Beautiful Warrior Read Free

help.” Seven finally took the initiative to start the conversation, his voice shattering the silence.
    The warrior shifted his attention away from me, honing in on my companion instead, and I thought about Seven’s goofy song and how he wasn’t singing it now.
    Seven hurriedly continued. “I need you to protect me from the border monsters. If I attempt to cross the border and leave Room 105, they’ll try to kill me.”
    The warrior angled his head, as if weighing the importance of the request. Then he looked at me again.
    Dead on . Like a magnet to metal.
    “Are you also in line to be killed?” he asked, his tone as powerful as his gaze.
    I meant to respond, but I couldn’t seem to find my voice. I noticed that he had the same tribal markings on his wrists as Duncan. Mostly the tattoos consisted of arrows, in various patterns, but there were squiggly lines, too, symbolizing snakes. In the real world, snakes were significant to Duncan, representing his sexuality.
    “ Are you in danger of dying?” he asked me again.
    I cleared my throat, forcin g myself to speak. “The monsters aren’t targeting me.”
    “Then what is your purpose?”
    “I’m trying to help Seven get his situation resolved. He’s in love with my sister, and if he isn’t able to return to her, her heart will be broken and she’ll disappear into a big black hole. Then I’ll lose her forever, too.”  I didn’t see how it was possible to go on without Abby. Not for me or for Seven.
    The warrior studied me , his mount dancing beneath its reins. Did he think love was a worthy cause or a waste of emotion? It was tough to say, but as far as I knew, my dearest Duncan, the guy I desperately loved, wasn’t capable of those types of feelings. Yet here I was a schizoid mess, without any trouble in that regard.
    “ I require payment for my services,” the warrior said, cutting into my scattered thoughts.
    “What kind of payment?” I asked.
    “I’ll take you .”
    “Me?” I eked out, as Seven lolled an I-told-you-so glance my way.
    “ In my bed,” the warrior clarified. “For one night.” 
    Because I didn’t know what else to do, I tried to play coy. “That’s all you want? Just one night?”
    A smile tugged ever so slightly at his lips. The only thing I’d managed to do was amuse him. How I must look to him, still clutching my arms across my chest, with rainwater splashing down my face.
    I dropped my hands to my sides. “You won’t be my first,” I said, making sure he knew that I wasn’t a virgin. Duncan had already popped my sweet little cherry.
    “Then why are you so afraid?” he asked.
    “I’m not,” I lied . To prove my point, I inched toward him. My feet were so wet and cold, I could barely move them. My teeth were on the verge of chattering, too.
    The warrior didn’t react, but his stallion did, its nostrils flaring. Was it getting a strong, steady whiff of my fear and calling my bluff?
    Just then, the thunder and lightning I’d wondered about earlier took center stage, cracking across the sky like a whip. I did my damnedest not to flinch. But I failed, shaking all the way to my bones.
    Th e warrior extended his arm. I reached out, and he pulled me up and onto the back of his horse. Instinctively, I wrapped my arms around his naked torso. The rain no longer fell upon me now that I was in his company. But the damage had already been done, my wet clothes sticking to my skin.
    As he turned his mount in the direction of his home , I glanced back at Seven. The psychic shot me a quick wave, telling me that he would see me tomorrow.
    Then zoom …
    The warrior sped off, deeper into the forest, with me hanging on for dear life. I’d never been on a horse before. Duncan wasn’t a horseman, either. At least not that he recalled. But he’d still painted himself in the kick-ass company of a big black stallion.
    As I clung to the man steering me into his dark-cloaked world, I glanced out at the rain and the way the water arced