Kiss Of Twilight by Loribelle Hunt

hall. She just wanted to get upstairs to her room and make friends with her bathtub. A hot soak would go a long way to easing the soreness. But as if thinking his name had conjured him, Dupree called her from somewhere in the house. Her heart seemed to skip a beat. He'd come back. She heard jogging steps coming down the stairs just as she, Winter and Marcus entered the large foyer. Dupree skidded to a halt at the bottom of the steps, stared at her until they started moving again, and finally seemed to realize everything was not right in her world. What a surprise, she thought sarcastically.
    "What happened?" he snapped as he reached for her. Unfortunately, with one lame leg the transfer from Winter to Dupree was hard to pull off and a weird sort of tug of war ensued. She didn't have to be a hybrid or nightwalker to feel the tension building in the room.
    "Give her to me, Winter," Dupree ground out between clenched teeth.
    Winter held onto her tighter, leveling a chilly gaze on Dupree. "Maybe when you calm down."
    Kara could see that just pissed him off more. His eyes flashed red and he developed a tic in his jaw. "Calm down? I left her here to keep her safe. I left her here so she wouldn't get hurt."
    The man made her teeth ache, but Kara couldn't help the need she felt to ease his worry. She managed to balance on one leg, shrug Winter off and reach over to steady herself using Dupree's shoulder. Then she did a weird hopping move--this was going to be such a pain in the ass--so she faced him and blocked him from Winter and Marcus. He remained still, glaring over her head till she grabbed his chin and forced him to look down at her.
    "I'm fine. We were just sparring. The leg will be good as new in a couple of days." He didn't respond, didn't budge, and that awful tension still built. She was pretty sure it wasn't coming from Winter either. Somehow, for some reason, this was between Dupree and Marcus. Why was she surprised? Two dominant men in a pissing contest? Who'd have thunk it?
    "Dupree," she whispered, pressing her body close to his. She froze when her pelvis met his. He might still be saying no, but his body was saying hell yeah. The contact broke the weird spell that had come over the foyer. He swung her up into his arms and stepped onto the bottom rung of the stairs.
    "We'll discuss this later," he said, turning to look over his shoulder at both Winter and Marcus. Winter put a restraining hand on Marcus's arm, who'd lurched forward after them, and Kara sighed. Well, shit. Dupree finally showed up and things were looking worse, not better.
    She kept quiet as he moved up the stairs. On the landing, she finally spoke, "I'm on the third floor."
    "I know where your room is."
    His tone didn't invite conversation, but she couldn't help the tendril of excitement that curled through her. He knew where she slept. He knew what room in this mansion she called home. That had to mean something. Or absolutely nothing. She knew she could pull a hybrid name out of a hat or thin air and he could tell her everything about the person, right down to who they were sleeping with and what their favorite color was. A surprising talent in a man who strove so hard to stay emotionless. To stand apart.
    On her floor she didn't have to direct him to the last room on the right. He went right in, locking it behind him, and straight through to the bathroom. She'd picked this room for the big soaking tub, and he set her on her feet then moved to turn the water on. When he had the tub plugged and the temperature the way he wanted it, he turned to her with a severe look.
    "Okay, let's see it."
    "Excuse me?"
    He heaved a put upon sigh, reverting to the patient indulgence he'd use on a child, and she felt her temper rising. "The injury, Kara. Let me see it."
    She backed up a step. It might have been more of an undignified hop, but who the hell cared? "It's fine. It's just one of those deep muscle bruises. It doesn't hurt bad enough to have torn something or