The Witch of Stonecliff (7 page)

Kyle’s face had paled, his expression intent. “Did you ever meet him?”

Unease prickled the base of her neck.

She shook her head. “He asked for an interview, but I refused.”

“What happened to him?”

“I’ve no idea. Once the story played itself out, I imagine he moved on to something far more titillating. Alien sightings in the Outer Hebrides maybe. Another royal family conspiracy.” She shrugged. “Who knows?”

He nodded slowly, his gaze distant as if lost in thought. “Maybe he’s one of the men they found in The Devil’s Eye. Maybe that’s why the articles stopped.”

Eleri’s stomach squeezed, and she pushed her plate away. She sincerely hoped not. “Surely, if he’d disappeared, someone would have noticed. You can bet the police would have been at my door the minute the man had been reported missing.”

Kyle stared at her for a long moment without speaking, his expression stony. Something in the conversation had changed. He’d changed. Gone was the mildly flirtatious man who’d arrived. He’d been replaced by a man searching for something.

Had her initial instincts been right all along? Could he be working with the detective like Reece had been? Related to one of the men police had fished out of The Eye?

“What aren’t you telling me?” she asked, softly.

He grinned, all warm charm once more, chilly intensity leaving his light eyes. “It’s not fair how you’ve been treated.”

Was he being sincere, or playing her? And if it was the latter, to what end? What did he want from her?

She stood abruptly. “If you’re finished, I’ll take your plate.”

“Let me help you,” Kyle offered.

“It’s fine,” she told him, snatching up his dishes and hurrying away to the kitchen. Dumping the plates on the counter, she let out a slow breath.

What was she doing? She should never have brought up the murders, reporters or anything else to do with The Devil’s Eye. She shouldn’t have agreed to this dinner. She needed to get Kyle on his way back to the lodge and avoid him for the length of his stay.

“Can I help with the washing up?”

She started at the sound of Kyle’s voice. He leaned against the far wall, arms folded over his chest.

A flutter tickled low inside her. She swallowed hard and shook her head. “I can manage. It’s getting late.

“Have I overstayed my welcome?”

She lifted her shoulder in a noncommittal shrug. “It’s been a long day.”

“Did my questions about that reporter make you uncomfortable?” He straightened and took a step toward her.

“No.” His odd shift in mood made her uneasy. “I’m just tired.”

“I didn’t mean to upset you.”

“I’m not upset. I’m…” Her words trailed off, eyes widening as he closed the distance between them. She tried to step back, but bumped into the counter.

He stopped inches away, so close she could feel his body heat radiating from his frame. Her pulse fluttered in her throat.

She didn’t like him so close, yet her fingers itched to grasp his loose shirt and tug him nearer.

Kyle reached out one arm, brushed her shoulder, and she shivered before she could stop herself. His light spicy scent teased her nose. Warm fingers trailed her chin, tilted her head back. Pale green eyes met hers.

“I’m sorry if I made you feel bad.”

She opened her mouth to tell him that he hadn’t, but before she could get the words out, Kyle dipped his head and brushed his lips against hers.

Chapter Five

Kyle’s mouth touched hers softly at first, almost hesitant, as if asking permission. Warmth lit inside Eleri, pulsed. He was kissing her.
Her
. She should push him away. Demand an explanation. Insist he leave. But it had been so damned long since she’d been touched. Held. Kissed. She craved the contact.

Her eyes fluttered closed and she angled her head to give those firm lips drawing on hers better access. Kyle immediately took advantage, pressing closer until the edge of the counter bit into her back, but she barely noticed. Her senses were filled with him. His rich, spicy scent. His smooth fingers tracing the column of her throat, sending a delicious shiver over her skin.

His teeth nipped at her lips. She opened her mouth, let his tongue sweep inside. God, he tasted so good. Her head swam. The muscles in her legs softened. She curled her fingers into his solid shoulders to both keep herself from sinking to the floor as much as to draw him closer. His hard, lean body pressed flush with hers. The bulge straining against his pants pushed into her belly.

“Shit.” Kyle tore his mouth away from her with a gasp so soft she wasn’t sure she’d heard it at all. She wanted to scream, to grab his head and force his lips back to hers. Instead, she bit back the whimper swelling in her throat.

