Dangerous Loves Romantic Suspense Collection (81 page)

“Impossible!” Kara blurted. “Horace claims she has a family.”

Could it be possible? Could Faith be a New One? What if her parents had adopted her? Perhaps then, things could be different. Perhaps then, Horace
could
have a future with her.

He loved her smart, spunky attitude and even could see himself growing to enjoy her adorably stubborn streak. He wouldn’t mind having her around for a while. He’d enjoy the company. And perhaps, in time, they could become partners, like Dallas had become Brendan’s partner.

If she was a New One, he could teach her about how to tap into and direct the powers that are a part of everything in the universe.

“Your parents?” Horace asked Faith, trying to put it gently. “They are your natural parents?”

Faith had just taken a big bite of chocolate croissant, so she nodded her answer.

“How was her childhood?” Jake asked. “All of ours were horrible.”

Faith chewed and quickly swallowed. “I didn’t have a normal childhood, but it was wonderful.”

No one could doubt the pleasure shining in her eyes, as she seemed to reflect on her past. Jealousy stabbed Horace squarely in the chest. His childhood had been anything but happy. His ability to trust had been beaten out of him, time and again.

And his past served as a good reminder. No matter how tempting a relationship with Faith might seem, Horace knew better. Relationships in his life had always failed.

They always ended with tears and pain.

Always.

In order to protect himself, he had to remain alone.

“She could be adopted,” Brendan offered.

“If you saw my parents you’d believe me. I’m their child.”

“She’s one of us.” Dallas refused to change her mind on that point.

“What do you mean?” Stone asked.

“She shares Horace’s power.” No one had told Dallas that, but still she knew. The skin on Horace’s arm prickled.

“They are mated,” she added as if it meant more than just sex.

“Mated?” Faith asked before Horace had a chance.

Dallas smiled that enigmatic smile of hers and shrugged. “The two of you are sharing an aura. I have no idea what it might mean.”

“It means she’s a danger to us and herself,” Derrick said, from the back of the room. At Horace’s glare, he quickly added, “She doesn’t have the training or capacity to control your power. She’s not one of us.”

But Dallas shook her head.

Thinking of Faith as one of them, as not-quite-human, thanks to their having mated—whatever the hell that meant—turned Horace’s mood even blacker. Dallas’s point only proved why Horace and Faith shouldn’t have had slept together.

Before yesterday, Faith had been an innocent. A
human
innocent. And now…

Shit
.

“I know you don’t want to hear this, Horace,” Stone said. “But what’s happening now must be somehow linked back to that time when you disappeared.” He paused. “We need to know what happened during those missing two years of yours. It’s time for you to remember.”

Horace shook his head. “I can’t.”

“It’s time for you to remember,” Stone repeated, his voice deeper, heavier. But the mental push didn’t work. Horace’s memories remained too well protected. The walls that had been built around that difficult time couldn’t simply be pushed away.

“I don’t mean to be stubborn about this. I truly can’t remember anything that happened when I disappeared. I’ve tried. Beyond getting vague visions and dire warnings—like not to have sex with feisty women—nothing.”

“Let me try,” Brendan said. He had the ability to rifle around in Horace’s thoughts, and perhaps even knock down that wall hiding his secrets.

Horace wanted to say no. The thought of finding out what had happened scared the hell out of him. There had to be a reason he didn’t remember. And the snatches that he did get were always laced with pain.

But the danger had now touched more than just his life. Ballou had said Faith’s and his life were a package deal. Could that be because they now shared an aura?

No, there had to be another reason…

Horace rubbed his suddenly throbbing temples.

That repressed part of his past had turned into one hell of a Pandora’s Box. One he did not want opened.

Perhaps there could be another way.

He unbuttoned his cotton shirt and pulled it off, revealing the still stinging tattoo. “It showed up this morning. The mark looks familiar, but I don’t know why.”

Faith lightly traced her fingers over the raw tattoo. His skin tingled and sang in response to her touch. The black lines turned golden and glowed for a flickering moment.

Stone shook his head. “I’ve never seen anything like that before.”

“I was afraid you’d say that.” Horace shrugged back into his shirt and turned toward Brendan. “Do it.”

