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Because of his anxiety, he was grateful that it wasn't long before the redhead deviated from the main street and made her way to a small dive motel that had definitely seen better days.
He fell farther behind.
When she tossed a furtive glance over her shoulder, Aidan linked arms with a nearby petite brunette and offered her a beer. His unsuspecting accomplice's surprise turned into sensual appreciation when she noted his appearance. He smiled down at her but kept his eye on the Guardian, who apparently found him i
"Thank you," he murmured to his companion when the redhead slipped into a room on the ground floor. Aidan noted the number on the door, then extricated himself carefully from the brunette. "Enjoy the beer."
She called after him, but he was already heading back the way he'd come. Back to Lyssa. He took a long, roundabout, and thoroughly unpla
As he stepped into their third floor room and engaged all the many locks on the door, Lyssa complained, "That took forever."
Aidan tossed his shades on the dresser by the television, set the remaining six-pack on the nightstand, and crawled over her sheet-draped body. Straddling her, he lowered his head and took her mouth, his eyes squeezing closed as relief flooded him, The vibrating anxiousness he'd felt over her safety faded when her slender arms wrapped around his neck and held him close. Her soft moan of welcome was music to his ears.
Tilting his head to better fit his mouth to hers, Aidan licked deep, his tongue sliding along hers, his senses inundated with the feel, smell, and taste of her. He growled deep in his throat as she arched upward, pressing her breasts into his chest.
"Umm…" she purred.
"Umm…" he agreed, lifting his head to nuzzle his nose against hers. Lowering to her side, he tucked her against him.
"You're not going believe what I have to tell you," she murmured.
Her skin smelled like apples and her long blonde hair was damp from a recent shower. The sheets carried the lingering essence of them together, bare skin to bare skin, and a night of passion that had taken them from sunset to sunrise.
"Oh yeah?" He cupped the back of her head and kept her close.
"Yeah. Co
There was a long pause. "Imagine that."
Lyssa lifted her head and stared down at him. "Why don't you sound very surprised?"
Aidan exhaled harshly. "I saw another Guardian. She's staying in a hotel not too far from here."
"Oh shit."
He nodded wearily. "Exactly."
Chapter 4
Gasping for air and wracked by violent shivers, Co
As a smaller, wirier body wrapped around his, his roar of outrage reflected off the surface of the water and released his mounting tension. Co
The sting of the unexpected impact combined with the shock of being attacked really, really pissed Co
"Wait!" Dressed in gray, the man could only be an Elder.
Unfortunately for him, Co
"Cross needs you."
Co
"What Cross needs are answers, Sheron. We all need answers."
The Elder pushed back the soaked cowl that hid his face and Co
Disgust filled Co
For his part, Co
Aidan's parents, however, were a different breed of Guardian altogether-one a Healing Guardian, the other a Nurturer. They couldn't understand the path their son had chosen and the constant questions they'd pestered Aidan with had eventually driven him away. The Crosses couldn't understand why their only child needed to be working against the Nightmares, not repairing the damage they caused after the fact. Since they were the only family Aidan had, that left him with only two bonds-Co
And Sheron had been unworthy of such esteem and affection.
"Others have been sent to the mortal plane after Cross," Sheron said grimly, both hands clasped tightly around the hilt of his sword. "Powerful Elders. He will require assistance."
"We're not as out of the loop as you might think," Co
Sheron stilled, his sword lowered. "I warned them. I told them the system was untried and unsecured. It was too risky, but they were determined."
"What are you talking about?" Co
Sheron paused mid-step. "The cavern was our primary means of controlling the flow between the mortal plane and the Twilight, but we knew that such heavy reliance on one location left us too vulnerable. We altered a room in the Temple of the Elders in an effort to attract Medium slipstreams. It worked, to a lesser extent. But the Temple is not secure from Nightmares."
"It isn't?" That struck a deep cord of unease in Co