by Kiersten Fay
She knew he held important information about the coming invasion. And because of this, she was about to do something that would cause her great embarrassment—unless her plan worked.
The stubborn demon may not submit to questioning, but his earlier behavior suggested he could be tempted by other means. If she failed tonight, she would be forced to hand him over to her warden. And she didn’t want to think of all the ways Renzo got his prisoners to talk.
Choosing her outfit carefully Nadua tried to dress as nicely as possible. With a slight tremble, she slipped on her finest fur cloak, which spanned the length of her body and cinched at the waist. A small train brushed the floor.
The robe fell open in the front, and she usually wore her riding clothes under it. Not tonight. Tonight it would serve as a dress of sorts. Holding the bottom of the fabric up she glanced down at her bare legs. It was surprisingly elegant. She blushed and let the material fall back into place.
Was she really going to go through with this?
Accessories were scarce, of course. While packing for this trip, she hadn’t realized she’d be in need of finer adornments—who would pack for a fight and think, where’s that necklace I love? So she was stuck with a clean pair of gloves, and boots with laces to match.
It didn’t matter what her hair or face looked like, for it would remain covered, as usual, to protect her from the cold. Besides, it shouldn’t be her face the demon would be looking at.
A mirror wasn’t necessary for her to realize this was a lackluster attempt at dressing for seduction. Everything she wore was made, in some part, from edisdon fur—it was the only material that could keep her warm—and he’d already expressed his distaste for it. But it would have to do.
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Marik leaned back against the familiar stake, hands behind him once more, with the same flimsy rope in place. A soldier entered, carrying a stool and set it down next to the dimming fire pit. With shaky hands, he added a few logs and then rushed away, sparing Marik an uneasy look as he went.
The day had been fairly productive—as productive as a day in captivity could be, anyway. He’d been able to learn quite a bit of the language by the simple act of observing those around him. Not enough to decipher complete sentences yet, but he could at least gather the gist of a conversation. It was sure to be useful, since no one spoke any other language that he could understand. Except that woman, of course.
She had proven distracting while she was near him, though. Even while they were silent he was too focused on her, rather than keeping to his task.
His curiosity had driven him mad. What was her name? Why does she speak a language of the stars when no one else could? What the hell was under that cloak?
Getting rid of her had been easy enough, but then keeping her in his sights had been a full time occupation. He didn’t know why, but if she disappeared from view—which she managed often—Marik couldn’t concentrate till he knew where she was in the group. To keep tabs on his enemy, he reminded himself. Not because he feared for her life. The two guards had also been out of sight most of the day.
After his crude remarks to her earlier, Marik was genuinely surprised when the woman entered his tent. Oddly, something in the pit of his stomach relaxed at the sight of her.
She was still covered from head to toe in that fluff, but something was different: her outfit was tighter, revealing her figure and giving him an even better idea of what her body might look like under that damn fur.
Tempting.
A thick scarf tucked into her hood and hid her features. Her lovely eyes glimmered in the glow of the flames as she sauntered to the fire.
A chair had been placed close to the flames and he expected her to take it immediately, but she remained standing. She looked a bit uneasy. By her swift glances to the exit, he had the feeling she was contemplating leaving without a word, and the thought bothered him.
“Are you here to continue our conversation about how talented my tongue can be? I assure you it...” Marik trailed off as she finally sat. The fabric of her outfit parted around long shapely legs, coming together again just below the apex of her thighs.
His cock jerked at the sight and he wished she’d move this way a bit, only an inch more. She crossed her legs with a deliberate motion, causing the fabric to fold elegantly closed, but one slender thigh was revealed instead. Marik’s mouth went dry, while other parts of him sprang to life.
Her eyes gleamed with amusement and that alone gave her away.
Saucy chit.
Marik composed himself and tried to keep his eyes off her succulent pale skin.
Pale?
“Your skin isn’t blue, like your male counterparts.” He shrugged and gave her a leering smile. “Not that I’m complaining. I’m not really partial to blue.”
* * *
“How convenient for you.” Nadua had been nervous when she’d first walked in into the demon’s tent. So much so that she hadn’t been able to speak at first.
How could she have thought this was a good idea?
She felt like a fool coming here. It was unlikely the demon would be tempted by her. And this jaunt could end up being incredibly embarrassing if any of the guards discovered her plan. Doubts continued to swirl in her head and she had almost left without a word.
Then she’d seen lust in the demons eyes and knew she could pull this off.
“Is that why you females need to cover your bodies? You haven’t adapted to your environment properly?”
Ass.
“Oh th...we’ve adapted just fine.” She tried to make her voice sensual, but feared she was doing a poor job of it. “Why don’t you tell me a little about yourself?” She rubbed her crossed legs together for effect.
With alarming intensity, his gaze went directly to where she intended it to.
“Well, let me think,” he began. “You already know I’m a demon, and I’m sure you’ve heard of the dangers of teasing one such as I.”
Nadua swallowed, but kept her back straight and suppressed her rising alarm. She could do this.
He continued. “I’m a great warrior...and a genius when it comes to preparing food. My favorite color is clear. And I love your legs. Why don’t you come closer so I can sink my teeth into them.”
