A Kiss of Fire (A Kiss of Magic #2)(73)

“Rest against me. Try and relax. I will bring us home.”

“I can do it,” he insisted, reaching to take the reins from her hand.

“Do not argue with me,” she said. “Sit up against my body and keep warm. We will be home as quickly as we can manage without jarring you too much.”

She reined the horse around and started them back toward the temple. The ride was slow and agonizing. He saw the temple appear in the distance and was so relieved tears almost came to his eyes. She would be behind its walls soon. She would be safe.

She called for help as they rode into the courtyard and assistance came out of the woodwork. He was aware of being taken from horseback and hauled bodily into the temple.

The next thing he knew he was in his bed in his room.





Chapter Twenty


Ariana began to punch out commands with a brisk, no nonsense tone of voice. She acted strongly. Confidently. As though she were in complete control of the situation.

She never once let anyone know how terrified she really was.

She couldn’t explain the fear to herself. She had not been afraid of the men. In fact, there were very few people who inspired fear in her. She was much too powerful to be easily frightened. Even when Sin had captured her and dragged her leagues away from her home she had not been afraid for even a second.

But now she was scared. Even though she and Sin had dealt with the men so decidedly and they were all three dead…burned to death by either him or her…she couldn’t shake the panicky feeling settled onto her bones.

“Get me my lady maid, Mariah. Have her bring me some clothes,” she said to Mordol whose lascivious eyeing of her naked form beneath the cloak went by unremarked. She could care less. She had more important things to contend with. “Fetch a physician and bring him here as quickly as possible.”

“We can take it from here, my lady,” Mordol said almost snidely. “We don’t need you. Best I take you back to your cell—I mean room.”

“I’ll not be going anywhere,” she said firmly. “I am going to tend to your master. And if you don’t want your master taking it out on your hide once he is well, I suggest you adjust your way of speaking to me.”

Mordol hesitated and she knew she had struck a nerve of fear.

“This don’t change nothing,” he sneered. “You’re still just his caught piece on the side. He’ll get tired of you soon enough…just like the rest. Then you’ll wish you’d been nicer to me.”

And so he struck a nerve in return. What did he mean “just like the rest”? Had there been others before her?

Of course there had been others, she scoffed at herself. He was a skilled lover and he had gotten those skills somewhere. Just as she had gotten hers elsewhere. Although, none of her past lovers could hold a candle to Sin. His endurance alone was something to be marveled at. While there were times when things were quick and heated, there had also been times when they had spent an hour or better indulging in each other’s bodies.

Mordol’s claims that he would weary of her preyed on her deepest concerns. She tried to tell herself she was prepared for just such an occurrence, but the truth was she wasn’t. That left her at a disadvantage. It left her vulnerable. This whole situation was making her vulnerable.

However that was then, she told herself. This was now. And right now she had to be concerned with only one thing.

Sin’s well-being.

“Get the physician. Then I suggest you steer clear of me from now on,” she said dangerously.

“I don’t take my orders from you,” Mordol said insolently. “We’ll see what the raj has to say about this.”

Mordol turned on his heel and left the room. Ariana did not waste time pulling another servant to her. She repeated her instructions and this time was obeyed. Then she set about making Sin as comfortable as she possibly could. She had a servant help her undress him and they put him to bed naked. He was nearly insensate with pain and she couldn’t understand where the damage was. She could see the bullet beneath his skin. It had not penetrated deep into his thorax. Where was the pain coming from?

Mariah arrived with her clothing and she skimmed into the skirt and blouse without bothering to clear the room. There was a small privacy screen in the room and she stood behind it and dressed while others were standing about trying to figure out what to do next. Ariana realized this was fear within them. Their raja was injured severely. They were afraid to see him brought low. He was a figure of strength for their people. She understood their fear because she was feeling it too. Only hours ago he had been strong and vital inside of her body. Now he was in bed and groaning from pain.

The physician arrived just as she was stepping out from behind the screen. She hurried over to him and rapidly explained what happened. The doctor examined the bullet with a stern frown on his aged features.

“He is very lucky. An inch in either direction and there would have been nothing I could do for him. As it is the breastbone stopped the bullet. However, the sternum has been broken by the impact. Cracked. Likely in more than one place. It was dangerous for him to ride back. It would have been better had he been carried in a litter.”

“It was too cold to leave him there,” she said. “He was in too much pain to warm himself.”

“I understand. Well, there is nothing that can be done except to remove the bullet and let him heal in his own time.” The doctor removed a sharpened blade from his satchel. “You may not want to watch.”