Kiss of Moonlight (16 page)

“For a while now, I’ve been considering giving it up, taking a training position. I have other people I need to think about.”

He slid another look her way and couldn’t decide if her expression was happy, sad, worried, hopeful or terrified.
Maybe a little of everything.

Did she understand that if she decided to stay with him, he’d give it up?

Or did she only see him now as a killer?

Maybe she just needed time to absorb what he’d told her. Work it through.

Blessed Goddess, guide her through her doubts and back to me.

As he turned onto the unmarked road leading to the den, the silence lengthened and the forest began to close in around them. The sun was still high enough to be visible through the treetops, though the thick stands of oak, pine and maple limited visibility beyond the road.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw her take a deep breath and sit straighter in the seat. Her worry scented the air, her hand clenched around the armrest.

He laid his hand over hers and squeezed. “You don’t have anything to fear here, Tam. No one will be able to find you and no one will hurt you.”

“I’m not afraid.” She sighed and he glanced at her long enough to see her shaking her head. “All right, maybe I’m a little worried. Are there a lot of
lucani
here right now?”

Good question
. “Not if we’re lucky.”

They drove the next mile in silence as Kyle concentrated on keeping the Jeep on the pitted, unpaved road. By the time the lane leveled out, the den lodge sprawled in front of them.

“Oh wow, that’s beautiful.”

Tam’s hushed voice made him smile but he understood her awe.

“Yeah, it is.”

The wood and stone structure of the lodge had stood for more than one hundred years and had weathered beautifully. A modified A-frame, the building’s straight lines and sharp angles blended into the forest, almost an extension of the trees.

The lane circled in front of the building and headed back the way they’d come in. Only footpaths led to the smaller homes on the property and none of those could be seen from the small clearing in front of the lodge.

Kyle saw no one but he knew it wouldn’t be that easy.

Almost as soon as he had the thought, two men stepped onto the porch through the front door. One he’d been expecting. The other… Well, it could be worse but Kyle couldn’t think how.

Stopping the car in front of the steps, he waited for her to turn and look at him.

“Give me a minute, hon.
Don’t
leave the car.”

Leaning over, he pressed a hard kiss on her lips. Yes, he knew the men on the porch were watching and would understand what that kiss meant. But he also wanted to make Tam think about anything other than her rising anxiety.

Just as her lips began to soften, he pulled back and got out then headed for the porch. Not stopping at the bottom of the stairs, which would have meant looking up at the men, he climbed the steps to the porch.

“Varro.
Nic.”

The younger men saluted him as a higher-ranking officer, right fist to left shoulder, but the second that formality had been given, Varro
Ducate’s
gaze sliced back to the car.

“
Vaffanculo
, have you finally lost your mind, old man? Cole’s not
gonna
give a shit about seniority. He’s
gonna
have your ass kicked from here to Vegas. Why the fuck did you bring an
eteri
here?”

Nicodemo
Rocca
didn’t even bother to look at this fellow centurion. “Shut the fuck up, Duke. Don’t be an ass.
Hey, Kyle.”
He stuck his hand out for Kyle to shake. “I think I may have a lead for you. Why don’t you bring her in?”

“What are you, fucking nuts?” Duke looked at Nic like he’d just pulled a gun and shot him. “You’re
gonna
bring an
eteri
in here?”

Now or never, Kyle decided. “Yeah, I am. She’s my mate,
scazzacasso
, so I don’t want to hear another
fucking
word about it. Shut the fuck up or I’ll tear your tongue out.”

Duke’s eyes widened as his mouth shut. He was not a stupid man though he’d never taken his education past high school. He was a dedicated soldier and the scar running across his hard features from left temple to right cheek was a testament to that dedication. His dark hair was not quite as long as
Kyle’s,
and he stood a few inches shorter than Kyle but broader across the chest. The guy was a powerhouse in the boxing ring, where he cleaned up on the amateur tours…when he wasn’t serving as a soldier in the
lucani
army.

