Summon Lyght (4 page)

She hoped so.

More than an hour later, she signed the last police statement and watched as Janet finished her paperwork.

Craig, the owner, came in to deal with the fallout. He made his way over to her.
"Do you need a ride home, Miya?"

"
No thanks, Craig. I'm fine."

"
You're sure? It's no trouble."

"
I know, but Melinda will worry about you. You go home to her and the kids, make sure they're okay." Reminding him of his family never failed to shut him down.  "I have my car here. I'll be fine." And maybe her rescuer would put in an appearance.

Waiting until everybody had left was the hardest thing ever. When she
'd insisted she was fine on her own for the hundredth time, they left her in peace. Exactly five minutes after the coast cleared, she headed out the back. As she double checked that the door was locked, warm air brushed against the side of her neck, raising goose bumps.

"
I told you I would be here."

A quick wave of heat sailed through her belly as she spun around.
"I'm glad." The word rushed out on her surprised breath.

"
Are you, Miya?"

She nodded as his lips brushed against her neck. Instinct guided her to turn into his
embrace but before she could, light flared inside the kitchen, visible through the security glass of the door. "What on earth?"

He stiffened against her, closer than she
'd imagined. "You have the key?"

She handed it to him without question and waited while he unlocked the door and slipped inside. Following on his heels, her jaw dropped at the scene before her.

Her friend Kassie, shaking and fragile-looking, braced a lanky boy against her slight frame. Seeming barely conscious and hardly able to stand, the kid moaned softly.

Everything else forgotten, Miya darted forward.
"Kassie, what's wrong?"

Before she could reach Kassie, the largest, brightest man she
'd ever seen put himself in front of her.

"
It's okay, Lyght." Kassie's soft voice trembled, betraying fear and pain.

Miya ignored the man and went around him to her friend.
"What can I do?" Even while she spoke, her gaze searched, finding the signs of horror and injury. "Oh, Honey, what happened?"

Kassie shook her head.
"Not now. The boy needs food, fast. He's too weak to eat solids."

Miya nodded and switched gears into first aid mode. It took only a second to grab one of the individual serving-size cartons of OJ and pop a straw into it. She held it under the boy
's mouth while he drank weakly. Close up, she realized he was rather large for the twelve year old she'd first taken him for.

Looking back to Lesedi, she hoped he didn
't mind helping. "Would you get in the fridge, over there?" She nodded toward it. "There are little bowls of jello ready for tomorrow. That will help."

He complied without a word, his mahogany skin looking even darker in the dim light of
the kitchen.

Miya helped Kassie adjust the boy in her lap and knelt to feed him. Poor thing. He was shockingly pale, with cracked and bleeding lips. He would need careful watching.

While she concentrated on the boy, she kept one eye on her savior. He approached the big man who seemed to be with Kassie and thrust his hand out. "I am Lesedi."

The other man looked at his hand, seeming confused for an instant, then took it.
"Lyght."

"
Are you followed?"

"
Maybe."

Lesedi nodded and moved quickly to lock the door and checked the window, then disappeared into the front for a few minutes.

When he came back, he spoke quietly to the other man, then they both nodded, before he came over to Miya. "I think we should gather what might be needed here and move across the street to my hotel room. It will be safer."

Miya started to nod.
"No, wait, my place is only a few blocks away and there won't be anyone there." She waited for his agreement then touched his arm. "Grab some more of the jello and OJ, and a tub of soup from the bottom shelf of the fridge." She glanced around until her gaze landed on the big industrial first aid kit over the sink. "Bring that too."

Miya caught the strange man
's inquisitive stare on Lesedi who complied quickly with her instructions. He suddenly turned his diamond-looking eyes on her. Fear froze her breath in her throat as they locked gazes. This one was more foreign than the foreigner. Her mind struggled to connect logic to his appearance and the aura he carried but it was like running in circles, nothing working.

He suddenly nodded at her with a smile.
"Perfect."

