The Serpent in the Stone (The Gifted Series) (16 page)

Dustin had offered him a pair of swimming trunks—quite possibly the ugliest Ian had ever seen.
He
’
d refused.
His jeans were good enough.
He hoped they would also do a better job of keeping his growing interest in her dripping, hourglass figure in check.

Before he could embarrass himself, he stripped off his T-shirt and tossed it on the sand beside his jacket.
He strode down the beach and splashed into the water.

Cold water jolted his exertion-heated body, and he huffed in surprise.
His arousal fled before an onslaught of chills.
Thank God for that.

Watching him shivering with the sudden cold, she laughed.
His pulse jumped at the soft sound as though she
’
d touched him.

He
’
d thought that by forcing her to admit to her abilities, he could drive away the blazing desire to kiss her the way he had the night of the storm.
Even now, he battled the urge to feel her satiny skin under his hands again.

She was everywhere, damn her.
At his camp, she haunted his waking hours.
A chill would fly up his back as he worked.
He
’
d get the feeling that if he just turned his head, she
’
d be there waiting.
Hair whipping in the wind, arms reaching for him...

He
’
d have taken a hundred such days over the nights.
At night, his dreams boiled with images of a blood-covered man who ordered Ian to help her.

What he wanted right now didn
’
t qualify as help.

“
Ian.
What
’
s on your mind?
”

“
I thought you could read minds.
”

“
I can.
I choose not to.
It
’
s invasion of privacy.
”
She waded closer and sank neck-deep.

Good thing she felt that way, because the direction of his thoughts might have earned him jail time.
Below the water
’
s surface, he saw the glint of gold in her repaired necklace.
The stone pendant rested just above the curve of her breasts, onyx-black against her opaline skin.
He warred with himself, aching to kiss her, longing to retreat.

She backed away and dipped to her chin.
Her hair swirled on the water, dark and slick as sealskin.
“
What
’
s so important about this falcon of yours?
”

Good, a safe topic.
“
Aside from being an endangered species?
I
’
m hoping for a breeding pair.
”

“
Was there another?
”

“
Just the one.
If he has a mate, I haven
’
t seen her yet.
”

Breeding?
Mate?
Okay, maybe not so safe a topic.
His body agreed in the most painful way possible.
Should have gone with the ugly shorts,
he thought, wishing he could loosen the fit of his jeans without being obvious.

“
So the falcon is why you haven
’
t left for Mainland?
”

Yes.
No.
“
Partly.
”
Frustrated, he dove underwater for some distance.
He waded back up the inlet until the water level dropped to his waist, and began stretching out his shoulder.

“
Does it hurt much?
I can
’
t see how digging all day has helped it,
”
she said.

“
It
’
s all right.
Better than it
’
s been.
I
’
m off the painkillers, at least.
”

He heard water slosh.
He looked around and confirmed that she
’
d submerged.

She surfaced right in front of him.
“
Will you tell me something?
”
she asked.

“
Hmm?
”

“
When that man attacked your family...
”

He angled a look at her.
She wouldn
’
t meet it.
“
Say whatever you
’
re not saying,
”
he prompted.

She took a breath.
“
Did his eyes change color the way mine do?
”

He stopped working his shoulder and frowned.
“
I don
’
t remember.
”

She knew he was lying; he saw it on her face.
He remembered like it had just happened.
One moment, the man
’
s eyes had been nondescript brown, and the next...

Then came the knife.
Then his father
’
s grunt of shock, and the
thud
as he crumpled to the floor.

Days earlier, Ian had seen someone else call an object across thin air.
A tiny waif of a girl, and her eyes had changed, too.
After his father
’
s death, he
’
d gone out of his way to avoid her.

Until now.

Sara
’
s lips parted.
“
Did he...?
How did he...?
”

Her gaze flicked away and back like an indecisive dragonfly.
Ian saw how much she yearned to ask the questions he didn
’
t want to answer.
He steeled himself.
“
You want to know how much like you he was.
”

“
Never mind,
”
she said, too fast.
She turned and started to wade off.

