Page 13 of Unbearable Attraction (Hollow Oak Mates #4)
LEENAH
T he coffee was perfect, the cinnamon rolls were still warm, and Luka's thoughtful gesture had done something dangerous to the walls around her heart.
Leenah found herself stealing glances at him as they ate breakfast at her kitchen table, noting the way he'd remembered exactly how she liked her coffee and the fact that he'd shown up at dawn just to make sure she was okay.
"Thank you," she said quietly. "For thinking of me. It's been a while since anyone..."
"Since anyone what?" Luka's amber eyes were gentle, patient.
"Since anyone cared enough to bring me breakfast." The admission felt more vulnerable than she'd intended, but his expression held only understanding, not pity.
"Well, we can't have Hollow Oak's resident ghost expert running on empty coffee and determination," he said with a smile that made her pulse flutter. "Especially not when we've got mysterious ceremony grounds to locate."
The easy way he included himself in her mission should have triggered her usual protests about working alone.
Instead, she found herself oddly grateful for the partnership.
Yesterday's research session had been more productive with two minds working the problem, and his steady presence had made the supernatural chaos feel more manageable.
"About that," she said, pulling out the folder of notes she'd compiled after he'd left the night before. "I cross-referenced my grandmother's journals with the historical maps, and I think I found something."
She spread the papers across the table, pointing to a hand-drawn sketch from 1954. "Grandmother mentioned dreams about ceremony grounds deep in the old forest, beyond where the current hiking trails end. She drew this rough map based on what Aiyana showed her."
Luka studied the sketch with obvious interest. "That area's been off-limits to development since the town was founded. Supposed to be too steep for building, but I always suspected there was more to it than terrain issues."
"Supernatural protection, probably. Which means we're on the right track." Leenah traced the path marked on her grandmother's map. "According to this, there should be a stone circle about two miles northwest of Moonmirror Lake, hidden behind what she called 'veils of old magic.'"
"Glamour spells," Luka said immediately. "Fae magic designed to hide sacred sites from casual discovery."
"Exactly." She looked up at him with surprise. "You know about glamours?"
"You pick things up when you've lived in a supernatural community for twelve years." His tone was casual, but she caught the hint of deeper knowledge behind the words. "Plus, my grandfather taught me to recognize the signs. Old forests hold more secrets than most people realize."
The comment sparked her curiosity about his background, but before she could ask more questions, he was standing and gathering their empty coffee cups.
"If we're going to search for hidden ceremony grounds, we should get started," he said. "Weather forecast shows possible snow later, and I'd rather not be tramping through mystical forests in a blizzard."
An hour later, they were making their way along the hiking trail that led into Hollow Oak's oldest forest, their breath misting in the cold November air.
Leenah had traded her usual tour guide attire for practical hiking boots, warm layers, and a backpack loaded with research materials and emergency supplies.
"Tell me about the original Cherokee presence here," Luka said as they walked, his longer stride easily matching her pace without making her feel rushed.
"The valley was considered sacred long before European supernatural settlers arrived," Leenah explained, falling into the familiar rhythm of sharing folklore.
"The Cherokee called it Nightland's Heart, a place where the spirit world touched the physical realm most strongly.
They conducted ceremonies here to maintain balance between the worlds. "
"And when the supernatural families arrived?"
"They were refugees, mostly. Fleeing persecution in Salem, Scotland, Ireland.
The Cherokee spirits could have driven them off, but instead they chose to share the land.
" She paused to check her grandmother's map against their current location.
"The blood pact was sealed as a promise that the newcomers would help protect the sacred sites instead of exploiting them. "
"Which worked for about two hundred years before someone dropped the ball," Luka observed.
"Someone or several someones." Leenah pointed toward a barely visible path branching off from the main trail. "Grandmother's map shows the ceremony grounds this way."
The secondary path was overgrown and difficult to follow, winding through increasingly dense forest where ancient oaks and towering pines blocked most of the daylight.
But Luka moved through the terrain with the kind of natural grace that suggested he was genuinely comfortable in wilderness settings.
"You do this often?" she asked, watching him identify the safest route across a fallen log that blocked their path.
"Often enough." He offered her his hand to help her navigate the obstacle, his grip warm and steady. "Bears aren't exactly city dwellers by nature. I spend a lot of time in these woods."
The casual mention of his shifter nature reminded her that despite his human appearance, Luka carried the instincts and abilities of a powerful predator.
It should have been unsettling, but instead she found it oddly comforting.
If they encountered anything dangerous in the deep forest, her research partner was more than capable of handling it.
"There," she said suddenly, pointing toward a cluster of stones barely visible through the trees. "That has to be it."
But as they approached what looked like a natural rock formation, the air around them began to shimmer with subtle distortion.
Glamour magic, layers of fae enchantment designed to make observers see nothing but ordinary forest. Leenah's necromantic abilities stirred in response to the old magic, recognizing the spiritual significance of whatever lay hidden behind the veils.
"Can you see through it?" Luka asked, his voice dropping to a whisper that suggested he understood they were approaching something sacred.
"Give me a minute." Leenah closed her eyes and let her necromantic senses expand, feeling for the spiritual currents that would reveal the glamour's weak points. "There. Just to the left of that big oak."
She stepped forward, pushing through what felt like walking through thick curtains, and suddenly the hidden grove revealed itself in all its ancient glory.
The stone circle was magnificent with thirteen massive granite monoliths arranged in a perfect ring around a central altar carved with symbols that predated written language.
The air hummed with accumulated power, centuries of ceremonial magic layering the space with spiritual energy so dense it was almost visible.
And then her necromantic abilities surged without warning.
Power flooded through her like a tidal wave, every spirit who had ever participated in ceremonies at this site suddenly pressing against her consciousness with desperate urgency.
Dozens of voices speaking in overlapping languages, memories of sacred rituals and broken promises cascading through her mind faster than she could process.
She stumbled backward, overwhelmed by the spiritual onslaught, and felt herself falling toward the rocky ground. But instead of hitting stone, she collided with Luka's solid frame as his arms closed around her, pulling her against his chest with reflexes that spoke to supernatural awareness.
The moment their bodies connected, something electric passed between them.
Not just the spiritual energy crackling through the ancient grove, but something purely physical and breathtaking.
Heat bloomed where his hands pressed against her back, and she found herself looking up into amber eyes that had gone molten with awareness.
"You okay?" he asked, his voice rough with concern and something deeper.
"I think so," she breathed, though she made no immediate move to step away from the warmth of his embrace. "The spirits here... there are so many of them."
"Can you handle it?"
The question held no doubt about her abilities, just genuine concern for her wellbeing. And standing there in his arms, surrounded by centuries of accumulated magic and the weight of supernatural expectations, Leenah realized she didn't want to handle it alone anymore.
"With help," she said quietly. "I think I can handle it with help."
The admission felt like crossing a line she'd spent years defending, but looking into Luka's understanding eyes, she couldn't bring herself to regret it.