Just like that, the fear inside her rushed out like he
'd turned on a tap. Miya couldn't resist a bubbly grin, feeling like she'd gained favor with someone extremely significant.

The Twilight Zone moment continued on as she numbly lead the little crew cautiously out the back door to her car. The new guy had brought bigger issues into her little world than Lesedi had. And as much as that should have alarmed her, she felt oddly at peace.

She drove them to the front of the diner and Lesedi hopped out. "Give me a moment and I will follow you. My car may be useful soon." He disappeared and a moment later headlights flared to high beam for a second, then back to low, signaling her to lead the way.

Chapter Four

Lyght couldn
't believe his extreme good fortune. Well, actually, he could, but his Brothers would certainly not. Within only a single hour of hitting Earth, he had rescued his wife and found his couple. And they were both falling in love. And they had kissed. He'd accomplished in a fraction of a day what had taken the others nearly a week. As much as he'd like to proclaim his success entirely due to skill, he recognized what humans referred to as good luck when he saw it.

Even as he cataloged his surroundings and paid careful attention to the entire experience of his first ride in a car, his peripheral vision strayed to the woman he had just claimed. He
'd finally had the common sense to clothe the poor girl. Was he supposed to find the task as pleasurable as he had? It was a simple dress, really. He had seen the attire in his indelicately crammed human studies, one the article had referred to as 'classic style'. But fitting the finely woven fabric of diamond on her slight frame had proven to strike quite a fancy in him.

He could literally
feel
the desire to create an entire wardrobe for her take root in his infinite mind. Imagining her parading before him in each outfit became an unexpected pleasure. He'd particularly envisioned her in what was called
honeymoon
attire. Damn, he'd meant to find out what honey and the moon had to do with human
coitus
. It must be important for all the emphasis placed upon it. 

Lyght went to the now familiar business of rewinding time in his head to replay the kiss she had shocked him with. He had known she was thoroughly confused from trauma but would never have dreamt it would display itself in such a way. He paid close attention to his body
's reaction to the memory of her soft lips pressing into his. No signs of the physical symptoms he'd been told to expect with sexual arousal. That was a relief since he had no business having it yet.

But he was rather flattered. Should he be? Was that the proper reaction? He didn
't like not knowing. He was curious too. What else might she want to do to him? Because though she was confused, her feelings about him had not been muddled. She was very pleased. Although he knew by human standards he was… Damn, what was that human term? It meant good on the eyes, appealing. Yes,
handsome.
Even though he was handsome, and she had noticed, his appearance seemed to have little bearing on her emotions.

But how would she feel when he revealed the depth of his business with her? She
'd been through a terrific ordeal and as she'd already pointed out, the human mind could only take so much before it sought refuge in insanity. He would have to use care that his revelation didn't push her off some invisible precipice. And he would have to do it quickly, since judging by his couple's progress, he may be forming his warrior before morning. When the energy exchange occurred, he would be forced to tell her, if he hadn't already. And no doubt, then he would find out how she felt. 

As he contemplated the exchange process and the birth of his warrior, Lyght carefully examined the mysterious reaction that came when he contemplated being part human. It wasn
't fear. Or excitement. He supposed it could be both. It was difficult to be sure since either one of those were an oddity to him.

Before he could prevent it, the memory following her sweet kiss slammed his nerve endings with a brutal fury. His fists balled as he struggled not to feel the pain those pieces of shit inflicted on her. He didn
't fear the pain, and if his sharing it that way could make things easier for her, he would suffer it gladly. But experiencing it second-hand almost felt like it minimized the magnitude of her survival, and to him, that was almost as much a violation as the brutal rape.

At least he
'd been able to give her a bit of immediate justice. Perhaps that might provide some small comfort. Pulling the testicles off those humans would have been a nice added touch to their punishment. What was he thinking? He could still do it. He just needed the proper time. Surely he could arrange it. The pain it would bring those men would in fact aid in the repentance process.

