Then it hit her. They were probably on some kind of team together. Volleyball from their height and builds. She wondered why the dye jobs, but there were stranger things around. Too bad for this guy though. It looked a lot better on the other man.
He looked her over, his gaze coming to rest on her necklace.
Automatically, she raised her hand to cover it.
“I want the crystal. Bring it to me,” he said in a low, demanding voice as he held out his hand toward her. There was an odd accent on the words, and it was obvious that he expected her to obey him.
Kallie stopped. She tightened her fingers around the crystal.
“Bring it to me,” he commanded.
She shook her head and stepped back.
“You will obey me.” He pointed a finger at her then curved it back toward him. His brow creased.
Kallie’s head pounded. She fought the urge to go to him. She wanted to run the other direction, but she couldn’t seem to get her legs to move.
The muscles around his eyes and mouth tightened.
There was a ringing in her ears.
He started toward her.
Kallie opened her mouth to scream, but nothing came out.
A muscle in his cheek twitched.
She fought harder to flee, but was frozen in place as he stalked toward her.
“You would defy me?” His words lashed out. Kallie felt them like a whip of pain. She couldn’t even groan. The best she could get out was a whimper.
The hand stretched out toward her again, this time opening as if he intended to wrap it around her neck. She could picture his fingers squeezing the life out of her.
Kallie tightened her hold on the crystal. “No,” she pleaded. The words came out as a hoarse whisper but the sound got past her lips. Bolstered by it, she managed to force her foot up and back.
He took four steps before she managed the feat.
“You will never defy me again.” The man’s features, which were actually very beautiful, pulled into a tight, horrid mask of fury.
I don’t want to die.
“Lysias.” A shout came and another man, who looked almost like a mirror-image of the first, leapt through the air from the grassy knoll above the beach.
Relief washed over Kallie leaving her so weak she sank to the ground. She was saved. Kallie didn’t know why, but she knew he would protect her, just like she knew this man would have blue eyes.
He was the man from the market.
He slammed into the first man, Lysias, and they both went down. They rolled in the sand. Hands grappled for holds that would gain them the control in the struggle.
Kallie flinched as Lysias caught the blue-eyed one in the chin. He staggered but came back in, thrusting his fist into the tan-eyed man. They locked on each other. Muscles bulged.
They were so close Kallie picked up other differences. The man from the market’s bone structure was much more delineated, stronger. Even taunt in fierceness, his features were classically beautiful.
Kallie jerked at the sound of flesh hitting flesh. There was a groan. Kallie shuddered. Together the men moved, each fighting for leverage. Both had long legs and torsos but the man from the market was slightly taller and leaner, narrower in the hips. Oddly calm now, Kallie thought they both could be models of the perfect man, though some people might say they were a bit too tall.
A prickly sensation ran over Kallie’s skin like the stir of ozone in a lightning storm. She glanced up expecting to see dark thunder clouds and lightning filling the air.
A series of odd words pulled her back. The two men stood facing each other, about eight feet apart, the man from the market between her and the other man. He said something back to the other man that Kallie translated as a challenge or the meeting of a challenge. He was putting himself between her and the man more than literally. He would defend her and everyone against the man. Kallie didn’t know how she knew it, but she did.
Anger flared on Lysias’s face. He drew his hands back wide to his shoulders then brought them forward as if shoving something at the man from the market, who threw his hands up as if to ward off a blow. Sand whipped up. Pressure surged around her. A boom shook the air. Power hit Kallie knocking her back on the sand.
Kallie opened her eyes staring up at the blue sky. She could feel the sand on her back. The only sound that reached her was that of the surf. She blinked, stunned. The ringing eased in her ears, but nothing made sense. She wondered if she’d fallen and hit her head, or had she fallen asleep and dreamed the men. Now, that made sense. They were too perfect to be real.
She closed her eyes and let her mind float to him. His skin a golden tan and eyes clear blue, with just a touch of green in them. They truly were aqua. Something brushed her cheek and Kallie opened her eyes and fell into aqua depths.
“Are you all right?” The words were melodious with their odd accent.
Kallie smiled, glad the dream was not over yet.
His finger brushed her cheek. “I will not hurt you,” he said to her in way of assurance.
“I know,” she whispered.
His features softened. “Yes.” His acknowledgement rang with pleasure as he brushed her cheek once more.
“He did not hurt you?”
“Who?”
“Ptolemaios.” Harshness accented the name. “Lysias.”
She remembered the name from when he’d jumped. Suddenly, everything rushed back and the dream slipped into reality but the man didn’t change. He stayed just as handsome. She blinked several times and nothing altered, but she noticed a slight bruising on one of his cheeks.
“You’re real.” Kallie reached up and ran her finger tips along his jawline. His skin was warm and smooth. He jerked at the contact as if she had shocked him. Maybe she had, she felt as if she’d just touched a live wire. Before she could pull her hand away, he pressed his fingers over hers.
“My One.” Kallie heard the words clearly in her mind.
