Sachin was suddenly before her, shielding her with his massive body. “My lady!”
“S-Sachin?” she asked, her voice barely there. “What? Why?”
Sachin blinked and lowered his head, shame evident on his face.
Rayna trembled, her mind racing, words wanting to break free from her but they couldn’t seem to get in sync with her head. She cupped her mouth, pushing past Sachin and rushing at Lazar.
Lazar shook his head, the action looking as though it cost him greatly. He winced in pain. “Go.”
“No,” she whispered, her heart pounding, confusion still gripping her. She twisted, keeping herself between Kabril and Lazar. “Why?”
Kabril’s golden gaze burned with rage. The veins in his neck stood out noticeably. “He dared to harm you.”
“No. He didn’t.”
Kabril continued to glare.
Finding her courage, Rayna put a hand on her hip and glared right back at him. “If you’re going to shout orders at me or try to hit me with that whip, I’ll have you know that I’ll—”
Suddenly, Kabril dropped the whip and backed away, the fire draining from his eyes. “Hit you? Rayna, I would never raise my hand to you. Never.”
“But you’d beat a helpless man?” she demanded. “One who tried to keep me safe from his own people?”
Kabril grimaced and tipped his head.
Sachin took hold of her shoulder. “Explain. Tell him exactly what happened, Rayna, for his mind twists reality and truths, turning them into something more than they are.”
She exhaled and continued to shake with adrenaline, fear and a hefty mix of rage. “I’m so hurt and mad at him right now I’d rather take that whip and crack him over the head than give him the benefit of the truth. He’s too hard headed to hear it.”
“Well, there is always that option,” Sachin said. “If you decide you want to whip him, I shall hold him for you.”
Kabril cringed. “Rayna, my love.”
“Shut up,” she snapped.
He blinked.
Sachin snorted.
Even Lazar seemed surprised.
She squared her shoulders. She’d tell them exactly what happened and then she’d demand to be taken home. “Yes, Lazar is who took me from the campsite.”
Kabril’s hand tightened on the whip.
Rayna leveled her gaze on him. “But, when he found out Kabril was a big fat liar and had done nothing but keep me in the dark for months on who and what he really is, Lazar decided I’d been through enough.”
Now it was Kabril who refused to meet her gaze.
She bobbed her head, her anger still coursing through her veins. “And, I don’t think for a minute Lazar ever intended to hurt me. He was about to take me home when the other Falco Per-e-something or others arrived.”
Sachin bit his lower lip as if he were trying to keep from laughing. “Falco Peregrinus?”
“Right.” She nodded, adding, “The man you’re beating killed one of his own men to keep me from being hurt, and I think he would have done the same to Humbert if I hadn’t infected his wound with soil from Earth. Lazar had been suffering from the effects already and it was too much for him. He fell into the water and I went in after him.” Rayna blushed. “After I kicked Humbert where it counts.”
“Where it counts?” Sachin asked.
She centered her gaze on his groin and he winced.
“Yeah, it worked, so don’t knock it.”
A horrified expression came over Sachin. “I would never suggest anyone knock it. For that would be most painful. Knocking should not be done to any man’s groin. Ever.”
She groaned and tossed her hands in the air. “I give up. You’re all weird. And right now, I want to smack the lot of you. Well, not Lazar. He’s the only one who doesn’t deserve to have some sense knocked into him.”
Kabril continued to look away from her and she snapped her fingers, forcing his gaze to her. “Have anything to say for yourself?”
He grunted and shook his head. “No.”
Chapter Twenty-Six
Kabril stood, listening to his mate talk of how Lazar had come to her aid. Guilt for having allowed her to be taken to begin with settled over him. Seeing the shame in Rayna’s blue eyes as she shielded the Falco with her body didn’t help matters any. He was king, it shouldn’t make a difference what anyone thought of him, but it did. He cared what light Rayna viewed him in. And right now, that light was anything but favorable.
Truth be told, she looked a lot like she wanted to see him strung up by his toes. Or, perhaps his ball sac. He cupped them, slightly worried she might make an attempt on them.
Sachin tipped his head. “My lord, permission to remove the prisoner’s restraints?”
Nodding, Kabril made an attempt to go to Rayna. Her glared halted his progress.
Rayna crossed her arms under her breasts, causing them to thrust forward. “Prisoner? How about a guest? I like the sound of that better. Yes, guest works for me. That is what we’ll call him.”
“Rayna, you cannot possibly think to—” The stern look upon her beautiful face silenced Kabril. She would not allow him to get off so easily. He knew that about her.
She tapped a finger against her arm. “I’m still mad at you for lying to me, Kabril. Don’t think you’re going to get on my good side by beating Lazar to a bloody pulp. Let him down, clean him up and see to his wounds. He needs a doctor and something to eat, not to be interrogated by you—you big giant jerk.”
Sachin opened his mouth to say something and Rayna shot him a nasty look. “One word from you and I’ll make you eat my famous chicken divan.”
Gulping, Sachin put his hands up, signaling defeat.
Kabril’s stomach churned at the thought of eating chicken anything. His long-time friend thrust him towards his mate as if he were scared of the woman. “For the love of the gods, see to your woman before she truly does clip our wings.”