Well that settled it. He would certainly not deny them or himself such a wondrous blessing. To let such an opportunity pass unfulfilled would be a sin nearly as monumental as what they had committed.

Lyght reached across the car and placed a gentle hand on her shoulder, imparting another small dose of soothing peace and comfort. She leaned her cheek on him and the unfamiliar and intimate sensation of her sucking in his power with hunger sped his heart up. Was that what it felt like to provide for the needs of one's mate?

He hoped it was natural and right to put his arm around both Kassie and the boy. She snuggled close to his body and Lyght pulled them both in more, wanting…No, needing.... What did
he
–an angel—actually need? A few seconds of pondering made him realize he needed to take care of her. Comfort her. Protect her.

He supposed that was rather right on track for an angel. Nothing new. Except he didn
't recall such a thing feeling so…good before. Those duties were always automatic, just something he did, with no real emotion attached. Satisfying, yes, and sometimes exhilarating, never boring, but the current cell-level pleasure was entirely new. Perhaps Earth's atmosphere or the close human proximity might explain such a breed of emotion. Or could it be his need as a male to ensure the well-being of his female? Was it too early to feel those things?

Hadn
't Toren experienced similar effects with his female? Only more suffering than enjoyment, from what Lyght had gathered. He didn't understand that part. Perhaps Toren's mercurial properties connected in a negative context with his environment and changed his perception. Lyght certainly wasn't experiencing anything unpleasant, to be sure. Thank Father for that.

"
This is it, and it isn't much."

Lyght turned his attention to the female human. Miya. He
'd need to get with her guardian at first chance to learn all he could. As well as Lesedi's. Lyght was a rather large fan of irony and grinned at the fact that his female's name meant temple and his male's meant light. Damn bloody perfect.

****

Lesedi found it difficult to be concerned with anything but Miya. Unaccountably, she had grown far too important to him in far too short a time. Yes, the strange man at the diner who introduced himself as an angel of light or something similarly preposterous should warrant his immediate attention, given that people who proclaimed supernatural status possessed an alarming tendency toward insanity, but for the life of him he could not bring himself to fret over the stranger. Each time he tried, silly feelings assaulted him, like he was attempting to fear his sweet grandmother.

The man may have been odd but he reeked of harmlessness. As his life demanded, Lesedi had honed his instincts long enough to feel confident about their accuracy. Which left him to ponder a very tormenting issue. The need to feel Miya
's lips again. They were small under his, supple silk with a faint trace of her mint. Warm and generous. Like the rest of her.

She made it abundantly clear to him that she wanted to show her gratitude for his intervention in what promised to become a very ugly situation. And how she wanted to show it.
Scruples aside, who was he to deny her? Of course he would make sure she was the one that went away properly paid. The things he hadn't dreamt of doing to her. To see her in the throes of passion would be payment enough, his own satisfaction be damned. 

His behavior at that point in time was borderline foolish, given the entire situation. He should be getting the hell out of the miserable little town. And he would. As soon as he ensured Miya was settled into her home and made sure she was safe from that baboon
's ass of a man who accosted her at the diner, then he would go. After he had her. The stranger could take it from there and keep her safe.

Lesedi pulled up at her home, cursing the habit that insisted he back the car in ready for a quick departure and scoped the area, noting it appeared to be the edge of town. His gaze honed in on Miya
's hips as she ascended the steps of her humble cottage, feeling like his gallant intentions were tethered by testosterone. The sexy sway of her hips had him immediately hard and he was grateful for the cover of dark jeans and a night sky as he hurried to join the group huddled at her door.

That was what he got for attempting to play a holy man for his family. He should be at home, taking care of a wife of his own, rather than in a strange place lusting after a woman he would probably never see again.