Chapter Three
Jerreon’s lips twitched at her statement. He understood the feeling. He’d been asking himself if she could be real since he’d first seen her. He’d been looking for his One for so long without ever finding her, it seemed impossible that he’d feel the bond of recognition now.
He’d barely reached the settlement when he saw her step out of the large vehicle with the group. She stood out being the tallest woman and with flowing light-colored hair. After the last several days spent among shorter, dark-haired people, where he stood out like the oddity he was on this foreign world, she’d been a beacon to him, almost a glimpse of home.
But it wasn’t just her looks that drew him. It had been a pull to his soul that compelled him to forget his search for the crystal shard and Lysias for a short time. He’d followed the group down the dusty street. He’d lost her for a moment when she’d entered a market area, but her essence led him back to her.
He’d spied her again in time to see her pick up something from a table. His attention so wrapped in her, he didn’t even realize what she held until he felt the burst of energy that carried her essence even deeper into him – to his heart.
She was his One, his mate, the other piece of his soul, the one to complete him. The question was how did she end up on Earth and what was he to do about it? His first responsibility was to stop Lysias.
He tore his gaze from her face to the crystal. He wanted to snatch it from her. It put her in danger. Lysias would come after it. The problem was, the crystal had chosen her – called to her. He didn’t doubt that. Could it have been because she was his mate, and he carried another portion of the crystal, or had it picked up something in her that it too bonded with?
Lysias would come after her. He would want the power the crystal possessed to boost his own power. He just hadn’t expected him so soon. He thought he’d have time to set up something to protect her, then find Lysias before he got anywhere near her. Fury burst within him. He’d been wrong, underestimated Ptolemaios again.
He looked into the eyes of the woman. They were a gentle blue, the color of the crystal that linked the energy of this world to his.
My One. The words echoed again in his mind.
Her eyes went wide as if she’d heard the words, which was impossible, but still he reached his mind out to touch hers. Warmth wrapped around him, so perfect he found himself unable to resist sliding deeper, savoring the connection that blossomed between them until he felt her mentally pull back as if she knew he was there.
Color heightened on her cheeks, bringing a beautiful glow to her.
“Are you all right?” He wanted to brush his hand over her cheeks as he had done earlier, and as she had done to him, but now she was alert, he was afraid of alarming her. He thought of probing to see if she’d been injured or if she was scared by what had happened, but decided it wouldn’t be appropriate until she truly became his One. She would have to consciously accept him.
She blinked up at him, her beautiful eyes full of wonder. “Who are you?” she whispered.
Jerreon wasn’t sure how to answer. He couldn’t just say he was her mate. He was sure that would frighten her. From his few days on Earth, he knew the people weren’t drawn to their mates like his people were, and for his people there was only one.
He also couldn’t say he was an alien. She would think him not right in the head, and she would not even consider him for a mate. And though he could not do anything about forging their union until Lysias was taken care of, he didn’t want to harm his future with her.
“A friend.” He went with, figuring it was a safe answer.
She looked slightly startled. He wondered if he had used the wrong word, but that was what his language simulator had brought up. He’d been having trouble dissecting the language because he’d been facing three different languages; his own, the one the locals spoke to him, and one they spoke to each other.
He pressed out a feeling of assurance to her, though she didn’t seem at all afraid of him. “Are you all right?” he repeated the question she hadn’t answered yet.
She nodded and started to sit up. He caught her hand to help her. Energy passed through them. His heart surged.
A small gasp escaped her.
“Are you certain you are well?” He studied her.
“Yes.” She pulled her hand free from his and reached for the crystal, her fingers locking around it. “Who was he?”
Jerreon wasn’t sure how to answer, but he couldn’t lie to her. One did not lie to their life mate, not that she was his life mate, at least not yet. He went for the simplest answer he could. “He is a criminal.”
“What is he doing here? And, why did he want my necklace?”
“He escaped and I am after him. I was sent to stop him. He wanted the crystal from your necklace.”
“It’s just a piece of quartz.” There was hesitancy in her words, as if she was already questioning her statement.
“It is a special piece of quartz. It’s naturally tuned to a …” He had to search out his mind for the wording, “frequency that is useful.”
She looked … skeptical. The word did not feel right but that was what came to him.
“And he wants it. Why?”
“He can use it to draw energy from the planet to strengthen him.”
“Draw energy from the planet? How? How can that strengthen him?” Her lip twitched slightly and he felt amusement come from her.
“His mental abilities.”
Her brow arched.
“Lysias is very strong, but he loves power. He wants to be stronger. It will be more important to him now that he knows I’m here hunting him.”
Jerreon felt the stirrings brush his mind. She was studying him, and whether she had the ability on her own, or the stone was helping her, she was reaching out to him. He wondered what she would do if he talked to her with his mind. It was a talent he had a high aptitude for, but not one he commonly used. Still, it allowed him to understand people’s intentions without even trying to read their thoughts.
Suddenly, she shook her head. A smile brightened her face, making her even more breathtaking. “You’re teasing me.” She rubbed her hands over her face, running her fingers back through her hair, brushing it away.
