Read Online King of Diamonds by Cheyenne McCray - Free Book Online
Authors: Cheyenne McCray
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to the mansion, and likely she had spent time trying to find a way in before she positioned herself at the front door and cried out for Annie to come to her.
Karn thought about carrying Abra to Annie’s bed, but he didn’t want to wake the sleeping creature or his sleeping mate. He stretched out beside Abra, keeping the little beast close to his chest and sharing his warmth.
As he grew sleepier, an errant thought slipped through his mind. He wished it were Annie that lay beside him, rather than her cat.
Annie stumbled in the darkness, the storm raging all around her. Wind pulled at her hair and clothing as if an attempt to rip all from her body. Her hair was drenched and water ran down her face and seeped into the neckline of her cloak. She clutched Abra tight to her chest, beneath the water-repellent traveling cloak, keeping the cat relatively dry.
Abra trembled every time lightning crashed and thunder boomed, and if Annie didn’t have such a tight hold, she was sure the cat would flee in terror. Annie prayed they wouldn’t be struck by lightning. If only she could find shelter.
“Go back to the mansion,” her inner voice said, but she ignored it.
They neared the moors, and soon Annie would be the tallest entity around, surely drawing the next bolt of lightning. She needed to crouch down and hide amongst the grass—something!
Abruptly the storm ceased.
No lightning, no thunder, no wind, no rain.
Only an eerie silence prevailed, somehow more frightening than the storm.
Annie straightened and blinked, slowly looking into the darkness. Over her shoulder she could see warm yellow light from Diamond Hall’s windows, beckoning her, telling her to return.
Abra hissed from beneath the traveling cloak. Hair prickled at Annie’s nape.
Slowly she turned back to face the moors…
Her heart ceased to beat as a hideous beast rose up from the grass…
Annie woke with a start. Her heart thumped and she wanted to scream. Her dream world warred with reality, both blending and confusing her as she struggled to place where she was. Gradually everything came into focus, and she realized she was staring up at a rose-colored canopy and she was in a rosewood four-poster bed.
Not her own simple bed with the brass headboard.
Part of her dream was real then. She was in Diamond Hall…and good heavens, she’d given a man fellatio last night.
Annie clapped her hand over her eyes. Her cheeks burned and a warm flush stole through her at the thought of what she’d done, and what he’d done to her, too. All of her mother’s rantings came rushing to her mind all at once. How sex of any kind outside of marriage was bad.
But Annie was intelligent and mature. She was living in the new millennium. What made a woman feel wonderful and special was a good thing. Not something to be ashamed of.
Gradually her breathing calmed and she rolled onto her side to look at the fireplace. This time she didn’t know whether to scream in terror or shriek in happiness.
There was a very large black and white striped tiger stretched out on the hearth. Even without her glasses she had no problem seeing that he was watching her with intense midnight eyes.
And curled up in a tight ball on the tiger’s back was her calico cat.
Abra was sleeping on top of a tiger.
Annie couldn’t look away from the tiger’s gripping black gaze. A gaze that seemed familiar. On the beast’s upper right shoulder, one of its black stripes had a diamond shape in the midst of it, one similar to Karn’s tattoo. It occurred to her then that she’d seen a tiger in her painting, before the man had appeared.
That must be it. This tiger is Karn’s pet.
She hoped.
Abra blinked green eyes and stretched her body out along the tiger’s back and yawned. She was so tiny compared to the tiger she’d been sleeping on. Annie had the urge to grab a camera, take a picture, then paint the pair of them.
Abra rolled onto her belly and began kneading the tiger’s
Karn thought about carrying Abra to Annie’s bed, but he didn’t want to wake the sleeping creature or his sleeping mate. He stretched out beside Abra, keeping the little beast close to his chest and sharing his warmth.
As he grew sleepier, an errant thought slipped through his mind. He wished it were Annie that lay beside him, rather than her cat.
Annie stumbled in the darkness, the storm raging all around her. Wind pulled at her hair and clothing as if an attempt to rip all from her body. Her hair was drenched and water ran down her face and seeped into the neckline of her cloak. She clutched Abra tight to her chest, beneath the water-repellent traveling cloak, keeping the cat relatively dry.
Abra trembled every time lightning crashed and thunder boomed, and if Annie didn’t have such a tight hold, she was sure the cat would flee in terror. Annie prayed they wouldn’t be struck by lightning. If only she could find shelter.
“Go back to the mansion,” her inner voice said, but she ignored it.
They neared the moors, and soon Annie would be the tallest entity around, surely drawing the next bolt of lightning. She needed to crouch down and hide amongst the grass—something!
Abruptly the storm ceased.
No lightning, no thunder, no wind, no rain.
Only an eerie silence prevailed, somehow more frightening than the storm.
Annie straightened and blinked, slowly looking into the darkness. Over her shoulder she could see warm yellow light from Diamond Hall’s windows, beckoning her, telling her to return.
Abra hissed from beneath the traveling cloak. Hair prickled at Annie’s nape.
Slowly she turned back to face the moors…
Her heart ceased to beat as a hideous beast rose up from the grass…
Annie woke with a start. Her heart thumped and she wanted to scream. Her dream world warred with reality, both blending and confusing her as she struggled to place where she was. Gradually everything came into focus, and she realized she was staring up at a rose-colored canopy and she was in a rosewood four-poster bed.
Not her own simple bed with the brass headboard.
Part of her dream was real then. She was in Diamond Hall…and good heavens, she’d given a man fellatio last night.
Annie clapped her hand over her eyes. Her cheeks burned and a warm flush stole through her at the thought of what she’d done, and what he’d done to her, too. All of her mother’s rantings came rushing to her mind all at once. How sex of any kind outside of marriage was bad.
But Annie was intelligent and mature. She was living in the new millennium. What made a woman feel wonderful and special was a good thing. Not something to be ashamed of.
Gradually her breathing calmed and she rolled onto her side to look at the fireplace. This time she didn’t know whether to scream in terror or shriek in happiness.
There was a very large black and white striped tiger stretched out on the hearth. Even without her glasses she had no problem seeing that he was watching her with intense midnight eyes.
And curled up in a tight ball on the tiger’s back was her calico cat.
Abra was sleeping on top of a tiger.
Annie couldn’t look away from the tiger’s gripping black gaze. A gaze that seemed familiar. On the beast’s upper right shoulder, one of its black stripes had a diamond shape in the midst of it, one similar to Karn’s tattoo. It occurred to her then that she’d seen a tiger in her painting, before the man had appeared.
That must be it. This tiger is Karn’s pet.
She hoped.
Abra blinked green eyes and stretched her body out along the tiger’s back and yawned. She was so tiny compared to the tiger she’d been sleeping on. Annie had the urge to grab a camera, take a picture, then paint the pair of them.
Abra rolled onto her belly and began kneading the tiger’s
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