Total pages in book: 141
Estimated words: 132138 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 661(@200wpm)___ 529(@250wpm)___ 440(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 132138 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 661(@200wpm)___ 529(@250wpm)___ 440(@300wpm)
“She is ours.” Lach speaks around the fangs in his mouth. “We’ll take her where we want to. She belongs to us.”
Yes, my brother is definitely feeling the fever, and now some of Gillian’s words are breaking through. Bron is hurt. Bron isn’t even conscious. Do we intend to push her skirts up right here on the battlefield, the dead all around us?
It would prove once and for all what animals we are. Yes, when her brothers discover how we treated her, we’ll be welcomed with open arms.
Lach’s face is in her hair, breathing in her scent, letting it flow around him. Lach growls, his hand moving to her breast. If I don’t stop him, the fever will take control, and there will be no controlling the warrior half. The dead all around us prove Lach is capable of giving in to the beast that lies inside our soul.
“Please, Shim. I understand the fever, but Bronwyn will not. As far as I can tell, she doesn’t even know you’re real.” Gillian takes another cautious step forward. “Please. If you give in to the fever, you’ll take her with not an ounce of thought to her. She’s a virgin. I made sure of it. I’ve protected her for thirteen years because I knew she was your mate. Trust me. Take her back to the tower. Give her and yourselves some privacy.”
Bron’s eyes flutter open. I stop, terrified that the next sound will be Bronwyn’s scream. Brown eyes look at me. She seems unfocused, shaky. Her hand comes, brushing my chin. “My Shim?”
My heart leaps. “Yours.”
“Lach?”
I kiss her forehead. “Is here now, love.”
“What is wrong with your eyes?” She tries to sit up.
Before I can explain, she doubles over, her knees coming up and a low wail moving from her mouth. Pain is etched on her face, her hands stiffening into fists.
“Please make it stop. Why won’t it stop?”
I look to my sister. “What’s wrong with her? I can’t feel her. I should be able to feel her. We’re bonded but there is nothing connecting us now.”
My sister seems to be treating us like dangerous predators. She moves forward slowly, holding her hands out to show she has no weapons. Even though she moves cautiously, I find himself clutching Bron tighter, and Lach bares his fangs.
“I am not taking her from you. Damn it. Calm down both of you. You’re scaring the entire village, and we seem to need them as you did not bring an army with you.” Gillian stands in front of them.
“They left the army behind.” The phooka moves from his perch on the roof to the pole that held Bron. He hangs there, his claws sunk deep. “Though I wouldn’t call it an army, exactly. More like a small unit.”
“And they brought along a little devil.” Gillian frowns at the phooka before turning her gaze back to us. “Do you not know what that is? It’s a trickster. Did he trick you away from Father’s men?”
Bronwyn moans softly, tears squeezing from her eyes. I’m not in the mood to hear about our choice of vehicle. “Tell me what is wrong with our mate.”
Gillian gets to one knee. “Bronwyn. Bronwyn, did they give you anything? Did they put something in your food or water?”
Bron bites her bottom lip and forces herself to nod. Her mouth opens as though she’s trying to speak, but her body convulses again.
Even Lach seems to come out of his fever long enough to be worried. “What’s wrong? What did they give her?”
Gillian ignores us both, putting a hand to Bron’s forehead and feeling it. “She’s burning up. I suspect they gave her something to quiet her, but it wouldn’t explain why she’s in such pain.”
I lean over, looking into her face. “Tell me how to help you, a chumann.”
One hand comes to my head, her fingers soft on my hair. “Kiss me.”
Her mouth tilts up, touching mine, lips pressed to lips. I feel like I’m falling into a dark well and Bron is the only spark of light. Her soft moan has my cock leaping in my pants. An aching want suffuses my body with desire. My heart speeds up, and a horrible pain begins in my cock.
I need. I fucking need her.
“Damn it.” Gillian stands and turns back to talk to someone.
I don’t care. I know what she needs now. Her body calls to mine. That bright, shimmering line that connects us is starting to come back.
“It hurts. She’s hurting so much.” Lach feels the connection, too, our minds opening to each other now that Bron is awake again, but the connection is marred by her pain, her outrageous need.
Gillian steps forward again. “Pick her up. We need to get her inside. We have no way of knowing until we do a count if you killed everyone you should have. Reymon has a house close by. He’s willing to give it to you for the time being. I’ll keep watch for this squad of men who I have to hope will be smart enough to follow you.”