The action held him enthralled.
“I’ve never had anyone do something like that to meet me. I believed it was real for a moment.” She stood and brushed off the seat of her pants.
Jerreon could only stand and watch her as she totally dismissed him being serious about her.
“My name’s Kallie. I guess after all that trouble I can give you that.”
“Beautiful,” he translated automatically.
“Thank you. I’ve always liked my name, but of course my parents chose it.”
“No, I meant, in my language it means beautiful.”
“Does it really?” She looked at him as if trying to decide if she believed him.
“I will never lie to you,” he promised.
“Oh.” She caught her breath. Her hand went up to finger the crystal again. “I better … I was going… I was going to take a horse ride.” She stepped back but there was a hesitancy in her that was gratifying.
“May I walk with you?” He should leave her, but he hadn’t decided what to do about her or the crystal yet. He would always be able to find her again, when the time was right. Now that he knew her, he would be led to her.
But the crystal was a problem. He couldn’t steal it from her. It wouldn’t be right. He could ask her for it, and he thought she might actually give it to him, but the crystal had called to her. There was no getting past that any more than the call of her to him. He waited for her answer.
It was a little slow in coming, but after she looked up and down the beach, she nodded. “Sure.”
He fell in step with her, keeping space between them for her comfort, though he longed to take her hand.
“So what language is that?”
Jerreon wasn’t sure how he should answer. “I’m sure you have never heard of it. It is an old language with a root in many, but very … obscure.”
She shrugged at his answer. “So, you are not from here?”
“No.”
“You’re on vacation?” She probed.
“Vacation?” It took a second to translate. “No, I am on a duty.”
Her eyes sparkled, and he wondered why but liked it. “Are you on vacation?”
“Yes. My friend and I just came down for the day.”
“Your friend, the woman in the market?”
“Yes. We’ll meet for dinner with the group.”
Jerreon got the feeling she was telling him this for a purpose, then he understood, it was to know she wasn’t alone. He pushed out a wave of assurance and wondered if it was really that big of a problem, then decided that maybe it was. He had met many dishonest people since he’d arrived. Several had tried to rob him, even do bodily harm. He could appreciate her need for safety.
“She did not come to do this …” he tried to remember what she called it, “horse ride?”
She laughed. “No. Melissa does not like riding horses. She doesn’t really like large animals. They frighten her. She’s very much a big city girl. I was surprised she even wanted to come here, but she loves to shop, especially for bargains.”
“What about you? Do big animals not frighten you?”
“Horses, no. I grew up in a small town in Idaho. I learned to ride when I was young. Though my family moved, I still got to ride every once in a while when we went to visit my grandparents. They’re gone now, so it’s been a while since I’ve been.” Her gaze came up to meet his. “Do you like to ride?”
Jerreon looked at the animals on the beach ahead of them. “I have not ridden your horses, but I like animals. It is said I have … an affinity for them.”
They reached the group where several people stood not far from a large four-legged animal. Jerreon studied them finding them to his liking.
“Two to ride?” A man came out to
them.
Kallie looked up and Jerreon got the impression she was asking if he wanted to ride.
Before he could answer, the man said. “Twenty dollars, a piece. But I will make it two for thirty.”
Jerreon wanted to try riding, especially because he could feel Kallie’s excitement. He knew he could nudge the man into letting him ride for free but it wasn’t right. The man was trying to make a living. Still, it was hard to meet Kallie’s gaze.
“I have none of their currency. I will wait for you here.” He dipped his head to her and stepped aside, going to where a large black horse was tethered on its own.
“Careful. He is young and not well trained yet,” the man cautioned.
Jerreon looked at the horse meeting its gaze. Strength and spirit filled the animal. Jerreon reached out with his mind and welcomed the beast. The horse dipped its head and stepped up bumping his arm with its nose. Jerreon reached up to pet it. “We are fine,” he said over his shoulder.
“Ready to ride?” Kallie said behind him.
Jerreon turned back.
She smiled. “My treat.”
“Your treat? You mean you pay for me?”
She shrugged. “It’s more fun having someone to ride with.”
“I thank you.”
The man led a beautiful brown horse with a black tail and mane to Kallie. “You should enjoy her. She is a good horse.”
“May I ride him?” Jerreon motioned to the black horse.
The man hesitated. “You are a good rider?”
The horse stuck out his head and bumped his arm again.
“We will be fine,” Jerreon said confidently, reaching over to rub the horse’s nose.
The man studied him a moment then nodded. Stepping to the horse, he lowered the straps that hung down. “That is as far as the stirrups go, but it should be okay,” he said looking up. “You are very tall, but your feet will not drag,” he said with a grin, handing the reins over.
Beside him, Kallie laughed. “So, I’m not the only one that gets things like that said to them.”
“People make comments about your height?”
“When I was younger, I got the ‘hey stretch’ and the ‘how’s the air up there’. It didn’t bother me though. I liked volleyball. My height was great for that.”
My Atlantian Page 3