Free Forsaken Realms (Bounty Hunters United Book 1) by Katalina Leon Page B

Ideally we should be doubling back toward Naveen’s secret compound because that’s our only hope of stealing a ship and skipping town.”
    Syan squared his shoulders. “I have an excellent internal compass. We are headed the right way. I am confident of that.”
    “Really?”
    “You do not trust me to lead?”
    “I didn’t say that.”
    “But you implied it.”
    Even as she shrugged it off, knew he was right. “I’m used to leading myself. By the way, I’ve got excellent hunter’s instincts too, and my internal compass is telling me that we are off course.” She pointed slightly to the right. “We should be skewing this way.”
    With a mild expression he offered her the machete. “Would you like to lead? I am happy to follow. I trust your instincts.”
    A quick sweep of her palm created space between them. “No, thanks. You’re doing fine.”
    “Shall we keep moving?”
    Admittedly she was challenging him out of habit. The day was so hot she had no desire to fight her way through the unruly thicket they were standing in.
    “Yes. You lead.”
    Syan stepped ahead of her and swung his powerful arm in an arc making the virtual blade glow white-hot. Soon he hacked a tunnel through what had looked like an impassable wall of brush. A virtual blade did some of the work, but it responded directly to the effort expended. His arm never seemed to tire. The task was exhausting to watch, and she knew it must be taking a toll on his already spent reserves. They walked a long way, fighting their way through jungle. The heat wore on her. “You haven’t seen anymore of that bava vine have you?”
    The machete stilled; he turned. “It’s everywhere. Would you like to stop and rest? I sensed you were tired but also knew that if I said anything you would be defensive.”
    Gemmina knew he was right. “I do need to rest, but only for a few minutes.”
    A big smile warmed his face. “I need to rest, too.” He walked toward a yellowish vine, sliced a long portion of it off, and brought it to her.
    She accepted the juicy vine with a smile. “Thanks.”
    “I like doing things for you.” Syan turned away from her and yanked the top half of his body hugging pressure suit over his head, revealing a flawless wedge-shaped torso rippling with muscle. “The day is hot.” With his back turned he tossed the discarded shirt near the packs and cut another bava vine, drinking several sections dry before glancing over his shoulder. “Do you want more?”
    “Yes.”
    He hacked another chunk of bava away, then faced her.
    A gasp of awe escaped her. His coppery chest was smooth, no body hair, and heavily tattooed from shoulder to shoulder in an intricately wrought triangle of geometric patterns that glowed emerald green.
    “You are staring.” He handed her the section of vine. “I have heard men of Earth mark their skin as well.”
    “They do.” She could barely trust herself to speak, and it was all she could do not to reach out and touch the solid curves of his lean torso.
    “You may touch.” With care, he took hold of her hand, which was slightly sticky with bava juice, and brought it to his chest.
    His skin felt hot beneath her palm. The tattoos had a faint almost phosphorescent quality. She scanned the beautiful designs noticing they were not simple abstract designs as she had first thought. On closer inspection she saw what appeared to be stylized birds of prey and stalking cat-like creatures hidden in the dense line work. “What do these marks mean?”
    He crouched lower bringing himself to eye level with her. “I’m glad you asked.” Without releasing her hand he traced her fingertips across his skin until they hovered near the cat-like creature. “This is a picture representation of my name. It was my father’s name as well. On Kiron a ‘syan’ is the largest hunter in the jungle. It is twice the size of the biggest man. On Earth I believe you have a similar creature called a tiger.”
    “Yes, I see that