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grip on the handle above the door was white-knuckled, but her voice didn’t lose a bit of its arrogance as she retorted, “Of course it’s interesting. I wouldn’t be studying it otherwise.”
    “It’s not your study they’re interested in. It’s what you discovered that’s captured their attention.”
    “I haven’t discovered anything.”
    It would be nice if they all could believe that. “You haven’t announced anything, but you’ve discovered something.”
    She narrowed her eyes again, this time at him. “And that’s why you’re here.”
    No sense in prevaricating. “Yes.”
    Her start reverberated through the seat, going from her to him, connecting them as the pulse of her fear shot through the crystal clarity of their connection, souring the purity. Reaching back along the same path, he sent a wave of calm. He didn’t want her to be afraid of him.
    “Would it be easier for you to believe if I told you I was part of a supersecret government organization hired to protect you from Sanctuary spies?”
    “No.”
    Well that was short and to the point. “Then, yeah, I’m interested in the same thing they are for totally different reasons.”
    “What are their reasons?”
    “World dominion.”
    She didn’t look shocked, which confirmed his suspicion that she already knew that her discovery could be used as a weapon.
    Her brows rose. “And your reason?”
    “Personal.”
    “How personal?”
    “Very personal.”
    “You know that’s not good enough.”
    There was that flicker of energy to his left. Shit .
    Slade yanked the wheel to the right, cutting across a lawn to the alley between two small strip malls.
    There was barely room for the car. Jane screamed. Her fear poured over him in waves, calling to him. She needed him. Slade slammed the connection closed, the distraction too much. Instantly, everything inside him howled in outrage at leaving her alone with her fear, repeating the only truth his vampire cared about—she needed him.
    Images raced by. A trash can crumpled under the wheels. The lid flew over the hood. Throwing her hands over her face, Jane screamed again as the plastic hit the windshield before tumbling over the roof. Gritting his teeth, Slade swore as the urge to take her in his arms threatened to override the need to escape.
    “Get control of yourself.”
    The order came out more growl than words.
    “Me?” she squeaked, clearly outraged. “I’m not the one driving like a maniac on steroids.”
    Shit . How could she crack jokes, as terrified as she was?
    “Just do it.”
    Beyond the alley was a ditch. The physical toll on his energy was huge as he levitated the SUV over it. It slammed down on the other side, grass and dirt spraying as the wheels found purchase.
    Jane gasped but didn’t scream. Instead, she clutched that laptop as if it were a lifeline while he accelerated to a hundred and thirty miles per hour.
    In a perfectly reasonable tone, Jane pointed out, “There is no fuel that will take an internal combustion engine to that speed, that fast.”
    “Nope, you’re right about that.”
    Her frustration reached out and snapped at the edges of his nerve endings.
    “Are you just physically incapable of delivering a straight answer?”
    “My brothers seem to think so.”
    “You have brothers?”
    “You sound surprised.”
    “I am. I thought supersecret special-agent types were loners.”
    “You watch too much TV”
    “My friends say ‘not enough.’”
    The car hit a bump, bounced high. There was no stopping the flip, so he rotated into it, levitating the SUV to keep it off the ground, the strain on his energy telling in the shaking of his hands as the car righted. Too many more moves like that and they’d be helpless as newborn babes against Sanctuary.
    Jane didn’t say a word through the maneuver, but her scream echoed in his head. Though he couldn’t afford to spare the energy, Slade smoothed calm over her fear.
    I’ve got you. You’re safe.
    The shocks