Phantom Warriors: Riot by Jordan Summers Page B

jaw could’ve gone any
lower, Nina was sure it would’ve been dragging on the ground.
    She’d been wrong about his beauty, but not
about the perfection. He was massive. Her gaze traveled from his
feet to his head. She did a double-take, when she reached his
waist. Who wouldn’t? It wasn’t everyday a woman encountered
that kind of endowment. Their eyes met and in an instant, Nina knew
who he was.
    “It’s you.” The man from the wedding
reception. The man she’d danced with. The man she’d dreamed about.
The Great Bear. But how?
    “It’s me.” He hesitated but a moment, then
kept walking, closing the distance between them. His gaze took in
her swollen face before moving on to the cuts on her arms and
across her abdomen. “I am so sorry that I didn’t reach you in
time,” he murmured. A distance of only three feet separated them.
It might as well have been a continent.
    “How?” she asked, even though her brain
registered that it was a stupid question. He was the Great Bear.
The Great Bear had powerful magic and he’d just proven it
again.
    Riot gave her a sad smile. “I’ll explain
everything, but first let me tend to your wounds.”
    A nervous laugh bubbled out of her throat.
“I’m the one supposed to be helping you.” She looked at him. His
face had a vicious scar running down the side of it. She hadn’t
noticed it in the candlelight or perhaps she’d just been too
mesmerized by his soft brown eyes. Smaller scars crisscrossed his
hands like he’d been in so many fights that they’d given up hope of
trying to heal properly. Fresh pink skin covered the spots where
the bullet holes had been. The scratches and scraps had scabbed
over. She couldn’t see any blood anywhere on him.
    He glanced down at her. “Why did you take
your clothes off?” he asked.
    Nina crossed her arms over her chest,
covering her underwear, and looked around for her clothes. She’d
forgotten for a moment that she was nearly as naked as him. “I was
about to jump in and save you. I didn’t want my clothes weighing me
down.”
    Riot arched a brow and a smile played at the
corners of his sensual lips. “In my Other form?”
    Nina felt her face heat. “I know it wasn’t my
brightest moment, but I couldn’t just let you drown. You saved my
life.”
    White lines bracketed his mouth. “I allowed
them to touch you. In that regard, I failed.”
    She picked up her shirt, but he stopped her
before she could put it on. Nina looked at him questioningly.
    “You’re still bleeding. It has slowed, but I
can get it to stop. I can make sure that there are no scars,” he
said.
    She glanced at his hands.
    His smile widened. “It’s too late for
me.”
    “How can you heal me? I only brought medicine
for animals.” She pointed to her bag.
    Riot shook his head. “I won’t need your
medicine. I have medicine of my own. But I will need you to close
your eyes.”
    Nina hesitated, but then complied. She
realized that even though she’d only known Riot a couple of days
that she trusted him. He would not harm her. He’d been injured
trying to save her life. He’d earned her trust and more. She heard
him take a step closer and she swallowed hard. A warm hand brushed
her hair out of her face. Nina sucked in a surprised breath.
    “Don’t move.” His breath brushed across her
lips, making them tingle.
    “I won’t.”
     
    ***
     
    She hadn’t run. She wasn’t scared. Something
inside of Riot burst, leaving his two hearts strangely tender.
Absently, he rubbed a hand over his chest. He’d known Nina was
special when they’d met. He just hadn’t known how special until
now. Was she the one? He thought so. He hoped so. What he was about
to do wasn’t solely for altruistic reasons. Yes, he wanted to heal
her wounds. It was his fault that she had them. Had he been faster,
those men would’ve never been allowed to touch her.
    He winced as he looked down at the cuts
covering her smooth skin and the bruise on her cheek. Riot