Free Pleasure of a Dark Prince by Kresley Cole

and haze of her tears.
    Then lightning illuminated him, and she recoiled, her pain redoubling. Can’t be him… can’t be.
    He was massive, even more towering than before, his fangs and dark claws longer and sharper. A shadow of a ferocious beast flickered over his body.
    MacRieve. A monster from legend.
    As he crept over to where she shook on the floor, she gritted her teeth but couldn’t move, crippled by the pain.
    Crouching over her, he reached for her face with his huge hands. When his claws glinted like onyx, she flinched. What would he do… ?
    He’s trying… to pat my tears? “Shh, female.” He scooped her into his arms while she stared up with dread. “Do no’ fear me.” His voice was guttural, his ice-blue eyes burning with possession.
    In an instant, she comprehended two things: why immortals feared the Lykae.
    And that she was this one’s mate.
    “Protect you.”
    Yes, he could never hurt her, would believe he’d been born to safeguard her life. “And my sisters,” she weakly bit out.
    He gazed at the door, clearly wanting to remove her from the threat—
    “Please, Lykae… fight these vampires.”
    Finally, a jerk of his chin. He carried her out of the way, gently tucking her behind a table. In that beastly voice, he grated, “I’ll give you… their throats.” He gazed at her with such longing, but she was horrified to see him completely turned. He knew it, could see—she was in too much pain to hide her disgust.
    He twisted from her and reared up with an awing fury against the vampires. After recovering from her-surprise, Regin teamed up with the Lykae, each facing off against a vampire. The demon vampire held back, guarding an enthralled-looking Ivo.
    There was no contest against MacRieve. With dizzying speed, he lunged forward before the vampire could trace a retreat, snapping his jaws closed on his opponent’s neck. Bones cracked and arteries spurted as he ripped the vampire’s throat out.
    In a gruesome spray of gore, MacRieve spit it into the male’s shocked face. Then his Lykae claws sliced through the rest of the vampire’s neck cleanly. Head and body dropped to the crimson floor.
    MacRieve turned to Regin’s vampire next. She’d stabbed it several times, but it was tracing around her like crazy, materializing and vanishing, delivering blows. She couldn’t land a killing strike.
    Seeming to predict where the male would appear next, MacRieve sprang for the vampire. He tackled him between traces, pinning him to the floor. The Lykae’s head descended, and he savaged that one’s neck as well.
    In mere moments, the two enemies were decapitated.
    Confronted by a fully-turned, battle-maddened Lykae, Ivo and the horned one traced away, fleeing .
    As soon as the threat was gone, MacRieve sped to Lucia’s side, crouching with blood dripping from his fangs. She stared up with revulsion. “No, no.” Just like before, a handsome face concealed a monster.
    Delirious, shuddering, suddenly she was back in Cruach’s lair. The Broken Bloody One was above her, blood pouring from his gritted fangs, splashing into her eyes. Crimson pools and grisly leavings all around them. I give you meat and wine, my love….
    “Lousha,” MacRieve grated, rousing her back to the present. “You’re… safe.” He tenderly skimmed the backs of his wet claws along her cheek.
    “No, get away… get away from me.”
    Brows drawn as if in pain, he rose and loped out into the night.
    The deadly shadow that was Garreth MacRieve disappeared.
    But she knew he’d be back.

NINE

He hadn’t been back.
    But unfortunately for MacRieve, for most nights over the last week, he hadn’t strayed far from Lucia.
    “Celts’ pelts! Celts’ pelts!” Nïx cried happily, summing up the reason there was a hunting party of over two dozen Valkyrie gathered in a remote swamp on this desolate eve.
    Lucia, Regin, Annika, Nïx, and several others were stationed in a carefully selected clearing, while even more Valkyrie were