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“You’ve already done that,” she said with a bitter laugh and slammed her head back.
Pain exploded from his nose. Wincing, he shifted his face to the side and gritted his teeth. “If you go peacefully, it doesn’t have to be this way. The Alliance only wants to question you.”
“Only questions, huh? Where they take me to an undisclosed location and no one hears from me again, I bet.”
He exhaled roughly. He’d had the same thought when Kyele explained. Standing by his duty, he said, “It doesn’t have to be that way. Let me help you.”
She relaxed in his arms and laughed. His greater height gave him a view of her face below. Tears gleamed in her eyes. “Help me go to a prison colony? No, thank you, Roarke. My bad. Rook. I keep forgetting,” she taunted
He grimaced and pinched the bridge of his bruised nose roughly on a heavy exhale. “Seraphina, right now you’re a blip on the radar. How long do you think that will last? You’ve eliminated individuals with a long line of criminal charges. With each kill, you draw more attention to yourself. I can see that you don’t go to a prison colony, but if you pursue this, I can’t help you.”
She hesitated and he hoped he’d managed to get through to her. Prepared for any sudden moves on her part, he carefully turned her around to face him. He eased the tension on her arm but never lost the hold he had on her wrist.
“I can’t trust you, Rook,” she finally said.
He flinched. She was right. Everything between them was a lie. Except the sex. They were both susceptible to the fierce attraction whenever they were in the same room together.
But there was more. There was an emotional connection growing between them. It wasn’t one sided. The look in her eyes, the way she softened in his arms, all pointed to deeper feelings.
For his part, he wanted to take her back to Enotia with him. He wanted to keep her by his side and protect her. None of which was possible.
“Be advised, Hunter One. Ghost Unit closing in on your location.”Kjar’s sharp voice in his comm cut through Rook’s thoughts.
That meant all his teammates were converging on his location. They would come through the door with the intent to attack and ask questions later. His comm silence ensured that. He had to get Seraphina to back down before it was too late. “My team is on the way. You can’t win. Accept that you’ve failed.”
She flinched, the pain crossing her features lashing at him like the harshest whip.
“Fuck, don’t look like that,” he whispered the words as he took a determined step toward her.
Seraphina backed up. Sadness and pain etched lines on her face. Her mouth dipped down in the corners and he wanted to take her in his arms again. Hold her. Inhale her berry scent now mixed with the musky hint of sex. He lifted his other hand to her and pleaded. “Let me help you, Fina.”
She snorted but a sob cut through the defiant sound. Tears poised on her eyelids to fall and the sight gutted him. “You don’t get to call me that.”
His hand fisted. “I won’t call you Tempest after seeing your real face.”
Her, “thatwas a mistake”, cut deep.
He tried again to reach her. “Fina,—l”
“Stop!” she yelled, yanking on her tethered wrist. “Stop calling me that.”
He acquiesced. “Fine. Tempest. You’re never going to get to Jarad. We know he’s your final target.”
Her eyes flared and she clamped her lips tight before shaking her head in denial. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
He gave her a wry look. “We know. You slipped up by focusing on his men, made it clear you were gunning for the head man. Jarad Oolun is that head.”
“Iwillfind justice for Coco and destroy Jarad,” she emphasized, eyes ablaze.
The night they’d met at the Ice Ball she’d hinted that she’d lost a friend because of Jarad. “Is Coco the friend you mentioned?”
“Yes! Not that you care.”
“I care,” he countered. “but the Allia—”
He broke off what he’d been about to say on a curse. She began frantically tugging on her wrist to get free. “I was right! You and whatever organization you belong to are protecting him.”
“No. Not like—”
