Circle of Fire (Damask Circle 1)

“Just the inn. I don’t think it’s safe anymore.”

“You may be right.” He glanced thoughtfully at the inn, then back at her. The warmth had fled his eyes again, leaving them carefully neutral. “I really do have to go.”

“Then go. Have your fun with Eleanor. I can look after myself.”

His eyes darkened with annoyance, and Maddie grimaced. She wasn’t being fair. He was doing his best to find Evan, and being catty about it certainly wouldn’t help anyone. If he was treating Eleanor as nothing more than a lead, why couldn’t she?

Because I saw the way she clung to him, and it annoyed the hell out of me.

She swallowed and looked away. “I saw a motel on the other side of the bridge. Sea View, I think it was called. I’ll grab a taxi to my truck, then drive out and book us a room.”

“All right, then.” He hesitated, then reached up and touched her cheek with his fingertips. His caress was gentle and made something deep within her tremble in response. “Wash your wounds, then rest. I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

He walked away again. She watched him until he’d disappeared from sight, then sighed and headed into the inn. The firemen were still in the building, but once they’d questioned her about what had happened, they allowed her to collect her bag. She was glad of their presence, especially when she came out of the bedroom and found Hank waiting for her.

“So, you really are going?”

She studied him uneasily. “I said I was. How much do I owe you?”

“Considering what has happened, we’ll make your stay complimentary.”

“Thank you.”

The nearest fireman headed for the door. She shouldered her bag and quickly followed him.

“I do hope we see you sometime again,” Hank continued.

“Not likely,” she muttered, giving him as wide a berth as possible.

His chuckle crawled over her skin. She shivered and involuntarily glanced back at him. Don’t come back, his gaze warned her. If you do, you’ll die.

She swallowed heavily, trying to ignore the premonition, then edged closer to a fireman’s broad back and followed him down the stairs.

JON LEANED BACK ON THE SOFA AND WATCHED ELEANOR enter the room. She moved with feline grace, her hair shining in the firelight. A golden cat, he thought, and wondered if that was her alternate form. The cat he’d seen in the forest had been black—but again, given that touch of old magic that shimmered around her, the fact that she was a dark-eyed blonde was no guarantee that she wasn’t that cat.

She smiled when she caught his gaze, her midnight eyes filled with heat. He felt his body respond even though he had no true desire for the woman. She was just another job.

And yet he knew this would not have been the case a week ago. Dangerous or not, he would have taken what Eleanor was offering and enjoyed it.

But every time he reached for Eleanor he saw Maddie’s eyes—frightened and alone and yet oddly courageous. Somehow, she’d slipped past his guard and become a friend. And he didn’t leave friends alone and frightened. Eleanor had a hell of a lot to answer for, he thought grimly. She was the key to the kids, the figurative nut that had to be broken, through fair means or foul. But how could he be expected to do his job when everywhere he turned, he saw something that reminded him of Maddie?

He accepted his drink with a smile and patted the cushion next to him.

Eleanor folded down beside him, then caressed his thigh. He stared into her eyes and wished they were amber rather than dark.

“I’m so glad we decided to come back here,” she purred quietly. “So much cozier than the bar.”

He suspected it wasn’t the coziness she was after, but rather the solitude. The Hi Tides had plenty of customers—and plenty of potential witnesses if something went wrong.

Though why he thought something would go wrong he couldn’t say. He just had an itchy feeling he’d better watch what he did—and watch what she did.

“It’s not often another shapeshifter drifts into my territory,” she continued. “Taurin Bay is such a backwater.”

Her hand was moving up his leg, creating heat wherever she touched. The mind may not want her, he

thought wryly, but the body sure as hell does. “Which is why I was so surprised to find you here. You look more like a city girl.”

Eleanor gave him a lazy smile. “I am. Unfortunately, my other shape is not.”