by Stacy Reid
Evil lifted its head, and darkness surged through her. Mine.
The roar slammed into her mind, and her chakra collapsed—Lust, possessiveness, bloodthirstiness, and cruelty.
“More,” she purred, gripping him tighter.
Ajali’s hips snapped with greater power, sinking her deep into the bed. Erotic pain lashed her senses, and another tidal wave of bliss rush over her and drowned them both as they succumbed to the fiery pleasure chaining them together.
***
Fuck! Tremors racked Ajali’s frame. He felt like he had emptied his soul inside of Tehdra, not just his release. This was not good. He unraveled himself from arms that clung to his shoulders and met her gaze. What he saw wrenched something inside of him. Trust. Obsidian eyes glowed, holding dark secrets in their depths, but he saw trust. An enemy would not trust him.
“Are you not the enemy, Tehdra?”
She stilled. “I am not your enemy, Ajali.” She made to shift away, and he lowered his body once more onto her, his strength rendering her motionless.
“Do you question all your lovers after you have bedded them?”
“Only the ones that enter my kingdom under false pretenses.”
Tehdra’s eyes searched his face intently, and only truth reflected back at her. “How long have you known?”
“You do not deny that you are here under falsehood?” Amusement whispered from his voice along her throat where he dipped his head and inhaled. “You smell like sin.”
She ignored his reference to her scent and dove straight into the heart of the matter. Her deception. If he only knew how deep it went. That he lay with a Darkan. His kingdom’s most important enemy. “How long have you known, Ajali?”
“I was fully aware when I met you on the battle arena for training.”
Tehdra thought swiftly. “Your blades were suspicious of me. They knew as well.”
“You picked up on that, did you?” The hot murmur against her pulse had her darkness rising, needing his taste.
“Why did you not arrest me?” she murmured, curious at his action.
“You would have had a session with Acheron after our picnic.” He raised his gaze, most likely to capture every telling expression on her face. She ensured there was none.
“Acheron. The torturer.” Her heart squeezed. If he had made any other decision she would have thought him foolish, yet it stung.
“You are an unusual spy. Untrained in taijiu, but skilled enough to unearth that Acheron is dubbed the torturer. Impressive.”
“Am I to meet with Acheron after I leave your bed?”
“At the risk of your life and mission you aided me today. Not the actions of an enemy, wouldn’t you agree? Yet there is no daughter matching your description that belongs to the house of Thorne.”
The soft cadence of his voice invited trust. She delved deep, shifting the psychic hold on her beast, seeking his thoughts. Whatever he felt towards her spying in his kingdom, she would find it.
Astonishment had her frowning. He felt nothing. No rage, no distrust. A blank canvas, waiting for emotions to be painted on it based on her response.
“I am a spy. Sent by my kingdom to yours.”
She held her breath, slowly releasing it when nothing negative flared within him.
“Go on.”
“We received credible information that our people may be working with others to assassinate you, and also to remove my king from his seat of throne. I was sent to confirm if such rumors of our people betraying our kingdom existed.”
“Which kingdom are you from? Aria?”
She looked in his penetrating gaze and lied smoothly. “Yes.”
“I have an alliance with King Valius. Why did he not request an audience to discuss his suspicions?”
“The general I reported to only intimated that it would be best that the alliance not be threatened with unsubstantiated whispers, my king. And if the intelligence proved to be truth, those who participated would be squashed, cementing Aria’s loyalty without creating ripples.”
He leaned in and the gentlest of brushes flittered over her mouth. “I thank you for what you did today, Tehdra. You aided me at the peril of your own life; my kingdom is in your debt.”
She twisted, and positioned herself so she sat on him. Then she lowered her upper body so they lay flushed, chest to chest, and pressed a fleeting kiss to his lips. “No debt. I release you of any and all vow of debt, Ajali. It is something I would do again without thought of anything else.”
Ajali’s gut tightened at the bare truth reflected in her eyes. Fuck! What she offered he could take, but what she wanted was beyond his ability to give. The desire for more emanated from her gaze. She felt something for him beyond her mission, and it made him nervous. A wisp of a girl made him nervous…because he liked her. Lust he knew what to do with. Interest? Need for her voice? For her fleeting smiles? He had no fucking idea. He was a king who had to eventually choose a kala with impeccable bloodlines. Not a spy from Aria who had no ties to the royal throne.
He shifted under her, bringing her core into contact with his renewed erection. He smiled at her reaction, and his body throbbed and quickened in response. He could not dwell deeply on what her eyes told him for both of their sakes, because they have no future together, and he couldn’t keep her as one of his hari. But right now, even though he knew it’s for the best, it was impossible to turn her away. For the short time they had together, he wanted to enjoy her heat, her cries, her strength and passion. He wanted to enjoy her.
Ajali kissed her, blotting all thought except the satiation of the need between them.
Chapter Twelve
The sun beamed in through the window, caressing Tehdra’s skin. She sighed and turned, facing the stained windows. They shone like crystals under the rays of the sun. She lay in Ajali’s bed where she’d spent the most amazing hours with the king. Yet, instead of happiness, doubt speared her. The king was her mate, and she did not know how to claim him…and she desperately wanted to brand him with the ink Darkans place on their mates for all of Amagarie to see. It would be a unique design crafted to represent their bonding.
