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2024-10-29 19:42:56Wiley stared at an older woman with braided silver hair, and the woman looked back at her with sky blue eyes alive with emotion. Wiley had a look of consternation fixed on her face, but the other woman…
The queenly lady glided forward, entranced, until she stood blinking fiercely at Wiley. Her voice was hoarse when she whispered, “Daughter?” Suddenly she hugged the stiff young woman, shaking her head over and over. “Rihlia,” she said, and her eyes were wet with tears.
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The Charmer 21
She rubbed the edge of the table with her thumb. What would he say first? That she’d made a fool of herself last night? That she ought to be nicer to Wiley? “What if I promised you I wouldn’t cause any trouble if you agreed to take me home?”His eyes glinted dangerously. Her scent was making him feel aggressive. He needed to touch her. “I’d tell you to stop sulking.” In a lightning fast maneuver, he snaked his hand around her waist and pulled her roughly up to him. She pushed against him, but was no match for his large, battle-toned body.
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“That’s a load of garbage!” Rihlia’s eyes shot sparks as she sat forward, gesturing angrily. “She might be a little shy with men, but Jasmine has always been a pretty girl. I don’t think it’s fair of you to blame some mythical pheromone just so you can have an excuse for being attracted to a human!”“What I feel, what Fallon feels, what Knightin feels,” he answered with grim conviction. “What every unattached male above the age of puberty will feel whenever she is near.” He leaned forward, determined to make her understand. “She's pretty, and it doesn’t help, but it wouldn’t matter if she were fat and bald and covered with boils, men would s
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“In front of people. Male audiences,” she finished bitterly.“I see.”“Good. Then send me back.” His face took on that stubborn look and she didn’t wait for his denial. “Listen here, you pigheaded son of a bitch! I.…” To her horror, her throat closed on the words, and she could only stand there in humiliation, reduced to the helplessness of a child. A single tear tracked down her cheek.
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Keilor stepped back while he still had the will. It took strength to straighten her bodice, tucking her away from his sight. His hand fell away, and for a tortured moment, neither could move.“Your hair is loose,” Jasmine observed from where she sagged against the wall.He gave her a rakish smile and ran both his hands through it, smoothing it back. “So is yours.”
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Grinning mischievously, Rihlia asked, “How is Michael, anyway?”“I don’t know and I don’t care.” Why was Wiley baiting her? Jasmine scowled at her untouched dessert, muttering, “At least now I won’t have to worry about avoiding him, either.”Urseya raised a brow at Keilor. You see? Now the truth comes out. He frowned at her. “Was it a very bad ending?” she inquired with cheerful interest.
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Keilor frowned at Fallon. “Your mother does want you to wed.” There was a silence as they considered just how far the manipulative Portae would go to secure a daughter-in-law. Considering the lengths she’d gone to in the past to manage her only son’s life, there was no telling what she was capable of, and Jasmine was the first woman he’d ever shown a serious interest in.“Had the drug been in your dessert, Keilor, I would have suspected Urseya.” Jayems smiled faintly. “Under the circumstances, I can’t see her wishing to inflame Jasmine, lest she be forced to toast the pair of you at your wedding feast.”
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While she was still mouthing curses and holding her wrist, the door tone sounded, and Rihlia went to answer it. “All right. Bring it on in.” Jasmine glanced in irritation at the doors as Rihlia swung them wide and stood back. A man pushed a wheeled platform into the room. A giant granite pot rested on the platform, and inside it grew a six-foot fruit tree, loaded with ripe avocados.She looked at Rihlia in bewilderment.The deliveryman stepped forward and nodded his head respectfully. “Lady Jasmine, may I present a gift from the cadet M
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She lowered her gaze. “You Haunt men must take lessons in charm. Thank you. I will enjoy it.”He leaned back and gave her a lazy grin. “Of course, I have to admit the thought of you wearing it may cause me to loose sleep...” he laughed and caught the pillow she tossed at him, “but the gift of your smile makes the sacrifice worth while.”She wagged a finger at him and he chuckled. “I will call for Rihlia. She will wish to help you prepare to meet your admirers.” He kept the pleasant expression on his face un
