Matthew’s blue eyes deepened, going from ocean blue to dark skies at dusk. “I don’t want to see a young woman harmed, and I don’t expect you to be the one who would take care of that if it came to that point. If that girl proves a risk, I will handle it. It won’t be like with Bethany, where all of us let it slide until it was too late. I won’t let that happen this time.”

Energy charged my skin as I stared at him. Realization slipped in and it left me cold. “Her name is Kat,” I heard myself say as I stepped toward him, my chin dipping down. “And I will handle her.”

“You know I would do anything to protect you all.” Matthew planted his hands on the table and took a deep breath. “All of you—you’re my family.”

Thrusting my hand through my hair, I struggled with my patience. “I know that. We feel the same way, but you do not need to step in here. I will make sure she isn’t a risk to us.”

His eyes met mine and a moment passed. “You’re one of the strongest, if not the strongest, Luxen right now. The Elders know that and so does the DOD, and that means someone is always watching you. You have to be more careful than any of us.”

I lowered my hand as the weight of my race settled on my shoulders. There was nothing I could say to that. I was faster and stronger than most Luxen and I could wield more of the Source than any of my kind we knew about. But I didn’t take these gifts for granted. I trained harder than anyone. Patrolled more often. And I was determined to stay focused on my duty. Not get lost and vulnerable like my brother had…

Matthew watched me and must have seen something in my eyes. “Your brother wasn’t weak.”

My head cocked to the side. “He—”

“He wasn’t,” he interrupted. “He was kinder and he was more laid back, but he was just as strong as you and you need to remember that. Dawson wasn’t weak. He wasn’t foolish, and yet, because of a girl, he’s gone. Don’t follow in your brother’s footsteps.”

Message received, loud and clear.

Don’t follow in your brother’s footsteps.

That statement was actually laughable.

Just because I wasn’t actively trying to run her out of town didn’t mean I was going to end up like Dawson. For one thing, Kat and I didn’t even like each other. Yeah, there was something physical brewing, but it didn’t run deeper than that. Dawson had fallen in love with Bethany. Big difference there.

And my brother—he had been weaker.

Maybe not physically, but when it came to everything else, he was.

It was early evening on Saturday when I saw Kat’s mom drive off. Knowing Kat was alone and that Dee would be coming home tomorrow, I knew the last thing I should be doing was what I was doing.

Which was walking my ass over to her house.

After knocking on her door, I ambled to the porch railing and looked up. The sun had a couple of more hours before setting, but a few stars were starting to appear. Shoving my hands in the pockets of my jeans, I waited to see if she’d even answer the door. If I were her, I’d probably never want to see my face again. I couldn’t explain my hot-and-cold behavior either. I knew she was bad for Dee, bad for the colony, and especially bad for me. But there was something about her spunk I couldn’t shake.

I was a little surprised when the door opened and Kat stepped out onto the porch. “What are you doing?” she asked.

Having no idea how to answer that, I was quiet for a moment and then cleared my throat. “I like staring at the sky. There’s something about it. It’s endless, you know.” Lame.

She stepped closer to me, her movements almost tentative. “Is some crazy dude going to run out of your house and yell at you for talking to me?”

I grinned at that. “Not right now, but there is always later.”

Her nose wrinkled. “I’m okay missing ‘later.’”

“Yeah.” I twisted at the waist, facing her. “Busy?”

“Other than messing with my blog, no.”

“You have a blog?” I had to force myself not to laugh. Blogging always seemed like something middle-age moms did, not above-average high school girls.

She folded her arms across her chest, her stance widening as if she were preparing for a battle. “Yeah, I have a blog.”

“What’s your blog’s name?”

“None of your business.” Her smile was too sweet.

“Interesting name.” One corner of my lips rose when annoyance flashed across her face. Getting her angry was too easy. “So what do you blog about? Knitting? Puzzles? Being lonely?”

“Ha ha, smartass.” She sighed. “I review books.”

Huh. Books. Should’ve guessed that. “Do you get paid for them?”

She laughed out loud at that. “No. Not at all.”

I frowned. “So you review books and you don’t get paid if someone buys a book based on your review?”

“I don’t review books to get paid or anything.” Her arms unfolded as she seemed to grow more comfortable talking about her blog. “I do it because I like it. I love reading, and I enjoy talking about books.”

“What kind of books do you read?”

“All different kinds.” She leaned against the railing and looked up, meeting my gaze. “Mainly I prefer the paranormal stuff.”

“Vampires and werewolves?” I guessed.

“Yeah.”

“Ghosts and aliens?”

“Ghost stories are cool, but I don’t know about aliens. ET really doesn’t do it for me and a lot of readers.”

I raised an eyebrow at that. “What does it for you?”

“Not slimy green space creatures,” she replied, and I swallowed a laugh. “Anyway, I also appreciate graphic novels, history stuff—”

“You read graphic novels?” Disbelief flooded me. “Seriously?”

She nodded. “Yeah, so what? Are girls not supposed to like graphic novels and comics?”

I didn’t think she wanted me to answer that. Damn, she was always a surprise. “Want to go on a hike?”

“Uh, you know I’m not good with the whole hiking thing.” She reached up, tucking a loose strand of hair from her ponytail behind her ear. Did she ever wear her hair down?

Why in the hell was I thinking about her hair?

My gaze followed the movement. “I’m not taking you up on the Rocks. Just a harmless little trail. I’m sure you can handle it.”

She pushed off the railing but hesitated. “Did Dee not tell you where your keys were?”

Hell, I’d forgotten all about that. “Yeah, she did.”

“Then why are you here?”

How could I possibly explain it to her when I couldn’t to myself? I fumbled in my head for an excuse she’d buy and realized I really wasn’t that creative. This was probably a sign I should get my ass home and forget all about whatever this was. “I don’t have a reason. I thought I would just stop over, but if you’re going to question everything, then you can forget it.” Pivoting around, I headed down the porch steps, totally realizing I was yet again acting like an ass. What could I say? I was good at it.

A moment passed and then, “All right, let’s do this.”

Surprised, I stopped. “Are you sure?”

She didn’t look 100 percent certain when I glanced over my shoulder at her, but she hurried down the steps and followed me. “Why are we going behind my house?” She paused, pointing to the west, at the sandstone mountain still glittering in the fading sunlight. “The Seneca Rocks are that way. I thought most trails started over there.”

“Yeah, but there are trails back here that will take you around, and it’s quicker,” I explained. “Most people here know all the main trails that are crowded. There used to be a lot of boring days out here, and I found a couple of them off the beaten trail.”

Her eyes widened. “How far off the beaten track are we talking?”

Cute. I chuckled. “Not that far.”

“So it’s a baby trail? I bet this is going to be boring for you.”

“Any time I get to go out and walk around is good.” That was true. Luxen naturally had more energy in them, and any physical activity helped. “Besides, it’s not as if we’ll hike all the way to Smoke Hole Canyon. That’s a pretty big hike from here, so no worries, okay?”