Archangel's Blade (45 page)

“They're fine.” Walking to the territorial map on the stone wall of his office, Hawke tapped a large cross-hatched section below what had been SnowDancer's defensive line in the fight against Pure Psy. “Felix's volunteers and conscripts”—a sharp grin—“are planting the area with fast-growing natives, but for now, it's so open it's easy to monitor, especially with the cats sharing the watch.”

Adria thought of what she'd seen on that battlefield filled with the screams of wounded SnowDancers, the cold amber and red of a flame so hypnotic and deadly, and wondered at the cost paid by the young Psy woman who held all that power—and their alpha's heart. “What are the chances of another Pure Psy attack?” she asked, intrigued on the innermost level by a relationship that appeared so very unbalanced on the outside, and yet one that was as solid as the stone of the den.

It was Riaz who answered. “According to Judd's sources, close to nil. They've got worse problems.”

“Civil war,” Hawke said, shaking his head. “If he's right, there'll be no avoiding the impact—so we make sure we're prepared to weather any storms.”

Nodding in agreement, she left the office with the man whose very scent—dark, woodsy, with a sharp citrus tone—made her skin itch. “We should get some food.” The drive wouldn't be quick, plus Mack and his tech, who had probably not planned to be up there this long either, would be hungry.

“Should be something in here,” Riaz said, walking into the senior soldiers' break room.

They worked with honed efficiency to slap together some sandwiches and were ready to go ten minutes later. Clenching her abdominal muscles as she got into the vehicle with Riaz, Adria told herself to focus on the route, the geography, anything but the potent, masculine scent of the man in the driver's seat . . . because she knew full well why he incited such violence in her.

 

 

Riaz drove them out of the garage, and into the mountains,
very aware of the cool silence of the woman with him. The more time he spent with her, the more he realized how unlike Indigo she was, in spite of the superficial similarity of their looks. One of the reasons he'd always enjoyed the other woman's company was her upfront nature—Adria, by comparison, was a closed box with Do Not Enter signs pasted on every surface.

He understood that. Hell, he had his own “no go” zones, but with Adria, it was armor of broken glass that drew blood. “This track,” he said, doing his job because personality clash or not, he knew his responsibilities, “is the most direct route to the hydro station.”

“Not according to the map Hawke gave us.” A quick, penetrating glance. “So what's wrong with the other road?”

Man and wolf both appreciated her intelligence, something neither part of him had ever doubted, even when she was slicing into him with her verbal claws. “Sheer cliff face right in the middle.” Making two tight turns, he continued onward. “Meant to delay any aggressors if they ever get that far.”

Adria didn't say anything for several long minutes, studying the map and their passage into the mountains. “I'll need to request another senior soldier go with me on some of my exploratory trips, so I don't miss things like that.”

“I'll take you,” Riaz said, because damn it, he was a lieutenant, even when it came to a prickly piece of cactus like Adria. “Indigo made sure I was familiar with the details after I came back from my posting in Europe. It'll be good for me to go over the knowledge.”

Adria blinked, taken by surprise. “I appreciate it.” It was the only thing she could say without giving everything away.

Riaz snorted, his hands strong and competent on the manual steering wheel as he navigated a particularly steep embankment. “About as much as you appreciate a root canal, but whatever your problem with me, we have to work together.”

Setting her jaw, she focused on the view beyond the window—of the most magnificent scenery on this earth. Summer was fading, though autumn hadn't yet arrived, and the land was swathed in dark green, the peaks in the distance touched with white.

A flash of movement.

“Who's that?” She jerked forward to watch a big tan-colored wolf race across a meadow to the left, chasing a sleek silver wolf she immediately recognized. “He's being rough with Evie.” Fury boiled in her blood. “Stop the car.”

Riaz's chuckle held pure male amusement, fuel to her temper. “That's Tai, and Evie won't appreciate the interruption, Aunt Adria.”

Biting back her harsh response, Adria glanced at the two wolves again, saw what she'd missed at first glance. They were playing, all teeth and claws, but with no real aggression to it. Just as Riaz turned a corner, cutting off the view, the two wolves nuzzled one another and Adria realized Tai and Evie weren't just playing, they were courting. “She's too young.” While Indigo was very close to Adria in age, Evie was much younger.

