“Your friend?”
Oh, shit.
Kaya backed off, pulling her dagger away from him just as Mira rushed into the room on a delighted squeal and threw her arms around the handsome male. “Aric!”
His gaze lit up as he caught Mira in a hug, lifting her up and spinning her around in his arms. “You look great, Mouse,” he said, setting her down on her feet again. “Where’s the lucky bastard you took for a mate?”
“Right here.” Kellan entered the weapons room and clasped Aric’s hand in greeting. “Good to see you, man. We didn’t know you were coming.”
He gave a cryptic smile. “Well, here I am.”
“Is Rafe here too?” Mira asked. “I haven’t seen him since . . . well, since everything that happened a couple of weeks ago.” She glanced at Kellan, heavy emotion ripe in her lavender-tinted eyes. “Where is he, Aric? I’m so excited to see you both.”
“Rafe’s looking forward to seeing everyone too. I’m sure he’ll be down soon to find you.”
Kellan cocked his head. “Last we heard, you two were leaving London with the Breedmate you rescued in Ireland a couple of nights ago. Chiffon-something.”
“Siobhan O’Shea,” Mira corrected impatiently. “Does that mean you brought her with you?”
“She’s with Rafe. He and Renata are getting her situated in the residence.”
Aric’s gaze kept straying to Kaya as he spoke. She didn’t miss the spark of interest in his light green eyes, nor the trace of humor that tugged at the corner of his lush mouth.
“I’m sorry,” Mira blurted. “Aric, have you met my friend Kaya Laurent?”
“We were just getting acquainted,” he said, that arrogant smile deepening as he extended his hand to her. “I’m Aric Chase.”
His fingers wrapped around hers, warm and firm. She didn’t want to acknowledge the current of awareness that sped through her veins as their palms pressed together. Ordinarily, Kaya avoided touching people she didn’t know, a caution she’d developed early in life to shield herself from the power of her extrasensory talent. But her ability to read someone’s mind with a touch didn’t work on the Breed.
So the jolt of electricity she felt while Aric’s strong hand engulfed hers had nothing to do with that. The look he gave her said he felt it too.
Kaya withdrew from his grasp and folded her arms over her chest. “Chase?” she repeated, once the name he gave her finally penetrated the unsettling drift of her thoughts.
“Aric’s father commands the Order’s team in Boston,” Mira offered helpfully.
Kaya worked to stifle her groan. Bad enough she’d just put a knife under the chin of a visiting warrior; she’d nearly assaulted Sterling Chase’s son. Aric’s mother was something of a legend too. The first female Breed ever known to exist, Tavia Chase was a daywalker besides--a gift she’d passed down to her offspring, Aric and his twin sister Carys.
As far as hierarchy went within the Order, Aric Chase was practically royalty.
“Nice to meet you,” Kaya murmured lamely.
“Likewise.” His eyes travelled her up and down in a slow appraisal. His dimpled grin spread into an amused smile, then he chuckled.
“Something wrong?” Visiting royalty or not, she bristled at the idea that he would mock her in front of her team leader and friends.
She flinched as he reached out to her without warning. His hand skimmed past her right cheek, to the side of her head. Smiling, he pulled a gnarled twig from the tangle of her hair.
Kaya snatched it away from him, her lips pressed flat over the curse that leapt to her tongue.
“You’re welcome,” he told her quietly, just as a hard rap sounded on the doorjamb.
Nikolai filled the space of the open door, the commander’s glacial blue eyes intense as he met the gazes of everyone in the room, finally settling on Aric and Kaya. “Good. You’re all here.”
Mira tilted her head at her father. “What’s going on?”
“Lucan’s called a meeting. He’ll be linked in to the war room from D.C. in two minutes.”
She nodded. “I’ll go tell the team.”
“Actually, it’s not the team he wants to meet with tonight.” Niko’s grim gaze left Mira’s. “Aric, Kaya. I need you both to come with me.”
CHAPTER 3
Aric left his bewildered friends in the weapons room and fell in line behind Nikolai and the lithe, brunette beauty who looked like she’d just returned from days of intense wilderness training. Either that, or a vigorous roll in the hay--assuming the hay was full of pine needles and moss and several seasons’ worth of fallen leaves and bramble.
Both possibilities intrigued him.
Especially the latter.
He couldn’t help but admire the view as he followed Kaya Laurent’s swift, long-legged stride up the corridor. She wore black fatigues that hugged every curve, her emptied weapon belt cinched around a slender waist. Sleek, silken tendrils of coffee-brown hair had escaped the ponytail that rode at her back, bouncing with each clipped step she took at Niko’s side.
They walked into an open meeting room and the commander closed the door behind them. “Take a seat.”
Aric walked to the round table and sat down in one of the empty chairs that surrounded it. He waited for Kaya to take her place beside him, but instead she circled to the opposite side and sat about as far from him as she could get.
He smirked, watching her do everything she could to ignore him. Evidently, he hadn’t won any points with the lethal beauty.
“So, I guess we can skip the introductions,” Niko said as he strode over and seated himself between them. “Looks like you two have already had a chance to meet.”
“Yes, sir.” Kaya didn’t spare Aric as much as a glance while she spoke. “We’ve been introduced.”
“Kaya was kind enough to explain some of the command center policies to me when I bumped into her in the weapons room.”
Now her gaze swung to him, a flicker of shock in her
