Night Hunter (20 page)

“Yes,” she whispered. “You will.” Reaching up, she flattened her hands against his chest. Beneath flesh and bone, his heart beat. Despite the awful cost, she met his gaze. “You’re the Seminoles’ hope, their only chance for a future.”

He didn’t say anything, but she didn’t expect him to, didn’t think she could survive hearing his voice on top of everything else. She slid her hands up and over his breasts and wrapped them around his neck. He bent toward her and hugged her to him.

The tears she’d been afraid she couldn’t hold back died. She’d never been prouder of anyone than she was of him at this moment. An image swam into her mind, allowing her to see the collection of simple grass huts. Babies and toddlers lay in their parents’ arms or played under the shade the roofs afforded while women and the elderly occupied themselves with food preparation or making clothes. Boys who’d barely reached adolescence had stationed themselves at the edge of the clearing and served as guards. The village’s men were huddled together in a tight circle, talking intently. They were all armed.

“You see them,” Thunder whispered. It wasn’t a question.

“Y-es.”

“And you understand?”

A baby started to cry. A young woman put down the shoes she’d been fashioning from leather and grasses, picked up the infant and placed her breast in its mouth.

“Yes,” she said. “I understand.”

Her throat clogged. She swallowed and again looked up at Thunder. He lowered his head toward her, inviting.

Crying silently, she pressed her mouth against his. Her lips were slightly parted, as were his, but she didn’t try to thrust her tongue into him. Their first and last true kiss shouldn’t be just about sex. Instead, she’d leave him with the message of her love for him.

Their embrace deepened. She felt him from breasts to legs, melted into him, and made him part of her. Then, made strong by him, she pushed back. Tears spilled over and ran down her cheeks, but she ignored them.

“Go,” she whispered. “They need you more than I do.”

He nodded. She couldn’t read his expression. Insane as it was, she still wanted him to tell her he’d chosen her over responsibility and danger, but he didn’t. Instead, he stepped away from her and loosened the drawstring on his necklace. Reaching into it, he pulled out a small, white feather which he handed to her. Her fingers didn’t shake as she took it and pressed it into the hollow between her breasts.

I love you.

Naked from the waist up, Mala stepped out of the Everglades. The wind had picked up and the sky had taken on a purple hue. The air felt charged. Traffic whizzed past, people staring at her, the smell and sound sickening her. She didn’t look up but concentrated on putting one leaden foot after another as she trudged toward her car. It was unlocked, the key in the ignition. She supposed she should have been grateful that no one had stolen it, but it didn’t matter. Neither did she care that her breasts were exposed.

When she opened the door, heated air rushed from it. She vaguely remembered having water with her when she went into the wilderness but had no idea what had happened to it. Her mouth was dry, and her stomach rumbled. After sliding behind the wheel, she started the car, turned on the air conditioning and looked in the rear view mirror in preparation for pulling onto the highway.

Something dark and sleek was coming her way—a motorcycle! Uttering a sharp cry, she whirled around. A moving van rumbled past in the right hand lane. An older car with the back seat piled high with belongings and a tired looking female driver tailed behind the van. The rest of the vehicles were in the left lane. There was no motorcycle.

Mala’s head dropped forward, and she hit her forehead on the steering wheel. Tears sprang to her eyes, but she fought them. If she didn’t, she might never stop crying.

Straightening, she reached for the gear shift. As she did, her gaze fell on her wrist and the new bracelet—the bracelet she’d created using Thunder’s necklace as inspiration. Instead of shifting into Drive, she removed the bracelet and let it dangle from her fingers. Then she dug into the pocket of her shorts and pulled out the white feather he’d given her. She put the two items together, not surprised to see the bracelet wrap partly around the feather.

Sighing, she rolled down the windows and turned off the engine. Next—not allowing herself to think about what she was doing—she pushed the driver’s seat back as far as it would go, unfastened her shorts and slipped her hand between her legs. She closed her eyes and let the back of her head flop against the head rest.

