Chapter 30
KNOLAN
Sometime in the wee hours of the morning, we finally fell asleep, completely satiated and totally exhausted. By the time I opened my eyes again, the October sun was shining bright enough that its rays were filtering through the gaps in the closed curtains.
I looked at the beautiful woman snuggled up against me. I’d felt it last night when she, like me, realized that there was more between us than what we were pretending. I also felt her fear at that realization. She wasn’t afraid of me; she was afraid for me, which begged the question, why?
She’d said she had a lot going on, and then later that she was running on instinct. Those two comments used so closely together screamed to me that she was running from someone.
I was so deep in thought, I didn’t notice Charlotte had woken up until I felt her smooth her palm across my chest.
“What are you thinking so hard about?” she asked.
I smiled, not sure how to ask the questions that had taken root in my brain, so instead I rolled to face her and gave her a long, lingering kiss.
“Mmm, now that’s a nice way to wake up,” she murmured.
“Definitely,” I said, trailing my hand lazily up and down her bare back.
We lay there, a comfortable silence stretching between us until I finally worked up the nerve to ask, “Charlotte, are you running from something?” She stiffened.
“What makes you think that?” Her voice held the tight, clipped quality of someone who felt cornered.
“A few things you said last night.”
She sighed and pulled away a bit.
“Knolan, I have a lot going on. There are some very unhappy people who want to use me to do some very unsavory things, and I’m doing my best to stay off their radar,” she said.
“So, you’re not just a shifter then?”
“Who said I was a shifter?” she asked, suspicion clouding her gaze.
“No one, I can just tell. One of my gifts is the ability to tell what supernatural race someone is. I can’t tell specifically within the race, just general.
Like with you, I can tell you’re a shifter, but not what kind.
I can also tell that’s not all there is to you, but have no idea what else,” I hurried to explain.
I didn’t like the suspicious look she gave me. She relaxed a bit.
“A lady’s got to have some secrets,” she said, the corners of her mouth tipped into a cheeky grin. “But seriously, I’m half leopard shifter. You know one of my secrets, now it’s your turn. What are you?”
“I’ll only tell you if you promise not to freak out,” I said.
“First, I’m not the kind of person who freaks out, and second, how bad could it really be? I mean, seriously,” she said.
I took a deep breath before saying, “I’m a demon shifter.”
“A w-what now?” Her eyes grew impossibly large.
“A demon shifter,” I repeated.
“Yeah, I heard you the first time. Demon. As in the realm of hell, fire, and brimstone and all that?”
I couldn’t help the laugh that burst from me. “As in from the Demon Realm but living in the human realm,” I said, still laughing. She reached over and pinched my side. “Ouch!”
“Don’t laugh at me, you ass. How was I supposed to know?” she grumbled.
“Sorry,” I said, “but seriously, if you ever need help, I want you to contact me.”
“No offense, but you’re a researcher. These people, they don’t mess around.”
“I’m doing research as a favor to my brother right now. What I actually do is build things for people like you. Communications systems. Ways to stay dark when needed. My company’s Storm Analytics,” I said, and watched her face as she recognized the name.
“Holy hell,” she breathed. “Knolan Storm. Why didn’t I make the connection? It’s not like your name is very common. Your company is responsible for security for some of the most high-profile names in the paranormal community.”
“Charlotte,” I said, my voice soft but serious, “If you ever need or want help, I want you to contact me. Day or night, I don’t care. No strings. I just want you safe. I want you to be able to settle somewhere without having to look over your shoulder all the time.”
She looked at me for a moment, then leaned forward and kissed me, hard.
“Thank you,” she said. “If things get to be too much, I’ll call.”
“Promise?”
“Um, no. I don’t make promises. There are too many variables in life.
Too many things that can cause them to be broken.
” The look on her face when she said that told me she had been on the receiving end of too many broken promises.
“But if it gets to the point where I feel I’m running out of options, I’ll call,” she said.
“I’d rather you call before that, but I’ll take what I can get,” I said, running my fingers through her hair.
“Knolan?” she said, her voice hesitant.
“Yeah?”
“When everything is settled, can I call then too? I think, well, I think we’ve started something with us, that needs to be explored further,” she said. Now it was my turn to smile.
“Kitten, I’m ready whenever you are. You say the word, and there won’t be a force in this realm that could stop me,” I told her, and I was serious. I was happy to give her the time she needed, but we would be addressing these feelings between us again, and soon.
The smile she gave me was truly breathtaking.
“So, my sexy demon, what do you say we spend a few hours seeing if we can top last night, though I’m not sure that’s possible,” she said with a grin.
Goddess, this woman was sexy. One smile from her had my dick standing at attention.
“Challenge accepted, kitten,” I said and captured her lips with mine.