He and Nic had just turned twenty-nine and next year they would have to choose whether they wanted to re-up or leave to pursue another career, either with the
lucani
or not.

Kyle had never considered leaving the legion. He didn’t think Duke had either. Kyle had given some thought to Duke filling Kyle’s shoes as
sicarius
.

Nic, on the other hand, was a brilliant soldier who couldn’t wait to leave the legion. Auburn-
haired,
freckled and “way too cute” according to Cat, Nic wanted more out of life.

But for some reason, the guy wouldn’t leave Duke behind. They weren’t lovers. They’d both had girlfriends over the years, but their friendship came first in everything.

Kyle should’ve known when he’d contacted Nic to look into Tam’s attempted kidnapping that he’d enlist Duke’s help.

Kyle turned his attention back to Nic, who looked like he was choking back a laugh. Whether at Duke or him, Kyle couldn’t tell.

“Yeah, maybe you want to let her out of the car and bring her inside,” Nic said. “Lodge’s empty at the moment. Everyone’s either at the training field or off site.”

Kyle nodded, knowing they wouldn’t have much time before people started heading there for dinner.

And then the shit would really hit the fan.

Back at the car, he opened the door and reached in for Tam. She met him halfway, putting her hand in his and letting him help her out.

He didn’t release her hand when she tried to pull away, and the look she sent him made him smile. Good, he wanted her just the least bit fed up with him. If she concentrated on him, she couldn’t get too worked up about anything else.

Including the two men, one scowling and one smiling at her.

When they reached the top of the stairs, he said, “Varro
Ducate
, Nic
Rocca
.
Tamra
McMillan. Nic said he has some information.”

His smile widening, Nic stepped in front of Duke to offer Tam his hand.
“Nice to meet you,
Tamra
.
Come on inside to the office. We can talk there.” Waving them into the house in front of him, Nic let Kyle lead the way, silence prevailing until they were all shut into the office, Kyle and Tam in chairs in front of the desk, Nic leaning a hip against the desk and Duke by the window behind them, keeping an eye out for anyone approaching.

Kyle nodded at Nic, impatient now to hear what they’d found out. “So what do you have?”

Nic picked up a file from the desk and flipped it open.

“The men you took care of the other night aren’t in the
Mal
database so I decided to ask a few people outside
lucani
channels. I didn’t give them
Tamra’s
name or what had happened but I relayed enough information to get the general picture. I hit pay dirt with
Antonin
de
Feo
.”

Kyle frowned, trying to place the name. “Is that one of Cam de
Feo’s
brothers?”

“Yeah,” Nic said. “
Antonin’s
mate was kidnapped by a
Mal
businessman named Daniel
Bonnini
last year. When he went to rescue her, he got a look at a list of names in
Bonnini’s
possession. He said he recognized a few of them as having traces of Etruscan blood, though none of them retained any kind of power. But just the fact that the guy had that list made him worry there may be another list with full-blooded Etruscans on it.

“
Bonnini
was killed a few months later and the de
Feos
never recovered those papers, but
it’s
possible
Tamra’s
name was on that list. De
Feo
also thinks whoever kidnapped Tira a couple months ago and sent the men after
Tamra
might have gotten their hands on that list.”

“Tira was kidnapped?” Tam looked at Kyle, her eyes wide and worried. “She never said anything.”

Nic shook his head, his features tightening. “Yeah, we didn’t know about it either. She didn’t… Anyway, de
Feo
doesn’t have a clue how someone else might have gotten the list. The de
Feos
have been trying to track it but haven’t had any luck so far.”

“Did de
Feo
actually see Tam’s name?” Kyle asked.

Nic shook his head. “No, but he said there were several pages and he only saw the top one.”

“How would someone be able to put together a list like that?” Duke asked, anger and shock in his voice. “That hits a little too fucking close to home.”

