King of the Wilds - Tasha Black Page 0,14

pool before. Chances are pretty good someone here will know me.”

“Let’s hope not,” Tabitha told her. “It will be much easier for us to lay low if people aren’t wondering why we’re hanging out together.”

Miranda was beginning to wonder exactly why they were hanging out together.

But she had to admit that Tabitha had a point, so she nodded instead.

“Good,” Tabitha said. “Let’s keep a sharp eye out for anything out of place.”

“We’ve sure got a beautiful day for it,” Sara said.

She was right. The sky was deep blue above, without a cloud in sight. The birds were singing, and the tall trees that surrounded the little club were so lush, they almost looked tropical.

They headed through the gates to the little booth by the pool where Tabitha turned in her membership card and signed for two guests.

Miranda had been here once or twice over the years for swap days and birthday parties. As a kid, she’d belonged to the neighboring Tarker’s Hollow swim club, which was wide open, with huge pools, slides, swing sets and a massive campus.

But this place was very different.

Rosethorn Valley’s swim club was like a hidden gem, its smaller pools and tennis court tucked away in the tiny valley between the creek and the cliffside.

The creek itself was very much a part of the place. It ran parallel to the pools, with little bridges leading between the tennis court and pool and to the stone steps carved into the hillside that led to the changing rooms.

Massive trees on the hills that surrounded the place made the pool feel sheltered, but also guaranteed that the water was iceberg cold during most of the day.

Miranda followed Tabitha and Sara as they headed past a collection of Rosethorn Valley’s senior citizens, who were sunning themselves on lawn chairs around the deep end of the biggest pool.

Sara threw her bag on one of the picnic tables and sat down to put on sunscreen.

“Can I borrow some of that?” Miranda asked.

“Sure,” Sara said, handing it over.

Miranda slathered on a healthy amount. Her fair skin had always been super sensitive.

“Are we looking for anything in particular?” she asked.

“We couldn’t see much,” Sara said. “But I caught a glimpse of the stone stairs over there. At least I think it was them. We really have so little to go on.”

“Let’s swim first,” Tabitha suggested. “It will clear our minds.”

“Sounds good,” Miranda said.

They headed over to the crystal-clear water.

Tabitha dove right in, barely making a splash, and began swimming laps.

Sara stepped in gingerly and quickly went under, coming up with a little yelp. “It’s so cold,” she said, with a sheepish expression.

Miranda braced herself and dipped in a toe.

“Dear Lord,” she muttered.

But there was no point delaying the inevitable. It would be better to freeze than to sweat.

She stepped down and slid underwater.

The cold invaded her body, momentarily taking her breath away. She shivered once, then began to adjust.

“Invigorating, right?” Tabitha said enthusiastically, already finished with her first lap.

“Sure,” Miranda agreed, earning herself a genuine smile from the other woman.

“Come on, let’s get our exercise,” Tabitha said. “The guys are coming later with a ton of food.”

“Sounds good to me,” Miranda said.

They swam laps for a while in the late morning sunshine.

It had been forever since Miranda had gotten exercise that wasn’t meted out by a machine in a stale indoor gym. The pull and stretch of her muscles in the cold water felt amazing.

When she got tired, she flipped over and did a lazy backstroke.

The tall trees put a border around the blue sky above and Miranda had the same sense of happy quiet she used to feel as a child, walking around Tarker’s Hollow under the tree canopy.

A sort of benevolent magic seemed to protect this place from too many dark days. It was an abomination to think of monsters invading, stealing away its ephemeral peace.

“Oh boy, here they come,” Sara said, rousing Miranda from this train of thought.

She righted herself in time to see the three fae kings striding toward the pool.

Separately, they were each magnificent.

Together, they were a revelation.

The sun had just reached the pinnacle of the sky, shining its rays at last on the glittering water and burnishing the men as if the sun itself admired them. They were all lean muscle and long hair, smiles and easy confidence.

Miranda felt like she was watching a commercial, but for what she could not imagine. Not that any product would have a chance at holding anyone’s attention with them in the