Talon took a deep breath and approached. He gently slipped his arm around her shoulders and held her tight. “I’m sorry, but this really is the only way,” he murmured, placing a kiss on her temple a second before he flung them both over the side of the Canyon rim.
Rocks raced past her head, blurring into a swirl of orange and beige, as they plunged toward the Canyon floor. Lynn went through shock, heartbreak, and terror all within a span of a second as she realized they were about to die. How could she have been so stupid?
The pain searing her back exploded, ripping her shirt in the process. One second she was falling, the next Lynn found herself gliding over the Colorado River, her body supported by a set of massive wings. It wasn’t possible. She blinked and looked again. Yet, the wings remained, protruding from her back.
It took her another minute to realize she was no longer looking at her back, unless she’d somehow sprouted black feathers. Was it possible she’d hit the Canyon wall and died? Or maybe she was still dying? That would explain the odd hallucination.
Lynn hadn’t lied when she’d told Talon that she’d dreamed of flying, but none of those dreams involved growing wings and gaining feathers.
She looked around for Talon, but didn’t immediately spot him. Lynn searched the Canyon floor, expecting to see his body lying amongst the rocks. The thought made her chest clench. Even though he’d pushed her off the cliff, she didn’t want to see him like that. Not Talon. He was too vibrant, too alive.
A cry sounded to her right. Lynn swung around and saw a large raptor coming straight for her. Talon! The name whispered in her mind, even though logic told her it wasn’t possible.
Yet, even in this other form, Lynn would recognize him anywhere. And she did. He was her missing bird. The bird she’d spotted in the Canyon two days ago. Had it really only been two days? It seemed like a lifetime ago. She also recognized him from the dream.
Lynn watched him soar over the Canyon rim and circle above her before dipping close. She opened her mouth to speak, but the only thing that came out was a piercing screech.
Just relax and think about flying, Talon’s sexy voice floated into her head.
You have a lot of explaining to do, buddy, she sent the thought back, hoping he received it. You owe me that much after the stunt you just pulled. Lynn had so many questions. How had this happened? Where had he come from? How long could they remain airborne? She needed answers, but knew the questions could wait until they got back onto firm ground.
For now, she’d do as Talon suggested. She flapped her wings hard, then caught the first of many thermals, allowing her to glide over the Grand Canyon for miles. Despite her fear and anger over being deceived, this was the first time in Lynn’s life that she felt light as a feather and totally free. The woman in her rejoiced, while the scientist took copious amounts of mental notes.
She watched mice scurry along the rough terrain, seeking refuge as they passed by overhead. The wind was warm against her feathers, even though she knew it should feel cool given the temp.
Talon circled her, enticing her to play. Lynn managed to hold onto her ‘mad’ for another three loops, then gave up and enjoyed herself. They soared together, dipping close, then pulling out, wings barely brushing in the process.
In human form, that touch would’ve sent heat searing through her. But in her current avian state—okay, maybe it was the same, but Lynn wasn’t about to admit as much. Despite the thrill of flying, she was still mad at him or maybe she was in shock. That would explain her odd acceptance of the situation.
Sure, explaining that he was some kind of birdman might’ve been difficult. And if she were being honest with herself, Lynn realized she might not have immediately believed him. Okay, so she wouldn’t have believed Talon at all. She’d have actually thought he was insane, if he’d come right out and said something when they’d first met. But none of that justified lying to her. He could’ve eased her into the truth had he wanted, but instead, he’d given her non-answers caged in cryptic phrases.
Lynn’s heart began to pound when she thought about the unprotected sex. Was that why she’d turned into a bird? Oh my god! She tumbled from the sky, beak over wing. Before she hit the ground, Talon grabbed her with his sharp claws and pulled up.
No, not claws…talons.
Maniacal laughter bubbled up inside her, but the only sound that came out was another loud squawk. This couldn’t be happened.
Land! The command boomed inside her head a second before Talon released her.
