I smiled slyly. “Maybe once, but I didn’t want to ruin him for other women.”
She chuckled. “Or you didn’t want him to ruin you for other men.”
“That too,” I admitted honestly. Something told me that even without the bond, sex with Hamid would be off the charts. That man didn’t do anything halfway.
“Do you know if you guys will be staying here?” Sara asked with a hopeful expression. “Nikolas said he wasn’t sure, but he thought Hamid might want to stick around for a few days at least.”
“I haven’t had a chance to talk to him since we left Westhorne, but I can’t see him leaving soon. He’ll need to be where the action is, and nothing’s happening in L.A. that we know of. Even Vivian left to go on another job in France.”
“Good.” Sara rubbed her belly.
“Everything okay?”
She smiled. “Yes. The little one is just letting me know she’s happy you’re here. Either that or she really loved the tacos.”
I draped my legs over the arm of my chair. “They were really good tacos, so I won’t hold it against her.”
Sara and I hung out until I couldn’t sit still any longer, and then I went for a long run to work off my excess energy. After a week at Westhorne, I was itching to get back on regular patrols, but Hamid had made it clear that I could no longer go off and do my own thing. I had to follow his rules or suffer the humiliation of having my own security detail. Some things were infinitely worse than wearing a tracker.
Beth was there when I returned from my run, and the three of us spent the rest of the day together. Nikolas, Hamid, and Chris didn’t show up until after the dinner dishes had been cleared away.
Orias and the rest of the Council’s team were still at the restaurant running tests and were expected to stay there all night. I was glad to be free of them. Hopefully, now that they had a new summoning site to play with, they’d forget about doing tests on me for a while.
I wasn’t sure if Hamid and I would continue our training sessions after we left Westhorne, so I was secretly thrilled when he asked if I wanted to spar with him. I’d already improved so much in the short time we’d been training together.
“Enough for tonight?” he asked when I reached for my water bottle after an intense two-hour session.
I nodded and took a long pull on my water. I was going to miss these workouts when we were finally able to go our separate ways. Hamid pushed me like no one else ever had.
“Do you know how long we’ll be here?” I asked him as we walked to our rooms.
“At least a week, unless I’m needed elsewhere.”
I brushed my damp hair out of my face. “I want to start patrolling again. I’ll go crazy here if I don’t.”
He nodded. “I already spoke to Nikolas about it. He’ll put you on a team tomorrow.”
I was too surprised to answer at first. I had expected more of a fight to get back on patrol. “Thanks.”
We reached my room, and I opened the door. “Good night.”
“Good night.” He started to walk to his room, which was next to mine. When he stopped and looked back at me, he wore a hint of a smile. “Good job today, Jordan.”
* * *
“That’s it for today, folks,” I said to the five kids and three adults who were practicing their stances with the new staffs I’d brought for them today. Beth and I had been taking turns giving the self-defense class at the wrakk, and we’d decided our students were ready to learn to use a weapon. Used properly, a staff could be as deadly as a sword.
“Can we take these home with us?” asked Jal, one of the Vrell boys.
I picked up my leather jacket. “Those are yours, and I expect you to practice with them at least an hour a day.”
He smiled broadly. “I will. Thanks!”
“See you in two days,” I called to them as I headed to the exit.
Over the last week, my days had fallen into a new pattern. Hamid worked with the Council team on the investigation, and I’d gone back to regular patrols. Nikolas had assigned me to a team with three seasoned warriors, and I followed Hamid’s rules and didn’t go off alone. It wasn’t ideal, but it was better than the alternative.
Outside of our training, I didn’t see much of Hamid. After the night he’d walked me to my room, I’d realized I was getting too comfortable with him. That coupled with the things Sara and I had talked about made me see how much my feelings toward him had changed in the last few weeks. I’d gone from barely tolerating him to enjoying his company.
And I couldn’t deny my physical attraction to him was growing. I’d always found him incredibly sexy, but more and more, I’d been imagining what it would be like to explore every inch of his muscled body. I wanted to blame my increased desire on the bond, but I couldn’t lie to myself anymore.
Sara called me as I walked to my bike. “Are you still at the wrakk?”
“Just leaving. Why?”
“Perfect. Would you mind stopping by the grocery store on the way home. I’m dying for some Ben & Jerry’s, and we’re all out.”
“How much do you want?” I asked, laughing. I was used to her food cravings and crazy appetite. Two days ago, she’d eaten a bunch of bananas and a whole jar of peanut butter in one sitting. And that had been her midmorning snack.
“You are an angel,” she gushed. “Two tubs of Chocolate Fudge Brownie should tide me over until we can do a grocery run.”
