Keri Arthur - Circle of Desire

Kat pulled Ethan to a halt before he could enter the tunnel and tugged the backpack free of his shoulders.

"Take these," she whispered, handing him some stakes.

"Remember that they work against shapeshifters as well as vampires, so be careful with them."

"I don't suppose you packed my gun in there, did you?"

His warm breath skated across her skin, and a tremor of desire ran through her. "No," she replied, "And you know it won't help."

"I'd still rather have it in my hands than a few damn stakes." But his gaze settled on her breasts, and she had a feeling that given the choice, he'd much rather have her in his hands.

She flicked a finger across his nose. When he looked up, she said, "Concentrate."

He didn't smile. Didn't do anything but watch her with those hungry eyes of his.

She licked her lips and regretted it the minute his gaze dropped to her mouth. "I've also got some sleep bombs in here, and hopefully we'll be able to use those." She handed him a mask. "Don't take it off until we get back out of the cavern, because these sleep bombs effect zombies and shifters."

He put it on, pushing it down until it was around his neck. His hand closed around hers, so warm and strong and safe somehow. Her gaze met his, and what she saw went far beyond just caring. But it was a lie, she thought, and looked away.

His fingers touched her chin, gently drawing her gaze to his again, then he leaned forward and brushed the sweetest of kisses across her lips.

"Be careful in there," he whispered then pulled her to her feet. "I'll lead until we get to the cave where the girls are."

She nodded and swallowed the anguish that rose up in her throat. How could he have committed his heart and his soul to Jacinta and be so caring, so gentle, so damn loving , toward her? It didn't make any sense.

She followed him into the cavern, and the darkness quickly swallowed them. A hush descended. The deeper they walked the cooler the air got. Up ahead, water fell, a rush of sound that had her suddenly wanting to go to the bathroom. Or maybe the growing knot of fear in her stomach was the reason behind that.

The sound of footsteps came from beyond the rush of water. Someone was moving around. Ethan slowed.

Warm light danced ahead, but it was oddly distorted, as if viewed through a moving curtain. She blinked and realized she was seeing the light of a torch through a waterfall.

He glanced at her and held up two fingers, then pointed to the left and the right. She untangled her fingers from his and edged forward until the spray of the water danced a chill across her skin.

She knelt and swung the pack off her back. Two zombies stood guard rather than two shifters, and she couldn't help feeling relieved. In the long run, zombies were a far easier foe.

She took out two sleep bombs and tossed them left and right. There was a hiss of sound and rusty coloured smoke began to curl through the cavern. She put on her mask and motioned Ethan to do the same.

Rising, she stepped back from the water. Ethan's arms slithered around her waist, and he pulled her back against the hard length of him. She frowned and glanced up. The mask hid his mouth, but his smile was there to be seen in his eyes. He was still in control. She relaxed a little and pressed back against him, letting the heat of his body chase the chill from her spine. It felt so good, just standing here with him. So right. She closed her eyes and thrust the thought from her mind. And wondered if she'd even see him again once his niece was safe and sound.

The minutes crawled by. The smoke dissipated, and she pushed her mask down past her chin. "Are there any other entrances to this cavern?"

"There's a tunnel on the opposite side to this, and there's a door hidden by magic to the right." His breath brushed past her ear and sent a flurry of warmth across her senses.

"I'll deal with that first. You keep a watch on the tunnels."

She tried to move away, but his arms held her tight. She looked up, and her breath caught in her throat. Not just at the hunger in his eyes, but at the emotion so evident in his face. And while she might have called it love, she was just as certain he wouldn't.

He ran a warm finger down her cheek. "Would you like to see me again after this is all over?"

His touch was making her ache, but it was an ache she had to ignore. "Ethan, this is neither the time nor the place."

"A simple yes or no."

It wasn't that simple. Not anymore. "What do you feel for me?" she ground out, pulling her arm from his grip.

"Because I'm not interested in being just someone you play with whenever the moon makes you horny."

He didn't say anything to that, and maybe it was just as well. She ducked through the water, the iciness snatching the heat of his touch from her body, then followed the curve of the cavern wall around to the right.

Energy began to tingle across her skin and she stopped.

She dug the stones out of the backpack then raised a hand, using the flow of energy across her fingertips to define the boundaries of the soul sucker's hidden entrance. Once she'd determined that, she set out her stones, softly murmuring the spell that would activate her own wall and stop from entering whatever evil might lie beyond the Mara's wall. The soul sucker would undoubtedly know how to break the spell, but as long as she didn't return before they'd gotten the kids out of there, it wouldn't matter.

She placed the last stone on the ground. Power surged across her senses, a clean warm touch that told her the spell had worked. She turned and headed across the cavern.

The two girls were lying inside a small cave. One was naked, one wasn't. Both looked distressed and cold. Anger surged through her. The Mara definitely had to be stopped. It was bad enough destroying the lives of grown men, but taking the future of someone so young, someone who'd barely even had time to stretch and grow…

"Dead men are heading this way." Ethan's voice was little more than a whisper she heard deep inside.

She raised a hand, feeling the flow of energy, trying to discern what spell the Mara had used.

"Hurry," he continued. "Because there are more than one of them."

Hurry was the one thing she couldn't do. She could hurt the girls if she dismantled this spell the wrong way. Light played across her fingers, a firefall of energy that whispered secrets to her mind. It was a simple containment spell, one very similar to what Kat had used across the cavern. She glanced at the stones, seeking the one she had to remove first then began murmuring the words that would dismantle the energy wall.

"They're almost here," he warned her.

She swept away the first stone and continued murmuring the spell. The wall shimmered as she swept away a second. From behind her came the noise of flesh smacking against flesh. She swept away a third stone, effectively creating a doorway in the wall. She finished the spell and swung around to see Ethan in midair, diving feet first at the pack of zombies fighting to get into the cavern. He hit the first two hard, forcing them back into those behind. The dead toppled like bowling pins, creating a barrier of flesh that briefly stopped those behind from entering.

"Mask," she said, putting on her own as she tossed a sleep bomb into the writhing pack of zombies.

The dead men at the back scrambled over those still fighting to find their feet. Ethan rose and swung a booted foot, knocking two more back. He didn't look like he was trying to kill them and of that she was glad. Right now they didn't need to alert the Mara of their presence.

She grabbed another bomb and tossed it deeper into the tunnel. As rust-coloured smoke swirled, she dropped the pack on the ground and ran at the two zombies trying to get behind Ethan. She reached for kinetic energy and flung one back into the rust-coloured smoke. She slid to a stop and smacked the other across the back of the head.