She should only be thinking of her mission, but Ajali consumed her thoughts. She could feel his presence miles away in the castle, and she already yearned to be near him. There was a permanent stain on the El Kyn clan and souls that she had spent years trying to clear and redeem. What if she placed Ajali’s life before her realm and acted like Vlad, causing untold pain to the ruling family?
She gritted her teeth until they ached. Never would she betray Gidon…or Ajali. She closed her eyes in defeat. Why couldn’t her mate be a Darkan? Her brother Drac had mated the princess of Boreas. Before Drac claimed her, all believed that only Darkans mated with each other. The presence of their beast allowed them to swap and intertwine their essence and bond together, and it also made them form lei—the psychic bond that all mated pairs shared. She was not sure how Drac formed such a connection with his princess, but she was certain that he mated her.
Tehdra laughed softy. Normally consumed with training, protection of her kingdom, defense of the northern quadrant and executing her Mecca’s duties, her mind constantly betrayed her by thinking of Ajali.
What to do with the king?
With her darkness only able to sense negativity, Tehdra found it hard to understand what he felt. It reassured her somewhat that none leaked from him in the hours of their loving—and it had been hours, for he took her repeatedly throughout the night.
Tehdra closed her eyes as the desire for more resounded in her. She was his enemy, however unintentionally it had happened, and he was her mate. A mate that she was falling in love with. She did not need to analyze it; she knew it with every fiber of her being. She craved the king even without her darkness roaring at her to pounce and claim him. She had so many questions and no one to give her answer
s. How could she make the king of such a great kingdom fall in love with her so that when her nature was finally revealed, he would not demand her head? She rolled in the bed, drawing the coverlets to her and inhaled. Ajali’s scent wrapped around her, heady and delicious. With speed she moved to the adjoining bath chamber and halted at the sheer splendor that stared at her. More of a small pool than a simple bathing room, ivory tusk marble covered the entire area, and if her eyes were not mistaken, it was inlaid with the richest of gold.
The opulence of his castle unnerved her. Even if he fell in love with her, she could not match him in status. Her kingdom did not recognize wealth or the nobility of a person’s bloodlines. They respected brutality, skills on the battlefield and cunning. Ajali, without a doubt, possessed all of these admirable traits. In him she had a mate she would be proud to announce to her king. What did she have for him? No wealth, no impeccable bloodline, no nobility, no high ranking status. Only darkness and destruction.
Anxiety seared her. After luxuriating in the bath, she returned to the bed chamber.
Should she even try? It was not in her nature to give up. She was a warrior. Her training had been relentless and brutal. The pain of learning her beast’s charka had almost robbed her of her soul. Yet she had persevered. Why should she not endeavor to claim her mate? Warriors fought! A deep sob tore from Tehdra’s throat, and it reverberated in the room making her flinch in horror. Concentrate!
She needed to deal with the issues at hand. Ajali knew she spied on his kingdom, yet they had done everything conceivable to save her, even giving her drops of their precious elixir. Her loyalty had apparently been cemented when she saved his life. Darkans had been a part of the team that came for Ajali. Cold encased her as she tried to unravel their intentions. Ajali could not be taken, and it boded ill if it were ever to be discovered that his kingdom’s most important enemy was a part of the plot to unseat his bloodline from the throne.
A message had to be sent to the dark realm. Drac and Gidon needed to know that a faction of Darkans that took orders from another really existed. And that another was no doubt the kingmaker. Tehdra wrenched her thoughts from dreams that were impossible and moved with purpose to warn her liege.
***
“Tehdra.” The soft whisper of Gavyn’s voice had her shifting to face him.
“Your king has a beautiful atrium. I borrowed one of your birds to send a message to my kingdom,” she murmured, feeling slightly guilty at her continued deception. “Thank you for your part in saving me, Gavyn. Ajali told me of all that transpired while I remained unconscious.”
Gavyn strode swiftly towards her and executed the sharpest of bows. “It is I who thank you, Tehdra. You aided our king at the risk of your own life. We owe you a debt that can never be repaid.”
“Please do not say so. I would do the same thing over again. It would be foolish to be indebted to a spy,” she said with light laughter.
“We see how you look at our king, hari.”
She whipped about at Acheron’s smooth drawl. “How unusual. I’d not heard your approach.”
“We know that you spy for the kingdom of Aria. Ajali has briefed us on what you told him.”
She nodded with relief at Gavyn for changing the subject. She did not want to discuss her feelings for Ajali with his blades. She ignored the smirk on Acheron’s face.
“The reason you have life, spy, are the desire and care that you possess for my king. A need that you cannot hide,” Acheron said then flashed away.
The silence that remained between her and Gavyn filled her with discomfort.
“Tehdra.”
She frowned. “Why do you feel pity for me, Gavyn?”
“Acheron is right. You cannot hide the naked need in your eyes when you look at him. We watched over both of you while you picnicked. It is a futile endeavor for someone of your status. Even a hari has a better chance than a spy in an army.”
