AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“I don’t know if that’s such a good idea… See, I prefer him more.” I take another step back. “Maybe I’ll introduce you to him later.”
The hunter advances, each measured step carrying him closer to me. “Does he make you squirm in anticipation?”
“He keeps me completely satisfied, leaves me exhausted in his wake.”
“Does he know that you’re taken?”
I stare deep into Connak’s chocolate brown eyes, tracing the rips and tears of his irises. A smirk slowly creeps across my lips as I inch closer to him, wrapping my hand in his cream-colored shirt.
“That may have slipped my mind.”
“Do I need to remind you?” he purrs, causing goosebumps to trail up my arms.
“Maybe you should remind me,” I whisper, releasing my hold on his linen shirt.
Connak stretches for me, but I twist out of arm’s reach, grinning as I dance away. I tsk as he narrows his sight on me. His advancement has all the grace of a cat stalking a mouse, though he won’t corner me so easily. Not while we’re out in the open.
He needs a successful hunt, and I’m more than willing to give it to him.
I bolt.
“Ada,” Connak snarls behind me.
But I don’t stop. I run so fast I feel as if I’m flying through the trees, ducking and dodging low-hanging branches. Leaf litter covers the ground, though only sparse sections crunch under my feet. The sudden noise I’m making causes me to cringe.
Connak never makes a sound when he wanders through the forest. I need to be just as quiet and even more cautious.
I’m on high alert, opening my senses to pick up on any anomaly within the woods. The pounding of my heart becomes so loud in my ears that I worry I won’t hear Connak sneak up on me… Or anything else that may be waiting in the forest.
I attempt to stretch my senses further away from my being, searching for any hint of my hunter. The top of my spine prickles with awareness, the hairs on the back of my neck standing on end as sensations overwhelm me.
A fine fog spreads through the forest, twisting and warping until it feels as if I’m surrounded by many men. I can taste their sweat in the air mixing with dirt and decaying leaves.
They move as I do, their eerie unison playing tricks on my mind until even the trees’ shadows take on a life of their own. I stop behind a wide trunk, digging my fingertips into its bark as I gather my bearings.
The ocean calls from my left, telling me I’m still close to the shore. But I can’t sense Connak anywhere. I take a deep breath, smelling only the exotic flora perfuming the air. It’s not like I can point my hunter out by scent alone when his natural aroma surrounds me.
He’s much better with his elemental control than he lets on.
Though he’s overwhelming my senses, using his ability to herd me in the direction he wants, there’s one part of his power that mystifies me… The silence.
I hear nothing.
Not a footstep. A twig snapping. Leaves rustling.
There is nothing. And that makes me wonder whether he’s in front of me or behind me. Is he being so quiet because he knows what I’m doing or because he’s actually hunting me?
The quiet also comes with an unsteady feeling. The forest always grows silent when a beast is near, and I haven’t been paying enough attention to recall hearing any animals or even bugs in the background.
No. I hear nothing.
His element, this fog he has created, is blocking everything around me.
Despite that knowledge, I’m keenly aware that staying in the woods without him near me is probably not the best idea.
I shove away from the wide trunk and rush toward the ocean, the cresting waves singing my name until I can faintly see them through the treeline.
White sand merges with damp dirt, the combined texture removing the much-needed traction from beneath my feet. And as I slow, something snags my waist.
