he motioned to her with a friendly grin. "come join us, kara."

four pairs of eyes pinned her, watching her with varying degrees of interest and curiosity, making her feel ill at ease in a way that was utterly foreign to her. at home, she was never self-conscious, but. there had never been a reason to be. everyone knew her and had since she was a baby. she was just kara. miss macallister to her preschoolers.

but she wasn't miss macallister anymore. she was the chosen one. and what exactly did that mean? how did they expect her to act? immortal vip wasn't a role she'd ever imagined for herself. but she did know how to be kara macallister, and she supposed that would have to be enough for now.

kara took a deep breath and forced her feet to cross to the table where the men stood waiting for her. watching her. four of the most physically imposing men she'd ever seen other than lyon.

reaching them, she thrust out her hand to the nearest man, the biggest of the bunch. as she looked up into his face, she caught her breath in a small, startled gasp. she had to force herself not to jerk back at the scars that crisscrossed his hard, rugged face. had he been in an accident? a bad one, by the looks of his nose, which had to have been broken at least half a dozen times.

the scowl on his mouth was only partly due to the scar tugging his lip downward, and she realized she was staring. and still standing with her empty hand outstretched.

"i... i'm sorry." her hand dropped self-consciously as her gaze rose to his. in his eyes she saw not so much anger as a hardness. and maybe a hint of resignation. "i'm kara. kara macallister."

something flickered in his gaze, softening the harsh lines of that badly scarred face. easing, if only slightly, that scowl. he lifted a hand the size of a dinner plate to the spot hers had been moments before.

"i'm wulfe."

kara took the proffered olive branch without hesitation and managed to smile at him. "hi, wulfe."

his huge palm closed around hers. "at your service, radiant." to her surprise, his other hand landed softly on her shoulder, and he started to. close the distance between them as if he meant to hug her.

kara stiffened involuntarily. wulfe's scowl returned full force as he jerked back and turned away. she opened her mouth, uncertain what to say to apologize, but an arm around her shoulders startled her into silence.

"welcome, radiant." she looked up into the face of the redhead. he was definitely younger than the others, his eyes friendly. "i'm foxx." he pulled her against his side and slid his hand down her arm.

were they all coming on to her? or were they just way too touchy-feely?

she didn't move, couldn't move without risking offending him, too. finally, he released her and stepped away. all she wanted to do was step back and establish a little personal space, but there were still two men crowding around her.

tighe stroked her hair gently, then stepped back, as if sensing her keen discomfort. his dimpled smile helped to calm her. "how'd you sleep?"

"hi, tighe. i... slept fine."

"i'm glad. you hungry?"

she felt a true smile lift her lips and make it all the way to her eyes.

"starved." she'd almost forgotten the fourth man until he moved beside tighe. he was as tall as the others, but without the heavy musculature.

he kept his hands clasped behind his back as he smiled at her. his face was long and strong-boned, his brown eyes alight with curiosity beneath a pair of dark, sharply winged brows. unlike the others, he made no move to touch her, and she relaxed further.

"i'm hawke, radiant."

hawke was a cool name. so was... kara blinked. wulfe. and foxx. and lyon. her gaze flying from one man to the next. "you're all named after animals."

hawke started to say something, but tighe coughed, and the man went quiet. "nicknames, kara. someone once said we had the manners of a bunch of wild animals, so we decided to call ourselves by their names."

kara cocked her head, "then why are you just tighe?"

he grinned. "tiger."

kara smiled, but the fear that had ridden her since she woke tightened her throat. she sensed nothing amiss. the men were all friendly enough, in their way, yet the feeling she was in danger persisted, as did the certainty that only one man could keep her safe.

"where's lyon?"

"you won't find him here." foxx started back around to the seat she'd seen him in when she entered. "our chief never eats with his foot soldiers."

