Chapter 35

"No," Mike said at last. "Not yet, anyway. Are you sure there's nothing else you want to tell us?" Those golden eyes seemed to bore right into her.
"Yes. No." She wet her lips. "I mean, I'm not sure."
Beside her Riley stirred and reached a hand out to stroke her cheek.
"Maybe it's my turn to interject something." He cleared his throat. "It seems to me the two of you are dancing around two critical items. He held up a finger. "One. Are you related? Two." He held up another finger. "Does the book apply to both of you? There has to be a common link, so if there is, just put it out there."
"But - " Mike interjected.
"Uh uh uh. Cop talking here. If it turns out you guys are enemies centuries back, I'll keep things under control." He leaned forward and raised a third finger. "Three. What if you are connected in some way? I know there are a lot of Romanians in this country, but how many are actually looking for this book?"
"Let me put this out there," Jamie said. "I've learned so much since Mike and I have been together. The wrong word or gesture to the wrong person could explode into something you can't control."
"Jamie's right," Mike said. "Is that how you see this, too, Lia?"
She nodded.
"I'm not finished," Riley said. He looked at Lia. "I'm going to shock you with what I say next. I even shock myself thinking it, but I know it's real and not a figment of my imagination. Not anymore."
"Riley," Mike began.
"It's okay," he assured the man. "I sense it. I'm surprised you don't because I'd think that would be more likely."
Lia's stomach cramped as the possibilities of his meaning swirled through her. "Would one of you tell me what you're talking about?"
"Let me ask you something first," Mike said. "You've obviously traced your lineage back several centuries if you're looking for this particular book. Tell me in one word who the ancestor is you relate back to. Just the one name."
Lia swallowed hard. If he were an enemy, well, she'd have to rely on Riley to protect her.
"Rica." She clutched Riley's hand tightly and repeated it. "Rica. Means the ruler." She waited for Mike's reaction.
When his body visibly relaxed and a smile broke out on his face, every one of her muscles went lax. Thank god, was all she could think.
"Familie," he said. "Ambalaj."
"Ambalaj," she agreed, and gave him an answering smile.
Jamie looked from one to the other. "So, it's good? It's all good?"
"Better than good," her husband told her. "This is my first connection since I set off on this hunt." He stared at Lia as if he expected her to disappear. "Jamie, please make more coffee while I get the book. Lia? Riley? We might be in for a long evening here."
"We still didn't get to my one last thing," Riley reminded them.
"What last thing?" Lia asked, anxious to get to the book.
Riley looked hard at Mike. "If you and Lia are connected in some way, maybe she has the same...special...abilities that you do."
Now everyone stared at him.
"Don't you think we should work into it?" Mike asked at last.
Wolf!
That was all Lia could think. The more she was in the room with him, the more she was certain Mike was wolf. His eyes, his manner, and finally, the clincher, the faint scent were all clues she'd sensed in the bookstore. But here in this room with him, they were even stronger. It was obvious Jamie knew exactly what Riley was talking about. Lia wondered how Mike had broken it to this woman and how they'd told Riley without him arresting them for weirdness.
"I scented you in the bookstore," Mike added. "At the time, I just didn't know it was you."
So, since he hadn't run screaming into the night, since he'd apparently sensed it about her, she might as well be the one to drop the stone here.
"Yes," she said, letting out a deliberate breath. "I am wolf." She looked at Mike. "Like you."