“Your woman?” Rayna quirked a brow as she stared at Kabril. “I’m sorry, but I’m anything but your woman right now.”
He gave in to the smile wanting to come and went to one knee as Sachin had told him human males did in situations such as this. He took Rayna’s hand in his and stared up into her blue eyes. “Rayna, you will marry me the way humans do.”
“I don’t even like you at the moment,” she shot back.
Sachin cleared his throat and Lazar laughed under his breath. It certainly was a mess if the prisoner thought Kabril was wasting his time. Kabril thought hard about Sachin’s instructions and realized he’d commanded Rayna instead of asking her. He decided to try again. “Uh, umm, Rayna, would you do me the honor of being my ball and chain?”
The anger washed away from her face and then laughter erupted from her. She tipped her head back and covered her mouth with both hands as she continued to laugh at him. “Ball and chain? Heaven help me. My man thinks that’s a compliment.”
“Be my chick?” he asked, hopeful he got it right this time.
Rayna laughed harder.
Kabril shifted awkwardly on one knee. “My sexy significant other?”
She closed the distance between them, snorting softly and shaking her head. He went to try another only to find her pressing her fingers to his lips. “Shhh, Kabril. Yes, I’ll be your wife the way humans do it too. But, first you’re going to make our guest comfortable, apologize to him and thank him for saving my life.”
His heart soared. He swept her off her feet and would have taken flight with her had they not been confined to the dungeon. His need to feel the wind on his face would have to wait for his cock needed attention first. The need to get her back to their chambers and make sweet love to her was too powerful to resist. The Oracle had chosen well for him. Rayna truly was his perfect match.
He would not tell the seers as much. They could think he was angry for a few hundred years or so. It would serve them right, meddling the way they had. And Sachin would get his when he found his mate. Kabril would be th
ere to be sure she too was one would could clip his friend’s wings if need be.
He looked to Sachin. “See to our guest.”
Sachin didn’t bother to hide his laugh. “Nearly choked on that one, didn’t you, my lord?”
“I am sure he did,” answered Lazar. “Thank you, Rayna.”
She smiled at him, but it was weak. “I’m sorry he hurt you.”
“I would have done the same if it were my mate,” Lazar replied. “I would have done far worse.”
There was a loneliness in the man’s eyes as he spoke of his mate and Kabril had to wonder if tragedy had befallen his chosen one.
Epilogue
Earth, three and a half months later…
Kabril slid his arms around his wife and held her close, running his hands over her low, swollen abdomen. The life they’d created grew within her. Every moment since its conception seemed like a miracle to him, to Rayna and to the people of Accipitridae. Already the somber moods had lifted and the people rejoiced once more. A festival was in the works, the first in many years. It was to honor their union and the coming of their child. At least that is what the people claimed. Kabril suspected they were looking for a reason to celebrate after so many cycles of dwelling on the negative.
The threat of war was still imminent. Relations with the Falco Peregrinus were still nonexistent. Lazar’s presence in the castle sparked controversy at first, but he was beginning to grow on everyone, including Kabril. Sachin insisted the Falco could be useful for establishing relations with the Falco Peregrinus in the future. Lazar seemed to think he would never be welcomed back by his own kind. Kabril tended to side with him on the matter. Lazar was always welcome in Kabril’s kingdom.
The wind picked up, causing orange and yellow leaves to scatter about. Rayna sighed and leaned back into his embrace. “It’s so beautiful, Kabril. I’m going to miss it.”
He kissed her temple. “Ta’konima—my love, I have told you time and time again that you do not have to sell your grandmother’s home.”
She nodded. “I know, but we don’t need it. We’re keeping mine on the off chance one of your men wants to visit, and we live in Accipitridae.” She glanced over her shoulder at him. “Your castle sleeps about a hundred people or better, so I don’t think we need this as a guest house.”
“It holds sentimental value to you, Rayna.” He rocked her gently, drawing in her sweet scent.
“I’ll make new memories with you, Kabril. You’re my family now.”
He cringed, not wanting to broach the subject he needed to. “Speaking of family. You met my brother Rossi.”
Rayna arched a dark brow. “Yes, and I still think you’re too hard on him. But I don’t think that’s what you’re getting at. What’s up?”
“Word came of my other brothers arriving soon to welcome you to the family.”
She licked her lips and grinned. “Are you going to tell me how many brothers you have finally?”
Kabril stiffened. “I have seven brothers. Two were born minutes behind me. There are two sets of twins. Then Rossi, he was a single birth.”
One. Two. Three. He mentally counted down until Rayna’s temper flared.
“You have how many sets of what?” Rayna spun around in his arms, her eyes wide in disbelief.
“There is more,” he said, against his better judgment. “For our kind, multiple births have nothing to do with the female. Apparently, male shifters of our kind release a chemical in our sperm which encourages a high fertility rate. The chemical has been absent for some time as it is tied to our magik.”
Rayna clutched his arms, her fingernails digging into his skin. “Are you trying to tell me there is a good chance I have more than one baby growing inside me?”
