Poisonous Desires by Selena Illyria Page B

gave me a job when I needed it. He’s…family, I suppose.”
    She wasn’t exactly sure what that word meant. Frustration filled her at how difficult it was to say one thing that was true without fighting her instinct to not get too personal. Her first instinct was to protect herself and her sister. Zerik knew all about her family background but didn’t hold it against her, and it had taken him three years to get all the information. With Urban she felt too much was at stake; he had something Zerik didn’t: control over her body and possibly her heart. She wasn’t sure about that last part. Did having someone constantly on your mind, feeling bereft without them, and yearning to hear their voice or feel their touch count as owning your heart ?
    If he knew her, anything serious about her, he’d leave. No one wanted to deal with a broken doll, and certainly not a broken woman.
    Rather than allow him to open her door, she unbuckled her seat belt and got out, pretending to stretch her muscles. Her inner snow leopard wanted to explore, discover what new things she could find about her environment and the people who populated it. The scents that assaulted her nose were mostly werewolf musk and forest with some animal dung mixed in. Woodlands and shit she could take; the wolves, not so much. Nervous energy jittered along her nerve endings, through her legs, and up and down her arms as her heart picked up its pace. They were far from cat country; the mountains were in the distance, but that didn’t help. It would be a good couple of miles to trek up there on foot in human form, and in cat form the speed would pick up, but there could be a number of factors to consider: speed of wolves, bears, both shifter and normal, and other cats.
    Flaky cell signals, so no backup, and nothing to help her get word out if she were in danger. Nadia knew how to hot-wire a car, but that would be a hindrance in itself with timing and model of vehicle, condition, and how full the tank was. Her gaze darted here, there, and everywhere to take in the variables and figure out escape routes, which weren’t that many to her eyes.
    “Hey, look, baked goods,” Urban said, pointing to a table covered in the classic red-and-white, checked pattern, laden down with baked goods of all kinds.
    Her stomach rumbled, and she swore. It’s not like we haven’t eaten, she admonished her inner feline. Her tummy growled again, louder this time. “Fine,” she mumbled and darted off in the direction of the treats. Nadia slipped her index middle finger into her bra and pulled out a small wad of bills.
    “You keep—never mind. I’m going to go check in with the resident security to see what they have to say. Grab some doughnuts for me, the powdered kind. And a few pies and cakes, what the hell.” Urban dug into his pocket, took out his wallet, and slipped out a credit card. He handed it over to her. “Just don’t buy everything, okay?”
    She accepted the card, feeling awed that he would trust her, at least monetarily. Zerik had always sent someone with her when he gave her his credit card to shop.
    “Um, okay.” A hot flash filled her cheeks, and the tears were back. With a deep breath, she darted off to hide her reaction.
    The different desserts on offer weren’t that plentiful, but they looked too tempting to turn down. After strolling down the table to gain some control over her wayward emotions she selected a cake, some peanut butter cookies, a blueberry pie for Torger , and a few filled doughnuts for good measure. Her things were put in boxes and gift wrapped by a well-styled blonde in an expensive wardrobe: a silk blouse, wool pencil skirt, a simple blue cardigan, and pearl earrings and necklace with a perfectly coiffed bun; not a hair out of place. Her makeup was minimal but only enhanced her classic beauty and cornflower-blue eyes. Her porcelain skin had a light sheen of sweat. Her gaze darted here, there, and everywhere. Something wasn’t right,