Free DarykHunter by Denise A. Agnew

will seize you more strongly than anything you’ve known.”
    “More strongly than battle lust?”
    “Much more. You will want the woman now. But without restraint you’ll be nothing more than an animal wishing to breed. Remember that when the time comes and you find the woman who is the one.”
    About that time Dragonian numbers had started to dwindle, and yet it had taken a generation to understand the true impact. His lust to breed grew hotter at the thought, a need to populate their continent stronger with each driving day. Yet he couldn’t do it with any woman, and he knew that.
    His father’s words hadn’t made much sense to him then, and in the intervening years he’d almost wondered if the mating lust could be a myth. Most every man he knew, especially Daryk Ones, wanted sex when they wanted it and the drive could be pretty extreme. Yet he’d seen other Daryk Ones and more ordinary men succumb to the mating lust for one woman. It must be true. He’d just never imagined it for himself.
    But this…oh this. He’d never wanted a woman as violently as he wanted Ketera. His drive to keep her safe had slammed into him from the moment he’d seen her lying on the sand with the ruins of a great sailing ship piled around her.
    He looked around the room at the comely women who would comply in a heartbeat if he tossed them coins, took them to a back room and lifted their skirts to take them. Not one of the women tempted him. Wenches strode along with platters of food and drink, some of them wearing low-neck blouses designed to show all they had to sell. One young woman of around twenty-five years came his way. She’d served him drink before. Like most women, her clothing was simple, either tunics or long skirts or filmy pants that flowed along their legs.
    “Can I be of service, Daryk One?” the woman asked.
    Well aware that Ketera watched closely, he stated the truth. “Nothing for me, Samhala.”
    The young woman’s gaze traveled to Ketera. The woman frowned and strutted away.
    One of Ketera’s brows rose and she pursed her lips before she spoke. “What did she want?”
    “Samhala is mated and doesn’t tempt me. Don’t worry about it.” He smirked and then took a big swallow of ale.
    She sniffed and pushed her hair back from her face. Her eyes sparkled with something that almost appeared like jealousy. Good. He wanted her jealous.
    “As if I cared who you copulate with.”
    He chuckled.
    To his surprise, her frown grew deeper. Good. He liked the way her eyes sparked when he made her angry.
    “Have you had…relations with her before she was mated?” she asked.
    Satisfaction flowed through him. She was jealous. The slightly petulant turn to her mouth and the glitter in her eyes gave her away. “Why does it concern you, Ketera?”
    “Because I—” She cut herself off then her lips tightened. “I’m curious about this place. There are so many men and women playing with each other I wasn’t sure what was expected here.”
    Playing? He glanced around and realized she meant flirting. Somewhat more than flirting, if he paid attention. One wench sat on a man’s lap, her bottom planted firmly, the man’s arms around her waist. From the woman’s heavy-lidded expression and the man’s slack-jawed, glazed expression, Dane figured a lot more was going on under the woman’s skirt than anyone could see. The tavern didn’t have rules against public sex. Suddenly the woman on the man’s lap gasped, her body coming up then slamming down on the man. The man surged upward and growled like a beast from the jungle. The woman’s expression held pure ecstasy.
    “This is a normal tavern,” he said. “Nothing more or less.”
    She wrinkled her nose as she stared at the copulating couple. “Disgusting.”
    He smiled. “Why? Because men and women are free to express their desires? Or because you find the place exciting? Perhaps you want to express your desires in the same way? Do you hate this place because it