Free Darkness Eternal by Alexandra Ivy

the Dark Lord to the world?
    It was bad enough that a part of her would always feel guilty that the Jinn had made certain their time together hadn’t been rape. Did Uriel have to dredge up the memories she wanted to keep buried far in the back of her mind?
    Now, however, she was . . .
    Hell, she didn’t know what she was.
    Flabbergasted? Gobsmacked?
    Full on monty, had-to-be-losing-her-mind excited?
    With a shiver, she studied the unearthly beauty of his face, wondering if this was some sort of painful joke.
    “Mate?” she croaked.
    His lips twisted in a humorless smile. “Does the thought horrify you because I’m a vampire?”
    “I’m not horrified,” she swiftly denied. “I’m shocked.”
    “Why?”
    “Why?” She snorted. “Do you want a list?”
    His velvet gaze skimmed down to the thrust of her breasts, lingering on the nipples that hardened beneath the feral heat of his inspection.
    “The top three should be sufficient,” he said, his voice thick.
    She yanked away from his lingering touch.
    How was she supposed to think of anything besides wrapping herself around him and doing lovely, wicked things when he was so close?
    “We barely know each other,” she finally managed to choke out.
    He shrugged. “A vampire often recognizes his mate within the first hours of their meeting.”
    Her pulse stuttered, a perilous warmth exploding in the center of her heart.
    Mate.
    Oh . . . shit.
    It was madness. Complete and utter madness.
    So why wasn’t she shrieking in outrage instead of feeling like she’d just drunk an entire keg of her father’s ale?
    She gave a dismissive toss of her head, even knowing she wasn’t fooling Uriel.
    “Well gypsies prefer a long courtship that includes a lot of bling.”
    “Some perhaps.” He reached to brazenly cup one breast in his hand, a smile curving his lips as she gasped in pleasure. “Others enjoy being swept off their feet.”
    She shivered, heat blazing through her. “Arrogant.”
    His eyes smoldered with a ready passion. “Lie to yourself if you want, but you can’t hide the truth from a vampire.”
    She couldn’t lie to herself either as it turned out. Not when sensual anticipation flowed through her veins like warm honey. Or when she was instinctively moving back toward him to press against the welcomed strength of his male form.
    Not that she was ready to accept his shocking claim that she was his mate.
    Was she?
    “Fine, we’re sexually compatible,” she conceded.
    “More than compatible,” he growled, his erection pressed against her lower stomach. “Combustible.”
    Combustible. Yeah. That just about summed it up, Kata acknowledged, vividly aware of the silken slide of the cool water across her highly sensitized skin and the golden spill of sunlight that only intensified the heat blazing through her.
    She craved this man with an insatiable hunger that she sensed would plague her for the rest of her life.
    Regardless of how long or short that life might be.
    “What about the fact that you hate anything and everyone connected with Jinns and I hate vampires?”
    His arm circled her waist, squeezing her so tight not even the water could come between their entwined bodies.
    “They say love conquers all,” he growled.
    Kata wrinkled her nose, not nearly so confident.
    She loved her sister only to discover that she’d become the enemy.
    She loved her daughter, only to have to sacrifice everything to keep her safe.
    Love was . . . dangerous and painful and messy.
    Now, however, didn’t seem the time to argue the point.
    “I’m human again,” she instead pointed out. “Within a few years I’ll be old and gray.”
    The dark eyes flashed with an intimidating ferocity. “Never.”
    She frowned. “I won’t be turned.”
    He shrugged, undeterred by her refusal to be made into a vampire. Understandable. Once a vampire was created they lost all memory of their previous life. She would no longer be Kata, but a new creature that was as likely to try and