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Balthazar Flint. The name suited him to perfection. It had gravitas. It also matched his demeanor, down to the hard edges of his powerful body. It occurred to me that, in another life, I could’ve been the steel to his flint and we would’ve made lots of sparks.Dream on, girl. Like that could everhappen.
Zar transferred the last of the omelets to the plates and Aiden plunked a cup of tea in front of me, Earl Grey with lots of cream. Before I had time to ask Aiden how he’d known exactly what I liked in my tea, Tanner picked up the mug and tipped it against my lips. I took a deep draft, enjoying the sweet heat that warmed my stomach and spread to the rest of me. The four of us sat at the kitchen counter, facing our loaded plates. After examining my right hand, I was about to give the utensils a try, when Aiden beat me tothefork.
“I promised I’d be your hands when you needed me.” He speared a chunk of eggs and lifted them to my lips. “Youneedme.”
So freaking sweet. Panty-melting cute. “Thanks,” I mumbled through a mouthful. Had I died and gone toheaven?
I chewed my food, enjoying every bite, studying the men as I did. These guys were military or ex-military, like my brother had been. They spoke, moved, and acted like trained warriors. Tanner had admitted to training as a corpsman and Aiden had mentioned they’d designed the house while they were on deployment. I had to get to Ulysses, but I couldn’t help being fascinated by the remarkable trio that had takenmein.
I stole a glance at Tanner. At six feet or so, he was the shortest of the three, tall to my five foot five. Fit and compact like a soccer player, he was a head-turner. The striking contrast between his smooth, dark olive skin and his light green eyes gave him an exotic flair that conjured images of distant shorelines, sun-kissed dunes, and fabulous spicemarkets.
There was no question that Tanner appealed to me. What he’d just done to my body challenged my skepticism at every level. With his chiseled chin, his body’s perfect proportions and his hair, cropped in a clean, sharp cut that spiraled from the cowlick at the back of his head, he should be strutting some runaway inMilan.
My gaze shifted to Aiden. His size alone should’ve made him lumber and yet when he moved, he did so elegantly and efficiently, as if he’d trained his body to function in a world that didn’t always fit him. Aiden looked like a basketball player. Or an Olympic swimmer. The scar that nicked his eyebrow gave character to his face and the curls and facial scruff added a roguish touch that reminded me of pirates and Vikings. I bet he’d taken a few shield maidens toValhalla.
My eyes went to Zar, downing his food with automatic precision. Height-wise, he was somewhere in between Tanner and Aiden, but he was built like an NFL linebacker. His muscular neck was made to carry the weight of a dangerous world. His solid pecs could serve to bulldoze entire armies. His thighs were as brawny as the beams that held up the house. When he glared at me as he was doing now, I had to repress an impulse to kneel at his feet and ask formercy.
“You got enough in you to talk?” He set down his fork and nailed me with his skull-piercing gaze. “The sooner we deal with this, thebetter.”
He was right and I needed to get back ontrack.
“You guys saved my ass,” I said, fidgeting with my bandaged hands on my lap. “I can’t thank you enough. And now, I’d like to call a cab,please.”
Aiden’s forehead furrowed into a collection of scars and squiggles. “Acab?”
“She thinks she’s in San Francisco.” Zar smirked. “This is Montana, darling. Middle of fucking nowhere, remember?Nocabs.”
Something about what he said bothered me, maybe the tone, but I let it pass. “How about an Uber.MaybeLyft?”
“Heads up.” Zar’s aggravated tone irritated me to no end. “We’ve gotten ourselves an authentic twenty-first century urbanite in the wilds ofMontana.”
“Hey, don’t sweat it.” I planted my fists on the counter. “I canmanage.”
“Nina, you don’t need to get a cab.” Tanner shot Zar a pointed glance then slid his gaze over to me. “Given the fact that you are obviously running from someone, we think you’re better off keeping a lowprofile.”
“I can’t stay here,” I said. “It’s dangerous. Foryouguys.”
“Don’t worry so much about us.” Tanner reached over and gave my wrist a little squeeze. “Just tell us. Why did you come toMontana?”
“Sorry...” I gulped down a surge of fear. “I don’t mean to come across as ungrateful, but I can’t talkaboutthis.”
Zar pushed his plate aside and leaned forward on his chair. “You need to answer Tanner’squestion.”
Talk about a bossy SOB. What was it about him that made me want to rebel? “I don’t have to do anythingyousay.”
“Wrong,” he said. “I wantanswers.Now.”
Oh, no. He wasn’t going to walk all over me. I opened my mouth to give him a piece of my mind, but Tannerintervened.
“Hang on, guys.” His hand lingered on my forearm, a warm, centering touch. “Let’s slow it down.” He turned to Zar. “I bet you she has as many questions about us as we haveabouther.”
“Let me guess,” I said to Tanner. “You’re the senior diplomat in thisjoint?”
“The good Lord help us if I’m your best hope forpeace.”
The humor sparkling in his eyes appeased me. My nerves were strung too tight. The private smile he shared with me eliminated the space between us and reminded me of the pleasures his intimate touch had unleashed. I squeezed my legs together. How was I supposed to think rationally when he looked at melikethat?
“How about an intelligence exchange?” he proposed. “You ask, we answer and vice-versa. It seemsonlyfair.”
