Nia got a glass of water, gulped some, then tidied up her breakfast mess.
Once done, she grabbed her jacket from the coatstand in the corner, put it on, and hurried outside into the freezing air. Light snowflakes drifted down, settling on the overnight layer of snow already covering the ground.
Lore leaned against the precarious balustrade in the front courtyard, ankles crossed, arms folded over his chest, unbothered by the chill or snow. He looked up as she approached. His gaze traveled down her jeans and boots and back to the thick cream sweater she wore under her open jacket.
That very male look had her blood warming, a look she doubted he was even aware of. Her throat dried up, but that infernal heat within heightened.
“Where—” she rasped, cleared her throat, and tried again. “Where are we going?”
He straightened from the railing and held out a hand, bits of snowflakes sticking to his hair and shoulders. “To practice.”
“What? Holding hands?”
His mouth compressed as if holding back a smile. Her heart skipped. Ugh, it was probably her overworked imagination screwing with her mind.
“So I can keep you safe when you call on your teleporting power.”
“What?” Her nerves shriveled into a ball. “I thought we were getting off this mountain for a while?”
“We are, but you will take us.”
Jesus. She rubbed her buzzing temples. “Hate to break it to ya, but I don’t think that’s gonna work. I’m not irritated enough with you.”
As usual, he ignored her snippy comment. “You have to be prepared for anything. Being mortal, your safest defense is to get away from tougher opponents.”
“You mean demons.”
“And otherworldly beings, once they sense the growing power within you.”
When he put it like that…shit! Her belly twisted, and her mouth took over to cover up her fear. “Yay, me,” she muttered. “Well, wherever you went, it sure changed your personality—not by a lot. I mean, you’re still like a remote glacier but a tad better. Hmm…I like this new you more.”
He blinked as if she had come out of left field and clocked him on the head. Nia wanted to laugh.
“Thank you for the endorsement. Now concentrate.”
“Wow. You’re actually talking in full sentences. Color me speechless. Your visit elsewhere sure did a good job of opening this side of you?—”
“Nia.”
At the terse edge in his voice, she dropped her baiting. “Okay, fine. I’m concentrating.” She shut her eyes. “What do I do?”
“Imagine a place you want to go to.Nearby,” he stressed. “Now, go to the deepest part of yourself. You should feel an energy…a pull that wasn’t within you until recently. Focus on that.” He grasped her hand, his grip warm and reassuringly safe. “I will be with you to make sure nothing happens. Remember, keep the image of where you want to go in your mind.”
Right. She inhaled deeply, and with the river in her mind, she latched onto the core of the darn agitating heat within her?—
Everything around her dispersed like the wind…and her feet left then retouched the ground. She stumbled, a little disoriented, but strong arms came around her, steadying her.
Nia grabbed Lore’s shirt until her head stopped spinning. Then she glanced about and laughed. “I did it! OMG, I did it!”
Grinning, she pushed away.Yep, made it, right there on the banks of the river!
Broken bits of ice floated in the rustling water, some crashing against the rocks strewn in its way. No drifting snowflakes here. Just up at the super-cold abbey.
“Now what?” She spun back and found him watching her.
“Now you do it again. Without me. Get yourself there.” He nodded across the river to the snow-crusted bank at the foothills of the soaring mountain.
A twinge of wariness slipped through her as she eyed the fast-flowing river. What if she fell in? “I don’t think I can.”
