attacking her.
He didn't waste time going all soft and fuzzy on women anymore, but this particular woman called to him in a way he hadn't allowed in a very long time, making him hesitate before classifying her as the enemy. Her dark hair was in a tight bun, but thick sections had snuck free, curling in damp tendrils around her neck. Her eyebrows were almost black, arched in a seductive curve that smoothed across her high forehead. She wore no makeup or jewelry, with the exception of a red amulet around her neck. Sweat dotted her neck, glistening beads that sparkled along the silver chain of her necklace. Her loose cargo pants hung low around her hips, not hiding the curves or athleticism of her body. Her shoulders were pulled back and her jaw was relaxed as she held her bow steady, the stance of a confident, prepared warrior.
But her eyes were what captivated him. Like her hair, they were raven black, but they were not the cool, reserved eyes of a warrior. They were turbulent pools of emotion. He could see fear in them, fear so intense that it prickled at his flesh. His sai burned in his arms, not to fight her, but to defend her, to cut down whatever it was that was haunting her so mercilessly.
That wasn't even the extent of his reaction to her. Beneath her fear roiled something else, something that affected him on a visceral level, a pulsing sensuality that seemed to call to him…
The realization hit him like an assault, a realization so devastating that his breath froze in his lungs, trapped by a paralyzing horror. He wanted her .
Jesus. He didn't do that anymore. Never. He knew it wasn't a sheva reaction, because his runes were too strong. He was simply reacting to her as a woman, and that was not okay.
"Why are you after me?" This time, when she asked the question, she tightened her grip on her bow, readying to unleash the arrow into his skull.
There was no doubt she was absolutely ready to do her best to kill him, and damned if he didn't think that was hot as hell. Shit. What was he doing thinking like that? There was no damn way he was ever going down that road again with a woman. He was never tempted anymore. Ever. He had to stay focused. He shook his head once, trying to clear out the jumble of lust and desire fighting for acknowledgment. "I need directions."
For a moment, his statement hung out in the air, unacknowledged.
Finally, she spoke. "Directions?" Disbelief etched every syllable she spoke. "You're a Calydon warrior, armed and dangerous, in the middle of the jungle. You expect me to believe that you're breaking every male stereotype and asking for directions? "
He couldn't halt his flicker of amusement at her reply. "Yeah, well, I'm not a typical guy, I guess. I need to get somewhere in a hurry, I have no idea where the fuck I am, and I don't have time to hike to the nearest gas station and buy a map. So, yeah, directions." He couldn't keep his gaze from flickering over her body again, but this time, he noted the well-worn boots that were laced halfway up her calves, the perfect fit of cargo pants that had seen many wearings, and the lean muscles of her arms. "And you look like you know your way around here. I don't suppose you hire out as a guide?" Even as he asked the question, something started to hum inside him, anticipation at the idea of being isolated in the jungle with her and having her on his team. Or maybe it was just that he was so impressed with his idea of hiring a guide who knew what she was doing, and fired up that she might give him a chance to find the fire god before Thano passed the point of no return.
She didn't lower the bow, and her eyes narrowed. "Where are you going?" she asked sharply. It was a challenge, not an inquiry.
"Have you heard of a Calydon named José Vasquez? Some sort of fire god?" Zach didn't miss the flash of absolute terror across her face, and he saw her shoulders convulse with sudden tension.
That was all the warning he got before she unleashed the arrow
He didn't waste time going all soft and fuzzy on women anymore, but this particular woman called to him in a way he hadn't allowed in a very long time, making him hesitate before classifying her as the enemy. Her dark hair was in a tight bun, but thick sections had snuck free, curling in damp tendrils around her neck. Her eyebrows were almost black, arched in a seductive curve that smoothed across her high forehead. She wore no makeup or jewelry, with the exception of a red amulet around her neck. Sweat dotted her neck, glistening beads that sparkled along the silver chain of her necklace. Her loose cargo pants hung low around her hips, not hiding the curves or athleticism of her body. Her shoulders were pulled back and her jaw was relaxed as she held her bow steady, the stance of a confident, prepared warrior.
But her eyes were what captivated him. Like her hair, they were raven black, but they were not the cool, reserved eyes of a warrior. They were turbulent pools of emotion. He could see fear in them, fear so intense that it prickled at his flesh. His sai burned in his arms, not to fight her, but to defend her, to cut down whatever it was that was haunting her so mercilessly.
That wasn't even the extent of his reaction to her. Beneath her fear roiled something else, something that affected him on a visceral level, a pulsing sensuality that seemed to call to him…
The realization hit him like an assault, a realization so devastating that his breath froze in his lungs, trapped by a paralyzing horror. He wanted her .
Jesus. He didn't do that anymore. Never. He knew it wasn't a sheva reaction, because his runes were too strong. He was simply reacting to her as a woman, and that was not okay.
"Why are you after me?" This time, when she asked the question, she tightened her grip on her bow, readying to unleash the arrow into his skull.
There was no doubt she was absolutely ready to do her best to kill him, and damned if he didn't think that was hot as hell. Shit. What was he doing thinking like that? There was no damn way he was ever going down that road again with a woman. He was never tempted anymore. Ever. He had to stay focused. He shook his head once, trying to clear out the jumble of lust and desire fighting for acknowledgment. "I need directions."
For a moment, his statement hung out in the air, unacknowledged.
Finally, she spoke. "Directions?" Disbelief etched every syllable she spoke. "You're a Calydon warrior, armed and dangerous, in the middle of the jungle. You expect me to believe that you're breaking every male stereotype and asking for directions? "
He couldn't halt his flicker of amusement at her reply. "Yeah, well, I'm not a typical guy, I guess. I need to get somewhere in a hurry, I have no idea where the fuck I am, and I don't have time to hike to the nearest gas station and buy a map. So, yeah, directions." He couldn't keep his gaze from flickering over her body again, but this time, he noted the well-worn boots that were laced halfway up her calves, the perfect fit of cargo pants that had seen many wearings, and the lean muscles of her arms. "And you look like you know your way around here. I don't suppose you hire out as a guide?" Even as he asked the question, something started to hum inside him, anticipation at the idea of being isolated in the jungle with her and having her on his team. Or maybe it was just that he was so impressed with his idea of hiring a guide who knew what she was doing, and fired up that she might give him a chance to find the fire god before Thano passed the point of no return.
She didn't lower the bow, and her eyes narrowed. "Where are you going?" she asked sharply. It was a challenge, not an inquiry.
"Have you heard of a Calydon named José Vasquez? Some sort of fire god?" Zach didn't miss the flash of absolute terror across her face, and he saw her shoulders convulse with sudden tension.
That was all the warning he got before she unleashed the arrow
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