Parallel Heat (31 page)

‘‘Leave with me now,’’ she urged desperately. ‘‘Let’s find someplace tonight, just go there. We can make love and hold one another all night long. We can be together! And in the morning, we’ll go back to camp together
. Together,
Marco, from now on.’’

Nuzzling her cheek he said, ‘‘What a beautiful dream, baby.’’

She shoved apart from him, slapping his chest for emphasis. ‘‘It’s not just a dream! There’s nothing to stop us but your fears.’’

Giving his head a slight shake, he worked to clear the lurid imagery. Thea misinterpreted the gesture, her shoulders slumping. ‘‘You won’t come back,’’ she stated quietly.

Everything hung in the balance: His love for her, his knowledge about how he’d transform her if they mated. ‘‘No.’’

‘‘What if I asked you to come for me?’’

Pulling her close against his chest, he fell silent a long moment, just letting his lips linger against her forehead, and thought of all the many ways he wanted to answer that question. But he decided on a question of his own instead. ‘‘How can you ask that, knowing that I kissed another woman tonight? Your queen?’’

He pulled back, so that he might study her expression as she answered. She glanced away a moment, casting her gaze around the smoke-filled bar, until at last she looked at him without a trace of uncertainty.

‘‘Because I know you love me.’’ So simple, yet so very sure.

‘‘Don’t you wonder why I kissed her?’’

‘‘You told me today,’’ she reminded him softly. ‘‘Their connection was making you crazy, I know that. And I know something else: You thought Kelsey was me.’’

He sucked in a tight breath, shocked that she’d actually perceived that—that she’d seen straight into his heart.

‘‘Don’t you wonder what might be wrong with me that I could become so confused on such a simple point? Mistake Kelsey for you?’’

‘‘Nothing is wrong with you,’’ she exclaimed. ‘‘You have a beautiful gift that—’’

‘‘Is a curse,’’ he finished solemnly.

‘‘You told me that already—I don’t agree.’’

‘‘The insanity is returning, baby,’’ he told her plainly. ‘‘Don’t you get it? How else could I think Kelsey was you? It was always only a matter of time.’’

‘‘You’re wrong.’’ Her tone was emphatic, her regal jaw set and determined. But all the love in her heart couldn’t drive his demons away forever. It could only buy him time.

He took hold of her hands. ‘‘Thea, this thing inside me—it will always haunt me. It won’t ever go away, not really. It’s in my blood and in my spirit. You know what they say about empaths back home. We’re the devil’s spawn.’’

‘‘Old prejudice.’’ She frowned hard. ‘‘Superstition.’’

‘‘It’s true, baby. You saw it firsthand tonight. How could I ever mate with you? I wouldn’t wish it on you, not with how I . . .’’

‘‘Love me?’’ she volunteered softly, staring hard into his eyes.

He dropped his head, closing his eyes, but wouldn’t answer. It would only make tonight more painful for her. ‘‘How can I serve them effectively? I was always a poor choice for the unit, for their personal protector. Now, the truth has come out.’’

‘‘You have to come back with me, Marco,’’ she insisted. ‘‘There are things you don’t know—there’s a letter.’’

He cocked his head curiously, waiting, but then she shook her head. ‘‘Now’s not the time for that,’’ she said. ‘‘But Jared sent me for you; he wants me to bring you home.’’

‘‘I don’t have a home—I never have, Thea.’’

‘‘I’m your home,’’ she whispered, and he bowed his head. ‘‘At least that’s what I want to be.’’

Her words were too much for him. Reaching for her, he dragged her into his arms, crushing her against him. Her heartbeat beneath her ribs was steady against him; her scent crested across all of his senses. Reaching for her braid, he unfastened it, slowly unwinding the locks of hair.

‘‘What are you doing?’’ she asked, holding onto him as tightly as he did to her.

‘‘Letting your hair down. You have such gorgeous, beautiful hair—you should never wear it back.’’

She laughed, burying her face against his chest. ‘‘I’m a soldier, Marco.’’

With his fingers, he combed the strands; they were like silk to his touch. ‘‘You’ve got to go now,’’ he told her hoarsely.

She made a sobbing sound, pushing her face into his flannel shirt. For some reason he thought back to the first night they’d met, when he’d wrangled her into the doorway outside the bar. ‘‘And what will happen to you?’’

Drawing in her scent for a final time he said, ‘‘I have no idea. But whatever happens, it will be far away from here.’’ With that he released her from his arms, feeling his eyes burn with unshed tears. ‘‘Now go. Go back to the compound before I take you with me forever.’’