"lyon keeps to himself." tighe pulled out the chair he'd been sitting in for her, moving his plate down a space to seat her between foxx and himself. he smiled at her with those incongruous sunglasses, a flirtatious smile that should have had her pulse racing. "have a seat, pretty girl. when you're through eating, i'll take you to him. unless i can convince you to stay with me." his grin turned boyish, carving dimples into his cheeks.

kara found herself smiling back. she hesitated only a moment before she nodded and sat. tighe grabbed a clean plate from a stack in the middle of the table and handed it to her.

"we have pork medallions, ham steaks, and roast beef. what are you in the mood for?"

kara looked at the three platters. the only food on the table. "it's all meat."

the men stilled, an odd tension rippling through the air of the room.

kara wished she could crawl under the table. "it looks wonderful." she felt like she'd made a terrible gaffe. they'd offered her a king's feast, and she'd had to comment.

"i can have pink make you something else," tighe said.

"no, this is fine. i didn't mean to imply... i wasn't complaining. i like meat."

as she reached for the serving fork on the nearest platter, foxx leaned toward her, dipping his head until his face was only inches from her own.

"so, where have you been all my life?"

kara bit her tongue to keep from laughing. all his life? he couldn't be more than twenty. but at the same time, she felt her cheeks heat from the obvious come-on.

"have some mercy on her, foxx." hawke shook his head, his expression sympathetic. "why don't you tell us something about yourself, kara?"

but foxx wasn't through toying with her. he looped his arm around her shoulders and tilted his head toward her, conspiratorially. "be careful of hawke, radiant. once he starts asking questions, he never stops. you'll be crying for mercy within the hour."

hawke's smile was bland. "better that than having her crying from boredom, kit."

foxx's smile turned wicked. "give me an hour with any woman, and she'll be crying, all right. crying for more."

kara's cheeks went from warm to hot, her body stiffening. she needed space. she wanted lyon.

"cool it, foxx," tighe said sharply. "show a little respect. she's not used to us, yet."

foxx made a sound deep in his throat that almost sounded like an animal's growl, but his arm slipped from around her shoulders.

tighe gave her shoulder a quick, gentle nudge with his. "eat, kara. you've got to be hungry."

"i... yes. i am. thanks."

"she can answer your questions later, hawke,".

finally, they began to talk around her, the discussion turning to knives and how far they could throw different kinds of blades. at the rabid one-upmanship, so typical of any friday night bar party in spearsville, kara began to relax enough to be able to eat, and even taste the food, which was truly delicious.

beside her, both tighe's and foxx's heads rose in unison. when she lifted her own, she saw three people walking in the door, two more of the large men and an auburn-haired woman who looked like she'd stepped out of the pages of a fashion magazine, her slinky, emerald green dress slit nearly to the top of her thigh. in her black stilettos, she carried herself with a seductive grace that left kara feeling like the country bumpkin she probably was. she wished she'd dressed in something nicer than her khakis and cotton sweater. she wished she had something nicer.

"any food left?" one of the men said. "or did you animals wolf it all down?" the man was bald in a sexy-pirate kind of way, though he was dressed more like a lean, muscular biker. a belt hung low on his waist, carrying an impressive, if somewhat disturbing, collection of knives. his black leather vest hung open, revealing a chest as devoid of hair as his head and a short row of scars on his neck that looked oddly familiar. like the mark on her breast, she realized. did they all have them?

the man on the other side of the woman had a seriously sinister look to him with his mustache, goatee, and pale, pale eyes. eyes as cold as they were curious. she realized the newcomers were eyeing her with as much curiosity as she was them. as they approached the table, the men around her rose.

kara was suddenly uncertain what to do. what was the proper protocol? should she stand, too? or was that something only the men did? her mother had taught her basic table manners, but considering the fanciest restaurant she'd ever eaten at was bill barton's steakhouse, this was way out of her realm of experience.