Nic shook his head.
“No idea, unless someone got their hands on an old family genealogy, but no one’s reported anything like that missing.
And someone would.”

Kyle sighed. “And he didn’t have any clue where that list ended up?”

“No. The de
Feos
were able to search
Bonnini’s
home and several of his offices last year, but the lists just disappeared.”

“What would someone want with someone like me?” Tam’s expression showed complete confusion. “I mean, I’ve never had déjà vu much less any
woowoo
powers. I can see why they’d want Tira but…”

Nic shrugged. “Actually, the men didn’t want Tira. They wanted another woman but they took Tira as leverage.” His expression turned almost savage and Tam felt herself still, as if in the presence of a dangerous predator. Nic wanted to hurt whoever had taken Tira, and Tam didn’t want to be anywhere close when that happened. “We have no idea why someone who’d tried to kidnap a
strega
would now want to go after you. But it stands to reason that if they sent someone after you once, they’ll do it again.”

And that would put Kyle in the crossfire.

Tam knew instinctively that Kyle getting shot in
Tira’s
premonition had everything to do with her.

If he was hurt, or worse, it’d be her fault.

“Tam, hey.
Are you—” Kyle broke off as she turned widened eyes at him, daring him to continue. After a breath, he said, “You drifted off for a sec.
Still with us?”

The low pitch of Kyle’s voice rubbed against her nerves, throwing off sparks that made her sigh.
“Yeah, sorry.
Just thinking.”

She flashed a distracted smile at the handsome Nic and another, more tentative one over her shoulder at the silent Duke. He didn’t even notice. He stared out the window, his hard mouth pulled into a scowl.

That one, she had to admit, frightened her a little. While Kyle looked like a bad-ass, she knew in her gut he’d never hurt her.

She sensed Duke would take out anyone who posed a threat. And he saw her as a threat, whether to the
lucani
in general or to Kyle in particular, she didn’t know.

He hadn’t said one word to her and hadn’t looked at her either. But she knew he’d listened to everything Nic had said.

“All right, guys, thanks for the info.”

It was a clear dismissal and both men knew it. Kyle stood and opened the door. Duke practically ran out of the room without a word or a glance.

Nic stopped at her chair and held out his hand.
“Nice to meet you,
Tamra
.”

His smile made her mouth curve in an answering grin then she watched him as he headed out the door.

Tam wondered if Duke’s animosity was for her in particular or if he treated all
eteri
that way?

And would the rest of the
lucani
be more like Duke or Nic, who had at least not ignored her completely?

What does it matter? It’s not like you’re going to marry the guy.

But isn’t that what you want?

God, what the hell was she thinking? She’d known the guy two days. Two days filled with revelations she’d never have believed if she hadn’t experienced them herself.

Things that shouldn’t be possible.
Magical things.

But none more magical than what she felt for Kyle.

She fixed her gaze on the closed door and drew in a deep breath, trying to calm the dizziness threatening to spin her out of control.

“Tam.”

Kyle stood behind her now so she couldn’t see his face. She heard movement then Kyle’s hands landed on her shoulders, beginning to massage the tight muscles there. She hadn’t realized she’d been so tense until her body started to loosen under his touch.

“Duke doesn’t like me,” she said.

Kyle snorted. “Duke doesn’t like anyone. Don’t take it personally.”

“Are they a couple?”

Kyle’s muted laughter rumbled through his chest and into her back. “No. But I see where you might get that vibe. They’re pretty much a team in everything they do, have been since they were kids. We used to call them the Terrible Twosome. Now they’re known as the Dynamic Duo.”

“Bet they’re a hot item with the women.”

Kyle’s hands paused for one brief second. “Do you think they are?”

Something in the tone of his voice made her glance over her shoulder at him. With his gaze narrowed, he looked almost… “Are you jealous?” The thought made her all warm and fuzzy inside.

He snorted, but it was tinged with self-disgust. “Honey, I’m thirty-six years old. I don’t do jealous anymore.”