Charming (A Seven World Novel) (16 page)

“That makes about as much sense as eating soup with a fork.”

“It’s the only way someone can take care of you the way you deserve to be.” Prince kicked open the door and moved quickly down the hall, ascending another flight of stairs. “I want you to let me take care of you. Give me one night to protect you and see that you’re fed. Let me bathe you until you’re clean and then put you to bed.”

Kat chuckled quietly. “My bad habits are rubbing off on you, Charming. You rhymed.” She curled against him, warming to his soft words and generous offer. “And then?”

“And then my wolf will guard you until dawn.”

“What if someone tries to come in?”

He answered without hesitation. “Then he’ll die.”

She believed him. This wasn’t about seduction; Prince was wooing her the way a Shifter pursued a mate. It was an honor to have a wolf guard your bed while you slept or bring you food from a hunt. It was an instinct and tradition among mated couples that dated back as far as anyone could remember.

When he entered his bedroom, he closed the door and leaned against it, still holding her in his arms. She felt at home when she looked into his mismatched eyes, deciding she couldn’t pick a favorite between the two. They each were different, but both looked at her with the same affection.

“Charming?”

“Yes?”

“I’m probably going to cry a little bit, so I need you to let me do that without any judgment, or else you can leave the room. I know how men freeze up like a pipe in a snowstorm when women get emotional.”

His words were nothing but a gentle breath. “I’m not going anywhere.”

Prince checked on Kat for the fifth time since shifting back to human form
. Morning light crept up the balcony and made the bedroom look as if it were spun from gold. The night before had surpassed any he’d spent with a woman in all his lifetimes.

Kat let him bathe her and rub scented oils on her skin. She shared small talk with him while they ate a meal together—tomato-basil soup and fresh-baked bread. But her appetite wasn’t what he’d grown accustomed to, and after finishing only half her meal, she wanted to lie down.

Sleep didn’t come quickly, so he made her a glass of warm honey water with cinnamon. She protested at first, claiming it looked like puddle mud after a hard rain, but a sip was all it took to convince her otherwise.

In the secrecy of darkness, Kat had wept in his arms. Wept for what he imagined was the fear that she might never see her twin again. Prince offered no words of comfort because there
were
none. He knew the emptiness of losing a sibling, and sometimes the only remedy is to grieve. Once her tears subsided, she fell asleep in his arms. Kat had a peculiar habit of kicking all the covers off. It seemed that the only thing she wanted covering her body was him. He stayed that way for a while to make sure she felt his protection, because the power emitted from an alpha wolf was all-encompassing, like a blanket. After what seemed like an hour, he finally shifted. Prince remained aware for as long as he could stay awake, and when he chose to sleep, his wolf took over the duty of guarding his love.

His
love. Not someone else’s; not an abstract idea, but a woman he wanted at his side, in his bed, leading his pack, and sharing his meals. A woman he would kill for. A woman he barely knew and yet felt a timeless connection between them that he couldn’t ignore. That was love, wasn’t it?

Prince had acquired respect, power, and wealth over the years. He possessed more sway with the Councils and higher authority than most, and damn if he was going to sit idly by while Vlad ripped apart lives once again.

When Kat finally awoke, she was herself again. Strong, determined, resilient. Despite her claim of being shy, she approached the balcony nude and opened the doors, her body suffused in sunlight.

Prince was seated quietly in his chair, memorizing every line, the subtle way she would shift her hips, her dark hair blowing back from the gentle breeze, the sublime way sunlight touched the edges of her body until it glowed, and the regal way she turned around and settled her luminous eyes on him like a lover to a mate.

“I love watching you,” he said offhandedly, resting his head against his closed fist.

Kat clutched her heart and quickly tiptoed to the bed, putting on her flannel shirt. “I didn’t see you there. You kind of blend in with the furniture.”

“I’ve been told that I’m wooden.”

