Mmmm, that smells delicious!”

Micah came up behind me and placed his hands on either side of me, resting on the kitchen countertop. His breath was soft against my ear, and it was suddenly difficult to concentrate on chopping up the vegetables we’d be having with the steaks he’d be grilling.

Focusing on the knife in my hand, I tried not to moan out loud when his breath was replaced with his mouth. A bolt of desire shot through my body, and a wave of shivers made me squirm a little against him.

If he had even a fraction of an idea about how he affected me, he would probably tease me without mercy. Not that I wouldn’t enjoy every blissful second, but with a sharp object in my hand, I couldn’t guarantee it wouldn’t end up bloody somehow.

“That marinade smells divine,” I agreed, taking a small bite out of the green bell pepper sliver before offering him the rest. “My mouth keeps watering every time I take a breath.”

“And here I was thinking I was the reason.” I didn’t need to turn around to know that Micah wore a devilish grin that would’ve melted me on the spot. For someone who had been reluctant to let me in, Micah wasn’t wasting time in showing me exactly how he felt.

Whenever we were together, whether in public or private, he was always reaching for me. And I ate it up like I was starved for affection—a woman thirsty after a lifetime of drought.

“I have one word for you, mister,” I retorted, scraping the cutting board clear of bell peppers. All that was left was to slice some tomatoes and dice the cheese, and my salad would be complete.

“And that would be?” He spoke softly because he was too busy nuzzling my neck, leaving trails of blistering heat.

“Holly.”

Micah let out a long, exaggerated sigh. “I guess that’s my cue to see if the grill is ready.”

Surrounded by the cold and snow outside, a small covered patio out back protected the state-of-the-art grill—and its griller—from the weather. He’d only just come inside from turning the gas on before he’d snuggled up behind me.

“Well, you were complaining earlier how hungry you were.” I turned around to face him as Micah gave me the room to move. The second I locked eyes with him, he pressed against me again.

There was a hardness now that made me gulp—whether nervously or lustfully, I wasn’t quite sure.

His voice was rough and husky. “My appetite has changed. I’m more interested in . . .” And instead of telling me what he wanted, Micah showed me.

There was no tentativeness or shyness about the kiss he leveled me with. It held all the power and determination of a man who had no problem claiming what he wanted. Not that I was in any position to refuse him, as my body softened into him and my arms worked their way up around his neck.

With his fingers in my hair, tugging the back of my head firmly, he totally owned the kiss—setting the pace as his tongue brushed against my mouth. I acted instinctively and parted my lips, moaning the instant his tongue touched mine.

Everything about Micah overwhelmed me in the best possible way. He made it hard to breathe—to think—to remember that only moments ago I was warning him we had a teenage girl in the house with us. He was both gentle and brazen, giving me just a tiny taste of submission before he took control and dominated the kiss.

I let him.

I encouraged him.

I drowned in him.

It was painfully blissful in the agony he stirred within me, because all I wanted to do was grab him by the hand and take him to his bedroom. We hadn’t really talked about it, but as his tongue danced with mine, I was willing to show him that behind every girl was a woman just begging to let loose and indulge in her wildest fantasies.

I wanted to be wild.

I wanted to rock his world.

He set me on a rollercoaster of indescribable emotions that frankly scared the crap out of me, because they felt so new and raw.

The kiss was over way too soon.

Leaning back in to steal one last taste, I stared up at Micah with what felt like stars in my eyes. “Where did that come from?” I sounded all sexy and raspy.

“Just a promise of what’s to come.” The look he gave me set off a flurry of butterflies inside my stomach. It was one that whispered he was talking about more than just kissing.

We were combustible.

All I could do was grin like a dork, making sure to slap his butt on his way out to the grill.

“My gosh, I thought you two would never stop.” Holly peered around the corner from her room. She clutched her stomach like she was in pain and gagged repeatedly. “I thought my eyes might bleed.”

I burst out laughing. “Just you wait.”

I didn’t say anything else. I already knew she had a crush on Austin. If given a chance, I was sure she’d kiss him, too.

