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  “You would know better than to say that and I’m not explaining what you said wrong. You wouldn’t get it. It’s obvious that you and Linc both aren’t accustomed to dealing with females.” Cami tapped her foot on the stone floor.

  “What do you mean it’s obvious? We have dealt with females. Very well.” Colm’s brows drew down and he put his free hand on his hip.

  Cami realized she’d offended him a little. She sighed. It probably couldn’t be helped. She was bound to say something such as this sooner or later.

  “I don’t mean as a bed partner for a few days. You’re rough, gruff and you tend to throw orders at me as if I was one of your men.” That last bit was getting on her nerves. She narrowed her eyes and tossed her hair over her shoulder. “Just so you know I like men who know the difference between me and the men they order around all day and can treat me accordingly.”

  “I know just how to treat you, but if you want sweet words, you’re going to have to tell us what you want. We’re not the type of men who’ll let you do anything you want or order us around. Why don’t you try testing us and see if we’re your type of man.” Colm arched an eyebrow, apparently challenging her.

  “I knew you wouldn’t understand.” She shook her head and stared straight ahead. “Where are you taking me now?”

  “I’ll take you upstairs now so you can see the part of the Thent where your room will be. I’ll point out our room so you’ll be aware of where we are when you need us.” He gave her a slow look and she thought he’d press for more information, but he began leading her down the hall again and this time she went with him without balking.

  It wasn’t sweet words or poetic phrases she was wanting as he seemed to think. She wanted soft touches and tenderness. If they were going to hold her hand or put an arm around her, she didn’t want it to be because they wanted to be sure she went where they wished.

  Chapter Nine

  Colm looked over at Cami and frowned. She was angry again and he couldn’t understand what he’d said to cause it. He also couldn’t figure out what she wanted from them. He knew she wasn’t one of their men. A slow smile curved his lips as he thought about her sweet curves. Although hidden underneath the loose cream-colored shirt, he knew she had nice breasts. Those full hips and rounded ass filling out those black pants definitely didn’t belong to a man.

  He’d hoped Linc was wrong with his guess that she was their mate. That was becoming less and less likely. Colm could feel the pull to get closer to her. He wanted to know everything about her, protect her, hold her and pull away every mask she was hiding behind. Ruthlessly ripping them away wasn’t an option. He’d like to think that was because he knew she’d already been hurt, but it wasn’t that simple.

  He led her down the hallway, past the door where they’d entered and finally to the staircase. He let her lead the way up the stairs to the second level. He took the time to admire the taut curve of her buttocks as she moved ahead of him.

  He knew it was perfectly safe for her inside the Thent. It was the only reason that he let her go in front of him. He needed the time to think. What did she want from them? He assumed that it wasn’t to lead them around, since she’d shut down after he’d implied that. That didn’t give him a clue what would make her happy.

  “The chatar and healer have rooms up here as well, but they’re in a different section from ours.” Colm once again stepped up beside her when they were at the top of the stairs. He gestured to the right. “They both chose rooms along that hallway.”

  “Is there anyone in the rooms along this hallway?” She gestured to the hallway right in front of them.

  “No, there hasn’t been anyone along that hall since we last had guests.” Colm looked down the hallway. All of the doors were shut, but he didn’t doubt that the rooms were immaculate, almost ready to be used.

  “And that’s too far from you and Linc?” She tilted her head and looked at him.

  He watched her peek at him through her lashes. She was trying to see how much space they were going to give her. The thought that she was a little wary of them in this way didn’t bother him. He wanted her aware of them as men, not just as leaders. She was interested. He wanted her to burn with it.

  “Yes. We’re not going to make you sleep in the same room, but we want you within screaming distance. No one would hear you here unless they chanced to be walking by. That’s not acceptable. Think you can handle being that close to us or will the temptation be too much for you?” Colm decided she needed a little prodding. He could see the caution in her eyes and he didn’t want it to turn to fear.

  “The only temptation I might give in to around you and Linc is to grab something and hit you with it. Neither of you know when to stop. Your room is down the hall with the door on it?” Her eyes narrowed and he was relieved to see the caution swept away in a tide of anger.

  “Yes, the door is only closed when Linc and I aren’t here. Most other times, it’s left open.” His hand tightened on hers and he let his smile slowly widen.

  “I’ve never heard of a door separating the Ardin’s portion of the fortress from the rest of the building. Well, not a metal door, maybe a wooden door.” She frowned as she looked at the large metal door.

  “That door was put in a few generations ago when the Ardin’s Lady was attacked and nearly killed in her own rooms. To prevent that happening again, they put in a door to ensure that when she was in her rooms and private, she was as safe as she should be.” Colm led her past the solid door. They shouldn’t need it now. The threat was from outside their Thent. Of course, he wouldn’t mind being locked into this part of the fortress with her.

  “You know a lot about this place. Were you born here or were you chosen to rule here?” She licked her lips and turned her head to look at him.

  It was the first personal question she’d asked of him and it did surprise him. He could tell that she hadn’t meant to ask that. “No, I heard that story from Linc. He was born here and we took over when the old Ardin died. They’d never found their mate and had no children from their marriage to one of the widowed Santir female.”

