Lian Roch (Bayou Heat)(11)

“Your coffee, just as you like it.”

She wrapped her hands around the cup, a dangerous stab of pleasure warming her heart.

No one had ever known how she took her coffee.

Not ever.

“Thank you.” She sipped the hot liquid. “It’s perfect.”

Lian’s mother wasn’t about to be outdone as she handed Sage a large bagel that was fresh from the oven.

“And a warm bagel to tide you over until breakfast,” she said.

Lian’s sister had the same dark hair and eyes as her brother although her face was far more rounded, with pretty features. Currently she was standing at the stove, frying bacon.

“Yes, we had to hold back the meal until Lian could get here,” she informed Sage.

Sage’s brief sense of cozy comfort was shattered.

Being surrounded by his family had offered her an unexpected comfort, but spending time with Lian was just the opposite.

The minute he walked into one of the shabbily comfortable rooms her entire body prickled with a fierce awareness that was downright embarrassing. For god’s sake, everyone in the house could catch the scent of her arousal.

It was humiliating.

And worse, she was beginning to feel as if something vital was missing when he wasn’t nearby.

How could he have become such an important part of her life in just a few days?

It was obvious she needed to limit the time they spent in each other’s company.

“Oh, he’s coming for breakfast?” she asked in what she hoped was a casual tone.

Lian’s mother sent her a teasing grin. “After being on duty during dinner last night you didn’t think he would miss the opportunity to see you first thing this morning?”

“That boy can’t keep himself away,” Lian’s father agreed.

“Like you could?” The silver-haired grandmother gave a roll of her eyes. “I remember having to lock the windows at night to keep you out of the house.”

With an unrepentant grin the male moved to wrap his arm around his mate’s shoulders.

“How could I resist?” He pressed a kiss to her dark hair. “She’s still the prettiest girl in the Wildlands.”

Lian’s mother tilted her head back, regarding her mate with an open devotion that made Sage’s heart ache.

“Flattery will get you whatever you want, my love.”

Sage backed toward the door. “You know, I think I should be working on those scrolls.”

“But what about breakfast?” Lian’s sister demanded.

She took another step back. And another. “This bagel is really enough, thank you.”

“Lian is going to be disappointed,” his mother sighed.

“Nonsense. He’s a cat. He likes the chase,” his father announced, sending a Sage a nod of approval. “Smart girl.”

Sage gave a choked cough, her entire body sizzling at the thought of being chased by the dangerous puma.

“Yes…well, I’ll see you later.”

Turning on her heel, Sage bolted from the house, swiftly making her way to the communal center.

The first day she’d been amazed by just how civilized the Wildlands truly was.

The few books that had mentioned the Pantera implied that they were savages who lived like animals in the bayous.

Nothing could be further from the truth.

There might be a large part of the secluded lands that remained gloriously untamed, but the Pantera lived in beautiful homes that were cleverly built to incorporate the thick cypress trees, and were draped with Spanish moss. There was also a communal area where the land had been cleared to create a manicured park where they shared meals or enjoyed lazy games.

Perhaps most shockingly, there was a modern medical facility, a guest house, and a mansion straight out of “Gone With the Wind” that served as the headquarters for the Diplomats as well as the computer whizzes known as Geeks.

She’d been amazed when she’d entered the large plantation-style structure with fluted columns to discover it was filled with high-tech computers and monitoring equipment.

Thankfully, she’d been shown to the top floor that held the Pantera’s most fragile books and scrolls. She wasn’t a complete idiot when it came to technology, but she preferred to feel the weight and texture of a book. To smell the leather and dust and crumbling paper.

It was like holding history in her hands.

As she entered this morning, however, she was careful to spread the five ancient scrolls across the long table that Xavier had shoved to the middle of the wooden floor.

Not only was the fraying linen too fragile to be handled more than necessary, but she’d at last realized that the scrolls weren’t individual texts, but instead, they were each a part of a whole.

