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creepy kind of disgust mingled with real fear. She worked at blocking impressions from him. Not that she was very good at blocking. Hadn’t been aware it was possible before Lore had done it so effectively three days ago when she first arrived. Since then, she’d been working on it but could not quite cut the man’s aura out of her consciousness. He made her feel sleazy. There was no doubt his response to the sight of her had been superior revulsion, as if she were a bit of trash stuck to Lore’s shoe.
    “I’m concerned that your little friend might not be an appropriate companion. Let me suggest…”
    Lore continued walking, passing the man as he responded, “Relax. I don’t need help finding a date. Miss MacKelsey is my guest and will be fine.”
    “But, sir, there are formal matters that must be attended to in this event. I have no idea what Ms. MacKelsey’s qualifications are. Do you? Besides her obvious physical attributes?”
    Lore stopped, his body turned to subtly to place Kenna behind him as he faced the angry man. “Careful, Gregory,” Lore warned in a silky tone that could only be called frighteningly calm. “Don’t make me respond publicly on this matter. Miss MacKelsey is not someone you need concern yourself with.”
    Gregory’s face tightened at the command in those words. Or perhaps it was the warning tone that made him more a child than a man. Kenna still couldn’t block the malevolence that slithered around him.
    “Your highness, the car is waiting,” Yuri spoke into the strained silence as Lore coldly regarded the angry face of his advisor, effectively ending the confrontation before it escalated.
    “Thank you, Yuri,” Lore murmured.
    His tone flat with command, Lore continued to Gregory. “I know you have things to take care of here. We will see you after the joust.”
    Gregory nodded stiffly.
    Yuri held the door as Lore and Kenna moved through it. Thomas followed.
    The limo driver hurried to open the back door. He came to an abrupt halt, his eyes on Kenna. For a moment he froze in what appeared shock, and then he bowed deeply to the entwined couple. Lore nodded while Kenna frowned as the limo door was opened by the bowing man and Lore led her to it.
    “Aren’t you supposed to go first?” she whispered. Abstractedly she recalled that royal customs were complicated. It was hard to figure out normal concerns when touching this man.
    His impact on her was intensifying. It had to appear wildly illogical to normal people that they’d jumped into an intimate relationship, but it was almost impossible to worry about appearances when she was the focus of his attention. He addressed her using endearments, and it hadn’t been demeaning, the words were much too natural and, well, she did have the advantage of reading his intention as he said them. Defending her to the arrogant man had created an incredibly tense situation. She hadn’t been the only one who could read Lore’s intention behind each word. It had been clear to the “normals” as well.
    There was no defying him as he swept her into his world, but she didn’t want to defy him in a real sense. And even though she had no complaint about what he was doing, there was a deep suspicion that her free will was gone, lost in the whirlwind that was Lore taking care of Kenna. Everything had changed.
    “Never before my lady.” He insistently ushered her into the plush vehicle, retaining possession of her hand as he slid in beside her. Yuri and Thomas squeezed into the front seat with the driver.
    Kenna spent less than two seconds wondering why both large men jammed themselves in the front while there was a big empty backseat facing her and Lore. Then she was distracted by the driving need to find a reason for her response to the large man beside her. For three days she had been struggling with this question, but now it was so much more.
    His sexual impact was making her an idiot, but more than that, she liked him. Liked was not the