“What happened to Kieran?” Lori asked, leaning forward. “I don’t see him.”
Damn, and damn. “He’s probably talking to the officer right now,” she lied quickly, smiling at Lori. “We’ll be out of here in no time.”
Alex turned back to watching the officer, who was rummaging in his trunk. Thank God for the poor visibility. Alex couldn’t see any farther than the near side of the Mountie’s vehicle, and Kieran would be invisible only a few yards away…
“Oh, my God,” Lori gasped. “Oh, my God.”
Alex whipped around in her seat. She caught only a glimpse of Kieran standing naked in the wind, his clothing pooled about his feet, before he began to blur. And shifted, in full view of Lori. For a moment he stood, blackness framed by white, and then dashed away.
Lori leaned back in her seat, face drained of color. Alex reached for her hand.
“Lori, listen to me. Are you all right?”
Her mouth worked. “I saw… I saw—”
Alex had no time to press further. The Mountie was coming back toward the truck, and she could only pray Lori was too shocked to make a scene.
Lousy timing, Kieran, she thought. Her eyes began to water. I hope to God you can track us, because I can’t wait for you now.
Chapter 15
He stood shivering in front of the motel room door, naked and bathed in sweat. Very gently he set his knuckles against the wood, rapping once and then again.
The door revealed a slender crack of light. “Kieran?” Alexandra whispered. And then he had only a moment to step out of the way before she flung the door open and stepped over the threshold and into his arms.
“Kieran,” she said shakily, “you scared the hell out of me.”
The words were familiar and beloved. Her scent filled him like music. For a moment he simply held her, the blood singing in his veins, warming him beyond the need of any other heat. For a moment he allowed himself to believe that she came to him with more than relief, more than friendship defined by her stubborn sense of duty and the promise she had once made him.
For a moment he wondered if he could trust himself. Alexandra stepped back. “For God’s sake, come in!” She pulled him into the room, shut the door, and braced herself against it.
“What happened?” she demanded.
He hardly knew the answer himself. One moment he’d been watching the officer, the next he’d been stripping off his clothes, blinded by images of capture and confinement. “I panicked,” he admitted.
She closed her eyes and let out a long, heavy sigh. “I can understand that. I was pretty nervous myself.” She pushed away from the door and sat on the edge of the bed. “It didn’t take you long to find us.”
Kieran glanced around the room. It was very spare and modest, with a single bed and two chairs and a table. Above the dresser was a mirror, draped awkwardly with Alexandra’s coat and a sweatshirt, almost as if she had intended to cover the glass. She had already laid a spare set of his clothes over one of the chairs.
“I didn’t lose all my reason,” he said, tugging on his jeans. “As soon as you and the Mountie pulled out, I followed the road.” And your scent. He shrugged into a plaid shirt and let it hang open, allowing his body to cool. “I left you to deal with the police alone,” he said heavily.
She shrugged with indifference he knew she didn’t feel. “It was better for you to be gone. The officer didn’t seem to know or suspect anything. He dropped us off here and headed on home, so we’re still safe.” Her gaze dropped to her laced fingers. “But there is a problem.”
“Lori,” he said.
Alexandra looked up without meeting his eyes. “She saw you shift, Kieran.”
He sat down in the nearest chair. “How did she react?”
“She was… pretty shocked, of course—” Alexandra broke off, swallowing. “I put her in the next room. She’s been very quiet since it happened. She’s obviously learned how to keep her feelings locked away. I think she believes what she saw, but she won’t talk to me. She’s terrified.”