Her hands wanted to caress every inch of his marvelous body. She let her hands roam under his robe to his belly and his waist, where she rounded his ass and cupped him, urging his deep, wondrous plunges.
Siraj lowered his head and kissed her, but unlike the hurried passionate kisses from before, this kiss was one of love, one of surrender. Yasmin followed his tongue with her own while her hands returned to his hair. Siraj never let her lips go, but his kiss grew more forceful, more demanding. She met him kiss for kiss, increasing her rhythm to keep up with his plunging hips.
Suddenly, powerfully, Siraj came, and his cock surged in her pussy, pressing as deep as he could go. He held her hips steady to take him, and Yasmin couldn’t help but continue to undulate, to experience the fullness of him deep inside her. Another orgasm crashed over her and she cried her pleasure into his mouth as their tongues tangled. Gods, he could make her come just by touching her where no other man ever had.
After his groans and her cries of completion had passed, Siraj lifted his head and kissed her face everywhere, but stayed within her warmth. “Now you are completely mine, Yasmin Pramtash,” he whispered.
She hugged him, unable to speak without fear of sobbing. Not only did she wrap her arms around his neck, but she also wrapped her legs around his waist. She wanted, needed, to be as close as she possibly could. Her husband stayed right where he was and rested his head on her shoulder with his breath hot on her skin.
Siraj had finally claimed her before his god. Now, truly, no one could dispute that she was the Jackal Princess of the Golden Desert.
Twenty
“I have a daughter.”
Khalil paced the length of his carav for the hundredth time, scrubbing his face with his hands. Of all the things he’d prepared himself for after he’d slept with the witch to heal his wounds over twenty years ago, he’d never considered a pregnancy from their union.
He’d been blinded by agony, willing to do anything Mother commanded in order to be healed, and he hadn’t even remembered what he’d done with her for a decade afterward. The magic she’d wielded to heal him had also made him forget. That likely seemed a part of her plan now, as she wouldn’t have wanted him to discover her secret.
He would have returned to claim his daughter, a natural born princess. The baby wouldn’t have been legitimate, but he wouldn’t have cared. Khalil would never leave his child in the hands of a monster.
Even now, he had no idea what Mother did with Yasmin after she was born. Just the thought sent icy tendrils of fear down his spine.
Zara watched him pace from her seat among the pillows. She’d been silent for the most part, but she had to be just as shocked as he was to find he’d fathered a baby with that vile woman.
“I have a daughter,” he repeated, this time tugging his fingers through his unruly hair.
“Khalil, you couldn’t have known.”
Zara’s voice cut through his panic. He stopped pacing to gaze at her. His stomach churned and his eyes stung. The scenes Mother had revealed to Zara those years ago had horrified his wife. Even now, she woke to dreams that set her heart racing. She never spoke of it, but through the power of the falcon ring she’d made for him, he could see the colors of her fear and disgust flowing through his mind.
“I’m sorry,” he whispered, hanging his head in shame. “I’m so sorry.”
Instantly she was on her feet and standing before him. She took his hands in hers and brought them to her mouth. “I have never blamed you for lying with Mother,” she said. “This is difficult to accept, but it does nothing to change the love I have for you, Khalil Dehriq.”
He closed his eyes and drew a deep breath. “How can you be so accepting?” he asked.
“Because my love is unconditional,” she answered. “You have asked me the same question regarding your scars, and also when I found out how you’d survived them. Why would I be swayed now? If you have a daughter, she is a part of you. And I will embrace that. She is not Mother’s daughter. The witch is dead. Therefore, she is my daughter as well as yours. We will get through this.”
Khalil pulled her into his embrace and held on tight. He had no idea how he’d managed to live before he’d met this woman. As far as he was concerned, the sun rose and set in his princess.
“We have a daughter, Khalil,” she whispered in his ear.
He shuddered and squeezed harder. “Gods, and she’s married to Siraj.”
“Can you think of a better husband for her to have? The Jackal is loyal and caring and his heart bursts with love for her.”
