Total pages in book: 127
Estimated words: 121146 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 606(@200wpm)___ 485(@250wpm)___ 404(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 121146 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 606(@200wpm)___ 485(@250wpm)___ 404(@300wpm)
“Don’t be too arrogant, brother,” the silver-haired one murmured. “We must win our lady’s heart, which at present is given to another.”
He tried to take Celia’s other hand but she gave a little gasp of pain when he touched her cut finger and drew away.
“Oh—what’s this?” he murmured and turned her hand over pulling off the blood-stained paper towel. “You’re wounded, my lady!”
“I…I was peeling potatoes for Thanksgiving Dinner,” Celia said. She threw a glance over her shoulder, but the front door of the Bayshore mansion was now closed, though she could see several faces staring at her from the broad bay windows at the front.
“Ah yes—Thanksgiving Dinner. We have friends who have brides from Earth that celebrate that holiday,” the silver-haired warrior remarked. “We’ve been invited to eat Last Meal with them tonight—I think we should go.”
“I’d rather start the Claiming Period.” The dark warrior gave Celia a half-lidded look. “Now that we finally have our gorgeous little Elite, I can’t wait to hold her between us!”
“Madre de Dios—stop right there!” Celia put up her free hand and glared up at him. They had been headed to the shiny silver spaceship parked in the mansion’s circular driveway, but stopped where she was. “I’m not going a step further until we clear something up,” she told the two warriors. “I am engaged. Which means I will not be doing any kind of, er, sexual activities with the two of you! I don’t even know your names!” she added, almost as an afterthought.
“Oh, didn’t you catch them when we were Dream-Sharing?” the silver-haired warrior asked, raising his eyebrows. “I’m Holds Tightly and this is my twin brother, Fights Fiercely. But you can just call us ‘Hold and Fierce.’”
“Hold and Fierce?” She looked between them. “Those are strange names.”
Fierce shrugged, his broad shoulders rolling under the emerald green shirt he wore.
“They’re Twin Moons names.”
“That’s the Twin Kindred home world,” Hold said. “My brother and I were stationed there until a few solar months ago. When we started Dream-Sharing with you, we knew it was time to move to the Mother Ship.”
“You moved from your home world to the Mother Ship for me?” Celia asked, looking up at both of them. Honestly, they were so tall she was going to get a crick in her neck!
Fierce shrugged again.
“We heard Earth females like to live near their home world,” he rumbled.
“Dios! Well, that’s kind of you but I’m afraid you’re going to be disappointed,” Celia told them. “Since I’m coming back here to marry Peter on Christmas Eve. Or even earlier, once his lawyer straightens things out.”
“There’s nothing to straighten out,” Hold said. “Your human fiancé never took your name out of the Draft—which means we have an entire month to change your mind and make you fall in love with us.”
“What?” Celia stared up at him. Dios—what had she gotten herself into here?
“You heard my brother—we want you for our bride—our mate,” Fierce growled softly. “Which means we’re going to do everything in our fucking power to win you over.”
“But nothing sexual—not unless you want it,” Hold said quickly.
Fierce frowned.
“Getting sexual is the whole point of the Claiming Period,” he pointed out. “How are we going to win her over if we can’t touch her?”
“You’ll just have to learn to be more charming, Brother,” Hold said dryly. He looked down at Celia. “You have my promise as a Kindred warrior, my brother and I won’t touch you unless you want us to.”
Celia felt a little shiver go through her. She’d heard rumors about the Claiming Period—who hadn’t? And she couldn’t help wondering what it might be like to be between two such huge, muscular men…
But then she pushed the disloyal thought away. She wasn’t a cheater anymore than she was a gold digger. She had principles that were very important to her! And no matter how attractive the two Kindred were, she wasn’t going to break them.
“Thank you,” she said to Hold. “That makes me feel better.”
“Then will you come with us to our ship now, my lady?” he asked courteously. “And let me bind your wound?”
He nodded down to her finger and Celia realized it was dripping blood on the gravel of the circular driveway.
“Oh, sure…I guess.” She shrugged, trying to look unconcerned and the three of them started walking again, heading for the shiny silver ship.
4
FIERCE
Fierce frowned to himself as he boosted their new bride into the ship’s open door—being careful to just hold her by the waist and not touch her luscious hips or ass. How were they supposed to win her over if she didn’t sleep between them every night and they couldn’t fucking touch each other?
The Claiming Period had been a Kindred tradition for time out of mind—a chance for a prospective bride to get to know her groom—or grooms in this case—and a time for them to woo her. And a big part of that wooing was the different ways a Kindred warrior was allowed to touch his bride as the month-long period progressed. Without that physical contact, how could he and his brother hope to lure her away from that little pipsqueak of a human who was claiming her as his bride and acting like she belonged to him, when she clearly did not?