When Lark says she wants to hang out with all of us after rehearsal, I’m pleased. After she left the suite late last night I was terrified we’d fucked things up forever.

Since it’s a perfectly sunny desert day, Lark suggests we get a drink out by the Spades Royale pool, and we’re all game. After all, we were all ready to be outside after hours of being stuck inside our practice space.

The atmosphere poolside is a little wild, lots of hotel guests are here for the party vibe, and while it might not be something I’m used too, I look around and quickly assess that it is exactly what we all need.

Today at rehearsal, things were tense. Lark left late last night after we all made out with her for hours. I thought we’d been finding a place with one another, but then she spoke with North in the bathroom and next thing I know, she’d left the suite upset.

We got the truth out of him last night. He wouldn’t tell Lark the truth of what we are, and that pissed her off, and rightly so. She’s been lied to her whole life, the last thing she wants is a relationship with men who lie to her too.

But North wasn’t trying to insinuate anything when he told her that we might scare her off. It’s something we’re all scared of and something Gaia specifically told us not to do.

We sit at a table and order beers from a waitress who walks around in a tiny bikini. She may be beautiful, but she’s so not my type. Loud and flirty. I prefer a woman like Lark–she carries her confidence in a softer, more subtle way.

Lark is clearly sexual, her body was warm and sensitive last night when we kissed: her body pressing against mine, her hands threading through my hair. Yet she also held restraint. It was alluring, her ability to practice patience. I know she’s never slept with anyone, but she isn’t pushing for it either. And that is incredibly attractive.

“So, I spoke to Melanie today,” she starts.

“Yeah?” Vaughn asks. “What about.”

“About focus. And distractions.”

I watch Sawyer lift an eyebrow, and since he’s sitting next to her, I see him run a hand over her arm. “What sort of distractions, little bird?”

She bites her bottom lip. “Distractions like five cast mates who I can’t seem to stop thinking about.”

The table gets quiet.

“Melanie reminded me that this show is a once in a lifetime opportunity. And I don’t want to mess it up by…”

“By kissing us?” Brecken asks.

Her cheeks heat up, and damn, I love it when they do. I know I’m not the joker of the group, or the playboy, but I watch people, observe them. And when I watch Lark her innocence makes my heart ache–it’s so damn beautiful.

“Yeah. I mean … I can see her point. But also, after talking to North last night, I worry that none of you actually think I’m strong on my own. You think I’m in need of your protection. You think I can’t handle whatever you aren’t telling me.”

“It’s not that,” I say, wishing I could lay it all out there. “I think you’re incredibly strong. You don’t just get a Vegas show by doing things half-assed. You’re strong and smart and incredibly talented.”

“Then why hold back?”

We all look at one another, as if debating how much to say.

“It’s not so simple,” North tells her. She starts to speak, but he shakes her head and she stops, leans back, and listens. “We aren’t like regular people.”

“I figured.”

“You did?” Vaughn frowns.

“You know, when you told me Mother Earth was your guardian angel I figured you weren’t regular guys. But I’m not a regular girl either, am I? You see me on the stage. I know what I do – what we all do–isn’t humanly possible. Heck, if we were focused, we could nail that show in another week. I know how talented we are. But what we possess … it isn’t just raw talent. It’s extraordinary.”

“When you’re on stage, Lark, it’s more than human,” I tell her honestly. “But what is it?”

She narrows her eyes. “I thought you guys were here to tell me what I am.”

I shake my head. “I don’t know. Gaia only told us to protect you, she didn’t tell us what you are.” The sun beats down on us, and I wish we had a little shade–where we sit feels right out in the open. Our hearts on display.

“But aren’t we the same?” she asks.

I swallow the lump in my throat, and all us guys share a nervous look. Shit, we can’t hold back anymore if we want to keep her close. Not telling her now is going to push her away.

I reach across the table and take her hand. “We’re not the same, Lark.”

