Bugger. He was sounding paranoid. But it was too much of a coincidence that Angus and Emma had wanted him to see a psychologist, and then one magically appeared. "Ye swear Angus dinna send ye here?"
"I swear. I told you, I work for the FBI. I specialize in criminal psychology, so you're of no interest to me." She gave him a wry look. "Unless you're a criminal."
He cocked a brow at her. "Did Sean Whelan send you?"
"I don't know him."
"He works for the CIA."
"So the CIA is out to get you, too?"
He gritted his teeth. "I'm no' paranoid!"
"Maybe you should check the lemon trees," she whispered, pointing in their direction. "They could be bugged."
"Woman - " He paused when her brown eyes flashed. Lord Almighty, she was beautiful. "Maybe I should strip you to check for bugs."
Her cheeks turned a rosy pink. "Maybe you should leave."
He swallowed hard. What the hell was he doing? "I¨CI apologize. I wouldna strip you." Tonight.
She refused to look at him and motioned to the stairs.
He trudged toward them. What a fool he was. Accusing her of working for Angus, insulting her.
The stairwell loomed before him, dark and ominous. He hesitated, suddenly feeling like the stairs descended into the pits of hell itself. Could he return to a life filled with nothing but rage and revenge?
No laughter. No flirtation. No Olivia.
His heart sank with a heavy sense of loss. "I'm truly sorry, lass. I dinna mean to insult you."
He glanced at her and noted the tears in her eyes.
"Doona be sad. 'Twas my fault for reacting so badly to yer job. I'm sure ye're a verra fine psychologist. I just doona want to talk about certain...things. I see no point in opening old wounds."
She sighed. "I understand. But it doesn't...change anything. You might as well go."
She looked so defeated, and he had no idea why. He hated to see her this way. "Why are ye so sad?"
She rubbed her brow as if her head hurt. "Things never work out for me. They all go."
"Who?"
"Men. Dates. I get my hopes up, then they learn the truth about me and hightail it away as fast as they can."
He studied her curiously. He'd thought he was the one with the dark secret. He inhaled deeply of her scent. Not a shape-shifter. Deliciously sweet as only a mortal could be. Blood Type A negative. "Ye're verra clever and beautiful. I canna imagine why any man would leave you."
"That's kind of you to say, but..." She took a deep breath and released it with a whoosh. "I'm an empath. I can sense people's feelings. I even see them in color if the emotions are really strong."
He winced. "Ye know what I'm feeling?" He'd been fighting a major case of lust all evening.
"It gets even worse," she continued. "I can tell when people are lying, like a human lie detector. Comes in real handy in my line of work, but it's the pits for personal relationships. The minute a guy lies to me, I tell him to hit the road."
Just like she was doing to him. Robby thought back over their conversation. He might have hedged a few times, but he'd actually told her more about himself than he'd originally intended. She'd been so easy to talk to. "I dinna lie to you, lass."
She bit her lip, frowning.
"Since I'm no' a liar, ye must want me to leave because ye think I'm crazy? I'm no' crazy. Yer lie detecting skills should tell you I'm speaking the truth."