Captivating the Bear

by Jane Godman

  “They will have to get used to the idea that one person will always come first with me.” The emotion in his voice tipped her over into tears. “I don’t care what their title is or why they want to see me. They will all have to wait in line before you, Lidi.”

  As he reached the grand staircase, the Baron Dmitriev barred his way. “Your Majesty, while the five founding families are gathered here, we should talk about your wedding.” His expression registered a rigid determination to ignore the fact that there was a young woman wrapped only in a blanket in the king’s arms.

  “A good idea, Dmitriev,” Ged said. “Mikhail?” The steward came forward and bowed low. “Start the preparations. Lady Rihanoff and I will be married this evening.”

  “Very good, sire.” Mikhail bowed low before walking away.

  Dmitriev began to bluster. “This is unacceptable. Your Majesty knows the agreement that was made between the five founding families—”

  “Rip it up,” Ged said.

  “Pardon?” Dmitriev looked like he might cry.

  “You heard me. Rip up that agreement or find yourself a new king. The only reason for me not to marry Lady Rihanoff will be if she says no.” He smiled down at Lidi. “Please don’t say no.”

  “Is this a proposal?” She smiled through her tears.

  “I suppose it is.” He laughed. “I had planned something more romantic...and a lot less public.”

  Carefully, he set her on her feet. Then he went down on one knee and took her hand in his. The people around them were a blur as, through her tears, Lidi focused on his face.

  “Lidi, from the moment we met, I was yours. I’d heard about other people finding true love with their mate, but I never knew what it meant until it happened to me. Every time I look at you, I feel the union of our hearts beating as one. I want to seal our eternal bond with a marriage blessing.” He raised her hand to his lips. “Will you be my wife?”

  Her first attempt at a response came out as a strangled sob. Taking a deep breath, she tried again. “No one could ever understand what was wrong with my heart. It didn’t work the way it was supposed to. I didn’t know how to be a bear. I couldn’t be enigmatic. That’s because until I met you, my heart was a rose in bud. Then you came along, Ged, and it was like the sun shining. My petals unfurled and I could release all the love I had inside.”

  He smiled up at her. “Very poetic, my beautiful bear. Is it a yes?”

  She tugged at his shoulder. “It’s a yes. Now kiss me.”

  He did. Passionately. There might have been some cheering from the people around them, but she couldn’t be sure. After a few minutes, Ged raised his head. “Aw, hell. Andrei, are you there?”

  “Yes.”

  “Find Mikhail. Tell him we need roses at the wedding. Dozens of the damn things.” He swept Lidi back up into his arms. “And now, ladies and gentlemen, if you’ll excuse us, my fiancée and I need to be alone.”

  Lidi wasn’t sure how he managed to run up the wide staircase so fast with her in his arms. Reaching his room, he slammed the door closed and set her on her feet, the smile in his eyes taking her breath away.

  “Don’t we have a wedding to prepare for?” she teased.

  “We have hours before we have to get ready.” He reached out a hand to draw her close and liquid heat burned through her veins. Her knees weakened with desire and she leaned into him. Ged grimaced as he plucked at the front of the ridiculously tight T-shirt he wore. “Although I could use a shower.”

  “Me too.” She touched his nose gently with one fingertip. “What happened here?”

  He smiled, catching hold of her hand and pressing a kiss onto the inside of her wrist. “A bad-tempered bear took a swipe at me.”

  She shook her head. “We need to talk about my future role. Maybe you need me as your bodyguard.”

  “A queen who is a soldier? It’s an interesting idea.”

  Ged shed his clothes on the way to the bathroom and Lidi discarded her borrowed blanket. Stepping under warm jets of water was both soothing and revitalizing, and Lidi felt some of the horrors of the day recede as Ged soaped her body and washed her hair. By the time they were both clean, her arousal levels were off the scale.

  Ged’s nostrils flared as he stroked his thumb along her jawline, tracing the droplets of water. “Ah, Lidi. When I thought I’d lost you—”

  She pressed her fingers to his lips. “The only thing that could drive you from my mind was powerful magic, but it’s been vanquished. Never again.”

  Holding her captive with his heated gaze, he drew her fingers into his mouth, flicking his tongue over them and sucking. When he released them, it was to capture her lips with his own as he pushed her up against the tiled wall, holding her in place with the hot, muscled strength of his body. His tongue sought the softer recesses of her mouth, demanding a response.

  “Need you now.” The words came out on a whimper as she clung to him. “Hard and fast.”

  “Works for me.” Ged growled triumphantly and slid a hard, wet thigh between her legs.

  He blazed a trail of kisses down her throat, his stubble rasping a harsh caress over her skin. Awareness and need spiked higher as he pressed closer, caging her with his arms and rocking his hips tight against hers.

  Needing him became an ache. The realization that their connection had almost been severed made her crave him more than ever. She had to touch him all over, to press closer, to feel his skin on hers.