Lynn flapped her wings and aimed for the rim of the Canyon. She landed hard, sending up a spray of rock. Not bad for her first time, she thought in her unbiased opinion. Before she could move, Talon was on top of her, pinning her to the ground.
You are mine, he growled in her head, then held her with his beak and entered her.
It was an odd sensation, not nearly as pleasurable, but strangely enticing given the primitive nature of their sudden joining. Still, sense memory kicked in and her body responded to his savage touch. The mating in this form didn’t take long. A few wing flaps and a swish of her tail and it was over.
Talon hopped off her back. As Lynn watched, his shape shimmered and morphed. Feathers were absorbed inside his skin, along with the massive wings that had sprouted from his body. His beak compressed, leaving a sharp nose behind. The process left him panting, covered in sweat—and naked. Lynn glanced down and squawked. Talon was still sporting a massive hard on.
Heat enveloped her. This time there was no pain, only an odd stretching and pulling sensation. When it was done, Lynn found herself lying on her back, her body trembling. She wiggled her hands and felt her fingers move.
Talon’s gaze heated as it swept over her body. Despite her resolve to get answers, Lynn felt her sex growing moist as he stepped closer. His hand glided from her foot to her knee and Talon licked his lips. He hesitated, waiting, watching. Lynn wasn’t sure what he was looking for, but he must’ve fount it because he parted her rounded thighs with one finger and moved between them.
He didn’t speak. Instead, Talon lowered his head and swiped his tongue along her aching seam. He groaned on contact. “You have every right to be mad at me, but please, I need this. I need you.”
The admission came with such raw hunger that Lynn couldn’t say no. She also couldn’t say yes, so she just nodded.
* * * * *
Her taste exploded on his tongue. With one swipe, Talon savored her heat, her anger, and her passion. There was no denying that she was mad at him. She wouldn’t be his mate if she weren’t. But there was also no denying her need for him...her want. Talon felt it in every touch, every taste. Lynn may not realize it yet, but they were made for each other.
Though they’d only known each other for a couple of days, she was as familiar to him as his other form. He knew her fears, her hopes, her wishes—along with her darkest desires. And she knew his, if she only chose to look. Talon was determined to spend a lifetime fulfilling Lynn’s fantasies. But for now, he simply had to have her.
He placed his lips over her engorged flesh and slowly circled it with his tongue, before gently sucking it between his teeth. Lynn’s back arched off the ground and her body shuddered. She sank her fingers into his hair and pulled him closer, burying his nose in her satiny curls.
Her thighs trembled against his shoulders as Talon licked his way down, then plunged his tongue inside of her. She mewed, her hard nipples stabbing skyward as he plundered her depths.
He cupped her breasts, rolling her nipples between his fingers and thumbs. She gasped, then moaned, begging incoherently as she sped toward completion.
The sounds she made sent a arrow of need threw Talon, driving straight for his heart. Lynn was everything he’d ever imagined, but hadn’t dared to wish for. He’d cherish her above all others, including himself and his Wing Clan brothers.
He continued to drink from her bounty, allowing his fingers to take over, teasing her. He circled the sensitive bundle of nerv
es, until her hips began to rock and her muscles tightened. She was close. So close.
Juices spilled from her channel, running down his chin. Talon licked them away as his body grew tighter with need. His actions took on a newfound urgency. He pinched her nubbin, then began to worry it once more with his teeth. Lynn gasped. Before she could relax, Talon shoved two fingers deep inside her, then slowly pulled them back out, only to return once more.
Between the steady glide in and out and the suction he applied, it didn’t take long for Lynn to spiral over the edge. She came with a wild cry and a shuddering breath. Talon continued to ride out those ripples until the last one faded. As soon as it did, he grasped his cock and entered her in one long, hard stroke.
Their eyes met and held. An unspoken understanding passed between them, then he began to move. His hips rolled, shafting her deep, then deeper still as his cock kissed her cervix. She was so tight. So hot. And so incredibly wet. If this were his last moment in life, Talon knew he’d die a very happy warrior thanks to this amazing woman.
