Page 9

Chapter

Nine

S amir’s eyes glittered in the dark. He followed his sneaky little huntress as she flattened herself against the wall, her hood pulled up. His mouth curved in amusement. It seemed that once again she was making a bid for freedom. It had been some days since she last made the attempt that he had begun to wonder if she had given up. It wasn’t until he felt her uneven breath betraying her wakefulness that he realized that the game was once again afoot. She had merely pretended to be sleeping. So, he too feigned sleep, but far more successfully.

Keeping his breathing light with all the outward signs of deep sleep, he had felt the twitch of body against his and then the shift of the bedding when she slid from his bed. The sound of her feet dropping to the stone floor in a light slap was louder than she had likely suspected and he was only just able to keep himself from smiling. Persistent little female.

He smiled to himself as he prowled behind her. A quiver ran up his spine as he watched her. He truly did enjoy these little contests between them. He suspected that she enjoyed it too. Every time he tracked, he observed the way her flesh trembled with excitement and there was a blatant perfume of interest clinging to her flesh when he finally caught her. He could have, of course, seized her effortlessly at any time but he enjoyed watching her clever mind at work as she attempted to evade him. The chase was something that they both craved. The hunter and the hunted. He wondered how she, the huntress, enjoyed being the hunted. He personally found both roles stimulating.

But only her. Abby was the only one who was allowed to make him her prey. Anyone else who dared would be quickly dispatched and added to his collection. He rather missed being her quarry, truth be told. As he stealthily followed her, he wondered how he might engage her instinct to give chase. As riveting as it was to hunt and catch her, he wanted her single-minded focus back on him. Sure, it was with the intent of driving a particularly painful and potentially deadly weapon into his flesh—but that aside, while she was hunting him, he was all that she thought about and all that she desired.

And he craved that.

For so many years he had longed for something that he had been unable to define. Perhaps it was to be the irrational longing of another. The other hunters had wanted him, but they had been lazy and crass, too confident in their abilities and with no more interest in him than they would have for a gazelle brought down to satiate their appetites. They had possessed an erroneous belief that he would be easy to bag so that they could return to Veldala to collect their riches. But conversely, he had not wanted them. Each and every one of them had been a thorn in his hide whereas he had hungered for Abby and sought to lure her deeper and deeper into the caverns to the door of his den.

She did not realize it. She did not know that he had intentionally sought to cut off every opportunity for her escape. Once he had her where he wanted her, he was certain of victory. It had been a fair match between them in so much that they both brought the best of their hunting skills, he merely utilized his skills in playing the part of the pursued in order to successfully hunt and claim her. He had wanted her from the moment he had caught her scent in the desert air, but he had not pursued her. In the beginning, she could have left at any time before she invaded his home. She could have given up her pursuit and ended her hunt and he would have allowed it. If any of those who had hunted him reconsidered and decided to flee, he never gave chase since the hunt was abandoned. But like so many of the others she did not, and so he consequently did not feel any guilt for what he did, not even days later.

But now Abby, weaponless and vulnerable, believed that she was fleeing him. It was adorable. She did not realize it, but the hunt was not over for her yet. It would never end now. He would continually stalk her and lure in. And the more he came to know her, the more certain he was of it. He would never let her go before he was ready to release her.

Perhaps some part of her did realize it and it was making her even more determined to defy him and fate. Little did she know, he adored that streak of stubbornness. Her determination charmed him. It seduced him and made him as playful as a cub even if there was nothing particularly cub-like to what he wanted to do with and to her when he finally caught her. The arousal in his loins was all a male Manticore in his prime, eager to breed and rut even as she aroused his mind and drew him in to play her game.

And she was deep in her game. He could see it in the way she tilted her head and the cautious way she observed her surroundings before moving forward even an inch. Her head cocked, listening, and then shot forward, her dark cloak unfurling and thickening the darkness around her. Samir came close to growling out loud as he shot after her, but he froze mid-step, his paw-like hand resting in the air in front of him, when she suddenly drew short, her head whipping as she scanned the room.

“Is he here?” she whispered, her voice barely audible to even his keen hearing. “No. Why do I not feel alone?”

Samir smiled in the dark. His angle prevented her from seeing the glow of his eyes, but his clever huntress had picked up on some clue to his presence that he had not even realized that he had divulged. Keeping his movements small and light, he crept toward her and slowly circled wide around her to position himself in front of her. Although she was not hunting him, it was a pleasant illusion. More than that it set him up with the perfect opportunity for a fine capture.

Crouching low on a risen ledge near the entrance, he smiled down at her as he watched her approach. He waited patiently, silently, as she crept forward until she was so close that he could reach out and caress her cheek. Her eyes blindly turned toward him, and, for a moment, his entire world was captured entirely within her gaze and he forgot to breathe. She did not see him. It was impossible. And yet… Her brows slowly drew down, knitting at the center.

“There you are. Very funny, Samir,” she grumbled, drawing back away from him and the entrance. “Damn it all.”

His brows rose in surprise, and he straightened, not even bothering to hide himself any longer. “How did you know?” he inquired.