  Running a hand over his rock-hard abs, she moved lower. Quivering with excitement and anticipation, she stroked a hand down his straining length. The action broke through his control and he seized her. With his hands gripping her buttocks, he lifted her off her feet.

  “You are mine, Lidi.”

  She wrapped her legs around his waist. “All yours. Always.”

  The breath left her lungs in a rush as he bent his knees, fitted his cock to her entrance, and drove into her with a single thrust. Arching her back, she clung to his biceps, adjusting to the delicious sensory overload. His hard chest muscles crushing her breasts, his hips between her thighs, his erection buried hilt deep inside her...everything about that instant was pleasure-pain perfect.

  When he moved, it was to give her what she’d asked for. Hard and fast. Taking her and owning her. He was her mate and she loved him. As he poured his body into hers, it was a confirmation of that shining truth. Incredible friction, generated at the point where their bodies joined, taking her feelings higher. Clinging to him, she rode the rising tide of her release.

  Ged’s pace was relentless, his muscles tightening and releasing as his hips tilted up and forward, driving him into her. His head dropped to her shoulder, his ragged breathing matching her own. The water pouring over them mingled with the sweat from their bodies, making their flesh slippery as they rocked together.

  Lidi’s climax hit full force, stiffening her whole body and tightening her muscles around him. She cried out, the waves of pleasure intensifying when Ged growled and increased the speed of his thrusts. Wildly seeking his own release, he slammed into her, his hips jerking. Shaken by the depth of her feelings, Lidi held on tight, her body clamped around his as he stiffened and pulsed.

  When their breathing returned to something resembling normality, Ged lowered Lidi to her feet. “Sleep.”

  “You have the best ideas.”

  Wrapping her in a huge, fluffy towel, he paused to tuck another one around his waist before carrying her through to the bedroom. Placing her on the bed, he curled his body around hers. Within minutes, she heard the change in his breathing that signaled he was asleep. A slight smile touched her lips.

  I am in the arms of a king. She turned her head to look at him. And he is the man I love.

  With a little wriggle of pleasure, she closed her eyes and felt weariness overwhelm her. She wasn’t sure how long she slept, but she woke some
time later, roused by the sound of frantic scratching and whining at the door. Squirming out from within Ged’s encircling arms, she slid from the bed. Finding his discarded T-shirt on the floor, she pulled it on and went to answer the summons.

  Bruno immediately hurled himself on her in an attempt to communicate his fear of permanent abandonment. After she had petted him for a few minutes, the dog calmed down and commenced an inspection of the room.

  “No.” Lidi shook her head when he showed an interest in jumping on the bed. “I don’t think that will be a popular move right now.”

  The dog wagged his tail and headed for the window seat instead. Jumping onto the cushioned chair, he placed his front paw on the ledge and pressed his nose against the window frame. Lidi joined him, curling up on the seat. Instead of looking out the window, she faced into the room, preferring to watch Ged as he slept.

  “Your mommy and daddy are getting married in a few hours.” She ruffled Bruno’s ears as she spoke. “And we want you to behave during the ceremony.”

  The dog whined, his whole body becoming rigid. Since Lidi didn’t imagine her words had provoked his intense reaction, she shifted position so she could follow the direction of his gaze.

  Immediately below the room, there was a small patch of lawn. Standing in the middle of the grass, a lone figure was looking up at the her.

  “Alyona.” Lidi reached up to open the window. Before the catch was released, Alyona had raised her hand in a parting gesture. Lidi pressed her own palm against the glass in response. For a few moments, they remained frozen in that mutual position of respect and farewell. Then Alyona gradually faded away.

  “Peace,” Lidi whispered. Something told her that for Alyona, it would finally be true.

  A few minutes later, there was a knock on the door. Deciding a little more decorum might be required of the future queen, she retrieved her jeans and underwear and pulled them on.

  When she opened the door, Sarange, Hollie and Sasha greeted her with excited smiles. “We’ve come to get you ready for your wedding.”

  “I need to see my father first,” Lidi said.

  “Of course. You can go visit him first, then we’ll get to work.” Sarange’s grin was filled with girly promise.

  Hearing her voice, Ged groaned and pulled a pillow over his head. “Make the noisy werewolf lady go away.”

  Sarange regarded him with a critical eye. “I’ll send Khan up to him. If he’s going to be I do ready in two hours, we’re going to need a bit of tiger magic.”

  “Two hours?” The words acted like a bucket of water thrown over Ged, and he sat up. “What are we waiting for? I need Khan, Torque, Andrei...hell, I need everyone. And a glass of brandy. The good stuff.” He smiled at Lidi. “Kiss me before you go.”

  She leaned over the bed, hooking a hand behind his neck as she pressed her lips to his. “See you on the other side of the marriage vows, King Gerald.”

  “Can’t wait, Queen Lidiya.”

  * * *

  Eduard Tavisha, Bogdan the Brave and Mikhail Orlov stood together at one side of the ballroom. The Count of Aras was with them. Although he was in a wheelchair, it was a temporary measure and he was already complaining that it was unnecessary. All four men were drinking the king’s favorite brandy as they watched the other guests.

