So I Married a Sorcerer
Page 42
He’d trapped her. How dare he retain her against her will? Irritation flared inside her, but the fluttering in her stomach also increased. She’d never been this close to him before.
His hands fisted in the cloak. “Is it true? You would rather hurl yourself over the wall than marry me?”
He thought she was suicidal? Her irritation grew. “Of course not! Like you said before, we have no choice in the matter. So I have mentally prepared myself to go through with the ordeal.”
His mouth thinned. “How noble of you.”
“And what about you? Are you tempted to fall on a sword?”
He snorted. “Unlike you, I’m looking forward to the ordeal.” He leaned closer. “And I’ll be praying for a drought.”
Her heart lurched. He wanted to marry her? And what did a drought have to do with them?
“I have another question.” He gave her a wry look. “Actually I have many questions. Why did you leave your room? Why were you running at the wall?”
By the goddesses, how could she explain that? “I … wanted some fresh air.”
“Try again.”
She glanced down at his gloved hands, which still clutched the edges of his cloak and kept her trapped. How could she get free? Could she use his fear against him? She reached her hand toward the white shirt that covered his broad chest.
“No!” He jumped back, releasing her. “Don’t do that. It’s too dangerous.”
“Nothing happened before when you grabbed me.”
“There were several layers of insulation. My gloves, your cloak and nightgown.” His mouth twitched. “Although your nightgown hardly counts as a layer.”
Her cheeks burned with heat.
“I can never be sure how a person will react,” he continued. “Especially when my power is this high. Even with my gloves on, my touch has caused some people to faint.” His eyes glinted with humor. “Apparently, you’re rather insensitive.”
The rascal, now he’d asked for it. She lunged toward him, pretending she was going to poke him.
“Dammit, woman!” He leaped back.
She smiled to herself as she folded her arms across her chest. He wouldn’t dare come near her now.
With a snort, he leaned against the wall. “You’re too damned clever.”
“I thought you liked that about me.”
His mouth curled into a lopsided smile. “I do. So why did you run at the wall?”
“Why are you here? Shouldn’t you be hunting down the assassins?”
His smile widened. “Another counterattack. Are you sure you’re not a warrior?” He folded his arms, mimicking her stance. “Your father gave me permission to move into the southern tower. So now we’re neighbors. And I can keep an eye on you to make sure you’re safe.”
She glanced at the tower behind him. It was the tallest tower along the curtain wall with an added turret on top. From there, he would have an excellent view of the sea and the entire fortress.
“As for the assassins,” he continued, “I’m working on it.”
“How?”
“I have a plan.” He paused as if he was considering how much to tell her. “And my best spies are at work.”
She blinked. Did he have spies watching her? “Who are they?”
“You needn’t worry yourself over that.”
She narrowed her eyes, then turned to gaze over the crenellated wall at the sea. “No doubt my spies are better. They’ll find the assassins first.”
“What? Your spies?”
“Yes.”
He scoffed. “I don’t believe it.” When she merely shrugged, he stepped closer. “Fine. Who are they?”
She gave him a pointed look. “You needn’t worry yourself over that.”
His mouth fell open, then he grinned. “You know how to wrestle. I like that.”
Her heart did a little leap as a vision popped into her mind of the two of them physically wrestling. And once he had her pinned down … but he couldn’t. He could never touch her. By the goddesses, it was enough to make her learn how to curse. “I should be going now.” She started toward the tower.
“Did you wonder why I’m praying for a drought?”
She halted. He’d come back with a counterattack of his own. An excellent one. For she had wondered.
His booted feet crunched on the stone wall walk as he approached her from behind. “No rain means no lightning. That means my power would slowly disappear.”
The back of her neck tingled. “Why would you want to lose your power?”
“So I can touch you. Kiss you.” His voice lowered to a whisper. “Bed you.”
The tingle on her neck skittered down her spine. Then he might be able to touch her someday? And she hadn’t imagined the hunger in his eyes. It was real. “You … want me?”