She tried to draw on her warrior mantel and failed. Her heart pounded at the surety in his voice. “I do not expect my feelings to be returned.” She saw no point in denying the truth of his words.
Gavyn nodded. “Mayhap he will keep you in his harem if you express a desire to stay. He is already preparing for your departure to your kingdom.”
Her heart jerked. “He is?”
“We know of the danger that surrounds our king, Tehdra. We work tirelessly to uncover the traitors. Any other enemies found will be eliminated and their respective kingdom notified. We would not assume that the cowardly actions of a few represent the desire of the kingdom. We will proceed with caution.”
Tehdra considered him, wishing that his proclamation included the Darkage. If they knew their most important enemy had been a part of the attack, they would assume it was the wish of her king and condemn the kingdom.
“I understand.” And she did. Pain still lashed at her that he would send her back to her nation so quickly. After their amazing night together.
She walked away, and Gavyn fell into step beside her.
“Ask him, Tehdra.”
“Ask him what?”
“To be what you pretended. A hari.”
She allowed a smile to touch her lips. “I will not. If the king desires me to stay I can do so without being a part of his harem.”
Gavyn halted her and cupped her cheeks. Tehdra lifted startled eyes to his.
“I do not like the pain in your eyes, Tehdra.”
“You do not see pain.”
“Then what is it that I see?”
She slowly withdrew her face from his palms. She smiled at him as gently as she could. “You are a good man, Gavyn. Loyal to those you have deemed so. Your concerns for my tender feelings are unwarranted. I have no tender feelings.”
His rough laughter eased something inside of her. He knew she fibbed, but he pressed her no more.
“Come, Tehdra, you need to confer with the ladies—in-waiting on how to prepare you for attending the games with the king.”
She faltered. “The games?”
“Yes.”
“Am I not to return to my kingdom?”
“Are you now eager to be rid of my liege? He has honored you by making it known that you are his escort for our Game of Fyre. The greatest celebration held in the city of Adara. The ancient games where powerful Amagarians from all six kingdoms compete in challenges to be a part of the Nurian elite army. Thousands have already flocked to the market with their wares and hundreds of thousands of invitations have been responded to. The King normally honors a house in his private box at the coliseum. The house of Assia has been vying for such an honor, and Lady Sascha will rail that she has been supplanted.” His chuckled indicated his pleasure with the developments.
Tehdra looked at Gavyn, breathing in his handsomeness. Laughter had an unusual way of softening the harshness of his features.
“And Ajali has made it known that he has honored me?”
“Yes, a move that will undoubtedly shock millions. You are of a lower house. Not the highest of aristocracy. The court will buzz for years to come at such an unprecedented move.”
She joined in his laughter, absurdly pleased. “But why would he do it if he cares naught for me?”
“I did not say he cares naught for you, Tehdra. He honors you for saving his life. Ajali must choose a kala—a queen for his kingdom. And she must be from the purest of bloodlines.”
She smoothed her face into an expressionless mask, unable to tolerate the idea of her mate eventually taking a queen, one he would touch…taste and worship as he had her. Tehdra bantered with Gavyn as they walked from the atrium into the east courtyard. Its dazzling beauty did little to soothe her. It was hard for her to relinquish rights to her mate without fighting for him. There would be no other for her. While he would be able to move on and find a kala. Someone from the noblest of families.
Sh
e lied to Gavyn. She had feelings for his king, and they were bruised.
***
Ajali had to remove Tehdra from his kingdom and return her to Aria. The desire he felt for her was unnerving. He would not even consider asking her to join his harem officially. As a hari, she might be required to please other kings and princes. That was a thought he could not sustain for long. Jealousy that someone else would ever kiss her lips, lick at the pure perfection of her skin, or sink themselves into the heaven of her flesh was not to be borne. And that was the crux of his problem. Tehdra was compelling, beautiful, honorable, courageous, and she distracted him.
With the threat that existed to his throne and kingdom, he needed a cold and clear head. To carry out retribution. Even now, instead of concentrating on what the attack meant, memory of the tight clasp of her body around his cock, her hot moans, her passion, the obsidian beauty of her eyes teased him. Ajali shook himself. Since he had lost the allegiance with Boreas he had not bedded anyone else but Tehdra. She alone held his interest, his arousal. What the king’s hell should he do in such a situation? Send her away before thoughts of her preoccupied him and he unwittingly crippled his kingdom.
“My king?”
The soft question drew his gaze to the great chair in which Bastien sat. Ajali had actually forgotten that they conferred on the matter of his kingdom. If Bastien had any idea what he mused on, he would wonder if witches had stolen Ajali’s senses.
“We have received more than ten thousand acceptances from the kingdom’s nobility. The games will commence in two days’ time. With the attack we have deposed an additional two thousand warriors in the city and around the coliseum walls.”
“Two thousand?” He looked at Uriah.
“Do not start, kalija!” Uriah snapped. “You were attacked on our lands, with your Kingblades shadowing your steps. The enemy grows bolder.”
Ajali surged to his feet and stalked to the windows overlooking the courtyard. “Was that not the plan, brother? To lower my guard so that the enemy would reveal his hand?”
