Desire Untamed (Feral Warriors #1)(18)

Shifting uncomfortably, he leaned forward. "We need to be able to reach our animals, Kara. And we can only do that through your Ascension."

She stopped pacing and faced him. "I don't want to be your Radiant. Find another one, Lyon. Please. I'm not right for this. job. I don't belong here."

Her unhappiness wove a tight web of misery around them both. "You'll belong here soon enough. You just have to get used to us."

"It's not going to work."

"Kara… you've been here less than a day."

"I know. It's just…"

He rose and went to her, cupping his hands over her shoulders without trying to quell her emotions. Her scent rose to engulf him, filling him with a heady rush of pure lust. His hands tightened, and he had to struggle to keep from pulling her against him, to keep from covering her mouth in a kiss that would shatter them both.

She looked up at him, her blue eyes pools of confusion. "You don't understand, Lyon. I'm a preschool teacher. I'm not cut out for this job,".

"You're wrong, Kara. You're strong. As strong as any woman I've ever met."

She snorted in disbelief. "I'm not."

Lyon released her. "It doesn't matter, Kara. There's only one Radiant at a time. Only when one dies will the next be marked."

Understanding dawned slowly over her features, and her jaw dropped, her eyes going wide. "So I'm stuck here until I die? That isn't fair! Someone should have asked me if I wanted this job."

"Kara…"

She waved her hand as if flicking away his words… or her own. "Don't. Don't say it. I know it was a silly comment. It's just…I don't like it here. I don't like this house. I don't feel safe here."

"There's nowhere safer for you. You just have to get used to what we are."

"What if I never do?" Fire leaped into her eyes. "I won't be a prisoner here for the rest of my life, Lyon. I won't."

Lyon cursed whatever fates had sent her mother west. Kara should have been raised Therian. How much easier this would have been on all of them.

"I'll make you a promise," he said, as she stood before him, hugging herself, watching him. "After your Ascension, if you want to leave, you can live among the humans as long as you stay in this area."

She wouldn't. He was sure of it. The Radiant was the one among them whose true mate, body, heart, and soul, was preordained. Chosen by the Earth. Once she found her mate, she'd never choose to go. But she didn't need to know that. Not now. The woman needed to think she had choices.

"How long until the Ascension?"

"As long as it takes to get you ready. Hopefully, no more than five or six days, though your lack of preparation may cause it to take longer. The first of the rituals will take place within the hour. We need to get started. You must be prepared."

He'd intended to have Pink do the preparation. No male should be expected to perform such a task, especially with a woman who stirred his senses like a spring thunderstorm. But after the debacle in the media room, and the earlier encounter with Pink, he knew she wasn't ready for close contact with the flamingo servant.

"Five days. Six, max," he said. Maybe longer. "Can you stick with us that long?"

Her breath left her on a snort. "Who are we kidding? We both know you're not going to let me leave."

Lyon felt one corner of his mouth lift as his admiration for her grew. Though her emotions at times got the better of her, she had a strong, clear mind.

"Let me ask it another way, then. Will you cooperate until we get you ascended?"

She lifted a single, dark gold brow. "That's the real question, isn't it?" The challenge in her gaze made him smile.

"That is the question."

As she watched him, the challenge slid from her features. "I'll cooperate if you promise to keep Jag as far from me as you can."

"Agreed. He'll be part of the rituals because he has to be. But if he comes near you again, I'll lock him in the prisons."

A flash of humor softened her features for only a moment before she dropped her hands at her sides and shook them as if preparing for a road race. "What do I need to do to get ready for this?"

He had to struggle not to laugh because he knew she was dead serious. She amused him and pleased him on new levels every time he was with her. Unfortunately, that did nothing to diminish the raging attraction he'd felt for her from the moment he saw her. An attraction that was going to test him to his limits in a few minutes.

The thought of what he had to do made him long for an ice-water bath.

"Kara… usually a woman is prepared for this first ritual, the Pairing, by another woman from her line… her family. But we don't know who your line is, and the only women in the house are Zaphene and Pink."

Kara's gaze snapped up, her eyes wide. "Pink? The bird?"

"Yes. The only ones who can prepare you for the ritual are one of them… or me."

"You." The word came out of her mouth like a shot. "Please."

"You don't know what you're asking. The preparation requires you to be fully undressed."

Her jaw dropped, then closed with a snap as her eyes narrowed. "Just what kind of ritual is this?"