Lawked Flame (11 page)

“
Hang out?” Khayden asked, his
nose pinched.

Feeling more secure, she stood next to Lorenzo, her
chin jutted out. “Yes, we are going into town to see a movie or
something. What does that have to do with you giving us a ride into
town?”

Khayden’s jaw tightened. For a moment she thought
she had pushed too far. He turned and strode in the opposite
direction. “Come with me,” he said in a brusque tone.

Alayna looked at Lorenzo. His face had paled to ash.
Patting his arm, she followed Khayden through another door she
hadn’t seen before. A sense of déjà vu rippled over her skin. She
paused, gazing blindly through the opened door at the white walls.
Lorenzo stood behind her, silent but recovering.

“
What’s in there?” She tipped her
head in the direction of the opening.

“
I believe this is where his
transportation is stored.”

Feeling foolish, she inhaled and moved forward. “I
don’t see anything,” she whispered.

“
Perhaps it is because you need to
walk inside,” Lorenzo said.

Ignoring the laughter in his voice, she stiffened
her resolve. “It’s just I’ve had more than enough surprises in the
past twenty-four hours, that’s all.”

“
I quite understand.” This time he
didn’t try to hide his mirth. “If you do not want to ride, we can
still walk. It is a beautiful day after all.”

She stomped inside and glared at him, accusingly.
“You’re enjoying this too much.”

He gave her an innocent look. “You said I am gay,
what did you expect?”

Snorting, she ignored his snarky
remark. Wide-eyed and with small steps, Alayna moved with caution
down the short corridor, peeking around the corner when she reached
the end. Khayden stood beside a gleaming black Hummer, watching
her. Straightening, she hurried across the pavement, taking little
note of the odd space. From the tiny bit she saw, there was no
garage door, no other cars, and no view beyond the
Hummer.

Approaching the vehicle, she
locked eyes with Khayden. Struck dumb by the warmth emanating from
him, she offered a weak smile and placed her hand in his
outstretched palm. He took her bags in his other hand and stowed
them in the back seat. Turning, he lifted her and deposited her in
the front passenger seat. His fingers tightened around her waist
for a few seconds while his eyes darkened to an intense royal blue.
Jaw clenched, he stared at her mouth and made a slow perusal
downward, no doubt undressing her. At least, she felt naked by the
time he finished.

Her throat tightened at the reality of seeing him
aroused. His palm had moved lower and rested on her thigh, rubbing
it briefly before retreating a few steps away. The entire time he
held her captive with his eyes. Mouth dry, heart pounding, she
blinked repeatedly to break the connection. He smiled and closed
the door.

In the distance she heard a slight cough and
realized Lorenzo had witnessed their heated exchange. With the tilt
of her head, she decided to ignore the storm of passion rising
within her. Looking out the window, she battled the tangle of his
scent as it entrapped her imagination, whisking her back to her
dream the night before.

This is crazy,
she thought as her eyes drifted shut. It was a dream and yet,
today seemed like the day after a romantic tryst. She had no idea
why her heart raced and her breath came in short puffs. Lord help
her, how would she react if he actually did something other than
touch her—like kiss her? The moment the thought entered her mind,
her thighs clenched against the scorching heat swamping her
core.

“
Are you okay?” Khayden
asked.

The dark, deep cadence of his voice was lighter than
any caress. It slid over her skin, teasing her already aroused
flesh to throw off the constraints she had in place.

She looked at him with a start, her eyes wide and
face hot. “Yeah.” She coughed around the lump in her throat. “I
need to give you the address.” Fumbling in her bag for a pencil,
she stopped when his large palm rested on hers.

“
Just tell me, or put it in the
device.” He pointed to the GPS on the dash.

“
Oh.” She released a breath,
grateful for something to occupy her mind other than the X-rated
fantasies ruthlessly bombarding her. When she finished punching in
the address, a loud peal of music rent the air.

Her hand flew to her chest trying calm her heart.
Inhaling, she looked around for her bag and fished out her cell.
“Hello?” She answered without looking at the caller ID. After
realizing who was on the other end, she wanted to smack her
forehead for that breach.

“
Rodney, what’s up?” She did not
want to talk to her former partner. For some reason his calls made
her uneasy and got on her nerves.

“
Hi, Alayna. How’s it going? Ready
to come back to civilization?”

“
I haven’t left.” She said dryly.
Turning to look out the window, she wondered how long would this
polite conversation last?

“
Good one. Listen, I had a
potential customer call yesterday. He was interested in the
Littleton Project you did a couple of years ago. He wants to talk
to us about building him a similar one in another
state.”

“
Congratulations,” she said, failing to hide the touch of envy
in her voice. That project had been her baby. For two years she’d
poured herself into the strip mall. And now this asshole would get
the credit
and
the new deal.

“
No. Not so fast. He wants the
original developer. I told him I needed to check and see if you
were interested.” He paused. The tone in his voice changed and she
was surprised to hear his desperation. After her divorce, he had
chosen her ex’s side and bought her share of the company, seeming
confident he’d soar without her. He had gone so far as to drop
hints to that eventuality. It seemed the mighty had
fallen.

She decided to test the waters. “As good as that
sounds, I’m not ready to return to that level of involvement. I’m
going to pass, but thanks for contacting me.” Smiling, she could
imagine the scowl on his face. Rodney hated when things did not go
his way, which had been one of their problems.

“
Are you sure? You stand to make a
lot of money. He hinted they might use our services for more than
this one deal.”

Alayna rubbed the goosebumps that
sprung up on her arm while gazing at the passing scenery. The next
time she accepted a contract to develop a piece of land, it would
be under her own label. Chewing her lower lip, she mulled the
possibilities. She and Rodney
had
worked well until her divorce. His betrayal of
her trust had killed any hope of them being friends
again.

