Interra (Awakened Series Book 5)

by Harley Austin

  Serena sighed, rolled her eyes, and left the bench in search of other interesting people to watch.

  “What’s she doing now?” the balding overweight man dressed in shorts and a loud tourist button down listened over the tiny earpiece that no one noticed he was wearing. The tall and very shapely brunette walked right past him, close enough for him to smell her perfume, his eyes fixed on her well-curved ass filling out her pink khaki-looking short-shorts. He frowned, almost biting his lip.

  “She’s heading toward the front of the park.” He appeared to say to himself in a normal voice.

  “Is she leaving?”

  “How the hell should I know? She looks bored.”

  “Keep following her. We don’t want to lose her.”

  “Yea, like that’s gonna happen.” He grumbled, stuffing a magazine under his arm while professionally keeping his distance and a close eye on the ass of the well-curved co-ed.

  * * * * *

  This was now the third show Serena had passed on watching with her friends. Was she just not into the park today? It was such a beautiful day. Why sit under on awning on a hard bleacher when one could be taking in the sun and warm outdoor air?

  Lunch with her friends felt typical and uninteresting. Clearly, Serena was distracted today. The image of that guy leaning against the tree earlier in the day returned to her thoughts, again. Wow, who looks like that?

  “Earth to Serena …”

  “Huh?” Hearing her name popped her mind out of the daydream she had been immersed in.

  “Girl, what is up with you today?” Marci prodded.

  “I know exactly what’s up,” Celeste quipped in her full ‘New Yorican’ accent and giving Serena ‘the look’. “It’s written all over your face.”

  The rest of the girls at the table turned their attention to Celeste, including Serena. It would be nice if someone knew why she was being so absent minded today.

  “You’re scoping out some guy. I’ve seen that look before.”

  “Really?” Marci chimed in, now looking at Serena, “What’s he look like?”

  “What?” Serena defended. “I’m not—”

  “Are.” Celeste countered.

  “Please, I’m just …” Serena, paused.

  “Just what?” now even the usually quiet Jasmine got into the conversation.

  Did Celeste have a point? Serena’s thoughts had been wandering all over the memory of that guy standing by the tree. There was something familiar about him. She couldn’t quite put her finger on it. Then she smiled. “Alright. Maybe I am. I did see a guy earlier this morning. But …” she shook her head.

  “Uh-huh,” Celeste continued to prod with her typical hint of sarcasm.

  “But what—?” Marci’s curiosity shifted into overdrive. “C’mon, Serena, we see guys all the time. But this one’s put you into la-la land. Was he cute?”

  Serena nodded. “And built.”

  “Gym rat.” Kelly thumped her opinion into the conversation like she was the be-all-end-all authority on men. The truth was Kelly seldom even dated. “We’ve all been there, done that,” she finished.

  Serena managed an agreeable smile.

  “So where did you see him? What was he doing?” Celeste ignored Kelly’s non-contribution to the conversation. Men were always of interest to Celeste.

  “Oh, same as me; just watching people.”

  “Did he see you?” Marci asked.

  “I don’t think so. He got mobbed by a tourist group wanting a photo op.”

  “Mobbed, huh? Must have been really nice looking for that to happen.” Celeste munched a French fry.

  “Okay, let’s talk scales here, Serena,” Jasmine said. “One to ten …”

  “Oh, I don’t know.” Serena protested, “I just saw him briefly from across the courtyard.”

  Jasmine broadcast a perturbed look. “Serena, one to ten,” she repeated.

  Serena thought for a moment reviewing the memory of the mystery guy. She wanted to just say ten, but that might make her look immature and just over the-top. Celeste gave tens all the time and it really diluted the whole man-scale thing. Still, she couldn’t get the guy out of her mind.

  “Probably a nine.”

  Jasmine’s eyebrow lifted. Marci’s mouth fell open. Celeste choked on her straw while Kelly guffawed. Serena stared at the surprise of everyone at the table.

  “What?”

  “Nine!?” Celeste was the first to actually get words out. “Girl, you barely ever get above six! Nine!?”