  “Where’s your room?” The words were slower and more controlled now. He could tell she was choosing every word.

  “Down here.” He led her past several doors and around the corner.

  About halfway up the hall, he stopped and pushed a door on the right side open. He saw her glance in and wondered what she thought of the room. It never mattered before, but now he decided there needed to be a little more color in the room. As she slowly relaxed around them, she reminded him of a flower opening up to catch the light. She needed somewhere pretty and everything was brown or black in there.

  “Will my room have a bath or is there one along the hall somewhere?” She looked pointedly down the hall at the other closed doors.

  “There are two along the hallway, one back near the metal door and the other here.” He opened a door near the middle of the hall. “If you want, you can use the bath in our room. It’s much bigger than the one here.”

  “This will work. The bath in my home was smaller than this.” She looked into the room and a smile curved her lips.

  “I expected to find you two wandering around on the lower levels showing her all of the rooms.” Linc strode up the hallway.

  “I thought that could wait. She’ll be here long enough to explore.” Colm shrugged. “I also thought that it would be better to show her around outside together. Inside, it could get a little tight and I didn’t want to put too much stress on her.”

  Linc looked at her and nodded. “You might have a point. Cera and Darla are coming up the stairs now to get the room ready. Do you have a preference of which room they ready?”

  She moved away and looked into a couple of rooms. “They seem to be much the same, so it doesn’t matter. Are we going to take that tour of the outside now?”

  “As soon as the women get here, we’ll go. I don’t want them putting you in one of the rooms around the corner.”
Colm gave her a direct look. He knew she wouldn’t mind the extra distance, but it would make him tense. Especially when he knew that she might be in pain one night and need help.

  “You like to know everything that’s going on in this place? And I’d bet you know who’s doing what most of the time, don’t you?” She tilted her head and her eyes narrowed a little as she looked up at him.

  Linc laughed. “You pegged him. He likes to know everything that’s happening and surprises can make him tense.”

  Colm scowled at his bond brother. He didn’t have to agree so readily, but Colm admitted that he did tend to know what was happening around the Thent. Cera and Darla came around the corner at that moment.

  “Ardin, we’re here to prepare a room for the woman, but we didn’t know where you wanted her. We thought maybe the first room on the center hall would be good for her.” Cera smiled as she walked up the hall. Her eyes slid quickly over Cami and then lingered on Linc’s thighs.

  “No, she’ll stay in our section. Pick one of the rooms at this end of the hall and ready it for her.” Colm met the woman’s stare. Linc had been right. Looking for a woman in their Thent had been a mistake. He could see the possessiveness in Cera’s eyes.

  “This is Cami. She’s going to be staying here.” Linc introduced the women in the silence that followed.

  “I’ll be staying here for a while,” Cami added. She shot Linc a sizzling look and turned to Colm. “Are we ready now?”

  “Yes, we’re ready.” Colm wasn’t going to get into an argument with her about how long she’d be staying here.

  She wasn’t going to be swayed by words. The woman was convinced that she wouldn’t be able to live within a Thent. They had time to let her see that wasn’t true and they needed to find a way to reveal her secrets without making her run.

  They showed her a little of the area within the walls of the fortress, but knew that most of that would be familiar to her. Aside from that, he wanted her to see the beauty of the land outside of the thick stone barriers. She wouldn’t get many chances to wander for the moment and when she did go somewhere, she would have an escort because of the threat of Laed and Kynar.

  In a way, he would be more comfortable if they were facing a large force of men instead of simply two. Two men could slip onto the planet without notice fairly easily. They could hide in the surrounding area without drawing too much attention if they knew what they were doing. According to Avan, the two men had the skills to do it. He’d make sure that the men at the gates watched and stopped every stranger even if they didn’t seem to be a shifter. Laed and Kynar could disguise themselves just as easily as Cami could.

  “There are more houses around than I expected and the fields look huge.” Her eyes swept over the fields of crops and the grazing animals almost as if it was something she hadn’t seen before. She seemed more relaxed now and not as wary.

  “Scali Thent isn’t like this?” Linc asked.

  “There aren’t this many people at Scali Thent and a lot of the houses are in the surrounding forest. It’s just safer that way. Well, it was. Everyone knew that haven wouldn’t be offered to all by Laed and Kynar.” Cami frowned and took a deep breath. “There would be a price for that protection.”

  “I know we’ve said this before, but it looks as if it’s going to be something that we’ll say again and again. That isn’t how a Thent is supposed to be. The fortress is so large because we know we’ll need the space. We keep it stocked and are prepared for an attack, although the only time it’s been used in that way is when I was small. That was just for a few days.” Linc’s voice was calm, but Colm could tell from the tense posture that he wasn’t as patient and unemotional as he seemed.

  “How about we keep walking and we can go into the forest for a while?” Colm didn’t give her time to respond to what Linc said. She could think about how this place was different from what she knew later. He didn’t want her mulling over sad or frightening times right now.

  “That sounds good. A run sounds even better.” She glanced at the trees and then back to them.

