Relieved, I smiled. If she hadn’t, this would’ve been a pretty crappy romance story. “Good.”
“Snowbird decided that the warrior was her equal and with that, her decision had been made. She grabbed the man before he could fall. The chief met them and was very pleased with his daughter’s choice in mate. He granted their marriage and made the warrior his successor.”
“So is that why the rocks are called Seneca Rocks? After the Indians and Snowbird?”
He nodded. “That’s what the legend says.”
“It’s a beautiful story, but I think the whole climbing several hundred feet in the air to prove your love is a little excessive.”
He chuckled. “I’d have to agree with you on that.”
“I’d hope so or you’d find yourself playing with cars on an interstate to prove your love nowadays.” I wanted to bite my tongue the minute the words were out of my mouth. I hope he didn’t think I meant for me.
He gave me a hard look. “I don’t foresee that happening.”
“Can you get to where the Indians climbed from here?” I asked curiously.
He shook his head. “You could get to the canyon, but that’s serious hiking. Not something I would suggest you doing by yourself.”
I laughed at the thought. “Yeah, I don’t think you have to worry about that. I wonder why the Indians came here. Were they looking for something?” I stepped around a large boulder. “It’s hard to believe that a bunch of rocks brought them here.”
“You never know.” His lips pursed and he was quiet for a moment before speaking again. “People tend to look on the beliefs of the past as being primitive and unintelligent, yet we are seeing more truth in the past every day.” I peered up at him, trying to gauge if he was being serious. He sounded much more mature than any boy our age. “What was it that made the rocks important again?”
He glanced down at me. “It’s the type of rock….” His eyes widened suddenly. “Kitten?”
“Would you stop calling me—?”
“Be quiet,” he hissed, gaze fixed over my shoulder. He placed his hand on my arm. “Promise me you won’t freak out.”
“Why would I freak out?” I whispered.
Tugging me toward him, he caught me off guard. I placed my hands on his chest to stop from tumbling over. His chest seemed to…hum under my hands. “Have you ever seen a bear?”
Dread pushed through my calm and blossomed. “What? There’s a bear—?” I pulled out of his grasp and spun around.
Oh, yeah, there was a bear.
No more than fifteen feet from us, a big bear, black and furry, sniffed the air with its long whiskered muzzle. Its ears twitched at the sound of our breathing. For a moment I was kind of stunned. I’d never seen a bear, not in real life. There was something majestic about the creature. The way its muscles moved under the heavy coat of fur, how its dark eyes watched us as intently as we watched it.
The animal moved closer, stepping under the rays of light that broken through the branches overhead. The fur had turned a glossy black in the sunlight.
“Don’t run,” he whispered.
Like I could move even if I wanted to.
The bear made a half bark, half growl as he rose onto his hind legs, standing at least five feet tall. The next sound was an honest-to-God roar that sent shivers through me.
This wasn’t good at all.
Daemon started yelling and waving his arms, but it didn’t faze the bear. The animal dropped onto all fours, his massive shoulders shaking.
The bear rushed us.
Unable to breathe past the ball of fear choking me, I squeezed my eyes shut. Eaten alive by a bear was so wrong. I heard Daemon curse and even though my eyes were closed, a blinding flash of light pierced my thin eyelids. There was an accompanying blast of heat that blew my hair back. And then the flash came again, but darkness followed this time, swallowing me whole.
Chapter 8
When I opened my eyes again, there was a strange metallic taste in my mouth. Rain smacked off the roof and thunder rolled in the distance. Lightning struck somewhere nearby, filling the air with a fine current of electricity. When did it start raining? The skies had been clear, blue, and perfect the last I remembered.
I drew in a shallow breath, confused.
My shoulder was pressed against something warm and hard. Turning my head, I felt the object rise up sharply and then slowly ease back down. It took me a second to realize it was a chest my cheek was pressed into. We were on the swing, his arm around my waist keeping me securely pinned to his side.
I didn’t dare move.
Every inch of my body became aware of his. How his thigh was molded to mine. The deep, even breaths moving his stomach under my hand. How his hand curved around my waist, his thumb moving in idle, soothing circles at the hem of my shirt. Each circle inched the material up a little, exposing my skin until his thumb was against the curve of my waist. Flesh against flesh. I was hot and shivery. A feeling I had little experience with.
His hand stilled.
Pushing up, I looked into a pair of startling green eyes. “What…what happened?”
“You passed out,” he said, pulling his arm away from my waist.
“I did?” I scooted back, putting distance between us as I brushed my tangled hair out of my face. The metallic taste was still on the roof of my mouth.
He nodded. “I guess the bear scared you. I had to carry you back.”
“All the way?” Dammit. I missed that? “What…what happened to the bear?”
“The storm scared it. Lightning, I think.” He frowned as he watched me. “Are you feeling okay?”