Get a hold of yourself
.

With Kyle’s head bent so invisible stubble scraped her cheek, his ragged breath tickling the skin just behind her ear, she couldn’t see his face to read his expression. Maybe that was a good thing. He couldn’t see her face either, and she needed a moment to pull herself together.

She released his shoulders, trailed the flats of both hands down his chest with the intention of pushing him away. Instead, she hesitated, relishing the sensation of his muscles bunching beneath her touch.

Kyle lifted his head and looked down at her, eyes bright and intent. A deep frown etched his features. Her face flushed and she let her arms fall to her sides.

“What are you doing to me?” He cupped her cheek with one hand, traced the edge of her bottom lip with his thumb.

“I could ask you the same thing,” she whispered.

He eased back, a faint smile pulling at his mouth that didn’t quite reach his eyes. “It’s getting late. I should go.”

She nodded, a chill creeping through her. Whether it was from the absence of his body heat or his unreadable expression, she didn’t know. “I’ll walk you out.”

She led him to the foyer and stopped before the door. A war waged inside of her. Part of her wanted him gone as far from her as possible, while another part of her wanted to drag Kyle against her and finish what they’d started.

He reached out and brushed her hair back from her face, fingertips leaving thin trails of heat on her skin. Her belly tightened.

“I’d like to see you again tomorrow,” he said. “I have some things to do in the morning, but maybe I could make you dinner tomorrow night.”

A thrill shot through her, but she squashed the sensation before it took root. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

“Was I out of line back there?” Concern tightened his features.

If he was, then so was she. She shook her head. “That’s not it.”

He grinned. “I’ll see you tomorrow, then. Around seven?”

“No,” she said, quickly. “You should have as little to do with me as possible.”

He let out a long sigh. “I thought you realized I don’t believe all that nonsense about you.”

Eleri did her best to ignore the warmth his words lit in her chest. “Whether you believe it or not, there were twelve bodies pulled out of The Devil’s Eye.”

She didn’t want Kyle to wind up the same way.

He reached out and gave her hair a gentle tug. “I owe you dinner. Now, you can meet me at the lodge at seven, or I’ll turn up here with dinner. Maybe you’d prefer that, though. Give Mr. Warlow another shot at grilling me.”

Her mouth twitched in spite of herself. Apparently he wasn’t going to accept no for an answer. Maybe dinner wasn’t a bad idea. After all, visiting him in the evening would at least give her the peace of mind of seeing he was still alive.

“All right,” she relented. “I’ll be at the lodge for seven.”

“Good.” He made his way to his car. Eleri watched from the doorway until his taillights disappeared into the dark, then she stepped inside and closed the door.

She was going to see him tomorrow, have dinner just like a date. Her unease battled her anticipation.

She’d never dated before. Living in the village with the reputation her stepmother had created for her didn’t exactly have the local boys lining up to take her out. When she’d gone away to university, she’d kept to herself, terrified the stories from home would follow her. When her father grew ill and his money dried up, she’d been forced to come home with a year and a half left for her degree.

She’d met Griffin almost as soon as she’d come back.
Met
was the wrong word. She’d known him for years. They’d grown up together even though they’d never exchanged more than a few words. He’d looked at her with the same terrified awe as everyone else. She couldn’t put her finger on what and why things between them changed, but that year they’d been caught in a whirlwind.

Still, they hadn’t
dated
. Between his father and her reputation, they’d had to keep their budding romance a secret. Though, clandestine meetings had their merits, too.

But in a village as small as Cragera Bay, nothing remained secret for long.

Stephen Paskin would forever taint her memories of Griff. She wished she could think of one without the other. But how could she? Stephen Paskin had forced them to make a decision.

Griffin had wanted to leave, he’d been planning to for months, and he’d wanted Eleri to go with him. But she’d been afraid. And so she’d stayed and Griffin had gone.

She shoved away the dark thoughts and locked the front door, suddenly exhausted. It had been a long, strange day. All she wanted was to climb into bed and give her brain a break.

She started for the stairs, but the shrill ring of a telephone stopped her midstride. Frowning, she glanced at her watch. Nearly ten o’clock. Who would be calling now?

