Ravyn's Flight (19 page)

He still couldn’t believe she’d tossed him to the floor. His lips curled. He liked fire in a woman, and despite the red in her hair, he hadn’t seen any signs of it till then. Yet there was something about her that reached him on a more than physical level, a sense of familiarity that had left him eager to spend the day with her, even if it was under the guise of training.

Alex shook his head at his own thoughts. He was imagining things. He needed to get back on track. And why bother taking the time and energy to pursue her? When he got back to Earth there would be plenty of other women vying for his attention.

He started to edge out of the room when Stacey stopped. Alex froze, not wanting her to see movement out of the corner of her eye and catch him. She stretched her arms over her head. Her soft groan of pleasure caused his body to tighten. Before he could shake it off and get out of there, she reached for the clip holding her hair back and released it.

This time he groaned, but silently. She ran her hands through the strawberry blond tresses, letting them fall carelessly down her back. Alex felt his blood heat He wanted her hair trailing all over his naked body. The hell with it, he decided. To hell with complications and entanglements, he wanted her in his bed and if he had to pursue her to that end, so be it.

*** *** ***

Damon watched Ravyn for a moment as she set up camp, then shut his eyes. He hurt worse than he wanted her to know. He suspected she had an idea, though, since she’d taken charge about midmorning. Aside from his having to point out which direction to go, Ravyn had been in control. Moving out at first light may not have been the best thing for his head, but the thought of remaining stationary one more day had made his shoulders itch.

When he felt better, he was going to ask her a few more questions about the training her brother had given her. Normally civilians as highly skilled as she appeared to be preferred to run the show. Yet Ravyn hadn’t once challenged his leadership in their little expedition. She’d behaved more like a soldier, following orders and offering input when she felt it necessary.

He hated feeling helpless. He should be taking care of her, not the other way around. But just as she had obviously been trained to assume command when the situation warranted, he had been trained to relinquish command if the circumstances called for that. Yeah, he’d be asking a few questions tomorrow. He shifted position and winced. Or maybe the day after.

Thinking increased his headache, so Damon tried to empty his mind. He concentrated on his breathing, keeping it slow and even, but that quickly grew boring and his thoughts wandered. For a few moments, he listened to the soft sounds Ravyn made as she moved around. That didn’t promote calmness either, not with the way he reacted to her. His injuries may have prevented him from acting on his attraction, but he wasn’t dead.

The Old City popped into his mind then and Damon centered his attention on that. The images he had studied on Earth were indelibly imprinted on his memory, and he could recall them easily. He focused on an intricately carved fountain. There should have been water bubbling up, he thought, and almost instantly, his imagination provided it. He stared at the lion in the center. It almost looked real and he pushed aside the conundrum of why there was an Earth animal represented on an alien planet. It wasn’t a puzzle he could solve now, and it would only increase his headache. Instead, Damon turned and began ambling down the wide street.

There were no vehicles of any sort, just people walking.

Some moved at a fast clip, some dawdled, but most seemed to have a purpose, a destination. Almost everyone was dressed in brightly colored clothes and the people were friendly, smiling or nodding to him as they passed. Damon returned the greetings. He liked it here. The peacefulness, the happiness, seemed to permeate the city. A melodious chime reached his ears and Damon picked up his pace. He hadn’t realized it was so late already. Ravyn was waiting for him. His heart felt full as he neared their home.

He stopped short, absently apologizing to the man who bumped into him.
This is weird.
Damon drew a breath and splintered his concentration. This wasn’t some odd dream. He was relaxed, but not asleep. He could still hear Ravyn setting up camp and yet he could see the people moving about the Old City. He could smell the scent of food roasting, hear the muted sound of voices, laughter. Yet there was an aura of transparency to what he sensed in the Old City, a certain lack of vividness. He reached out and touched the cool smoothness of a nearby pillar that didn’t exist in his current location.

Before he could do more than question the extent of his head injury, Damon felt fear replace the joy. Although the sun still shone brightly, it was as if some dark cloud cast its shadow over the city. Ravyn! He started running then, dodging around slower pedestrians.

