Page 18 of Bite the Power
"Good night, Tessa."
"Good night," she managed, her voice barely a whisper.
She fumbled with the door handle, desperate to get inside before she did something completely inappropriate like throw herself into his arms and kiss him senseless. The moment she was safely inside, she hurried to her bedroom and into the adjoining small bathroom.
Once locked inside, she splashed cold water on her face and stared at her reflection in the mirror. Her green eyes were bright, her cheeks flushed, and she looked like a woman who'd just been struck by cupid's arrow.
Pull yourself together,she told herself firmly.You cannot fall for the king. That would be completely inappropriate and utterly foolish.
But as she touched her fingers to the spot where his lips had kissed her hand, she knew it might already be too late.
Tessa left the bathroom and changed into her soft cotton pajamas, her mind reeling from the evening's events. She thencrawled into bed, pulling the thick comforter up to her chin, and stared at the ceiling. She could almost guarantee tonight would be another sleepless night.
She tried to get Kaidan out of her memory—those piercing blue eyes, the way his beard had felt against her hand when he'd kissed her knuckles—but that seemed futile. Every time she closed her eyes, she saw him leaning closer to her in the Jeep and still felt the electricity crackling between them.
Get a grip, Tessa. You're here to work.
But her traitorous heart refused to listen to reason. The way he'd looked at her, as if she were the most precious creature he'd ever encountered, made her pulse race even now.
Finally, somehow, exhaustion won out and she fell asleep. But her dreams were filled with her and Kaidan walking hand in hand across pristine snow fields, kissing under the moonlight while the Aurora Borealis danced overhead. In her dream, his hands were warm and sure as they cupped her face, and when he whispered her name, it sounded like a prayer.
The next thing Tessa knew, there was knocking on her bedroom door. She groggily opened her eyes to find pale morning light filtering through her window.
"Tessa?" Eli's voice came through the door, tinged with concern. "Are you alright?"
She stumbled out of bed and opened the door to find Eli standing there with his usual worried expression, his dark hair more disheveled than usual.
"You slept in a bit late today. Elora's been waiting for you."
"I'm so sorry. It must be the adjustment to the Arctic." She couldn't bring herself to reveal that her mind had been completely hijacked by Kaidan.
"No worries. I'll tell her you'll be right out."
Tessa hurried through her morning routine, splashing water on her cheeks to chase away the lingering effects of her heateddreams. Within ten minutes, she was dressed in her thermal layers and joining Eli and Elora in the main area.
"Morning, sleepyhead," Elora greeted with a knowing smile that made Tessa wonder exactly how much Kaidan's sister had figured out about the previous evening.
"Sorry to keep you waiting." Tessa grabbed her coffee mug and took a grateful sip of the strong brew.
Eli spread several printouts across the table, his expression more stressed than she'd seen him since her arrival. "We had some more equipment malfunctions overnight. The seismic sensors in sector seven went completely offline, and the weather station is giving us readings that don't make sense."
Tessa leaned over the data, her scientific mind engaging. "These fluctuations are impossible unless something's interfering with the instruments."
"There's also unexpected weather coming in today," Eli continued, running a hand through his hair. "And my grant renewal deadline is approaching. Between the sabotage and these anomalies, I'm starting to worry the funding committee will think I've lost my mind."
Tessa's confidence kicked in, pushing aside her romantic distractions. "I can help you restructure the grant proposal to frame these anomalies as a breakthrough discovery rather than equipment failure. And as for the sabotage..." She tapped her fingers on the table. "We could set up motion-activated cameras around the perimeter, maybe rig some non-harmful deterrents."
Eli's face brightened. "You think like a field researcher, not just a lab scientist. I knew Gerri was right to send you."
Elora shifted uncomfortably when Eli muttered, "Magnus' men being spotted too close to the station hasn't helped my nerves this past week either. Though I suppose it's just politics between clans."
Tessa caught the look that passed between Elora and Eli—there was definitely more weight behind Kaidan's constant vigilance than just wanting to make her comfortable. The way Elora's jaw tightened suggested clan politics were far more dangerous than Eli realized.
"We should head out now before the storm comes in this afternoon," Elora said, unusually silent about the Magnus situation.
They gathered their equipment from the storage room, bundling into their parkas and strapping on their gear. Tessa felt a thrill of anticipation as they stepped into the crisp morning air. Today she wanted to explore the areas showing the most disruption—the unstable zones where the real answers might be hiding.
The trek to the volatile sectors took them across increasingly treacherous terrain. The ground trembled beneath their feet with each step, and the ice shifted and groaned in ways that made Tessa's scientific mind race with possibilities.
