Read Online Prince of Power by Elisabeth Staab - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Elisabeth Staab
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forcefully. She shook all over and couldnât seem to stop.
âPull over,â he said.
She did. By God, she actually did. As much as she usually bristled over being told what to do, she jerked the car to a stop right on the edge of a grove of evergreens.
Anton lifted his hand, let it hover, and then pulled it back. Apparently she wasnât the only one who thought they kept tripping over each other. Or maybe he just didnât want her to read him. Not that she would even try right now. She could barely manage her own emotions at the moment.
She looked around. âWhere are we, anyway? It looks like weâre practically in Maryland.â
âWeâre probably close.â He unbuckled and stepped out to look around, leaving Tyra with a disturbingly attractive view of his lower bodyâs anatomy framed by the opening in the vehicleâs passenger doorway.
Lord, what was it with her and dysfunctional men? Was she honestly the kind of too-dumb-to-survive female that would find herself attracted to a man who had originally been sent to kill her? Okay, not kill. Kidnap . Nearly as bad, in the grand scheme. Hell, there was nothing new about being a female who dug the bad-boy type, but this made her past relationship with Siddoh look like a case study for healthy and well-adjusted.
Light was fading fast. Tyra pried her gaze from the hug of Antonâs BDUs on his muscular ass and got out. Funny how sheâd never thought of those pants as particularly sexy before. The evening was quiet and peaceful, smelling of pine and snow and far-off fires in cozy homes. It was an interesting counterpoint to the purpose of their presence in these woods. The whole tableau made her long for a warm bed and blankets she could crawl under and pretend none of this mess existed. âSo,â she said. âWhere to?â
âWell, this thingâ¦â Anton dug into his pocket and produced a gold signet wizard ring. He grimaced when it slid over his pinkie knuckle, and Tyra couldnât suppress her own shiver. That ring represented deathâeither the wearerâs or her vampire brethrenâsâand seeing Anton push it onto his finger like that was hard to make peace with.
âIt acts kind of like a divining rod. The portal moves. Sometimes week to week or night to night. We feel around, and either weâll sense some of the higher-up wizards or my ring will lead us to the portal. We find the portal and we find my father.â Antonâs intense gaze appraised her from across the Land Roverâs black roof.
While she met his gaze with confidence, guilt gnawed at her insides. Evil lineage aside, Anton seemed to be a decent guy, and she hadnât given him a lot of choice in what they were about to do. âAnton, just help me find the portal, and then you can go. I donât want you to have to go up against your own father.â Okay, so there was still a niggle of doubt. What if Antonâs decision came down to his father or Tyra, and he chose daddy dearest?
Maybe the doubt was more than a niggle.
âTyra,â Anton said quietly. God, his voice was so deep.
He came around to the front of the car and faced her. After a moment he lifted his hands, hesitated, and then grasped her shoulders firmly. A flurry of emotions flowed into her: fear, anger, determination, and a massive truckload of very raw need . It wasnât sexual, not exactly. More like an intense emotional desire she couldnât quite name, but it manifested in her body as something sensualâand now was so, so not the time.
âI donât think youâve been listening. Everything that I have gone through: the wizards leaving me for dead in the woods, letting you drink my blood, watching over you while you were in torpor, bringing you here to find my father. All of it has been because I am trying to keep you alive.
âFor that matter, Iâm trying to help keep your whole fucking race alive
âPull over,â he said.
She did. By God, she actually did. As much as she usually bristled over being told what to do, she jerked the car to a stop right on the edge of a grove of evergreens.
Anton lifted his hand, let it hover, and then pulled it back. Apparently she wasnât the only one who thought they kept tripping over each other. Or maybe he just didnât want her to read him. Not that she would even try right now. She could barely manage her own emotions at the moment.
She looked around. âWhere are we, anyway? It looks like weâre practically in Maryland.â
âWeâre probably close.â He unbuckled and stepped out to look around, leaving Tyra with a disturbingly attractive view of his lower bodyâs anatomy framed by the opening in the vehicleâs passenger doorway.
Lord, what was it with her and dysfunctional men? Was she honestly the kind of too-dumb-to-survive female that would find herself attracted to a man who had originally been sent to kill her? Okay, not kill. Kidnap . Nearly as bad, in the grand scheme. Hell, there was nothing new about being a female who dug the bad-boy type, but this made her past relationship with Siddoh look like a case study for healthy and well-adjusted.
Light was fading fast. Tyra pried her gaze from the hug of Antonâs BDUs on his muscular ass and got out. Funny how sheâd never thought of those pants as particularly sexy before. The evening was quiet and peaceful, smelling of pine and snow and far-off fires in cozy homes. It was an interesting counterpoint to the purpose of their presence in these woods. The whole tableau made her long for a warm bed and blankets she could crawl under and pretend none of this mess existed. âSo,â she said. âWhere to?â
âWell, this thingâ¦â Anton dug into his pocket and produced a gold signet wizard ring. He grimaced when it slid over his pinkie knuckle, and Tyra couldnât suppress her own shiver. That ring represented deathâeither the wearerâs or her vampire brethrenâsâand seeing Anton push it onto his finger like that was hard to make peace with.
âIt acts kind of like a divining rod. The portal moves. Sometimes week to week or night to night. We feel around, and either weâll sense some of the higher-up wizards or my ring will lead us to the portal. We find the portal and we find my father.â Antonâs intense gaze appraised her from across the Land Roverâs black roof.
While she met his gaze with confidence, guilt gnawed at her insides. Evil lineage aside, Anton seemed to be a decent guy, and she hadnât given him a lot of choice in what they were about to do. âAnton, just help me find the portal, and then you can go. I donât want you to have to go up against your own father.â Okay, so there was still a niggle of doubt. What if Antonâs decision came down to his father or Tyra, and he chose daddy dearest?
Maybe the doubt was more than a niggle.
âTyra,â Anton said quietly. God, his voice was so deep.
He came around to the front of the car and faced her. After a moment he lifted his hands, hesitated, and then grasped her shoulders firmly. A flurry of emotions flowed into her: fear, anger, determination, and a massive truckload of very raw need . It wasnât sexual, not exactly. More like an intense emotional desire she couldnât quite name, but it manifested in her body as something sensualâand now was so, so not the time.
âI donât think youâve been listening. Everything that I have gone through: the wizards leaving me for dead in the woods, letting you drink my blood, watching over you while you were in torpor, bringing you here to find my father. All of it has been because I am trying to keep you alive.
âFor that matter, Iâm trying to help keep your whole fucking race alive
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