“Have you been to Novosibirsk?” He leaned in and stared at the bright lights. She is probably surprised to see such a big city.
“No. It’s not my first trip to Russia, but my first to Siberia.”
He smiled. “Novosibirsk is big industrial and scientific city.”
She batted her luscious eyelashes at him. “I am not exactly a geographic dummy. I know Siberia is not made up of penal shacks in the middle of nowhere.”
“Where we are going, it will seem like nowhere.” The heat between them radiated and stirred his arousal.
She adjusted her body so as not to be so close, as if she sensed his lust. “I’m looking forward to it.”
Her scent told him she fought to stay in control. He swallowed and focused on a normal conversation. “You like the forests?”
“I’ve hiked just about every national forest. My nanny taught me to appreciate nature.”
Nik furrowed his brow. “Nanny, like kind babushka?”
Emma snorted. “More like nanny with fur and claws.”
He whispered in her ear, “Lycan?”
“Yep. Her name is Mara, my original handler.”
“Interesting. I bet you were a wild child.”
“That describes me to a T.” She cocked her head. “Are you happy to return to Siberia?”
Part of him wanted to tell her he always felt sad when visiting Siberia, but instead he smiled. “I’ll be happy to fly a helicopter again.” Nik arranged for his Russian contacts to leave a helicopter for him to make the final leg to the Verhoyansk Mountain range.
“You aren’t rusty, I hope.”
“Trust me. There will be no rust.”
Emma watched Nik run through takeoff checklist for the helicopter. They donned headsets to communicate over the deafening noise. Although securely buckled in, she had qualms about flying the old thing. Not the modern model she’d expected, but he seemed as familiar with the flight dashboard and controls as she was with riding horses. Nik grinned, in his element. Most werewolves preferred being on the ground, but Nik might as well have been a hawk shifter. That is, if bird shifters even existed.
He glanced at her. “Ready?”
“Ready as I’ll ever be.”
The helicopter rose and flew above the dense green forest. A carpet of never ending tree tops, primitive and impenetrable. Untouched. The snow had started to thaw in the late spring waning sunlight. She could only imagine what it would be like in the middle of winter. A cozy cabin with Nik, snuggled in his arms, in front of a blazing fireplace. What’s wrong with me? I have to stop thinking of Nik as a romantic interest. I’m a professional agent, not some giddy girl in love with a supernatural creature.
Nik turned to her. “Navigating northeast.”
“How close to the wolf pack will we get?”
“First, we will land at a secluded cabin. From there, I’ll follow the pack’s scent.”
Ugh. Secluded cabin. Were her desires coming to life? She focused on their mission. “How will I keep up when you go after the wolves?”
“We’ll try to get you a pony.”
“I think you mean a horse.”
“Compared to the giant horse you rode back in the arena, this one will be much smaller.”
He probably meant the small Mongolian type horses. The sturdy mounts were so short her feet would probably drag the ground. “I can hike.”
“Better that you stay in cabin while I search.”