His grin turned into a smile that warmed his eyes and that made him all the more attractive. His eyes were amazing. In the tavern they'd been ice-cold blue, like the ice in the caves that had been her home for so long. She'd been drawn to his eyes. Now they were even a deeper, richer blue, like the glittering sapphires that she'd seen in Xavier's cache of gems and artifacts he'd used for his magic. She didn't feel in the least that it was her fault she was acting like a ninny, not when he had those blue eyes.
She held up her hand. "But, here's the thing, Fen. I'm not going to leave my lifemate, or any Carpathian in trouble. So why are you under a death threat and from whom?"
He shook his head. "Woman, you do know how to complicate things, don't you?"
She liked the idea that she did. She liked the idea of complicating his life. She'd never had that experience before and she found she was quite proud of her abilities.
His smile widened, and she realized she hadn't taken care to guard her mind from him. He was there before she realized, pouring warmth into her, filling every barren lonely place, fusing with her mind, joining them together. She caught glimpses of his memories, but she found them strange, not Carpathian.
"You like messing with me," he accused, but the laughter in his voice and the warmth in his incredibly blue eyes belied any anger.
She'd never "messed" with anyone before. It took a moment to translate the modern jargon in her mind, but yes, she quite liked "messing" with him. He was providing several new and exhilarating experiences. "I do, yes." The smile faded from her face. "Those three men waiting to jump me don't really present a threat to either one of us, but you're very serious about this death threat. Is Zev hunting you? Is that why you said he was so dangerous?"
He sighed and tucked her hand against his chest. "You're really going to insist on an explanation, aren't you? If anyone finds out you know, they would come after you."
She lifted her chin. "I'm not afraid, Fen. I've faced monsters you cannot conceive of . . ." She studied his rugged features, the lines in his face. "Maybe you can. But the point is, I will not run from trouble. I'm not going to hide. Just tell me why."
"Centuries ago, I was hunting a particularly savage vampire. I'd never run across one so powerful and brutal. He was destroying entire villages, killing everyone in them, and for some reason I couldn't feel him at all, not his energy, or any of the usual means of finding a vampire. Sometimes, when hunting vampires it's what's not there that gives them away, yet I was always one step behind. I could track him by his destruction, but I couldn't get ahead of him."
Fen turned his head toward the three men waiting. Tatijana immediately realized he had been listening to them the entire time. Carpathian hunters had enormous skills, aware of their surroundings at all times, even when they seemed totally focused on one thing-one person.
She was a little disappointed that she hadn't kept his entire attention when he'd kept hers. "Seriously, those men are annoying me now." She marched toward them, forgetting that Fen was on the other end of her hand. She managed three steps and came to an abrupt halt. She swung around, scowling at him. "What are you doing?"
"Wondering what you're planning," he replied, one eyebrow raised.
She swung back to face the threat. "I'm so disgusted with the three of you," she called out. "If you're planning on jumping us, get it done already. I'm trying to have an important conversation and Fen here is having difficulty concentrating. So either gather up your courage and come out into the open where the two of us will annihilate you, or slink on home."
Fen burst out laughing. The rich, husky tone was so unexpected, so masculine that the sound seemed to reverberate through her body, sending little shock waves of electrical current sizzling through her bloodstream.
"I'm not having difficulty concentrating," he said, his voice dropping an octave. "I'm hanging on your every word."
She gave a little delicate sniff. "You're supposed to be explaining yourself. When one's lifemate refuses to claim his woman, there should be a reasonable explanation."
"You have no desire for me to claim you," he pointed out.
"That's beside the point."
Fen found himself grinning. The three humans waiting in the brush were discussing what to do next now that the element of surprise was gone. The one continued to try to persuade the other two that they were drunk and going to get into trouble. That he couldn't have them hurting a woman.
Fen didn't care one way or another if they attacked, but he was truly fascinated by the woman who all but stamped her foot at him. As a rule, Carpathian women were tall with dark hair. Tatijana was on the diminutive side, with light ever-changing hair and her amazing emerald eyes.
The vivid colors, after centuries of no color and then spotty, muddy hues, were almost blinding. The joy of feeling filled him even as the intensity of emotions nearly overwhelmed him.
"I want the explanation and I think, as your lifemate, I deserve to hear it." She sounded both snippy and regal if that combination was at all possible.
"And no matter what, you aren't going to do the practical thing and leave me, are you?" he asked.
She had him. The mystery and intrigue surrounding her drew him almost as much as the call of her soul to his. The pull between them was very strong, and he wasn't certain, in the end, he would have the strength to watch her walk away.
"Of course not. Do you think I'm a coward?" She tossed her head like a fractious filly, indicating the three men now arguing in low tones they thought couldn't be overheard. "Like them? I am Carpathian. I may not have practical experience in a battle, but I certainly have knowledge of every kind of enemy and how best to defeat them. I will never run from a fight, nor will I accept another's command over me."
She was . . . magnificent. The moon was mostly obscured by the veil of mist, yet her long braid seemed to give off sparks.
"How did you get your knowledge?" Fen asked.
She shrugged. "Perhaps you know the name of my father. He was the most powerful mage ever known, Xavier. He was a false friend to the Carpathian people, tricking them for years into thinking the alliance between mage and Carpathian was strong. He wanted immortality and the Carpathians did not give him their secret. He killed my mother's lifemate and held her prisoner, as only the most powerful mage could. He forced her to have his children, triplets, two girls and a boy. My sister, Branislava, my brother, Soren, and me. He needed us for our blood."
Fen was shocked and he knew it showed on his face. "I studied with this man, centuries ago. We all did. No one knew of his treachery?"