Silence that Sizzles (6 page)

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Kelly woke up and stretched her arms over her head. She felt sore in all the right places. Her mind was in a bemused, serene state. She smiled as she looked over and found Kyle lying next to her in the bed. Sometime during their early morning activities, they had made their way back upstairs to the bed in the loft.

Kyle was still asleep. His face was the most peaceful she had ever seen it. She put her head into her hand as she propped up onto her elbow and just enjoyed watching him in this state. He was always so serious as if he had the weight of the world on his shoulders. She liked to see this side of him. He looked younger and more relaxed. She liked to think that she had played some small part in that.

When she had gone downstairs after hearing him struggling with his nightmare, she never imagined that it would end up the way that it had, but she didn’t regret it for a single second. Kyle had played her body like it was an instrument that he was expertly in tune with from his first touch. There was something about him that was so intoxicating. She felt like she was drunk without even having taken a sip of liquor. She wanted to know everything about him. She wanted to start at the beginning.

She chuckled at that thought. They already had crossed so many lines. They knew each other pretty intimately now, and yet she felt like she was just scratching the surface of who Kyle Frost was.

“If you keep looking at me like that, I’m not going to get anything done today,” Kyle said as he opened his eyes and gazed into hers. He was awake, and he knew that she’d been staring at him. She didn’t know why that surprised her at all. The man was half animal after all.

The thought brought a flush to her cheeks. She thought the previous evening had been pretty amazing. But she had no way of knowing how she measured up to other women that Kyle might have been with in the past. She imagined that he had had his fair share of both shifters and human women over his lifetime. The man was gorgeous, and she knew he had been far from celibate. After all, that had been one of the questions on his enlistment form. Kyle had been eighteen when he enlisted in the Army, and, at that point, he had already had more sexual partners than Kelly had had in her entire lifetime. Why she remembered that detail, she really didn’t know. Clearly, Kyle had made an impression on her from the very first time she met him.

“We’re going to have to get something done, because I’d really like to have access to the rest of my clothes,” she said. She hated to ruin the moment, but she wanted to feel and look refreshed now that she and Kyle’s relationship had moved to a completely new level. She didn’t even have her toothbrush with her.

Kyle dragged a finger lazily down her cheek. “Don’t worry. I didn’t forget. We’ll get your stuff. Come on, I’ll make you some coffee and breakfast.”

“If you keep on like this, I’m gonna feel spoiled.” It was true. Kelly hadn’t found a man yet who had wanted to see her on a regular basis, much less cook for her on a regular basis.

Kyle climbed out of bed, and she found herself admiring his tight backside yet again. She wasn’t sure what he did to keep in shape, but she was more than happy to reap the benefits of it. He turned and looked over his shoulder catching her look. By the slow smile that spread across his face, she figured he had guessed exactly what she was thinking.

“Like I said, if you keep looking at me like that, I’m never going to get anything today.”

Although the idea of spending the day in bed with Kyle delighted Kelly in a way, she knew that he was right. Then Kyle’s face turned serious. “We also need to get to the bottom of your problem.”

Kelly frowned. That was the elephant in the room. She could pretend like the whole reason that she came to Kyle didn’t exist, but it did. If she wanted to have any type of life moving forward, she did need to figure out how to extricate herself from Oak Tree. She hoped that it was an easy resolution. She would expose them for their dastardly deeds, and then she could go on and start her next project somewhere else. She already had some thoughts about her next line of research, and she was eager to get back into the lab. It was her second home. She thought about discussing her thoughts with Kyle to get his feedback.

She realized with a start that she had assumed in her mind already that Kyle was going to be part of her future. They hadn’t discussed anything of the sort. She frowned again. Was this possibly just a one-night stand? She hoped not. The idea of Kyle ever being with another woman again wanted to send her into some kind of emotional fit.

“What’s that look for?” Kyle asked. “If looks could kill, somebody would be dead right now.”

“I don’t really do the kinds of things that we did last night.” It seemed the closest thing to her truth that she could say without looking like a whiny, clinging ninny.

“I’ve got a copy of the Kama Sutra downstairs if you want to pick out what to try next,” he said with a smirk.

Kelly rolled her eyes. She wondered if he was being deliberately obtuse. Probably. That was one thing that she did know about Kyle. He was quiet, but he did enjoy ribbing her just a little bit. “No, I mean I don’t normally sleep with men like this.”

“I guess I should feel flattered then.” Kyle started to get dressed. Kelly was confused. He seemed completely nonchalant about the whole thing, and that wasn’t the reaction she’d been hoping for.

She pulled the sheet around her body as she got up out of bed. She made her way into the bathroom and found her clothes in the neat pile folded on the countertop where she had left them. She looked longingly at the shower but decided it would be better to do that after she had all of her toiletries and clothes. She had to admit that she kind of liked the idea of shacking up with Kyle, even if was just for just a couple of days. She was finally going to get to see the man behind the mask.

When she came out, Kyle was gone. She made her way downstairs and found him in the kitchen. Kyle was true to his word. He made her a strong cup of coffee and another omelet. As she was chewing, she couldn’t help but watch him as he moved around the room. Kyle moved with deliberate movements as if he was stalking something. He had that look on his face that made her think he was thinking some deep, possibly dark thoughts.

She didn’t bother him with idle chitchat. She knew that would probably annoy him. He had opened his home to her, but she knew that Kyle valued the quiet. That was actually okay with her. She understood it innately. She was used to spending long spans of time alone in her lab with just her thoughts and her jazz music. She didn’t often feel the need for idle chit chat either. She didn’t think that made her like Kyle, though. She enjoyed being around people in general. She didn’t like them getting in the way of her being able to do her work.

