So Ava hadn’t really socialized much in her life until the network that aided Immortal Guardians had offered her a job. The purpose of the network was to help the powerful immortals in every way they possibly could to keep the vampire menace in check. The network also protected other gifted ones like Ava who had inexplicably been born with advanced DNA that granted them special abilities, intervening when those abilities came to light. She guessed about three-fourths of the employees were human. The rest were other gifted ones, so she had finally found a place she fit in.
She’d made friends. She’d dated. She’d even had a lover or two.
But she envied Eliana her bold, daring spirit. Eliana could befriend anyone. She overflowed with energy and was always looking for a new adventure. And she really could kick ass. She was a fearsome warrior who had no difficulty holding her own with her male immortal counterparts.
Needless to say, Ava had been thrilled when Eliana had cheerfully offered to teach her self-defense.
As Ava refocused on the road, a cloud passed overhead, dimming the sun’s brilliant rays.
In the blink of an eye, the car, the road, and her companions vanished, replaced by forest, and Ava found herself walking along a dirt path that had been carved out of the abundant foliage by animals. Or maybe dirt bikes. It might even be wide enough for one of those ATV things to navigate. But as she trudged forward, the plants that bordered it grew denser and soon began to encroach upon it.
Frowning, she paused and looked around. “Eliana?” she called. “Natalie?”
No answer came.
Where had everyone gone? How had they gotten separated?
The forest around her grew darker.
Was the sun setting? If so, they would have to hurry if they wanted to reach…
Her frown deepened. Wait. Where had they been going?
Unease rising, Ava resumed walking and picked up her pace. The dirt path narrowed further, the smooth, packed surface becoming pitted and ridged and riddled with rocks that made the going more difficult, forcing her to slow down. The last thing she wanted to do was twist her ankle.
Branches and huge fronds from plants she thought might be tropical but couldn’t identify began to reach across the path, slapping her face and arms. But Ava batted them aside and pushed onward, ignoring the sting of cuts they inflicted. The terrain grew rockier, the slope upward sharper. And soon the walk turned into a climb.
Ava’s breath shortened as she scrambled up the mountainside, gripping rocks and boulders to aid her progress. Huffing, she carefully planted her feet on two boulders while she leaned against a third. “Eliana!” she shouted.
Only echoes of her own voice replied.
“Simone! Michaela!”
More echoes.
“Eliaaanaaaaaa!” she bellowed as loudly as she could. Immortal Guardians’ senses were so sharp that they could hear someone speaking in a normal voice from five miles away. If the three immortals were nearby, they would hear her.
But none responded. Nor did the foliage begin to swish or sway the way it would if the immortal women raced toward her.
Her fear growing, Ava resumed her climb. The muscles in her arms and thighs began to ache. Walking several miles a day on a treadmill had not prepared her for scaling a damn mountain. The ground now rose so sharply that she had to grab the trunks of fledgling trees to help pull herself up.
Breath coming in harsh pants, she reached for another of the bamboo-like saplings. If she could just make it to the top of whatever this was, maybe she could get her bearings and figure out where she was.
As soon as she pulled on it, the sapling jerked out of the soil. Clods of dirt and small rocks peppered Ava as she swayed backward. One foot slipped, then the other. Shrieking, she held on to the other branch for dear life. Both feet scrambled for purchase, thwarted by the cascade of loose dirt and rocks she’d inadvertently liberated.
“Shit!” Absolute terror gripped her as she glanced down.
The slope beneath her looked even steeper now.
Kill-you-if-you-fall steeper.
Her sneaker-clad toe landed on a bare patch of rock and stayed. Whispering a quick prayer, she carefully inched her foot forward until the whole shoe was on solid rock. She slid her other foot over and had to dust some loose earth off before she found purchase. As soon as both seemed stable, she carefully shifted until most of her weight was braced on her feet and plastered herself against the boulder in front of her.
Her whole body trembled. Her breath came in gasps. “Elianaaaaaa!” she shouted again as tears threatened.
Where were they?
The foliage above her rustled.
A large hand clamped around her wrist.
Ava started so violently she nearly tumbled from her perch again. Her head shot up.
Silver eyes glinted in a handsome face surrounded by long black hair.
“Please,” she implored. “Help me.”
Something flickered in those eyes before they glanced at the branch she clutched. “Release the branch.”
She let go of the branch and latched onto his wrist with both hands.
As though she weighed little more than a child, he pulled her upward. The muscles in his arm bunched. Ava tried to gain a foothold wherever she could to aid him as more of those damn green fronds brushed her face and blocked her view of him. For a long moment, they were all she could see, but there was no way in hell she was going to let go of him with one hand long enough to brush them aside.
The rock beneath her feet sloped upward into grass and gnarled tree roots before flattening out enough for her to stand.
Ava’s savior turned away and walked ahead of her without protesting her tight grip on him. Then the foliage parted, and they stepped out onto a meadow the size of a three-car driveway.
The male turned to face her.
Ava didn’t think. She just acted. Releasing his arm, she surged forward, threw her arms around his waist, and hugged the stuffing out of him. “Thank you,” she said shakily. “Thank you so much.”
After a moment’s pause, strong arms encircled her and cradled her close. One big hand gently stroked her hair as she waited for the tremors that racked her to subside.
For a minute there, she’d thought she was going to die.
As her fear faded, she began to register a few details about the man who held her.
He was tall. His chin hovered somewhere above her head, so he must be well over six feet. The arms wrapped around her were thick with muscle. The chest to which she’d plastered the side of her face was, too.
It was also bare.
Some of her annoying shyness returned. A warm flush crept up her neck to her cheeks as she released him and backed away a step. Then another. And got her first good look at him.
Her eyes widened.
Wow. He was freaking gorgeous. And nearly naked. And…
She stared.
Not human.
His skin bore a silvery tone with a barely discernable pattern that resembled… scales?
Yes. Though they were so faint she had to squint to see them, they definitely looked like scales. But his skin felt soft. It also held a subtle sheen that formed little rainbow streaks when the setting sun stuck it in a certain way, sort of like oil on water did, even though he was dry to the touch.
Her heartbeat picked up. He was incredibly fit with thick biceps, powerful pecs, rippling abs, and muscled thighs, all of which were exposed because the only garment he wore was a pair of shorts that resembled tight swim trunks.