Gaping at him, she slid out of the booth and stood. Beside the table, she turned back to him one last time. ‘‘I’ll go, Marco, but only because you’ve asked me to. But hear this before I leave—you will return. You’ll come back because it’s what you’re called to do, but more than that’’—she leaned down over him, bringing her face within inches of his—‘‘you’ll come back for me.’’

 
It was nearly midnight, and Marco had stayed in the bar feeling numb ever since Thea walked away. But he wasn’t drunk anymore, and all that remained was the sharp realization that he’d lost his soulmate forever. And not only her, but all of them, and he could hardly fathom what his place in the world might be now
. I’m a protector with no one left to protect.
For the first time in his life, he was utterly alone—without his family, his unit—and he felt so vulnerable, just sitting in the darkness, watching cigarette smoke spiral under the dim lights of the pool tables. He had less than one hundred dollars in his pocket. That, the clothes on his back, and his truck parked outside constituted all his possessions.

You could have gone back with her, you know it,
a quiet voice prompted.
You could have still had her. Jared would have calmed down and listened.

Yet how could he have faced any of them? And how could he have ever let her love him, when he’d begun transforming into this
creature
. It would have broken her to watch the madness take him—and he couldn’t do that, not to Thea. He’d already hurt her enough to last several lifetimes.

Marco slid sideways in the booth, stretching his long legs out so that his rugged hiking boots dangled over the wooden seat edge. Despite all his internal arguments he still half hoped Thea would return. That thought caused a smile to play at the corners of his mouth as he closed his eyes. The last time he’d leaned his head back like this, she had appeared, after all—his angel, sent to retrieve his missing soul.

Slowly, his eyes fluttered open, and he ventured to see if the room had finally stilled—then he realized he wasn’t nearly so sober as he’d thought he was. Because a figure stood studying him, just like before. But when the stranger smiled, it wasn’t the gentle nurturing of his beloved. It was the wicked invitation of the very devil. And he knew there’d be no going back after tonight—not ever.

Chapter Twenty

Thea entered the main cabin feeling desolate and defeated. As she closed the door behind her, three sets of eyes immediately fixed on her: Jared, Kelsey, and Sabrina sat in the main gathering area waiting for her. Their eyes conveyed all the hope she had initially felt upon finding Marco at the bar.

Sliding out of her parka, she gave her head a firm shake—no, it hadn’t gone well.

Jared rose to meet her. ‘‘Did you find him?’’

‘‘I found him all right.’’ She passed Jared without a salute or greeting, and walked toward the fireplace. Behind her, she felt Jared’s gaze on her back. Fine, she was angry and hurt with him; he didn’t deserve any show of respect.

‘‘Lieutenant, I’d like to speak with you,’’ he called after her.

‘‘I’m tired and want to hit the rack.’’

She turned to face him, feeling her face flush with hot rage. ‘‘You could have shown me the letter,
sir.
In fact, you should have.’’

‘‘I needed the information compartmentalized.’’

‘‘From me? I’m your chief intelligence officer, Jared. This is me, your cousin. Your trusted. You should have shared the information!’’

Jared glanced to the side, noting Kelsey and Sabrina’s presence.

‘‘I don’t care who hears—if I’d known about the letter, I might have been able to prevent what happened tonight.’’

Jared touched her arm gently. ‘‘How, cousin? Tell me.’’

She wiped a hand across her eyes. She’d cried the entire drive back from the bar, surely they could all see how swollen and red her eyes were. ‘‘It doesn’t matter,’’ she muttered.

Jared took hold of her elbow, pulling her toward where the others sat. ‘‘Here, Thea, come and sit with us. Tell us what you mean.’’

She followed his lead, snapping, ‘‘I don’t
want
to talk about it. Sir.’’

Taking hold of both her shoulders, Jared forced her to take a seat. ‘‘But you will. Because Marco needs you right now. We all need you. Tell us what you mean.’’

‘‘He’d intercepted your connection before,’’ she explained, casting her gaze toward Kelsey and Sabrina.

Jared squatted before her, staring seriously into her eyes. ‘‘We already know that. Sabrina explained.’’

‘‘All he ever wanted was to serve you, cousin. It was everything to him—didn’t you realize that?’’

Her commander searched her face, then half-whispered, ‘‘You were involved with him—weren’t you?’’

