Total pages in book: 102
Estimated words: 95196 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 476(@200wpm)___ 381(@250wpm)___ 317(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 95196 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 476(@200wpm)___ 381(@250wpm)___ 317(@300wpm)
“We must talk.” I strode inside the building at his side. The same two receptionists waited at the counter, carrying smart devices, ready to dictate. “Cancel his eleven o’clock. Possibly his twelve o’clock.”
He didn’t complain, resist, or contradict me. “Cancel everything,” he muttered, releasing me to wind his arm around my waist. Then he basically lifted me off my feet and carried me past the door.
Three men in suits sat in the chairs before the desk, Jamie among them. They shifted to face us. The strangers registered shock, but the prince evinced anger.
“We’ve got to finish our–” one of them began.
“Gentlemen, confer with my assistant outside to reschedule,” he said, his voice curt. “Jamie will help you.”
The trio jumped to their feet, collected their briefcases, and zoomed out, closing the door behind them. Had Callen left them in the middle of a meeting to wait for me?
He let me go and removed his jacket, which he tossed to his desk next to a map of Scotland with several spots X’d out.
After loosening his tie, he pressed a button on a small black remote. As the wall of windows darkened, hiding us from the rest of the world, he took hold of me again and sat in the chair. I could do nothing but settle onto his lap. He rested one hand on my hip and stroked his chin with the other. An intimate position with an incredibly hot man who smoldered.
“Talk.” A clear command.
I’d been in such a hurry to reach him, but, um, I hadn’t thought this far ahead. I asked the first things that popped into my mind. “How have you hidden your immortality without moving out of Scotland? Did you play the part of your father? Fake your death a few times?” What did it matter? This was life and death.
“There are ways.” He squeezed me. “No stalling. Talk about why you’re here.”
Right. “First, I apologize for interrupting your busy day.”
“Upending my busy day,” he corrected, but he didn’t sound upset. Just cautious. “Apology accepted. Jump to core issue.”
“Yes. Well. Thank you for accepting my apology.” I cleared my throat. “I’d like to revisit an old topic. Semi-old.” Terrible start. “Do you remember when I asked you to fly with me to the United States?”
Tension stole over him. “I do.”
“What if, hypothetically, I have friends there, and they are in constant danger? I mean, not danger, danger, but emotional devastation at the hands of an evil villainess type character. And what if we could save their hearts and mine tons of grief with a simple plane ride to another country? Would you, possibly, change your mind about the trip?”
He relaxed some, his features softening. “I would remind you that we cannot enter Malachi’s territory without starting a war.”
“But he entered yours.”
“Ours,” Callen corrected. “And he didn’t trespass. He entered neutral territory for an age-old ceremony.”
The stones? “Why can’t you and I travel the same way? Surely there’s neutral territory in America.”
“There is, yes. But the reasons we can’t are twofold. Humans don’t always survive transport, and I refuse to risk your life. Also I need permission, which Malachi won’t give outside of a mating ceremony.” Brushing his knuckles along my jawline, Callen said, “Just tell me the name of the villainess, and I’ll handle the problem.”
“Like, you’ll have her killed?” I gulped.
He arched a brow, all babe, please. And it was oddly sexy. And wrong. But mostly sexy. “Is that how you’d like the problem solved?” he inquired.
“No!” I clasped his cheeks with both hands. “Repeat after me. I, Callan Bruce, will not kill the villainess or have others kill her. She used to be kind and loyal and honest and okay, yes, super flawed. She morphed into a monster through no fault of her own.”
He narrowed his lids, his lashes nearly fusing together. “I can make no such promise. If she bothers you, she bothers me, and those who bother me tend to wind up in an early grave.”
The threat rolled off his tongue, leaving no doubts of its validity. I quaked, and it wasn’t because of fear or upset. How had he just gotten sexier?
“Tell me about these friends,” he commanded.
Ugh. I covered my face with my palms. This wasn’t going in the direction I’d hoped. “We’re veering off topic.”
“Why donna I have them brought to us?” he asked. “We can pamper your friends. Or we bring the villainess here and teach her the error of her ways. Or both.”
Hope exploded inside me, reminding me of a Fourth of July firework display. This was exactly what I’d wished for since the beginning! Except, he deserved to know what had happened. I hated deceiving him.
Should I spill the entire story now? That was why I’d come.
I wrung my fingers, muttering, “I need to think.”
His grip on me lightened. The next thing I knew, he was gliding his palm up and down my side. My nerves frayed even as my pulse fluttered.