He caught her by the hand.
“
Gold.
”
He let go, and wished he hadn
’
t.
“
Just before it happened.
They were gold.
”

She crouched in the water.
Ian, still standing, tried not to think about how close she was to his groin.
He flew through a mental recital of the Latin name for every bird he could think of.
When that didn
’
t work, he sat down in the shallows beside her, shifting furtively to ease the tightness in his pants, and the conflicting tension in his neck.

“
He did the same thing you did,
”
Ian said at last.
“
With your necklace, as a kid.
Raised his hand and—
”
He reached into the air and waved his fingers.

“
It
’
s not the same,
”
she said at once.
“
I
’
m
not the same.
”

He dunked his head backward, washing off the rest of the sweat.
Saltwater trickled stinging into his eyes, and he wiped it away.
For a time, they both fell silent.

“
My sister has pyrokinesis, among other things,
”
she said at last.
“
Fires, she can light fires.
She could be dangerous, but she
’
s not.
We
’
ve never hurt another person in our lives.
”

“
And your father?
”

“
I never saw him do anything like what Faith and I can do,
”
she said.
“
But he was a good man.
A good father.
”

“
So was mine.
”

Bird cries sounded in the air over the surging of ocean on rock.
Ian looked up.
A flock of gulls passed overhead.
Reminded of his work, he got to his feet once more.
“
We should go.
”
He offered his hand to help her up.

She took it, but released it again as soon as she
’
d gained her feet.
Wet tendrils of her hair settled in the hollow between her breasts.
Ian gritted his teeth.
Elanoides forficatus, Buteo jamaicensis, Pandion haliaetus.
He spun away, then stalked out of the water after his shirt and jacket.

She
’
d brought a sweatshirt and jeans.
He found it easier to breathe once she
’
d put them on over her bathing suit.

But not by much.

****

During the walk back to Ian
’
s camp, he explained the basics of rock climbing.
Sara tried to listen, but couldn
’
t concentrate.
She told herself she only lagged behind because she was thinking about his climbing instructions, but then she looked up.

He
’
d tucked his shirt and jacket under his arm, and she had an uninterrupted view of his naked back.
She followed the line of his broad shoulders, down through a mesmerizing vee to his narrow hips.
As he walked, she stared at the play of muscle.
He had such a beautiful back.
She hated to linger on the scars.

Seeming to notice she
’
d fallen behind, he paused.
“
Something wrong?
”

She shook her head and hurried to catch up.

They said nothing more until they arrived at his tent.
He showed her how to buckle his spare belt and ropes and adjust them to fit her body, then donned his own gear.
“
Ready?
”
he asked.

“
You know you
’
re crazy to do this kind of thing voluntarily?
”

He grinned and led the way to the cliff.

When they reached it, Sara craned over the precipice with apprehension.
“
So you
want
me to jump off a cliff?
”

He laughed. “It’s easier than it seems,” he told her. “The ropes do a lot of the work. I’ll show you. Grab the other helmet.”

“Are we rock climbing or doing high-rise construction?”

He buckled his own helmet. “The falcon likes to dive-bomb if he thinks you’re too close to his roost. Ever been around a pissed-off bird with sharp talons?”

Shrugging, she picked up the other helmet and buckled it on. “Aren’t we going to scare him off?” she asked.

“We’ve worked out a mutual safe distance. The helmets are just insurance against him redrawing his lines.” He gave his anchor points an experimental tug, then started over the edge of the cliff. Feeding out the rope, he lowered himself down, placing his feet in the sturdiest crevices. When he was a short way below, he looked back up. “Come on.”

“
I think I
’
d rather fly,
”
she said, hanging back.

He cocked his head. “You could do that, couldn’t you?”

Was he teasing her? No, not about her powers. He couldn’t be. “Yes, if I shapeshifted. I can’t levitate myself, or I’d be floating down there instead of attempting suicide with this contraption.” Setting her jaw, she knelt and climbed down. The ends of her hair, still damp, billowed in the updraft.

Placing her feet where he instructed her, she made it to his level before her foot slipped on a ledge.
She yelped and started to slide.
Gravel spilled away under her.

He grabbed her by the harness and steadied her as the ropes caught.
“
I
’
ve got you.
You
’
re doing fine.
”

“
You
’
re loving this, aren
’
t you?
”

“
A little,
”
he admitted, flashing a dimple at her.
“
It
’
s nice to be back on the other end of the professional know-how.
”