Page 8 (1/2)

That told hi else Muscles tense with a rage that had no outlet, he bent to pick up her bag, then, in an act he’d never expected to co nothing like the Psy he knew her to be The Silent race never touched, not if they could avoid it Tactile contact was a slippery slope, they said, one that could lead to sensuality in other areas of life But Katya openly craved contact

There was no light, no sound, no touch, no Net

Tightening his fingers on the already familiar warmth of hers, he held open the stairway door until she nodded that she’d be alright And though she gripped his hand so hard he could see her every tendon, she didn’t halt once on the way up - he wasn’t sure she even breathed until they exited into the airy lobby

Her gasp as she saw the soaring arches of the atriu anew In a clever bit of design, the square footage of the ground floor ider than that of the solar-paneled office tower that stood atop it The architect had used the extra real estate to bring light into the lobby - curving glass archways covered both the entrance and the large island ’s eco-rating, greenery crept over that glass, healthy and lush below a second protective layer of glass

The end result was that on a cloudless day like today, walking through the lobby felt like crossing a sun-dappled clearing But the architect had gone even further, using clever positioning of glass and enuity not only ht hours, leaving rid, it bathed the entire area in a golden glow

That glow lit Katya’s face, caressing the translucent beauty of her skin as she stared, enraptured "There’s so ht" - she reached out as if to touch it - "it’s so bright"

As he watched her, his gut went taut with an anger that had nothing to do with her being an ene to do with the evil that had trapped her in the dark No one had the right to savage another living being that way

No one

Yethe knew that every time he "connected" with metal - and noith machines, he took another step toward the kind of eht torture of the worst kind The last tiranded, pleaded with him, to shield himself, to "stay human" But, just as an empath couldn’t not sense emotions, Dev couldn’t not feel the metal all around him Metal was his shield

And if that shield was slowly stealing his huuard his people His eye fell on Katya then, and soainst what had always been an absolute acceptance Her face was still lifted up to the light, her hands hanging loosely by her sides Simple pleasure suffused every inch of her, until he was tempted to reach out and touch, see if he could absorb that joy into hierous in soaway frohted face with reluctance that sparked a blazing red warning light in his brain, he found hi one of his vice-directors "Aubry"

"Hi" Aubry sainst skin the color of "the ie Like most of the women in Shine, his secretary had lost her heart to the tall black man the first time he smiled at her

Dev waited to see Katya’s reaction, aware he was pullingitself She reached too deep, made him feel too much, slipped under his defenses as if they didn’t exist

Katya gave the slightest of nods "Hello"

Aubry appeared a little startled at the for his smile, tone "You need to eat h every easy syllable

Dev are of Katya shifting closer to hi food in front ofeat"

The cal the chill work its way down to his very bones But then Katya’s fingers brushed his, and the metal boiled, a sudden, violent heat he’d never before experienced He should’ve ers with his, closing his hand firmly around hers

Aubry chuckled "Sounds like the boss" His eyes shifted to Dev

Te the unfamiliar internal heat withhe couldn’t give Aubry the answer he wanted - he couldn’t promise to take care of the woman by his side, no matter that she aroused his ?"

"Yeah" Aubry frowned "I wanted to go over so sensitive in front of Katya "Later We’ll set up a co out of town"

For all his lazy char up the subtext, he closed the sanizer he’d flipped open "I’ll e-mail you the details - we can talk after you’ve had a chance to look things over See you later, beautiful"