Five little words spoken in his whiskey-rough voice and she melted. Rosemary could insist from now until doomsday that vampires were incapable of human emotions, but she was wrong. Kadie heard the wanting in Saintcrow’s voice, saw the desire in his eyes.
He slid his arm around her waist, drawing her up against him, holding her close. For a time, he simply held her, one hand lightly massaging her back.
Kiss me, she thought.
A moment later, he tilted her head up and claimed her lips with his. It was a kiss like none of the others they had shared, one filled with an aching tenderness that gradually grew deeper, more intense. It unleashed a wave of longing deep within her, a hunger for his touch, a yearning to touch him in return.
“Kadie?”
She gazed into his eyes, perhaps into his soul. He wanted her. He was a powerful creature, able to bend her will to his if he chose, capable of taking her by force. Yet he left the decision to her. How could she refuse him when she wanted him so desperately?
When she nodded, he stood, carrying her with him. His steps were long and swift as he carried her up the stairs to her room. He lowered her onto the bed, then stretched out beside her.
He cared for her.
She’d bet her life on it.
A poor choice of words, she mused.
Because that was exactly what she was doing.
He kissed her then, a searing kiss that made her toes curl with pleasure. If she was to die, she thought, there was no place she would rather do it than in Rylan Saintcrow’s arms.
In the morning, Kadie woke smiling. She lay there staring up at the ceiling for a long time, reliving the hours she had spent in Saintcrow’s arms. What an incredible lover he was, she thought, and then giggled because she had no one else to compare him to. But surely no other man was as tender. Or as inventive. A blush heated her cheeks as she recalled her wanton behavior, and the way he had urged her on, encouraging her to let go of her inhibitions.
Later, lying spent in his arms, she had asked him again where he took his rest, pouted when he refused to tell her. It wasn’t fair. She trusted him with her life. Why wouldn’t he trust her in return? Did he truly think she would betray him?
The thought made her frown. Had another woman betrayed him in the past?
She wondered about that as she showered, and again while she ate breakfast.
After doing the dishes, she felt the strangest urge to explore the turret rooms. To her disappointment, there was little to be seen. The two in front were empty. The third held a narrow cot and a wooden chair. A black iron cross adorned one wall. The fourth room had a bed, a chair, and a table. A tapestry that looked very old covered the far wall from the floor to the ceiling. The colors were faded, the edges frayed.
Head tilted to the side, she studied the tapestry. It depicted a knight in chain mail mounted on a rearing black charger. The knight wore a white surcoat emblazoned with a red cross. He held a sword in one hand and a shield in the other.
Frowning, Kadie took a step closer. Was that . . . ? It was. It was Saintcrow!
Just looking at his image made her feel warm all over. He hadn’t changed at all in over nine hundred years. She ran her fingertips over the image, then pressed her hand to the cross painted on his surcoat. And heard a strange grinding sound, like stone moving against stone.
Curious, she moved to the edge of the tapestry, pulled it away from the wall, and peered behind it to see a narrow doorway. Filled with excitement and trepidation, she opened the door, revealing a long spiral staircase.
Was Saintcrow’s lair down there?
Did she really want to know?
She worried her lower lip with her teeth, then turned and ran down the stairs to the living room. She wasn’t going down into that dark tunnel without a light of some kind. Perhaps she could find a flashlight in town. If not, then she’d use a candle to light the way.
Kadie was sure she’d set some kind of record for driving to town and back when she returned to the house. Armed with the most powerful flashlight she could find, she