Awakening Kiss (Watcher's Kiss Book 4) Read Free

to see a forest beneath her...and a man holding on to her leg. A man? She shrieked and kicked.
    Her efforts had no effect. With steady movements, he grabbed her other ankle. His grip moved to her knees, then thighs. “I’ll help you land,” he yelled. “Grab on to my shoulders.”
    What? “No!” A branch grazed her cheek. Oh god, she was going to die. She was going to fall to her death and be lost in some forest, and no one would ever find her body.
    Except this strange man, who seemed to know what was going on. Was he from the alley?
    He cursed and grabbed her waist, pulling her close to his body. With a twist, he switched their positions so he was beneath her, still holding on to her.
    Slam!
    Enza’s breath whooshed out of her lungs as they hit the ground.
    Her heart pounded a wild rhythm against her ribs. How many bones had she broken? Could she walk? Run? She had to get away from this madman. Terror fueled her muscles to scramble off him-
    “Not so fast, female.” His arms tightened around her waist. “I have questions and you’re going to answer them.”
    “W-what?” Her voice came out as a squeak, throat sore from screaming. And she was painfully aware of how he was holding her, connected from shoulders to hip, so close her breasts crushed against a wide chest. His whole body was hard and unforgiving—and had apparently broken her fall.
    She gulped a shaky breath. Wait, had he saved her? Was he hurt? Jumbled thoughts fired through her mind in a rapid burst of confusion.
    “We can stay like this. I wouldn’t mind.” His voice was calm, managing not to be creepy, though anyone who saw their position would think they were making out. “Or I can let you up. But if you run, all bets are off.”
    “Let me up,” she squeaked. The last thing she wanted was to lay on top of this guy.
    He unlocked his hands from her lower back and she got up awkwardly, trying not to touch him anywhere. She ended up sliding to the side and pushing off from the grass. His legs were so damn long, thick thighs encased in jeans.
    “What the hell was that?” She tried to sound demanding, but her voice was so gone it came out raspy and broken. Not strong at all.
    He rose to a wary crouch and then stood, eyeing her as if she could possibly harm him. She had to look up, and then up some more as he unfolded his big body. He didn’t appear injured in any way, despite whatever had dropped them here. Shit, she could barely hurt a fly, let alone this guy. Thick biceps and shoulders. Dark hair cut so short it was buzzed. She couldn’t tell what color his eyes were but they studied her with hard suspicion. His voice held a casual drawl, but she wasn’t about to stick around to get to know him.
    He set his hands on narrow hips and stared at her. “That’s what I need to ask you.”
    Why did he look wary of her? “What just happened? What was that thing we were in? And where are we now?”
    “You didn’t know you jumped into a portal?” Sarcasm oozed from his deep voice. “Remember that big ring? You bee-lined for it like hellhounds were on your tail. You headed right for it after your partner opened it up.”
    “My partner? Meena?” Enza blinked. Did he know Meena? And did he say hellhounds ? This guy had to be delusional. “She wasn’t there. Just you and your friends fighting.”
    “Think those were your friends, not mine.” He took a step closer.
    Oh, no. She backed up. Just because he hadn’t attacked her didn’t mean he wouldn’t kill her. “No. I’ve never seen them before. And what’s a portal?”
    “Seriously?” He narrowed his eyes. “Who’s Meena?”
    Shit, now he thought she was deliberately messing with him. And she had stupidly mentioned Meena’s name. This was bad, so bad. She backed up and dared a glance around. Nothing but trees and darkness. Far off, the sky held a dull gray glow, the kind you get from streetlights reflecting off clouds. Directly overhead, stars shone brighter than what she was used