the ropes. She was too vulnerable and open to him. Too connected to him. That was the one place she was honest with him whether she wanted to be or not. He had to be careful though. He couldn’t use that too much or too often. In any case, he would prefer to have her trust him. He wanted her to want to get to know him. To want to share his home.
Shturm leapt just as he scented her. It was more than scenting her. He felt her in his skin, that was how connected to her he was. He looked up, watching her come to him. She looked confident, very much Flambé, but he knew her every subtlety now, every little sign, and she was nervous. It was there in the tension of her fingers as she twisted them together to keep them still as she descended the staircase. It was the way she held her head, her shoulders very straight, not nearly as relaxed as normal. She definitely had a problem relating to him when they were alone and they weren’t having sex.
Deliberately, he allowed his gaze to sweep over her, and then he held out his hand. She had no choice but to take it or to be rude. There was just the briefest of hesitations before she put her hand in his. He doubted if too many others would have even noticed the slip. He closed his fingers around hers firmly and drew her in close to his body, walking her to the front door.
“I thought we could walk around to the back of the house to warm up and then jog to the woods and run once we get in them. You had to have created pathways between the trees and I’d like to see the new ones that were planted. It looks so beautiful from a distance and I haven’t had time to get up close to appreciate it. You do amazing work, Flambé. I don’t tell you enough.”
She glanced up at him, looking surprised. “You tell me.”
“No, I don’t. I have to drive around the city quite a bit with Mitya and I make it a practice to find all the places you’ve worked. I like to see what you’ve done. I know it has nothing at all to do with me, but it gives me a sense of pride that I even know you when I look at the various places you’ve transformed. The downtown park in particular was the biggest shock to me. I saw all the before and after pictures. That was your project alone, wasn’t it? Your vision?”
He felt the tension slowly leaving her body. She did love her work, another connection he could make with her if she just would let him. He hadn’t realized until he was around her how much he liked plants and trees. It was the leopard in him, needing to climb, needing the camouflage around him.
“I underbid that project for the city, but I really wanted to do it,” Flambé admitted. “I wanted a place for everyone of all ages to be able to go. Somewhere peaceful.”
“I think you managed it beautifully and it seems easy to maintain.”
“I tried. The other project I really enjoyed was the Golden Dragon Restaurant. They have such a beautiful piece of property to work with and the owner just let me do what I felt was best. Most owners have a million ideas and they don’t have a clue what types of plants work with their soil or terrain. I was able to give him a small fall tumbling over rocks into a small stream that feeds a koi pond. The gardens are gorgeous and grew up fast. I wanted the trees to be colorful, and Japanese maples fill that bill, especially dwarf maples, but the sun is too hot here for them.”
Her voice was still low and husky, but her joy created an intimacy between them that hadn’t been there before. He had slowed his steps to match her shorter ones. He wanted to watch her face, but he’d been too long in security, always looking out for danger, and she was too precious to him to take chances with. His gaze swept the roof of every building, rocks, bushes, trees, anything that might hide an enemy, but his attention was riveted on her. He counted on his leopard to be a sentry, to warn him if there was trouble close by.