The woman was playing with her mouth deliberately, making him look, he knew it. His gaze flew back up to her face—
Valerie winked at him. “Gotcha.”
Griffin growled.
“Okay, fair warning. I think that growly thing you do is oddly hot.” She shrugged. “I’m wired a little differently than most witches, sorry. I know my kind is supposed to be all cold and you know, not into the wild beast thing, but I think it’s a major turn on.”
Was she screwing with him?
Or actually being honest?
No, no way. Valerie Storm wasn’t honest. She was a liar and a trickster and a killer straight to her core.
She waved her hand at him. “Can we get back to the temporary thing that you mentioned? Because I was pretty sure we were in this mating thing forever. You know, in it to win it and all that.”
He had no idea what she meant—what were they going to win?
She reached down to touch her gown. Sighed at the damage. Then Valerie just ripped away the torn fabric, making the dress end right at mid-thigh.
Gorgeous legs. Sexy. Long. He could imagine them wrapped around—
“I think I see a little fang. What’s that about?”
It was about him getting turned on, dammit. He needed to get away from the witch. The bond—temporary though it was—had already started to mess with his head. And his body.
“I’m of royal blood,” Griffin announced.
Her hands immediately flew to her chest—super dramatic.
He forced his back teeth to unclench. “I’m the oldest damn shifter in the world. I can shift into three beasts, I am the strongest shifter you’ll ever meet, I am—”
“Awesome. Yes, I get it. You’re spectacular. That’s one of the reasons I wanted to mate with you.” She rose. Stood near the side of the bed. “I’m spectacular, too.”
She was…smaller than he’d expected. Maybe five-foot-five? Five-foot-six? She seemed to have so much power and strength, but she was actually…delicate.
Fragile?
He retreated a step. No, Valerie wasn’t fragile. She was screwing with his mind. He needed to get back to his rules. Pronto. “You’ll be here for a month.”
“Here? In shifter paradise?”
“At the end of the month, our temporary bond will end, and you’ll go back to the witches.”
Valerie pursed her lips. Probably just so he’d look at her mouth again. “Did you miss the part where they banished me? Or, um, maybe where they were trying to burn me?”
His hands fisted. When he’d seen her trapped in those flames, a rage unlike anything he’d ever known had burst to life inside of him. He’d tossed witches and vampires out of his way as he barreled to her. Nothing—no one—would have stopped him from saving her. “One month,” Griffin said, not letting emotion enter his words. “Then you will leave. Our bond will end.”
She didn’t speak. She also didn’t look happy. “I’ve never heard of a mating bond just going poof like that.”
“Ours will.”
“Because you’re all extra special and royal? With three beasts inside?”
Because he hadn’t fully mated her. Because for him, mating truly would be forever. His dragon—the strongest of the beasts he carried—would recognize his mate. And then there would never be any parting from her.
“I felt the connection when I took your blood.” Valerie squared her shoulders. “We’re mated. If we weren’t, you would have let me die in the fire.”
“We’re temporarily—”
She held up a small hand. “Stop using that word, or I might help you shift into a fourth beast. I think you’d make an awesome snake right now.”
She wouldn’t.
Oh, wait, wicked witch. She would. Or at least, she’d try. “You’re gonna find that most of your magic won’t work here.”
Valerie paled. “That will make me…helpless.”
“Think of it as…human.”
She lunged forward. Locked her arms around him. At her touch, heat seemed to burn all the way through his body. “You don’t know the enemies I have, shifter king. I’ll die without my magic.”
The hell she would. Not on his watch. “No one will hurt you here. My word is law, and until the next month is up, you’re mine.”
The last came out far more possessively than he’d intended. But—she was.
Her face softened, went all sweet and innocent. “You promise to keep me safe?”
He opened his mouth, almost ready to promise her any—
Oh, hell, no. Griffin smiled at her. Flashed some fang. “Rule one.”
“What?”
