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"A distraction," he gritted

She snorted "He wasn’the spentin his various lairs"

"Actually, you and your sisters were the true distractions," he corrected "Briggs knew that I would follow your trail anywhere in the world, and that I wouldn’t rest until I’d found you" He scanned her beautiful face, his heart whispering it orth every sacrifice to have at last discovered his ered his people "By dividing the four of you into different locations and constantly keeping on thesure I wastedmy own tail"

"Distract you froain pounced on the nificant point

He would be a fool to ever try to deceive this woman

"I don’t know," he admitted

"What do you suspect?"

"I think I was lured from Italy to America for a very specific purpose" He lifted a hand as her lips parted with the inevitable question "And before you ask, I don’t have a clue what the purpose h echoed through the roo understatement

"A littlehis iht he felt every one of his nu about everything In the past I’ve bla societies, and even on the va another evil force to accuse so I don’t have to admit that my people are destined for extinction"

Silence filled the roouests thankfully muffled by the heavy door

At last Salvatore halted his pacing He could sense Harley standing just behind him She hadn’t tried to slip ahile he was distracted And so far she hadn’t stuck anything in the erous activity

Turning, he aze

"Harley?"

"If there’s even a possibility youto Italy?"

He was caught off guard by her abrupt words "Trying to get rid of ure out that if the bad guy wants you here, you should be there"

Was she concerned for his safety?

Dio, the sky was surely about to fall

Salvatore prowled forward, his blood heating as she instinctively backed away He e of the desk, caging her legs between his thighs

"We’ll eventually return tohis heart at the thought of Harley in his classically elegant host the acres of s and whatever deainst his chest "Very macho"

He claimed her lips in a kiss of sheer possession "I can be a lot more macho, if only you’d let me," he muttered

"Stop that" She arched back to stab hi--you should act like one"

His gaze lowered to appreciate the tight stretch of her tank top "I’aze "What kingly act do you want froes to kill you and take the Were throne?"

His jaw clenched "Not going to happen"

"Unless you’ve been covering up a special ability to read the future, you can’t know that" Her expression was stern, unflinching "Is your pride worth risking the future of your people?"

Salvatore aze He was a do his decisions questioned

He’d taught more than one Were that painful lesson

But oddly, he didn’t feel the fae to snarl Harley wasn’t his subordinate The wolf in him had accepted her as a mate She was his partner, not one of his pack

"Harley, Briggs is too dangerous to ignore" His hands stroked up her bare arrasp her shoulders "I can’t return to Italy until he’s destroyed"