Her insides shrivelled as she hurried into the study and snatched the receiver from the cradle.

“Hello?”

“Eleri, it’s me. Am I calling too late?”

At the sound of Brynn’s voice, the tension gripping Eleri drained. She sagged into the chair behind the desk. “Not at all.”

“Good. I can never remember the time difference. I kept thinking seven hours and Reece swore it was only five.” A muttered voice sounded in the background, too low for Eleri to make out the words. “I know that. I thought they were the same,” Brynn spoke to the voice, before addressing Eleri again. “That was Reece. He says it’s the flight that’s seven hours, not the time difference. I’m babbling. How’s everything there?”

“Fine so far,” Eleri told her, doing her best to infuse her voice with false cheerfulness. Was Brynn calling to break the news she wouldn’t be back, that she and Reece had decided to stay?

“No word from Harding yet? Have they identified any of the remains so far?”

“If they have, the information hasn’t been made public.” Eleri hated even thinking of the man. A strange, irrational fear lived inside her that merely mentioning the detective would summon him like an evil spirit.

“I guess no news is good news.” But Eleri could hear the uncertainty in Brynn’s voice. “Anyway, I called for a reason.”

Here it comes
. A sudden lump swelled in her throat, cutting off her ability to speak, so Eleri waited wordlessly for Brynn to tell her she wasn’t coming back.

“I know I said we’d be back in less than a week, but I may have been a touch ambitious with my timeline.”

“A touch?” This time Eleri heard Reece’s wry voice clearly. He must have been sitting next to Brynn. A tiny flicker of envy flashed inside her. Not that she begrudged her sister her happiness, but Eleri couldn’t help but think about how nice it would be to have someone in her corner, someone to lean on, to believe in her.

Her mind flashed to Kyle. The warmth of his kiss still imprinted on her lips.

What was she doing, spinning schoolgirl daydreams about the man? She was on the brink of being arrested for multiple murders, and he stood a good chance of winding up a victim. The odds of any sort of romantic future weren’t good.

“My point is—” Brynn dragged Eleri’s attention back to their conversation “—we’re going to be longer than I thought. Probably another week, maybe ten days. If something happens before then, get in touch and we’ll be on the first flight out.”

Brynn was coming back. She wasn’t abandoning Eleri to face this mess alone.

There was a commotion in the background again. “That will be our dinner, I should let you go. I’m so sick of fast food. I’ll be glad to eat something homemade again.”

Eleri snorted. “I know how you feel.”

“Give my regards to Mrs. Voyle,” Brynn said, with a chuckle. “I’ll call in a few days to see how you’re doing.”

“Right, enjoy your dinner. Good night.” Eleri set the phone back in the cradle, relief turning her limbs heavy. They were coming back. Not as soon as she’d hoped, but they were coming back.

Eleri stood, left the study and climbed the stairs. The sconce at the top was still out, but there was no mossy stink, no writhing shadows. Keeping her gaze fixed on the vine-patterned carpet, she hurried past.

Once in her room, she began to undress but stopped when she caught sight of her reflection in the mirror. What in the world did Kyle see in her? She wasn’t repulsive, she supposed, but there was nothing about her that stood out. The most interesting thing about her was her name was tied to twelve murdered men. Hardly something to interest the opposite sex—unless the man in question had a few issues of his own. Was that Kyle? Was he some kind of crazy who got a thrill from being with a possible serial killer?

Not likely. He was too stable, too…grounded for that sort of nonsense. Or maybe she was too smitten to see the truth.

She blew out a long sigh. Too damned tired to think about all that now, she’d worry about it in the morning.

Eleri finished unbuttoning her blouse and let the material slide from her shoulders. Kyle’s scent wafted from the fabric. God, he smelled good, clean and spicy and…familiar.

Eleri froze. He
did
smell familiar. She balled up her blouse, pressed the fabric to her nose and inhaled deep. Where had she smelled that scent before?

For crying out loud, he probably wears cologne that anyone else could buy
.

Maybe, but she’d smelled this recently. Nipping the corner of her lip, Eleri crossed to her wardrobe and yanked open the door. There, hanging amongst her own clothes, was an old brown suede coat. A man’s coat.