He had no choice. He’d have to let Brendan peel open his mind.

Brendan asked Faith to step away from the table. He then moved his chair so that it faced Horace’s. They sat so close, Horace’s knees banged up against Brendan’s.

Though Brendan didn’t have to touch someone in order to read minds, touching did help if he wanted to probe deeply.

“Be careful,” Dallas warned, which only made Horace more wary.

“Take a deep breath,” Brendan said. “I’ll try to make this as quick as possible.” He touched the tips of his fingers to the sides of Horace’s face.

Horace felt Brendan tiptoe into his thoughts. It didn’t hurt, though it did feel a little crowded inside his mind. Brendan chuckled as he pushed past the memories of last night and this afternoon.

“Ahhh, nice,” Brendan said, and slid a glance in Faith’s direction. Heat darkened his eyes. Lust.

She’s mine.
Horace didn’t want to share Faith, not even in the context of his memories. He tried to push Brendan away from those particular memories. But Brendan’s fingers only pressed more firmly against Horace’s temples.

No, damn you, she’s mine
.

“She’s mine,” Brendan echoed.

“Their minds are linking.” Horace vaguely heard Dallas say. She put her hand on Brendan’s shoulder. Her touch seemed to help Brendan’s focus.

Brendan brushed away Horace’s hunger for Faith, and skimmed past Horace’s rotten childhood, past the endless string of days living hungry and homeless. The lonely days. The frightened child shivering and cold. And then Brendan dug deeper, going to a place buried so deep that it lay hidden far beyond Horace’s faintest recollections of infancy.

“I’m close,” Brendan said. “The protections in this area are incredible. Tougher than what Dallas had built around herself to guard against
the darkness
.”

But don’t worry
—Brendan’s thoughts now blended with Horace’s—
I think I see an opening
.

Horace felt Brendan push deeper. And then a blinding pain sliced through him, searing him as sharply as if an electrical storm sparked inside his mind.

Flashes—burning pain—jolting shocks.

Electric barbs stabbed at his every thought. Horace couldn’t control or make sense of anything coming at him. The pain overwhelmed. Every memory threatened to tear him to pieces.

He needed to tell Brendan to stop, but his mouth refused to work. All of his muscles had seized up.

His memories were killing him, and Horace could do nothing to stop them.

Chapter Eleven

“You’re killing him!” Faith screamed. Why couldn’t they see that? Faith could feel Horace slipping away, and she didn’t have any of the special powers the others supposedly possessed.

“Stop!” she shouted at them.

She threw herself onto Brendan’s back and fought him with all her strength, trying to break the connection between Horace and Brendan. But he wouldn’t budge. She pounded his shoulders until several of
the Protectors
grabbed her arms.

“Stop! You’re hurting him!” She fought with all her strength as they pulled her away. Tears sprang to her eyes. “Stop it!”

Pain ripped through her head and seared a path down her body.

“Please,” she whimpered as she collapsed to the floor. “Please, don’t do this to him.”

“We’d better listen to her,” Dallas said. “Horace?”

He didn’t answer. How could he? They were killing him. Why couldn’t they feel that? His pain filled the air like sharp barbs. Faith couldn’t believe no one else felt the pure agony that prickled her insides with every breath.

“Brendan?” Dallas sounded worried now. “Brendan? I need you to pull back.”

“I agree,” Stone said.

It took both Dallas and Stone to pry Brendan’s fingertips from Horace’s temples. As soon as they broke the contact, Horace sucked in a deep breath of air. Brendan crumpled to the floor.

Dallas caressed Brendan’s ashen face and murmured softly in her husband’s ear. Faith struggled against the arms holding her. She wanted to get to Horace. To touch him. To caress him. To comfort him in much the same way.

“What happened?” Stone asked. He crouched down beside Horace’s chair.

Horace swallowed hard several times and shook his head.

“He’s in pain.” Faith could still feel the sharp throbbing behind her eyes. Somehow, she knew she’d experienced only a taste of what Horace had suffered. She wanted to get to Horace, but his friends refused to release her. “Can’t you do your magic and help him?”

Jake jumped to action. He handed Horace a steaming cup of what looked like tea. After watching Horace take several sips, Jake turned to Faith. A second cup appeared in his hand. “It looks like you could use some, too.”