I got to my bike and rooted in my pocket for my keys. “I’ll get four tubs, just in case.”
The sound of a van door sliding open drew my attention to the large blue cargo van parked on the other side of my bike. A lot of the vendors here used vans, so I didn’t pay much heed to it until a Gulak jumped out. He was quickly followed by five more, all carrying clubs and knives.
In a matter of seconds, I was surrounded.
“Jordan, you still there?” Sara asked.
I kept my eyes on the Gulaks. “Um, I may be in a wee bit of trouble.”
“What kind of trouble?” Alarm filled her voice.
“The Gulak kind,” I answered flippantly as I reached for the sword strapped to my bike. “You might want to send in the cavalry for this one.”
I hung up and slipped my phone into my pocket. I couldn’t afford any distractions, and Sara knew where to send backup – if anyone was close enough to get here in time. Something told me these guys weren’t going to play around.
“I’m going to enjoy this,” one of the Gulaks said, and I turned slowly to find the speaker.
“Do I know you?” I asked, although I already suspected he was one of the Gulaks Beth and I had fought here a few weeks ago.
He sneered. “You don’t remember me?”
“Sorry. You guys all look the same to me.”
A laugh rumbled from him. “I’ll fix that. After I’m done with you, you’ll never forget my face.”
The soft scuff of a boot hitting a pebble alerted me to the first attack. I spun as a club swung at my head.
I ducked and brought my sword up, slicing a shallow gash across the Gulak’s stomach. If he’d been a vampire, that strike would have gutted him. Damn Gulaks and their scaly hides. It was enough to make him howl in pain and back off, but there were five more ready to step in and take his place.
My years of training had prepared me to fight against the odds, and I employed every technique I’d learned from Hamid. For several minutes, I held off my attackers, letting them feel the sting of my blade when they got too close. But they just kept coming, and I knew I couldn’t hold them back indefinitely. All it would take was one slip for them to get past my defenses. Gulaks were strong bastards, and they could do a lot of damage.
The first blow took me by surprise, even though I’d been waiting for it. The club slammed into the side of my knee so hard I could hear the bone crack. I struggled to find my balance as the sharp stabbing pain tore a cry from my lips.
The Gulaks didn’t waste time moving in, and the second blow was to my sword hand. My fingers went numb, and my sword slipped from my grasp.
I grabbed the knife sheathed at my hip with my good hand, but it was no match for six Gulaks with clubs.
The third strike shattered my cheekbone and made the world go black for several seconds. I hit the pavement hard, and my sight returned in time to see a club coming down in what, to my pain-addled brain, looked like slow motion.
The club slammed into my side, and I gasped as pain ripped through me. I tried to take a breath, but the fire in my lungs told me at least one of them had been punctured by a rib.
Blows began to rain down on me, and all I could do was cover my head with my arms. Not that it would matter soon. The viciousness of the attack told me these guys weren’t going to be satisfied until I was dead.
I was teetering on the edge of consciousness when an enraged roar pierced the fog of pain surrounding me. The sound pulled at me, refusing to let me slide into the dark abyss.
Shadowy shapes moved above me. I blinked, and my vision cleared enough to see the flash of a sword as it took the head off a Gulak. Hot blood sprayed my face, but I couldn’t move either of my arms to wipe it away. All I could do was watch Gulak body parts fall around me as ice spread through my body.
The coldness reached my chest, and I let out a slow rattling breath. So, this was what death felt like. I’d always expected to go out in a blaze of glory. This was such a disappointment.
Gentle hands touched my face, and I heard Beth’s desperate voice from a long way off. “Jordan, stay with me.” Then she shouted, “She’s not breathing!”
Someone knelt beside me, and even with the life draining from my body, I knew it was him. The touch of his hand on my throat sent a flicker of warmth through me like a beacon in a storm. My Mori was too weak to call to his, but we knew he was here with us.
Hands tilted my head back, and a mouth covered mine. Warm air flowed down my airway, filling my lungs. It hurt so much when they expanded, but pain meant I was still alive, so I welcomed it.
Over and over, he forced air into me, and with each push, I felt the coldness recede a little, until I could finally draw a breath of my own.
“That’s it,” he said gruffly, his face so close I could feel his warm breath against my cold skin. “Fight for it, Jordan. You’re too stubborn to give up.”
I pulled in a shallow breath and then another. As long as I didn’t take in too much at once, my lungs could handle it.
I tried not to think about the fact that I couldn’t move my arms or legs or open my eyes. And one side of my face was completely numb. After the blow I’d taken to it, that was probably a blessing.
I couldn’t speak either, something I discovered when I attempted to form words. All that came out was a garbled sound.
“Don’t try to talk,” Hamid said. “The healer will be here soon.”