House of Leights (Secret Keepers #3)(18)

Stepping closer, I blinked more than once to make sure I was seeing them clearly. Because they were so … beautiful. All of them were tall, with dark skin and long hair. None of them were the guy from the party though, and I was just wondering if my stomach feeling had been wrong … when he stepped out from behind the other three. Our eyes met and those feelings in my body intensified. My body almost jerked forward. Just like at the party, I wanted to move closer to him.

By this stage my father had noticed them, too. When a relieved smile broke across his face, I figured we were dealing with friends. He hurried forward, pausing before the tallest of the four. The one – the guy from the party, who I was pretty sure had saved my life in the alley. His hair, unlike the other three, was short, dark, and cropped close to his head, save for a few braids that hung past his shoulders. It also looked like one side of his head was tattooed, the marks hard to clearly make out under his hair. Maybe symbols or words.

It was too dark under this canopy for me to tell the color of his eyes, but they looked light, contrasting beautifully to his dark skin and hair.

“Chase from House of Leights,” my father said, holding his hand out for him to shake. “It’s a pleasure to finally meet you. Will you be leading us to the safe house?”

Chase acknowledged my father with a nod, but it felt as if his eyes remained locked on me. I wanted to go forward and take his hand as well, but something held me back. The pull I already felt to him was not natural or normal. For someone who’d been pretty lackluster with most things in life, this sort of strong emotion was really freaking obvious.

House of Leights!

I realized then what my father had said. Even though an idiot would know that these four were “special,” the reality took a moment to register fully. Holyfreakingshit. He was an alien, a Daelighter. Why were the good ones always gay, taken, or aliens? Seriously.

For a brief moment, I contemplated that he might evoke such feeling in me because of some sort of alien power, but the other three men at his sides, who were almost as stunningly handsome, did not make me feel anything except wariness.

There was something more about this Chase. And I wanted to panic about that. But I couldn’t seem to produce that emotion around him. He was just … calming.

Chase finally turned his gaze from me and I managed to suck in some deep breaths.

“We have to walk a small distance, then we can drive to the next destination,” he said to my father.

That voice…

If Chase had been looking at me still, there would have been no way I could have hidden my reaction to his smooth, accented tone.

Seriously.

Seductive, sliding across my senses, filling my body with needs. I wasn’t sure I’d ever felt this way, and since I’d never even talked to this guy…

“No worries. We just want to make sure Maya is safe,” my dad said as he reached out a hand to me. I didn’t want to take it. I didn’t want to get closer to these Daelighters. None of them.

Liar…

With reluctance, I stepped through the undergrowth, shuddering as a huge ferny-looking plant tried to attack me. Chase’s lips quirked as he watched me battle my plant-assailant, and eventually I made it to my father’s side.

“This is Maya Lewis,” he said. “She’s the third secret keeper, the one from House of Leights. She’s who we’re here to protect.”

His eyes were the greenest I’d ever seen, almost luminescent. “It’s nice to meet you, Maya,” he said, holding out a hand for me to take.

I didn’t want to. If his voice affected me to the level where I almost moaned out loud, then his touch would probably kill me. Before it got awkward though, the other men stepped forward, distracting everyone. Chase shot me a slow smile, lowered his hand, and introduced the other men. “This is Jordo, Luci, and Manita.” He pointed to each in turn. “They’re here just as a precaution. We’ve lost track of Laous’ movements, so we err on the side of safety.”

I heard what he was saying, but most of my focus was on breathing and trying to stay calm. We are not compatible species! I needed to get myself under control. I refused to be that girl. The one who fell for the drop-dead gorgeous guy without knowing a single thing about him. He might be the biggest asshole ever, with fifteen wives and a penchant for beating them up when he was drunk.

“Are you ready to leave?” my father asked, and I snapped out of my own head, stepping back to where Brad and my mom were standing.

Chase nodded. “Stay close,” he advised, then he moved forward into the trees. The other Daelighters fanned out around us, one going to the back, the other two to either side. Chase led us further into the trees, and I found myself watching him closely, for no other reason than the way he moved through this forest was unlike anything I’d ever seen. He was at home there, like he’d lived in the jungle his whole life. I could have sworn that trees and plants even got out of his way as he walked.

Got out of his way…

That was brilliant. I just needed to walk close to Chase and I should avoid all branches and leaves. I hurried so I was right behind him – and my dad, who was at his side. It felt slightly dangerous being this close to him, but since I was finally free from leaves and plants attacking me, I could deal.

As an added bonus, I also got to eavesdrop on the conversation he was having with my father.