“But she’s going insane, Zara,” he reasoned, pulling back to look into her eyes. “She will grow old before her time. There is only one thing that can save her—the very same thing that saved Mother every ten years.”
Zara gasped, probably seeing his colors of concern in her head. “You think she would kill Siraj? You think he’s in danger?”
“I think we’re all in danger,” he said, his voice low. “To restore her mind, Yasmin will have to make a blood sacrifice from a royal house.”
“We can’t let that happen. We must do something!”
“I am not sure anything can be done. Don’t you think Mother would have found a way if it was possible?” His wife stiffened in his arms.
“We cannot give up on her. I refuse to.”
Khalil finally let Zara go to resume his pacing. “Then what do you propose? What can we possibly do?”
After a few moments of silence, Zara spoke once more. “I still have a piece of wood from the glade Amani magically created years ago. It was infused with her magic, but also with Ziyad’s, since she’d been wearing the spider ring I’d made for her. And the Spider’s magic is—”
“Protection,” he said, interrupting her.
“Yes. If I can make her something from that wood, a pendent perhaps, it might be enough to keep her insanity at bay.”
“Ziyad’s magic is not as strong in that wood as it is in Amani’s spider ring,” Khalil reminded her.
“It is all that we have.” Zara bit her lip. “I don’t know what else to do.”
He sighed. “Do it. The sooner the better. Her magic could lash out at any time.”
Zara nodded and scurried to the small chest she kept in the corner of the carav. She’d have her trinket carved in a few hours at best. She worked her magic to make her jewelry, and that allowed her to carve her pieces in a fraction of the time it would take a normal jeweler.
The question was, would it be soon enough? Khalil tugged his hair once more and silently prayed to the god of Falcons and the god of Jackals. Surely Yasmin deserved their combined protection. Perhaps even the protection of the god of Spiders for having a trinket infused with Ziyad’s power.
Khalil knew he was grasping at cattails. But there was no other option to save the life of his daughter.
~ * ~
“Something is wrong, Siraj.”
Yasmin lay halfway on her husband’s chest for the past hour, and found comfort in his regular heartbeat. Their lovemaking had allowed her to let go of her fears for a little while and lose herself in Siraj’s arms. But now, it felt as if a weight had settled on her chest, slowly crushing the breath from her lungs.
Siraj’s fingers stopped combing through her hair. “What do you mean?” he asked. His deep voice always seemed to resonate through her body. Now, however, it seemed so far away, as if he was calling to her from across the dunes.
Yasmin sat up and gazed down on him. It was hard to focus. Siraj’s sharp intake of breath quickened her heart and it was all she could do not to panic at the look in his eyes.
“Yas,” he exclaimed. “By the gods… You have aged! How is that possible?”
Lifting trembling hands, Yasmin felt for herself the wrinkles on her face. Siraj sat up as well, holding a lock of her hair. Before their eyes, it turned gray, as if Yasmin was a much older woman.
“What is happening to me?” she said as tears welled in her eyes. “I don’t feel well.�
� The glade spun all around her. She groaned and closed her eyes.
“You are burning up. We must get you back to the Falcon’s caravan.”
A sudden, unexplainable lust overcame her and her mouth practically watered at the thought of sex.
You must fuck him.
Yasmin gasped at the sound of a phantom voice in her head. Where had it come from? She didn’t care. Gods, she needed Siraj plunging inside her. Right now.
The need in her body was more like an instinct, and she straddled Siraj’s legs with ease.
“Yasmin, what are you doing?” he asked, confused.
“I need you,” she replied, her voice raspy. “I need your cock.”
“You are not well. We must get you…back to…gods.” Yasmin thrust her wet pussy against him, arousing him once more. “Yasmin, you don’t know what you’re doing.”
“Yes I do,” she said, holding Siraj’s hands to the ground above his head.
Fuck him, the voice whispered again. A sudden breeze picked up within the glade, ruffling her hair. Yasmin’s pussy ached. She needed to ride his dick. His emotions flooded her mind. He was confused and frightened, but more than that, his lust had flared, and Yasmin’s need grew along with his cock.
