Warrior Betrayed: The Sons of the Zodiac 3 by Addison Fox Read Free Book Online Page B

collected heiress sat opposite him on the couch.
    Before he could second-guess the impulse, Quinn reached out and took a thick lock of hair in his hands. The rich red strands were as soft as cashmere as he wrapped one errant curl around his fingertip.
    Catching himself, Quinn dropped his hand, the moment scattering away like the last few seconds of daylight. Forcing his thoughts back to the conversation, he pressed his point.
    “And you don’t see any connection between your mother’s recent return to your life and the attacks on you?”
    “She might have abandoned me, but she’s hardly a danger.”
    “How can you be so sure?”
    Montana leaped from the couch and crossed the room to a small writing desk he hadn’t seen when they’d first walked in. She reached for a folder on the desk, then recrossed the room and thrust it at him. “Take a look at those pictures and tell me what you see.”
    Quinn flipped the folder open, his attention immediately riveted.
    The woman in the pictures was the bag lady from outside Montana’s apartment earlier that evening. “This is your mother?”
    “Yes. That frail, sickly, likely crazy woman is my mother. Do you really think this woman could plot to kill me? That anyone would take her seriously if she even tried?”
    Several thoughts hit him in rapid succession. Montana’s mother really did know who he was.
    And who Themis was.
    And that her daughter needed protecting.

Chapter Four
     
    Montana toed off her strappy shoes and slipped out of the evening gown. She gave the long wave of silver a sad glance, knowing she wouldn’t wear it again. Even if it weren’t covered in street dirt, tears and bad memories, she couldn’t wear it again. It just wouldn’t do. One of the world’s wealthiest women never wore a dress twice.
    No matter how much she liked it.
    She dragged on a T-shirt and sleep shorts and moved in front of the mirror on her dresser to grab a clip for her hair. As she reached to twist the thick mass into a knot at the back of her head, an image of Quinn flashed across her mind and the breath caught in her throat.
    That moment on the couch.
    That delicious, wonderful moment when he’d reached out and taken the lock of hair that rested against her cheek. A light shiver ran down her spine as she relived those precious few seconds. The way her pulse had sped up as a dark curl of warmth had unfurled in her stomach.
    It was only a brief moment. Not even a full minute.
    But damn, it had been one of the most sensual experiences of her life.
    On a soft sigh, Montana reached for a lock of hair and pulled it from the quick knot she’d twisted up, allowing it to rest against her cheek. With a small, feminine smile at herself in the mirror, she turned and padded down the hall to her office.
    Time to get some work done . She didn’t sleep well under the best of circumstances, but tonight’s events ensured she’d see the sun rise.
    As the memory of the two attacks swamped her senses, replacing that small intimacy with Quinn, a harsh, metallic taste flooded her taste buds, her insides roiling and turning like she’d just gotten off a roller coaster.
    There was a nameless evil that waited out in the shadows to strike at her.
    A faceless enemy who had targeted her and she had no idea why.
    Desperate to stop the surge of panic, Montana inhaled a deep breath and imagined Quinn Tanner’s arms wrapped around her. The image had an oddly calming effect.
    Safe.
    She felt safe when she thought of him.
    And didn’t that just beat all?
    Not only was he insanely hot, but he had given her something in a few hours no one had managed to do in her life.
    Ever.
    He’d comforted her.
    Even if his high-handed tactics made the CEO inside sit up and want to put him in his place, even she couldn’t argue the man had some serious mojo when it came to the art of protection.
    The fact he sported an acre of well-defined chest—a detail clearly evident without even seeing said chest—had nothing