Keeping the fact that he was a different species from her was going to be difficult. Other Carpathians lived among humans and had perfected the art of blending in. Andre had perfected the art of avoiding contact with them. This woman was his lifemate, and she would have to know, sooner or later, that she was his and belonged in his world, but she’d already suffered a trauma and he didn’t want to compound that, especially after she’d confided in him about her grandmother.
“Well, I didn’t suffer so much as I was scared,” Teagan admitted reluctantly. She watched him set the kettle in the flames. She winced. “Andre, you’re going to get burned doing it like that. It’s hard to believe you camped out before.”
He hadn’t felt the heat of the flames. He could call down lightning and not get burned, fire wasn’t going to do anything to him, not unless he was in the paralyzed sleeping state of his people. “I will be more careful.”
She studied his face. “You don’t like to be around people, do you?”
Andre turned his gaze to her face. She was definitely a natural empath. He had been intrigued with her gentle nature and the unexpected strengths that suddenly rushed to the forefront. Her very nature had to always be at war. She was a fierce little warrior who definitely had a clear line of justice she didn’t want crossed and would fight if necessary. She was also a healer and protector, one who would face her greatest fears in order to help others.
“I find I like being around you,” he admitted. He wasn’t certain if that was something he should say, but she was his lifemate and he didn’t want to lie to her. “Ordinarily, I find people trying, but you are very soothing. You also make me want to smile. I had forgotten what that is like.” That also was the truth. He had forgotten emotion.
Like every Carpathian, he had clung to his memories of emotion after feelings had faded, leaving him in a bleak world of gray. Unfortunately, as the centuries went by, he had even forgotten the memories—at least any good ones, if there had been any. He found he couldn’t relive them through the minds of others. Emotions had receded too far for him to recapture them. Now, feelings were so vivid and alive, pouring through him, he was nearly overwhelmed, and most centered around this woman.
She sent him one look from under her lashes. Her features were so beautiful to him, he had to keep himself from staring, so he busied himself making certain the water in the kettle boiled fast. He couldn’t resist touching her mind to see what that look meant. He found wariness. She wasn’t used to compliments and it made her a little nervous that he gave her one. But she was pleased. Secretly she hugged his words to her. That made him want to smile as well.
She didn’t see herself at all the way he saw her. In her mind, she had an image of what beauty in a woman was. Her sisters. Taller. Curvy bodies. Long legs. Lots of curly hair and makeup. He supposed they were beautiful in their own way, probably by human standards as well.
Teagan was so much more to him. He would never be able to explain it to her. He liked that she was petite and slight. He liked that she had the spirit of a warrior. It didn’t mean she didn’t have fears, but she faced them head-on. He especially liked that she loved her grandmother with the same fierce protection she would have for their children.
Teagan shifted back and he could see immediately she was uncomfortable.
“Is your leg hurting again?”
She shook her head. “No. I climb.” At his raised eyebrow, she gave him a faint smile. “You know. Boulders. Cliffs. Rock. I love climbing, especially bouldering, but I took a pretty bad fall right before I came here. I was working on this problem and I was literally on the last move before I topped out and I knew I should have pushed off from the boulder and let it go when my foot slipped, but I was so close to victory that I could taste it, so I hung on like an idiot.”
He had scanned her body for injuries, but he had concentrated on injuries she’d suffered from the attack on her by Jashari, not older ones. He cursed silently. He would have to be much more thorough in the future with her.
She shot him a small grin. “Grandma Trixie says I have a stubborn streak with a dash of crazy.”
“What happened?”
“I fell, of course. First I tore the skin off my fingers and when I fell, it wasn’t the graceful falls I’m so known for. I hurt my shoulder.” She rubbed her hand along her right shoulder. “It was my fault, but it still hurts. Funny that I can heal everyone’s injuries but not my own.”
“Let me.” It wasn’t a question. Or a plea. He had to heal the injury. He had no choice. The need was more than a compulsion, it was as necessary as breathing.
Teagan gave him a faint smile and shook her head.
Andre ignored the head shake as if he hadn’t noticed. He didn’t wait for her consent. She was his woman. She was injured. There was nothing to talk about. He moved with his blurring speed, one moment on the opposite side of the fire so she felt safe, the next he was beside her, his hands gentle on her shoulder.
Her bones were small. She was very slender, but her muscles were surprisingly firm. She was in very good shape. He could feel her strength beneath her soft skin, the gentle ripple of muscle. Still, his fingers could close around her upper arm.
“Um . . .” Teagan trailed off, biting her lip. She didn’t trust him enough to touch her so intimately, and up close, he was just plain scary. But his hands felt warm and gentle on her and already she could feel the heat going into her muscle.
“It would be impossible for a man such as me to allow you to continue in pain,” he said softly, distractedly.
She bit her lower lip a little harder, reminding herself he had taken that pain away and with it, the memory of how Armend attacked her had diminished just a little. His body was close to hers, almost surrounding her. The way he sat, his knees apart, her back to his front, her body wedged between his thighs, his heat warming her more than the fire, was terrifying. Not because she feared him or felt threatened, but because her body reacted to his.
The reaction was shocking, exhilarating, astonishing and proved there was absolutely nothing wrong with her when it came to men and sex. She’d never felt the rush before, the heat moving through her veins or the way her breasts could ache with sudden need. She loved the sensation, mostly because she’d never managed to feel it for anyone else.
Still, it was a little unsettling having him so close and she was afraid he would notice the change in her breathing, the slight trembling in her body at his touch. His hands were large and very soothing on her aching shoulder, but the effects of his touch didn’t stop there.
“Um . . .” she started again. “Andre, maybe this isn’t such a good idea.”
“Csitri. Ainaak terád vigyázak.”
She frowned. When he spoke in his language—and she couldn’t understand a word of it and she was pretty good with languages—he sounded sexier than ever. His tone was pitched low and seemed to move over her skin in a caress. She really didn’t understand how a voice or tone could do that to her, but it did.
“I don’t understand what that means.”