“Thanks.” She smiled up at Sebastian, but something darker lingered in her eyes. “To the office, then?”

He grunted a response, his mind already calculating what Evangeline might have done.

She walked with him. “Everything go all right with Julian?”

“Very well. We came to an agreement on the budget. There’s a lot of heavy lifting yet to do, but that’s on him.”

“Are you worried he won’t get it done?”

Sebastian unlocked the door. “No. When it comes to his pet projects he makes them happen. Despite my distaste for my brother’s Casanova ways, I must admit that when he sets his mind to something, he accomplishes it. Unfortunately, I believe that’s his approach to women as well.”

“He probably hasn’t met the right one yet.”

Sebastian pushed the office door open for her. “How would he know? He doesn’t keep any of them long enough to find out.”

“That could be a problem.”

He went in behind her, then shut the door and locked it so they wouldn’t be interrupted. “What didn’t you tell me in the kitchen?”

She turned, and took one of the chairs across from his desk. “I’m not sure where to start.”

“The beginning is always the best place.”

She laughed softly. “I suppose it is.” Then she sighed and her smile disappeared.

Instead of going behind his desk, he sat next to her. “Did Evangeline do something to you? Threaten you? Because I will not stand for that.”

Tessa waved her hand. “No, nothing like that. But she did get me thinking about something. It might not be a bit of a personal matter.”

“What? You can ask me anything.”

She folded one hand over the other, her fingers tracing the scar on her knuckles with the sort of absentmindedness that told him that scar had been there a long time. “How is it that you can go out into the sun and not be harmed?”

The question took him back. That wasn’t what he’d thought she was going to ask at all. Something about his past with Evangeline, yes, but not this. “I…just can.”

Her mouth bunched up on one side. “That’s not the truth.”

He sighed. He’d thought about telling her if she asked, but meeting with Julian had reminded him that the secret wasn’t his alone. “It’s not something I’m supposed to share with you. Or anyone.”

She nodded slowly. “I see. And that’s fine. You don’t owe me.”

He made a noise deep in his throat. “Except that I do. Can I ask why you’re so curious?”

“Well…” She glanced at the windows. It was one of those bright winter days with not a cloud in the sky. “I realized today how dangerous it can be for your kind. Evangeline accidentally put her hand into the sun today and it was awful. Smoke and blisters on her skin. I swear she would have burst into flames if it had touched her a second longer.”

“She would have.”

Tessa shook her head and grimaced. “She was worried about you being out there, but seeing that made me worry for you. And I’ll probably keep worrying every time you go out during daylight.”

“The only thing Evangeline worries about is me not being around to pay her bills.”

“That’s what I assumed as well. I can tell you she read true during our conversation.”

He studied her. Concern bracketed her eyes. It was very sweet and a little touching. “You don’t need to worry about me. I promise. That’s all I can say.”

She nodded and looked away, her expression less than convinced. “I understand you not telling me. I know I’m not anything to you, except a soon-to-be-employee, but I like to think we’ve at least become friends. I don’t have a lot of those and I can’t help but care about you.”

“I care about you too.” More and more every day. “I’d like to think we’re more than just employee and employer. After this, how can we not be?” Indecision warred within him. He wanted to tell her, to stop her from worrying, but his family’s secret was a secret for a reason. The amulets that protected them could very easily be used against them. Not that Tessa would ever use them against him. She just wasn’t the type. “All I can tell you is that I’m not in any danger.”

Her mouth pulled taut into an unhappy line. “You say that, and you read true, but I hope whatever reassurance you have that you’re safe wasn’t given to you by someone who wasn’t as truthful.”

“It wasn’t.” He hesitated. “I will give you this much. I have the help of some magic. Old and very trustworthy magic. Does that make you feel better?”

She shrugged with no real commitment. “I guess.”

“You don’t put much stock in magic?”

“I’m a valkyrie. I have magic of my own so that’s not the issue. I just know that magic can be counterfeited. It can also seem powerful for a short time then fade away. Have you been using this magic awhile?”

“Yes. We all have.” Well, that was more than he’d meant to say. “Bugger.”

She stared at him, slightly amused. “I wasn’t trying to get your secret out of you, I’m sorry. Just a reassurance that you’re not taking unnecessary risks.”

“Don’t worry about it. I trust you. And you don’t know the half of it, so—”

She squinted at him. “It’s that amulet you wear around your neck, isn’t it?”