A sheepish smile swept over him. “Yes.”
“And this is coming up this late in the game why?” she asked, tapping her foot.
“I love you.”
Rayna batted her lashes and let out a soft sigh. “I love you too but if you don’t start telling me important things up front, you’re going to be sleeping in the birdhouse.”
He cringed and she laughed. “Ah, my queen, you have my word, you know now all of my secrets.”
THE END
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A View to a Kill Blurb
A View to a Kill
King of Prey Series Book Two
A trained assassin…a man even the deadliest of warriors fear. To cross him is foolish. To steal his heart is pure madness.
Sachin, head advisor to the king of the Accipitridae realm, has been forced to put his trips to Earth on hold. He’s not been honest with himself or King Kabril about his need to visit the primitive planet. The king thinks him to be a womanizer, out to bed as many human females as possible.
In truth, a woman he should have been able to woo with little to no effort—his mate—has found someone else to fill that void in her life. She wasn’t supposed to be on Earth. She wasn’t supposed to be human. And she sure the hell wasn’t supposed to agree to marry another man while Sachin was away.
Sachin must make a choice, give up the one woman he knows to be his true mate and let her live in ignorant bliss of what walks among her people, or fight for what’s his, taking it at all costs. A trained assassin…a man even the deadliest of warriors fear. To cross him is foolish. To steal his heart is pure madness.
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Excerpt: A View to a Kill
Chapter One
Earth…
Sachin soared high in the air, satisfied after a night of hard sex with three human women. They practically threw themselves at him, as most women in this realm did. They were an itch he liked very much to scratch, even against the orders of his king and best friend, Kabril.
Kabril warned of the dangers of entering the human realm too much. There was a time in human history that his kind, the Buteos Regalis, and others like them were thought of as mythical creatures who would steal away with livestock and small children. The stories were absurd. A horse was too heavy to fly with, and why should he bother himself with something like that when he had only to return to the castle to a feast, already prepared. And what purpose would Sachin have with a child? They were noisy, at least from what he remembered. Accipitridae, the realm he called home, had not had a child born to it for hundreds of cycles. No one was sure as to why, but whispers of a prophecy involving the king spread like wildfire. He had to laugh at the idea of the king settling down to be with only one woman.
Sachin couldn’t fathom giving up his wicked ways to tether himself to one female for all his life. Eternity was a long time to sleep with the same woman. He shuddered at the thought.
Sachin dipped lower in his flight over the semi-wooded lands on his way to the nearest portal to Accipitridae.
“No!” The cry pierced the night. It was off in the distance but Sachin’s supernatural hearing offered him the ability to pick up on it. He scanned the area, trying to locate the source. A blast from a gun, a weapon the humans seemed to favor, went off. Another scream followed. Sachin zeroed in on the location and launched into a dive. He would worry later about humans seeing him in partially shifted form. He was part hawk, part man and they would never understand.
“Come out, come out, wherever you are,” a male voice came from the distance.
Sachin neared the spot of the disturbance and spotted a middle-aged man with a rifle in his hands, stalking something or someone. The man pushed greasy strands of hair from his face as he stared around, his eyes crazed. His nose was bulbous and nearly as red as his bloodshot eyes.
“Where are you, you little bitch?” the man spat.
The tiniest of whimpers caught Sachin’s attention. He landed silently several feet behind the man—the
stench of alcohol and evil evident. It curled Sachin’s stomach. He drew his wings back into himself, shifting into his full human form. He stepped softly, making no sound as he advanced on the drunkard.
A gasp caught Sachin’s attention, pulling it to the right. He spotted a figure, huddled in the fetal position. Upon closer inspection, Sachin realized the figure was female and covered in blood. The fierce need to protect her at all costs consumed him. He channeled the rage he felt at the thought of the female having been harmed towards the armed man. Killing him would be a sweet victory.
The man was walking in the other direction, unable to see the female’s hiding spot. Sachin motioned to her and then put a finger to his lips to indicate the need for silence. She nodded, shaking so much her teeth chattered.
Sachin bent his head, narrowing his silver gaze. He stepped closer and touched the man’s shoulder. He spun, firing the weapon as he did. Using his forearm, Sachin knocked the barrel of the gun away and the shot went wide. The man stared up at him, his eyes wide with fear.
“Who— Where did you come from?”
A tingle of satisfaction at instilling fear in him ran through Sachin. “You dared to touch the woman?”
“Woman?” The man’s lips curled into a sinister smile. “Paige ain’t no woman.”
“She’s my woman,” Sachin said.
Stunned by his own claim, Sachin blinked, giving the man time to point the rifle at him. He fired and the shot struck Sachin in the shoulder, creating a large, gaping hole. White-hot pain radiated through him. He knocked the man away, sending him hurtling into the air. The man hit a tree and slid to the ground where he lay motionless.
Sachin twisted, his gaze snapping to the female still huddled near a tree. He cupped the wound on his shoulder with one hand. His immortality afforded him the ability to heal rapidly. Even so, the spray from the shells had done considerable damage. The healers in his realm would need to cleanse the wound before it could be allowed to fully heal over.
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