Untouched by Sara Humphreys Page A

tired.” She sighed. “It is getting late.”
    “I’m sorry,” Kerry stammered, embarrassed that she hadn’t introduced Dante. “You’re very perceptive. That is my bodyguard, Dante Coltari.”
    “No apologies necessary, cher .” She turned to Kerry, and before she could move, placed one delicate hand on her arm.
    Kerry froze, her breath caught in her throat as she braced herself for the onslaught. However, the mind-splitting pain she expected never came. Instead, quick sizzling shocks zapped through her hand and up her arm. The blurred image of a man running after her flashed into her mind. He chased her, calling her name. She couldn’t see him clearly, but she could feel everything.
    Blood.
    Grief.
    Hatred.
    Fear.
    She saw it all falling around her like a giant jigsaw puzzle that she couldn’t quite put together. Kerry’s eyes grew wide, and Jacqueline removed her hand as quickly it had come.
    “Not as perceptive as you, cher ,” she whispered. Jacqueline stood up from the table, and her long cape fluttered around her like wings. “I will see you all tomorrow at Breezemont.”
    She gave a quick curtsy, nodded to Dante who’d moved in right behind her, and breezed silently out the door. Jester’s yellow eyes peering over her shoulder were the last thing Kerry saw before the world went dark.

Chapter 7
     
    She’d been passed out for almost half an hour. He caught her when she’d fainted and didn’t give Arthur or anyone else a chance to get near her. He got her out of there as quickly as possible and carried her up to her suite. Arthur wanted to call a doctor, but Dante convinced him they should keep it quiet in an effort to keep it out of the press. The very idea of any kind of publicity got the guy practically giddy.
    Once Dante settled Kerry into her bed, Arthur left, claiming that he needed to do some damage control with the bar patrons. Dante assumed that meant he would be calling the press himself. At that point, Dante didn’t care. He just wanted the smug bastard to leave.
    He watched Kerry’s chest rise and fall as she slept. Whatever she’d experienced when Jacqueline touched her sent her over the edge. Her mouth was set in a frown, and her brow knitted in what he could only assume was pain. He closed his eyes and reached out to her mind, but once again met an impenetrable wall.
    He let out a sound of frustration and opened his eyes to look at his mate. “Beautiful” and “mysterious” were the two words that came to mind whenever he looked at her. He pulled the covers up gently and brushed her cheek gently with his thumb. She murmured something and sighed, but did not wake up. He needed a healer. He had to be absolutely certain she was alright.
    He closed his eyes and reached out for Steven, the only doctor—human or Amoveo—Dante could trust with Kerry’s life. After what felt like an eternity, Steven materialized in the room wearing a pair of green scrubs, looking relatively unkempt.
    “What’s up?” He let out a huge yawn and ran a hand through his shaggy hair. “I was catching a few winks after my shift at the clinic.”
    “I’m sorry to wake you, but I need you have a look at Kerry,” he said, gesturing to his mate.
    Steven’s eyebrows shot up. “Whoa. She’s even prettier up close.”
    “I didn’t ask you here to ogle her.” Dante knew he sounded like a jealous moron, and the smirk on Steven’s face only confirmed it. He cleared his throat in an effort to maintain his composure. “She fainted and hasn’t woken up since.”
    “I see,” he said moving to the side of her bed. “What happened before she fainted?” He pulled a chair over and sat down next to her.
    “She touched someone, or rather, someone touched her.” His face grew dark at the memory. Dante could swear that woman had known exactly what her touch would do. He’d scanned her mind, but it was like stumbling upon a mess of wires that were all tangled up. He sensed a lot going on but couldn’t