“Yeah, but still.” Holly walked over to the island counter where I was standing and peered at the salad in the bowl. Before I could stop her or caution her to wait for dinner, she plucked out a cucumber chunk and shoved it into her mouth. “Not where we eat.”

With each passing day Micah and I spent together, I also got a chance to get to know his sweet young niece. She had very little memory of her parents, and her uncle had basically raised her. There was no mistaking how much she loved him, and it was endearing to hear her share small story after small story of things he’d done for her growing up.

The tales weren’t anything too revealing—other than how totally committed and doting he was. He denied her very little, and in return, Holly showed him a level of respect well beyond her years. She trusted him completely, even when she didn’t understand his constant need to move. Holly would follow him to the ends of the earth and jump into space if he asked.

Such devotion was impressive.

“Did you get your homework done?” I asked, changing the subject. That was the other thing I admired about Micah . . . he’d nurtured in Holly an incredible love of reading. Earlier, I’d gotten another chance to look at the shelves of books Holly called her own personal vault of knowledge, and her eclectic tastes were evident in the variety of books I saw.

If she had even the slightest interest in it, chances were she also had a book or two about it.

“Yep. I finished that book about Henry the Eighth you got me!” she answered with excitement. “I’m kinda sad that it’s over.”

She definitely was a kindred spirit. I had those same feelings—what I called a book hangover. The greater the adventure or tale, the deeper the sadness.

“Quick, tell me what you loved most about it . . . a fact.” The tomatoes were finally sliced into fourths and spread out over the top of the lettuce.

She shrugged. “Hmmm, I thought it was interesting that for a man who thought he was popular with the women, he wrote really bad love letters. I guess it was a good thing he was king, otherwise he would’ve never had a family.” Another thing about Holly was, despite her not liking to see her uncle make out, she was a horrible romantic. “But he was also very musical, so maybe that’s how he charmed them.”

My knife cut through the small block of cheddar. After cubing two strips, I offered them to her before dumping the rest in the salad. “I don’t think it really matters what he did. Like you said, he was king. He could do pretty much whatever he wanted.”

Before I could say it, Holly spoke. “Well, wasn’t that what he was infamous for?”

With my part of the meal completed, I quickly washed my hands at the sink and peered out the window to see how Micah was doing. Judging from his smile, it was time to take out the steaks to him.

“You want to take this outside to your uncle?” I asked, holding the rectangular glassware containing the meat. “I’ll finish setting the table if you want to come help after?”

Nodding, Holly took it from me. “I like it when you come over, Sedona. Micah talks to me about what I read, but it’s not the same.” Her smile was sweet and innocent.

“Well, you know where to find me.”

Our conversation came to a halt as Micah came bursting into the kitchen. He was no longer relaxed. Something had lit a fire under him, and his eyes reflected the frenzy.

“Holly. Hide. Now,” he barked out his order. “You go with her, Sedona.”

Holly didn’t argue. She dropped the glassware on the floor, and it shattered on contact, as she rushed out of the room. Sauce slowly started dripping from the fresh meat, a small pool spreading outward.

“What’s going on?” I began to ask, but Micah was already halfway out the door.

Calling out over his shoulder, he repeated his demand that I follow Holly. “Don’t argue with me. Just do it.”

The patio was lit by two overhead light fixtures. As I took a few steps down the stairs and into the backyard, the light began to fade, the sun finally setting. Micah was already moving into the gradual darkness, and ignoring him completely, I chased after him.

“What’s going on?” I repeated, running until I finally caught up with him. He was stalking around the perimeter of the house’s property, brushing against the solid fence that encased it.

His gaze was constantly scanning his surroundings. If it was at all possible, he seemed larger, more terrifying, more like a battle-hardened warrior than the carefree man who stole kisses earlier.

This time a chill went through me, because this was the same Micah I caught a glimpse of that day he came barging into the store looking for Holly. He carried himself like a man who would kill first and ask questions later—if he even bothered to ask at all. He looked like someone most would cross the street to avoid.