* * * * *
Lynn couldn’t seem to catch her breath. She wanted to look away, but Talon held her trapped within his gaze. And what she saw floating in his eyes scared her more than being tossed off the cliff. The emotions were raw, new, and beyond intense. Lynn had spent her whole life searching for a man who’d look at her that way and now that she’d found him, she wasn’t at all sure what to do with him.
It didn’t help that Talon wasn’t exactly a normal ‘man’. His hard muscles glided over her chest, scraping her nipples. Lynn bit her bottom lip to keep from crying out in sheer ecstasy. Oh sure, he felt like a man. As if to prove it, he thrust hard, driving his massive cock straight to her soul.
But real men didn’t change into large raptors and fly.
Lynn reached up and grabbed the back of his head, her fingers brushing through the dark satiny strands of hair. She pulled him down, using his ears as leverage, until their lips fused in a searing kiss. Tongues met, retreated, then met again in a tangle of desire. He tasted so good. Felt so good inside her. Like he was made for her body. And her body alone.
Talon’s steady thrusts lost their rhythm as she clasped her thighs against his hips. Lynn released his head and trailed her hands over his smooth back, then sank her nails into his sides. Every muscle in his body tightened. A second later, he grunted and she felt the warmth of his release inside of her.
No panic this time. Even the anger had subsided, leaving only peace behind and an odd contentment Lynn had never felt before. They laid there for a few more heartbeats, each trying to catch their breath. Talon recovered first. He rolled off her and stood, then held out his hand to help her up. His eyes closed and a second later a strange skin-tight material appeared on his body.
“I think I deserve to know the truth now,” she said, as awe warred with fear. Technology like that shouldn’t exist. Didn’t exist.
His lips thinned, then he nodded. “Indeed, you do, but we don’t have much time. I am being summoned back.”
* * * * *
Chapter Ten
Lynn didn’t like the sound of that. It sounded suspiciously like Talon was being forced to leave, which was impossible since she hadn’t heard a phone ring and they were out in the middle of nowhere.
“Maybe you should start from the beginning,” she said, trying to calm the panic threatening to overwhelm her.
“As you know, I am not like you,” he said, glancing at the sky. “Or at least I wasn’t when we first met.”
Lynn followed his gaze, but other than a few random white fluffy clouds, didn’t immediately spot anything. “Yeah, I kind of got that when you threw me over the cliff and shape-shifted into a bird.” She was proud of herself for sounding so calm while recalling the most terrifying moment in her life.
“I knew that if I told you the truth, you would not believe me. It was best to show you,” he said, flushing at the reminder.
She crossed her arms over her chest. “Can we have this conversation after I’ve dressed? It’s getting drafty,” she said.
Talon glanced down at his body and frowned.
“Normally, I wouldn’t mind, but I’m feeling a little over-exposed here. Your clothes seem to be specially made for…for whatever. Mine on the other hand, came from Wal-Mart. They’re not designed to disappear and reappear at will.”
His jaw clenched and he glanced up at the sky once more, then said, “I’ll be right back.”
Good to his word, Talon came back within minutes, carrying her backpack. It was stuffed full of her clothes and her journal. Lynn dressed quickly, then looked at him. “Okay, now spill,” she said.
Talon stared at the sky.
“What are you looking for?” she asked. Were there more bird people like him nearby? Female bird people? Maybe that’s what he meant when he’d said he had been summoned back. Lynn chided herself. Why in the world was she worried about that when she had way bigger problems?
Something Talon had done to her had changed her. She was no longer the person she’d been when she hiked into the Canyon. Was the change temporary? Or permanent? What if it was permanent and Talon left her? Lynn didn’t think she could deal with this alone.
“Who are you?” she asked, staring at him. No more lies. Tell me the truth.
Talon took a deep breath. “I am a Phantom Warrior.”
