flower bower; wrenched the door closed on everything but the mission.
She wasnât a missionary anymore, no matter how ingrained that response was. But she could still pull her weight.
Even without guns.
Â
Chapter Eight
T he rain woke her.
Jessie drifted back into consciousness, every muscle throbbing as if sheâd just made it through one of Naomiâs bone-rattling mat exercises. Even before she opened her eyes, she could place the soundsâthe gentle patter of the rain, the sound of movement in the kitchen. Through her eyelids, lantern light flickered.
They were all so normal. So at odds with the nagging insistence that something was decidedly wrong. Uncertainty tightened in her chest with every breath.
Silas. Where was his voice?
Jessie opened her eyes, struggling to sit up. Her muscles spasmed with the effort.
âEasy.â An arm curved around her back. âItâs all right, everythingâs okay.â Phin smiled down at her, his features jarringly unfamiliar outside of the posh interior of his resort.
It was surreal, having him down here in her territory.
She frowned. âPhin? Were you watching over me?â
âMatilda and I have been taking shifts,â he admitted, but his smile kicked into a slanted grimace of pain. âCan you either sit up or lie back down? My arm isnât completely better yet.â
âSorry.â Jessie allowed him to help her back down, more out of guilt than because she felt the need to stay lying down. Still, her muscles practically sighed in relief as she settled back into the pillows. Phin pulled the sheet back to her chin, smoothing it down with more finesse than she would have given him credit for.
Then she remembered that heâd owned the fanciest hotel sheâd ever seen, and gave up worrying about it. Phin was more than capable of making himself at home.
âHow do you feel?â He sat back into the armchair Silas liked.
Jessie looked away before her cheeks turned red. Theyâd done things in that chair that might make the very proper Mr. Clarke burst into flame from mortification if he knew. âFine,â she managed, loudly clearing her throat. âJust fine. A little bruised around the soul.â
And that gnawing worry in her gut wasnât easing.
He cradled his injured arm, one hand curved over the sling. âMatilda says a witch attacked you while you were in your vision.â
âThat . . .â She thought about it. âThat makes a lot of sense. Who?â
âI donât know. Silas and Naomi have gone after him.â
She sat up so fast, hands braced on the mattress, that sparklers flared across her vision. âWhat?â
âWhoa, easy.â Phin stood again, bent over her as she swayed. âTake a deep breath.â
She tried to wave him away, but ended up hanging onto his sleeve when vertigo kicked her in the side of the head. The room tilted, and she sucked in an obedient breath.
âMatilda said you might be out of it.â Carefully, he sat next to her, supporting her with his good arm.
Between the rolling, rocking motion of the world around her, she couldnât help but smile. Even if it twisted. âHowâd you . . . get the short stick?â
âYou mean stay here?â Phin kept his voice low, soothing. The man was good. âStill injured. Naomiâs gift doesnât work very fast. Faster than it would be naturally, of course, but it still has to go through the normal physiological steps.â
Jessie had noticed that. She concentrated on breathing, eyes closed, until her stomach stopped sloshing around inside the fragile cage of her own body. Cautiously, she slit open one eye.
Her head throbbed, but nothing she couldnât live with.
Phinâs handsome features swam into focus. His dark eyes met hers, crinkled at the corners.
A little corner of Jessieâs heart melted. No wonder Naomi liked him. âThank you.
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