‘‘That doesn’t matter. It’s not relevant to this discussion.’’

‘‘It is relevant,’’ Sabrina piped in. ‘‘You know that it is.’’

‘‘Why should it be?’’ Thea asked, wanting to wail her anguish to the pine ceiling beams. ‘‘He wasn’t going to act on it. He told me all about his Madjin vows and how he wasn’t allowed to have a relationship.’’

Sabrina appeared genuinely perplexed—even a bit affronted. ‘‘That wasn’t really how it was, Thea. Did he tell you that?’’

‘‘It’s what he believed! Completely. Whether it was true or not, it was true for him.’’

‘‘I never suggested that he had to be alone—neither did the elders,’’ Sabrina continued, leaning forward in the chair where she sat. Made completely of antlers, it gave her an imposing look, almost as if she sat on a spiky throne. ‘‘I did tell him it could be dangerous with his natural gifts, but not because of his vows.’’

‘‘Then maybe he just didn’t want to be with me.’’ She buried her head in her hands. ‘‘He said that he couldn’t be with me because he was an empath.’’

‘‘Because he cared for you.’’ This time it was Kelsey volunteering her opinion.

Thea dropped her hands from her eyes, feeling bitter and annoyed with the queen. ‘‘And you know this how, Kelsey? Huh? You’re suddenly a true intuitive because Marco worked with you twice.’’

Kelsey’s freckled face infused with color. ‘‘No, Thea,’’ she replied coolly. ‘‘I know it because I know what love means. I know what it is to love someone so much, you’d do anything to protect them.’’

‘‘Who said anything about love?’’ Thea whispered, staring at the human in shock.

Kelsey shrugged. ‘‘I guess nobody did—except you. When you went after him, flying out of here like your very life depended on it. When you stood up to your king, demanding that he give Marco a chance to explain.’’ Kelsey paused, sighing as she stared at Thea for a long moment, then added, ‘‘I guess one of these days you’ll realize it too.’’

Sabrina gave her a slight smile. ‘‘Maybe she already does, my lady.’’

Thea bounded to her feet, sidestepping Jared where he still half knelt before her on the floor. ‘‘I need some sleep,’’ she declared. ‘‘God only knows where Marco’s gone tonight. The least I can do is warm my comfortable bed.’’

‘‘Thea, please wait,’’ Jared called after her, rising to his feet.

‘‘What for?’’ she responded, not caring how abjectly bitter she sounded. They’d all seen right through her anyway.

Reaching into the front of his uniform, he retrieved the letter. ‘‘I’d like you to have this.’’ He extended it toward her. ‘‘Please take it, read it, and give me your thoughts in the morning.’’

Thea stared at the white envelope extended in the space between them; she had the feeling that if she took the thing, it would change her life forever. ‘‘I may not have any insights.’’

‘‘Use your gift, cousin—please.’’ His hand seemed to tremble around the letter. ‘‘It may be critical to our future that we stop Marco from leaving. And to do that, we need to understand what happened before.’’

‘‘He betrayed you and you kicked him out! That’s what it says, you already told me.’’

Kelsey stood, walking toward her. ‘‘But you’ll see more. We’re counting on it.’’

Thea took the letter, and clasped it over her heart. ‘‘I-I don’t know what else I could have done,’’ she whispered, beginning to weep anew. ‘‘I tried everything to get him back.’’

‘‘We know that,’’ Kelsey assured her.

Thea’s shoulders slumped and she felt as if her very life force poured out of her. Kelsey stepped much closer, opening her arms. ‘‘Here, Thea. Come here,’’ she encouraged, pulling her into an embrace. The woman was so tall, that Thea found her face pressed against her chest. It was strange: She wanted to shove away from her, but instead what she felt was . . . tremendous comfort. The tears came even harder, for a long time, and then they stopped. The pain ebbed a bit, and she felt stronger. Pulling away from her queen she whispered, ‘‘Thank you, my lady,’’ and spun on her heel without another word.

 
Bright lights sliced into Scott’s sleep, jarring him awake. Immediately there was the sound of the security locks and then footsteps as he turned his head sideways, spending all his energy on the simple gesture. Flanked by two military escorts and the colonel who’d been heading up this ongoing interrogation stood Hope Harper. Dark circles lined her eyes, and he suspected by looking at her that it was, in fact, the middle of the night. She had that haggard appearance humans assumed when deprived of sleep, the same look he’d seen on Kelsey’s face when they’d kept her up too late.