Hunting the Jackal

by Seressia Glass

  She opened her eyes, dazed to discover that she sensed Kurik and Rashon mentally before she scented them. She lay wrapped tight in Rashon’s arms, his nose pressed against the back of her neck. It took her a moment to recognize the infirmary. “Kurik?”

  The bed shifted, and she finally noticed the large black jackal at the foot of the bed. He blinked at her, then his whole body quivered. Leaping to the floor, he moved to the head of the bed, then shifted to his human form.

  She gasped as she caught sight of him. He looked haggard, as if he hadn’t eaten or slept.

  “You’re awake,” he said, his voice hoarse with barely restrained emotion. “You’re finally awake.”

  Rashon stirred next, his arms tightening about her waist. “What happened? Why are we in the infirmary?”

  “Because you died.” Dark smudges spread beneath his eyes, reddened and tarnished from their usual golden color. “Amarie surprised a large group of Lost Ones trying to sneak into the compound. We went after her and got there right before she lost your blades. We were all fighting, but there were so many of them, so many. You both got hurt, and then you fell through the fence and down in the gully. I went after you, and at first I couldn’t find you.” He shuddered.

  “You did find us,” Amarie said. “We’re here.”

  “You both died.” A harsh breath sawed through him. “I held you both. I felt it. But I couldn’t let you go. Gods, help me, but I couldn’t let you die without me.”

  They both reached for him, pulled him down between them as he broke. Sobbing, Amarie pressed kisses to his jaw, his throat, anywhere she could reach, desperate to reassure Kurik that she was with him, that she was safe, thanks to him. She was aware of Rashon on the other side, his voice thick with tears, offering soft words of reassurance.

  It was a long time before Kurik calmed enough to speak again. “It’s been five days,” Kurik said, his voice stark. “Anapa, Anput and the Isis witches worked on you for nearly a day. They were afraid to move you, so they kept you here under watch of the priestesses. You didn’t shift back to human until last night. You were gone all that time, but I could feel you.” He rubbed his face against her cheek, then Rashon’s. “I could feel you, and that’s the only thing that kept me sane, the only thing that kept me here.”

  “Stop.” Rashon groaned, his features twisted with anguish. “For the love of Anubis, please stop torturing yourself. We’re here. You brought us back. You saved us.”

  “I need you,” Kurik uttered, his voice scraped bare. “Both of you. I need us.”

  “You have us.” Rashon looked at her, a silent question in his eyes. How could he doubt how she felt about them?

  Then Amarie remembered. “You know I want to be with you more than anything. But if you want children—”

  “We want you,” Rashon interrupted. “Always have. Always will.”

  “I heard you that night,” she told him, unable to smother the hurt that racked her. Fresh tears spilled down her cheeks. “I heard you say you wanted to approach a Daughter of Isis.”

  “For you,” Rashon choked out. “To heal you. I thought if they could save me and Alonso, they could heal you. Oh, gods.” Horror dawned in his eyes. “This is my fault. You died because of me. If I hadn’t said that, you wouldn’t have left. You wouldn’t have faced the Lost Ones on your own—”

  “I wasn’t alone,” she said, stopping him before he could berate himself more. She closed her eyes in relief, the pain in her heart easing. She hadn’t wanted to believe he could shun her so quickly, so finally. “You came after me. You were there with me. You both were.”

  “There isn’t another woman, Amarie,” Kurik told her.

  Rashon nodded. “We chose you. There isn’t another for us.”

  Her eyes slid shut as she accepted the gift they offered. She wanted to offer them a gift in return. “Maybe we can ask Tia to take a look at me. If she can bring us back from the dead, surely she can fix my womb, and I can give you children.”

  “No.” Rashon reached across Kurik’s broad chest to touch her shoulder. “If it happens, it happens, and if it doesn’t, then it doesn’t. I don’t care about that. I just want you. I want you to be with us, to be ours, forever.”

  “Rashon...” Tears pricked her eyes.

  “I’ll do anything. Whatever you want, just name it. I’ll buy you more pretty dresses. I’ll wine you and dine you. I’ll kill everyone in your old clan who hurt you. I’ll—”

  She put her fingers to his lips and offered him a tremulous smile. “Just tell me you still love me. That’s all I need.”

  Strain eased from his features as he kissed her finger. “I love you, Amarie,” he whispered, his words clear and firm as he wrapped his hand around hers. “With all that I am, body and soul, I love you. And you, Kurik. With all that I am, body and soul, I love you.”

  Kurik reached up, twining his fingers with theirs, golden eyes blazing with a smile. “I love you, Amarie. And I love you, Rashon. With all that I am, body and soul, I love you.”