“Rule one is no lying. No pretending to be something you’re not.” She was definitely not sweet and innocent. “You’re the most feared witch on the planet. Everyone knows your heart is as cold as ice.”
She let him go. “Right. Everyone knows that. Common knowledge.”
“Rule two. Don’t even try your magic. Not so much as a spark of fire. Just pretend you’re on vacation. Relax for the next month. Take in the sights.”
“You have got to be kidding me.”
“Rule three…”
“How many rules do you have?”
A sharp knock sounded at the door. “Griffin!” A strong, male voice boomed. “Your people are still waiting!”
Dammit. He hadn’t finished his rules. But his people had to come first.
“They’re in the courtyard!” That voice continued. “And they won’t leave. Not until they all see you with their own eyes.”
Griffin sighed. Then he locked his hand around her wrist. “You’re coming with me.” He hauled her toward the door. Yanked it open.
His senior guardsman turned toward him, a wide smile instantly crossing Warren’s face. Warren LaTroix had been at his side for centuries. There was no shifter he trusted more than the blond, dark-eyed wolf.
Warren’s smile froze, though, when his gaze darted to Valerie. “You, um, you’re bringing her with you?” His stare slid down her body. Seemed to linger on Valerie’s exposed legs.
Griffin immediately moved in front of her. He had to bite back the snarl of “Mine” that rose to his lips. “They need to know she’s under my protection.”
“That’s sweet,” Valerie said from behind him. “Like white knight kind of sweet.”
His head was throbbing. Without another word, he marched forward, making Valerie advance with him. Warren rushed to follow them.
“Oh.” Valerie’s exclamation as they hurried through the stone corridors was less than thrilled. “This is very, um, medieval castle-like, isn’t it?”
Yes, it was.
He turned to the left. Shoved open two wooden doors that were hidden in an archway. He strode onto the balcony—
Cheers erupted from the people gathered down below. His people. Griffin smiled at them.
Valerie slid to his side.
The cheers began to dwindle. Whispers replaced the enthusiastic yells. The shifters below them had incredible sight. They’d be able to discern Valerie’s features perfectly. And since shifters also had incredible hearing, Griffin could easily make out—
“Tell me that’s not…”
“Why is she here?”
“Isn’t that the wicked one? I thought she burned!”
“Hello, people!” Valerie called out in an amazingly cheery voice. “Yes, the stories you’ve heard—no doubt, over the last ten hours while I slept like the dead—are all true! I did save the life of your big, bad beast Griffin.”
No more whispers. No more cheers. Nothing.
“I know, I know,” Valerie continued in her perky voice, “you’re grateful. I accept your gratitude.”
He pulled her closer. Put his mouth right at her ear. “Woman, are you mad?”
She shivered. He realized his tongue had accidentally licked the shell of her ear. Oh, who was he kidding? The lick had been deliberate.
Valerie tilted her head back to stare up at him. “A little bit mad, yes. But being san
e is boring.”
She was certainly not boring. She was also doing that lip lick thing—
Warren cleared his throat. “They’re waiting.”
Right. Shit. He focused on his people once more. “Valerie Storm is under my protection! No one here will harm her, not unless you want to face my fury.”
“Oh, that’s good,” Valerie praised him in a husky voice. “But maybe you should add something a little bloodier like… ‘Not unless you want me to rip your head from your shoulders’—I think that works.”
He slanted her a glance.
“Too much?” she asked, seeming genuinely puzzled.
Griffin could only shake his head. He’d given the warning. No one ever, ever disobeyed his orders.
For the next month, he was stuck with Valerie. No one would harm her. She’d be safe.
And he would make absolutely certain she followed all of his rules. If she didn’t, he’d lock up the witch.
Simple.
Chapter Four
Valerie had never met a rule she liked. So as she strolled through the streets of what she thought of as shifter land, Valerie was hoping to find some delightful trouble.
