“I saw you in bed with him.” He looked almost as angry as he had when he and Jamie fought at Cody’s house.
“I wasn’t—”
“Are you denying it?”
“No, but… it wasn’t like that.”
“What was it like, then? Tell me that. What do you call it when a man and a woman are snuggled together in bed? Friends? Not in my book.”
“We weren’t snuggling, and he was freezing. Don’t look at me like that. He needed body heat and a little comfort from a friend. I was fully clothed on top of the covers. I shouldn’t have done it, but I felt sorry for him. He is my friend, Cody. He’ll always be my friend, but I’m not in love with him.”
Cody’s jaw worked. “Damn. I don’t know what to think. You say you don’t love him, but seems every time I turn around, you have your hands on him.”
“It was no more than being a nurse.”
“I don’t know any nurses who crawl into bed with their patients to warm them up.”
“You know what I mean.” Shay moved closer and touched Cody’s arm. “I’m sorry. It was a stupid decision, but nothing happened. I swear it. I love Jamie, but not like that. Not like I love you.”
His expression and body went completely still. “You love me?”
In all their lovemaking, she’d never said the words. Maybe because she was afraid. Those words carried commitment, expectation. Shay untied her robe, letting it fall. “Come here, and I’ll show you how much.”
After they were finally sated with love, they slept. The darkness crept in, shadows twisting and writhing in her head, dark and light, evil and good. She felt
“Come to me.” He waited in the trees. She couldn’t see him, yet she knew his face. Pale, long hair, black as midnight. He smiled and she gasped at his beauty.
***
Cody brushed a strand of hair from Shay’s face and kissed her neck, but she didn’t wake. Her brow wrinkled and she muttered something under her breath. Her face was pale, drawn, as if she fought troubled dreams. Or had he just worn her out? His stomach rumbled. He needed food after all the energy he expended. His legs and hips felt heavy as lead, but his heart soared. Shay loved him. He had no doubts now. If he didn’t stop thinking about it, he’d have to put on a sporran just to get to the kitchen. He and Shay had gone from the bed to the shower and back to the bed again, from desperate to languid, both trying to make up for nine lost years. He felt a stab of sadness again, thinking about the baby he and Shay lost, the pain she suffered alone, but focusing too much on grief or pleasure could affect his ability to keep Shay safe. He should probably sleep in his own room tonight. He climbed out of bed and put on his kilt. He started to pull up her covers and saw the mark on her arm. It looked red. He’d get Coira to check it.
He headed to the kitchen and met Duncan. “Anybody seen Matilda? She’s missing again.”
Coira stopped wiping the kitchen table. “Bloody hell.” She slapped her hand over her mouth and then frantically crossed herself.
“It’s all right, Coira. Matilda could make a saint curse.” Cody sighed. “Nina hasn’t seen her?”
“She’s the one who alerted us.”
“She’s probably out terrorizing the guards,” Ronan said. “She asked one of them if this was some kind of gigolo operation.”
Cody grimaced. “We’ve got to get her out of here before she destroys thousands of years of secrecy.”
“I saw her headed toward the library earlier,” Coira said. “Her and that giant cat.”
“The library? Damn it. The secret passages.” Cody hurried down the hall with Duncan and Ronan behind him. The hidden door stood open.
“Blimey,” Duncan said. “Might as well start offering tours.”
Cody stuck his head inside. “Matilda? I hear something,” he said to the others. “Anybody got a flashlight?”
“Here.” Ronan pulled one from his sporran and turned it on. The three men entered the stone passage, following the narrow beam of light.
“That way,” Cody said. “Matilda?”
They heard running, and a second later, Matilda flew into Cody’s arms. “Oh, thank heaven.” Her hair stood on end, covered by cobwebs. Red lipstick was smeared across her cheek. “I got lost. I couldn’t figure out which way I came in. I don’t know what to do. I think I killed a man.”
“You killed a man down here?” Ronan asked, glancing at the others.
“Over there, around that corner. But I don’t think he was a man. I saw this shadow and thought it was one of you. I called out, and he leapt at me. He hissed. I’ve never heard a man hiss.”
“You sure it wasn’t the cat?” Duncan asked.
“No, I was holding the cat, only because it was dark, and my flashlight was dying,” she said, defensively.
Cody moved toward the corner where Matilda pointed. “Nothing here.”
“How did you kill him?” Ronan asked, eyeing Matilda doubtfully.
“Holy water.”
