BROOKE
"Stop," I said, and it was the hardest word I'd ever spoken. I didn't want him to stop. I wanted him to go on and on until the mountain crumbled and the moon disappeared. But I was hyper-aware of the fact that Titan was only a wall away, and the risk of discovery had never been greater.
Huck slowly lowered me to my feet, but instead of moving away, he bent, joining our mouths in a kiss more tender than any he'd given me before. His hands trailed down my sides, outlining my shape, until he reached the hem of my nightgown. He gathered the material into his fingers and slowly lifted.
Cool air caressed my skin. I'd told him to stop. Did he want me to say it twice? I didn't think I could. "Huck?" I breathed shakily.
He broke the kiss and straightened as he pulled it over my head. "This is mine now," he murmured. "You should get some sleep."
"You're leaving?"
"I'm right next door."
"Oh."
Tense seconds passed. I was standing in his way. But no matter how many times my brain sent the command, my body refused to let him go.
A half-hum, half-growl echoed inside his chest. "Don't tempt me, Your Grace."
"I'm not trying to."
"Then goddess help me if you ever did." Huck picked me up by my waist, depositing me aside as if I weighed nothing at all. Then he opened the door, and a stream of light spilled in from the hallway. He hesitated, taking a long look over his shoulder at my lacy, black underwear.
I held my breath, skin tingling wherever his eyes touched. There was a longing inside of me that had nothing to do with my wolf, gravity, or some supernatural nudge. It was every conversation we'd ever had, the way he smiled, the person he was. "I'm sorry I wore the nightgown," I whispered.
Huck's jaw twitched. "The next time you wear it, my mark will be on your neck."
* * *
The next morning, Titan took me to a coffee shop closer to the center of the city, where they had lattes with foam shaped like teddy bears and pastries so fresh they burned my tongue.
I'd just finished my last bite when Titan pulled out his wallet and slid a charge card across the table. "I'm going to be in meetings for the rest of today, but I want you to enjoy the city."
"How long will you be? Should I meet you at the hotel or—"
"There's a club three blocks from the hotel. I thought we might have some fun later. I'll text you the address...if that's alright with you."
I hesitated, imagining loud music, flashing lights, and zero personal space. We didn't have clubs on the mountain, and even if we did, Mother would rather cut off my feet than allow me to step into one. "How should I dress?"
Titan grinned. "What about the dress you wore last night?"
My bodyguard stripped it off me and still hasn't given it back. "That was a nightgown."
"Indeed." His smile stretched. "I have no doubt anything you wear will look stunning. But if you prefer not to go, I'm sure we can find other things to do."
I didn't like his tone, and I was sure Huck liked it even less. "I think I'd like to experience a club."
"Good." He tossed two bills down on the table, put his wallet away, and stood. "Then, if you'll excuse me, I'll see you later tonight. Feel free to buy whatever you want. There's no limit; I just want you to have a nice time."
I nodded and smiled again, then he left, and through the window, I watched him get into a cab and disappear.
Reluctantly, my eyes shifted to the back of the shop, to the poorly lit corner where Huck stood. His angles seemed sharper, his lips thin, granting him a severity that lifted all the little hairs on my neck.
I swallowed and grabbed my purse, dropping Titan's card inside before standing to leave. I had no idea where I was going, but I knew I wanted to get away from here. The prospect of an entire day alone with Huck made my blood thrum, and I couldn't wait to get started.
I headed in the opposite direction Titan had gone, and it didn't take long for me to find our first destination. A museum was having an exhibit on Ancient Egypt, and I couldn't think of a better place to find privacy. I walked in, my steps echoing across the marble tiled flooring. The ceilings were high, the space surprisingly empty. A woman with a tight, brown bun sat behind a service counter in the corner of the room. I walked up and purchased two tickets, and she gave me two sets of headphones attached to a brown, blocky device coated in letters and numbers.
"Punch in the code on each exhibit, and it will play information about the artifact," she explained.
"Thank you."
I turned and handed one to Huck, then we stepped through a wide opening into a massive space much darker than the first. Burgundy carpet matched the burgundy curtains, and black pillars were spaced out from one side of the room to the other. Glass boxes protected the relics perched atop them, each lit up by the yellow spotlights above.
I walked over to the first—the sculptured head of a young boy. A golden plate read King Tutankhamun, and the little black sticker next to it held the code C three. I put on the headphones and punched it in. "At the young age of nine years old, King Tutankhamun became the antepenultimate pharaoh of the Eighteenth Dynasty of Ancient Egypt..." A recorded voice rattled off fact after fact about the boy, the conflict he had to face, and his ultimate death at the age of eighteen.
