The Rogue Prince

by Michelle M. Pillow

  Jasmine sank into a chair. She loved him. She’d known it for a long time but had tried her hardest to pretend that if she didn’t think the words they wouldn’t be true. If she didn’t think them, they couldn’t hurt her. It didn’t matter. Spoken or not. Her love for him was real, and it was there and it hurt deeply.

  “Not if you go to him now,” Ulyssa urged. “Find him before he decides the best way to give you what you want is by leaving. His honor will make him go. He’ll go because he’ll believe that’s what you wanted him to do.”

  Jasmine didn’t move. She didn’t even know where to begin looking.

  “Siren,” Ulyssa called. “Find Reid for me.”

  “Yes, my queen,” the computer answered in her syrupy voice. “Prince Reid is in the courtyard battling with Prince Falke. My sensors detect no weapons, my lady.”

  “Siren, where is the courtyard?” Jasmine demanded.

  “I’m sorry, Princess Jasmine, but that information is restricted,” Siren answered.

  “Siren,” Ulyssa ordered. “Change Jasmine’s security level from an eight to a two, please.”

  “Yes, my queen. Lady Jasmine is now a two security clearance.”

  “Thank you, Siren.” Ulyssa motioned to Jasmine.

  “Siren, show me how to get to the courtyard,” Jasmine said, adding a hasty, “please.”

  Jasmine waved to Ulyssa as she hurried to follow Siren’s directions. She heard grunting before she saw Falke and Reid locked in battle on the practice field in the center courtyard of the palace. Four walls surrounded the grassy yard, blocking it in on all sides with a covered walkway of intricate patterns and detailed mosaics.

  Jasmine’s body tensed. A hot wave of longing washed over her. Reid’s back was naked, his feet bare. His muscles strained as he sparred with his brother. Every nerve she had tingled with desire for him

  Suddenly, Reid stopped to sniff at the air. Falke shook loose and punched him, sending him sprawling back. Jasmine gasped. Falke looked at her, obviously surprised by her intrusion.

  “Ah, sacred cats, Falke! That one actually hurt.” Reid grumbled from the ground, rubbing his jaw.

  Falke grinned and offered him a hand. Reid waved him away, getting up on his own. Then, as if suddenly realizing what had distracted him, he turned to Jasmine. His hand fell to the side. She saw the bruise already forming on his jaw. Falke patted Reid’s shoulder as he passed him, nodded once to her and left.

  Reid looked at her for a long moment and then nodded. He stiffly moved to follow Falke.

  “Reid, wait,” Jasmine said. “Don’t go.”

  He stopped.

  “I want to talk to you,” she said, willing him to turn to her. He didn’t. If he’d just look at her and smile his crooked little mischievous smile, he’d make this so much easier on her. “Thank you for giving me time.”

  At that, he did turn. He nodded once. “You’ve thought about things? Already?”

  Already? Jasmine wanted to laugh. Ulyssa had been right. What were four days to a man like Reid? Though, by looking at his face, he had suffered as she had. Jasmine could only hope.

  “Yes.” She stepped closer. “I like it here, Reid. I like Qurilixen. I like the palace, your family, your customs.”

  He didn’t move.

  “I even kind of like Siren,” she said, trying to get him to laugh.

  He didn’t. “Is that all? You like it here?”

  “I l…” Jasmine took a step toward him. She was more frightened than she’d ever been in her life. I love you, Reid. “I like you, as well.”

  “You like me,” he said, stepping closer.

  Jasmine nodded. “I’ve missed you.”

  “And you’ve missed me.” His mouth softened, just a subtle movement, not the great smile she’d been hoping for. “Is that all?”

  “I know you made me your half mate, Reid,” Jasmine took a deep breath. “I’m not happy about you doing it without telling me and, in fact, I’m not sure how you did it. But, if you promise never to do things like that again without telling me first, then…”

  “Then?”

  “I want to stay as your half mate,” Jasmine said. It broke her heart to settle for less than what she wanted, but no Reid was worse than having a little of him. “I know you’re not the type to settle down, so I won’t make demands on you. I like it here, and I have nowhere else to go.”

