Killean almost groaned as he recalled his words; he’d known they would come back to haunt him. “To have one between your thighs?”
Simone couldn’t look at him as she edged further away. Killean almost grabbed her and hugged her close, but he didn’t think she would react well to such a thing right now. His fingers flexed as helplessness filled him.
“No, Simone, that isnotwhy I came for you.” Distrust and hope shimmered in her eyes when she finally lifted her head to look at him again. “You willneverhave to worry about me being a threat to you.Ever.”
Simone gulped as his eyes burned with golden fire. She wanted to believe him, but she barely knew him. However, even though his vulgar words echoed in her mind, a part of her believed she could trust him. He may be one of the surliest and most distant men she’d ever encountered, but he’d saved her life, and she doubted he’d risk his own life to free her just so he could punish her for breaking their kiss.
“I mean it, Simone. I willneverbe a threat to you, and I willneverforce myself on you.” Over the years, he’d been many things, but never had he pushed himself on a woman, and he never would.
“Then why did you say those things?” she asked.
“Because they were what Joseph wanted to hear.”
“I see.”
Killean knew she didn’t, but they didn’t have time for this. “We have to go.”
He was right, but she had to know if he’d killed whoever was inside that tent. She’d spent her entire life locked behind walls and doing everything expected of her because one misstep might not make her a contender for Nathan’s wife.
And all her obedience had gotten her was Nathan choosing another woman over her.
She was so unbelievably tired of being afraid of offending or annoying someone, even if it was a vampire who could easily break her neck.
“Is the person in that tent dead?” she asked with a lift of her chin.
“No,” Killean replied in a clipped tone.
He brushed by her and stalked over to the truck. Unlocking it, he opened the passenger door and held it for her. Simone hesitated before walking over to the truck; there was no reason for him to lie to her, and even if he was lying, she had no choice but to go with him.
She was almost to the truck when Killean thrust out his arm, blocking her from the vehicle. Stunned by the action, she tilted her head to look up at him and froze when she saw the bright red color of his eyes and the firm set of his chin. He radiated violence as he searched the woods surrounding them.
“What is it?” she whispered.
“A Savage,” he murmured as he scented the increasing stench of rot on the air. Then he spotted the shadow slipping through the trees a hundred feet away from them.
Simone’s heart leapt into her throat as she glanced around in panic. Joseph had found them! They would take her back, return her to chains, and destroy Killean!No!She didn’t care what happened, she would never return to that place alive.
“Let’s go,” she whispered and grasped his arm to tug on it.
“I think there’s only one of them.”
“So?”
“So, it has to die.”
“No, Killean. We can go. We can drive away from here and never look back.”
“If we do that, this one will alert the others to where we are and what we’re driving. They’ll be on us before we get ten miles down the road.”
Simone bit back a moan as her terror escalated. She couldn’t go back there, and if something happened to him…
She’d be done for. She knew nothing of the human world. She’d be as vulnerable to unsavory people as she was to the Savages. Not only that, but she didn’t want anything bad to happen to Killean. There was no denying he was powerful, but if he went after this Savage, he could lose, and it would be her fault. She’d weakened him by taking his blood; he’d fed since then, but was it enough to get him through a fight?
Chapter Fifteen
“Killean—”
“Shh,” he whispered.
