Total pages in book: 83
Estimated words: 76857 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 384(@200wpm)___ 307(@250wpm)___ 256(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 76857 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 384(@200wpm)___ 307(@250wpm)___ 256(@300wpm)
Saddened, I set down the book, unable to read any further.
An entire society existed in support of this—humans who wanted more of us, hybrids who wanted to fuck us.
Enthusiasm for exploration dried up completely, the chair in his study as good as any place to sink into a depression.
I didn’t like that I had been left alone in the house. Accustomed to the bustle of many sisters and constant company, it was lonely there in the dark.
Lonely enough even the presence of a man I didn’t like would have been an improvement.
What did that say about me?
I hated the academy the majority of my life. Now, all I wanted was to either be back home… or be with him.
Addicted indeed.
And getting hotter by the hour.
The hydraulic hiss of the front door unbolting announced my tormentor’s return. Down the hall, lights came on, drawing me from the dark study toward the opposite side of the dwelling.
A jumble of mixed feelings, most of them awful, shared space with an uninvited sense of relief.
Bare feet padded silently toward him, unsure what I would say to the villain now that he was here.
My anger had cooled, but my resentment had only grown.
I had every right to tell him that what he did was wrong. That he didn’t get to bully me and compel me to do things, not if he wanted me to respect him on any level.
Mates were supposed to be loved by their males.
Silent, because I had endured years of painful training to learn how to be so, I stalked toward a room aglow. Only to halt in my tracks at the sound of soft female laughter.
Peering from the doorframe, somewhat hidden by the dark, I saw them. The general tall and proud, a woman on his arm, smiling at something he said.
Silvery-blonde hair and perfect ingenue features, she looked like something straight out of a storybook. From the shining blue of her dress to the glittering jewelry around her wrists and throat, the peak of femininity I dreamed I might one day aspire to. Yet her beauty was something I could never achieve, and that made me instantly timid that she was looking up at me, with my tangled hair, hunched shoulders, and wrinkled naked dress, and seeing gracelessness and faults.
Why was she smiling up at the general after taking one glance at me, arm intertwined with his as if they were familiar?
And why did murder feel like the appropriate response to her friendly “Hello” when she acknowledged me watching from the dark?
I had never disliked another female so much in my life.
Disengaging from my mate, she eased closer to where I flared clawed fingers in warning that she was not welcome.
Threatening her as I was, she waved my stance off with a smile. “It is completely normal for you to feel uncomfortable that I am here. And I must add I appreciate that you have not threatened murder… thus far. An unknown female entering your den so soon after you were mated is generally frowned upon. But I have come as a friend. Cyderial thought you may appreciate having an experienced woman to talk to.”
Cyderial, standing by the door, wisely kept his distance.
The glare I gave him let him see clearly that he and I had unfinished business.
The stranger’s arm dared loop with mine. “Let’s get you cleaned up while we chat, hmm? Have you ever had a hot bath before? I remember the academy only had those horrible cold showers. When I was first mated, a hot bath might have been the only reason I softened at all toward my beast. Ah, he was awful in the beginning! I love him now, but how I dreamed of peeling the skin right off his bones all those years ago.”
Okay, I could get on board with this. Violence toward men seemed like a valid option. Narrowing my scathing glare at the man waiting across the room, I hissed, “I would rather slit his throat while he sleeps.”
With a conspiratorial laugh, she breezed me out of the dark, urging me into the light and closer to my mate. “Come, give him the opportunity to apologize.” To him, she lost her smile and softness. “His behavior was abominable, and he won’t do it again.”
It didn’t matter if she was his guest or if she had been brought here for some nefarious purpose; she must have had a death wish. No one, especially a tiny wisp of a woman, talked to the general in that manner.
Clenching my jaw so hard my teeth began to ache, I watched him run his gaze over me from toes to throat, finally landing on my face as if seeing me—even raging mad—was really quite a gift. But he did not apologize.
“Don’t worry about him.” Voice annoyed, the odd female motioned for me to look away from the man and pay attention to her. All seriousness, she said, “Order him to make you something to eat. That will keep him out of our hair.”