Lynn blinked. There was a military group of some kind that went by the same name. Was he part of some secret government experiment that had gone awry? Was the X-Files real? She’d never been a conspiracy theorist, but that made as much sense as anything else.
He shook his head. “I am not part of that brave group of soldiers.”
How did he?
“Read your thoughts,” he finished.
Lynn took a step back. “Okay, that’s just freaky. How are you doing that?”
“I’m able to speak to you in various forms because we are now linked,” he said, scrubbing a hand over the back of his neck.
Lynn watched the nervous action. Talon was telling her the truth, but not all the truth. “What do you mean by linked? Is that why I was able to shift into a bird?”
He exhaled. “It’s hard to explain, but yes, that is one of the reasons.”
One of the reasons? Meaning there were more? “Who do you keep looking for?” she asked. There was no doubt in Lynn’s mind that Talon was searching for someone in the sky. It had better not be his wife, she thought, running through all the ways she’d pluck his feathers off if that were the case.
He grinned. “You are jealous,” he said, sounding more than pleased by the realization.
“I am not!” she lied. “I just don’t want anymore surprises.” That was the truth.
A soft humming noise reached her ears. “What is that sound?” she asked, looking around.
Talon stepped forward and grasped her hands. “I know this is going to be a lot to accept in such short notice, but I am a Phantom Warrior. That is the truth. I am not part of any government experiment. I am not part of any government on this planet.”
“Meaning you are part of a government somewhere else?”
“Yes, I’m a soldier of sorts,” he acknowledged. “I come from a place called Zaron. The noise you’re hearing is my ship’s approach.”
Lynn’s mouth fell open. She knew Talon was speaking English, but the words coming out just didn’t make any sense. This had to be some kind of cosmic joke. Things like this didn’t happen to people like her. “Are you telling me that you’re an…an…alien?” The theme to the X-Files grew louder in her head.
He nodded. “Not a term I prefer, but yes.”
This was too much. What could she say to that? How did he expect her to respond? “How did you turn me into a bird? Did you use some kind of mind control? You didn’t probe me, did you?”
Talon’s brow rose. “I did not use mind control to mate with you,” he said with more than a smidgen of agitation. “As for probing, as I recall, you welcomed my ve
rsion of a probe—and you will again once we get aboard the ship.”
Lynn’s hands moved to her hips. “Do I have a choice in the matter? Because frankly that sounded more like a command than a request.”
* * * * *
Talon bit back the word ‘no’. It took every fiber of his being, all the skill he’d acquired as a warrior over the years to do so, but he managed with only a slight tremor, giving away his true emotions.
He didn’t want to force Lynn to come with him. He wanted her to choose him. Just like he’d chosen her. Yes, he’d had to do it in an unorthodox way, but he’d had no other options. Three days on Earth wasn’t exactly a lot of time to find a woman, test her, and if all went well, mate with her. His journey might have started out clinical, but the rules had gone out the escape hatch the second he met Lynn.
All Talon had wanted to do from that moment on was hold her and tell her the truth. He’d hated lying. It mattered not that they were lies by omission. He wished he could say that given the chance he’d change the course he’d taken, but Talon knew that wasn’t the case. He’d do it all again and more, if it meant there was a chance he could have Lynn Regis as his mate.
The sensors in his flight suit indicated the ship’s steady approach. It was still cloaked, but would be over them in a matter of minutes. He brought her hands to his lips and pressed a soft kiss onto the back of her knuckles.
“I know I am not who you would’ve picked to be in your life given the choice. I understand that I’m asking more of you than you may be able to give. But know that if you choose to come with me to Zaron, I will do everything in my power to become the man you want. The man you desire,” he said, then slowly dropped her hands and stepped back. “I will make you happy. Promise...”
* * * * *
Lynn’s heart was beating so loud, she’d almost missed his last words. Joy blossomed in her chest, along with hope. Talon might have lied to her in the beginning, but he wasn’t lying now. “What about my condors?” she asked.
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