I glanced at Huck, finding him watching me from three feet back, the headset held loosely at his side.
I pushed back my headphones. "Aren't you going to listen?"
"Do you think this is a date?"
My heart sank. Of course, it wasn't. "It's as close as either of us may ever get to one."
Huck gaze softened, and he sighed. He closed the gap between us in slow, purposeful strides and put the headphones on. I watched him listen to the facts I'd already heard, forgetting them in the line of his jaw, his full mouth, his strong neck.
He pushed the headphones aside and looked at me. "Where to next?"
I looked around, then walked to the nearest, a tiny wolf carving. The display said it was bronze, but it looked more like stone: gray, green, and old. "It's—" I stopped when I realized he was already listening to the recording.
I pulled up my headphones and punched in the code. "This Wepwawet amulet dates back to the late-Ptolemaic periods, 664-30 BC. Wepwawet was an Egyptian jackal god whose name means, "Opener of the Ways." He was believed to help the deceased on their dangerous journey to the afterlife, clearing the path to final judgment for the dead—"
Huck lowered his headphones, and something about his expression made me do the same.
"What is it?" I asked.
He opened his mouth, then closed it again, shaking his head. "Let's move to the next one."
I chewed my lip and followed. We toured the museum from one end to the other, then we left, and I decided to get lunch at a pizza place down the street.
It was quiet and mostly empty. An older couple sat by the front door, and a young boy stood behind the counter. We ordered and sat down at a table in the far back corner.
Huck seemed tenser than usual, and I'd have been lying if I said I wasn't disappointed. "What's wrong?" I asked.
For the longest moment, it was as if he hadn't heard me. And it wasn't until after we received our pizza that he finally spoke. "Everything we're doing right now is unnecessarily risky."
I averted my gaze. "Eating pizza?"
"You know what I mean."
Of course I did. He was meant to be guarding me, not walking museums, and having intimate lunches. But who knew if I'd ever get this opportunity again. My attention shifted to the pizza, and I lifted the spatula and served us both a slice. "We should hurry up and eat and head back. I'll need time to get ready."
He didn't respond, but his expression said all he needed to. He was annoyed with me, and I couldn't blame him. He picked up his slice, ate it in three huge bites, then grabbed another off the tray.
I watched him, half impressed by his ability to eat without chewing, half wishing he'd slow down and say something. For a rare moment, we could have a conversation without worrying if someone was listening. For a blessed day, he was mine in the daylight. "How do you stay so calm?"
He glanced up with a mouth full of food, watching me as he chewed. He set down his slice, swallowed, and wiped his mouth with a paper napkin. "Calm?"
"When he kissed me," I murmured. "And last night—"
"Haven't you noticed how quiet she is?"
I blinked. "Who?"
"Your wolf."
Something faint stirred inside me. I'd just assumed she was unhappy. I'd spent so much of my life burying her, it was easy to accept her silence. But now that he brought it up, I realized maybe it was more than that. "Yes."
"That's what happens when we leave the mountain," he said. "And that's the reason why I only thought about killing him."
"Why?"
"The fact that you don't know says it all." His jaw twitched. "They're quiet because they can't exist here. They're quiet because they're fading, and if we ever decided to return to this world, they would die."
My brow furrowed. "What do you mean return?"
His mouth tensed into a straight line. "You really don't know, do you?"
I shook my head.
Huck sighed heavily out his nose. "We should head back."
"But I want to know," I said. "Please?"
"I'll tell you the story another time," he said. "Hurry up and finish your food. I've pushed my luck enough for one day."
* * *
I played it safe with black: black dress, black heels, dramatic, smokey eyes. When I opened the door to leave, Huck took one look at me and groaned. The next thing I knew, he was backing me into the room. "Must you always look this fucking good?"
I drew in a sharp breath as every feminine part of me melted into his arms. Only, this time, I had to stop him. "Don't." I flattened my palms against his chest and pulled back just before his lips met mine. "You'll smear my makeup."
"Good," he rumbled. "You don't need it."
"I do," I insisted. "Titan is waiting for me."
Huck stiffened, darkened, scowled. He held me locked, glowering down at me.
I hadn't meant for it to sound the way it had. "It isn't like we can just not show up," I said.
"Then we should go." Huck released me and stormed from the room, forcing me to run to catch up.
"Please slow down," I called as quietly as I could. "I'm wearing heels."
Huck stopped, but he didn't turn. His shoulders heaved around a heavy sigh, and he waited until I'd nearly caught up before he began walking again, much slower this time.
He wouldn't look at me.
"Huck?" My voice was barely louder than a breath. "I didn't mean—"
"Let's just get this over with."