And more than anything else she'd ever dealt with, the thought of fitting in frightened her the most.
Something snapped to her right, and her heart kicked up into her throat. Val tried to calm herself as she envisioned some deer in the woods.
Another snap, and she was sure it was more than a deer. Maybe it was the Horatius Group. She'd spent all this time going under the radar, but there she was, now as vulnerable as the rest of them, and given how surprised they were about her, she might represent something even more rare and valuable than the normal hybrids. Her abilities were certainly different.
Val came to a clearing and stopped. Her pulse thumped in her veins, but she let all her training come into play. She wasn't some helpless woman. All her life she'd been preparing to make sure that whatever came her way, she'd be able to deal with it.
Two bright eyes glowed in the tree line.
"Just come out," she shouted. "I can see you."
She swallowed as the bright eyes came forward and into the light of the moon.
"Apollo?"
His face was stern, and he moved slowly, like there was more going on than what she was seeing.
"What are you doing out so late?" he rumbled.
She frowned. "I'm running."
He snorted, and she could feel the anger radiating off of him.
"That's not a good idea," he said quietly.
Val crossed her arms and glared at him. What was it with the men there trying to give orders and expecting them to be followed? She wasn't some kid. If she wanted to go for a jog, that's just what she'd do.
"And why is that?" she said.
He was fast, so quick she almost didn't even see him coming. Before she could even stop him, Apollo was standing in front of her.
"There are bad things out at night," he said so quietly it was nearly a whisper. Her breath picked up.
"Is that so?" she asked and turned away. "Well, I'm fine."
Before she even knew what was happening, her back was being pulled against a massive wall, and her arms were bound to her sides.
Val struggled to get out, but he held tight.
The feeling between them shifted as she struggled. She didn't even have to read the energy around him to know what was happening.
Her bottom rubbed against something hard, and he let out a low groan.
She shifted again, not sure what she wanted from this, but she liked the sound he made. Her nipples tightened, and her breath hitched in her throat as his arms held her hard against him.
"Val," he warned, his voice hot and near her ear.
She shifted again and lay her head back against his hard chest. This was dangerous, far more so than anything that might lurk in the woods.
Val bent her body hard, grinding her ass into his hard cock. He moaned loudly. Now was her moment. She twisted hard in his arms and ducked out from under and onto the floor where she darted away.
She turned to stare at him and found him grinning at her.
"Think it's going to be that easy?" he said and cocked a brow.
It was a smug look that she'd dealt with so many times before from just about everyone who had ever underestimated her. It pissed her off.
"You think it's going to be that easy to catch me?" she replied.
His smile widened. "I think I already did."
She frowned. That was so not going to happen again. Whatever game he was playing at, she had no problem ending it.
Val turned as fast as she could to sprint away. If she could do that, then she could make it to the cabin.
Two steps. That was all she got before his massive hands were on her again. This time they were flying through the air. She stifled a scream as they plummeted toward the earth, his giant body firmly behind her. At the last second, he whirled her in the air. She landed on the soft cushion of his body.
His breathing was ragged, and she wondered if it had taken a lot out of him to maneuver like that.
She shifted to climb off of him but gasped when his arms wrapped around her, holding her firm against the hard length between them. His glowing eyes stared back at her, and she swallowed hard. Lust swept over her, and the tension in her stomach grew.
"I don't think you know what you do to me," he growled to her.
Val shivered in his arms and blushed as her nipples responded to the sounds he made. The corner of his mouth turned up as he continued to stare at her.
"Or maybe you do," he said.
He couldn't wait any longer. Every time he tried, she ran. This time he was just going to have to act fast.
Apollo rolled on top of her and sighed when she spread her legs for him. Feeling her warm heat pressed directly to him made his heart race in ways that he didn't know it would. She wanted him. He could smell it in the air.
He shifted slightly, creating friction between their bodies. A tiny moan came from her sweet lips, and he wanted to shout his excitement. Her eyes went wide with shock, and she looked away as quickly as she could.