  “I think this will be a different kind of monarchy,” Bogdan observed.

  “What makes you say that?” Eduard asked. “Apart from the fact that the queen has a dog for a pet and the king’s best friends are a tiger and a dragon?”

  Bogdan laughed. “There are a few clues about diversity that may have escaped your attention.”

  They fell silent again. On the dance floor, Finglas, the werewolf member of Beast, whirled past with Lady Galina Ivanov, younger sister of the tragic Alyona. Nearby, Sasha swayed in the arms of Diablo, the darkly handsome werepanther.

  Karina, the hybrid tiger-wolf daughter of Khan and Sarange, who had joined her parents in time to be a flower girl, sat on the floor in a corner of the room, She had removed the circlet of roses from her head and was feeding them one at a time to Bruno. The dog carefully accepted each one from her fingers, then dropped it at her feet. Every time he did it, Karina clapped her hands and squealed with laughter.

  At a quiet table, Zoya, the Queen Mother, was talking to Hollie. They each held one of Hollie’s twin dragon-shifter baby boys. On another table, Prince Andrei was sharing a jug of Callistoya’s finest ale with Khan, Torque and Dev.

  “A bear, a tiger, a dragon and a snow leopard. There must be a joke in there somewhere,” Mikhail said.

  As for the new king and queen...they remained alone on a secluded part of the dance floor, lost in the music and each other.

  “It’s very strange,” the count said. “But until now, I didn’t even know my daughter could dance.”

  When the music ended, the king’s friends and his brother encircled the royal couple. Some good-humored chanting, including encouragement to kiss, ensued. Then the king and queen were hoisted onto their friends’ shoulders and paraded around the room.

  “I remember the pomp and ceremony of previous royal weddings. Yes, this is a little different.” Eduard took a sip of brandy. “It looks like there will be changes around here. Is that a bad thing?”

  “Hell, no.” Bogdan raised his glass in salute to the laughing group on the dance floor. “I’d say it’s going to be very, very good.”

  * * * * *

  Keep reading for an excerpt from Kindling the Darkness by Jane Kindred

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  Kindling the Darkness

  by Jane Kindred

  Chapter 1

  A timeless monument to spiritual devotion—and a 1950s architectural marvel that somehow managed not to insult the majesty of the burnished sandstone buttes into which it was wedged but to grace them—Sedona’s Chapel of the Holy Cross wasn’t where you might expect the gates of hell to open. But open they did, for a few brief moments on one gorgeous midnight last spring. On Lucy Smok’s twenty-fifth birthday, to be exact. Funny thing, though, about opening the gates of hell to let something in: stuff got out. And it was Lucy’s responsibility to round up the wayward “stuff” that escaped and put it back in. Cleaning up after Lucien. As usual.

  Not that it was really his fault this time. It was their father who’d traded her twin’s soul to the devil. And when Edgar Smok died, the bill had come due. Lucien’s transformation into an infernal being had opened the gates until his descent to rule the nether realm c
losed them. In that brief interim, the path between the nether realm and this one had been a two-way street.

  Dozens of hell beasts were now running amok.

  The one she’d tracked this evening—or rather, early this morning—wore a female skin suit: a haggard-looking twentysomething waitress at a greasy spoon, dishwater-blond hair slipping out of a limp ponytail and into her eyes as she took Lucy’s order. She was such a cliché that she had to be infernal.

  Lucy had tracked the fugitive with a little help from the thousand-year-old Viking who happened to be dating Lucien’s sister-in-law. Leo Ström was the chieftain of the Wild Hunt, and the instincts of the Hunt wraiths under his command functioned like a metaphysical GPS, homing in on any vicious killers in the area. As much as Lucy hated the idea of them, connections among the not-quite-human came in handy for her present mission. And Theia Dawn, Lucien’s wife, had an entire family of not-quite-human connections. The Carlisle sisters, who claimed the demoness Lilith as their ancestor, seemed to attract it.

  Lucy had other means of finding infernal fugitives, of course. As the CFO of Smok International and its subsidiaries, Smok Biotech and Smok Consulting—as well as its acting CEO in Lucien’s absence—she had access to the world’s most sophisticated database for tracking and logging unnatural creatures. But the fugitives from hell weren’t in any database, and those that hadn’t made themselves obvious through their sheer audacity in attacking humans right out of the gate, so to speak, were extremely good at blending in with the human population and keeping a low profile.

  The stop at the coffeehouse had been serendipitous. After losing the trail, Lucy had taken a break to refuel, and the little downstairs café was the only thing open this early in the morning. She hadn’t been sure until the waitress brought her order. A telltale flick of the woman’s tongue at the corner of her mouth accompanying a rapid eye blink had given her away as a reptilian demon. Anyone else would have missed it. The demon saw Lucy’s recognition in the same instant, eyes widening with alarm.