Anita Clenney - Embrace the Highland Warrior

“No.”

“And Marcas and Lachlan’s expeditions are a cover?”

He nodded.

“How long have you known about… me?”

His mouth twitched with indecision. “Since I was seventeen.”

Two years before it happened. “And you didn’t tell me? We never kept secrets from each other.”

Cody looked away, and when his eyes met hers again, they were sad. “I was afraid if I told you, you’d start looking into your past and on the off chance that this demon wasn’t dead, he would find you. I didn’t want you hurt. I wish I’d done a better job explaining it then; maybe things would have turned out different.” He hesitantly reached for her arm. “I don’t want to fight, Shay. Come on. I’ll help you clean up the mess.”

So much for leaving Virginia.

He followed her into the sitting room. She was still furious that he handcuffed her to the bed, but her anger was overshadowed by shock. Nothing about her world was what she thought. Her stalker had followed her here. Someone had broken into Nina’s house. Cody had a girlfriend. She didn’t have the surplus of emotion to ask him about her.

“So these demons, what do they want?”

Cody righted the bookshelf “They want to get rid of humans. They want the earth for themselves.”

“My God. I’m living in Lord of the Rings .” People usually told lies to make something seem believable. This was too bizarre to be a lie.

“This makes Lord of the Rings look like a lullaby.”

She picked up a photo album and put it on the bookshelf. “You’d think even a demon would have the decency to leave a person’s family photos alone.”

“Demons don’t care about anything but evil.”

She picked up a book and saw something white lying beside it.

“What’s that?” Cody asked.

“Looks like a piece of ivory,” she said, laying it on the shelf.

The cat appeared in the doorway, still as a statue, other than its swishing tail.

Cody frowned. “You brought a cat?”

“It’s not mine. It showed up this morning. I thought it might have been yours.”

“No. Maybe the Peterson’s.”

Shay gave a sarcastic laugh. “Maybe it belongs to the demon. It came inside the house and ran toward him. I tripped over it.”

Cody handed Shay a stack of books. “Not likely. Demons hate animals. That’s why they rarely take on an animal form.”

“Demons can take other forms?”

“Aye. Their natural forms aren’t a pretty sight. They stink, and they’re ugly. The problem is they can shift into disguises. They might be your neighbor, the little old lady down the street. The older they get, the more powerful they become. The ancient ones are particularly deadly.”

Shay put the last book on the shelf. “Ancient ones?”

“They can live around a thousand years.”

“Good grief! What are they doing all that time?”

Cody shrugged. “Trying to come up with ways to destroy us.”

“Do they all live that long?”

“No. There are three orders. The first is eternal. Humans don’t see them. The second, they’re the ones who cause the most trouble, full demons. The third, the halflings, they live a couple hundred years.”

“Halflings? Like in half human?”

Cody nodded.

“Can only warriors kill demons?”

“For the most part,” he said. “And even then, the powerful ones have to be assigned to match the warrior’s strength or the warrior could die. A demon can kill a human in a heartbeat.”

“Good thing I didn’t have gun or a knife.”

“You scare me sometimes,” Cody said.

After the room was straight, the two started back to his house. The cat trailed along behind them. “You sure this cat’s just a cat?” Shay asked. “He has white fur, and that intruder was blond.”

Cody turned to look at it. “It showed up long before the demon did. Probably belongs to the Petersons.” Shay heard yelling even before Cody opened his front door. “Damn! I forgot to tell him,” he said, rushing in.

Faelan had a man pinned to the kitchen wall, while Lachlan, Marcas, and a beautiful woman Shay assumed was Cody’s girlfriend tried to drag Faelan away. Cody grabbed Faelan’s arm, and the group finally restrained him.

“I swear, if you weren’t my ancestor,” the new guy said, giving Faelan a hard shove, “I’d lock you in a time vault myself.”

“How could you drag her off on one of your adventures?” Faelan shouted, looking as fierce as an ancient Highland warrior with his kilt and angry face. “You were supposed to make sure she got safely from Scotland to New York.”

“ My adventures? Have you lost your bloody mind? I came to protect her. Damned woman tried to sneak off and come to Virginia alone. You’re lucky I figured out what she was up to.”

The woman scowled. “Hey.”

“Are ye trying to drive me to madness?” Faelan said to the woman, his face hot with anger. “If you don’t start listening to me—”

The woman grabbed a loaf of bread off the counter and swung it at his head. Faelan ducked, and the loaf caught Cody on the ear. The woman planted her hands on her hips, glaring at Faelan. “You jackass! Sorry, Cody.” She glared at Faelan. “This isn’t the nineteenth century. You think I’m supposed to sit home bored, while you’re out having all the adventures? I don’t think so.”

“Told you,” the new guy said.

So she was with Faelan. Every muscle in Shay’s body sagged with relief. But why had the woman slept in Cody’s bed?

“I forgot to tell you they were here,” Cody said, flicking a slice of bread off his shoulder. “Shay and I had just gotten back from Leesburg.”

“What am I supposed to think?” Faelan asked the woman. “You’re supposed to be safe in New York, and I walk in and find you here. With him. ” He pointed at Ronan. “I haven’t slept, and I need food.”

The woman rolled her eyes. “God help us.”

“There’s some food left over,” Lachlan said. “It’s probably cold.”

The woman turned and saw Shay near the door. Her eyes widened. She blinked several times and smiled. “I’m Bree Connor, this Neanderthal’s wife.” She nodded toward Faelan, who was lifting pot lids, still scowling. “You must be Shay. Sorry to stare, but you look just like you did in my vision.” The others in the room stopped talking and were watching her. “I get these… premonitions sometimes.”

Cody touched Shay’s back. “Bree had a vision that you were in danger. That’s why Faelan came to keep an eye on you.”

Now she had perfect strangers trying to protect her. “But you don’t even know me,” Shay said.

“I know. My premonitions aren’t normal. Usually they’re about family or friends, but lately I’ve been having them about strangers.”

The good-looking man chuckled and ruffled Bree’s hair. He seemed unfazed by Faelan’s attack. “Darlin’, there’s nothing normal about you.”

“This is Ronan,” Cody said. He surprised Shay by placing his arm around her shoulders, pulling her to his side. Marcas watched the gesture, and Shay thought she saw a glimmer of a smile.

“Sorry about the scuffle.” Ronan grinned, and Shay’s heart skipped two beats. She could almost understand Faelan’s frustration. What man would want his wife going anywhere with someone who looked like that?

Ronan bumped Faelan with his shoulder and stepped up to shake Shay’s hand. “Glad you’re okay. We were worried.”

“Are you all part of this clan?” Shay asked.

“You told her?” Lachlan said. “Are you crazy? The Council’s gonna hang you this time.”

“I’ll deal with the Council,” Cody said, but his jaw tightened as he said it.