Instead, she found people who…hurried away from her. Who wouldn’t look her in the eyes. Who acted as if she were the devil himself.
She wasn’t, of course. The man who had that particular distinction was a fellow named Lucas Thorne. An ex-lover that she hadn’t seen in ages. She wondered what he was up to right then. Maybe she could use some help from the devil…
“Don’t let her fool you. She’s only pretty on the outside.”
Valerie’s shoulders stiffened at that overly loud whisper. Her head turned to the right, and she found a group of shifters staring at her. They appeared young, maybe around twenty or so, but, of course, it was hard to tell the true age of a shifter. A blonde female was in the middle of the circle, her lips curled in a smirk. Derision twisted her features as she gave her all into working that smirk.
“Don’t let her touch you,” a redheaded male added in another too dramatic whisper. “She’ll turn you into a frog.”
She was certainly tempted to do so.
“Course, that would be an improvement for you, Rio!” The redhead slapped the back of another shifter, a tall, gangly fellow with too-long, black hair.
The gangly guy stumbled at the hit—one that had obviously been injected with supernatural strength—and he fell, hitting his knees too hard on the ground.
The others in that little group laughed.
“How old are you all?” Valerie snapped at them, as she put her hands on her hips. They were acting like infants.
The blonde female tossed back her hair. “I’ll be twenty next month.”
Old enough to know better.
“How old are you, witch?” The blonde’s gaze raked Valerie. “Because you look positively ancient.”
Oh, hells, no. The girl had not just said that.
The youth on the ground tried to rise, but the blonde gave a little jerk of her chin, and the redheaded goon kicked the fellow once more, sending him crashing into the dirt. The blonde smirked the whole time.
“I don’t like mean children.” Valerie’s voice rang out, loud and echoing. Her special talent.
The group stopped laughing.
She sauntered toward them. Took her time, enjoyed the moment. And enjoyed the absolute hell she was about to wreck. Griffin had said her powers wouldn’t work in this realm. Why not test and see if he was right?
Her hands stretched at her sides, wiggling a bit, and, yes, she felt the surge of power. She glanced down and saw the sparks dancing from her fingertips. “Do you know what happens to mean children?”
“We’re not kids!” The blonde called. Ah, the leader. Such a waste of potential. “I told you, I’ll be twenty soon!”
Good for her. Definitely old enough to know better. Valerie stopped walking. She lifted her hands, knowing they’d all see the sparks. “Do I look like I give a shit what you are?”
A few of them were backing away. Smart. But it wasn’t time to run yet.
“What happens to mean children…” She let her smile stretch, knowing the term would infuriate the group. “I take away the things they value most.”
Silence.
“Like…” Valerie cocked her head. “Beautiful, long blonde hair…hair that doesn’t have to be…there.” A wave of her finger.
And suddenly…half of that long blonde hair was on the ground.
The blonde started screaming.
Valerie snapped her fingers. The hair instantly returned, mostly because it had only been an illusion spell. She kicked ass at illusions. Always had. The blonde was frantically running her hands through her precious locks. “You should be careful,” Valerie warned her. “It’s easy to be pretty on the outside. But things on the outside are never what you think. And in an instant, everything can change.”
The blonde raced away. All of them were rushing away. Except for the kid on the ground. He was staring at Valerie, gazing at her with something like awe on his face.
People didn’t usually look at her that way. They stared at her in horror, gazed at her in terror, but awe? That was new. She glanced over her shoulder, making sure no one else was lurking there.
Nope. Just her.
“You are amazing.”
She looked back at the boy. Maybe she preened a little bit. “You’re right.” But then she noticed her fingers weren’t sparking any longer. Uh, oh. Maybe magic didn’t work so well here. At least not for anything other than simple spells.
She started to whirl away, but…something was nagging at her. Sighing, long and loudly, she glanced at the boy. “Why are you still on the ground?”
