by A. C. Arthur
“I’m here one hundred percent,” I told him. “You don’t have to doubt that anymore.”
Aidan nodded. “So am I.”
“Good to hear.” Brayden came up behind us, clapping us on the shoulder. “Thought I was going to have to take both of you out for going AWOL.”
“Nah, we would never let you stand and take all the glory of becoming a guard alone,” Aidan joked.
“Never that,” I added.
It felt good, this walk down the hall with my brothers. The bond we’d built over the years had intensified, our connection sealed.
It wasn’t until we entered the briefing room that our joking moods subsided. There was a stage toward one end and a podium with a sound system had been set up there. Behind the stage the wall was draped in black, the Topètenia insignia in a vibrant green color. The floor was a dark laminate with cushioned chairs lined in rows of twenty across, ten down each side with a three-foot-wide aisle in between.
Lidia joined us and we walked two by two down the aisle, stopping just in front of the stage. Nick and X came up on either side of the four of us and Roman Reynolds, the East Coast Faction Leader stood behind the podium.
The ceremony was brief, our status as special operative shifter guards sealed and applauded by all those in attendance. But I didn’t feel the significance of the whole thing until later that evening. It was after dinner when Rome came to where we sat in the dining hall.
“It’s time,” was all he’d said.
We all knew to get up and follow him out. None of us spoke as we moved through one long hallway after another until finally stopping at a steel door. The Faction Leader typed a number on the keypad just beneath the knob. There was a loud click and the door slid sideways, instead of opening outward. Rome walked through and we followed. There were no lights on, but none were needed. About a quarter of a mile in I saw the first candle and then a room that opened up to at least two hundred more. They lined the walls, casting the space in an eerie glow.
The Faction Leader was immediately approached by another guard and draped in a black robe that tied at his neck with a silver rope. Out of the shadows appeared two more cloaked in gray robes. They came to stand on the side of the FL. A small table was brought before the FL, a needle and ink on top.
“Aidan Sanchez,” the FL called solemnly and Aidan stepped forward.
I watched as my oldest brother removed his T-shirt and knelt on his knees as the Topètenia insignia was tattooed onto his back. When he was finished, Aidan stood and Rome came over to him. The FL placed both hands on Aidan’s shoulders and whispered some words to him. Aidan nodded and Brayden’s name was called.
I would be next. I would step forward and point to where I wanted the tat, then it would be done and it would be official. I would be a Topètenia shifter for the rest of my life.
Twenty minutes later my right bicep stung as the needle applied the ink, branding me. When I stood my teeth were clenched, eyes trained on the FL standing in front of me.
“You were one. Now you are of many. You are a Topètenia and we are bonded. My strength,” the FL continued, cupping his hand to my bicep. I did as I’d seen Brayden and Aidan do before me, twisting my arm around the outside of the FL’s to grab his wrist.
“My strength,” I repeated.
“Our strength,” we said in unison.
When I returned to my room that night the first thing I did was call Zoe. As I lay on the bed waiting for her to pick up the phone, I touched the tat lightly.
“Hey there,” she answered, her voice light and happy.
I smiled at the sound. “Hey yourself.”
“How’d it go?”
“It went great,” I admitted. “It feels right.”
“It is right. You’re right where you should be,” she insisted.
“And you’re with me.”
“Absolutely.”
“I love you, my companheiro,” I told her with warmth and emotion swarming around the tat, similar to the way it did whenever she touched me there.
“And I love you, my companheiro.”
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.
“Hunger for You” copyright © 2014 by A.C. Arthur.
All rights reserved. For information, address St. Martin’s Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10010.
www.stmartins.com
eISBN 9781466857100
First eBook Edition: June 2014
eBooks may be purchased for business or promotional use. For information on bulk purchases, please contact Macmillan Corporate and Premium Sales Department by writing to [email protected].
Also by A.C. Arthur
TEMPTATION RISING
SEDUCTION’S SHIFT
PASSION’S PREY
SHIFTER’S CLAIM
HUNGER’S MATE
PRIMAL HEAT
CLAIMED BY THE MATE, VOL. 1 (with Kate Douglas)
GROWL (with Eve Langlais and Kate Douglas)
Available from St. Martin’s Press
About the Author
A.C. Arthur was born and raised in Baltimore, Maryland, where she currently lives with her husband and three children. An active imagination and a love for reading encouraged her to begin writing in high school and she hasn’t stopped since. Her debut novel Object of His Desire was written when a picture of an Italian villa sparked the idea of an African-American/Italian hero. Determined to bring a new edge to romance, she continues to develop intriguing plots, sensual love scenes, racy characters, and fresh dialogue—thus keeping the readers on their toes! Visit her at: www.acarthur.net. You can sign up for author updates here.
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Not Your Ordinary Romance
ACArthur.net
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright Notice
MINE TO CLAIM
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Copyright
PART OF ME
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Author’s Note
Copyright
HUNGER FOR YOU
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Copyright
Also by A.C. Arthur
About the Author
Copyright
These are works of fiction. All of the characters, organizations and events portrayed in these novels are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
SHADOW SHIFTERS: DAMAGED HEARTS, THE COMPLETE SERIE
S. Copyright © 2016 by A.C. Arthur.
All rights reserved.
For information, address St. Martin’s Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10010.
www.stmartins.com
Author photo © Lisa Fleet Photography
Cover photograph © Andrey_Kuzmin/Shutterstock
The Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available upon request.
eISBN: 978-1-250-10816-6
Our eBooks may be purchased in bulk for promotional, educational, or business use. Please contact the Macmillan Corporate and Premium Sales Department at 1-800-221-7945, ext. 5442, or by e-mail at [email protected].
First Edition: February 2016