Page 9 of Ravish
“Yes, you are right, but we could have another leverage in play. We could hold the king hostage until that time and then release him when we are able to flee. The housemaid I have been courting on the inside has given us enough intel for us to get in and out with him. Besides, from what I heard, he is almost on his deathbed and will not put up much of a fight.”
“There must be another way. I don’t feel comfortable with this, brother.” Adanya heard the man sigh, sounding tired andexasperated. She liked the timbre of his voice. She found her face pressed against the dirt as her bottom arched up.
Shit, the heat is beginning. I must get out of here and also warn the others of what is about to happen.
I will deal with Mack another time.
She felt a tingle go up her back, and a scent hit the air. She froze and heard a male’s low growl in response to the scent of her heat.
Adanya suddenly came face-to-face with the most beautiful man she’d ever seen. He was darker than her and Emiyah, with beautiful light brown eyes. His hair was in short twists on his head, with a thick dark brown beard covering his cheeks and jaw. His lips were generous, with a chiselled jawline, his nose slightly narrowed, and his body lean and tall. He was wearing dark jeans and a T-shirt that showcased his hard chest, and his arms flexed as he lifted them and folded them against his chest. His leg muscles bunched in preparation; she was surprised to see his feet bare. She felt her belly clench, and she inched back slowly.
He cocked his head, and then a predatory grin graced his features. She wanted to stay but knew she needed to go and quickly, or she was going to be rutting with this stranger in the middle of the forest, her first time, and even though he was a damn fine specimen, she couldn’t let the other women in the village be kidnapped and the king taken.
She took another step back, getting ready to run when she felt a sting in her hindquarters, and she yelped out in surprise. She turned to snap her teeth at the person who just injected something into her, but her legs began to shake, and she felt suddenly sleepy. She growled as the gorgeous man took steps toward her and then hunkered down into her fading line of sight.
She saw his canines begin to drop. And dismay poured through her as she felt her pussy begin to throb with the heat that was going to be intolerable soon. She hadn’t thought that today was the day she would meet and be taken by the man and his brother that everyone was looking for, but here she was at their mercy.
His face got closer to hers, and she felt his hand on her head, caressing it. She couldn’t help herself; she could hear a needy whine escape her before darkness began to take over, but she did hear him say it before she was gone.
“Hello, my fated mate.”
Chapter 5
Roland
Roland strode down the hall to the family room that they used to meet with guests or even to hold meetings there sometimes with the other heads of the Lycan clans that they’d developed a rapport and friendship with.
He was usually in control of his emotions, but today he found his emotions were heightened even more, and a strong feeling of annoyance was at the forefront this time. He glanced back to see his annoyance trailing far behind him, her feet practically dragging on the floor. Roland sniffed himself to see if he smelled unclean even though he’d bathed this morning before he started his day.
If he wasn’t in a disgruntled mood with everything going on, he would find this a bit funny, because she was acting like he was bringing her to his home to kill her or ravage her to death. Her heart was constantly racing, she was breathing in and out like a workhorse, and she trembled every time he looked her way.
He got the hint that she didn’t like him and feared him, and to be honest, he couldn’t blame her because after the incident. He’d tried to make her life a living hell, and if it wasn’t for his father stepping in, she would have been left to survive outside on her own. But like his dad said, her father’s actions should not fall on the child, and she was innocent in all this. He had held onto his disbelief and had her watched, but the reportscame back with nothing. Roland finally conceded his father was right and let the matter go.
It took him a while to get past the blind rage and pain he felt every time he saw her, but with time, it had begun to fade. And he began to take over more and more of the reins as his father began to step down.
Roland remembered when he began to be aware of her. Shea had caught his eye this year at the Spring Fest. She looked so relaxed and happy and carefree, her curly hair in disarray around her, and she’d thrown her head back to laugh at something her friend Emiyah had said to her. His gaze had travelled over her, taking in her changes; now having the body of a woman, she had filled out more this year, and the curves she sported suited her. He loved a woman with a curvy plump ass that he could grip hard as he fucked her from behind or take her other hole. Shea’s was slightly flat, but she had an ample bust that made him think about running his teeth along the globes and then licking and biting his way all the way down to the curve of her belly, where he would lick and suckle the flesh into his mouth.
She was becoming a distraction to him. His thoughts were now constantly filled with her. He had never been driven or enamored by another woman like this before, and he didn’t like the loss of self-control; she was the first, and he needed to end this.
He was considering approaching her after the heat cycle had passed and only if he hadn’t found himself a mate. He knew she couldn’t go into heat and wanted her to spend a night with him—no commitment, but just a night of pleasure between them that no one had to know about.
But the way she was acting now, he knew that there was no chance of that happening, and he was fucking aroused right now.
He was fighting to keep his arousal that developed, unexpectedly, when he’d accidentally touched Shea on her parcel of land and felt a spark pass between them.
The spark had triggered his canines, and they had begun to drop. He used his training to control what was happening to him. The heat cycle can mess with a Lycan’s control, and he was not immune to it, but just now, this had been something different.
Shea was a rarity and could not go into heat, and never would. But he’d wanted to mount her and claim her as his own in that very moment.That could not happen, could it? Could someone feel this way about another female Lycan without them being his fated mate?
Her father, murdering his mother, had set their course, and he would not bring more hurt and chaos into his father’s life. Logically, Roland knew she wasn’t responsible, but he was still not at a point emotionally where he could separate the two.But if it were possible, would he not do anything to have her?
His heart raced with the idea, but then he shook his head ruefully; he needed to squash these thoughts; that way lay in trouble for him and her.
He reached the doors of the family room and opened it, standing in the frame waiting for her to catch up. He watched as Shea stopped and hesitated a couple of feet away.
Roland growled, signalling his irritation, and she raised her head and stood her ground.
He frowned but at the same time tried not to smile; she looked so cute standing there defying him, her dark eyes snapping with her annoyance, and her mouth dropped open for a second as she realized she was defying him. Shea’s face donned a serene expression, and then she stepped a bit further toward him.
