Total pages in book: 90
Estimated words: 83933 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 420(@200wpm)___ 336(@250wpm)___ 280(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 83933 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 420(@200wpm)___ 336(@250wpm)___ 280(@300wpm)
“You’re right. We’re safe for now.” He searched my gaze, hesitated a beat more, then raised my shirt over my head, revealing my plain beige bra. A leftover from our stay in the Wild West Inn. Slowly but surely, he discarded his weapons, one after the other. The axes. Daggers. A mini-whip I hadn’t noticed. A collapsible crossbow.
I watched, awed. When he finished, he raised his arms, issuing his own invitation.
Yes, thank you. I worked to remove his tunic, but the material pulled tight over his wealth of muscles. Eventually, I managed it. The compass hung between his pectorals, an adornment I wished I’d given him sooner. I gave it, him, a stroke.
His nostrils flared. When I stepped back, he toed off his boots. We watched the other unfasten and shed their pants. I revealed the bra’s matching panties while he killed in a pair of loose-ish black boxer briefs with a string tie instead of an elastic band. Tattoos even covered his legs. While his chest boasted images of limbs with dangling heads, his thighs displayed more of the trunk. Twirling roots decorated his calves. He was a tree of life and death. A temptation like no other.
He ran his hot—and heating—gaze over my curves, giving me the same once-over I’d given him, his pupils gobbling up his irises. New flutters erupted in my belly.
“Tonight, I don’t want to think about unanswered questions, the murals, my bloodline, curses, or monsters. Let’s be a fun farmgirl and a super-hot soldier on leave.” As I spoke, I backed up, entering the water. The warmth delighted me, but I liked his reaction more.
Raising his chin, emitting pure intensity, he squared his shoulders and stalked closer. Water splashed as he entered. “You are a farmgirl. Agreed. But I’m not a soldier on leave. I’m a soldier on a mission.”
“Mmm.” I smiled at him. “Do tell.”
“Operation Capture the Farmgirl is a go.” He lunged for me.
With a laugh, I reared back. He swiped only air. Living in the moment, I scooped handfuls of water and splashed him.
He paused to rub a hand over his face, removing the droplets from his eyes. “That’s how you want to play this, eh?”
“Try and stop me,” I taunted.
Seizing the advantage, he pounced, diving into me, taking us both under water.
“You fiend!” I laughed as I breached the surface. I shimmed from his hold and swam off. “I’ll make you pay for that.”
“Farmgirl, this soldier is determined.”
After that, we played like children, splashing about, taking turns chasing and evading. But it wasn’t long before our laughter ceased. My desire to evade him fled. Every time we brushed together, I swallowed a breathless groan.
With his intensity on full display, Jasher pressed me against a smooth rock. Chest to chest. He captured my hands and kissed my knuckles before pinning my wrists over my head. My heart raced with purpose.
He traced the pad of his finger over my ring, his gaze hot on mine. “Where did you get this?”
“It was my mother’s,” I replied, honest. “I thought I lost it. Then I came here and suddenly it appeared. First as a shadow, then as the real deal. Iris called it a forever key.”
“I’ve never heard mention of a forever key.” He slid a thumb down, down my arm, stopping at my mouth. Eyelids growing heavy, he plumped my bottom lip. “I want to kiss you,” he all but growled.
Yes! Do it.
His nostrils flared. “But I won’t.”
“What if I ask nicely?” I rocked against him, wrenching a ragged moan from us both. His strength. His heat. The perfection!
Birds squawked overhead, and he stiffened. “I would hate myself later, but I’d say no. I’m not in a position to form an attachment.”
“Good thing I’m not asking you to attach.” But wasn’t I doing just that? A kiss—or more—without any kind of connection meant less than nothing. A momentary pleasure with only enough fuel to fan the flames of discontent. I had no desire for that. With him, I wanted more. To be valued. Seen. Known.
He dipped his chin. “What are you asking, princess?”
I opened and closed my mouth. Because I didn’t know!
“Exactly why I won’t risk kissing you,” he stated, not hiding his disappointment.
The denial hurt as much as it soothed, and the incongruity confused me. Though it shouldn’t, I supposed. At the moment, I felt as if I were two separate people. The girl from Kansas, and the woman in Hakeldama. They craved different things.
“This is probably for the best.” He released my wrists but didn’t back away. “My kind never experience a happy ever after.”
The low, husky admission struck a chord deep within me. His kind. Meaning the royal guard or a citizen of both Hakeldama and Earth?
I glided my palms up his muscular chest, offering comfort of my own. “You could come with me.”