Telal clenched his hand into a fist then opened it to scrub his hand over his face. He had not thought about this.
Tyrian continued. “Meanwhile, I'll consider it.”
Telal nodded but his entire body felt numb. Tyrian strode forward and clasped his hand, pulling him in close for a brief hug. “I do this for Chloe because she would want this. Not for you.”
Telal nodded. He didn't give a shit why he agreed, so long as he did. He ended the meeting but barely noticed people leaving as his mind ran through all the options. When he finally went through them all, he realized there was only one answer. He'd have to go into the rift—he'd have to see his family for the first time since he left them there.
CHAPTER 9
“Come on, let's get the hell out of here,” Rosa said, tugging on Lily's arm like an impatient child to her mother. She didn't budge.
“No, wait, I want to talk to Telal first.”
Rosa spotted the man in the corner coming towards her and her heart started racing. “Then get a ride home with him, I'm out of here.”
Lily muttered something that sounded like a goodbye but Rosa didn't stay to hear it. She bolted from the room. The male incubus tried to go through the door at the same time and stepped on her dress. She tripped and the material split with a loud rip. That male was coming closer, his brow pinched forward. Something about him frightened her, sent her running down the hallway towards the stairwell. If she could get there before he caught her, and some instinct told her that was exactly what he was trying to do, then she could cast her spell and port back to the shop.
Glorious relief surged through her body as she came to the door. She slammed her hands into the push lever and darted inside, breathing hard as she plastered herself against the wall. What on earth was wrong with her? She quickly dismissed that stupid thought. She always listened to her instincts and in this particular case they told her to run and hide.
A soft sound, like a footstep, came from the other side of the door. Rosa held her breath, stared wide-eyed at the metal door. It started to open, and her eyes widened until they burned with the need to blink. The man came through the door. He looked around then found her hiding spot behind the door. The furrow between his eyebrows deepened along with the frown on his lips.
“Are you well?”
Her heart drummed hard at the sound of his voice. It was deep but had an accent to it, almost Irish sounding.
She nodded at his question and hoped that the answer might be good enough for him. Maybe he'd just turn and leave.
He gave her a curious look then motioned back to the hallway. “Were you running from me?”
She gulped and found it strange that he thought someone running from him was odd. The man was big. “Si.” She nodded quickly to prove her point.
Though he wasn't standing close to her, he took a step back as if to give her room. “Why?”
She licked her dry lips, and standing this close to him, really got to take in just how big he was. She was no short woman, though she wasn't particularly tall either, yet he towered over her, had to be at least 6'5”. Yet it wasn't necessarily the height that had sent her running, but the packs of muscles he carried and the edge of violence that seemed to be barely contained in his body. His shoulders, arms, chest, and legs were huge and filled out the black clothes he wore. He had the body of a man who spent hours working his muscles to perfection.
Her senses chose that moment to speak up. As if another voice was in her head, she closed her eyes and listened to its advice. She still would have run if the man wasn't so big. Then what was it about him? “You're big,” she whispered.
His lips pulled into a frown as he looked down at his chest as if seeing himself for the first time. “I'm sorry...what?”
Knowing how stupid she sounded, she shook her head. “Just tell me what you want.” She crossed her arms. This dress was made tailored to her with sleeves that billowed around her wrists. While it looked pretty, she really had it made because sewn into each sleeve was a small pouch with a dagger, very light-weight and easy to use in it. She crossed her arms into her sleeves until she touched the metal.
He lifted a packet of papers in his hand. “Telal has a job for you. I'm his personal guard, Kearnyn.” He held out his hand to shake but she could only stare at the big paw.
Pretending to ignore his outstretched bear hand, she looked at his face instead. He had dark hair with natural streaks of red and green eyes that matched perfectly. His skin was much lighter than her own, but what she found the most distraction was his entire face. He was incredibly good-looking with high cheek bones, a square jaw, aristocratic straight nose and neat even ears.
“You're staring,” he said quietly in that deep voice.
Rosa felt her cheeks burn as she look down at the floor. “I thought I saw dirt on your face. Sorry,” she mumbled. “You said something about papers?”
He gave her a hard look that she couldn't read. “Telal has been given a job to manufacture enspelled weapons. He'd like to know if you'd be interested in assisting him, for a share of the profits of course.”
She swallowed hard and took the papers from his outstretched hand. What she'd tried to do was gently take them from him as if she was calm inside, but instead she snatched them, crinkling several of the pages in her fist.
Deep breaths, deep breaths. She quickly glanced over the pages seeing the sketchings and specs of the weapons and the kind of enchantment required. “How many do you want me to make?”
“Telal says that if you agree to split the work he'll share half the profits. That's 5,000 Weapons.”
Her stomach fluttered at his deep, rolling voice. “Sure, I'll do it.” She didn't even think about the answer, just gave the one she knew would make him leave the fastest.
He nodded and pulled a pen out of his back pocket. “Sign the line on the last page, Ms. Medina.”
She took the pen with shaking fingers and scribbled her signature where he indicated. “Just call me Rosa,” she said, handing the papers back to him.
He looked at her with a watchful expression that made her feel as though she were the center of his attention. It unnerved the hell out of her.
“Rosa, I look forward to seeing you again.” He held her gaze for a moment, then turned and left, the door slamming shut behind him.
Only after he left could she breathe normally again. Before he had a chance to come back, even though she didn't know if he would, she closed her eyes and chanted her porting spell. When she finished, she was back in her shop, but her encounter with the big man still lingered with her.
CHAPTER 10
Telal sat at the head of the conference table writing furiously in a small leather-bound notebook. Kearnyn stood several feet behind him, a man whose size alone probably deterred attacks on his master.
Lily took a seat on the table, her thigh brushing against the papers he had out. His hand stilled then he slowly lifted his head to glare at her.
“What are you still doing here?”
“Waiting for a lift.” He probably didn't realize it, or at least wouldn't admit it, but the meeting had been hard on him. The lines in his forehead were more pronounced, the grip on his pen looked like he was trying to strangle it.
“Go home with Rosa. I'm busy.” He looked back down, his hand scribbling across the page in a heavy-inked slanted scrawl.
“She already left. Sorry but it looks like I'll be hitching with you.”
He let out a stream of demonish that sounded a lot like he was cursing her and her entire family—and he probably was. Lily barely controlled her grin.