Creating jewelry had been her life—the only thing she’d ever really cared about.

But that had been before a man—Thunder—had come into that pitiful excuse for a life.

She was still hot from those moments spent in his arms. Still felt his fingers inside her throbbing crotch, teasing her nether lips, igniting her clit.

Claiming her. Owning her.

Showing her what it is to be a woman.

A woman who didn’t belong in her man’s world—who might not survive it.

What was better, a lifetime of lonely self-satisfaction or hiding from the enemy and maybe seeing her lover die?

Rain sluiced down the trees and soaked the ground. Some of the droplets struck Mala, but getting wet was the last thing on her mind. Her legs ached because she’d run back to where she’d last seen Thunder. Despite her speed, however, neither man was here. Confused, she shoved the toes of her shoes into the carpet of vegetation at her feet. She’d been thirsty before she’d started her run. Now her mouth felt as if had been packed with cotton.

Inspiration struck, and she walked over to a tree, cupped a large leaf into a bowl shape and watched raindrops dribble into it. When it was full, she drank. Thinking to repeat the task, she pulled the leaf free and placed it under a rivulet sliding off another tree. Filling the leaf this time only took a few seconds, but it still left her with enough time to ask what she should do next. She’d trusted her instinct to guide her to the village, but what if Thunder didn’t want her?

What if soldiers found her?

Half sick with fear, she held the leaf to her mouth. No way could she lie to the soldiers and tell them she was anything except a Seminole lover—their new chief’s lover. They’d find that out and force her to—

Something slammed into her back, pitching her face first onto the ground. The wind was knocked out of her. She felt as if she was being pressed into the sodden ground. Before she could decide whether to give into fear, curse, or demand an explanation, she glimpsed long, hairy legs out of the corner of her eye.

“Thunder! It’s me.”

For maybe five seconds, he said or did nothing. She waited, hoping against hope that he’d roll her over and complete what they’d started before Osceola interrupted. Instead, he held out his hand, indicating he’d help her to her feet. She grasped his hand and stood. Looking down at herself, she wasn’t surprised to find her wet top covered with leaves. Her breasts stood at attention.

“I-I came back.”

He merely nodded and then released her. Taking a backward step, he regarded her. Remnants of civilization had clung to him the last time she’d seen him, but since then he’d become part and parcel of the wilderness. Someone had tied a bandage around his middle. He carried a spear and wore some kind of cloth cap with three large feathers sticking out of it. A crude outline of a panther had been painted on his chest. She’d never seen a man look this magnificent, this formidable.

“This is your world,” she managed. “You’ll never go back to what you were before, will you?”

He barely shook his head, but then he didn’t have to.

“I, ah, I couldn’t leave.”

“I will not leave here with you. I cannot.” He sounded proud, yet resigned, maybe even sad.

“I know. Laird—I don’t know if the name means anything to you—but that’s what your brother calls you. I left him a message in my car and others for my parents and best friend. I told your brother he can do what he wants with your business. You won’t be back. I also told him not to worry because you were doing what was right for yourself. I wrote pretty much the same thing to Sandy and my parents.”

Her throat caught at the thought of what no longer having her in their lives would mean to them. “I told my mother and father not to mourn me, that I have no doubts about what I’m doing. That I found the man I want to spend the rest of my life with, but we’d be living that life in a place they can never come to. I’ll find ways to stay in touch with them, and if they ever need me, I’ll be there.”

There was so much more she could say about decisions made and freedom of will, but it didn’t matter. Her attention caught on the ring she’d given him. “You’re still wearing it.”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

“Because I like it.”

“I’m, ah, I’m glad to hear that.”
Stop it! This isn’t the time for waffling!
“Thunder, fashioning jewelry is everything to me, at least it used to be. If I’m not creating something, I feel incomplete.”

If only he’d give some indication he gave a damn about what she was saying. But maybe he was testing her, forcing everything to come out of her.

“I thought I knew the meaning of the word incomplete until I got into my car a few minutes ago,” she continued. “But even when I couldn’t give away my creations, it didn’t hurt the way—the way it did when I realized I’d never see you again.”