“
Thanks, but no thanks. I’m not up
for the challenge right now. Maybe in the future we can collaborate
on a project.”

Khayden’s fist tightened on the
steering wheel as he listened to the one-sided conversation. Clotho
had warned him humans were different, but no male would accept his
woman talking to another male whom he did not know. It simply was
not done. His eyes warmed, undoubtedly they were glowing behind the
sunglasses. He tried to reign in the heat of his temper. Exhaling,
he heard a yelp from the back seat.

“
Master Lawke,
please stop
,” Lorenzo moaned
telepathically.

Khayden glanced in the rear view mirror and winced.
Lorenzo’s skin had flattened across his face as though he had been
in a G-force windstorm. Surreptitiously, Khayden sent energy to
repair the damage his jealousy created. Seconds later, Lorenzo
slumped head first onto the seat, his eyes moving rapidly behind
closed lids.

“
Gorsh,” Khayden cursed, staring
ahead.

Alayna whipped around to face him, her brow raised
in question. He shook his head, frustrated with the entire
situation.

She continued her conversation.
“No, I don’t need to meet with you. I’ve given you my answer. Cut
the concerned act. You and I both know if you could’ve sealed this
deal without me, you would have.” Her hand covered one of his on
the steering wheel. Her simple touch put out the fire of his anger.
Inwardly, waves of serenity flowed through him.
H
e released a sigh of relief as the
tension in his back eased and left.
He
captured her fingers, lifted them to his lips, and kissed the back
of her hand. Without releasing her, he placed their entwined hands
on his thigh. The rage that had threatened to choke him and Lorenzo
vanished as suddenly as it had appeared. With a sigh, he settled
into his seat, not wanting to disturb the sweet peace that engulfed
his entire being.

“
Look, Rodney I have to go. Tell
Jan I said hi,” she said, and hung up.

He could feel her stare on his cheek and then their
hands. She balled her fist and then released it. He wondered what
she thought of him and everything that had happened to her since
yesterday, when she had walked into her destiny. Did she even
believe in things like that? There was so much he did not know.
Worse, he did not have the option of years to gather answers.

“
Are we nearing your home?” He
asked to break the silence, as she stared out the window.
Repeatedly, he glanced at her, appreciating the long line of her
slender neck, the hills and peaks of her high breasts. One day, his
seed would receive the gift of their mother’s milk. The idea made
him smile.

“
Yeah, I think so.” She paused and
then looked at the single hand in her lap. “I haven’t been here
that long, I’m visiting my brother. I think I told you that
already,” she murmured, and bit her lower lip.

“
What do you have planned to do
today?” He changed the subject, not wanting her to stop
talking.

“
Chill for a while, maybe take my
car into town, maybe drive down to Vegas for a day or two. Lots of
options, I’m not sure. We’ll play it by ear.”

Since he understood about half of what she said, he
nodded, rather than appear ignorant. “What about Lorenzo? What do
you have planned for him?” He tried to hide the jealousy from his
face, but a quick glance in her direction said he had failed.

Frowning, she asked. “I want him to meet a friend of
mine. I think they’ll get along great.”

Thinking she might be introducing the younger Lawke
to a potential Kee, he smiled. “That is good. I hope it works
out.”

Her eyes widened before she broke into a huge smile.
“Really? That’s great. I didn’t think you’d be for him meeting
people outside his...well you know.”

Khayden squeezed her hand, glad for the opportunity
to show her he was open-minded to mixed relationships. “It is who
we are on the inside that matters. When two people mesh and meet
the needs of the other, who can say they should not be
together.”

“
Do you really believe that?” she
asked, with a measure of disbelief.

“
Yes I do. What about
you?”

“
Personally, I don’t think it’s
anybody’s business what two people decide to do. It takes a lot of
strength and courage to step outside the box. But I believe when
you love someone, you’ll find everything necessary for a strong
relationship.”

The conviction in her comment tasted strong and
spicy, a clear sign they were an intricate part of her beliefs. On
the inside he grinned, pleased they were making progress. Clotho
worried needlessly, he could woo this woman. His Kee was sweet and
reasonable.

She chuckled and drew her hand from beneath his.

He felt the loss immediately and frowned.

“
Although
I
have no intention of
stepping in or out of the box again.”

He glanced at her. “Beg your
pardon?”

She waved her hand. “I don’t plan on having anymore
relationships, not for a while anyway. Been there, done that,
learned the lessons.”

“
Lessons?” His chest tightened at
her statement.

“
Men cannot be trusted. They lie
and cheat, but before that they ground your heart in the dust.” The
finality in her tone jolted him. The extra nod she gave at the end
of her speech punctuated her certainty in the veracity of her
ridiculous words.

A tendril of concern poked his confidence. Perhaps
he had rejoiced too soon. “All men?”

Her head stopped mid-motion, she
looked at him. “I can’t say all men. Most men.”

“
You are young, how can you say
what most men will or will not do?” When she crossed her arms
across her chest, he took the opportunity to peek at the tops of
her breasts, which threatened to fall out of the tight purple
blouse.

“
That was a generalization. You
know what I mean.”She huffed, her bosom rising precariously to the
edge.

“
Actually, I do not know what you
mean. As a man, I take exception to being lumped with whatever
idiot you cared for in the past. I take relationships very
seriously. I am trustworthy, I cannot lie to my Kee...per. The
Keeper of my heart, I mean. As I said, not all men cheat and abuse
the trust of the one they should cherish above everyone else.” The
idea of someone thinking him untrustworthy was a blow to his gut.
No one had ever doubted his word.

Her brow furrowed into deep lines. “Most men say
that... at the beginning. If men showed their true natures up
front, no one would hook-up.”