He gulped, his Adam’s apple bobbing, and then he shot to his feet. “I, um, I don’t know.”
“You’re a shifter. That means you’re supposed to be all badass.” She waved her fingers into the air. No sparks. Dammit. “Why’d you let them push you around?”
His cheeks turned crimson. “I can’t shift.”
“Come again?”
“I, um, I can’t shift, ma’am.”
He’d just ma’amed her. Oh, the horror. “Why can’t you shift? I mean, you are a shifter, aren’t you?”
A quick nod. “Griffin is giving me until my nineteenth birthday, but if I don’t change by then, I’ll have to leave.”
“When is your nineteenth birthday?”
“In three months.”
Her eyes narrowed. “And if you don’t shift, where will you go?”
Another bob of his Adam’s apple. “To live with humans.”
She could practically smell the fear rolling off him. And she didn’t even have a shifter’s nose. Though, to be fair, she did have enhanced senses, courtesy of a spell she’d worked on herself. “Griffin would turn you away from your home, just because you don’t sprout fur?”
“Yes.”
That was a big, giant black mark for the big, bad beast. “What’s your name? Rio? Is that what they called you?”
He nodded. “M-my mom had me here, then left for Rio. She never came back.”
What the actual fuck? Sparks started to dance from her fingers again. Better. Maybe she just needed the right energy to rev herself up. Rage had always been her favorite fuel.
Rio backed up a step. “They…they think maybe she mated with a human, and that’s why I’m just…this.”
Her gaze swept over him.
“I’m useless,” he whispered. “Not as strong as the others. I don’t fit in, I—”
“I don’t have room for pity.” Her voice was cold. Biting.
He flinched.
“I don’t have room for sob stories.” Her arctic voice rose. “I don’t have room for the weak in my life.”
His whole body was shaking now.
She pointed her sparking fingers at him. “And if you are going to be my newest henchman, you don’t have room for those things, either.”
“I
—what?”
Now she walked around him, studying Rio from head to toe. “I am in need of a new henchman.”
“Wh-what’s a henchman?”
Spirits save her… “Do you not get any TV or books in this wretched place? Come on, Rio…think mad scientists, think bad guys. They always have henchmen to help do their evil bidding.” She returned to stand in front of him. “I think we’ve established that I’m evil.”
He just frowned.
“I am the queen of evil.” Valerie was pretty sure she’d once owned a T-shirt that said that very thing. “And you are my henchman. From now on, you will go where I go. You will fight at my side. You will stand between me and danger.”
“I…will?” His eyes were huge. “Why…why me?”
“Because only someone very special can be my henchman. Someone who has power buried deep inside.” She touched his chest, right over his heart. “You have that. I don’t give a shit what the shifter punks say. I see you. I know what you are.”
“And I’m…?”
Another smile. A pleased one this time because she’d just seen his shoulders straighten a little. “You’re my henchman.”
His lips curved in a faint smile.
“Where do you live, henchman?”
And he was suddenly back to flushing dark red. “Um, I, um, the baker down the road lets me stay in the back—”
“That’s why you smell like pastries. Excellent. Go get your things. While you’re packing up, steal me some pastries, and then head toward the castle.” Griffin’s home base. “You’ll have a room there as long as I’m in shifter land.”
“Shifter what?”
“Valerie!” The bellow was absolutely deafening.
Wonderful. Her mate was calling. “I really like chocolate. Get something chocolatey for me, and you’ll win bonus henchman points.” He just stared at her. She shooed him. “Go.” She didn’t want the kid watching what was about to go down. It wasn’t going to be pretty.
She turned away from Rio. Saw the very angry looking king of the beasts heading her way. His hands were clenched at his sides. His eyes were shooting green fire, and Valerie couldn’t remember if she’d ever seen a jaw clenched so tightly.
“You attacked one of my people?” he roared.
Shifters began to fill the streets. Same old, same old. Folks always loved to see a good fight.