The Last Warrior (Shifters Unbound #13) - Jennifer Ashley Page 0,64

created with it, and how it had led into an even greater dance.

“True. But you know, we should keep training.”

Rhianne’s eyes lit with amusement. “What am I going to do with you?”

Ben pretended to think about this. “I have a few ideas.”

Rhianne laughed. As Ben began to pull her to him, his phone buzzed. Stifling impatience, he flipped it open.

“Damn. Millie’s texting me already.”

Rhianne gathered close. The text message blurred as Ben’s blood seared with her nearness.

Being inside Rhianne had been incredible. Ben wanted to go there again and never come out. Mating frenzy, he figured. It was catching, and Ben was happy to succumb.

“She wants to meet,” Ben announced. “Says she has some important information for me.”

“Oh.” Rhianne’s breath wafted on his cheek.

“At City Park. Interesting choice—it’s very public. I can go see what she means while you sit tight.”

Rhianne’s brows drew down. “If sit tight means I stay here and you go alone, I say no. The first thing she tried to do was kill you.”

Ben closed his phone and slid it into his pocket then turned to press a kiss to her cheek. “No, sweetheart. She first tried to attack you. She didn’t realize who I was.”

“Uh huh.” Rhiannon didn’t soften. “As soon as she did realize who you were, she tried to kill you. And you want to go meet her by yourself? Why not take along someone who has a word of power at her disposal, who might perhaps be able to turn into an eagle and assist you? Or, let me go instead of you. I can find out what she really wants before I let her near you again.”

Her protectiveness warmed spaces inside Ben that had been cold a long time. He’d never let her go alone, but it was sweet that she offered.

“I want you here, safe, where the house can protect you.”

Rhianne assumed a stubborn expression. “Tiger told me that whenever I was with you, I’d be safe. No matter where you happened to be. Also that I was supposed to look after you.”

“Tiger says a lot of indecipherable things.”

Her eyes hardened. “His words seemed very clear to me.”

Ben scowled as he pondered his choices. He really did want to know what Millie had to say. Even though he didn’t trust her an inch, he wanted to trust her. And that was even worse, because then he couldn’t trust himself.

He also did not want to leave Rhianne behind. What if she went outside the house’s boundaries, unaware of exactly where those were? Or what if Ivor succeeded in breeching the house? What kind of damage could he do to Rhianne before the house stopped him, if it could? Ivor had already been strong enough to reach through the ley lines and attack them.

“Tell you what,” he said. “We’ll both go. We’ll stand like twenty feet from Millie and hear her out. But we need to be careful, because goblins can be tricky.” He huffed a laugh. “Trust me. I know this. After that, we can go see Lily again and find out if she has any deets about the danger she sees and what we can do about it.”

They argued further, but it felt good to argue with Rhianne. Like they were intimate enough to have arguments.

In the end, they left the house together and Ben guided Rhianne out the back door to the shed where he’d left his motorcycle.

Ben liked the feeling of Rhianne wrapped around him as they rode into the city. He was soon weaving through the familiar streets of New Orleans to City Park, on the north side of town near Lake Pontchartrain for the meeting.

Millie was already there. She waited for them under a tall, ancient live oak—an innocuous woman in her blouse and pedal pushers, her glasses firmly perched on her nose, her handbag clutched in two hands.

Other inhabitants of the park looked askance at Ben with his tattoos and scruffy jeans hurrying toward this woman. When they saw that Millie waited calmly, without fear, the walkers strolled on.

Ben halted within shouting distance from her, Rhianne at his side. “Okay, we’re here,” he called to Millie. “What do you want to talk about?”

“I know who you are.”

“Yeah, I know. We discussed this. I’m the one you blame for destroying our people. You tried to attack me. Not something I would forget.”

“Not only that,” Millie said. “I did some research after I left you and I know who you will be.” She pointed at Rhianne. “You