Predatory Game

witch to kiss him?

“What kind of calls? Threats? What the hell does ‘not exactly’ mean?” Jess sounded impatient. “If someone is harassing the station, or Saber in particular, call the police.”

“No.” Saber made another grab at the telephone, her face pale. “Jesse,” she wailed when he whirled his chair around, keeping his back to her, preventing her from getting to the receiver.

“What exactly is he saying? Yes, that’s right. Call the security company, have them double the guard around the station. Brady’s security tonight? Have him give me a call. Sure, Les, thanks for calling.” He dropped the receiver in its cradle and turned his chair to face her.

“That was my phone call, Jesse,” Saber protested, her heart slamming in alarm, “you had no right to keep me from it.”

As usual, he didn’t seem to be the least bit intimidated or upset by her outburst. “Sit down before you fall down,” he suggested calmly. “You’re trembling.”

“With anger,” she exploded, but she did sit, afraid her shaking legs wouldn’t support her.

“With fear. Tell me about it, Saber. Who are you expecting? Just how dangerous is he?”

Stubbornly her chin went up. “It is not my fault some crackpot is calling the station. It happens. It doesn’t have a thing to do with me. Triple the guard at the station for all I care.”

“Don’t worry,” Jess said, “I will. Les says the man has called nine times, last night and this morning. Brian recorded a couple of the calls on his shift as well. He hasn’t threatened you, but he wants to meet you.”

“Everyone wants to meet me. I’m cute.”

“Your voice is sexy as hell and these creeps get all sorts of ideas.”

“Will you please wipe that disgusting stuff off your face? I can barely stand to look at you,” she snapped.

His eyebrow shot up. “What disgusting stuff?”

“You know very well. You just had to let her kiss you, and you’ve got her lipstick all over you.”

His eyes burned black velvet. “You’ll have to do it, honey. I can’t see it.”

Saber shook her head. “No way. You let her put it there, you can just get it off yourself.”

Jess shrugged. “I guess it will just have to stay.”

She glared at him. “You know where she kissed you.”

“I don’t remember.” He had to work to keep the grin from his face.

Furious, Saber jumped up, wet a cloth, and bent over him, scrubbing at the offensive smear of lipstick along his jaw. “I could just smack you one, Jesse.”

He pulled her onto his lap, exactly where he had planned to have her from the moment she had come downstairs. “Thank you, baby, I appreciate it. I wouldn’t have liked going around all day with Chaleen’s brand on me.”

“But you would have.” Saber wasn’t ready to forgive him. “All day, just to make me crazy.”

“Would it have?”

“Of course.”

“Well, since we’re talking.” He pulled the military issue knife from his pack and held it up in front of her. “I thought I’d return this to you.”

She went absolutely still. “Where did you find that?” She didn’t touch it.

“You had a nightmare. Before you woke up, you tried to protect yourself.”

Saber jumped off his lap, careful to avoid the knife, and stared at him, a look of horror stamped on her pale face. “I did what? I attacked you, Jesse?”

Tears swam in her eyes, and when he moved toward her, she backed away, putting one hand on his arm to keep him at a distance. “No. No. If I did that, it’s not safe for you anymore. I have to leave. I can’t believe I did that.”

It wasn’t the reaction he wanted or expected. If she was an actress, she was the best he’d ever seen. He could feel her distress, waves of it rolling off of her, distress and fear. Both emotions were broadcast so strong they swamped him. His body reacted with signs of stress, heart rate increasing so dramatically that he pressed his hand to his chest.

Her eyes widened even more and she snatched her hand away from him, rubbing her palm on her thigh, fear in her eyes. “What’s wrong? Is it your heart? Jesse, answer me right now.”

He felt instant relief, the heaviness in his chest easing, his heart slowing to normal. “I’m fine, baby, just sit down and stop getting upset over nothing.”

“Pulling a knife on you is not ‘nothing,’ Jesse.”

“I pulled a gun on you. We’re a violent couple.”

“That’s not funny. None of this is funny. I keep the knife in my bedroom for protection, but I never thought I’d ever have a nightmare and try to use it on someone. I can’t stay here.”

Saber took a deep calming breath and forced air through her lungs, trying to remain calm. Oh God, had she almost killed him? First with her touch and then with a knife? She wanted to run fast and far away from herself.

The faint humor left his face, leaving his expression bleak and cold. “Don’t be ridiculous, Saber. You can throw the knife away if you’re afraid, but leaving doesn’t solve anything.”

If only it were so easy as throwing away a knife.

“Leaving keeps you safe.”

“Does it? Does it really?”

She was so upset. She’d never been sick before-not once in her entire life. And she’d never made such a mistake before, yet was Jess in danger? Did Chaleen present a danger to him? And there was the uneasiness she couldn’t shake, that feeling of being watched. She’d even gone out the night before around four in the morning and patrolled the parameters of the property, but she hadn’t seen anyone. She intended to do the same tonight, because she was going to make absolutely certain she wasn’t bringing her hell down on Jesse.

She hopped up, needing to put distance between them. “I don’t want to talk to you anymore. I’m going upstairs.”

A muscle twitched along his jaw. “Go on, Saber, run like a little rabbit, stick your head under the covers.”

Saber fled without a backward glance, racing for the sanctuary of her room. She’d pulled a knife on Jess and he’d been able to disarm her. It had to have been because she was still asleep. He couldn’t use his legs. He was helpless, really. Burying her head in the pillow, she tried to make her mind blank, tried to block out the image of hurting the one person in the world she cared about.

But he was helpless. And he had enemies, maybe as many as she did. Someone had to take care of him. He didn’t realize how vulnerable he really was in that chair. He needed her. Needed her to watch over him. She lay awake staring at the ceiling, trying to figure out the right thing to do without having to give him up.

Subject Wynter. Something happened tonight while I was away. Subject left the residence, which leads me to believe the virus had little effect on her. She nearly caught me. I was about to turn on the road when she pulled in before me. In order to keep from giving myself away I continued on away from the residence. I believe she is beginning to suspect she’s under surveillance. I believe we’re going to need another pair of eyes and ears to maintain adequate…

He stopped dictating abruptly.

He didn’t want anyone else around to witness any fun he might have while gathering information-after all, that was his business. He erased the entire tape. It wasn’t his night for surveillance. If she’d left the residence and hadn’t been caught, that wasn’t on him. No one would be the wiser that he’d wanted another glimpse of her window, that sometimes he just sat listening to her voice on tape and staring at her bedroom in the hopes he’d catch a glimpse of her. He found it exhilarating to sit just down the road from her, in plain sight, creating his plans for the sexy little siren-he had so many.

CHAPTER 5