  “So you’re staying because you have nowhere else?” The slight smile fell.

  Jasmine grimaced. “You’re listening to me all wrong.”

  “Well, then you’re talking all wrong.” He placed his hands on his hips.

  “I’m telling you that I’ll be your half mate. That’s what you wanted, right?”

  “Did I ever say that, Jasmine?” he asked. His voice was low as he came toward her. She didn’t move. When he stopped, he was so close she could feel the heat of his body radiating over her. Leaning his face closer to hers, he asked, “Did you once ask me what I wanted?”

  “What do you want?”

  “It sure as hell isn’t a half wife,” he growled softly. “I never made you my half mate.”

  “Oh.” Jasmine’s eyes teared. It took all her willpower not to start crying. “The computer…it called me and I thought…but you didn’t…so that when…love…”

  “Love?” he whispered.

  Oh, sacred… cats or whatever it was they cursed! Did she just say that out loud?

  Shut up, Jasmine, she thought. You’re going to make a fool of yourself. Play it cool.

  His dark eyes looked deeply into hers. Everything about him stirred her. She trembled and nodded. “I love you. That’s why I want to stay here.”

  Reid grinned. “That’s the excuse I wanted to hear.”

  “But—?”

  Reid grabbed her about the waist and pulled her body close. Kissing her until her lungs burned, he pulled back. “Now, ask me what I want. Don’t assume anything. Ask me.”

  “What do you want?” Jasmine bit her lip. It felt so good, so right in his arms. She shivered, her heart refusing to beat until he answered.

  “I want you to be my wife. Not a half mate, not just a lover, but my life mate. I want you, Jasmine, all of you. I love you.” Reid brushed his lips to hers. “Say you’ll be mine, forever.”

  Jasmine gasped, nodding frantically because the words wouldn’t pass her tightened throat. Her lips worked, but no sound came out.

  “Yes?”

  “Yes,” she whispered, hugging him close. “Yes, yes.”

  Reid took her about the waist, twirling her in circles. Her feet lifted off the ground. She’d never been so happy. Then, setting her down, he said, “I’m glad you said that.”

  “Mm, me too,” Jasmine leaned up to kiss him. Something about the look on his face made her pull back. “What?”

  Reid grinned. “I’m glad you said that because I already life mated us.”

  “You did?” Jasmine gasped. “When?”

  “Back at my house when I had you pinned up against the wall after I went hunting.” He leaned over and kissed her neck, letting his sharper teeth glide harmlessly over her skin. “Mm, you asked me to rip off your clothes, and I…” He nipped her ear, giving a wickedly delicious little laugh.

  Jasmine blushed. Glancing around, she scolded, “Reid, shh! Someone might hear this.”

  His answer was a low, primal growl as his hands slid behind her back to cup her butt. He squeezed, lifting her up against his erection.

  “Reid,” she tried to look stern. “At least cart me off to your bedroom first.”

  “Do you remember afterward?” Reid continued, pretending as if he didn’t hear her protests.

  “When I said I loved having sex with you?” Jasmine asked, she giggled despite herself. “It’s true, you know.”

  “No, not that. The part when you pushed me down on the bed and then began to lick your way—”

  Jasmine gasped, instantly silencing him with her mouth. “No, that wasn’t it, you licked
my—”

  Jasmine kissed him again, passionately. She thrust her tongue into his mouth to keep him quiet. Reid laughed and pulled back. Then, a wicked grin in his eyes, he said, “As you wish.”

  Throwing her over his shoulder, he carted her off to the nearest free bedroom.

  38

  Two Months later…

  Jasmine sat on Reid’s lap. They were in a chair in Tori’s living room. She nestled into her husband’s embrace. Reid kissed her neck, lightly nibbling her skin in a way that made her shiver. Two months and still her body couldn’t get enough of him. She was insatiable. Good thing, because Reid’s appetite for her was just as bad. It’s a wonder they even left the bedroom long enough to remember to eat.

  Tori was asleep in the bedroom, having just given birth. Ulyssa was checking on her. Kirill was in the communications room telling Jarek the news. Jarek had taken off on a space mission. It seemed that he was one prince who couldn’t stay put on land for very long.