  Serena nodded, “Yea. Nine.” She repeated.

  “Man, I have got to see this guy.” Marci’s drink straw was still in her mouth.

  “Get over it, he’s probably already gone. You’ll never find him in these crowds,” Kelly dulled.

  “Miss Killjoy strikes again,” Celeste frowned at her friend.

  “No, Kelly’s probably right,” Serena sighed out loud. “This park is huge. I probably won’t see him again.”

  There was a lot of truth to what Serena and Kelly had said. They had played this game before. Outside of literally stalking someone, the chances of finding the same cute guy again after losing him in the park were slim to none.

  Still, Serena’s “nine” guy completely energized their lunch conversation with new intrigue.

  “Did you lose her?” Rion heard in his mind over the continuum.

  “Sev, really? Do you know who you’re talking to?” he thought back to Sevrin. Sevrin felt his annoyance.

  “Yes. I do know who I’m talking to. I just wanted to make sure.”

  “Thanks for the vote of confidence.” Rion frowned. “I can feel her, easily. She’s having lunch with her friends in the next building.”

  “What does she feel like?”

  “She’s—bright. Like the others.”

  “Like the others? You hesitated for a moment.”

  “So?”

  “Why did you hesitate?”

  “Why does this feel like an interrogation?”

  “Is she cute?”

  “I can’t feel cute.”

  “That’s not what Elle says.”

  Rion rolled his eyes. Sevrin was way too intrigued by the whole empathy thing of the newbloods.

  “Kind of.”

  “Kind of what?”

  “Okay. Yes. She’s cute.” Rion huffed. Although he couldn’t physically see her where she was with her friends in the restaurant they’d ended up within, his feelings were all over within her. The fact was, the woman wasn’t just cute, she was beautiful; like no one Rion had ever seen or felt before in his life. Francesca was beautiful, but she felt nothing like this to him.

  “Holy shit!” the overweight agent dressed in loud colors heard in his headset, sitting by himself, five tables away from the girls.

  “We’re not supposed to be using that kind of language over the wireless,” he droned quietly, as if speaking into nothing, while surfing his phone.

  “Oh, yea? Well, facial recognition just told us you’re not alone, hot shot.”

  “Let me guess—you spotted Seven agents. How’d they get here so fast?”

  “Worse.”

  “What could be worse than those U.N. bozos? Wait—don’t tell me you picked up some Dominion goons?”

  “Guess again—”

  “Oh shit. Not one of the gods—”

  “Oh, you’re quick, Socrates. Not one of the gods, the god. Rion Steele, nimrod.”

  “Oh, fuck. Seriously?” the tourist-looking agent got up from his table, his meal only half finished.

  “Looks like he’s tailing her too.”

  “We won’t be able to pick her up then. Dammit.” The agent fumed to himself, leaving the restaurant.

  “What’s the matter, Twinkle Toes, don’t want to go head to head with Zeus?”

  “Yea. Right. What’s Frank want us to do then?”

  “Lay low. Just keep tailing her. We don’t want to set off their danger senses.”

  “Got it. I’ll be
keeping my distance. Trust me.”

  * * * * *

  The afternoon was growing late. As expected, neither Serena nor her friends ever saw her mystery guy the rest of the day. Feeling disappointed, Serena ducked into a small shop to pick up a couple of little souvenirs for her younger brother and sister. With the holidays just weeks away, perhaps they would enjoy something a bit different.

  Serena found some inexpensive trinkets, some small stuffed toys, and a couple of t-shirts. She looked around the small shop for the checkout counter when she had a sudden rush of feeling, like the air had just begun to feel different; more charged somehow. Glancing discretely behind her, she suddenly saw her mystery guy again! Serena did a double-take just to be sure. It was him! He was walking on the path just outside one of the exits of the store.

  Indecision tore at her. Something inside her really wanted to strike up a conversation with him, somehow, but what would she say? As a Southern girl, she wasn’t the type to just approach random strangers.

  Still deep in indecision, Serena set down the souvenirs and walked out the other side of the shop, her thoughts swirling like a nervous tempest for some kind of introduction. What would she say? Turning the corner she literally ran right into him.