If he didn’t get there in time, she would be forced to face him alone. He wouldn’t allow her to do that. They were stronger together. The size of their home registered, but he paid little attention as he took the stairs two at a time. Damon didn’t hesitate. He knew where he’d find her. He pressed the inset, impatiently waiting for the hidden door to open. Ravyn stood in front of the crystal obelisk, her hand already beginning to enter the slot linking her side to his.

“Wait,” he ordered and hurried down the rest of the stairs.

Her eyes filled with such love that it nearly stopped him short, but there wasn’t time to indulge himself. Damon quickly took his place opposite her and nodded. His hand met hers in the eye of the obelisk and their fingers linked.

The power racing through his body was familiar, yet he knew he had never experienced this before. Not in this lifetime. It wasn’t something a man would forget, even with a head injury, he thought wryly. Damon forced himself to close his eyes and focus. There were steps to follow, things they needed to do.

The feel of Ravyn’s hand against his forehead startled him. There was no way she could reach him from her side of the crystal column. His eyes popped open.

“I’m sorry,” she said softly. “I didn’t mean to wake you. I just wanted to make sure you weren’t running a fever.”

It took Damon a moment to realize he was outside, not in some underground chamber. He let the disorientation wash through him without fighting it. A fever would explain a lot, he decided. Except he didn’t feel too hot or too cold. His headache had even eased. As he looked at Ravyn, the feeling of being in two places at one time faded. He cleared his throat, uncomfortable as awareness returned. He wanted to share what he’d seen, but how did he explain a dream that didn’t feel like a dream? Ravyn was already worried about how seriously he was hurt; if he told her, it would just add to her apprehension.

“Good news, Captain.” His rank sounded like an endearment “No fever. It’s a miracle that wound didn’t become infected considering how dirty you are. You feel up to eating?”

“Yeah,” he said and started to sit up. Ravyn moved to help him. He wasn’t surprised; she’d been fussing over him constantly since he’d been hurt. Part of him disliked being seen as weak, but another part of him enjoyed the attention, enjoyed that he meant enough to her to fuss over.

It was an effort to sit upright, and he shifted till he could lean against a tree trunk. Damon took a thorough look around their camp. Ravyn had picked a spot they could defend and he relaxed. She had her back to him and he tensed again as he noticed the bulge beneath her untucked shirt She had one of the pistols and he didn’t know when she’d taken it. He shook his head in disgust. How out of it had he been and for how long?

When she turned, Ravyn had the front of her shirt loaded with food. She walked to him and slowly lowered herself to the ground. She sat facing him and said, “I don’t suppose we get to wash our hands before eating?”

“You suppose right, sweet pea.”

Damon reached out and took one of her hands in his. Pieces of dirt crumbled off and fell to the ground. He smiled; he couldn’t help it. He knew how meticulous Ravyn was. More dried mud fell off as he rubbed his thumb against the heel of her hand. She hadn’t complained once today despite the three different coats of mud she was wearing.

“When we reach the Old City,” he said, the name bringing a sense of serenity back, “you can have all the baths you want. And in the meantime, a little dirt won’t kill us.”

Ravyn made a face at him. Freeing herself from his grip, she handed him a piece of fruit. “You really think we’ll be safe once we reach the Old City?”

Damon shrugged. “I can’t promise, but I think so. I’ll fortify the gates and booby trap ’em. This thing, he may possess an incredible physical strength, but he’s not supernatural. He has the same laws of physics to contend with as we do. We should be able to keep him out of the Old City.”

After they finished eating, Damon lay back down. His head throbbed less when he was recumbent. He watched Ravyn walk around their camp one last time before she settled down near him. She pulled the pistol out of her waistband and placed it within easy reach. He wanted to put out his hand and touch her, but she wasn’t close enough.

“What?” she asked, catching his frown.

Lifting his brows, he patted the ground beside him. She hesitated briefly, then shifted so he could hold her. He’d discovered something else since he’d been hit in the head. Ravyn kept a deep reserve buried beneath her friendliness. He didn’t like it, but it undoubtedly was a defense mechanism she’d developed after losing so much of her family. He figured in time she would trust him enough to let him close the distance.