Yasmin didn’t want to go back to the Falcon’s caravan. Not now. Not yet. They could go later.
“You are not in your right mind. You are not feeling well,” Siraj said, easily breaking free of her hands.
Siraj’s resistance sparked her anger. He wanted her, she knew he did. Then why didn’t he impale her pussy?
With a pulse of her magic, Yasmin pushed him back into the grass, this time holding his hands with her power. “Fill me, Jackal,” she commanded. “Now. Right now.”
Yasmin watched with satisfaction as Siraj’s eyes glazed over. He couldn’t touch her with his hands bound above him, but she knew the moment of his acquiescence. The cool breeze stiffened his nipples and she leaned down to lick them, one by one.
Siraj surged against her, searching for her warmth. Yasmin sat back and took his cock to the hilt without pausing to savor the moment. Up and down she thrust, riding him, demanding he keep time with her. He did.
Yasmin threw her head back and cried out, unable to stop herself from grinding her hips into his. Her pleasure built inside of her with each plunge until it finally released and thundered down her arms and legs, exploding outward. The palm trees around them swayed back and forth, but Yasmin didn’t care. She needed more. More.
“Fuck me, Siraj,” she demanded, never stopping her thrusts. “Make me come again!”
The sound of skin slapping skin filled the glade, and Yasmin turned wild. With the pleasure of her first orgasm still buzzing through her, she strained for another, growling deeply every time Siraj’s cock sank deep into her pussy.
Her husband shouted his own release and once more, Yasmin shuddered with ecstasy, screaming and tearing at his chest with her fingernails. She couldn’t stop herself. Her hips bucked despite her lucidity returning, despite knowing what she was doing was wrong.
Her magic had bound Siraj, and he only obeyed her because she commanded it. Gods, what was she doing?
Kill him.
That whisper in her head made her cry in shock. Instantly, her eyes burned and horror overtook her. With one look at Siraj, Yasmin knew her magical bonds no longer held his hands.
“No!” she shouted, leaping off him. She scrambled to the cliff face and pressed her body against it.
“Yas,” he exclaimed as he stumbled to his feet.
“No, stay away. What have I done?”
“Yasmin, stop, please.” He shook his head a few times, as if to clear it. “You’re not well.”
She backed away from him, along the wall. “I can’t, Siraj. I will hurt you!”
“Come with me, baby. The Falcon and I can help you. We’ll find a way—”
“No!” she yelled, holding up her hand. Siraj stopped advancing. “I just made you make love to me. How could I do that? How could I do that?”
“You are not thinking clearly. I need you to come with me back to the caravan.”
Yasmin released a desperate sob. What was happening to her? She brutally ran her fingers through her hair, making herself wince with pain. “You must stay away from me,” she said with a moan. “The voice in my head…it told me to kill you!”
He seemed taken aback, but he didn’t flee her. After his shock had passed, he softened his countenance. “You are my princess, Yasmin. I am not leaving you.”
“But you must.” Her voice cracked just as her knees buckled. Instantly, Siraj was there, taking her into his arms. She tried to push him away, but it was futile. Her magic was gone and he was too strong. Instead, she collapsed against him. “Forgive me,” she sobbed, finally succumbing to his embrace. “Forgive me, please. Gods, Siraj, I’m losing my mind!”
“Never apologize for making love to me,” he cooed in her ear. “I enjoyed it.”
“But I made you do it…”
“Shh, now. I’ve got you, Yas.”
The ground was gone as he stood with her in his arms. He brought her to their robes and helped her push her arms through her sleeves while dressing himself as well. She was so exhausted. She wanted nothing more than to curl into a ball and wither into the grass.
Again she found herself in Siraj’s arms. He walked back to the Falcon’s caravan just as she laid her head on his shoulder.
“Don’t let me hurt you,” she whispered, holding on to his neck.
