“They have huge shoes,” she murmured, almost daring him to dispute her.
“That’s not what they say.” But he wasn’t going to ask her to tell him. She had to learn to trust one way or the other. For now, he gripped the handle of the door and yanked it open. Cold air rushed in, and he straightened at the rush of fresh coolness. Fiona tucked the robe tighter against her naked body and shuddered.
The sudden wash of wintry sunlight blinded him momentarily. The light itself didn’t quite reach inside the door, though the radiance brightened the gloom so intensely, he almost found himself reconsidering the generator idea of Fin’s. Maybe more light would make Fiona more comfortable. While she would run, perhaps they could delay it.
She started forward a step, and he gripped the doorframe, blocking her. “Be aware,” he told her. “It may burn.”
Suspicion roused in her narrow-eyed gaze. “May?”
“May.”
“That’s very non-specific.”
“As are we all,” he reminded her.
“Oh, so you’re a hybrid, too?” A smirk flirted with her mouth. “Vampire and what?”
“Older.” It wasn’t the answer she wanted, and the perfect symmetry of her face coupled with the husky laughter as she shook her head teased him. There was just a hint of green circling her red irises. They had likely been the color of a forest in full spring. Green, rich, and verdant… The sound of his brothers approaching reached him. If he wanted to test the baby vamp’s survival skills, now was the time to do it before her erstwhile and self-appointed protectors arrived.
Removing his hand, he straightened and then motioned for her to precede him. He was fast enough to snatch her back inside if she began to burn. Unlike the ridiculous films Fin took him to see, they did not fall to ash in seconds. Burning someone alive took considerably more effort.
Most of them could survive it, even if it wasn’t pleasant. And only someone suicidal or an idiot stayed where they were on fire without trying to put it out.
Instead of rushing through the open door, she hesitated.
Smart.
His admiration climbed a notch.
“What’s the catch?”
Leaning against the open door, he folded his arms. “You wanted to know if you could see the sun. There it is.”
“But it may hurt.”
Another nod.
“You don’t know if it will burn me or not.”
He shook his head.
“You’re very not hyper-verbal.”
“I say what I need to say. Your lips are going to turn blue, are you going out or not?”
The shivers had been subtle at first, but she fisted her hands and folded her arms, hiding them. The cold air pouring in was not doing her any favors. She’d end up back in the bathing room until they chased away the chill.
“Wait,” Fin called.
“Too late,” Rogue murmured. “Your keepers are here.” It was an unkind jab, but instead of rushing out to flout the possessiveness of his assessment and acting predictably, she glanced from him to where Fin and Maddox had slowed only a few steps away. The pair had taken the time to find clothing, though Maddox skipped any boots and Fin had found his coat.
“Kitten,” Maddox said, almost placating. “We weren’t trying to hide anything from you. But everyone reacts to sunlight differently. It may do nothing. It might burn. It might just be uncomfortable.”
“But we don’t know,” Fin picked up the thread. “Throwing you out there without any idea is dangerous. You’re still in transition, and some people should remember how precarious that is.”
“I oversaw both of yours,” Rogue told him without taking his gaze off of Fiona. “I think I’m well aware.” They might want to patronize her, but they wouldn’t with him.
“We know,” Maddox growled. “You have to stop just taking her without waiting for us.”
“Or what?” Genuinely curious, he slanted a look toward him. Would Maddox truly challenge him over Fiona? That could almost be interesting.
“Stop running your heads together like bulls vying for her attention,” Fin stated dryly. “This isn’t about us.” And really, Rogue? You’re baiting Maddox right now?
Rogue didn’t have to bait the dragon. The dragon had already begun to stake its claim, and it would fight for its territory whether the man or the vampire realized it yet.
Trouble.
She might not fit with them the way they so clearly wanted her to, and no matter how much she intrigued him, Rogue couldn’t allow her to tear his brothers apart.
Still, she looked from them to the open door then back.