CHAPTER EIGHT PART TWO

***Mildly inappropriate scene toward the end of this chapter.

Quincy pushes her chair away from the table, "Gemma, I don't feel right." Her head rolls to the side. Dmitri catches her before she can fall out of her chair. "Crap," he mutters as he loses control of his limbs and falls beside her. "Babe, are you all right?" Duke asks, looking at Paul, who has fallen unconscious face-first into his eggs. Duke tries to wake up Paul, but slumps against the table just as soon.

"Ahhhh!" Savanna shouts for once, looking terrified as she slips out of her chair and onto the floor. "Gem mage get in touch touch wit Hunt in it worse they thou t," Fletcher slurs as his body folds like an accordion.

Everything seems to slow; all around me, people who were once seemingly ordinary now look ready to kill and their target is me. Parents stand in front of children holding up knives, and the group of teens growls inhumanly. Our waitress sneers as she charges at me wielding one of those old-fashioned strong mops. It's flopsy and looks matted.

I Dodge her attempts to strike me. The others in the diner soon join in, trying to get me, "Why couldn't you have just eaten the food?" Sandy shouts frustratedly. She attempts to hit me with the mop head and I kick it. The force of the kick knocks her back into a few tables. Mina charges me, and I use my backpack as a shield, hitting her in the stomach with it.

The hit knocks her onto her back. The two men at the bar stand up, and I know I'm about to be greatly outnumbered. I'm a fiercely loyal person. I fight the urge to stay out of loyalty to my group, but I know we need backup. I yank my bag on and jump across the table, knocking plates and silverware to the ground. I launch out the door, slightly scraping my shoulder on the way out as I shove myself through the space.

I run and dodge people on the street. I look back, seeing the two men from the diner chasing me. Too focused on the men chasing me, I miss what is in front of me. Bang, my body hits a wall. I fall onto my butt and look up, startled. I was too focused on what was behind me that I forgot to look forward. For the first time in my entire life, my heart skips a beat. I look into the eyes of the most magnificent man I have ever seen.

For a moment, just a moment, I feel something, something indescribable. I take in his tall structure as my eyes scan him from the very tip of his head to the soles of his feet. He's tall with brown hair and golden eyes, dressed in a grey shirt and red flannel with jeans. Why does he look like some rugged cowboy come to take me home with him?

"Stop her!" One of the men yells from behind us. Shep's eyes flash as he looks towards my pursuers and then back to me. I am shocked back into action. I jump up like a CrossFit queen. He reaches for me almost delicately, but I dodge his attempt to grab me and smack his hand away. I counterattack.

My hand strikes his face. Ouch, the pain flares and my hand aches like I just punched a cement wall. "Ahh, what are you made of, metal?" I try to shake the pain out of my hand. What is he, a vampire? Most hunters have described fighting a vampire as fighting a human, but they're faster and stronger. They never said anything about them being made of rocks. What are you, strange man?

Nevertheless, I can't give up, using my other hand, I strike. He catches my fist in midair and grips it tightly not letting go, "Stop, you're just going to hurt yourself," he says softly.

I ignore him and launch at his legs, my foot loops around his ankle and I pull with all my might. He grins like he's enjoying the challenge. He maintains his balance despite my efforts. With a huff, I kick his knee and he wavers just enough for me to knock him down with another hit. As he falls I realize I forgot the small detail of him holding onto me. Forcing me to the ground with him. My body falls forward as his hands latch onto my arms to stabilize me. Yet, that doesn't stop my head from falling forward.

My eyes slip closed as I wait for the inevitable impact. My lips collide with a soft, yet firm surface. I thought it would hurt as our heads butt together. My eyes flicker open, and I freeze letting out a screech. My lips are pressed against this mysterious stranger's. My first kiss gone, just like some crazy K-drama plot.

I jolt back from him, "Ahh! How dare you?" I shout and try to get him to release his hold on me. Instead, he laughs, "I didn't push you into my lips; you fell. I'm normally an upstanding member of society," he replies. At this level, he wrestles me. However, he is soon able to get me under him as he pins my arms to the ground and sits in a way that I can't kick him. Has he done this before?

***

I keep thrusting my body this way and that, trying to slither out of his hold. "Can you stop doing that? I'm trying to be a gentleman here but we're about to have a whole other problem to deal with?" His eyes meet mine, and he glances down. I realize that I've been rubbing myself against a particularly sensitive part of his body. I blush unintentionally.

"Control yourself, would you!" I yell. "I'm trying, but I'm a man. It's a natural reaction," he says, defending himself. "I'll show you a natural reaction," I move my knee upwards. He stops me before my knee can make contact with his sensitive parts.

We struggle, and our eyes make contact. His eyes glow like two beams of light. "That's not possible," I squeal, an ounce of fear reaching my insides like molten lava. One of the men from the cafe catches up to us. He lifts a bottle of some kind in the air. "Abe don't!" Golden Eyes shouts but it's too late as the bottle hits me across the temple, making my mind go blank.