Face the Fire Page 0,35

she unlocked the door. "Sorry, Sam, no time for a neighborly chat. I have work."

"Don't pull that on me." He moved through the door with her before she could attempt to shut it and lock it in his face. "I know you."

"No, you don't." Her voice wanted to rise, and she refused to allow it. As casually as possible, she set her satchel on the front counter. "You don't know me."

"I know when you're upset. Christ, Mia, you're shaking. Your hands are like ice," he said as he snatched one and held it between his own. "Tell me what happened."

"It's nothing." She'd thought she was calm. She'd thought she was steady again. But her legs wanted to give. Pride made her lock them stiff. "Damn it, let me go."

He nearly did. "No," he decided, moving closer. "I did that once. Let's try something new." He scooped her off her feet.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?"

"You're cold, and shaking. You need to sit down. Put on a little weight, haven't you?"

She sent him one withering look. "Oh, really?"

"It looks good on you." He carried her to the sofa, set her down. He pulled the bright throw off the back and tucked it around her.

"Now. Tell me."

"Don't sit on the - " She bit off a sigh because he'd already lowered himself to the coffee table facing her. "I see you never have figured out the difference between a table and a chair."

"They're both in the furniture family. There, you've got some color coming back. Good thing I came along to annoy you."

"Just my lucky day."

He took her hand again, warming it in his. "What scared you, baby?"

"Don't call me that." He had only used that term, she remembered, when he was being particularly sweet. She let her head rest back against the cushions. "It's just . . . I had a near miss on the drive down. A dog jumped out in the road. The roads were damp with the mist, and I skidded."

His grip tightened on hers. "I don't think so."

"Why would I lie?"

"I don't know." He held on until she stopped trying to pull her hand free. "But something's off. I imagine I could find out for myself if I took a drive up the coast road."

"Don't." Fear grabbed her by the throat so that the single word was thin and urgent. "Don't," she repeated with more control. "It isn't for you, but at this point I can't be sure it won't take what it can get. Let go of my hand, and I'll tell you."

"Tell me," he countered, knowing the value of the link, "and I'll let go of your hand."

"All right," she managed after a vicious internal struggle. "Your way. This time."

She told him, sparing none of the details but keeping her tone even, almost conversational. Even so, she saw his expression change.

"Why aren't you wearing protection?" he demanded.

"I am." She lifted the trio of crystals dangling from a star-shaped pendant. "It wasn't enough. He's strong. He's had three centuries to gather his forces, nurse his powers. Even so, he couldn't cause me real harm. He can only play tricks."

"This trick might've caused you to have an accident. You were probably driving too fast."

"Please, you'll force me to pull out the old pot calling the kettle."

"I didn't nearly drive off a cliff." He pushed to his feet, paced away the terrifying image of Mia doing exactly that.

He hadn't anticipated this kind of direct, frontal attack on her. And, he thought, neither had she. Confidence in their own powers, he realized, had blindsided them.

"You'd have taken extra precautions with your home."

"I protect what's mine."

"You neglected your car," he said, tossing a look over his shoulder and having the satisfaction of seeing her flush.

"I certainly did not neglect it. I have the standard charms - "

"Standard isn't enough, as you've just discovered."

Her teeth clenched at being told how to conduct herself, but she nodded. "Point taken."

"Meanwhile, I'd prefer to give him back some of his own rather than constantly taking the defense."

She got to her feet. "This isn't for you, isn't about you."

"No point in wasting time arguing that point, as we both know I'm part of it."

"You're not one of the three."

"No, I'm not." He stepped back to her. "But I'm of the three. My blood and your blood, Mia, spring from the same pool. My power and your power feed from the same source. It links us, however much you might prefer otherwise. You need