He occasionally murmurs something as he works, but I can’t make out the words. Or maybe I can’t hear anything over the sudden rush of blood in my ears.
My imagination fills in the gaps anyway. I picture those hands on my own back, firm and deliberate, working out tension, heat spreading under my skin, sliding lower?—
“You’re still here?”
I jerk around, guilty, as Luke steps up behind me.
“Nothing,” I blurt, immediately realizing he hadn’t asked a question.
His brows lift in interest as his gaze follows mine, and when he sees what I was looking at, a slow, knowing smile spreads across his face.
“Oh, the Reiki. Intrigued? You know, if you want a session, all you have to do is ask,” he murmurs. “I’m sure Reid would be more than happy to help. Or I could give it a try if you’d rather.”
My face heats. “I don’t want a session. I was just… curious.”
“Aligning energies,” he says lightly. “Balancing things out. Something like that.”
“But… you’re not even touching them. You actually believe in it?”
He shrugs. “Many people do, and it doesn’t hurt to believe in something. Some of us have to.”
“So, it’s like a religion?”
“If that makes it easier to understand, sure.”
I sigh, not in the mood for existential debates this early. “Why are you here anyway? I thought you were busy making breakfast.”
“I realized I never told you where the shed was.” He points toward the entrance. “Out the door, head left and keep going until you’re near the woods. You’ll see it. If you get lost, security can point you in the right direction.”
“Got it.” I clear my throat, trying to pull myself together, and head outside, ignoring the soft chuckle behind me.
Once I’m on the grounds, I follow his directions. I spot my car first, then the man working on it as he rolls out from underneath.
I stop dead.
Oh. My. God.
It’s the giant from yesterday, but this time he’s shirtless, and I get the full picture of the strength I felt when he caught me. He’s built like a brick house—broad shoulders, carved abs, muscle layered over every inch of him. Not the polished kind you getfrom a gym, but the kind earned through years of hard work. Solid. Functional. Dangerous.
And then there’s the V of his hips, disappearing into low-slung jeans.
My mouth goes dry.
I should look away. I know I should. Standing here staring is completely inappropriate.
Right?
Except I can’t seem to stop.
And before I can force myself to move, he looks up and sees me.
CHAPTER 10
Talon
She’s here.
Butterflies flit all over my body, and my stomach tightens. Nerves. That’s what it is.