Karen Whiddon – A Hunter Under The Mistletoe: All Is Bright / Heat of a Helios (страница 10)

“Perhaps.”

“There’s no perhaps about it. You clearly found a way to triumph over unfair circumstances no child should ever have to experience.”

“It’s why, you know.”

“Why what?”

She’d never been one to avoid or evade when she could simply go for what she wanted. It had been like that in foster care and she’d carried the trait on into adulthood. Hell, it had earned her a place at the Archangel.

Yet in this moment—at this time—she nearly backed down. Almost walked away in the light of that anger that still burned in his gaze.

Anger for her.

Evangeline felt it. Knew it, on a deep, visceral level. The story of her past had upset him. Angered him with a primal rage she could read in the set of his broad shoulders and the tight grip he had on his wineglass.

But a lifetime of loss and of looking out for no one but herself had more gravity than the rather new sensation of sitting opposite a champion.

“It’s why I won’t forget what I saw. Or stop looking for answers as to why there was a man burning to death outside the greenhouse last night.”

Chapter 4

White-hot flames licked at his soul, a dark, dangerous fire Rafe struggled to keep in check. He prided himself on his control—he knew who he was and what he was capable of—and always held himself—and his needs—in a firm grip.

Until Evangeline.

She was incendiary, a bright, vivid match to the flames that already consumed him.

And she was more dangerous than she ever could have imagined.

Damn it all to Hades, he’d intended to leave the subject of last night alone. He’d foolishly believed a day of pampering and seduction would turn her mind away from the impossible.

Or what should have been impossible but which was very, very real.

Evangeline Kennedy was too smart—and far too intuitive—to leave the subject alone. Even with all the efforts of Gabe’s security team, working to divert and dissuade her from what she’d seen, she was unwilling to be put off.

None of it changed the fact she’d also done them a massive favor by getting rid of the bumbling Troy and Victor. Their idiocy and obvious desire to infiltrate the casino was the reason she’d still been on the property at such a late hour, working without two team members.

Was it really possible she had no idea the men were agents of the very organization seeking to bring down Rafe and his people? Did he dare ask her?

Or more to the point, was he willing to deal with the consequences if she hid the one secret he feared?

His gaze roamed over the delicate lines of her throat, her tan honing her skin to a fine shimmer. The steady throb of her pulse reflected in the hollow, deep and rich, and he could see the light movement of her flesh where her life force beat. If he were closer to a Rejuvenation, he could even hear it, those first moments of renewed life always a trauma to the senses.

Was it even possible she was one of the monsters who hunted him and his people in service to Chaos?

“You won’t find anything.”

“I have to try.” Her dark eyes sheened with tears, the response as surprising as it was unexpected. “I can’t live with myself if I don’t. That sort of violence and pain. How can you expect me to ignore it?”

What if I told you it wasn’t violent? Wasn’t painful? Instead was filled with the richest sense of renewal and fresh life. It was the antithesis of pain. Of suffering. Of our mortal tether to human life.

But he said none of those things.

Instead he reached for his glass of wine and sat back in his chair, a bastard of the first order who wouldn’t break or bend, acquiesce or yield.

He was Helios.

And his secret was not to be shared or entrusted to another.

* * *

Gabe finalized preparations for their evening plans in the security center, his gaze on the screens that captured all the action down at Flame. His brother had been there for some time, his beautiful companion seated across from him, and the two were deep in heated conversation.

Normally, he wouldn’t have given a shit if Rafe had a date. His brother’s chosen arm candy for the evening always lit up a room—always drew attention to their perfect faces and even more perfect figures—and he’d grown used to the steady parade. What had become something of a family joke, his brother’s refusal to go anywhere near the merest whiff of settling down, had a certain sort of comfort to it.

A predictability Gabe had never really appreciated.

Especially when now faced with Evangeline Kennedy. As stunning as every other woman Rafe had ever escorted, there was something else. Something more. The woman was unique, her vibrancy extending beyond the simply physical.

