Anne Marsh Hunters Mate 01

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foolish to believe he was.
"One of yours," she agreed.
In their male forms, the Guardians were beautiful. They had the same eerie sort of beauty that
had attracted her to Jafar. Tall and muscular, they had the same golden skin and dark, flashing
eyes. They were all hard planes and sculpted muscles, flowing with the same uncanny grace
as if they glided across the stone floor rather than walking. The difference was in their eyes.
Theirs were the eyes of predators. Cold, flat, assessing. These were not Jafar's eyes.
They stared first at her and then at Jafar.
"Jafar, stop," hissed the first. "This time, she truly has stolen from the temple."
The necklace burned in her bag. What could she say?
Jafar's hard gaze met those of his brothers, his body readying for battle.
"Turn her over for justice," urged another. "We will see to her punishment if you cannot. Or,
yes, we can take her to the Amun Ra. Let him decide what should be done."
"The mating urge makes him weak," said another. "He sees only the bells and where he could
place them; he does not see his duty clearly."
Was the possessive look on his face just lust? It didn't matter, she decided. He was the enemy,
one way or the other.
"I do see my duty," Jafar said calmly. "Quite clearly."
"Good," said the first. "It has been years since we had so pretty a captive. I will enjoy
punishing her."
Jafar shook his head. "No, Hebon."
"No?" The Guardian called Hebon advanced, flicking his blade lightly. "You have other plans
for her?"
"We'll take her to the Amun Ra," Jafar said at last, eyeing that naked blade.
He turned to her. "Femi." For a moment, it seemed . as if he would say something else.
Something meaningful. Of course, he didn't. Instead, shooting her a swift glance from beneath
those impossibly dark lashes of his, he ordered, "Come with me." He reached out a hand to
her.
Did he think she was simply going to give him her hand and let him pull her along, like a
recalcitrant child, to the Amun Ra?
Apparently. He waggled his fingers impatiently. She tried to forget where those fingers had
been. What they had stroked.
"No."
He sighed. "I don't have time for this."
Hebon glared at her. "He guards the Doorways between Qaf and this realm, female. Who do
you think slips through while you distract him?"
None of this made any sense. Furthermore, she didn't care. This was about her not some
Qaf.
"You need to trust me, femi."
She'd sooner trust an Ifrit. When she told him so, the males lounging by the door laughed.
"Take her to see an Ifrit, mate." The speaker smiled cruelly. "Maybe she'll sing a different
song then. Good-looking males," he explained casually, "get lots of females following them.
Problem is, they're a wee bit too brutal in their takings. And their leavings" he shrugged
"well, personally I'm convinced that there's more than a bit of truth to the rumors about
their cannibalism."
Miu was about to say something else, but Jafar shot her a dark look.
"Now," he said quietly, "would be a very good time to be silent. Shut up, love, and let me see
what I can do here."
"No." He was a Cat. There was no way she could trust him, so she drew her blades.
"If you insist." With a sigh, Jafar stepped forward.
"Draw," she said, but he shook his head.
"Don't need to."
Carefully, she eyed his larger frame. He'd have a longer, more powerful reach than she, so her
strikes needed to count. His head and neck would be most vulnerable, so she'd aim high.
He shifted so fast, she didn't even have time to scream. With a fierce roar, several hundred
pounds of feline launched across the room at her, driving her to the floor. Hard. Black spots
swam before her eyes as her head bounced against the tiles. The crushing weight on her ribs
forced her down. Nothing broken, not yet, but she had to fight to drag a half breath into her
burning lungs. Overwhelmed. Dwarfed. Familiar golden eyes glared down into hers. Then he
shifted again, the fur receding and the teeth retracting. His hand jammed beneath her chin,
pressing with deadly menace against her windpipe. Fingers found the nerve endings on the
sides of her throat and pressed. Pain lashed through her, followed by a dull lassitude that froze
her body. Dimly, she heard the soft chink of a blade falling onto the tiles.
Someone had dropped a weapon.
Was that her arm flopping like dying fish on the ground?
Closing her eyes, she let the darkness take her away.
Chapter Nine
Bleached bones of thieves' skeletons lined the corridor to the chamber as a reminder. Show no
mercy. Spare none. Some thieves had died quickly, their throats slashed so their blood
pumped out onto the thirsty limestone floors. Others had died more slowly, displayed in
locked cages to terrify their companions. Either way, their pale, fleshless remains made for a
ghoulish display. Jafar didn't need the reminder to know he was going to have just the one
chance to make his case to the Amun Ra.
And even then, he wasn't going to be making a case to the Amun Ra for mercy.
Miu might consider death a more palatable choice than what he'd offer. But he wouldn't be
taking no for an answer.
He'd never wanted a mate. Didn't want that responsibility.
And yet he didn't want to see Miu die.
Maybe he shouldn't have led such a monkish existence after Oni's death, but, hell, he hadn't
thought he deserved any pleasure. Not when Hebon had been forced into a solitary existence.
He'd been unprepared for the bright sizzle of attraction that had flared between him and Miu.
He suspected that it would only get worse.
Until he had her.
So he'd take her, and he'd save her at the same time. She'd have her second chance and he'd
have her. Punishment and pleasure, all bound together.
First, however, he had to convince the Amun Ra to release her into his custody.
The Amun Ra was sprawled on a large divan when Jafar entered the chamber. Jafar's eyes
swept the shadowed corners of the room. None of his fellow Guardians was present.
Acknowledging the Amun Ra with a terse "My lord," he approached the male. His alpha. He's
giving me a chance. No Guardians meant the Amun Ra had left them both negotiating room.
Space to talk.
"Heard you wanted to talk." Lifting his female companion gently from his lap, Amun Ra set
on her on her feet. "Run along now," he said quietly, not taking his eyes from Jafar.
The female pouted, but ran from the room, the slap of her bare feet mingling with the musical
chime of the bells that dangled from her ears. Not a mate, but his lord had marked her. Cats
were territorial, although willing to share with their pride members. Memories threatened to
drown him and he fought them off. He'd brought another female here once, her cool hand
clasped in his larger, warmer one. He'd thought the coolness had been due to nerves; he hadn't
realized& No. He wasn't going to revisit those memories. Not now. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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