  Amarie’s smile widened as her heart filled with joy and love for these men. Her men. “I love you, Rashon. And I love you, Kurik. So very much. With all that I am, body and soul, I love you.”

  They all leaned in together, sharing a three-way kiss that soon had them laughing, then crying, then laughing again. “I want to go home,” Amarie said, touching them both because she couldn’t do otherwise. “I need proof that this isn’t some kind of dream.”

  “Home sounds good.” Kurik got up, retrieving a duffel bag from under the bed. “I had someone bring some clothes over for us.”

  They dressed quickly, eager to leave the infirmary behind. A knock sounded on the infirmary door. Markus entered, followed by Tia.

  Each of them snapped to, then relaxed as Markus waved at them to stand down. The clan leader settled his hands on his hips, giving them a baleful stare. “I would like for a month to go by before you three darken the doorway of our infirmary again.”

  “A week would be lovely,” Tia added.

  “Yes sir, ma’am,” they intoned together like chastised children.

  “The clan owes you a debt, Amarie,” Markus declared. “Without your presence, our bonding night might have been more tragic. You are an asset to the clan.”

  She dipped her head in embarrassment, unaccustomed to such praise—and from the clan leader, no less. “Thank you, sir.”

  “This attack proves that we need to always be prepared,” Markus said. “The Isis witch responsible obviously thought to use the ceremony as a distraction and used a concealment spell for good measure. Unfortunately the jackal tasked with monitoring the boundary sensors was distracted by the party. He’s being punished and we have identified a weak spot in our defenses which will be immediately rectified.”

  He growled, and Amarie almost felt sorry for the guard. “Amarie, in between your duties guarding Tia, you’ll be training the female jackals and the Anput in self-defense, including the use of firearms. We need to rely on more than tooth and claw with the number of Lost Ones increasing. We will work out the details later.” He smiled. “Right now, you have more important things to attend to.”

  “Sir?”

  It was Tia who answered. “It’s important for you to strengthen your bond. It allowed us to save your lives. It’s one of the strongest I’ve felt and needs to be nurtured. If it wasn’t for Kurik anchoring you, we might not have been successful.”

  Amarie clasped her men’s hands. “We know. We realize how blessed we are.”

  Kurik lifted their hands for a kiss. “With your permission, we’d like to head home to work on our bonding.”

  “Permission granted,” Markus said. “The three of you are on leave until further notice.”

  Tia winked. “I expect the three of you to make it official with a ceremony before the full clan.”

  “Yes, priestess.”

  The clan leaders left. Amarie, Kurik and Rashon moved without a word, stepping into an embrace. For a lo
ng moment, they just stood there, synching breathing, heartbeat, bond. “Today is the first day of our forever,” Amarie told them. “I promise that a day won’t go by without either of you knowing how much I love you, whether by word or act. Starting now.”

  Both smiled as they kissed her. Rashon tugged them toward the door. “Let’s go home.”

  As Amarie followed her mates out, she breathed a prayer of thanks to Anubis and Isis. Six months ago, she’d thought her life was over. Now she knew it had only just begun, and it was destined to be full of love and laughter.

  * * * * *

  If you enjoyed this story, look for Seducing the Jackal by Seressia Glass, available now from Harlequin Nocturne Cravings...

  Centuries ago, tragedy severed the alliance between the jackal shifters and powerful Egyptian priestesses. But when four of his brothers succumb to a deadly curse, clan commander Markus kidnaps one of the witches and insists she undo the evil magic.

  Although Tia can undo the curse, she insists her coven is not behind it—and she is shaken to her core by her intense attraction to her captor. The sparks between them quickly ignite, filling them both with passion and power unlike anything they’ve ever known. Will it be enough to heal the rift between their peoples?

  Don’t miss the other sensual, paranormal reads from Harlequin Nocturne Cravings, available at

  www.ebooks.eharlequin.com and wherever ebooks are sold. Titles include:

  The Darkest Embrace by Megan Hart

  Heart of the Jaguar by Katie Reus

  Her Wicked Wolf by Kendra Leigh Castle

  Demand of the Dragon by Kristin Miller

  Seducing the Jackal by Seressia Glass

  This Soul Magic by Michele Hauf

  The Shifter’s Kiss by Caridad Piñeiro

  Seduced by the Darkling by Lauren Hawkeye

  Tempting the Jaguar by Katie Reus

  Looking for more paranormal romance? The sizzling and spine-chilling books of Harlequin Nocturne are available at www.Harlequin.com or your local bookstore.

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  ISBN: 9781460314326

  Copyright © 2013 by Seressia Glass

  All rights reserved. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of publisher, Harlequin Enterprises Limited, 225 Duncan Mill Road, Don Mills, Ontario, Canada M3B 3K9.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental. This edition published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.

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