And she was the first of any of their acquaintances to put them at risk. Add on Rafe’s recent Rejuvenation—totally out of pattern—and something didn’t sit well with him.

Gabe had gone back and reexamined the file, Evangeline’s sad past coming to life in each and every word. Despite his wariness, he hadn’t been unaffected by what he’d read. Or what he knew needed to be done. Hell, he liked her himself. She’d done wonders to the property in little less than a year, ran a tight ship, and the woman knew how to take care of herself. She was impressive and intriguing and he admired her.

If only…

The woman was a risk to them all. If she was a Hunter, she had far too much access. If she wasn’t, it was more than possible she could still lead the Hunters straight to their door.

Troy and Victor had been perfect examples. Both had checked out—Gabe had examined their employment files, too—yet both were on staff, plotting to do worse. Evangeline had dealt with them, but was it all an act? A show of camaraderie that would soften them up and assume she wasn’t in league with those who sought to destroy them?

He and Rafe had done everything in their power to make the Archangel a haven. They knew how to cloak and shield their existence, both from determined prying eyes and from the world around them. Add on the standard measures of security and caution required to run a world-class casino hotel and they had believed themselves safe.

Protected.

Was it an illusion? And had they really led the wolf straight to their door?

“Gabe!”

Charlie ambled up to the security station, leaning forward as he zeroed in on the image of Rafe and Evangeline. “Who is that? Wait—Evangeline?”

“Yep.”

“Rafe’s dating her now?”

“He’s watching her.”

Charlie leaned forward once more. “Damn right he is. She cleans up well.”

Charlie’s reinforcement of the scene playing out on the restaurant cameras did nothing to calm his spiking ire and Gabe tapped a few keys on the console, changing the main display. “Heard she had a tussle yesterday with a few of her employees.”

“Didn’t Trevor walk you through it?”

At Charlie’s narrowed eyes, Gabe pressed him. “I’d like it from your point of view.”

“She followed protocol to a T. Kicked both of her employees straight off the grounds for poor conduct and possible endangerment of hotel guests. Was pretty steamed about it, too, but she called Security and let us manage the removal of badges and escort off property.”

Gabe let Charlie talk, his matter-of-fact recap of events reinforcing what he already knew about the incident.

“Heard you were going to investigate them tonight yourself. Looking for company?”

“I could use an able body or two.”

“I’m in. I’m always up for a little Hunter ass-kicking.”

Reject, deflect. Parry, thrust. Like an endless dance, she and Rafe kept going round and round throughout dinner over the burning man on the hotel grounds. Oh, he’d done a good job of changing the subject, but each and every time she directed the conversation back that fruitless dance started once more.

For reasons she couldn’t quite name, that disappointed her most of all.

She liked him. When she wasn’t irritated at his obtuse behavior, she had to admit he was a charming and enjoyable dinner companion. And while he was way more than a little easy on the eyes, his appeal quickly extended beyond the physical.

It made whatever secret he was hiding that much more difficult to bear. And Evangeline wasn’t sure whether she was ready to back off or hunt down the police and the gaming commission in one fell swoop.

She knew what she’d seen. No amount of refusal or denial on Rafe’s part was going to change that. What had changed over the past two hours was her need to understand the reasons why. Why there was a burning man in the first place. Why she couldn’t see any evidence on the ground. And why nothing—absolutely nothing—showed on the security cameras.

Where she’d been initially wary that the Stavros family was hiding something illegal, or worse, committing crimes of their own, her time in close company with Rafe had shifted her direction. Her instincts might be on high alert, but increasingly it seemed there was a mystery afoot that had nothing to do with crime or greed or anything else.

The problem was, what sort of mystery would surround a man who burned to a crisp and left no detail, residue or ash behind?

Trying desperately to shake off the endless questions and keep her wits about her, she brought herself back fully to the moment. The two of them walked down the marble expanse that led from the restaurant to the indoor gardens, their steps slow and measured as Rafe asked her questions about the internal installation she’d proposed that morning.