When she was done with her food, Kyle took the plates away even though she tried to insist on cleaning up again. Kyle was efficient in his clean-up, and they were out the door on the way to the hotel less than ten minutes later.

“Do you mind if we walk?” Kyle asked.

Kelly looked down at her feet and her high heels.

Kyle grimaced. “Sorry, I didn’t even think about that.”

Kelly shrugged. “Normally you wouldn’t catch me out of my tennis shoes. This whole get up isn’t really my style.”

Kyle leaned down next to her ear. “Maybe you should consider adding it then, because you look hot as fuck.”

Kelly flushed at his coarse words, but they didn’t bother her. Instead, she was pleased that Kyle found her that attractive. She watched as he hailed a taxi, and then he helped her get inside.

Kelly felt silly for even saying anything about her outfit. She was already exposing all of her deep down secrets to him. They had had sex. It wasn’t like she needed to bare her soul.  Once again, like their earlier trip, very few words were exchanged during their ride. But she felt like she was starting to become more comfortable with Kyle’s silence.

She wasn’t sure how to act around him now. She wasn’t sure if she should behave like it hadn’t happened or if she was open to the idea of it happening again. She definitely wanted the latter, but only if Kyle did too. All of these thoughts and more ran through her mind. Then Kyle’s hand reached across the expanse between them and touched her bare thigh. Immediately, she smiled. She didn’t look at him, though. She decided she didn’t want to rush to put a label on whatever was happening between them. She would just enjoy the simplicity of the emotions.

Kelly was happy. She couldn’t remember being this happy in forever. Kelly lived a very orderly kind of life; something that was a holdover from her childhood. Her parents were both archaeologists who often traveled to do research for the museum in her hometown. They had been kind but distant, and she often wondered why they had a child at all. Children didn’t mix with archaeological digs in third world countries. She was left with a kindly, elderly aunt who had passed away when she was fifteen. At that point, her parents decided that Kelly was old enough to stay home by herself.

The only person she’d ever been able to rely on after that had been herself. She did that using logic and data. Perhaps that’s why the situation with Kyle was also confusing to her. It was the first time in her life that emotions seem to be ruling everything that she was doing. She should’ve been more uncomfortable with the idea, but there was again something about Kyle that made everything feel okay. Kelly was willing to open herself up and give it a try. Of course, that was only if Kyle was willing to do so too.

It seemed like it was just a matter of minutes before they pulled up outside the Carlisle Hotel. It was more expensive than the places where Kelly would normally stay, but the reviews online said that the Carlisle was the best hotel in the city. It was supposed to also be economical, but Kelly couldn’t really discern that by the price per night; it was just another indication that she was in a much larger city than she was used to. Kyle once again helped her out of the taxi. She had her room key in her purse, and they silently rode the elevator to the top floor. As the doors opened, Kyle looked at her with a chagrined look on his face.

“Oak Tree must have been paying you a pretty penny if you are able to score a penthouse room.”

“It was a weekend deal.” Kelly didn’t know why she even said that. She was successful, and she was a doctor. She had done well with her money over the years being careful with her investing and saving. Of course, that had come at the expense of a social life. But there was something about the way Kyle’s comment came out that made her wonder if he was judging her. She lifted her chin. If she wanted a fancy hotel room, she could damn well afford it.

She walked to the end of the hallway without saying anything else.  She started to unlock the door when she realized the door was already cracked open. She slowly started to push it open, but Kyle pushed her out of the way. He stepped into the room first. Kelly heard his growl.

It was the first time that Kelly had truly been exposed to Kyle’s bear side. Although he didn’t phase, she felt the tension in the air. It was like there was an electric field around him that almost seemed to shimmer. He was close to phasing. On one hand, she was fascinated, but on the other hand, she was terrified. Kyle raised his nose into the air. He sniffed. Then he looked back at her over his shoulder.

“You can come in, but I’m not sure you’re going to like what you’re going to find.”

Kelly stepped inside her room and gasped. Her clothes had been ripped out of her suitcase and strewn about the room. But that wasn’t what she was worried about. She could buy new clothes if necessary. Immediately, she went to the safe on the wall. She saw it was open. She gave a short cry of dismay. Everything that she had locked away inside was gone. She cursed. She had known that it was possible that despite her best efforts, she might have been followed. Why she had trusted the security of the high-end hotel she had no idea.

“I assume that all of your evidence is gone.”

“Yes, those fuckers took it all.” She saw Kyle’s raised eyebrow. It wasn’t like her to curse out loud, but she was angry. Everything that she had worked for, all the leverage she thought she had against Oak Tree was gone in a puff of smoke.

“You realize that this isn’t the end, right? That they’re still going to come looking for you.”

Kelly looked at him in surprise. “Why? They took everything that I had.”

“There’s no way they can know that for certain. Plus, they can’t afford to let you talk to anyone and start raising questions they won’t want to answer. Without that evidence, you are in more danger than you were before.”

Kelly let his words sink in. It seemed preposterous to her that she could be in more danger now than she was before. “I guess I just need to go home and figure out what to do next.”

Kyle took her by the elbow and stared down into her eyes. She felt the piercing weight of his will. It was the strangest feeling. Then, she realized that despite the fact that she was human, she was feeling the force of what it would be like to be a shifter in a clan.

Suddenly, Kelly knew that despite the fact that the Urban Dwellers denied the existence of an alpha, there was definitely one in their midst. Kyle was an alpha. A new host of questions bubbled in her mind.

“Are you trying to use that shifter mind control hocus pocus on me?”

Kyle let go of her elbow. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“I felt it, Kyle. You were trying to bend my will to yours.”