Now a sense of…rightness…flowed through her as she studied the lines of glyphs.

It wasn’t just her years of research, or even a natural intelligence that allowed her to decipher complex symbols.

She possessed an instinctive gift that went way beyond most scholars.

Yet another secret she kept hidden.

Losing track of time, she was bent over the scrolls when a low, male voice whispered directly in her ear, shattering her concentration.

“Any luck?”

Straightening, she turned to discover Lian standing mere inches away. Instantly her heart lodged in her throat and a vicious hunger twisted her gut.

Even after three days in the company of the large, outrageously gorgeous man, the sight of him was still a punch to her gut.

It wasn’t just the perfect, bronzed features, or the whiskey-gold eyes that smoldered with wicked charm, or even the chiseled body she seriously wanted to lick from head to toe.

It was the sheer…maleness that stirred her on a primitive level.

She wanted to crawl into his arms and never leave.

And the knowledge scared the hell out of her.

Not because she thought he would ever hurt her. She understood the dark possessiveness that he felt for her would ensure he’d always protect her, even from himself.

But her past had taught her that she was asking for pain to open herself to another.

People left. They always left.

And then she was alone.

Far better to keep her heart well-guarded.

And of course, there was that embarrassing problem of wanting to climb on top of him the minute she caught sight of him.

It took only a glance, however, to realize that Lian had reached the end of his patience.

“You startled me,” she muttered, absently pulling off the gloves she always used when dealing with fragile texts.

“Sorry.” He crowded her against the edge of the table, his finger reaching to smooth a stray curl behind her ear. “I did knock.”

She sucked in a deep breath, savoring the spicy musk that sent heat jolting through her body.

Good lord. If he could bottle that scent and sell it as an aphrodisiac he could make a bazillion dollars.

She cleared her throat. “I tend to become lost in my research.”

His lips twitched, his fingers stroking a decadent line of fire down her throat.

“Lost or hidden?”

She stiffened. Did he know she was deliberately trying to keep a distance between them?

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she tried to hedge.

His fingers circled her neck, blatant ownership in his light grasp.

“I warned you that you’re a terrible liar, Dr. Parker.” He brushed his lips over her forehead. “Not that I blame you. My family can be—”

“Terrifying?” She cowardly latched onto his unintentional excuse for her elusive behavior.

“That’s one way of putting it,” he said wryly.

She felt an instant pang of guilt. “They’re very kind,” she forced herself to admit. It was the truth, after all. “And they’ve made me feel very welcome.”

His lips skimmed down the narrow length of her nose. “Yes, they adore you, but they tend to overwhelm the unwary.”

She shivered, her hands clenching against the temptation to run her fingers through the long, glossy strands of his dark hair.

Why did he leave it free to flow down his back? It was a constant temptation.

“Is there something you needed?”

“Just to be near you,” he said with his usual blunt honesty. Then he held up a hand that held a wicker basket. “And to bring you this.”

Suddenly Sage’s stomach growled as she was hit by the most delicious aromas.

Spice, and shrimp, and vegetables combined with a heady scent of freshly baked bread.

“It smells divine.”

“My mother’s gumbo and corn pone, still warm from the oven,” he revealed. “She was concerned that you didn’t eat enough breakfast.”

“I wanted to get back to work,” she said, turning to point at the scrolls she’d unrolled and aligned side by side. “During the night I realized that I’d been looking at the hieroglyphs all wrong. You see, it doesn’t read from top to bottom, but across each scroll.”

“Fascinating,” he murmured.

She glanced up to discover him studying her with an unwavering focus.

“You’re not even looking.”

“Of course I am.” Hunger shimmered in his eyes as they lowered to her lips. The air prickled with a heated arousal as he grabbed her hand and led her across the floor and through the French doors. “I just happen to be interested in something other than musty scrolls.”

“Lian, I’m supposed to be translating,” she protested even as she crossed the balcony and allowed herself to be seated at the small wrought iron table.