“Just be careful if she comes to you,” Khaju interjected. “Do not let her bless you with any oil like the others did, especially if no one is here to check that her hands are not drawing a curse instead.”Weird but alright. “And do not believe anything she says.”
“I won’t.” I nodded, ignoring their confused look. “I know Ghauro won’t lie if I ask about her.”
I saw it in his eyes, then—how right I was. How, no matter what I’d asked, the answer would always be truthful.
Ghauro slid a hand in my hair to bring my face closer, careful not to crumple any of the flowers he had placed while I was busy listening to their meaning and picking the ones I wanted to put on him.
He dropped a chaste kiss on my lips, not more than a caress and I smiled when he released me.
I picked another piece of meat and made sure to wrap the steamed red leaves around before bringing it to his mouth. I needed to feed my hulk of a husband; I hadn’t seen him eat anything all day, and the night was falling.
I was happily coming back from the edge of the forest where I’d been told I could relieve myself when things started to turn bad.
I froze on my spot when a tall, blue-grayish woman planted herself in front of me. Her gaze was hard and unflinching as she took a step closer, her arms crossed around her chest.
“So, you are the human female.”
I looked around, hoping to find Zhari, Eletie, Ghauro…anyone really, hovering nearby. But all the faces I could vaguely see were too far to even pay attention to me.
“I don’t see any other,” I shot back and waited. Waited for her to tell me why the hell she ambushed me so farfrom the rest of the other Tauris at night. “Do you mind stepping away? I won’t stay here all night.”
She scoffed in disbelief. “You are disrespectful.”
“So are you.”
She pursed her lips, taking another step to point an accusing finger in my direction. “I wasinvited. You intruded. You are not welcome here. Do not think for one moment that the others have really accepted you. You are—”
“I’m Ghauro’s mate, whether you like it or not—” I paused, looking her up and down with a disgusted frown. “Jerakeh.”
Her eyebrow shot up in surprise. “Oh, so he told you about me.”
“Warnedwould be more accurate. Thank you for confirming what I’ve been told.”
“Which is?”
“That you’re a total psycho.”
Her confused face confirmed that her translator did not catch that.Good. Let her sit on it. I took a step forward and turned to walk around her but she pushed me back, sending me stumbling into someone.
“Unclaimed,” the rough voice said after taking a big inhale of my scent, the tone sending ice through my veins. “Has Ghauro’s cock gone soft?”
“Soft isn’t a word I would use to qualify my mate,” I sneered. His cold red hand snapped around my forearm. I tried to pull it back but his grip was too strong. Bruising. “Letme go, you brute!”
“You are coming with me,” he said, pulling me back toward the forest. “If he does not want to breed you, I will.”
Sudden fear made my whole body shake as I tried to fight against his strong pull. His fingers tightened, digging into my muscle and pressing the armlet into my skin. My terrified gaze met Jerakeh’s cold one. She didn’t care. She, somehow, orchestrated this whole mess. In a last desperate attempt, I scratched at the skin of his hand with a frustrated scream. He only growled, pulling me harder, nearly dislocating my shoulder in the process.
That was it. I was about to get abducted.Raped. And Ghauro would be looking for me, thinking I had abandoned him if Jerakeh had the time to lie to him. I—
“Howdareyou steal another leader’s mate,” a strong, booming female’s voice echoed and the brute stopped. My wide eyes met Ghauro’s mother’s, angry and unyielding. “Where is your honor,boy?”
“She is unclaimed,” he growled, his grip so strong I was worried it might snap my arm. I pulled against him, scratching at his hand and forearm like a feral cat.
“They aremated. It does not matter if she was bred yet. You were invited here as a guest and now you are betraying your host,” she spat, walking ever so slowly toward us until she reached a wide-eyed Jerakeh. “Youwill be dealt with,” she told her.
“ButMa—”
“No! You are out of line.” Looking back at the brute trying to fight my hands and nails away, she said, “Let mysakhatigo. Now!”
