Ava's heart thundered against her chest just as the car came to a screeching halt, its bumper resting just a few inches away from her knees.
As if on cue, the light inside the basement parking lot made a sound as it flickered. A sudden chill enveloped her already cold body.
She frowned and lifted an eyebrow, prepared to give the driver a piece of her mind. The frown on her face grew deeper as she trained her eyes on the man who got out of the car. Six foot two or three, broad shoulders that were covered by his dark blue suit and a face that looked like something that would be at the center-page of a fashion magazine.
He towered over her five- foot-seven frame. A frown apparent on his perfectly carved brows.
"Are you hurt?" he asked, his steps careful as he slowly approached her.
Out of nowhere, the smell of dark chocolates assaulted her senses. Her chest rose and fell in an abrupt motion. Coupled with the smell of chocolates, various emotions hit her like an enormous boulder. They were the man's emotions.
She wondered how a person could feel so many emotions at the same time.
"No." She looked at the bumper of his black car that was about an inch away from her legs. Then she darted her gaze towards his eyes. An impossible silver like orbs met her forest greens.
It almost took her breath away.
The specks of blue and yellow in his eyes immediately reminded her of that man from her dreams. The one who had been disturbing her sleep for the past few weeks.
No. That's impossible.
"Are you certain?" he asked, his eyes seemed to shimmer in the darkness of the parking lot.
"I'm fine." She managed to say, trying to forget the man from her dreams.
"What were you thinking driving on a wet surface like that?" She asked tersely. She had to say something and distract herself. Still, it wasn't enough. An uneasy feeling started to sprout in her stomach.
"I lost control," he answered. Yet, the lack of emotion in his voice made her think that he was lying. She frowned in response.
She ignored the gnawing sensations, and the awareness that stemmed from the fact that the man in front of her was nothing short of… perfection. Yet, she was forced to acknowledge the rush of awareness of the absurd raw sex appeal that he exuded.
"You should be more careful next time." she said, distracted.
For a few seconds, she thought she saw his eyes smolder with an unknown emotion.
"Matthew…" he held out his hand.
A hint of a smile appeared on his face. She debated against shaking his hand. As an empath, being overwhelmed by other people's emotions was a normal thing but for some reason, she had a feeling that this handshake would do more than that. Yet, against her better judgment, she accepted his hand.
"Ava."
And just as their skin touched, a distinct and sudden sense of euphoria hit her. An electric shock buzzed out of nowhere.
"Are you alright?"
The look in his eyes was telling her that he wasn't planning on letting go of her hand anytime soon.
She nodded, overwhelmed by the smell of chocolates and almonds. Then, the realization hit her. She felt the blood drain from her face.
"You— " she couldn't say the rest of the words. Quickly, she pulled out her hand. This time, she succeeded with added force and then narrowed her eyes at him.
A shifter.
The man was a shifter. No wonder he had such an intimidating appeal.
Almost immediately, her lips thinned.Her face turned serious.
A witch like her in front of an unknown shifter could be a dangerous, dangerous thing. A fight between them could be devastating. It could easily attract everyone's attention.
Ava's senses turned fatally alert as she tried to sense if he had company. Two shifters against one witch isn't good news.
A dangerous static seemed to grow around them.
"You are… a witch."
His brows drew closer at the realization.
He examined her for a few seconds before relief clouded his gaze. Though shifters and witches were no longer at war, they also didn't exactly feel happy around each other.
"Nice to meet you Miss Witch," a slow half smile twisted his lips, his expression relaxed.
She could smell a shifter's bloodlust from half a mile away but this man…wasn't showing any kind of bloodlust. On the contrary, his presence felt somehow welcoming.
A rather soft aura appeared around him.
She took a step back, unamused by his reaction.
"Sorry about the car. I don't usually drive to work."
A tinge of regret emanated from him.
Did he regret stopping before he could hit her?
She scowled at him.
"Not a problem," she said. "I'm leaving, have a nice day ahead."
"Do you have some time for coffee?"
"No," she answered almost immediately. A coffee with a shifter? Even the mere notion sounded absurd.
She turned away from him. She wasn't exactly surprised when he shamelessly followed after her.
"What the hell are you doing?" she asked. Was he planning to follow her around while leaving his car in the middle of the parking lot?
She surveyed the basement parking lot. Luckily, no one else was around.
"Would you like to talk over coffee?" he patiently asked again.
How persistent!
She stopped in front of the driver's seat of her car before turning around to face him.
A mischievous smile was apparent on his face as he stood close by. His emotions told her that he was enjoying this.
"Shifter…"
"It's Matthew…"
"Matthew."
"Yes?" An expectant smile appeared on his face like that of a child.
"I'm not interested."
"Are you sure about that?" He leaned forward and offered a bemused smile. His shadowed face was inches away from hers, his breath hot against her cheeks. She felt her heart skip a beat just as blood rushed to her face.
Ava could smell chocolates and almonds and now husk and fresh lemon from his cologne. It silently rolled between them like how the waves silently kissed the coast. It felt natural, primal.
And she hated it.
She fought the urge to use a spell and hit him.
"A hundred percent." She didn't know if those words were spoken to assure him or herself.
Seeing her serious expression, he chuckled. Unbothered by their close proximity, he rested his hand against the door of her car, permanently barring her escape.
"Do I scare you, Ava?" His voice was deep, just like the voice of the man who was in her dreams. No.
It is a coincidence.
Just like all shifters, Matthew had something primal about him. His good looks coupled with that mysterious aura could easily make any woman secretly wish he'd handcuffed her to his bed.
But there was a reason why shifters and witches… don't mingle.
A human who knows this would be scared of them.
A witch who knows this would have run away by now.
But she was not just any witch.
She held his gaze as long as she could. She was not going to back down.
His eyes were enough to entrance anyone and she would be lying if she said that it wasn't enough to awaken the need between her legs.
"Scared?" she arched an eyebrow as she tiptoed, decreasing the distance between their faces.
Then she held his arm that was resting on her car.
His eyes widened for a second. The action must have surprised him.
Without having second thoughts, she drew her face closer and let her lips brush against his ear as she whispered, "Scared of who?"
Then she released a spell. 'Extingori' she murmured.
Her palms turned hot, immediately burning her own gloves and his suit. The smell of fabric burning filled the parking lot.
He gasped in surprise and let go of the car.
"I will pay for the suit, Mr. Shifter." She gave him a mischievous smile and handed him a card with her name and the organization's insignia. That should be enough to scare him, right?
"Call me… anytime," she added. With a wink, she got inside her car.
There was a reason why she chose to leave Anchorage a year ago and shifters… were just one of them.
There were reasons why she came back now and shifters… were just one of them.
.....
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