“I wouldn’t go so far as to call you wooden, but you
are
a little antique,” she said, a playful lilt in her voice. She left the top four buttons undone and gracefully approached him. “Just so you know, I don’t do this with other guys.”

“Make love?”

She sat on his lap and kissed his neck. “I meant crying, letting someone give me a bath and feed me, the oil massage… although that was one of the highlights.”

“Incomparable to what we did in the basement?”

A smile touched her lips. “I like you, Charming.”

“
Like?
”

He bristled at the word, because the way he felt for her was indescribable—a word he longed to hear from her lips.

Kat dodged his glare.

“I have many years ahead of me, Kat, and so do you. I’m going to guess you’re already aware of this.”

She nodded and rested her left arm over his shoulder. “My father told us we were purebloods. I believe that’s why he was destroyed by our mother leaving, since it’s so hard to find another like us. Not that he wanted more kids or anything, but I guess he thought old royalty should stay together.”

“Did he love her?”

“Maybe it was a mating of convenience at first, but I think he fell in love with her. I just don’t think she loved him back.”

That made Prince’s heart stop. He’d given her everything a male could in one night, but was that enough to make a woman give a man her heart?

“Anyhow,” she went on, “I don’t think she hated us. On one hand, I think she was selfish to leave her children, but on the other hand, we were better off with our father. We grew up in Russia under the protection of my father’s pack. He wouldn’t have wanted my mother dragging us around the country with her new mate like a band of gypsies. I just wish she would have at least visited us instead of cutting all ties.”

“How long did you stay?”

She nestled against him, circling her finger against his bare chest. “Until we were about nine. Then Papa wanted to move to America. The pack was divided, but most of them came along. When we came of age, Nadia moved back to Russia. She got a job at a prestigious museum, but I think she really went back to find our mother. After ten years, she moved here but didn’t want anything to do with living with a pack.”

He was saddened by this story—that two girls were estranged from their mother most of their lives. “And your mother is still in Russia?”

She nodded. “How come you don’t talk to me like you do with Nadia?”

He brushed her tangled hair away from her face so he could read her expression. “I’m not certain what you mean.”

“On the rooftop, you were Mr. Chatty with her, but I always feel like I’m doing all the talking when we’re together.”

He squeezed her gently. “I spend too much time talking. It’s refreshing to hear what you have to say. And besides, your sister’s version of conversation is stilted and about superficial things. She’s not as forthright as she perceives herself to be.”

Kat flattened her hand on his bare chest. He liked the feel of her in his arms, the casualness of the way she showed her affection.

“You have to catch her in a good mood and she’ll open up. Sometimes she’s so concerned about what other people will think about her that she doesn’t know how to talk to someone. I don’t care about opinions. I say what’s on my mind and you either like it or you don’t. Maybe I’m too blunt and cuss too much…”

He pressed a soft kiss to her forehead and she lifted her chin, silently demanding one to her lips. He obliged, but only on the corner of her mouth. “It wasn’t long ago I would have found a woman with your tongue crass and offensive.”

She nibbled his bottom lip and purred, “How do you like my tongue now?”

“I’m not sure. Let me taste…”

When their kiss deepened, Prince stirred with arousal.

Kat abruptly pulled back and patted his chest. “Not now. I have too much on my mind.”

“I had no intentions of the sort.”

She wiggled her bottom, creating a delicious friction between them and causing Prince to throw back his head and suck in a sharp breath. Kat placed a kiss on his Adam’s apple and then beneath his chin. “Could have fooled me. Get dressed. I want to tear this town inside out until I get my sister back.”

“I’ll bring you my laptop so you can review his files.”

“Thanks,” she said, easing off his lap. “I don’t think he’ll have anything in there that’ll reveal his whereabouts, but I’m pretty sure there’s enough incriminating evidence to turn over to the higher authority.”

“He’s
already
deemed an outlaw. What purpose would that serve?” Prince rose to his feet and frowned.

