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“Shit!”
“I know! If we kill him and the witch, then not only do we stop the kidnappings, but it will break my hex.”
Kahlo nodded and his expression resembled that of a man ready to head out to battle—focused and barren of emotions. Just get the job done.
Thinking back to my time in the mansion, I added, “Those underground tunnels could lead to anywhere in the realm. The question is how the hell do we know which direction they traveled?”
He brushed a loose strand of hair behind my ear, his rough skin tender against my skin. “We visit other shifter colonies to determine who went missing from their packs and when. We might find a pattern to follow.”
I nodded. The only thing that kept me together was having these three men in my life, offering to help me, studying me as if I might have put a spell on them. They’d shown me what it was to have someone close to care about, who looked out for me. While I was still getting to know Reed and Kahlo, they’d been kinder than people I’d known for years.
Kahlo could have been a jerk and not visited the collector’s bunker, but he had—and then he’d come to check on me. Now with the newfound revelation that my problem was linked to Reed’s, it only made sense that we worked together.
You sure that’s the only reason you want to work closely with them?
I rolled my eyes and refocused to find Kahlo studying me with curiosity. “You comfortable here on the floor or do you feel like a cup of tea? We can sit on the scattered cushions. You keep your voice low, okay?”
“Agreed.” He climbed to his feet, untangling himself from my hair, and took my arm. He drew me upright in no time. “Nice place.”
“Thanks.” I padded barefoot across the tower toward the kitchen and set the kettle with water on the stove. With a few more pieces of wood tossed into the flames, we’d have hot water soon enough.
“Milk?” Kahlo strode past me and opened the pantry door.
Gingernuts twirled around his legs, meowing. “Think you have a fan. Funny, as he hissed at Reed.” I grabbed the milk from the pantry.
He leaned down and picked up the cat, then stroked him against his chest. “Animals have always been drawn toward me. As I grew up, I’d have injured, abandoned, or scared animals visit me often. My mother would say I had a kind soul.”
“So you’re like an animal whisperer. Do you help them?” Knowing he spent his time aiding critters in need made me all warm and fuzzy on the inside.
“Of course I do.” He patted Gingernuts’ head, yet the cat was purring, pressing himself against Kahlo’s chest. He never snuggled with me, and I chased him around the house for a hug and kiss, yet with the tiger, he was all smooches. I eyed Gingernuts suspiciously, but he was too busy ogling up at Kahlo.Traitor.
Still holding my cat under an arm, Kahlo removed several jars from the pantry and placed them on the kitchen counter. He reached for a pot hanging off the metal rack on the wall and set it next to the milk, spices, and tea. He spoke softly and said, “I’ll make my famous spiced chai tea?”
Curiosity burrowed through me, as I’d never had someone in the kitchen cooking for me. “Hell yeah.”
He busied himself placing all the ingredients into the pan before retrieving the sugar and brushed past me. My skin hummed with a delicious tingle from his touch. Just thinking back to us tangled and bound in my bedroom had me buzzing. Kahlo had made no move, yet the intensity in his eyes had screamed the opposite. Not that I expected every man I drooled over to fall head over heels in love with me, but had Reed told him he intended to claim me?
“Gingernuts, are you going to sit there all night?” I scratched his head, and he pushed me away with a paw. “Oh, I see. That’s how it is.”
Kahlo chuckled under his breath. “My father used to make us this chai growing up.” He placed the pot on the stove. “The smell reminds me of my parents.”
“Where are they now?”
He shrugged but didn’t elaborate.
“Do you live close to Reed?” I asked.
Kahlo slouched a hip against the counter and set Gingernuts on the floor before patting down his own chest of fur. “I live all over the land and often visit Reed.” He raised his voice for a fraction of time, and a footfall struck overhead.
I froze, my heart banging in my chest, and exchanged worried stares with Kahlo. Neither of us moved. After the longest excruciating moment with no further footsteps or the gargoyle charging in here, I exhaled. “Okay, be extra, extra quiet.”
I took the kettle off the stove and set it in the sink to stop it from boiling.
Kahlo stirred his pot with a wooden spoon in slow motion, and before long, he poured his brew into mugs and served me one.
The warm drink smelled heavenly, all cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger sweet. I sipped the chai, hot and creamy on my tongue, and the spices filled my senses. “This is incredible. I may hire you as my personal tea maker.”
He smirked and swallowed another gulp before heading across the room, right past the table and chairs, and to the open section where I set up my bedroom, sitting on the edge of my mattress. Okay, was he being presumptuous?
