“The missing people,” he said after a moment. “You’re referring to the missing people.”
“Yes,” she said softly. “I’m also talking about my stepmother. My brother’s mom.”
“Oh no,” he replied, his voice full of pain. “Is she…?”
“Went out to meet her friend. Never got there,” Karri confirmed.
“Karri,” Andrew said, sitting up and leaning toward her, but then pausing halfway. He grimaced and nodded, sitting back. “I’m sorry,” he said instead of reaching out to physically comfort her.
“My father still holds out hope that she’ll come back one day. My brother and I are more realistic. We’ve come to accept that they took her, and that we’ll never see her again.”
“I hope you know that it wasn’t anyone from Cadia, that we didn’t do that sort of thing.”
“I know that,” she said. “That’s why I didn’t immediately tell you to fuck off when I realized you were a shifter. My brother is a little less tolerant of shifters, but that’s because he spends so much time with my father. He’s never forgiven you. Probably never will.”
Andrew nodded. “I understand. There’s this real angry guy who keeps sending petitions to my office that he thinks will get us to leave the city. I’m not sure why he doesn’t send them to city hall to be honest.”
Karri laughed despite herself. “Sounds like something my father would totally be on board to sign. Don’t let those two meet, or they might do something.”
The shifter tried to smile, but failed. “Karri, I am very sorry for what your family went through. I truly, truly am. More so than you can probably imagine. But I can’t allow that to be a reason that you put yourself in danger. I just can’t,” he said. “I did this to you, I put you in this spot. Now it’s my responsibility to keep you safe until it’s settled.”
“And how are you going to settle it?” she asked, giving him a cross look. “You haven’t had much luck with it so far.”
“I’ll settle it,” he promised, his features darkening with intent. “But until then, I’m going to be your bodyguard. I’m not taking no for an answer.”
Karri sighed. “Okay, all right. Fine. But, there is no way that’s going to fly at work. Way, way too many questions. So you have to be something else.”
Why had she even given in to him in the first place? Andrew said he wasn’t taking no for an answer and she just caved. Where the hell had her backbone gone, and why did it abandon her at the most critical moment
? Was that her brain trying to tell her something?
I hate it when the world is against me.
Chapter Sixteen
Andrew
He fiddled with the tight collar of his suit.
Yeah, he was wearing a suit. It had been a victory in and of itself to get Karri to agree to let him be her bodyguard. So when she’d made it explicitly clear that he wasn’t just going to follow her around watching her back, but that he had to make an attempt to blend in, he’d agreed. This wasn’t exactly what he’d realized he was signing up for, however, but by the time he understood her plan, it was too late to back out.
His pants itched. The shoes crimped his toes and the collar felt like it was choking him. Not to mention the garment was too tight across his chest, too small around his hips, and almost too short on his arms.
“How the hell do humans wear this blasted thing every day?” he growled.
“By not whining over it,” came the curt reply.
Andrew frowned at Karri’s back. It wasn’t the first time she’d spoken to him that way. In fact, it seemed to be an ongoing thing. She was never rude to him. In fact, it seemed like she went a long way to ensure just that. But she was not interested in making small-talk anymore, that was for certain.
He couldn’t figure it out. Why was Karri acting like he no longer existed in her life? What the hell had gone wrong? Maybe she was getting cold feet after sleeping together so abruptly. That could definitely be it, maybe regrets about giving in so soon. Yet it wasn’t timidity or hesitation that he was sensing from her, but more of an outright closing off. So far he’d refrained from calling her out on it, wondering if it was all just because of what had happened to her car, but the longer things went, the harder it became for him to believe that. One of these moments he was going to call her out on it.
His collar itched again and he tugged at it. Then he pulled on the sleeves and adjusted the pants. None of it sat easily on his frame, despite the tailor saying it would fit perfectly.
“I feel like a circus act,” he muttered as they walked across the parking lot. The closer they got to the door to her office, the more the outfit began to bother him.
