she couldn't help him here. she had to get back out into the night and find a way to tell him he was being hunted.

nika's real eyes opened and she was in a room she vaguely recognized. not the hospital, but andra's new home.

the sweet woman who'd been caring for her body sat in the corner, knitting. she had a halo of dark curls, and sad brown eyes. her fingers moved fast and sure, and stitch after stitch was left in their wake.

grace. that was her name. grace would help her.

"madoc," said nika. her voice was thin and ragged, barely audible in the silent room.

grace's head snapped up and her eyes locked on nika's. they widened in surprise; then she rose from her chair and came to nika's side, letting her knitting fall to the carpet.

"shh," said grace. "don't try to speak yet. let me get you some water first."

"no time. madoc is in danger."

grace poured water into a plastic cup and held a straw to nika's lips. "have a drink."

nika drank just to get the woman to listen. "call madoc."

"i'm sorry, my lady. i don't know his number. let me get your sister."

andra had listened to her before. she would again. grace dialed a number. "nika's awake. she wants to call madoc."

nika heard the faint buzz of andra's voice through the plastic.

grace looked at nika. "what do you want her to tell him?"

"look up in the trees. above him."

although she looked confused, grace repeated what nika had said to andra, then, "okay. i'll tell her." she hung up and sat on the edge of the bed. her fingers stroked the back of nika's hand-the first real contact she'd felt in a long time. "andra's on her way. she's calling madoc right now, and doesn't want you to worry."

how could nika not worry? madoc was out there alone. if anything happened to him . . .

"have another sip of water," urged grace.

her lips felt dry and her body was almost too weak to swallow, but she did as she was told.

"how do you feel?" asked grace.

"i need to go back out there with madoc. he needs me." a frantic sense of doom settled over her, weighing her down. she couldn't lose him.

"i'm sure he's fine. he's a skilled warrior."

grace didn't understand. no one did except andra, and she only listened sometimes.

"i've got to go back to sleep-go find him."

"please don't," said grace. "just stay awake until andra gets here. let her talk to you."

nika's eyes were heavy. being awake was hard. she felt so alone when she wasn't with him.

the door flew open and andra stood there, breathing hard and pink from exertion. "nika, baby," she breathed. "you're awake."

andra crossed the room and grace moved out of the way.

"did you talk to madoc?"

"yes. he's fine."

"did you tell him about the monster in the tree?"

"he'd already found it and killed it by the time i called him."

relief poured through nika like cool water, washing away her panic. she clutched andra's hand. "thank you."

andra gave her a teary smile. "how are you feeling?"

"tired. i want to be with him."

"him?" asked andra.

"madoc."

"you need to stay here, baby. you're not strong enough to travel yet."

"i won't take my body," explained nika.

andra frowned at her and smoothed her hair back from her head. from the corner where grace was hovering came, "do you want me to call tynan?"

"yes. tell him nika's awake."

"i don't want tynan. i want madoc." no one listened to her and nika started to wonder if her mouth in this body was working right.

she was slipping back into sleep, unable to stop it from sweeping her mind away. she wanted to stay awake so she could see him, but that was no longer possible. she was too weak to even go seeking out one of the sgath.

"okay," soothed andra. "i'll bring him here. whatever you want."

"i want madoc," said nika as she drifted away from the world.

chapter 6

zach was dead. he knew he had to be, because he'd been alive for centuries and nothing he'd experienced had ever felt this good.

he cracked open his eyes and saw the top of lexi's head. her soft brown hair was a total mess, like he'd been rubbing his face over the fine strands for hours, tangling them with his beard stubble. based on the bright light of day filtering in from beneath the curtains, that might have been the case.

his body was curved around hers, touching in as many places as possible. she was warm and pliant, and the feel of her sweet ass pressing against his hard dick was enough to make him believe in heaven. his arm was wrapped tightly around her, holding her in place, and his fingers had sneaked up under her shirt to curl over her ribs, right below her breast. the feel of naked lexi skin under his hand was too good to be true. he had to be dead, or dreaming.

slowly, the fog filling his head started to burn off enough for him to take in his surroundings. he wasn't dead. he was lying on the floor of the gerai house with only the outdated carpet to cushion their bodies. it wasn't nearly soft enough for lexi, but he wasn't quite sure yet how to fix it. his brain was still fuzzy and his blood simmered with a slow burn of sexual arousal.

they hadn't had sex. he knew it for a fact because there was no way he would have forgotten something like that. besides, they were both still dressed and on the floor. zach liked to think he was suave enough to at least have put her on a bed before taking her.

