Dark Wolf (Spirit Wild) - By Kate Douglas Page 0,38

moved close to the screen. “Hi, sweetheart. I hope you don’t mind. I’ve been listening to your conversation. Be careful, but trust your instincts and listen to what your wolf says about your man.”

“I will, Mom. But he’s not my man. Yet.”

Her mother’s soft laughter had Lily grinning. “Why do I hear a very loud but at the end of that?”

“Probably because he’s what I want. But not until I’m sure. There is so much circumstantial crap pointing toward him, that it’s almost too much.”

“What do you mean? What do you suspect?” Her dad studied her in that way he had, forcing her to work through various scenarios in her head to learn what her instincts were trying to tell her.

“Flat out? I think Aldo Xenakis is involved. I think he’s somehow controlling his son, and I also believe he’s setting him up to take the blame for the murders. I have no idea why, but I fully intend to find out.”

She heard a knock on her parents’ door. Keisha blew a kiss at the phone. “Bye, sweetie. I love you, but that’s Xandi, and grocery shopping awaits. I gotta go.”

“Bye, Mom.” She blinked back unexpected tears. “I love you, too. And thanks.”

“You okay, sweetheart?”

She grinned at her father. “You I can talk to all day and I’m fine. I see Mom, and I immediately want to come home so she can hug me and make cookies for me.”

“Your mother spoils you outrageously.”

“Not nearly as much as she spoils you.”

Her father didn’t even attempt to deny it, which made Lily even more homesick. She wanted what her mother and father had, the connection that only mated Chanku could ever feel. That sense of homecoming whether the two of them were together or apart.

She’d sensed that with Sebastian. Just a hint of the potential, and it had been so seductive. Damn it all, she wanted him to be innocent. She didn’t want to think she’d fallen for a killer, but even more important, she wanted him to be the man he seemed to be. The Sebastian Xenakis she’d made love with last night had been special. He’d been honorable and brave, and he’d shown her the stars. For that alone she would fight to prove his innocence, to know his true character.

She chatted with her dad a while longer. She missed her twin brothers and younger sister, and she really missed Alex and Uncle Stefan and Aunt Xandi. She was a pack animal. Most of the time there was no pack close by. The ones living and working in the Bay Area had lives as busy as hers—it was rare for them to get together.

She really needed to see Eve. If nothing else, connecting with the goddess who had once walked among them would ground her. It always had.

And dear goddess, but Lily needed grounding now. She looked into her father’s eyes—eyes so much like her own—and realized what she really wanted. The decision was a no-brainer. She could access the astral from just about anywhere, but it was easiest through the gateway in the cavern beneath her parents’ home.

Montana was only a short flight away. The company jet was available any time she wanted. “Dad? Are you and Mom going to be home this weekend?”

Anton’s eyes lit up. “Are you thinking of a trip home? I realize you never take vacations, but this is business, right?” He chuckled softly.

“Yeah. I need a personal chat with the chairman of the board.” She laughed, suddenly feeling freer, more grounded than she had in days. “I’ve got some things to take care of at the office, but I’ll call and have them get the small jet ready. I should be out of here before lunch.”

“I’ve missed you, Lily.”

“I miss you, too, Dad. Tell Mom I expect cookies at some point during the weekend.”

They closed the connection. Lily threw a few things in her overnight bag. She kept plenty of clothes at the house in Montana—clothing much more comfortable than the designer suits she wore each day to the office.

Throwing on a pair of jeans and a knit top, and choosing hiking boots rather than heels, she dressed for home. Her driver was waiting as she stepped through the door, but her mind wasn’t on the few things she needed to do before she could leave. No, she was already caught up in thoughts of heading home.

7

Sebastian took a last glance at the website, added a few final comments to his notebook, turned off