that she became lightheaded: She had had him dead. Maybe it was at the side of a slippery, winter road. Or downtown in an alley. Or on his bathroom floor, head struck on the edge of a porcelain tub.
Death came in so many forms, and after Isobel’s loss, Helania was worried that destiny was going to put a curse on anyone she loved—
Cared about, she amended. She couldn’t possibly love him this fast . . . right?
“Thank you so much for calling me.” She rubbed her aching head. “I was just really concerned about you.”
“May I come see you?” he asked. “I don’t have to stay the day, I just—”
“Yes, please. I would love to see—” The knock on her door was a surprise, and she turned around. “Is that you?”
“It is,” he said, his voice coming through both the phone connection and the thin panel.
Helania tossed her phone down, rushed over, and whipped things open. She didn’t even bother looking at him. She just went right against his body, and he was the same, his arms shooting around and holding her tight.
He smelled freshly showered, and his clothes were casual, as they had been the night before—not that she cared in the slightest about his wardrobe. The only thing that mattered was the way his heart beat evenly in his broad chest, his pulse strong. Healthy. Alive.
“Here, let’s go in,” he said as he moved them into her apartment.
As Boone closed the door and locked things up behind them, she put her hands to her cheeks. The flush that went through her made her dizzy, and she went over and sat on the sofa. Lowering her head between her knees, his loafers entered her field of vision as he came across to her.
“Are you okay?” he asked.
“Please don’t take this the wrong way, but I was worried you were dead.” She shook her head. “Yes, I realize that sounds crazy—”
“I’m so sorry.” His knees popped as he got down on his haunches. “I got caught up in something out in the field that I needed to see through. I called as soon as I could.”
Helania lifted her eyes and then brushed his face with her hand. “What happened?”
“It was awful.” He shifted over so he sat beside her among all the needlepoint pillows. “Human female. Badly hurt. I was downtown and she crossed right into my path. I didn’t want to get involved, I really didn’t, but then this guy came out behind her, chasing her with a knife. I couldn’t let that go.”
“Did you save her?”
“I did. And after I . . . resolved . . . things with the human male, I got her treated by the Brotherhood’s surgeon. They ended up taking her back to the training center, but she can’t stay there for long. I believe they’re exploring options in the human world for her, and hopefully, they’ll get her into a halfway house. As long as her memories are properly scrubbed, she won’t have any recollections of the species—and at least part of the trauma she went through.”
Helania reached for his hand. “She’s so lucky she ran into you. What did you do with the man? Did you turn him over to the police?”
“He won’t be a problem for her anymore. That’s all that matters.” Helania blinked as his meaning sunk in. “Well . . . I guess it would be hard to report the crime.”
“It does get complicated and there are rules against interacting with humans. But I couldn’t let it go. Someone needed to help her.”
Helania thought of what Craeg and Paradise had said about him, that he always did the right thing.
“I’m glad you stepped up.” She smiled. “We missed you at the meal, but you were where you needed to be.”
“I didn’t mean to disappoint you,” he said gravely. “Or make you worry.”
“Everything is better now. As long as you’re okay.”
As they stared at each other, Helania was aware of a deepening of their connection, a strengthening of the tie that had been instantaneous and was somewhat inexplicable. And yet neither of them acknowledged the profound moment.
It was too soon for words to be spoken. Too scary. And yet what was happening was very real—and maybe that was why they both stayed silent. If you found a treasure, you didn’t want to shine too bright a light on it until you were sure that you weren’t going to get mugged.
Self-protection, after all, took many forms, and not all of them