He took off his coat and placed it over the top of hers.
Heat rushed through her, as if the warmth of his body had infused his coat and now transferred it to her. Or maybe it was just the scent of him lingering on the thick leather that warmed her senses.
'You think that's where they might be headed?' he continued, catching the ends of the coat and tugging her closer.
She was too aware of his nearness, too aware of the fingers brushing her stomach as he zipped up the coat, to do anything but nod.
'How safe is it to be investigating that cabin at night?'
His gaze met hers, and deep in the brown depths, hunger stirred.
It echoed through her. She might be angry at his continuing insistence that they could be nothing more than a moment, but right now, she was more than ready to enjoy one of those moments — pounding headache, aching cold and all.
She licked the rain from her lips, saw his gaze leap down.
'Not very. It's better to wait until dawn, when they're less active.'
'Then we wait.' He lowered his mouth to hers, his kiss a gentle explosion of heat that ended far too soon. 'But for now, let's get out of this rain.'
The promises in his eyes made her every nerve ending tingle, and for a moment, she found it difficult to even breathe. 'The sheriff wants an explanation,' she somehow said.
He touched a hand to her cheek. Desire slithered through her and pooled deep in her abdomen.
'The sheriff is going to get the shortest explanation in history.' His voice was a smoky whisper that made her body thrum. 'You need to get back to the cabin and tend to that headache.'
She raised her eyebrows. 'How do you know I've got a headache?'
'I can see it in your eyes.' He kissed her forehead then twined his fingers in hers. The grin that touched his lips was sexy enough to curl her toes. 'Of course, once we've tended to the headache and got you warm again, we just might be able to do something about that other ache.'
'I hope so,' she said. 'I certainly hope so.'
However much they might have wanted to provide the shortest explanation in history, the sheriff certainly wasn't about to let them get away with it. It was nearly an hour before they made their escape. Kat closed her eyes and leaned back against the headrest. They'd given her some pain killers, and her headache had eased to a muted thumping. Bearable, but still not pleasant.
She had a suspicion, however, that a decent cup of coffee, something to eat, and a good hour or so of loving might take away the rest of the ache.
The storm raged, making conversation almost impossible as they drove back to the cabin. Not that she minded.
There was a certain intimacy in sitting here, cocooned in warmth, the sound of rain pounding on the car's roof mingling with the swish of wipers. And Ethan caressing her thigh as he drove, warming her more thoroughly than any car heater ever could.
She was almost disappointed when the car slowed and he moved his hand to change gears. She opened her eyes to discover they were back at the cabins.
'If those lights are anything to go by, you're grandmother's still awake,' he said. 'You want to go in and give her an update?'
'We'd better.' If they didn't, she'd just come in to see them. 'Besides, she might have heard from Seline while we were out.'
They got out of the car and raced for the door. Gwen opened it as they neared, and heat and warmth rushed out at them.
'Lit the fire in your cabin, too,' she said. 'Thought you might appreciate it.'
'Thanks.' Kat took off the two jackets and hung them over the chair to dry. 'You heard anything from Seline yet?'
'They found some text that looks promising. She hopes to have it transcribed by morning.' Gwen's gaze narrowed slightly. 'I'm gathering the Mara got away again?'
Kat nodded and held out her hands to the fire. 'With the kid, unfortunately. The farmer's son took me out before I had a chance to follow it.'
Gwen looked at Ethan. 'And you had no chance of following it?'
He shook his head. 'I couldn't even smell it, let alone see it.'
'So the Mara is invisible even when it's holding the kid?'
Kat turned and warmed her rear-end. 'The kid was invisible, too. I didn't feel any sort of psychic shield, so it has to be some form of magic.'
'Psychic shield?' Ethan asked as he stripped off his wet shirt.
Kat tried not to stare at all the lean muscle on show, then gave it up when she realized her grandmother was openly enjoying the view, and Ethan didn't seem to care.
'Many vampires have the ability to touch your mind and make you think they disappear into shadow,' she said.
'But the reality is, your brain simply stops seeing them.'
'So is this Mara some form of vampire, or a spirit?'
'It could be both.' Gwen disappeared into the bathroom and came back with towels she tossed to both of them.
'So, we — or you — try to hunt down this thing in the morning.'
Kat nodded. 'We'll start with that cabin Ethan found. The zombies have to be guarding something.'
'It could just be a trap,' Ethan said.
'The only way to know if it's a trap is to spring it.'
Gwen's voice was grim. 'You two had better go get something to eat, then grab some sleep. I've got a feeling it's going to be a long day tomorrow.'
But hopefully, in the end, a more successful one than today, Kat thought. 'Have you eaten?'
'Yep. I'll stay here and work on zombie deterrents.' She hesitated, her eyes twinkling mischievously as she added, 'With the all the noise of the storm and such, I'm not going to be getting much sleep anyway, am I?'
'I guess not,' Kat said blandly. She could feel Ethan's gaze on her. Feel his sudden amusement. 'Just make sure you set the warding stones again.'
'I have. Stop fussing and go get warm.'
Kat walked into the other cabin and discovered two meals of steak and fries waiting for them in the fridge.
And the coffee machine on and ready. She zapped the meals in the microwave and poured two cups of coffee as Ethan squatted near the old record player.
'What do you prefer?' he said. 'Elvis Presley or Frank Sinatra?'
'There isn't anything more modern?'
'It's them or jazz, and personally I'm not a big fan of jazz.'
Neither was she, though Gwen was, so she'd certainly heard enough of it over the years. 'What Elvis albums we got?'
'Compilations. Ballads, mainly.'
'That'll do.' Right now, Frank singing I did it my way was not what she needed. Especially since the man she was with had every intention of doing just that and to hell with what might be happening between them. The microwave beeped. She gathered the ketchup and cutlery and put everything on the table. 'Dinner's ready.'
'Nothing like soggy fries after midnight,' he said, smiling ruefully as he sat down opposite her.
'I didn't think cops where overly fussy about when and what they ate.' She picked up her coffee, savouring its bittersweet taste.
'We're not, which is why most of us develop ulcers later in life.'
'I would think job stress would have something to do with that.'
He shrugged. 'It doesn't help.'
She covered her fries in ketchup, picked up her knife and dug in. 'Did you always want to be a cop?'
'Not especially.'