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Keilor entered the rooms he shared with Jasmine, careful to do so silently. If she were sleeping he didn’t want to wake her. She didn’t need to see him as he cleansed away the blood of battle. It would only upset her.He eased the door quietly shut and paused a moment, listening. Her respiration remained steady and deep, unmistakably that of deep slumber. Satisfaction brought a smile to his face. It pleased him greatly that she would trust him so well.She’d left a light on for him. It was a sweet gesture, and wholly human, for no Haunt would ever stumble in the shadows. Still, the thoughtfulness warmed him. He had a very good wife.It was just as he was finishing his bath that
The Charmer 86
Wounded, she answered, “I said I would, didn’t I?”“Yes.” He kissed her lightly. He lingered, teasing her lips. “You did,” he murmured, distracted.She pulled away, a bit breathless, and demanded, “What about Yesande?”“We will take care of Yesande when she comes,” he reassured her, meaning his warriors and himself, but avoiding an argument by letting her think she would be included. When she still looked troubled, he led her to the couch, sitting down and arranging her on his lap. “I assure you I won’t be taken unawares twice. You’ll be as safe as the Master of the Hunt and a citadel full of soldiers can make yo
The Charmer 85
Jasmine winced. Close friendships had their drawbacks.“You don’t take those kind of risks with a baby, Jas, ever.”“I wasn’t thinking of it like that; not then. It was only yesterday that I finally realized that I wasn’t just pregnant, I was carrying a baby.”Rihlia stared at her. “I just know I’m going to be fascinated by this explanation.”Jasmine leaned forward. “The day before last I had a condition. Yesterday it finally dawned on me that my condition was a baby.”Rihlia b
The Charmer 84
Not a bit reassured, Jasmine peered at the huge creature that watched her with smirking and far too-intelligent amusement. “Uh, what happened to Raziel and Isfael, and the rest of the bodyguard?” she croaked through a dry throat. “They were doing a pretty good job, I thought.”His eyes cooled. “Terza has offered to take their place. They will no longer be needed.”Terza yawned, exposing a mouthful of fangs, and licked her chops. She closed her jaws shut with a snap and a small snarl. Her intelligent eyes mocked her new charge’s fear.Jasmine swallowed. They understood each other.
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Jasmine’s eyes got big at that pronouncement. “In that case...”“Done!” Leo answered, and indeed they were swooping back to the roof of the citadel and a pale bunch of men and Haunt.Keilor was one of them.For long seconds he said nothing, simply looked her over, seeking injuries. Finding none, he took her arm in a firm grasp, saying nothing as he ushered her to the lift. His trembling hand said it all.Jasmine cringed and dragged her heels. Opening her mouth seemed like a supremely foolish thing to do at that moment.
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A slight smile tugged at Jasmine’s mouth. “Who are you calling kid, old lady? Surely you’re not ready for the old folk’s home just yet.”Rihlia frowned with mock severity. “I will be if you don’t stop scaring the crap out of me.”“Aw, you’re just feeling feeble from lying around in bed all the time. Why don’t you get up and take a walk with me? It’ll do you good.”Rihlia’s smile faded to seriousness, and she let go of Jasmine’s hand. “I can’t. I’m paralyzed from the waist down.”“What!” Jasmine sta
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It must have been a doozy of a talk, because when Jasmine next saw Leo, she was not happy. In fact, she was quietly simmering. She tried to discuss it with Keilor, but he had concerns of his own.“Whether she goes or stays matters little at this point,” he said, leveling a stare at his wife across the dining table in their new suite of rooms. “What I want to know is when are you going to start visiting Rihlia again? It’s been weeks, and still you two don’t speak unless thrown together.”All appetite abruptly fled. Jasmine twiddled her spoon as if fascinated with the play of light. “She hasn’t been feeling well.”“All the more reason to
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The one walk through the marketplace was Leo’s last. Her presence had been scented and witnessed, and now all they had to do was wait.“Seventeen days there, seventeen days back,” Jasmine said, shaking her head. “Unless Yesande has taken up residence in the neighborhood, or unless she’s got someone closer to home keeping an eye on things, you’re going to have to purge the charmer thing, Leo.”Jasmine picked up one of the long sticks that speared the marinated meats and vegetables on the tray nearest her. She moved from the table to the bonfire Keilor had built in the fire pit. The fire was the only light in the darkened and deceptively unprotected garden. Fireflies dance
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“Enough! Jasmine, stop making trouble; Mathin, behave,” Jayems ordered. “You don’t have to worry about any of us making use of the information, Jackson. Yesande is the only one who would desire an army of lust crazed fools.”Mathin glowered at him and slid his gaze back to Leo.Unnerved, her eyes flickered away and settled with determination on her brother. “Do you have a better way to end this, brother? Who will it be next time, your wife, our little sister?”“Uh, Leo,” Jasmine interrupted. “Just so you know, you’re letting yourself in for a pack of trouble with this charmer thing. I do hope you can turn it off as easily as you t
