Brides of the Kindred 1 - Claimed.pdf

(1388 KB) Pobierz
Brides of the Kindred
Book 1: Claimed
by
Evangeline Anderson
EBOOK EDITION
*****
PUBLISHED BY:
Evangeline Anderson
Brides of the Kindred
Book 1: Claimed
Copyright © 2011 by Evangeline Anderson
License Notes
This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-
sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another
person, please purchase an additional copy for each person you share it with. If you're
reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then
you should notify the publisher and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting
the author's work.
Prologue
Dusk was falling on Idlewild Avenue. Rows of identical townhouses, lit softly from
within, lined the street which was overshadowed by huge old oak trees. A light evening
shower had just passed and now the atmosphere was heavy with moisture. Tendrils of
steam rose from the asphalt and the sweet scent of honeysuckle filled the air.
In number eleven at the end of the row a slender female figure moved in front of a
large picture window—one of the selling points of the otherwise unremarkable houses.
She was walking back and forth, placing objects on a table, or perhaps taking them away
—maybe cleaning up after dinner. She moved with ease and grace as she did the
mundane chore, completely unaware that she was being watched.
Across the road from the lighted window and the slender figure, two pairs of eyes
looked on avidly as she moved. One set of eyes was a pale, piercing blue that was almost
white and the other set was a warm amber-gold that wouldn’t have looked out of place
in the face of a tiger.
Neither pair of eyes was human.
“Mine.” The low rumbling growl came from the owner of the amber eyes. He was
tall, six foot seven at least, with shoulders so broad he would have to turn sidewise to go
through most doorways, but he moved silently, with a feral grace that belied his
muscular physique. Dark stubble covered his cheeks and chin and matched the thick
black hair on his head.
“Not yet, Baird,” the one beside him cautioned. He was as tall as his friend and
just as muscular but he had short, spiky blond hair that complimented his pale blue eyes.
“Can’t wait much longer.” Long, strong fingers curled into a fist as though the
amber-eyed male could grasp the slender figure in his hand and hold her through sheer
force of will. “Been dreaming about her every night, Sylvan. I ache for her.”
“What does she look like?” There was genuine curiosity in the question. Though
Baird had never seen her outside his dreams, Sylvan had no doubt he could describe his
chosen female to the last detail.
“So fuckin’ beautiful it hurts to look at her. Yellow hair like yours but longer—
more golden. And her eyes…” Baird shook his head. “Like jewels. A pale grey that’s
almost silver.”
“You find these human women appealing then?”
“Only her—she’s the only one I can see.” The amber eyes stared hungrily across
the road. “I need her soon. Need to be with her. In her.”
“You’re sure she’s the one?” Sylvan stared doubtfully at the woman silhouetted in
the window. She was humming softly to herself but despite the distance and the pane of
glass between them he could hear her perfectly and knew Baird could too. As attuned as
his half brother was to this human female, he could probably hear her heartbeat even
from across the street.
“I
know
she’s the one.” There wasn’t a shred of doubt in the deep, rumbling voice.
“Didn’t I tell you we’ve been dream-sharing? And her scent…” He inhaled deeply and
his dark gold eyes were suddenly half-lidded with desire. “It’s her all right and she’s ripe
for bonding. I want her.”
“I know you do, but Baird…” The other male shifted from foot to foot uneasily.
“You haven’t been back that long—only three days and it’s a miracle you escaped alive.
Don’t you think it might be a good idea to wait a while? To take some time to recover?”
“Waited long enough,” was the rumbling reply. “Six months in that hell hole and
the only thing keeping me alive and sane were the dreams I had of her. I won’t wait any
longer—she’s mine, whether she knows it yet or not.”
“You’ll scare her,” his half-brother objected. “Human women are frightened
enough of us as it is.”
“I won’t hurt her. Just need to take her—bond her.” Unconsciously, he took a step
toward the lighted window but his half-brother put a restraining hand on his broad
shoulder.
“Wait.” The other male’s voice was soothing. “Just wait until they serve the
papers. One more night and she’s yours but you can’t have her now—not without
violating the contract.”
A low, frustrated growl was his answer as the thick muscles of Baird’s upper arms
bunched with tension.
“Come on.” The one called Sylvan tugged his half brother gently away from the
lighted window. “If you stay here you’ll do something you regret. Remember, just one
more night.”
The other male stood like a rock for a moment despite his brother’s tugging. Then,
reluctantly, he allowed himself to be led away. He cast one last possessive glance over his
shoulder at the figure in the window.
“Mine,” he repeated with unshakable certainty. “Mine whether you know it or
not,
Lilenta.
And tomorrow I claim you.”
Chapter One
“Bad dreams again last night?”
Olivia Waterhouse jerked at the sound of her twin sister’s voice and then went back
to staring at the kitchen table. “Uh, not so much,” she lied and tried to smile.
“C’mon, Liv, give. It’s me, your womb mate—remember?” Sophia sat down across
from her and patted her hand gently. No one could ever decide if the Waterhouse twins
were fraternal or identical. Liv had honey blonde hair with grey eyes and Sophia had a
rich, chestnut mane with pale green eyes but their facial features were exactly the same.
They had the same build too, both were five-seven and slender with hourglass curves.
More than just twins, they were also best friends, which was why it made Liv
uncomfortable to lie to her sister. But she couldn’t help it—the things she’d seen last
night didn’t bear repeating.
“Really,” she said, not meeting her sister’s eyes. “I’m fine. I just had a restless night—
that’s all.”
The truth was the dreams she’d been having for the past half year about the
muscular stranger with glowing, amber-gold eyes had become progressively more
disturbing. He was her nighttime visitor every time she closed her eyes. Liv had even
named him—inside her head she called him “the dark man.”
For the longest time she’d dreamed of him someplace filled with shadows—
someplace where despair was an almost palpable thing. Sometimes he was chained to the
wall, his head bowed as if in exhaustion. Other times were worse. Liv had seen him
hooked to some kind of machine, wires embedded in his dusky tan skin like malignant
snakes feeding off him. On an inverted dome, as big as an IMAX screen above his head,
images flashed—pictures of strange worlds she never could have imagined. One seemed
to be all ice and snow, another a lush tropical jungle where the vegetation was mostly
blue instead of green. And yet another seemed to be a world that was mostly a clear,
golden ocean with tiny rocky islands dotted here and there.
When she dreamed of the pictures of other worlds flashing across the enormous
screen, Liv always got the idea that they were somehow drawn from the memories of the
dark man. And there was pain—so much pain, both physical and emotional. He was
hurting and she was powerless to help him. She didn’t even know him but somehow his
agony affected her deeply. She woke up with tears in her eyes most mornings, her heart
clenched like a fist in her chest, his name—a name she could never quite recall—
trembling on her lips.
Liv tried to tell herself her dreams were just that—only dreams. Lots of people had
reoccurring dreams. Why her brain should choose to show her the same thing night after
night was a mystery but it was also no big deal. And she only felt for the mysterious dark
man because that was the kind of person she was. She’d just finished nursing school a
few weeks ago and was taking some time off before she started her new job in the
pediatric unit at Tampa General. She could be tough when she had to but by nature she

Plik z chomika:

Inne pliki z tego folderu:

Inne foldery tego chomika:

Zgłoś jeśli naruszono regulamin