A Job From Hell (Ancient Legends #1)

for
someone else to clean your house.”
    “Whoa, calm down.” I reached for her. She
lurched forward and poured the glass of water over my head, then jumped back, flabbergasted.
I peered at my soaked shirt, stifling my laughter. “Don’t tell me I was in dire
need of a shower. You could’ve just advised me to buy a new deodorant.”
    “Stay away from me,” Amber whispered.
    My smile died on my lips. “What’s wrong
with you?”
    “You know what’s wrong!” she shouted.
    I didn’t want to point out that I wasn’t
exactly a mind reader so, unless she was more specific, I had no idea what she
was talking about.
    “Stop pretending,” Amber yelled, inching
forward.
    I took a deep breath, suddenly noticing the
smell that lingered on her skin. A snarl escaped my throat. “How did they get
on my property?” I scooped her up and sat her on top of my mahogany desk,
forcing her to face me. “Listen, I want you to tell me the truth. Did you
invite them in?”
    “Who? Your creepy, little friends? Hell,
no.” Amber’s voice sounded sarcastic, but there wasn’t just anger in her gaze.
The telltale signs were there. She was starting to trust me no matter how hard she
tried to pretend otherwise. But it wasn’t enough yet.
    “I told you to stay out of the woods,” I
roared. “Do you have any idea what could’ve happened to you? I can’t take care
of you when I’m—” I stopped before I said too much “—when I’m gone.”
    “You mean when you sleep?” Amber snorted. “Surprised
I know what you are? I know everything ,
and I’m not staying in this house any longer.”
    I rubbed my chin, her words echoing in my
mind. How did she find out? Was she afraid of me now? Damn the Shadows for
trying to ruin my chances. “You know I’d never hurt you,” I said softly,
focusing on her mind as I tried to catch fragments of thought, but what came
easily to me with other mortals didn’t seem to work on her. I could influence
her emotions, but I couldn’t read her. I felt bad for using such a cheap trick
on her, and yet I had no choice.
    Clearing my mind, I met her gaze, ready to
guide her on tranquil ground again so we could talk, when I noticed the barely
visible bruise spreading on her left cheek near the hairline. Whoever hurt her
was as good as dead. Tossing the books on the desk to the floor, I picked her
up and teleported through iron-enforced walls to the only safe place I knew: my
chamber. Ever so gently, I lowered myself on a sofa and pulled her onto my lap.
She protested halfheartedly, her eyes wide with curiosity as she scanned the
room, lingering a little too long on the disheveled bed.
    “How—” Amber started.
    “Tell me the truth. I’ll make them pay if
it’s the last thing I ever do.” I pointed at her cheek, trying to keep my mind
from wandering to the bed and how awkward it made me feel since we barely knew
each other.
    Amber winced even though I didn’t touch the
bruise. “I left the house to call my brother when one of the guys you
introduced me to the other night tried to kidnap me.” Her voice sounded calm
and composed, considering her words carefully. She was hiding half the truth.
    “Wait a second, we’ll get to the kidnapping
part later.” I raised my brows. “Why didn’t you call your brother from the
landline in the hall? Surely Clare told you to use it any time you want since there’s
no reception elsewhere.”
    She averted her gaze, blushing. “I forgot.”
    In spite of the seriousness of the
situation I smiled. She was such a bad liar, but cute. “Okay, let’s pretend you
forgot, which I don’t believe by the way, did you also forget I told you not to
leave the house?”
    “You said I couldn’t walk into the woods,
not to stay inside.” Her eyes narrowed, challenging me.
    I inhaled slowly. No point in arguing with
her. I’d just make sure she’d never leave the house without me again. “From now
on you stay inside, unless I’m with you.”
    “You can’t tell me what to do. Who do you
think you are?”
    She looked so feeble in her annoyance, it
made me feel frail too. I snuggled her head into my shoulder and whispered, “You’re
not going anywhere. If I need to put you in chains to keep you by my side, then
so be it.”
    “Why would you do that? Because of the prize?
I know you wanted it for yourself.”
    So the Shadows told her about the prize as
well. No surprise there. I squeezed a finger under her chin and lifted her lips
to mine. “Don’t