It was alarming how powerful the transformation was.

“Micah!” I called out, expecting him to stop. He didn’t.

“Why won’t you listen?” There it was—that ever so slight sound of exasperation. It made me wonder how many times he’d had similar conversations with Holly before she responded the way she just had.

His question made me pause, and I also began looking about. The night was quiet with a chill in the air that I was only just now feeling. From the way Micah was vigilantly studying the woods, his pace never slowing as he circled around the house and back to the patio, I knew that this wasn’t merely some crazy paranoia on his part.

“Is someone here?” I let out a sigh of relief when I was finally able to join Micah. “Micah?”

“I have a quartz grid around the house. They’re specifically spelled to ward against malicious intent and to protect all who reside on the property. Whenever there is a threat lurking by the boundary, the crystals are programmed to alert me immediately.” Micah finally looked at me long enough so I could feel his seriousness.

“And they went off?” I asked, already guessing the answer. That would explain his inspection of the property. Something had obviously triggered it. “And?”

I felt like an ass always asking questions, but he didn’t always give complete answers.

He nodded. “I won’t jeopardize her safety. The second I’m alerted, I act.” Her being Holly.

“Are we under attack?” I asked, suddenly feeling sick. “Oh no, I left her alone. I didn’t listen to you.” I closed my eyes, wishing I could take back my stubborn ignorance. I started back to the house, but Micah reached out and stopped me.

“My wards are strong enough that no one with malicious intent can breach them. Whatever it was that triggered the crystals is outside.”

That made this all the more creepy—my beloved woods were now filled with sinister shadows.

“So we’re safe?” I repeated as a throbbing headache started blossoming.

That’s when it hit me.

“Micah? How many times has this happened? How many times have you given Holly that order?” All I could think about now were the steaks abandoned on the kitchen floor amidst shattered glass. She hadn’t even taken the time to carefully place the dish back on the counter before rushing off. Holly had simply dropped everything and obeyed.

“Too many to count.”

His confession hurt my heart. It hurt my soul. It made me weep for the kind of vigilance it took to always be that ready to respond—to act automatically without thought. It made me want to pull Holly into my arms and hold her until the world was a safer place. It felt unfair that this was their lifestyle . . . like they were merely pretending to live between each attack.

“Who are you afraid of?” I asked, searching his eyes for a hint. Gently, I cupped the side of his face, hoping that the intimacy of my touch would encourage him to share. “Is someone hunting you?” All I could think of were the mobster movies I watched on television, where someone would witness a murder and have to go into hiding.

His expression turned to one of pain. “Don’t ask me that, Sedona. You know I can’t tell you. Not because I don’t want to, but because the less you know, the safer you are.”

“But you’re not safe and neither is Holly.” I stated it as a fact. After what I’d just witnessed, it was impossible to casually brush it aside.

Speaking of Holly.

I started heading back into the house, and Micah joined me. “Is this all she knows? Please tell me this hasn’t been her entire life.”

Visions of them bolting into the night with only the clothes on their backs filled my mind. I imagined them moving to new town after new town, always having to look over their shoulders, never trusting a soul.

He tugged me to a stop, my hand in his. “And this is another reason why I didn’t want to bring you into our lives. To be with me, to be around Holly, you’re also putting yourself in danger. I can’t ask you to be so careless with your life.”

I could feel him pulling away. I’d finally seen behind the iron curtain where he kept his secrets hidden, and it had scared him. He wasn’t even trying to disguise the fear in his eyes as he looked at me.

There was no way I was going to let him retreat.

As we entered the kitchen again, I stopped dead in my tracks and turned around. I was about to do something I vowed I would never do.

I slipped my hand into my pocket and pulled out my phone. “If you can’t confide in me, then there’s someone I think you should talk to.” When he went to interject, I shook my head, determined to get this next part out before I second-guessed myself. “If you truly are in that kind of danger, you’re going to need help.”

“So who do you suggest?”

Dialing the last number I thought I would, I took a deep breath before answering.

“You need to talk to my aunt.”