She huffed quietly. “Apparently, I’ve been around you too damned long. Good news is that I’m starting to become more sensitive to the energy of your presence when you are physically close to me.”

“And the bad?” he inquired curiously.

Her lips twisted in a grimace. “The knowledge that no hunter should become that close to their quarry. Or at very least not without utilizing it fully to strike that monster down.”

Samir chuckled and he hopped down from the ledge so that he landed close by her side. Abby backpedaled a bit to put some distance between them, but he purred and closed the distance between them. He twined around her, bumping against her ass when she would have thought to turn and flee.

“Do you wish to hunt me, kitten?” he rumbled.

To his disappointment, Abby’s eyes went wide, and she quickly shook her head in denial. “Honestly, I just want to leave.”

He gave her a somber look and shook his head. “You were given that opportunity.”

“You mean that little chase that there was no hope of me winning?” she demanded, anger darkening her face as she attempted to nudge him away with her knee.

Again, he shook his head even though it infuriated her and pressed his side against her hip meaningfully. She still did not understand that she chose to be there, even if she had not understood at the time. “Before that. When you stood in front of my cave, debating on whether or not to enter, you made a choice. Every step you made as you progressed deeper through the chambers of my cave, you made a choice. You pursued me . And now—you have me. Is this not what you desired?” he purred.

The color drained from her face and her dark eyes seemed to grow larger in her face as they widened with shock. She swallowed.

“No. That was not personal. It was just hired for a job. I didn’t want you?—”

“Liar,” he chuckled. “You may have wanted me for what you perceived that it would give you. Fortune perhaps? Luxury? But you most definitely wanted me. I could hear it in your breath every time you caught a glimpse of my shadow moving—the excitement and hunger for what I would give you—even if indirectly.”

He eyed as her expression changed from shock to clarity. She understood at last. He could see it in her eyes. Her chin trembled and her lower lip quivered. His tail curled in close against his body in alarm. No. Not that.

“Do not cry,” he warned and the look she shot him was so full of venom that he was immediately relieved.

“I’m not going to cry, you ass. I’m pissed that I was talked into this job,” she snapped. “I could have been home, living above ground, and enjoying my days with pleasant breezes from the harbor and drowsy afternoons beneath the shade of my family’s trees. Instead, I get… you.” She waved a hand in his direction contemptuously and he immediately bristled.

“Yes,” he agreed, “you have me. So now is the time to come to terms with the reality of your situation.” Drawing in a deep breath to calm himself, he inwardly sighed when she bared her teeth at him in response. He had to be patient. There was nothing surprising about her reaction. “Come,” he grumbled, and he turned away from her as he straightened to stand erect once more.

“Where are we going?”

He almost smiled at the weight of suspicion in her voice. “To the kitchen. It is nearly morning. You can help me with the morning meal.”

Abby squinted at him speculatively. “Are you sure you trust me around that much open fire and sharp objects?”

He chuckled despite himself. “Yes. Perhaps it will give you some relief for your restlessness.”

She didn’t disagree but followed him to the well vented chamber that he had selected for his kitchen space. If she was surprised at its pristine appearance, she did not comment on it. Rather, she slowly looked around before leveling him with a curious look.

“I admit this kitchen is more than I expected. To be honest, I really didn’t expect you to cook at all, as I never saw anything in my research that indicated as much, but all of this,” she gestured to the room at large, “is a bit much.”

Samir shrugged with an awkward roll of his shoulders as he drew out a portion of salted meat from where it was stored. “Many do not. Really it comes down to a matter of personal preferences as it is easier to eat whatever you kill on the spot, but I long discovered that there is something to be said about the way humans go about preparing, preserving, and cooking their food. And it is all so delicious,” he observed. “It may not seem like so from the simple fare I have been providing, but I discovered a passion for cooking.”

With that he leaned forward, catching and holding her gaze as he belched a flame into the chamber of the woodstove. His little female jumped but then surprised him with her startled laugh as she stared at the flames in wonder.

“I did not know manticores could do this,” she exclaimed, momentarily forgetting her ire. “It is no wonder that you are taken with cooking then.”

He smiled at her observation, but it seemed that it was only then that she recalled that she was angry because she withdrew, her expression shuttering against as she eyed him. He pretended not to notice and instead sterilized his claws with sharp breaths of flame that drew another little jump from her and then a tiny gasp when he began to ribbon the meat with said claws. He paused for only a minute to glance up at her and nod toward a small sack of vegetables he had gathered in the early hours of the morning.

“Cut those, if you will.”

“Very trusting,” she mumbled under her breath but got to immediate work.

Between the two of them, they managed to create a perfectly pleasant meal, and Abby seemed to soften up as they ate together. It was only when they were finished that her expression seemed to shutter and she stood once more, eager to find something else with which to operate her time.

Samir sighed as he watched her leave the room. He had been rather enjoying the lighter mood and the rare sound of her laughter. He had not even realized until it was over, and she began to silently clean up, how much he enjoyed it. It filled an empty hole within his chest that he had never noticed before. But then she left the kitchen, taking the warmth of her presence and the musical sound of her laughter, and only then did he realize how much more there was to desire beyond the hunt.

How odd.