“She's still a wolf, an adult female wolf,” Riaz said, pushing the car into hover drive to negotiate a damaged section of the road. “You might have forgotten, Ms. Frost, but touch is necessary for most of our kind.”

Her hand fisted, that nerve far too close to the surface.

It had been a year since she'd been in a sexual relationship, a rawly painful kind of isolation for a wolf in the prime of her life. But she'd been handling it, until Riaz and the raging storm of a sudden, visceral sexual attraction that terrified her.

“If we're throwing stones,” she said, protecting herself by going on the offensive, “I'm not the only one who prefers a cold bed.” Riaz was a highly eligible male—the fact he'd taken no lovers was a point of irritation with the women who wanted nothing better than to tussle with him. “Maybe that's why you're such a prick.”

Riaz's snarl was low, rolling over her skin with the power of his dominance. Wrenching the wheel, he brought the SUV to a stop on the side of the road. “I've had it.” Turning off the engine, he turned to her. “What the
hell
is your problem with me?”

“Drive,” she said, almost ready to crawl out of her skin with the need to rip off his T-shirt and use her teeth on all that hot, firm muscle. “Mack is waiting for us.”

“He can wait a few more minutes.” Golden eyes that were no longer in any way human slammed into hers. “You've had a hard-on for me since you transferred to the den. I want to know why.”

Gut twisting, she snapped off her safety belt and pushed open her door to step out into the cold mountain air. The chill did nothing to cool the fever in her blood, the need ravaging her body, threatening to make her a slave when she'd finally found freedom. Desperate, she concentrated on the majesty of her surroundings in an effort to fight the tumult inside her. In front of her lay tumbled glacial rocks, huge and imposing, beyond them the dark green of the firs that dominated this area. Above it all was a sky so blue it hurt.

The slam of a door, followed by the thud of boots on the earth shattered her fragile attempt at control, and then Riaz was standing in front of her, blocking the view. “We are not leaving,” he said, his skin caressed by the sunlight that gilded his hair a gleaming blue-black, “until we work this out.”

Feeling trapped, suffocated, she shoved at his chest and slipped out to stand beside the car rather than with her back to it. “I'm not the only one who has a problem. You've been picking at me since the day I was pulled into the den.”

He growled and the rough sound rasped over her nipples, wrapped around her throat. “Self-fucking-defense. You took one look at me and decided you hated my guts. I want to know why.”

Jesus, Adria thought, how had she gotten herself into this? “Look,” she said, deciding to back down before her wolf took control and she found herself feasting on male lips currently thin with anger, “it's nothing personal. I'm generally a bitch.” According to Martin, she was one with a stone heart.

“Nice try”—a harsh laugh that held nothing of humor—“but I've seen you with others in the pack.” He took another step toward her, invading her space and her senses.

Hell if she was going to allow him to walk all over her. “Get out of my face.”

“You sure you want me to?” he asked, a dangerous look to him. “Maybe the reason you react like a hissing cat around me is because you want me even closer.”

She sucked in a breath.

Riaz's eyes widened.

Psy-Changeling Series
SLAVE TO SENSATION
VISIONS OF HEAT
CARESSED BY ICE
MINE TO POSSESS
HOSTAGE TO PLEASURE
BRANDED BY FIRE
BLAZE OF MEMORY
BONDS OF JUSTICE
PLAY OF PASSION
KISS OF SNOW

 

Guild Hunter Series
ANGELS' BLOOD
ANGELS' PAWN
(A Berkley Sensation eSpecial)
ARCHANGEL'S KISS
ARCHANGEL'S CONSORT
ARCHANGEL'S BLADE

 

Anthologies
AN ENCHANTED SEASON
(with Maggie Shayne, Erin McCarthy, and Jean Johnson)
THE MAGICAL CHRISTMAS CAT
(with Lora Leigh, Erin McCarthy, and Linda Winstead Jones)
MUST LOVE HELLHOUNDS
(with Charlaine Harris, Ilona Andrews, and Meljean Brook)
BURNING UP
(with Angela Knight, Virginia Kantra, and Meljean Brook)