Page 83 of Act of Passion

James nodded. “Frankly, I’m surprised Abasi didn’t kill Malik, knowing his friend would one day be with you between thesheets.”

Malik grinned. “Hearing all of this, I’m more surprised Gwenhwyfar didn’t take me out when she had thechance.”

Laughing, Brooke wiped hercheeks.

James turned her to face him. “Listen, I can’t believe I’m about to stick up for Malik and the thousands-of-women bit, but he’s right; he’s been alive thousands of years. As a supernatural male, you can’t go too long between sexual releases or you run the risk of losing control and possibly succumbing to the darkness that always lingers below the surface until you’remated.”

Brooke tipped herhead.

“And knowing now that Malik is far more than just a cat-shifter, that he has the blood of the gods in him, I’m guessing he might require a release even more than average males. Brooke, I’m saying this to you because I honestly thought the same of him as you do right now. We all knew he came from money. And we all thought he was in effect a whore. But I get it now. I don’t think he had a choice. And you need to understand that after he claimed you, he never touched another woman…but he went out of his way to make us all think he did, because I think he saw it as a weakness. I bet that mentality came from hisfather.”

Brooke stared up at Malik. He touched her face andnodded.

She threw her arms aroundhim.

James didn’t walk away, instead he looked directly at Malik. “What happened at the plaza, Tut? What made you lose control of your shifter side and change forms in a crowded area, forcing several clean-up teams to bring in Fae to erase what the humanssaw?”

Brooke gasped. “You didthat?”

“Yes, my sweet,” he said, kissing the tip of her nose. “I was going about my day and then all of a sudden I smelled honey and lotuses, with something else mixed in. One second I was fine, and the next I found myself pinned under a bunch of PSIguys.”

Her brow crinkled…and then her eyes widened. “Ohmygod, I took Bethany for ice cream at a plaza not far from here. She’d just finished with hers when she sniffed the air and her eyes turned to amber. She looked right at me and said we had to leave right away, that he couldn’t stop the mean and the longer we stayed there, with his mean up, the more he might get stuck likethat.”

Malik jerked. Brooke and his daughter had been that close to him monthsago?

James snorted. “Well, mystery solved, Tut. You weren’t a dick. You were sensing your mate and your daughter. I’m guessing she was the something else you smelled with Brooke’s scent. And your daughter must have sensed you wouldn’t come back from that if their scents were still in thearea.”

Malik tearedup.

Brooke kissed his lips tenderly. “James, I heard you asking Malik about drawing some blood from me to help Gram. Let’s doit.”

Chapter Twenty-Six

Brooke satin the passenger seat of Malik’s luxury SUV. She’d spotted several more vehicles in his garage before they’d left for PSI. She wasn’t sure why one man needed so many cars or such a big home, but he seemed to like itall.

“Do you think they’ll be able to figure out a way to help Gram?” sheasked.

Malik reached over and took her hand in his as he drove. “PSI has access to technology that won’t be on the mainstream market for years. And Gram has the greatest minds in medicine at his disposal. He’s where he needs to be, and I know that everyone is going to do everything they can to get him on his feetagain.

Brooke squeezed his hand. “Thank you for being good aboutthis.”

He caressed her hand with his thumb. “He’s done so much for my wife and my daughter that I’ll never be able to repayhim.”

She looked at Malik while he drove and took a moment to let it sink in that she was married now. She was someone’swife.

He glanced at her. “You look like you might pass out. You allright?”

“I am. Just adjusting to the fact we’re together for good now,” she confessed. “It’s a little hard to wrap my headaround.”

He grinned. “Want me to enlist Duke and Rurik to sing a soft rock ballad in commemoration of our first date? Will that help you wrap your mind aroundit?”

Snorting, Brooke shook her head. “Please don’t. I’m still a bit traumatized from their firstduet.”

Malik laughedsoftly.

Brooke kept hold of her husband’s hand as she looked out the passenger side window. For a few minutes she got lost in her thoughts. One thing nagged at her. “Malik, what about Elm? He won’t stop coming for me. And The Corporation wantsBethany.”

Hesnarled.

---