Lesedi followed the others in, ducking to clear the pre-standardized-construction doorway. The scent of mint and eucalyptus filled his nostrils along with the faint smell of bacon. He drew in a deep breath, his body seeming to devour the welcoming combination. Wooden walls the color of honey gave off warmth in the sparsely furnished, and delicately sized home. The living room held a tweed sofa and a rocking chair that may have been hewn straight from a tree for all its bulky crookedness. He eyed a Bible atop a literal tree stump next to the rocking chair, and judging by its lumpy thickness, he was pretty sure it wasn't just for appearances.

Straight ahead a shoe box sized kitchen adjoined the tiny sitting area. It reminded him of the doll house he
'd once seen in an American magazine one Christmas in his childhood. The dainty kitchen chairs that looked to be made of white worn tooth pics would certainly break under his mass. Lesedi found himself oddly impressed with the décor. It seemed to be plucked straight from nature. From the flowers in softly colored earthenware crocks on every flat surface, to the clusters of blossoms and greenery hanging on the walls in one artistically twisted fashion or another. Something inside him tugged, a familiar longing of…memories, maybe from long ago. Perhaps when things were simple, and money and power did not yet exist in his mind and world. 

He turned his head to the right, getting a whiff of soft lilac soap. A tiny bathroom lay beyond a rough plank door that stood ajar hinting at where the scent may have originated. Beyond that he glimpsed a bed neatly made with a pale yellow bedspread and matching curtains.

"I'll put on coffee and tea then draw a bath for Tyler." She aimed a compassionate gaze at the young boy. "A nice warm bath will have him good as new."

The tender lilt in her voice tingled through Lesedi. Memories of her warm mouth assaulted him just as she met his gaze. Her eyes lowered and she hurried toward him, making Lesedi brace for some sort of impact.

"Oh my goodness, your hand." She lifted it and examined the bloody oozing knuckles he had not even noticed. Lesedi lost himself in the feel of her touch and the sound of her voice. "I have just the thing to fix that right up."

His heart sputtered as she tugged him to the bathroom and pulled him inside. He ducked to clear the low frame and watched her shut the door. The second she did, his testosterone hit a
dangerous level. She seemed oblivious to the fact that she'd just closed herself in with a man on fire with needs too long unmet.

She rummaged through a small cabinet next to a claw foot tub. His eyes landed on lacy undergarments the second she seemed to remember they were there.

"Oh shoot!" She yanked the shower curtain closed and turned to him with flushed cheeks and a small bottle of something. "Sorry." The silky word got Lesedi hard as a rock. She cleared her throat and came right up to him like a fearless warrior. "This might sting a little but I don't imagine it'll bother a man like you."

He watched her dab some of the liquid onto a cotton ball and then touch it gently to the gash on his knuckle.
"A man like me?"

She looked up at him and his pulse exploded in his ears with awe of her beauty in passion. It filled her eyes even though she no doubt thought she hid it well. She chewed her lower lip briefly and hunger hit his groin with a fury when her pink tongue swept it nervously.
"I just meant…cause…well you're um…"

"
Does my color scare you?"

Her dark gaze jerked up to his, wide and innocent. She shook her head.
"No, not…not at all…"

Lesedi listened with anticipation as she softly stuttered out her thoughts, not daring to interrupt the arousing sound.

"…I think…" She lowered her head as though she couldn't bring herself to say the words.

"
Don't stop." Lesedi whispered the words in an effort to keep his deep voice low.

"
Might sound dumb because you're a man but…I think you're…" She shrugged a shoulder and tucked hair behind her ear nervously, "beautiful."

Despite his determination to not be offended or concerned by her response, Lesedi couldn
't stop his laughter. It was the very last thing in the world he expected to exit those beautiful lips. Nobody had ever called him that before. Especially not a white person, and certainly not a white woman. 

She looked up at him, worry pinching her perfect brows.
"I don't mean it in a…"

Hunger to sooth her fears blinded him and he lowered his mouth to hers and groaned as she opened. Eager and ready, she held on to his shoulders and moaned softly as he pulled her body tight against his, one hand pressing her soft curves right onto his excruciating hard on.