Read Online Oracle's Moon by Thea Harrison - Free Book Online Page B

you did,” he said, his tone suspicious.
    She rolled her eyes in exasperation. “Are you telling me you have no truthsense?” she said. “Because if you are, I’m going to ask you to pull the other one.”
    “Pull the other what?” he said, his face going blank.
    “Pull the other leg?” He still looked mystified. She shook her head. “It’s a human saying, never mind.”
    “I can tell you are telling the truth,” he said. “I just find it hard to believe. Humans are conniving and always on the search for greater Power.”
    “Wow, that’s pretty bigoted,” she said, taken aback. He had made no secret of his dislike for her, but she’d had no idea that dislike might be part of a bigger picture. “If you think that badly of the human race, why did you promise to keep the children safe?”
    “They have not yet been corrupted,” he said with a scowl. “They are innocent.”
    Grace’s neck was beginning to ache from tilting her head so far back, but she didn’t want to look away for fear Khalil would take that as a sign of deception. She needed to remember what she was supposed to be eating here, and serve herself a big, delicious helping of humble pie. “Yes, they are, and I’m grateful for what you did when you promised to keep them safe,” she said. “Both this morning and this evening when the Vampyres came.”
    Somehow what she said made him angry again. He scowled. “There is no need to thank me. You paid with a favor, and you still owe me.”
    She frowned. “Yes, but that doesn’t mean I’m not grateful too—because I am. Maybe the Nightkind King and del Torro really didn’t intend any harm, but I couldn’t risk that. Chloe and Max are so vulnerable. They can’t defend themselves.” Bending over her chair as he was brought him too close, and his energy surrounded her. She felt like she sat in the middle of a pure argent flame. The sensation was exhilarating and uncomfortable. She broke down and put a hand to his broad, too-perfect chest and pushed lightly. “Do you mind? I could use a little space.”
    He frowned but straightened and backed away from her chair. It didn’t help much. His physical form was the smallest part of him, like the visible tip of an iceberg. At least she could sit up in her chair and ease the pressure on her neck. Still working on swallowing that piece of pie, she said gravely, “Thank you.”
    He threw her a narrow-eyed glance, and a lightbulb winked on.
    Oh-ho. He didn’t like to be thanked? She watched him carefully as she said, “I really appreciate it.”
    He threw her a glare and started to pace, and she had to suck on her cheeks to keep from letting a grin break over her face. He definitely didn’t like to be thanked. There had to be a reason for that. And she was more than a little stupid, if she could enjoy teasing such an irascible, Powerful creature. That might put her in the unforgiveable range of TSTL—Too Stupid To Live.
    The massive form he chose to wear made short work of the office floor space. She wondered if he wore the dark crimson because he enjoyed the color or if there was some other reason. It suited him, turning his tall figure into a tower of flame that matched his true, invisible presence.
    She rubbed the back of her sore neck and tried to focus.
    Khalil said, “You were right not to take chances with the little ones’ lives.”
    She took a quick breath. “Do you know something I don’t?”
    He shook his head and said, “I know nothing more than you do about the Nightkind King’s intentions, good or otherwise.” His sparkling gaze moving restlessly over the chaos he had created in the room. He waved a hand impatiently. She flinched back as all the scattered papers flew through the air to land in a haphazard pile on her desk. “But you should not take risks with the children.”
    “Of course not,” she said, looking sideways at the pile of papers. The paper on top of the pile was an upside-down electric bill. She pinched