Ecstasy Untamed (Feral Warriors #6)(4)

It's better not to want anything.

She'd long ago learned it was true.

Faith pulled her sweater closed against the evening's dampness as she walked home from work. It had rained earlier, driving a lot of street traffic into the diner, and she'd wound up having a lucrative, if busy night. The tips from tonight alone should be enough to buy food for another week, all of which she'd share with Paulina and Maria. Assuming Paulina came back.

On the street in front of her building, she passed several of the girls she'd had no luck in befriending. As she neared the tenement's half-broken door, she spotted a familiar form standing against a brick wall scarred by wartime bullets. Her head down, shoulders bent, her pimp at her side, was Maria.

Faith started to pass them, unwilling to do anything that might alienate her from this girl, too. Until Maria lifted her head and the streetlight illuminated her swollen and bleeding lip and the tears streaking her face.

Faith stopped, hands fisting at her sides. She might not have the power of her shifter ancestors, but her immortal blood made her as strong as many human males.

As if hearing the silent threat, Stanislov looked up, meeting her gaze. "I'll find him. And I'll kill him."

Faith saw the truth in his dark eyes and knew he wasn't the one who'd hurt Maria. Not with his fists, at least. In his own warped way, the man cared for the girl. Maybe even loved her.

Maria buried her head against the young pimp's chest, and he led her away, leaving Faith standing on the sidewalk feeling sick and angry. And, as so often happened, confused. There were so few clear rights and wrongs on the street. Stanislov was a pimp who'd taken advantage of a young girl's utter vulnerability. A villain of the worst sort. And yet, tonight, he was absolutely Maria's champion. And Faith was glad for it. Tonight. Even as she knew Stanislov's protectiveness would only make it that much harder for Faith to get Maria to leave him.

Faith sighed and was about to turn back toward her building when a man caught her eye. Walking down the sidewalk toward her, he looked like he belonged on the pages of a fashion magazine, not these streets. In his expensive-looking sport coat and white turtleneck, he looked wholly out of place. Beneath the flickering light of a streetlamp, he appeared quite tall, his shoulders broad, his hair overly long and slicked back. With a small jaw and a weak chin, his face was forgettable. But as the streetlamp illuminated his profile, the hungry, predatory look in his eyes as his gaze combed the girls on the street corner had her inner alarm bells going off.

He stopped suddenly, freezing for a harsh moment before whipping something from his inner jacket pockets. Steel flashed in the streetlight.

Knives.

Faith's breath caught on the fear that he was going after one of the girls. But his stance turned suddenly defensive, his knees bending as if he prepared for an attack. His gaze had veered away from the girls and closer to Faith until he was staring at something just over her head.

Faith pivoted, prepared to protect herself from whatever danger approached, but she saw nothing out of the ordinary. Nothing to warrant such a blatantly defensive stance. Then a flash of movement caught her eye, and she saw them. Two draden, each about the size of a large man's fist. Flying right toward her!

She tensed for the attack, strangling a cry. The humans couldn't see them and wouldn't be bothered by them, but the creatures she'd always thought looked like jellyfish with scary faces were the most deadly things in her world. They fed off Therian life energy and could kill her within minutes if she didn't manage to kill them first. Fortunately, few existed so far from the Therian enclaves. She hadn't been attacked in years.

Unfortunately, they'd found her tonight. Without weapons, her only means of defense was to reach into their bodies, through mouths lined with sharp, wicked teeth, and tear out their hearts.

Her skin turned cold. Her heart began to pound.

As the first attacked, she lifted her hand to ward him off and felt the dozens of sharp little teeth tear into her wrist, latching on. Before she could react, the stranger was beside her, stabbing one draden with his knife, then the other. As quickly as they'd appeared, the creatures were gone, reduced to puffs of smoke.

Gripping her throbbing wrist, dazed from the attack, she slowly turned and stared at the man. "You're Therian."

He gave a shallow bow, little more than a deep nod. "I am. As are you." His gaze skimmed her, head to toe, his expression telling her he wasn't much impressed.

Her pride rose, her chin lifting. She was dressed for work, not a night on the town. But as they eyed one another, something happened. A strange feeling began to bubble up inside her, a feeling of recognition. Connection. As if she belonged to him somehow.

The startled expression on his face told her he felt it, too. "Who are you?"

"I'm Faith."

"I've never seen you. I did not know there was a Therian enclave nearby."

"I've only lived here a few months. And I have no enclave."

He studied her, his eyes taking on a speculative light. "You're mine."

"Yes." Why had she said that? But it was true. She felt it deep inside. She knew it. Goddess, this wasn't right. She shook her head. "I mean, no. I don't even know you."

"Destiny clearly has plans for us, Faith. It is said, one always recognizes one's mate."

The word stopped her cold. "But I'm not . . . you're not . . ." Her pulse began to thrum. Her mate? Her trouble radar had started beeping at the first sign of him, and if not for the draden attack, she'd have given him a wide berth. Or watched him like a hawk until she was certain he was no threat to her girls.