Kissing Sin (Riley Jenson Guardian 2)

"There certainly is." He cupped my cheek with a heated palm, and brushed a kiss across my lips. "I'm so very glad I met you."

"Well, if you hadn't, you'd still be a frustrated old stallion stuck in a stable." I shifted my legs, and let him redress. "Shall we get - " I stopped, looking upward at the brown shape soaring high in the sky. "We're being watched."

He squinted up. "Could be just a bird. Not every winged creature is going to be theirs."

"Do you care to take that chance?"

"No. Get in."

He opened the driver's door, then leaned across the seat and opened the other one. While I climbed in, he did something to the ignition switch. The old car roared to life.

"Which way?" he asked, as he reversed out of the parking spot.

I pointed in the direction the cops had gone.

He raised his eyebrows, amusement crinkling the corners of his eyes. "Care for a secondary bout of danger, do you?"

"Wouldn't mind, but the truth is, that way lies help."

"Ah." He pulled out onto the highway, and the old car began to pick up some speed. He glanced in the rearview mirror, then at me. "So, what happens after we meet your boss and your pack-mate?"

"They'll want a debriefing."

He nodded.

"And they'll undoubtedly want to try and find the place again."

"Meaning we might have to lead them back there?"

I studied him for a minute. "I don't know about the 'we' part."

His brief look was hard, determined. It was totally different to anything I'd glimpsed of him so far, and was a quick reminder that I really did know nothing about this man. Not even if I could trust him.

"Sweetheart, those bastards stole two or three months of my life. I'm not walking away from the investigation until I'm sure whoever's behind that place is made to pay."

"You may not have that choice."

His expression was grim. "No one can force me to do anything I don't want to."

"Jack, my boss, can. He's a vampire, and a strong telepath."

"It won't matter. Horse-shifters can't be mind-read - not by any race."

"Really?" I dropped my own shields and reached out telepathically. I hit a wall as solid as the one that protected my brother's mind. Surprise rippled through me. "How come?"

He shrugged. "It's similar to the mind-blindness often found in humans."

"So how can you be mind-blind, and yet have a psychic talent?"

"You tell me and we'll both know."

I considered him for a moment, then said. "This will be a Directorate investigation, and you're not Directorate personnel."

He shot me a look. "I thought you were just a paper pusher?"

"I am. Mostly."

"Meaning?"