The men holding her released her arms, and she rushed over to Horace. Jake followed and pressed the cup of tea into her hands. The lemony tea tickled her taste buds and, after swallowing, spread a soothing balm throughout her body. The pain throbbing behind her eyes slipped away.

“I know where I’ll be coming next allergy season,” she told Jake, who had watched her drink the tea with apt curiosity. She took another sip. “This is good.”

“I aim to please.” He smiled, but the expression looked forced. Everyone looked tense.

“What happened?” Stone asked Horace again.

And again, Horace appeared unable to answer.

“Those memories are in what felt like a no-man’s land, a war zone, littered with explosives waiting to blow Horace apart,” Brendan said. The color had returned to his cheeks and with Dallas’s help, he got his feet underneath him as he rose from the floor. “Dammit Horace, did you build those barriers yourself? Or did someone do that to you?”

Horace shook his head.

“He doesn’t know. It’s like what you did to me, Stone,” Faith said. She didn’t understand it, but glimmering bits and pieces of knowledge had dropped into her head when Brendan and Horace had been pulled apart. “When he tries to remember, he hits the barriers that had been set up to stop him from remembering. It’s those barriers that make his head ache. Push too hard, and he’ll end up permanently brain damaged. Perhaps even dead.”

“And what suddenly makes you an expert on how these things work?” Kara demanded. She’d attached herself to Horace, rubbing his head and running her fingers through his hair. He didn’t appear to mind.

“Faith is right,” Brendan said. “We can’t force him to remember. I saw those barriers firsthand. It’s too dangerous to try and breech them.”

“Very well,” Stone said. “Did you learn anything in the short time you were in Horace’s thoughts?”

Brendan slid Faith a long look. He started to say something but then stopped himself. “He’ll have to figure that one out on his own,” he murmured.

“The marks you gave Faith,” Brendan then added, “they have connected Faith to you.”

“Marks!” Kara said with a laugh. “How primal, Horace.”

Horace shot Faith an accusing glare. “Connected?” A deep, dangerous edge rumbled in his voice.

“I’m afraid so,” Brendan said. “It appears you’ve bound Faith to your soul. I bet that’s why the two of you are sharing an aura. You’ve made her into your servant.”

“
His servant
?” Faith didn’t like how that sounded. No, that couldn’t be right. Partner perhaps, but not servant.

No one else in the café seemed concerned that her independence might have been stripped away.
Servant
? Not her.

“How did you know how to do that?” Stone asked.

Horace only shook his head.

Kara draped her arms over Horace’s shoulders, letting her fingers trail down his chest. He didn’t stop her.

“Looks like you’ve got yourself a pretty pet,” she said, loud enough for Faith to hear as well.

Horace’s gaze met Faith’s again.

“A pretty pet,” he said. His voice caressed Faith’s breasts, and her body turned weak. What she wouldn’t do to have him caress her all over with his raspy tongue. Perhaps she should go find another chocolate croissant. She could drizzle…

“No,” Faith whispered, backing away from him. Backing away from all of them. “No, this can’t be happening.”

Horace pushed Kara away and fought his way to his feet. He came toward Faith. She held up her hands, hoping to keep him away.

“I want to leave.” They were playing with her mind. And it had to stop. No one was going to turn her into a sex slave against her will.

She had too many opinions, too strong and stubborn of a will to let something like that happen.

“You told me I could leave if I wanted.” Panic welled in Faith’s chest as Horace closed in on her. “And I want to go. Now. You told me I could leave.”

“I told you I would come with you,” Horace corrected.

“What if I need to be alone for a while?”

“It’s too dangerous.”

“And it’s not dangerous for me here?” she asked with a nervous laugh.

“I’ll protect you.”

“And who will protect me from you?” Faith demanded. “No thank you. I’d rather take my chances on my own.” She dashed toward the door. No one made a move to stop her.

“
Come here
.” His command vibrated through her body.

Though she didn’t want to be anywhere near him, she turned. Her feet—quite against her will—obeyed him.

“I don’t want this either.” He sounded weary.

“Then let me go, Horace. Don’t force me to stay here. I’m not your servant. Don’t press your will on me like this.”