Aeromancist - The Beginning (Seven Forbidden Arts 2)

“Who is Delia Clark?” He watched her intently as he sipped his Scotch.

“It’s just a name I made up.”

“Why?”

“I love flying, and I’m not supposed to.”

“Why not?”

She contemplated not answering the question, but under the circumstances she supposed she owed him an explanation. “I promised my parents and my godfather, who also happens to be my mentor.”

When she fell silent, he said, “I’m listening.”

She’d done as much explaining as was needed. “I don’t see how this is any of your business.” She moved to get up, but his words stilled her.

“What you’re doing is illegal. You may even face charges.”

She left her glass on the table. “What are you threatening me with?”

“I don’t make threats, Katherine. If I wanted charges laid, you’d be arrested by now.”

She went cold. So, Lann wasn’t a reasonable man. She could only hope he was compassionate. “Why are we having this conversation, Mr. Dréan?”

“Because I don’t want you to find out from your godfather that I called him. I wanted to tell you in person.”

Her trepidation turned to anger. “You called Charles?”

“I’ll call him first thing tomorrow morning, and then your parents.”

Perplexed, she asked, “Why would you do that?”

“I don’t know if you can be trusted. I can’t allow people I can’t trust in my home.”

Her hope of Lann being compassionate dwindled. Fear took over. She needed his books for her thesis. Without this material, she had as good as failed.

“If you tell Charles that I’ve broken my promise, he’ll cancel my scholarship and make me go home.”

“Give me one good reason why he shouldn’t.”

“Look, Charles made me agree to the stupid condition. He promised my parents not to give me the scholarship unless I agreed not to participate in dangerous activities.”

He lifted an eyebrow, indicating that he was waiting for her to continue.

She cleared her throat. “My parents are protective, that’s all. There have been some … incidents.”

“Is getting involved in dangerous activities that lead to incidents a habit of yours?”

“I don’t consider flying more dangerous than driving.”

He traced the rim of his glass with a finger. “Tell me, Katherine, what do you enjoy about flying?”

What did that have to do with anything? “I don’t know how to explain it.”

“Try.” He fixed her with his unsettling eyes.

She lifted a shoulder. “I guess I like that I don’t have to be in control.”

Something in his expression shifted.

Did she say something wrong? “Mr. Dréan, I didn’t lie about my identity when I signed in at your library. I swear I’m not a security risk. If you call Charles, he’ll feel obliged to tell my parents, and they’ll only worry unnecessarily.”

“Your parents have a point. You have the reputation of a daredevil at the club.”

She frowned. “What’s this to you, anyway? I can’t imagine you’re concerned about my safety.”

His eyes tightened even as his lips tilted into a semblance of a smile. “Oh, but I am.”

“What do you want from me?”

“I want you to promise never to fly with anyone at the club again, unless it’s with me.”

She opened her mouth and then shut it again. It wasn’t the fact that he was a pilot that took her by surprise. It was common knowledge that the wealthy monastery owner piloted all kinds of planes. It was the strangeness of the request.

Finally, when most of the surprise had worn off, she only managed, “You?”

“I’m the only person I trust.”

Wow, he truly meant that. The conviction in his eyes said so.

“A lot safer than Frank,” he continued. “You agree? Good. Then it will save us both a lot of unpleasant explanations.”

Just like that. She opened her mouth again to argue, but he got up, indicating that the matter was closed for discussion. Well, she didn’t really have a choice. He was blackmailing her into not flying with anyone else but him, and she couldn’t fathom for what reason. She didn’t believe for one minute it was about her safety. He didn’t know her and had no reason to care about the remote possibility of her dying in a plane crash.

He lifted his eyes to a wall clock and smiled faintly back at her. “It’s almost dinner time. Would you care to join me?”

The invitation took her further aback. What was she to make of it? He’d just exposed her as a fake and a liar. A man like him couldn’t be interested in a woman like her, especially not since he’d indicated he didn’t trust her. Maybe he was just trying to be polite. What did she know about his foreign customs?

She got to her feet. “Thank you, but I have to go.”

“At least let me show you the part of the monastery that’s not open to the public. You’ll find the restoration interesting.”

Turning down the offer would seem rude under the circumstances. Showing interest in his project was the least she could do. After a beat’s hesitation, she accepted the arm he offered.