was strained. “However, I’d like to know what’s going on.”
“Lann isn’t a criminal,” Kat said.
“Is that so?” Gideon left his cup on the coffee table. “What does he do for a living?”
“He’s into property development and communications.”
“Is that what he told you?”
“I should know. I’m living with him.”
Gideon regarded her with a skeptical look. “Where exactly have you been living for the past few days?”
She thought quickly. She’d already slipped to her parents that they’d been in France. They could’ve told Gideon. “We went on a holiday.” She left out the destination, just in case her parents hadn’t mentioned it.
Gideon turned to her dad. “John, do you mind giving us a moment?”
John got to his feet. “I’ll go check if there’s mail.”
When her dad had left, Kat stared at Gideon, allowing her anger to show. “Agent who, did you say?”
“I didn’t,” he said. “Agent Richardson, but you can call me Gideon.”
“Agent Richardson, go to hell.”
In a flash, he was on her side of the sofa, his hand in her hair. She whimpered as he yanked. Sharp pain assaulted her scalp. She opened her mouth to scream for Lann, but Gideon put a finger on her lips.
“Shh,” he said. “Or I’ll kiss you quiet, understand?”
His threat worked. She kept her mouth shut, but she hoped he could see the disgust in her eyes.
“That’s better.” He smiled. “I’m not going to hurt you. I’m trying to protect you. He’s not what you think he is.” She tried to move away, but he kept her in place. “He’s evil. He’s involved in forbidden magic. No matter what he told you, you can’t believe him. He’s a user, a charmer, and a liar. He eats trusting, pretty women like you for breakfast.” His nostrils flared. “You’re nothing more to him than a means to an end.”
“A means to what end?” she asked through clenched teeth.
“A breeding machine.”
Richardson, as she’d decided to call him, let her go. Her scalp ached, but she refused to rub away the sting and give him the satisfaction of knowing he’d hurt her.
“Don’t touch me again,” she hissed.
She could scream for Lann now, but she feared for him. What if Richardson carried a weapon? What if he was wired? Were reinforcements waiting outside? She looked at the waistband of his jeans. It fitted too snugly to conceal a gun.
“I don’t want to hurt you,” he said, “not with my actions or words, but the man you think you love, is going to hurt you. Now, listen. We have little time. He’s a criminal involved in serious crimes. He has a price on his head. If you help us to nail him, I’ll offer you protection.”
She almost laughed, but Richardson gripped her chin, applying too much pressure and preventing her from uttering a sound.
“He’s trying to make you pregnant.”
She went hot and cold, not sure if the pricks on her skin were from heat or ice. She gritted her teeth as Richardson’s dug his fingers painfully into her cheeks.
Abruptly, he let go. “I put a mark on you. Sometimes I forget my strength.”
She touched her sore jaw. If he had marked her, he was a dead man. Lann would have his head before they walked out the door.
When he touched her cheek, she jerked back. “I said, don’t touch me.”
His eyes turned hard. “Did you hear what I said?”
“Which part?” she bit out.
“The part about him fucking you to make you pregnant.”
She flinched. “Why would you say something like that?”
“Look, I know it’s hard to take in. If I had more time, I wouldn’t throw this at you. We’ve been after his ass for years. He’s an aeromancist. Do you know what that is?”
“I study ancient scripts, Richardson.”
His nostrils flared at the use of his surname, but he ignored it. “His kind is hunted for a reason. They use dark magic to manipulate, kill, and take power. His nickname is Weatherman. He uses his businesses as a disguise for the illegal actions he’s involved in. He’s the worst kind of mafia there is. He needs to reproduce, and you’re the chosen one. He’s going to make you carry his bastard, and then kill you.”
The insinuation made her tremble. “How did you find all of this out?” she asked in a thin voice.
“I have my sources.”
“None of it is true. Lann isn’t what you say he is.”
He chuckled. “Son of a bitch. You love him, don’t you? He manipulated you into falling in love with him.”
“I do love him.” She fixed Richardson