“I’ll take that.” He reached over her and grasped the pistol.

“Are you sure?”

“Oh, yeah,” he told her.

Damon remained awake long after Ravyn had fallen asleep. He was cutting their wandering short and heading right for the Old City. There were answers there, he knew that, trusted that. Staring at the stars in the sky, he decided to put some credence in his earlier vision. He had few other options at this point.

He looked down at the dirt-covered woman he held. His heart swelled with a tenderness he’d thought foreign to his nature before finding Ravyn. There was a cloud of half truth hanging over their relationship. He had led her to believe they’d be safe once they reached the Old City. But he now suspected the murderer had killed many of the people who’d lived there.

CHAPTER ELEVEN

“You’re smiling.”

“I know.”

“You’re lying in the mud,” Damon said, pointing out the obvious. He carefully scanned the area as he spoke.

“No. I’m at the luxurious and exclusive Lemuria Spa, where I’m enjoying a mud bath.”

Ravyn kept her eyes shut. Probably easier for her to imagine the spa that way, Damon decided. He crouched down just outside the mud pit and looked at her. Four days of keeping themselves covered in dirt had taken a toll on their clothes.

It wasn’t easy making sure their body odor never overpowered the scent of dirt. In the high humidity and with the physical exertion, they both sweated a lot. Because of this, one coating of mud wasn’t enough. Luckily, the constant rains made it easy to find new patches of muck whenever they needed them. He knew his sweet pea wasn’t happy, but she hadn’t complained, not once.

“What’s after the mud bath?” Damon asked.

“After the mud is washed from my body, I’ll be led into this opulent room decorated in whites. Mozart is playing softly.”

Ravyn’s smile widened and her face beamed even through the grime. Damon grinned himself, enjoying the sight of her relaxed and content. They should be moving, but he couldn’t find it in him to force her back to reality just yet.

“So what are you doing in this room? Sitting back in a plush chair with a glass of juice?”

Damon liked that idea. He would walk into the chamber, find her leaning back with her eyes closed. He could see her smile softly as she sensed his presence. Kneeling in front of her, he’d run his hands from her knees up to her waist and then tug her closer to him so that he could kiss her. He forced himself out of his daydream and swept their surroundings with his gaze.

“No,” Ravyn said. “I’m naked, lying on my stomach on a massage table with just a little white towel covering my butt.”

Damon’s attention snapped back to Ravyn. The image that came to mind made him burn.

“I’m waiting for Thor.”

“Thor?” he asked, his voice dangerous.

Ravyn apparently didn’t notice. “Hmm, I always request Thor as my masseur when I go to Lemuria. The man looks like a blond god and the things he can do with his hands...” She sighed in pleasure and Damon growled. Her eyes popped open. For a moment, she stared at him, then propped herself up on her elbows.

“You’re baring your teeth,” she said.

“If you think some blond guy named Thor is going to be putting his hands on you, you haven’t been paying attention.”

“Thor is a professional. There’s nothing sexual about it.”

He could hear the laughter in her voice. Part of him realized he was making a fool of himself, but he couldn’t seem to stop. “If that’s the case, then you can find a masseuse named Inga who’s about fifty and a grandmother.”

Her lips twitched. She closed her eyes and lowered herself back into the mire. “Nope. I want Thor.”

Damon sprang, launching himself into the mud. He landed beside her and rolled, covering her. He pinned her hands over her head and trapped her legs under his, but she didn’t struggle. Ravyn opened her eyes again and grinned up at him.

“You don’t get Thor. From here on out, the only man putting his hands on your naked body is me.”

Pursing her lips, Ravyn tilted her head and studied him. It took all his control not to shift uncomfortably under her stare. It began to sink in how stupidly he’d acted.

“I didn’t realize you were so possessive,” she said.

“Neither did I,” Damon admitted. “I can’t seem to help it.” He took a moment to gauge her reaction before asking, “Is it going to bother you?”

“That depends,” she said. “Are you going to act irrationally jealous every time a man talks to me?”