Irritation flashed though her, but she tamped it down. “You are a very good fighter. My men can attests to that. You’ve been trained, obviously. I find that attractive.” Nadua was surprised at how steady her voice was as well as the accuracy of the statement. She rubbed the back of her fingers over her thigh. “I find myself wanting to know more about you. Perhaps we can...chat a little?”
He gave a slight nod, eyes riveted to her caressing movement. She could see by the bulge in his pants that her actions were inspiring the exact response she was going for. Easy.
“Can you tell me about the craft that brought you here?”
“A shuttle’s a shuttle. What else do you need to know? It gets you where you’re going, and in many cases back again.”
“And why did it bring you here?”
“Look, I know what you’re doing.” His voice went guttural. “And you have no idea what you’re tempting here.”
“Don’t I?” She was growing warm from the anxious rushing of her blood, induced by the knowledge of what she was about to do next. Somehow, she needed to calm herself down, but she was making progress with the demon. Stopping now was not an option.
She began removing her gloves, pulling at each finger and making sure he was watching as they slipped down her arm. Next came the shawl pelt that covered her shoulders and hid the deep V-neck of her outfit.
“That’s better. You were saying?”
His teeth were grinding. Nadua couldn’t tell if that was a good thing or not. Her pulse spiked at her own actions and her cheeks warmed. Good thing the demon couldn’t see that.
“Well, if you’re going to continue removing your clothing...perhaps we should have more logs brought in. Guard! More logs for the fire!�
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“Shh!” Nadua shot forward, scrambling to gather her clothes, getting ready to redress if anyone entered. She would be mortified if she were caught trying to seduce a demon, even if she didn’t intend to go through with it.
“Let me guess, no one knows you’re here. Do you think it’s wise to rile a demon’s lust without backup, girly?”
“I think I can handle you.”
“Why don’t you untie these ropes and we’ll find out.” He stood as if she would do as he asked. “I would love to test your theory.”
Her eyes widened when she saw his bulge had grown bigger, straining against his pants. She swallowed heavily.
Damn, she was losing control of the situation. In one last attempt, she took a step closer, playing with the lip of her collar.
Heavy lidded, his emerald gaze dipped to her cleavage.
“I want to help you, demon,” she cooed. “I want to trust you. I just need you to tell me the truth.”
“And I just want to taste you. I don’t need my hands free to do that.”
Why was she breathing so hard?
She eyed his lips, looking for a hint of his fangs. “I’m afraid you’d bite me, first chance you get. I need something from you first. I need to know I can trust you. Tell me who you’re looking for?”
They were standing so close, if his hands weren’t tied behind him he could reach out and grab her. Nadua couldn’t help but imagine what that might feel like. Fathomless green eyes bore into hers with such intensity, she knew she had him.
“You, luv. I’ve been searching for you all my life.” Sarcasm dripped from his words. He smirked.
“Bastard!”
“Come on, let us have a taste.”
Nadua pulled out her cleverly placed dagger, hidden by a nearly invisible thigh holster, and set the point at his throat.
“Wow, what else do you keep down there?”
His lack of concern was maddening.
“This was your last chance, demon. Tell me what I want to know, or else.”
“Or else what? You’ll remove your top? I think I can hold out for that.”
Nadua had never been so enraged by a single person in her entire life. With an irritated huff, she turned back toward the fire and slumped in the stool, silently admitting defeat. Slicing the demon’s throat would have been gratifying, but irrational. She would learn all she needed to know. Eventually.
The few moments away from the fire had chilled her, though she hadn’t realized it until now, and she rushed to replace her gloves and shawl.
“When we get back to the castle, you’ll be turned over to Renzo. He lived through the first demon invasion, so I’m sure he’ll know how to deal with you.” Nadua glanced up when she heard a menacing snarl coming from the demon.
“Torture, you mean.”
Nadua shrugged. “I suppose so.” She had hoped to avoid it.
“And after all the torture, if I don’t change my story, what will you do then?” In a flash, the previously lusty green irises morphed into an angry blood red.
Nadua stood with a gasp, not sure what was happening to him. The horns that peeked out of his sandy brown hair began to alter their color as well, taking on the cast of burning embers. Razor-sharp fangs peeked out from his lips, twisted in rage.
This was how he had looked when he was tearing through her men.
“What are you doing?” She stepped backwards, stumbling into the chair. She could swear there was heat coming off him. When the demon’s lips curled back to bare his teeth, she screamed, “Guards!”
Dear reader, Marik is one of my favorite heroes with a tragic past, and Nadua’s strength and special insight is exactly what he needs to face the ghosts from his past.
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Get your copy of THE DEMON SLAVE today.
Other Books By Kiersten Fay
Creatures of Darkness (CoD)
A WICKED HUNGER
A WICKED NIGHT
A WICKED DEISRE
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Ever Nights Chronicles (CoD)
KEEPING HIS SIREN
* * *
Shadow Quest Series
THE DEMON’S POSSESSION
THE DEMON SLAVE
THE DEMON RETRIBUTION
DEMON UNTAMED
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Published by Kiersten Fay
Copyright 2010 by Kiersten Fay
www.kierstenfay.com
All rights reserved.
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This book is a work of fiction. All of the characters, names, and events portrayed in this novel are products of the author's imagination.