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2024-10-29 19:42:56Jasmine creaked into her room that night and shut the door stiffly behind her. She eyed the bed and bath, debating whether or not she could stay awake long enough to soak away some soreness, or if it would be better to flop down on the bed, sweat and all, and pray for oblivion. Reluctantly, she decided on the bath.
He was trying to kill her, she thought as she hobbled over. She sat down on the marble bath steps and put her head into her hands. All right, he probably wasn’t, but she strongly suspected he was trying to drive her so hard that she’d give up on learning self-defense all together. Only sheer mulishness had kept her at it for the last half hour, and when her legs had finally given out and dumped her on her b
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Keilor’s eyes opened with a snap, and he was on his feet before Jasmine had time to blink. With a snarl, he yanked her down across his bent knee and spanked her three times. When he was sure he had her attention, he pulled her to her feet and shook her.“What in the name of all that’s holy did you think you were doing?” He shook her again, ignoring Mathin and the others. In all his years no one, especially not someone under his training, had ever dared to have such cheek. Had she been a man he would have pulverized her, but since she was a woman the best that he could do was blast her with words.
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Heat pooled in her belly and she stumbled at the sudden ache. Keilor’s head rose like a wolf scenting prey, and his nostrils flared. His eyes told her he knew, and his knowledge of her weakness made her tremble. Without a word, he picked her up and carried her the short distance to his room.The interior was dim, the furniture brown and heavy. His room was half the size of hers, yet contained a microscopic and very cluttered kitchen. The ugly quilt on his narrow bed was ragged, torn, and sliding off the naked mattress, which rested on the floor. Weapons of every description littered the coffee table, furniture, and nested in corners, along with various articles of discarded clothing.
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A lump formed in Jasmine’s throat, and her eyes prickled. No one had ever told her what he was telling her, save Rihlia. No man had ever felt as much. She closed her eyes. “I don’t deserve it.”For a moment, he simply held her. Then, with words she would remember for the rest of her life, he breathed in her ear, “I don’t know what’s happened in your life to make you believe that, but I will spend the rest of mine proving you wrong.”She kissed him. There was no doubt of her answer now.
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He huffed in disbelief. “I’ve barely begun.” He pressed harder, gaining what seemed to be more than enough ground.“H-how ‘bout now?”Teeth gritted, he forced himself to a trembling halt. “Have you done this before?” His breathing was harsh and getting harsher.“Once. Four years ago,” she admitted with embarrassment, ad
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Afterward they shared a bath. As they cleansed away the exertions of the night, new fires began. She was still too tender to fully appreciate his loving, but still she wanted him too badly to stop. She knew it would get better every time until nothing was left but pure, sweet pleasure.They ate breakfast and reclined on the bed afterward. Keilor held her against his chest while they talked.“We’ll need to choose a suite,” Keilor murmured, drawing her hair away to kiss her neck. “Our rooms aren’t suitable for a mated couple.&
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She closed her eyes and fought back tears. “Jas...you have no idea. Once I was with Jayems, once we had been together, made love… Jas,” her voice cracked. “He was a virgin, too.”Jasmine stared at her in shock. Jayems, a virgin?Rihlia found her composure. “We can mess around all we want, touching and kissing whomever we please, but the moment we cross that line, we can never go back. That’s why it’s a marriage. It has to be.”
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“Congratulations on your new match,” Raziel said, and she realized he was the one who had spoken. “Keilor is a good friend of ours, and we wish his new wife every happiness,”“Happiness and a long life,” Isfael seconded.Jasmine frowned lightly. “Well, I don’t know about the long life, but I’m definitely going for happiness. Thank you.”
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He placed one finger on her lips and admonished, “I am your husband. I can well afford to lavish gifts on my beloved wife. Would you deny me this pleasure?”Tears pricked her eyes. “But...”He flashed her a wicked smile and pulled her against him. “Of course, I had to sell my favorite stag and indenture myself to the jeweler to afford these lovely gems, but it was worth it.”
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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
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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
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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
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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