  “Oh! Oh—I’m so—sorry,” she apologized, nearly tripping while backing away, but his hands were already gently on her arms, steadying her. She hadn’t planned this, but—

  “No, no, my fault. I’m sorry,” he offered taking a step back himself, and then he paused. “You ah—“ Rion suddenly fumbled what he was about to say as he now stood face to face with her. Gods she was beautiful! He had been following her at a distance all day, but being this close to her, the soft angles of her face, how she made him suddenly feel when they touched. Her attraction was suddenly overwhelming. He tried to recover quickly. “—you. Ah, wow. Are you okay?”

  Serena nodded. “Sure. Yea. Thanks.” She smiled, oddly disappointed about his hands leaving the sides of her arms.

  Both seemed to just look at each other for several moments, the odd feeling of intense attraction palpable within each of them. Rion had intended to just follow her at a closer distance; agents were lurking all over inside the park now. But now that they’d seen each other, felt each other, he instinctively decided to take a very different tack than just passive observation.

  “You’re that girl—the one I saw sitting on the bench this morning. What a surprise.”

  Serena’s mystery guy had the strangest accent, cultured, well spoken, she had never heard it before.

  “You noticed me?” Serena’s heart skipped a beat, excitement sweeping through her.

  “You’re kidding, right? Who wouldn’t notice you?” He offered her a beautiful pearly-white handsome smile with amazing dimples.

  Serena was smitten by the simple compliment. The fact was, she was smitten by everything about the super-fit guy. Everything about him just seemed so—exceptional.

  “You’re, ah, not exactly unnoticeable either,” she quickly returned, her eyes unable to keep from doing a quick dance up and down his sculpted body.

  He smiled and she blushed slightly. I did not just say that! she mentally kicked herself.

  “I think I took a dozen photos of those tourist girls and when I was done you’d already left. Very disappointing.” His dimples flashed. “My name is Rion, by the way.”

  “Rion—” she repeated. And then blinked. A wave of déjà vu numbed her mind for a moment. She stumbled in her thoughts as the memory of the vivid dreams bolted through her. “Rion.” She repeated again more softly. “Oh. Ah—I’m—Serena.”

  Rion could feel her sudden odd sense of emotion.

  “Are you okay?”

  “Ah, yea. Fine. Just—I can’t believe—” She paused looking at him in his fine Ray Bans. It was him. The same guy from her dreams. “You, have a nice name, Rion.” Her thoughts continued to race. What is up with this? He’s real?! I am not psychic! She continued to stumble in her thoughts while looking at him.

  “You have a beautiful name as well, Serena.” There wasn’t anything that wasn’t beautiful about this girl. Dammit, these Invicti were killer! Rion suddenly knew exactly what Elle had been talking about now. He also realized he was still standing in her way. “I’m sorry, I don’t mean to be keeping you from anything.” He stepped to one side.

  “Hmm, no, no, not at all. In fact, I was hoping I’d run into you again, just, not literally.” The honesty mixed with some of her mirth felt good. Why not tell him she had been hoping to run into him? Besides, she had gotten got him to smile those dimples at her again.

  Although Rion had been following her, he hadn’t actually planned on meeting her. She felt like Invicti. Because of that, he had been deliberately trying to keep his distance. Distracted in his thoughts over the continuum with Sevrin, the unexpected had now happened. Rion found himself face-to-face with the blossoming newblood.

  Not only was she beautiful, she was also witty. Still, Invicti or not, Rion had his rules about meeting and getting to know people, especially women. But everything about Serena had really caught his attention. Maybe it was fate, maybe it was just dumb luck that he had run into her like he had.

  Rion shattered a cardinal rule.

  “I don’t suppose you would you be interested in a walk around the lake?” he invited.

  Serena’s heart fluttered from the unexpected invitation. “Ah, sure, why not?” Serena’s voice was warm, a slight Texan accent charming its way into Rion’s ears.

  The tall Rion seemed only a touch shorter than her six-foot-four brother. Rion looked even more incredible up close where she could see every muscled curve and ripple of him. Well, almost every curve … she entertained the saucy thought briefly looking over his well-filled-out running shorts again.