Siraj kissed her forehead and nodded. He didn’t say a word, but she could see his worry and concern as plain as day. He had no idea how to save her. And the fact she’d been able to bow him to her will scared her to the bone.
The voice in her head told her to kill him. Her own shock had been what pulled her out of her trance. But how much longer would it be before she could no longer resist?
The thought made her clutch onto Siraj all the tighter. How could she continue to exist if she murdered the man she loved?
God of Jackals, she silently prayed. Please kill me before I kill him!
Twenty One
The sun had just set over the dunes when Siraj pounded his fist against the door of the Falcon’s royal carav. Khalil himself ripped it open, gazing down at him with a look of shock.
“Please, we need your help.” Siraj was beyond caring how desperate he sounded or how fast his heart raced with fear for the woman he loved. Yasmin had begun shaking and moaning, and it was all Siraj could do to keep his tears at bay. He didn’t know what to do—he could only pray Khalil knew of some solution.
“What happened?” the Falcon asked, ushering them inside. Khalil couldn’t have missed the curious looks from his people, but he closed the door without paying them any heed.
“She…she lost herself—lost hold of reality down in the glade. I don’t know what to do. It’s as if she’s aging, Khalil.”
The older prince brought him to a mound of colorful pillows. “Lay her down.”
Siraj knelt, but Yasmin wouldn’t let go of his robes. “It’s all right, Yas,” he said, keeping his voice low and even. He smiled for good measure. “We are with the Falcon. I am not leaving you. I want you to be warm. See?” He held up a few green blankets and she relaxed, giving him a nod.
Looking into her face made Siraj bite his lip to keep from sniffling. She seemed older now than she had at the glade, and her hair was heavily streaked with gray.
“I am freezing,” she said. Even her voice sounded old. “And tired. So very tired.”
Before he could stand once more, Yasmin grasped his hand and kissed the back of it. She didn’t say anything, but her thoughts were suddenly revealed to him. She was fatigued. She loved him. And she was frightened to the depths of her soul.
“I will save you, Yas,” he whispered, allowing one tear to flow down his cheek. “I promise you that, as the Jackal Prince.”
Her eyes fluttered closed and he stood to face Khalil. He wiped his chee
k and glanced around the room. “Where is Zara?”
“She is in another carav, where she makes her jewelry,” the Falcon answered. “She believes she can make Yasmin a pendant from the wood Amani created those years ago. It has remnants of Ziyad’s power. Perhaps it can protect Yasmin from her own magics.”
“Do you believe it will work?” Siraj asked, daring to hope.
Khalil let out a sigh and glanced at Yasmin resting near Siraj’s feet. “I don’t know. Ziyad’s magic isn’t as powerful in that wood. It will not protect her like Amani’s spider ring. But it is better than nothing.”
“What else can we do? There’s got to be something.”
Khalil took hold of Siraj’s shoulder and led him away from Yasmin, keeping his voice low. “I know this isn’t what you want to hear,” he began, clearing his throat. “But Yasmin is the daughter of that witch. And her insanity is manifesting just like Mother’s once did.”
“You mean the fact that she’s growing older.”
“I mean everything.” Khalil shook his head. “Siraj, Mother grew old every ten years. She needed to kill to regain not only her youth, but her lucidity.”
Siraj’s eyes widened as the Falcon’s words sank in. “Yas told me at the glade… She…heard a voice in her head. It told her to kill me. She was terrified she’d hurt me!”
Khalil nodded. “Yes. She cannot just kill anyone. She must make a blood sacrifice from a royal house. I know first hand what this magic does to a person, Jackal. I bear the scars to prove it.”
“No, I will not accept that.” Siraj’s fear was now turning into rage, but there was nothing he could do to stop it. “She would never kill me!”
“Think, man!” Khalil exclaimed, taking hold of Siraj’s shoulders and shaking him. “Your wife is going insane. You’ll be lucky if she recognizes you when she awakens. There is no guarantee that she will spare your life if she hears that voice again. Mother never could resist her own insanity.”
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