Bound By Darkness (Guardians of Eternity #8)(6)
Author: Alexandra Ivy

But there was no denying that she set him on fire.

“No, we’re completely alone,” he said, reluctantly shoving aside the vivid fantasies that threatened to derail his plans for the day. “But as much as I might like to stay here and play, I have to find Tearloch before he can resurrect the Dark Lord. Once I leave the mists I’m going to be the target of every damned demon who wants to mount my head on their trophy wall.”

“I’m a Hunter, not a magician,” she mocked. “I can’t perform miracles.”

He heaved a sigh. Hell, he should have bargained for the sex.

“There’s only a handful of demons who would dare to try and challenge me, and most I can defeat even if I’m outnumbered.”

She made a sound of disgust. “Arrogant.”

“No, it’s the simple truth.” He met her gaze squarely. “And I’m willing to admit that I’m not invulnerable. I won’t allow pride to stop me from bartering for someone to guard my back while I’m busy stopping the apocalypse.”

“What makes you think I won’t plant a knife in your back instead of protecting it?”

Excellent question.

Not quite as excellent as questioning why the hell he had offered the dumb-ass bargain to begin with.

Granted, he was the equivalent of Kim Jong-il among the demon world, but he possessed the skill to travel without attracting unwanted attention. And he hadn’t boasted of his power to overcome all but a rare few enemies. With any luck at all he could retrieve Tearloch and the babe before anyone realized what was happening.

The last thing he needed was to drag along a feral vampire who distracted him on a cellular level.

But the thought of leaving without her, or worse, allowing her to simply walk away, was unacceptable.

“Because the good guys are so disgustingly concerned with their honor.” A self-derisive smile twisted his lips. “Once you give your word you won’t be able to break it.”

Her beautiful face was unreadable as she stood with that eerie stillness that only a vampire could achieve.

“You’ve forgotten one important point.”

“And that is?”

“I’ve already given my word to the Oracles and more importantly, the Addonexus has already been paid for my services. They own my loyalty.” The indigo eyes had frosted over, hiding the passion that burned beneath. That was fine. He knew it was there, just waiting for him. “At least until the job is done.”

He shook off the warning. The reason the rulers of the demon world had contributed the money and effort to hiring a Hunter to capture him was yet another thing he wasn’t going to burn any brain cells on.

If he didn’t intend to get caught, then what did it matter?

“The job ended the moment I pulled you through the portal,” he informed her, reaching to wrap a strand of her black hair around his finger. “I won and now you’re in my power.”

She jerked her head back, and Ariyal swallowed a groan at the feel of the cool silk of her hair moving against his skin. Just the thought of being naked with Jaelyn saddling his hips and that ebony mane brushing his chest was enough to make him painfully hard.

“You haven’t won until I’m dead,” she hissed.

“Now that would be a waste.” His brooding gaze lowered to the full lips that could send a man to paradise. “Accept my bargain, Jaelyn, and make both of us happy.”

If he hadn’t possessed the heightened senses of a powerful fey, he wouldn’t have caught the dilation of her eyes, or the faint flare of her nostrils as she reacted to the scent of his desire.

“ No.”

“Then you will remain my prisoner.”

“You can’t hold me captive forever.”

He couldn’t help but smile at her unmitigated arrogance. Typical leech.

No, not typical, a voice whispered in the back of his head.

Even among vampires she was … astonishing. Special.

“You might manage to free yourself from the chains, but you can’t escape Avalon.” He nodded his head to the thick mists that were visible through the heavily shaded window. “And there’s something else you should know.”

“What?”

“Time moves differently within the mists.”

She frowned, easily sensing the truth of his warning. “How differently?”

“It’s never constant,” he admitted. It was his theory that the mists that Morgana had created were similar to the mists that ran between dimensions that the Jinn used to travel. It would explain why time ran differently from the outside world. “A few hours might have passed since we arrived on Avalon or it could be several weeks.”

“Then why did you bring us here?” she demanded in frustration. “For all you know Sergei has already resurrected the Dark Lord.”

He shuddered. This female was too young to have any memory of the Dark Lord or his loathsome hordes of minions. Otherwise she would never speak of his return as if it were nothing more than an inconvenience.

“We would know if the gates of hell had been opened,” he assured her dryly. “And it was the one place I could keep you hidden from your fellow leeches.”

Too late he realized just what he’d revealed.

“You risked the end of the world just to take me hostage?”

Abruptly turning to hide his discomfort, he paced to stare out the door that opened to the attached baths. He grimaced as he realized the shallow pools were still filled with the scented waters that Morgana had demanded her sex slaves use to wash in before coming to her bed.

“I told you, I need someone to watch my back,” he snapped, his voice suddenly harsh.

“Don’t you have a tribe roaming around nearby?”

“They attract precisely the sort of attention I’m hoping to avoid.”

“And?”

He turned to meet her disbelieving gaze. “There is no ‘ and. ’”

The chain rattled as she took an impatient step forward, clearly sensing he was not being entirely honest.

“Yes, there is.”

“Damn, that’s annoying,” he muttered.

“Then release me.”

Not a chance in hell.

His gaze skimmed over the hard lines of her body. She was like a sleek greyhound. All muscle and grace.

And his.

He shook off the disturbing thought, concentrating on a half-truth that would satisfy her freakish, insanely annoying talent.

“I’m not entirely certain that Tearloch’s madness is an isolated incident.”