She lowers her chin. “Oh. I thought …”

I see it in her eyes, what she thought. She thought that maybe, just maybe, this would be the way to answer at least some of her questions.

Where she comes from.

But I can’t tell her that. Because I haven’t a clue.

Before I say any more, a woman in oversized black sunglasses and a straw hat stops at our table.

“Hey, Lark,” she says. “Hi guys, I’m Emmy. I know Lark’s mom.”

“Hello,” we all say in greeting. Lark though, is looking at this woman with starry eyes.

“I was just leaving some friends, Jojo and Claire, and we saw you sitting here in the sun and thought you might like to use our private cabana.” She points to a large tent at the edge of the pool.

Lark smiles up at her. “Oh wow, really?”

“Of course, Lark. We’re leaving for the day. It’s all set up for you guys: drinks, swimwear, the whole nine yards. It’s like my personal pool house.” She gives us a little wave. “Okay kids, enjoy, okay?”

“Thanks Emmy,” Lark says, watching her walk away.

“Shall we, little dove?” Sawyer asks, already standing. He takes Lark’s hand in his and walks away.

We follow, and once we enter the cabana, the breeze from a fan cools us right down. You can either raise the front panel of the tent or keep it down, as is. There are chaise lounges, a stocked bar, and a small changing area behind a screen.

“Wow, fancy,” Vaughn says.

“Yeah, I know, Emmy’s husband owns the hotel.”

Sawyer nods. “I remember meeting them with you the other day.”

I feel a pang of jealousy. I want to know everything about Lark, and it’s hard to know some of the other guys know more than me.

“So …” Lark says, looking around the furniture, as if debating where to sit. “What were you saying about being different than me?”

North sighs, but the rest of us shrug, giving him the go ahead he is looking for. “We’re shifters, Lark. Hawk shifters.”

She frowns, arms crossed. “What is that?”

“It means we can transform from man to hawk, and back again.”

She sits on the chaise, hand over her mouth. “Shit, you’re the hawks outside the house?”

“We are,” Brecken tells her. “And we are there every night to protect you.”

She inhales and then exhales slowly, shaking her head the entire time. “My mom warned me about you. For some reason she thought you might…she believed you could be bad, dangerous. She told me to stay away.”

“She’s wrong,” Vaughn says, adamant. Vaughn is a man of few words, but his heart is always in the right place, and the very idea of being thought of as dangerous seems to blow his mind. “We are here for you, Lark, and you alone. To watch over you. Not because we don’t think you are strong, but because Gaia has reason to believe you are in danger.”

Lark shakes her head again. “Danger from what? That’s what I want to understand.”

“I wish I knew,” North says. “But we didn’t keep this from you to hurt you. We thought it might scare the crap out of you.”

She twists her pink lips. “My mom’s a witch. We can all fly across a stage. And the fact that you shift isn’t the craziest thing that has crossed my mind in the last twenty-four hours.”

“Oh yeah?” Brecken asks. “What other crazy things have you considered?”

She swallows. “Melanie just told me to avoid distractions, but...”

“But what?” I ask, stepping toward her.

“I know I should listen to Melanie, but honestly I can’t seem to stop the pull I feel when I’m around you.”

I move toward her then, unable to hold back. I have been looking at her lips for hours, dreaming of tasting them again. I want her to know that I’m good for her.

When I pull her into my arms, she melts against me instantly. And our mouths open, our tongues colliding. Her arms wrap around my neck, and she moans against my mouth.

“Oh God,” I groan, as she pulls back.

“I don’t know,” she whimpers, closing her eyes. “I need to focus on the show.”

“Damn, woman,” Brecken says. “I can’t handle much more of this push and pull.”

“I’m not meaning to–”

Brecken cuts her off. “It’s okay, Lark. You need to follow your heart. This is your show– your time to shine. Besides,” he says. “I have an idea; a way to cool this down.”

“Oh yeah?” she asks, looking relieved.

“Hell yeah,” he says. “Let’s go swimming.”