suddenly show up and pretend she hadn’t seen them. She would give him a chance to explain when suddenly her heart grew cold. Samantha was in his arms. Hugging him. An embrace. A kiss! Now I have seen enough.
Stepping out from behind the tree, Keira locked eyes with Rafe, her jealous hurt and fury filling her with a white-hot rage. The shock on his face was clear.
“How could you do this to me! I thought what we had was real! I believed you! Clearly you two have been busy.” Keira sneered as her hurt took over her words.
“Keira! It’s not what it…” Rafe tried to explain.
She cut him off mid-sentence. “Oh please. No need to explain. I may be stupid but I am not that stupid. I have seen enough. I should have listened to Anne.” Rafe tried to speak but Keira interrupted him. “Oh and don’t worry, I get it. I'm just the nanny. I’m used to playing the fool. I see what’s happening. I may be a fool but I am not a total idiot.” Keira took a huge shuddering breath. “I'm officially giving you my immediate notice, Mr. Parker. I hope you two are very happy together.” Without looking back, Keira ran to the house, grabbed her purse from the front table and left without saying a word, not even sure where she could go. At the moment, anywhere but here would suffice. She was vaguely aware she might be having a meltdown, but she didn’t care. The tears came hot and fast.
Chapter 14
Dammit! How could I let this happen, Rafe thought as he watched Keira go. It was obvious that there was no talking to her at this moment. Even as he felt his heart sinking, he thought it wouldn’t have surprised him if her head started spinning around.
“I’m so sorry Rafe! It’s all my fault. I know it’s over between us. I just wanted you to know I still appreciate you. I understand why you did what you did and want you to know you will always be special to me.” She said, trying to explain.
“But did you have to kiss and hug me right at that moment!” he pleaded, half to her and half to the universe at large.
“It was only on the cheek! And I said I was sorry, it just means a lot to me that we can still work together. I don’t know what I would do if I were no longer part of the team.” She took another step back, looking suitably chastened.
“No, I understand. I’m sorry. We’ve all been through a lot lately … God knows. And her … well…it’s a miracle she hasn’t had a mental breakdown yet. But the timing here couldn’t have been worse.”
He realized that even being seen with Samantha probably wasn’t the best look for him as far as his new relationship was concerned. I should have known. Dammit. He chastised himself again. Oh well. Hopefully I can clean that up, but right now I have an even bigger problem. Still it dug at him like a burning knife in his chest. He struggled to contain the pain. His Dragon was pissed. He could feel it thrashing inside. Go to her!
He had meant to let Keira know that Samantha was a key member of the team that watched over the Void. With things heating up, he knew he would be interacting with her a lot. But with so much happening he had forgotten to have that talk. Too late to go back now. His forgetfulness may have just cost him the love of his life.
Before he could run after Keira though, Alec appeared with three of the newest recruits. Rafe had to deal with the immediate threat.
“Rafe,” he said, walking up to his friend. “Everyone is ready for the debriefing. We are meeting with Aurora in the fairy glen. If any dark creature from the Void is around, it won't be able to hear or sense us there.”
“All right,” Rafe said, still looking in the direction Keira had taken when she ran from him. “Lead the way.” I will have to deal with that later. He did his best to steel his heart. His people needed him.
The meeting consisted of Red, Aurora, Rafe, Alec, Samantha, and five others whom they recruited from the faire. There was a fairy, a lady troll almost as tall as Red, a bear shifter, a wolf shifter, and a witch; each possessed a different skillset that could prove valuable