so, if he hadn't seduced her, how had he gotten her here?

the last thing he remembered was pain. mountains of it crashing down on top of him, crushing the life from his body. he wasn't sure how he survived it, but he really didn't care. as long as she was here, in his arms, the pain was all worth it.

lexi shifted in her sleep, reaching up like she was searching for a pillow. zach moved his arm so it cushioned her cheek and she settled back to sleep.

she said she didn't trust him. the gleam of a large knife lying at her feet proved she'd meant it. so why was she here, lying next to him?

zach didn't question his good fortune. she was here and that was enough.

he yawned, ready to settle down for another few hours of rest with the woman of his dreams. the expansion of his chest pressed him tighter to her back and she went stiff in his arms.

shit. he'd woken her up.

"sorry," he whispered over her hair. "i didn't mean to wake you. go back to sleep, honey."

apparently, lexi had other plans. she pushed herself up and zach let her go. it was too early for a wrestling match, and every muscle in his body still ached from whatever had happened to him last night.

she scrambled away from him until she was pressed against the wall. instantly, his body tensed against a wave of pain. he sucked in a breath and tried to relax into it, let it wash over him. he knew how to deal with pain. he could do this.

in an effort to distract himself, he stared at lexi. her hair was a disaster and her eyes were puffy from sleep, but she was still the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen. he could wake up to a sight like that every day for eternity and still not have enough.

she rubbed her eyes and looked at him from head to toe. her gaze paused, widened and backed up as she saw his erection, but there was nothing he could do about that. so she knew he wanted her. it wasn't exactly a big secret.

a frown creased her brow and she rubbed the spot under her breast where his hand had been while they slept. "what did you do to me?" she asked.

his muscles were locked up, hard and painful, and his dick was even worse, but he could deal with all of that. what he couldn't deal with was the look of fear lexi wore.

"i didn't do anything," he said. "your pants are still on, aren't they?"

she swallowed and her fingers moved to the waistband of her jeans, which were still securely buttoned. hell, she still had on that short, pocketed apron from work. some of the coins had spilled out onto the carpet while she slept, so zach collected them and handed them to her.

lexi didn't take them. she stared at his hand and stood, putting even more distance between them.

great. back to square one.

"please don't, lexi," he said. there was a hint of begging in his voice and he hated it. he'd never had to beg for anything in his life. "i could have done whatever horrible thing you think me capable of last night if i'd wanted to, but i didn't. doesn't that prove to you i'm not going to hurt you?"

"it's a trick. your skin is poisonous. drugged. that's why it feels so good."

zach was hung up on the making her feel good part for a second longer than he should have been. the idea he could do that to her made his blood heat. she'd inadvertently told him how to get to her, and he had every intention of exploiting the weakness.

lexi was meant to be his, and now he knew how to convince her it was true, too.

he tried to hide his slow smile of victory, but based on the way her dark eyes widened, he was pretty sure he'd failed. "it's not poison, honey. it's chemistry. you and i are meant to be together and that feeling is nature's way of letting us know."

"liar."

zach ignored the insult and stood. she shifted her hips, signaling her intent to run, but he moved fast, blocking her in. she was trapped between the wall and his body and he wasn't letting her go.

he caged her in with one arm while he drew his finger lightly over her cheek. she was too soft to be real, and his eyes fell shut so he could soak in more of her. little sparks of power arced between them, bleeding off a minute portion of the energy churning inside zach. some of the pain bled away with it. his finger slid lower until he traced a path over her throat, where his luceria would soon be.

lexi let out a soft moan, though whether it was pleasure or fear he couldn't tell. he could hear her rapid breathing, and feel the brittle tension tightening her limbs. his hand spread out across her throat until he could feel the delicate ridges of her collarbone beneath his fingers.

more sparks wriggled into her body and she sucked in a fast breath.

zach looked down at her. his dark skin stood out in stark contrast against the paleness of hers. even in dim light, zach would be able to see his hands sliding over her body, pleasing her.

he could hardly wait.

her head was tilted to the side, and her hands were tight fists. her body vibrated in time with the faint current of power trickling into her from his palm.

he wanted to kiss her, but his instincts told him that restraint was the best way to get to his ultimate goal. once she was his, he'd have forever to kiss her, to touch her.

"still think i'm lying?" asked zach.

her eyes were the color of bittersweet chocolate and when she looked up at him, for just a moment, he thought he saw a flash of insecurity. "please stop," she whispered. "i can't do this."