“So you returned.”

“Yes.”

He took a backward step. Terrified he’d leave her, she hurried on. “Not because I was determined to bring you back with me. I tried that. It didn’t work.”

He continued to stare at her in that intense but remote way of his.

“Thunder, the world that exists beyond here doesn’t matter to you. I know it. And—it doesn’t to me, either.” She felt weak. Had she really come to this place in her life, this decision? Risking everything, she approached him and took his finger, the one with her ring on it. “My art is part of me. That will never change, but I don’t have to live in a little house with a shop. I can create anywhere. What I can’t do is live without you.”

There. She’d said it. Stripped herself naked.

“You want me to say the same?” he asked. “I cannot.”

“I know.”

“I want to,” he whispered. “But I cannot.”

“Because it isn’t just you anymore.”

His dark eyes told her she was right.

“I understand that,” she admitted. “Accept it. And—and if you’ll have me, I’m ready to walk into that world with you.”

For the first time since they’d met, he looked defenseless. “No doubts?” he asked.

“No doubts.”

He pulled his finger free, then wrapped his arms around her. She burrowed into him, smelled his earthy smell and felt his awesome power. Even as she stood on tiptoe and lifted her head to kiss him, her nerve endings stirred. She felt his equal response. Soon, soon they’d make love.

Their kiss went on and on, tongues reaching out and probing, pelvises grinding together, breathing hard to control. And yet, no matter how eager she was to feel him deep inside her, she could wait.

Finally her calf muscles cramped, and she lowered herself. When she opened her eyes, she first hungrily took in his masculine features, but then her awareness of her surroundings returned, and she looked around.

People were walking toward them. A boy of about five or six was in the lead. A woman she took to be his mother was behind him, and she carried a baby on her hip. A moment later, those three were joined by others who seemed to glide out of the wilderness and take form. Most were burdened with belongings. They looked, not fearful, but proud and determined. One after another, they inclined their heads in Thunder’s—their chief’s—direction.

Wonder at having fully joined him in the Seminole world rendered her speechless. Only a short while ago she wouldn’t have believed this was possible. There was no such thing as going back in time.

But that was before her life had been turned on end.

Before Thunder’s priorities had become hers.

Thunder’s arm was still around her when she reached out and the woman handed the baby to her.

“Does that mean,” she whispered, “that they accept me?”

“You are my woman. They understand that.” He bent to kiss the top of the baby’s head.

The touching gesture brought tears to her eyes. She rested her head on his shoulder.

“I have so much to learn,” she said as he held the baby away from her so the girl could study her. “So many things I want to know.”

“It is a journey we will take together.”

Pulling his words into her heart, she smiled. “That’s why I came back. Because no matter what the future brings, I need to live it with you. I want to with all my heart.”

“No more than I need and want you.” He leaned close and pressed his lips against the side of her neck. “Forever.”

About the Author

Night Hunter
is Vonna Harper’s third erotic romance with Samhain. Writing since dirt was new, she has no other marketable skills beyond lawn mowing, weeding, and minor computer repair. A dedicated country hick, she’s married with two sons, four grandchildren, two dogs, assorted lizards, wild turkeys, and deer. (Don’t ask.) Please visit her at
www.vonnaharper.com
.

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© 2011 Vonna Harper

Mia’s retreat on Cougar Mountain was supposed to be a quiet time of communing with nature. Instead, she can’t shake the sense she’s being watched. The reason why appears before her, chilling her to the bone. His name is Stark. And he says he’s been waiting for her.

She takes to her heels, but it does no good. Captured and bound, she is surprised to feel no fear. Instead, she is mesmerized as her soul drinks deeply of his dark, commanding sexuality.

Stark once fought the Cougar Spirits, but now he embraces their mission to protect the forest and its creatures. Mia is his destined mate, perfectly made to fight by his side. But first he must tame her, starting with a slow and relentless seduction of her body—while he reveals each painful bit of his past.