Kat put her hands on her hips and stuck out her leg. “If he’s slave trading, then he’s got juicy info in those files. Not only will it lead to more arrests and putting those criminals where they belong, but it might lead to finding and freeing some of the victims. Imagine all the people out there who think the world has forgotten about them, and they’ve given up all hope. It’s good to know at the end of day that I helped someone, but I don’t always get that feeling with this job. They don’t usually offer me cases to bust up rings since I don’t have a partner. Plus, let’s face it,” she said, turning on her heel, “the higher authority is predominantly male, and most of them still believe a woman can’t do a man’s job.”

“Men have been fools since the beginning of time.”

“I want that on a T-shirt.” Kat stepped into a clean pair of underwear and jeans he’d left for her, giving him an appraising glance. “You should dress like that more often.”

He looked down at his silk pajama bottoms.

“I like the whole sexy long-hair thing you’ve got going on. And the bare-chested pajama ensemble is a good look on you. Especially barefoot.”

He glanced down at her, closing his brown eye and squinting with the other. “Are you mocking me?”

His question was answered almost immediately when she smoothed her hands across his chest and made him shiver. Her lips grazed over his nipple, tongue circling around the hardened tip.

“I’m serious. It’s casual and I like it,” she said. “I’d really like to see this behind me on a sofa while we’re watching TV, so make that happen. Eating Chinese food and cuddling can be just as sexy as exotic oils and our naked bodies pressed together. Well… not quite the same, but you’ll see what I mean.”

He arched his brow. “Perhaps you can plan our next date while I retrieve the laptop for your research.”

“Swell. I hope you have a Cracker Barrel around here, because not only do I love their chicken and dumplings, but I could
live
in their gift shop. Buy me some peanut brittle and I’ll be your girl.”

He circled his arms about her waist. “I would also like to know what you sleep in.”

“First of all, I don’t have my usual clothes with me. Secondly, I don’t go all the way on the first date.”

A smile hovered on his lips. “And what would you call last night?”

Her soft lips pressed against his, sable eyes looking up at him. “Definitely not a date.”

“Are you hungry?”

“You wouldn’t happen to have any french toast, would you?”

Prince smirked and opened the door. “I think I can make that happen. How does bacon on the side sound?”

Kat licked her lip seductively. “Yummy.”

***

Kat reviewed the data on the flash drive three times, hoping some scrap of information would let her uncover where Vlad was keeping Nadia and her father. Yet the only thing she found was one disgusting transaction after another.

She’d eaten two helpings of french toast and six pieces of bacon. The man brought her maple bacon. Kat was pretty sure if she was ever on death row, her last meal would probably be ten pounds of maple bacon. She had a sneaking suspicion that Prince hadn’t cooked it, but his shortcomings were forgiven the moment he asked if it was to her satisfaction. The rich timbre of his voice made her melt like chocolate over a fire, as did the shoulder rub.

And
when he fed her a piece of bacon.

An hour later, Prince called Russell into the room for an update.

Russell hiccupped, finishing off a piece of bacon. “Vlad’s house was empty, the motor gone, and the stove still warm by the time we’d gotten there last night.” Russell pulled Prince toward the door behind her and attempted to lower his voice. Kat hung on his every word while she pretended to work, giving him the respect of privacy with his packmate.

“A basement?” Prince asked in disbelief. “I didn’t see a basement when I was there.”

“Aye. Someone’s been living down there a long time. It was hidden and soundproofed behind a faux bookshelf. There were bits of stale bread and hair on the floor… and fresh blood.”

Kat froze as they continued their conversation. While they were behind her, she was skilled at visualizing positions and body movements based on sounds. When she heard a rustle of fabric as someone turned, she continued scribbling nonsense on paper.

“What kind of hair?” Prince continued.

“A few different kinds, actually. Traces of wolf hair all over, but they also found a long strand.”

“Blond?”

“Aye. Unless he’s traversing in the woods with a Shifter on a leash, my guess is he’s not gone too far. We’re scanning motels for recent check-ins, but that takes a wee bit of time.”