  The baby’s imminent birth was why Jasmine and Reid had come back to the palace. Tori had insisted Jasmine be there. The princess claimed she was a good luck charm since she’d helped Ulyssa during her labor.

  Jasmine sighed and looked at the little bundle swaddled in his father’s arms. Quinn had a wide smile on his face as he held his son for all to see. She didn’t mind helping out when it brought such innocence and life into the world.

  Sam rested in Falke’s arms, her legs stretched over the couch as she slept. Her stomach had swelled since Jasmine first came to the palace, and the poor thing slept quite a bit. Jasmine worried about Sam, but Falke assured her that everything was normal. Sam’s body didn’t handle pregnancy like other women’s and, because of this, she needed lots of rest.

  “Let me tell them,” Reid whispered. “Please. I’ve been good. You promised I could tell them if I was good.”

  “Not today,” Jasmine said. “This is Tori’s day.”

  “What is not on Tori’s day?” Tori asked, coming out of the bedroom door directly behind them.

  Ulyssa supported Tori by the arm to keep her steady. “She insisted on getting out of bed, Quinn. Don’t look at me like that.”

  “I want more,” Quinn said, proudly holding the baby to look at his mother. “I want a dozen of them, hundreds of them.”

  Tori snarled at her husband. Jasmine swore Quinn looked like the proudest father she’d ever seen. He couldn’t quit grinning. Though, Kirill had been much the same way. Apparently, it must have been a Var tradition to celebrate a birth by claiming to want more.

  Quinn only laughed at Tori’s look. “Isn’t he just the fiercest little warrior you’ve ever seen?”

  Falke and Reid instantly nodded.

  “Very fierce,” Reid said.

  “He’ll make his father proud,” Falke agreed.

  Jasmine giggled, wondering what Reid would be like as a father. Would he have that same silly look on his face as Quinn had, that Kirill still had? She felt Reid’s hand press along her stomach and knew he was thinking about the same thing.

  “Tell us what?” Tori insisted, looking at Jasmine. Then, seeing Reid’s hand she grinned. “You’re not?”

  “Yes,” Jasmine said.

  “No,” Reid said. “She is.”

  “What?” Jasmine turned, confused. “That’s what I said. Yes.”

  “But, she said you’re not, and you are,” Reid insisted.

  “No, she exclaimed, ‘you’re not?’ as in, are you?”

  Tori frowned. “Huh? What did I say?”

  “She isn’t, is what?” Quinn asked. “I’m lost.”

  “Pregnant,” Tori said. “We are talking about pregnant, right?”

  Reid and Jasmine nodded.

  “Wait, are you or aren’t you?” Ulyssa demanded.

  Reid and Jasmine looked at each other and grinned. In unison, they said, “We are.”

  * * *

  The End

  * * *

  The Series continues with

  The Pirate Prince CLICK HERE to get the book!

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  The Pirate Prince

  The series continues

  The Pirate Prince

  (Lords of the Var® 2)

  by Michelle M. Pillow

  Cat-shifter Prince Jarek sails the high sky doing what he pleases…that is until drug dealers kidnap one of his men. But the rescue mission goes wrong and instead of a crewman, he liberates a woman who he believes is desperately trying to escape her captors. He soon discovers he unwittingly kidnapped a princess.

  Princess Mei has just learned her future from a seer, and it seems fate is giving her in marriage to a neighboring ruler. She will do her duty, but first she wants to experience an adventure. When the pirates come to steal, she knows exactly who she wants that adventure to be.

  The Pirate Prince CLICK HERE to get the book!

  The Pirate Prince Excerpt

  “What in the blazing star trails are we doing here, cap?” Evan Cormier grumbled, running his fingers through his short black hair. His eyes were focused on the great Lintianese palace before them. “What has that space cadet gotten us into now? I told him to leave that woman alone. I told him she was trouble, but can Rick ever see past his own lust? No! She batted her eyelashes at him and off he went like a little remloch mindlessly following a Grishelm floral dragon.”