tighe exchanged greetings with the bald man in the same way she'd seen him do with lyon. almost a handshake, but more, while their free hands clasped the other's shoulder. when they separated, tighe took the woman in his arms and kissed her full on the mouth. but all he exchanged was a glance and a brief nod of the head with the scary-looking man.

to kara's bemusement, every one of the men went through the same ritual, greeting each in exactly the same way tighe had. except for foxx, who took the woman aside and gave her a kiss befitting long-lost lovers.

were these three visitors, or just the stragglers coming in to dinner late? did they really do this all the time?

foxx released the woman, and kara felt the woman's cool, assessing gaze turn to her. kara rose, disliking the feeling of everyone towering over her.

"could this be our new radiant?" the bald man asked, releasing wulfe to turn to her, his gaze was sharp and assessing.

"kara, vhyper. vhyper, kara," tighe said with a wave of his hand. "sit, kara. don't make her quit eating, vhype. the poor woman's starving."

but kara stayed where she was. she'd sit when the rest of them sat.

vhyper started around the table, but tighe called him off.

"you can all greet her properly later. she wasn't raised therian and isn't used to our physicality." tighe touched her shoulder briefly, drawing her attention to the other man. "this is kougar and zaphene, who is soon to be foxx's mate. his wife."

kara swallowed, then nodded and smiled, encompassing the newcomers in a single, quick gaze. "it's nice to meet you."

"charmed," zaphene murmured, but something in her tone made kara feel like the woman was laughing at her.

if kara could have slunk away without being noticed, she would have.

tighe urged kara back in her chair. as soon as she sat, the others took their seats. foxx grabbed his plate from across the table and placed it beside zaphene as the three newcomers took seats at the far end of the table.

kara took a bite, then felt zaphene's gaze on her and began to grow even more uncomfortable than before. the woman's eyes, filled with an amused pity, stripped her of her quickly waning supply of confidence. she didn't know the first thing about this culture or this world. with growing mortification, she wondered how many mistakes she'd already made without knowing it.

her discomfort grew until her fork slipped from her fingers with a clatter, jerking all gazes her way. her cheeks flooded with heat as unwanted tears pricked the backs of her eyes. she just wanted to go home.

"oops," she murmured, and picked up her glass of water as casually as she could manage, desperately trying to ignore the woman at the other end of the table with her too-sharp eyes.

"can i get you anything else?" a pleasant, though oddly pitched feminine voice said behind her.

beside her, tighe groaned. "pink..."

kara glanced over her shoulder and froze, her heart shooting into her throat. the woman was... the creature was... a bird! she was the size of a person, but her legs...were those of a flamingo, and her human-looking hands and face were covered in pink feathers. feathers instead of skin.

her glass slipped from her numb fingers and shattered on the plate in a spray of water that soaked her shirt.

kara jumped up and backed away from the mess... and the bird... her entire body shaking, her scalp tingling as if the hair on her head were trying to stand on end.

"kara." tighe said.

"i'm sorry," she murmured at the stricken look on the creature's face.

the sound of zaphene's low laughter only sealed her humiliation.

"kara, i'm sorry. i should have..."

as tighe started to stand, she shoved her palms toward him. "don't." to her mortification, she felt tears starting to leak from her eyes. "i'm fine. excuse me."

she half walked, half ran from the room. immortals. she'd assumed that meant humans or humanlike. the woman was a bird.

and the others.

her hand clutched, at the wall as she doubled over for one long, horrified moment. lyon, kougar, foxx. nicknames?

she pushed away and stumbled down the hall, fearing she was going to be sick..

lyon. where was lyon?

the pounding of her pulse in her ears drove her forward. she had to find him. the sound of some kind of sports game on television caught her ear, and she ran toward it. she rounded the corner to find a large, dark-paneled rec room filled with leather furniture and the biggest television she'd ever seen.

another of the huge warriors sat on the sofa, one arm across his knees, the other casually curling a metal dumbbell with weights the size of bowling balls.