  “No running tonight, I’m too tired to keep up with you after riding all day. How does early tomorrow sound to you for your run through the forest? You can enjoy the cool of the morning.” He wasn’t afraid that the false Ardin were anywhere near the Thent. No, he wanted to have a little time to prepare. Regardless of the fact that the men chasing her probably weren’t even on the planet yet, she needed to realize right from the first that they wouldn’t be taking chances with her safety.

  “You’re not tired and you’re not afraid that I’ll get attacked,” she said slowly. “So why wait?”

  “Ardin!” The voice caught them as they reached the edge of one of the fields. Colm looked back and saw Conn running up the path between the fields toward them.

  “That man’s name is Conn. He, along with his bond brother Eric, are two of our most trusted men. If you need help of any kind and we’re not around, they’ll help you.” Linc’s voice drew Colm’s attention back to the two people with him.

  Both of them had turned around to see who was coming and he saw Linc leaning toward her. Colm smiled at the fact that he might have been leaning toward her, but he also gave her plenty of room. They were both being so careful of giving her all the space she needed and not crowding her. He was beginning to wonder if they might be giving her a little too much space. He didn’t want her scared, but he certainly didn’t want her ignoring them or using their caution to keep her distance.

  Conn stopped in front of them and drew in a deep breath. Strands of his black hair hung around his face, having slipped free from the tie at the back of his neck. “You’re needed back at the Thent.”

  “I’ll handle this.” Colm looked over at Linc and Cami. Linc would have a better chance of getting Cami to relax and talk than he would. “There’s no need for all of us to go back. Go on with the walk.”

  “I could do it.” Linc frowned at him. What are you doing? Just give him directions on what to do. She already thinks you don’t really want to be around her.

  She’ll relax more around only one of us. You have the words that I don’t. You’ll be able to get closer to her without me around. When she’s a little calmer and not so likely to panic, I’ll show her that I want to be around her. Colm had a feeling they were going to talk about this later.

  You might try just being around her. Time and closeness is the only way she’s going to come to trust us. Linc glared, but his hand cupped Cami’s elbow. “Are you ready to continue on?”

  Cami looked from Linc to Colm. She looked a little confused as if she thought she was missing something. “I’m ready. What are we going to see on this walk? And don’t think I’m going to forget about you two saying we could run in the morning.”

  “We’re not going to change our minds about that. We’re going to walk along a trail that will take us to a small lake in the woods and then make our way back.” Linc’s voice reached Colm as he began to walk back toward the Thent.

  Cami didn’t know what to think about Colm leaving. It hadn’t sounded as if it was something that important, but she had no idea how they ruled their people. Laed and Kynar had been content to thrust the more onerous chores onto anyone they could. It didn’t matter that it was something they should do. Maybe Colm and Linc were actively involved in every part of the running of their clan.

  Still, she couldn’t be sure, especially after the long look that had passed between those two men. It was as if they were communicating without speaking. She had a feeling that there was something she was missing.

  She wasn’t even going to try to figure out what it was. Without a doubt, she’d end up driving herself crazy. Her thoughts would go in circles and circles and there was no way to know what happened. Not without one of them actually telling her what they were thinking and she knew that was improbable.

  “Can I hold your hand?” Linc’s voice broke into her thoughts.

  Cami held back her grimace. She�
��d been determined not to brood, yet she was already doing it. Without hesitating, she lifted her hand and held it out to him. “Yes.”

  “How are you feeling about finally being here?” He glanced over at her and began leading her toward the trees.

  Now that was a change in subject, but she was willing to go along with it. “I’m ready to stop those two. It wouldn’t have mattered to me where it happened as long as we finally met up with Laed and Kynar and put an end to their threat.”

  “Not satisfied with merely making sure that they can never hold the sort of power they once did?” Linc glanced over and she saw his brow arch.

  “It wouldn’t be enough, not with them. You don’t know them. Even without the magic, they’ll still hurt and kill. I can’t let that happen.” She shook her head. She didn’t need the visions or the magic she’d absorbed to know that.

  “I believe you. And you’re right, they will be a danger until they’re dead.” Linc’s fingers tightened around hers. “We’ll keep you safe and teach you how to deal with the magic you now have. You have my word on that.”

  “I can take care of myself. I didn’t have any trouble finding you, did I? And I know you’ll teach me about the magic. It’s already more manageable than it’s ever been.” She nodded, simply to assure him that she was being truthful. She didn’t know if he thought she had doubts about that since she wasn’t sure of their interest. Trying to decipher what they were thinking didn’t get her anywhere.

  “How about we stretch our legs a bit and run.” He tilted his head. “In human form. I know you’re anxious to get into these woods and play a little, but for today, we’ll run as we are now.”

  A shot of disappointment burst through her. He was right. She did want to change forms and charge through the forest, maybe even hunt a little. It had been a while since she’d simply enjoyed being in her other form, but she could wait a day.

  Running did sound good. Maybe it would help clear away the problems circling in her mind. She was confident in the lotions and drinks she was using. The lotion wouldn’t sweat off on a run, and if it did, the herbal teas changed her scent enough to mask it on its own.