Page 28 of Stormbinder King
I couldn’t bearthe horrible judgmental look on the king’s face, so as soon as I could, I made an excuse to go back to our quarters and grab a spice blend I had made for my mate.
And on the way back I dawdled, going down the ladder slowly and then walking across the darkened clearing. The meeting hall cast a soft yellow light into the starry blackness of the night, each treehouse a little twinkle of gold high in the trees.
It was even a little cooler at night tonight.
Now that I could finally breathe freely after my releases, I could appreciate the unique beauty of my new Pack home.
Surely after a few more weeks I would be used to having a fated mate and able to control my hormones more.
I felt like I was goinginsanewith how much I wanted him, how deeply I loved Jack.
And maybe I’d even find a friend here, someone who wouldn’t look at me like the dirt on Jack’s shoe.
I was lost in the bliss of these dreams when I felt a hard arm pick me up and yank me around the corner, roughly shoving me face first up against the dark side of one of the storehouses.
I filled my lungs to scream, but a strong hand clamped over my mouth.
I screamed anyway, silent and impotent, dreading and fearing whose voice I would hear responding to me.
“Silence, slut,” someone hissed in my ear, and I felt a shivering raw terror slice through me.
Symeon was so much bigger than anybody I had ever been near, massive cruel strength in the fingers that effortlessly choked any of my protests.
I tried to scream again, and he spanked me sharply on the ass, a big hard crack that momentarily stunned me.
Fuck, that hurt, a sharp pain going all the way down my thighs to my ankles.
“I saidbe quiet.”
I stopped struggling and forced myself to be still as he dragged me down the back of the building and into the moonlight that streamed down from the clear sky.
The air stunk like burnt magic, but he didn’t stop.
As we stepped into the silvery-white light, I felt the hairs on the back of my neck rise as his skin seemed to ripple.
The heat from his body felt scorching on the back of my dress, and his arm around my waist was like a burning brand.
How could he stand to touch me with my protective spell?
There was a scent of sharp, biting flesh in the air, so I knew it must be working, but it didn’t stop those fingers from muffling my mouth and digging into my jaw.
“I’m going to remove my hand and if you do so much as make a peep, I’m going to paddle you so hard you won’t be able to sit on that little slut ass for a week.”
The words died in my mouth and I nodded.
He flipped me around to face him then, and I swallowed my fear as his hand closed around my throat again, cutting off my protests, hard enough to know he could snap my neck if he wished.
The king’s eyes narrowed as they scanned my face, pausing for a moment to glare at my eyes, nose, mouth.
“What do you want?” I squeaked.
He did not respond.
Then, his nostrils flaring, he pulled all my long hair up in one fist and the big fingers of his other hand closed around my throat.
“What are you doing?” I gasped, feeling the breath leave my chest in raw angry shards.
What was he looking for?
