Later on, it was neither from the Shark nor Leywin, that Shira finally learned all that was going on – or at least some of it, it was from Liam. Apparently, being mated to the Alpha of Deik tribe was a little more complex than she had thought it was. It made her a target for attacks, from the Renaki who sought any means to hurt Farok, including attacking his mate, some tribes in the Walik who were either envious, or had one score or another to settle with Farok, and – according to what the Shark and Leywin thought, she was also in danger from her own people. She learnt that the Shark was on an undercover mission for Walik, to gather certain information, and the reason her presence with them jeopardized their mission was because now, they had to face off both attacks that had been directed at her, and the ones that were directed at the Shark and his men. Word had spread that the mate of the Alpha Farok had been kidnapped, and that she was sick – that explained why Leywin had
The Shark was aware that he was hurting her, but he could not stop. It was not in his touch, his touch was fierce, yet gentle, and perfectly skilled in love making. It was in what he said, promising her that he would never – could never love her, and yet taking from her the only thing she had to give her mate, her virtue. She was so beautiful, so innocent in her arousal. She did not deserve a male who would make love to her one minute, and treat her like a prisoner the next, a male who didn’t love her. She deserved to be loved, cherished. She deserved a male who would stay awake for hours just to watch her sleep, a male who would love to wake up every morning to see her warm blue eyes open, in their naïve bravery and trusting love . . . . a male who wouldn’t hurt her heart as he brought pleasure to her body. She was wanton this evening, arching her hips against his throbbing need. He pulled her to his bed, gently, and lowered her lush body against his sheets. He propped himself
He kissed her again, and there was a cruelty and determination in the way his tongue stroke the tender insides of her mouth, it reminded her of when he had killed the werewolves who had attacked her in cold brutality, only now, the coldness was not directed towards them, it was against her. With a sob, she wrenched her lips away from his, but he only pulled her back to his bed, pinning her under him. The sheets she had used to cover herself slipped away, exposing her to his hungry and cold eyes. ‘’Look at me Shira.’’ He commanded hoarsely, but she could not bring herself to look into his eyes, to see the mockery that would obviously be there, to let him see her pain. Her shame. A finger roughly turned her head to face him, but she stubbornly shut her eyes, afraid to look at him, afraid of what she was going to see. To punish her for that, his lips descended on hers again, cruelly, making her whimper. His hands had started trailing over her wayward body again, starting a fir
Shira turned immediately to hide her tear streaked face, but Leywin’s hands was on her shoulder, turning her around. His blue eyes scanned her face once, then he swore and his hands dropped from her shoulders. ‘’Shira . . . I’ve had enough of the Shark messing with you. I’m taking you to your mate today.’’ Shira shook her head as fresh tears streaked her face. She was no longer enthusiastic about meeting her mate, thanks to the Shark. She did not even know what punishment her mate would like to inflict on her because of her wantonness with a criminal, a rogue. ‘’What so the Shark is just going to let me go?’’ Leywin stepped forward and placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. ‘’He will if I ask him to. He should never have brought you here, and he has no right to – to cause you so much pain.’’ He turned around and headed for the door, but Shira caught his arm before he could step out. ‘’Leywin don’t!’’ He turned around and was staring into her deep blue eyes. They were filled
She had to think fast. Her father had probably already sent out a message to Farok, infact she was surprised it had taken him this long. For a moment, excitement coursed through her. What if the Alpha Farok decided to lead her rescue mission, in fact, she expected him to. How would she feel if Farok and the Shark stood side by side? Would her love for her mate which she had learned to build over the years overshadow her love for a male she had known for only one week? Would Farok desire her as much as the Shark had? At least the Shark had made it clear he desired her. A tear slipped from her eyes as the excitement vanished. If her mate led a party against the Shark, the both would be caught on opposite sides of a war, and one of them might kill the other. She couldn’t bare to see the Shark killed, to watch his unreadable gray eyes seal forever in cold death, and she did not think she would be able to survive if the Alpha, her mate died either. What would become of her? She who had
The Shark avoided her afterwards, and Shira thought bit was for the best. He wouldn’t notice now if she sneaked off. She ate dinner with the rest of the rogues in a common dining hall, and Shira found she had to force herself to eat, cramming mashed potatoes and roasted lamb into her mouth, and down her throat without even tasting anything. Leywin was watching her with slight curiosity in his eyes, and she knew that if she gave into her lack of appetite and didn’t eat, he would know something was up. She angled herself slightly away from Leywin and the Shark who acted as though she wasn’t even in the room with them. Shira turned to face Liam instead, but she found she was not in the mood for small talk, so she kept quiet. Liam seemed uncomfortable being the center of her attention, and she didn’t blame him. For some reason, her attention on him also drew the stares of Leywin and the Shark. The entire dinner was an awkward affair, and when it was finally over, Shira got up and
Hugo, one of the Shark’s males escorted Shira outside, and as she took in the beautiful scenery and artfully planted flowers and trees that formed a garden, she realized that she had not stepped outside since they had come. She suddenly wished she could run through the garden and keep running, feel the wind against her hair, feel the gentle sun kiss her skin. If she were at home, she would not have been allowed outside either, unless she needed the out doors to learn something about sword fight in the open. She suddenly craved a life that was not dictated to her, first by her family, and now by this – this male who had not yet given her a reason why he had kidnapped her. He was standing by a lake that was so still, Shira wondered if there were any fish in it. He sat on a rock beside the water, and a fishing line dangled from his hand. Beside him, there was a bag, a basket of fruits and what looked like a blanket. Her heart constricted in her chest. He had really put efforts into
Liam walked uneasily down the corridor, towards the Shark’s bedchamber. He wondered why a three man meeting had been called, and who was that servant, why was he all covered up! Something was deeply wrong somewhere, and it terrified him that he did not know what it was. He wondered again why the servant had been asked to wait behind for him at his room. Well, there was only one way to get answers. The Shark’s room door was locked when he got there, but he had been given a key by Leywin earlier since he ran most of the Shark’s errands for him. He opened the door, and let himself in. There was no one inside. Liam’s heart started beating faster, as his wolf instincts warned him again that something was wrong, but he could not place what it was. He walked about a bit in the room, then he remembered, he had left his room open, left his sword behind, with that strange looking servant who was all covered up! He turned around quickly and dashed for the door, only to collide with Leywin.