  Jarek glanced at Evan and hid his smile. Evan was a good man to have on a crew, a hard worker and a hell of a smart guy. The man was part telepath, a fact he didn’t share with too many, and it was those skills that Evan was referring to now. Rick was the pilot on their ship, The Conqueror, and every inch a playboy. Evan had warned him against going with the dark-haired enchantress who had flirted with him on Leinad’s star port where they’d stopped for fuel, but Rick hadn’t listened. The enchantress had kidnapped him, for some reason still unknown to them, and taken him with her to the far reaches of the planet of Lintian. Though, knowing Rick, he’d opened his big mouth and said something stupid to insult her. It wasn’t likely she’d taken him with her because she couldn’t live without him.

  So, now they were on Lintian to save him. Jarek knew Evan was irritated by this detour. They were all irritated by the detour, but Rick was their friend, and they would never leave him behind—no matter how stupid he’d acted which resulted in getting kidnapped by an intergalactic drug trader.

  “We’re here because we’re rescuing Dev’s best friend,” Lochlann teased, dryly. He was the only crew member aboard The Conqueror from Jarek’s home planet of Qurilixen. Jarek was a Var, a cat-shifter. Lochlann was a Draig, a dragon-shifter. Usually, the Var and Draig were at war, but Jarek had never seen a reason for it. It was why he’d left his homeland and why his good friend, Lochlann, had come with him. In the wide open skies of space, things like race didn’t matter. Everyone was different.

  Dev snorted at Lochlann’s comment but said nothing. The group of men tried to contain their laughter. Dev was half Belvon, a demonic looking race with red skin and a very stern temperament. Aside from the intense coloring, he appeared humanoid, only larger. He was the ship’s muscle and a bit of a loner. Rick was the polar opposite of Dev. The Belvon was all about maintaining order. Rick was all about breaking it. It often led to humorous fights. Sometimes when the crew was bored, they’d provoke them into an argument for the sake of entertainment. But, when it came down to it, if Rick was in trouble, Dev was there just like everyone else to bail him out. They were like a family.

  A family of misfits, Jarek thought with a small chuckle. He wouldn’t trade his life of freedom for anything in the world.

  “I say we let Rick rot,” Lucien mumbled, pouting. “Would serve him right for breaking my virtual girlfriend. Does he even realize how long it took me to get her breasts just right? And then he goes and melts all three of them off. Poor Fanessa!”

  “Did you drink more Torganian Rum?” Vik
tor, Lucien’s brother, demanded. The two constantly bickered but were actually quite close. If one said the sky was white, the other would swear it was black just for the sake of disagreeing. They were half human, half Dere, and had a milky white complexion that contrasted with the strangest red-brown and red-green of their eyes. Lucien was a communications genius, and Viktor was one hell of a mechanic. The man could rig anything. “We can’t let him rot.” Viktor paused. “He owes me space credits from that last card game.”

  “Yes,” Jackson, a dark blond security officer, agreed. “And you owe me.”

  “Oh, right, yeah.” Viktor cleared his throat. “I forgot about that. Well, how ‘bout we cut out the middle man and just say Rick owes you?”

  “Not likely,” Jackson said. “He’s not good for it and I’d rather not take your loss.”

  “Can we please concentrate on saving Rick? Then we can argue about who gets to kick his ass first,” Jarek said, wondering briefly how he’d ever come to captain such a crew. Fate was funny that way.

  They hid behind a long stone gate, looking up at the palace which was on top of a miniature mountain with a flat top. Long rows of stairs led up from the base, carved from the tan stone of the planet’s earth. Their position was halfway up so they could easily see the front entrance. Platforms were carved intermittently along the stairs on the way to the top, decorated with black pots and golden statues inlaid with precious jewels. Jarek tensed. The Song Dynasty was a wealthy one. They must indeed have no fear of intruders if they put their treasure within plain view of the city below.

  “One of us has to go in,” Lucien said, eyeing Dev.

  “Yes, I would make the obvious choice,” Dev drawled, his tone heavy with sarcasm. With his giant red body, he was the farthest thing from the slender humanoid culture of Lintian.