The Keepers: Ethan

CHAPTER TWO (#u0f219859-6310-5080-aa1a-1cafcc099a83)

Heat flooded Jenna’s cheeks.

He towered over her, the intensity of him unsettling her. Dark hair, eyebrows, and long lashes. She lowered her gaze from his blue eyes, which smacked of mischief to his lips. A thin upper lip, indented with a perfect V in the middle, and a fuller bottom lip. Lips curled into a challenging grin.

Jenna shoved him away. He relented with a low chuckle and retrieved the bow off the ground.

She was blushing. Blushing! Not something she ever did, but her ploy to distract him had backfired in a way that had left her hot and bothered.

What the hell was she thinking?

Despite the attraction that always sizzled beneath their friendship, she’d so far managed to keep their relationship on a professional basis.

Until now.

“It’s late,” she said, her stomach twitching with butterflies – a rarity for her. “We should get back to Sienna and Kate.”

Two witches they were duty-bound to defend. Sienna Beckham, a potent elemental witch and Kate Carrigan, the hybrid witch with the strength of a Keeper and the ability to nullify magic – both fiercely hunted for their powers.

Two women Ethan’s older brothers adored.

“No rush. They’re with my brothers. Besides, I think you and Declan could use some time apart.”

She wrinkled her nose at the mention of his brother’s name. Declan, the fire warrior with the personality as explosive as his powers. “It’s that obvious?”

“I heard you arguing this morning.” He tapped his ear. “Super-hearing and all that.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. Declan’s an ass on the best of days.” He placed a hand on her shoulder, turning her to face him. “He’s worried about Kate, Jen. It’s not personal. You protect the woman he loves.”

Worships. Adores.

According to Ethan, they’d never seen Declan so enamoured with another woman before. After almost losing Kate to their enemies recently, Declan had become impossible when it came to her safety.

A given considering their enemies still lurked. With the ability to negate magic and break spells, Kate could swing the eternal war of good versus evil in their enemies’ favour.

The fact that Kate had become part of Ethan’s family, a woman they’d all grown to love, was irrelevant to those bastards.

“He doesn’t trust me with her. Questions my every move.” She reached for the bow, knowing she was doing a lousy job at hiding her frustration. “I’m her Keeper. Declan knows what that means.”

“We all do.”

Of course. It was the foundation of her friendship with Ethan. He understood their world and what it took to protect their witches. Like her, he lived for being a Keeper, but knew it came with a mammoth responsibility and continuous worry that often shrouded everything else.

Jenna inhaled noisily and straightened, shelving the conversation. “Enough doom and gloom. I’ll handle Declan.”

His eyes followed her movements, studying her, like he always did. “Of course you can.”

She watched him walk away, his swagger different from the men she’d watched in New Orleans. He radiated confidence, but in a quiet way. The kind that made you underestimate him. He was an air warrior, connected to an element of nature that many people underrated.

But she’d seen him in action. With the ability to manipulate air, he was able to wield the wind and weather to his will. The man could whip up a storm that would put the New Orleans’ floods to shame.

Not that he would. But he could.

As for her stunt a moment ago … touching him had been inappropriate but it had snagged her a win – one she’d been desperate for. She couldn’t tell him where she’d been the night before. Or why.

Seeing him flustered – if only for a split second – had been a bonus.

There was a rustle of trees behind her. She turned around to see a single black crow squawk twice on a nearby branch before taking flight.

Ethan leapt across the river, landing with ease on the opposite side of the riverbank, the jump effortless and agile. He was tall and muscular without being bulky. His toned muscles bulged beneath the black t-shirt he wore. Whistling softly, he straightened and waded through bushes in search of the arrows they’d lost.

Realising she was gawking like an idiot, Jenna shook her head to get her brain moving again.

The sudden squawk of a second crow startled her. The bird circled above before nose-diving to the ground. It landed silently and tucked away its wings.

The setting sun had tinted the sky and mountains in pink, the river a glow of beauty. The town nestled amongst vineyards and greenery in the distance. A peaceful, close-knit town where everyone was up in everyone’s business and things like home-baked pie, honesty, and solid friendships still existed.

She hadn’t grown up in Rapid Falls like Ethan and his family. She’d met his sister, Sarah, at the academy and frequently travelled home with her during the holidays.

Two women from different backgrounds. Sarah had three older brothers and came from a prestigious family who owned a wine estate. They’d lost their parents in a fire when they were younger. Jenna had once had a family until the night their city had been raided, their homes attacked. Her parents had sent her away, urged her to seek shelter at the academy until they could come for her.

She was still waiting.

But through her darkest moments, she’d never given up hope that her parents were still alive. That they’d still come for her.

She’d never told anyone, not even Sarah. Her death had left a void inside Jenna that could never be filled. She’d never found friendship like that again – had never bothered searching for it.

Not that she’d met many friends in the last two years. Hazel and her people had used bullying and violence as a means of gaining – and maintaining – friendships. She’d soon mastered the art of feigning whatever was needed in order to stay under their radar.

A means of survival few people would understand.

Several excited squawks from the tree above brought her attention back to the present. Five more crows had arrived.

The arrival of a dozen more sent a ripple of unease down Jenna’s spine.

The sky in the distance had darkened, the pretty pink dissolved by a black cloud of doom that moved toward them at a rapid rate. It looked like a thunderstorm rolling in, destroying all traces of the beauty she’d previously admired.

“Ethan?” He’d seen it too and stood with his back to her, staring off into the distance. “Please tell me that storm’s yours?”

“It’s not. And I don’t think it’s a storm.”

The crows above her took flight, circling, their high-pitched shrieks soon joined by numerous others. Uneasy, she gaped at the blackness creeping in.

A plague of crows. Thousands and thousands of squawking birds, sucking everything joyful out of their surroundings.

Shit.