Crouching Tiger, Forbidden Vampire (Love at Stake) by Kerrelyn Sparks Page B

calf. Another pang of guilt nicked at him.
    She stiffened suddenly. “What is that? You have Han’s mark on your arm?”
    With a muttered curse, he glanced at the tattoo on the inside of his right wrist. “It’s nothing.”
    “All of Han’s men have that mark. I’ve seen it on a bunch of soldiers who were in the clinic at Tiger Town. It means ‘slave’—”
    “It means nothing. Now stay put so you don’t get any sand in the wound.” He filled a bucket from the stream, then poured water over her ankle and foot.
    “How did you get it?” she asked softly. “Did he capture you? Force you to work for him? Were you under his control?”
    “No!” Russell scowled at her. “He never controlled me.”
    “Then why do you have his mark? Why do you want to kill him?”
    “I don’t explain myself.” Ignoring her frustrated look, he grabbed a towel and his first-aid kit from the bookcase. In a few minutes, he had the wound treated and wrapped.
    “Thank you,” she mumbled.
    Guilt jabbed at him once again as he returned his supplies to their rightful place. He handed her a pair of dry socks.
    “Thank you,” she repeated.
    “Don’t—” He clenched his jaw with exasperation. “Don’t thank me. You wouldn’t have gotten injured if I hadn’t put you through that stupid test.”
    “I don’t mind proving myself.”
    “You could have been injured or attacked.” He slipped a knife into each of his boots, then buckled on his sword belt. “I kept telling you not to wander about the forest alone at night, but then I intentionally put you into the exact same danger I warned you against. You should have slapped me when you had the chance.”
    She gave him a curious look as she pulled on his socks. “Are you always this hard on yourself?”
    He paused in the middle of fastening his watch on his right wrist. Normally it did a good job of concealing the damned tattoo. She was already seeing through him, asking questions. If he wasn’t careful, she would get completely under his skin.
    He put on his coat. “Let’s get to work.”
    “I guess the answer is yes,” she muttered as she pulled on her boots.
    He groaned inwardly. If he was being hard on himself, it was only because the mission was hard. Physically, he was in great shape for keeping her safe, but socially, he was sorely out of practice. He filled his pockets with ammo and weapons, wondering if he could manage to be charming. Probably not. With a sigh, he levitated up to the ceiling to grab his crossbow and quiver.
    She glanced up. “Sorry about the hole.”
    He dropped back to the ground and attempted a wry smile. “You mean the new moon roof? Maybe it will increase the property value.”
    She sat back. “Oh my gosh. Are you attempting humor?” When he winced, she grinned. “You can’t sell this place.”
    “I know. I don’t actually own it.” He shook his head. Major fail on the charming issue. “Besides, no one would want it.”
    “I would. I think it’s beautiful.”
    He scoffed. “It has no plumbing.”
    “It has running water.” She pointed at the underground stream. “You’ve seen my house. No electricity, no plumbing. This isn’t so different. I’ll be quite comfortable here.”
    His mouth dropped open. Did she think she was going to live here? She must not realize that he was suffering from a severe case of lust. But she had to know that betrothed women didn’t shack up with other men. It would ruin her reputation and drive him insane. How could he live with her without touching her?
    Obviously, he needed to somehow forget he was attracted to her. Willpower, he told himself. No unnecessary touching. No more lame attempts at being charming. He would work with her each night, then before dawn, he would teleport her back to her house in Tiger Town. But he better not mention that now, or they would spend the rest of the night arguing instead of working.
    He sat on a stool next to her. “Before we get started, I think we should set