“Yes.”
Her heart thudded as she turned to face him. “You hardly know me.” He didn’t even know her real name.
“I know you’re clever, brave, bold, and beautiful. I know you’re kind to servants. Kind to animals. You’re not above working in the garden. You stand up to me. You intrigue me. I feel more … alive when I’m with you.” He stepped closer. “Yes. I want you.”
A sharp pang shot through her chest. He wasn’t describing Tatiana. He was describing her. It was she, Luciana, that he wanted. “My lord—”
“Call me Leo.”
She swallowed hard. “Leo. C-could you call me Ana?”
His eyes widened with surprise. “Does your father call you that?”
She shook her head. “It would be just for us.” So she could feel that he was marrying her, not Tatiana. Tears stung her eyes, and she blinked them away.
“Is something wrong?” He stepped closer. “Ana?”
The goddesses help her, this man was making her heart ache. “I should go now.” She headed toward the tower.
“Dammit,” he grumbled behind her. “You never answered my questions.”
She stopped and gave him a hesitant glance. “You shouldn’t spend the night out here. You need your rest before the duel.”
His eyebrows lifted. “Are you worried about me?”
Tatiana’s request! She’d almost forgotten. “Could you do me a favor and not kill the captain tomorrow?”
“What? You’re worried about him?”
Caw, caw. A seagull called out, and he muttered a curse.
She winced. “There are others who care about the captain. So I would appreciate it if you didn’t kill him.”
He gave her an exasperated look. “What do you think I am? I never planned to kill the bastard.”
“Oh, thank you!” She ran into the tower as he growled a few more curse words.
“I’m not a Beast!” His voice echoed down the wall walk.
No, he was a man. Her eyes burned with tears as she hurried up the stairs. He was an amazing man. And he would be far too easy to fall in love with.
Also by
Kerrelyn Sparks
HOW TO TAME A BEAST IN SEVEN DAYS
New York Times bestselling author Kerrelyn Sparks’s novels are:
“An absolute delight!”
—Lynsay Sands, USA Today bestselling author
“Full of vulnerability and tenderness … rich romance.”
—Publishers Weekly
“Mixed paranormal romance with humor … Sparks clearly has a style all her own, one that readers love.”
—USA Today’s Happily Ever After blog
“Infuse[d] with deliciously sharp wit … wickedly fun.”
—Booklist
“Stellar … excellent storytelling.”
—RT Book Reviews
About the Author
Kerrelyn Sparks apparently has issues with reality. After writing sixteen books about vampires and shifters, she has now completely gone off the deep end and wound up on another planet. But how thrilling that she can share this new world with her readers! Although she is best known (so far) for the Love at Stake series, which has hit
as high as number 5 on the New York Times list and 22 on the USA Today list, she hopes her readers will love The Embraced as much as they did her merry band of vamps and shifters. To learn more about her paranormal, historical, and new out-of-this-world fantasy romances, please visit Kerrelyn on Facebook, Twitter, or her website at www.kerrelynsparks.com, or sign up for email updates here.
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Contents
Title Page
Copyright Notice
Dedication
Acknowledgments
Map
Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Six
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Chapter Thirty
Chapter Thirty-One
Chapter Thirty-Two
Chapter Thirty-Three
Chapter Thirty-Four
Chapter Thirty-Five
Chapter Thirty-Six
Epilogue
Excerpts from Eight Simple Rules for Dating a Dragon and How to Tame a Beast in Seven Days
Also by Kerrelyn Sparks
Praise
About the Author
Copyright
This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
SO I MARRIED A SORCERER
Copyright © 2017 by Kerrelyn Sparks.
Excerpt from Eight Simple Rules for Dating a Dragon copyright © 2017 by Kerrelyn Sparks.
Excerpt from How to Tame a Beast in Seven Days copyright © 2017 by Kerrelyn Sparks.
All rights reserved.
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St. Martin’s Paperbacks edition / September 2017
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