Oh Goddess, his voice was so deep, so seductive she was sure he could do phone porn and make millions. Heck, she would be the first to sign up for a lifetime membership.
Those bright-blue eyes met hers again. “You alright, Katjie?”
“My name’s Noelle,” she said.
He grinned. “Nice to meet you, Noelle. I’m Ridge. Katjie means kitten, and by your reaction, you’re most definitely that.”
She nearly swooned under his charming smile and stunning appearance. The man had to be at least a foot taller than her own five feet three inches, and while she was no skinny thing, weighing in at a reasonable hundred and thirty-five, he had to have a hundred pounds on her. Then there were the twin dimples that made his too-rugged good looks become almost boyish. Yeah, he was the total package, at least from what she could see outlined in the tight T-shirt and denim jeans. Maybe he stuffed a pair of socks down there, for surely, he couldn’t be that blessed.
“Excuse me, did you not hear me tell you to go away?”
Noelle’s fingers began to tingle with the need to zap the idiot that Ridge so aptly named the man into another city, or hell, if he kept weaseling his way closer to her, she’d send him to another state even.
“What’s your name, boy?” Ridge all but growled.
Hearing his deep voice go scary deep, Noelle took a step back, bumping into something metal. She screamed, turning to see what she’d hit. The Harley was big, obviously meant for a large man. As she turned back toward Ridge and the other man, she noticed only Ridge was still there, staring at her.
“What happened to what’s his name?” she asked as a new fear almost overtook her. Goddess, she was stupid. She’d left the safety of the bar, along with all the people inside, for what? Fresh air and crazy men with nefarious ideas?
Ridge held his hands up, keeping his voice low. “I won’t hurt you, Katjie. Above all others, you will be protected. As for that asshole, I had him escorted back into the bar. He’ll be given a free drink and a talking to.”
Chapter Two
NOELLE TRIED AND FAILED to come up with something witty to say to that. For the past several years she’d been focusing on getting her powers under control, so she didn’t kill, well, everyone she loved. There hadn’t been any dating having a guy to take care of those pesky needs.
“What’re you thinking about right this instant, Noelle?” Ridge asked on a deep inhale.
She wasn’t sure what to say as he seemed to be moving closer without actually moving. Dearest Virgin, he was within touching distance almost. “I should be heading back inside before my sister comes looking for me.”
Ridge stared down at the gravel beneath their feet. Noelle thought she heard him swear, but as he brought his head back up at her, glowing eyes that couldn’t be human had her stepping away from him. “What are you?”
“Hmm, most call me Alpha.” His blue eyes narrowed. “Stop moving away from me. I won’t hurt you but if you keep edging away, you’re going to trip over...”
She didn’t hear what he said after that as she indeed did trip over the back of the bike she’d been admiring. In her undignified fall, she didn’t think to control her magic, her powers zinging out of her like an F-5 tornado. If they’d still been making numbers on the Fujita scale, she might’ve been given a six or seven classification all on her lonesome.
Try as she might, she couldn’t pull her magic back quick enough and feared she’d hurt the man named Ridge. Closing her eyes, she murmured the spell that would encase the bar, and every living being within and without, in a bubble that could withstand her magic.
Lights exploded all around her, shattering glass up and down the street echoing like an alarm. She eased herself up, taking stock of the damage. Vehicles were flipped and mangled. The rows of bikes had been spared since they were nearest her. The only lights, as she surveyed her destruction, were the moon were the neon signs from the bar.
“Goddess, I need to be locked up.” She let out a stuttering breath, pulled on her hair with both hands, and released them just as quickly as she remembered times in captivity when she’d done the same thing. Her captor had smirked at her from outside the glass cage he’d kept her in, threatening to shave her hair off if she didn’t stop it, and he’d done it several times over the decade he’d had her.
With time ticking by, she worked to repair the vehicles, making sure they were all back to their original shape. Next, she worked on the city streets until everything was as it should be. Finally, she released the bubble surrounding the bar and the man, taking the last of her strength with it. Before she could utter a word of explanation, she was swept up against a rock-hard chest, cradled like she was someone special. The eyes staring down at her had a mixture of anger, worry, and incredulity in them.
“Still think I’m safe in your care?” she whispered as darkness claimed her.
RIDGE HAD FELT POWERLESS very few times in his life. And all those times had to do with women in some form or another. The first time had been when he’d found a young girl by the name of Solei near his family home. She’d slit her wrist after her dickhead of a boyfriend had dumped her. To this day, he wished he could’ve gotten to her sooner. As it was, he took solace in the fact she hadn’t died alone out near the water. Instead he’d carried her, praying she’d make it all the way back to town, even knowing it wasn’t meant to be. The last time he’d been powerless was when his adopted sister Torrance had held