  His skin was slightly tanned, and his limbs were hair-free. He moved effortlessly with an odd poise that was smooth; it was like he knew how to move, not just walk.

  “So what brings Rion to Sea World?” she asked him brightly as they began walking toward the lake boardwalk.

  “Call it an ‘imposed’ vacation. My family tells me I work too much, so they make me take a few days off now and then. What about you?”

  “I come here a lot with my friends, or sometimes just by myself to watch people and get away from classes.”

  “So you’re in college. Very cool. What are you taking, if you don’t mind me asking?”

  “Music, architecture, and geology. I graduate in May.”

  “A musical architect?” he mused.

  “I know, right? Actually, I love stone; the solidity, the gorgeous colors and natural patterns. I want to build things with it so people can appreciate how beautiful it is. Music is more like icing on the cake.”

  “Nice. So, what do you play?”

  “Piano, keyboards, the horn,” she offered. “What about you; what do you do, besides lift weights?” She teasingly took hold of his thick bicep with both hands as they walked along, lifting one eyebrow and grinning.

  Rion smirked, as susceptible as the next guy to the compliments of a pretty girl. “I don’t lift that much anymore. I work in IT, security mostly, basically helping companies keep bad people out of their networks.”

  “You’re a geek?” she smiled. None of the geeks she knew came as well packaged as Rion.

  “Yes, Serena, I’m a geek,” he admitted. Rion chuckled at the thought; he wasn’t sure if anyone had ever actually called him that before.

  “Don’t tell me you play video games, please.”

  “No, I don’t play video games,” he assured. “I also don’t watch TV, I usually don’t watch sports, I pay my bills, I don’t drink or do drugs, I’m vegan, and single. Any other questions?” His dimples were incredibly disarming.

  “Yes,” Serena began with a wry smile, not skipping a beat within the conversation, “how do you stay single?”

  He grinned. “I was about to ask you the same question.”

  Even though Serena had
caught Rion’s gifted attention with her aura, Rion was pretty sure that even without his empathic senses, she had have easily grabbed his attention. The length of her thick dark brown hair flowed beautifully around her shoulders and down her back. Serena’s long legs and perfect curves were accentuated by snug pink khaki shorts and a fitted polo top. The girl knew how to tastefully dress her amazing curves.

  “What makes you think I’m single?” Serena flirted, still smiling.

  “Well, I’m just guessing,” Rion admitted, “but you’re not wearing a ring.”

  “No, I’m not,” she offered in her finest Texas charm. Serena noticed the wide gold inlaid band around his finger. “Your ring looks nice though.”

  Rion lifted his right hand, “Thanks. It’s kind of an old family heirloom.”

  “So do you have family here in San Antonio?” Serena probed, wanting to keep the conversation going as she walked beside him, a little too closely, making sure she touched him as they walked. Rion picked up on the affection. He returned her play, brushing his arm against hers now and then as they walked.

  “No, the company just keeps an apartment here that I work from off and on. My family is sort of spread out all over these days.”

  “I know that feeling.”

  “We’ve ID’ed the girl.”

  “And?” the portly agent in tourist disguise said to no one obvious as he got a dirty look from a middle-aged woman passing by with several lively kids in tow.

  “Serena Erickson. She’s a student at Trinity.”

  “Beautiful.” He watched the two of them walking from across the lake, adjusting a small set of binoculars as he zoomed in on Serena’s shapely ass. “How come we didn’t have women like this at Baylor?”

  “We did. But they only came out at night when the moon was full. What are they doing?”

  “Talking. His back is to me, I can’t see his lips, but she’s telling him about her classes, music classes. It’s nothing. Chit-chat.”

  “Frank wants us to pull back now. We know who she is. Get out of there. We’ll have to bag her later.”

  “I thought you wanted me to bring her in?”

  “Too risky with Steele hanging around, dip-weed. Besides, we’re pretty sure we’re not the only one’s watching her. Get the hell out of there if you know what’s good for you.”