Paranormal Heroes 1 and 2

Chapter4

Chapter Four

Laura

“That looks sore.”

I whirled around, the tray of drinks almost tumbling from my hands. He caught them easily, steadying them. And his fingers were dry and warm. A little calloused. Slowly I raised my eyes to his face. Handsome, manly. The scruff of a beard did nothing to take away from the strength of his jaw. It made him look more dangerous, but I was betting that under it, he was as chiselled as any male model.

He was also standing close. Way too close.

“I’m sorry?” Arching an eyebrow at him, I took a step backwards and the counter hit me in the back. Where the hell had he come from? It was a Sunday and heading for closing time. No one ever came in this late.

He stared at me from beneath his lashes. They were just as dark as the hair on his head. Thick and curling. Pretty lashes. The only thing remotely feminine about him because he was huge, towering over me so I had to crane my neck at an uncomfortable angle to look at his face.

“Your head.” His hand hovered between us like he was about to touch me. Before he could, he appeared to think better of it, touching his own face instead.

My frown deepened. How the hell had he seen the cut on my forehead with my back turned to him. “How did you know?” My voice was small, because with him towering over me that’s exactly how I felt. Small, insignificant. Like he could reach out and snap my neck without even breaking a sweat.

“I saw from the window.” A dimple popped in his cheek, making him look younger. “I have good observation skills. Does it hurt?” That time he didn’t hesitate to brush the tips of his fingers over the cut on my skin. “How did it happen? Are you sure you should be working with a head wound?” Softness filled his eyes as he continued to probe the cut.

“No.” I shook my head and his hand dropped to his side. “No, it's fine.” I didn’t know why but his closeness made me feel uncomfortable. Like I was standing too close to a live wire. “I just took a tumble when out hiking and…” I eyed him thoughtfully. What had he said earlier? He had good observation skills. That coupled with his massive size and the dangerous gleam in his eyes could only mean one thing. He was military. One of the special ops guys that appeared several times a year and used our mountain as their own personal battle ground. Most of the town didn’t mind, especially the women. But I did.

“But you’re ok now?” Again his eyes seemed to drift over my face and body and it was obvious he liked what he saw, the dimple popping again. Something clenched in my lower stomach. Want, need? It didn’t really matter. I wasn’t about to jump the guy just because he made my lady parts flutter.

“Did you need help finding a table? We are closing soon, and our hostess has left, but I can quite happily seat you.” Before I could stop myself, I flicked my eyes towards the clock on the wall. Ten minutes until closing. He was cutting it really fine. “I’m not sure if the kitchen is still open but…” I sucked in a breath as the pad of his thumb brushed against the back of my hand.

Whoa, this guy was full on, and very, very handsy. But I had to admit that I liked it.

“I don’t want to take you away from work, so I’m sure I can find somewhere to sit all by myself. Maybe you and I could talk some more?” The open suggestion in his voice was clear and I did a double take. I knew his type; I had seen them before. Every few years, a new face would turn up and try it on with every single woman in town. Lots of those women fell for the over-the-top charm but not me. I wasn’t interested in a relationship or even a hook up with a guy I would never see again. Although I had to admit that out of all of the army guys I had seen, he was the only one I had ever been tempted by.

“Sit anywhere you want, love.” I flashed him a smile as I sidled past him. The tray of drinks in my hand was shaking a little. He made me nervous, and I didn’t know why.

Actually, I knew why. He had been on the mountain. And now he was talking to me. He had singled me out. Had he found out my secret? I shook the thought away. “I’ll grab you a menu.”

“No need.” He shrugged those impossibly wide shoulders, the movement making his t-shirt stretch tight over his muscles. “I know what I want.”

“And what’s that?” I knew the moment I said the words that I would regret them.

“I want you to ask me my name.”

I blinked up at him. Ok, maybe I hadn’t known. Maybe I had totally read him wrong. “And what’s your name?”

“Oz, my name is Oz.”

“Well, it’s nice to meet you, Oz. I'll bring your menus over.”

***

Oz, or whatever he called himself, had been watching me from over the rim of his coffee for twenty minutes. The restaurant had closed, and as I was the keyholder I was the only one still inside. Well, me and him. There was no way he was still drinking his espresso, which meant he was waiting for me.

For some reason that only God knew, I was now firmly on the military’s radar. Or more specifically his. Oz’s.

“I'll be right back to clear your table,” I called out over the empty room. My voice was unusually loud and breathy. Jesus, he made me nervous. And not just because he might be there to see what I knew, but because my body reacted to him like it never had with any other guy. And that made him dangerous. Guys like him, the macho types, expected a woman to follow him anywhere. To be submissive and docile. And I wasn’t either of those things. I flashed him another small smile. What the hell was I doing? My brain had gone straight to a relationship when in truth, if he was interested in me at all, he wouldn’t be interested in anything but a quickie, a one-night stand at best. I knew his type.

“Where are you going?” Oz was half out of his seat. “Do you need help?”

“I just have to take the rubbish out the back. I can manage.” I couldn’t help the bite in my tone. There it was, the ‘women can’t do s**t for themselves’ attitude.

“Ok.” He settled himself back down, obviously disappointed.

“If you could finish your coffee by the time I’m back.” I didn’t wait to hear him respond as I slipped through the backdoor and into the dark alleyway. It had turned chilly, a light rain falling. I lifted my face to meet it, letting the cold droplets cool my burning face. I needed it; it had been becoming far too hot in there with Oz’s eyes on me. Or maybe he just made me flustered. Either way I needed a few seconds to compose myself.

“I’ve been waiting for you all f*****g night in the rain, you mongrel, little bitch.” A voice spoke unnaturally close to my ear and the hand that curled around my throat from behind closed around my windpipe, cutting off my air supply and making it hard to breathe and impossible to call out for help.

I cursed my stupidity; I should have known better than to go out there alone and at night. Of course, out of all of them, he would have been the one to pick up my trail. He thought I belonged back on the mountain. And he wasn’t afraid to let me know that it was almost time to fulfil my duty. Or that he thought I belonged to him.

“Anyone would think you were gagging for me again, Laura. Is that what you want? You want some wo…” He stopped mid-sentence; his eyes pinned to the man who had just stepped through the door behind me. I couldn’t see the person's face, but by the width of the shoulders it couldn’t be anyone but Oz.

“Do you want to let go of the lady?” His voice was quiet, smooth, and so dangerous it made my hair stand on end.

“And who the f**k are you?”

Oz ignored him totally. “Come here, Laura.” Without fear, he reached for my hand, and I reached for him out of desperation. He tugged me forward and the hand around my throat loosened. I stumbled forward, and Oz’s arm wrapped around me, tucking me in tight against his chest. He didn’t look at me though, his eyes staring straight ahead and unblinking. “Run along now, there’s a good boy.” His words were condescending, and I half expected a fight. Or at the very least a pissing match. What I didn’t expect was the whine that left my attacker’s lips.

“This isn’t over, Laura.”

Oz’s arm tightened around me. “I think it is.”