Page 83 of The Hunter’s Affection

Chapter 22

Charlotte glared at her untouched coffee and waited for Torr to arrive. He’d texted her saying they needed to talk. She’d already been on her way to The Witch’s Brew, so he’d offered to meet her here. Now she sat playing with her phone at a small table near the front window overlooking Main Street. Splashes of memory kept surfacing in her mind. A vision of Torr between her legs, his face unshaven, his eyes intense, peering up at her every so often. The pressure on her leg. Then nothing.

Charlotte took a sip of coffee, not exactly the perfect remedy for her rapidly beating heart. Her phone buzzed, and she hastened to grab it, but it was only her mother.

“There you are.”

She hadn’t even seen Torr come in. But some of the other female customers certainly had. They eyed him with open interest, but both he and Charlotte ignored it.

He sat opposite her, laying out both of his palms on the table. She took them without thinking, and as they closed around her hands, Charlotte knew something was wrong.

“What is it?”

“Garrett’s back.”

Garrett was Alessandra’s younger brother. Another Cheld. After discovering the truth of their heritage, he’d arranged to finish his master’s degree remotely so he could hunt down information about their father.

At least she wasn’t the last person to find out about all that was happening in their lives. Apparently, neither Alessandra nor Garrett had told their mother yet. Charlotte imagined a reckoning would be coming soon . . .

“Did he find anything?”

Torr squeezed her hands.

“He did.”

The door’s bell rang constantly, customers coming and going. Though they were removed from the crowd in their window seat, they couldn’t be too careful. It was probably not the best place to talk about private matters, but she’d had a hankering for a strong coffee.

“He rolled into town early this morning, nearly giving Laria and me a heart attack. We were at the Walsh estate when we sensed him.”

“But wasn’t he cloaked?”

“Exactly the problem. Apparently, he lost the bracelet Laria made for him somewhere between getting out of the car and sitting down at Kenton and Alessandra’s kitchen table. We all immediately sensed him—”

“But that means—”

“Yep. Drake and Rowan will have sensed it too. They’ll likely know he’s Alessandra’s brother, but it’s an unfortunate reminder to them that she’s not the only Cheld in the vicinity.”

“Do you think they’ll come?”

Torr released her hands. Charlotte replaced the loss with her coffee, wrapping her fingers around the still-warm brew.

“No idea. I mean, they already know Alessandra is here—”

“But this is different. Even if they’re hesitant”—she lowered her voice—“to kill her . . .”

“They might not have the same reticence about killing her brother.” He shook his head. “I could strangle him with my own hands.”

“But this must have happened before? A piece of jewelry doesn’t seem like the most fail-safe way to cloak . . . them.”

“It’s the only method we have. And yes, it happens from time to time. We’ve gone on some pretty wild goose chases because of it. But”—he shrugged—“it’s rarer than you’d think. Most understand the stakes.”

It seemed so strange that a piece of jewelry embedded with the stems of a wild rose could mean the difference between life and death, but she supposed it was no more fantastical than living in a world where vampires existed.

And sat directly across from her. His expression reminded her of . . .

“You came to me last night.”

“Yes. I did.”