Game of Temptation Read Free

in her heart. "You choose. Your
father's life, or your people's."
    "You…you think you are so righteous!
But you are no different from us who you condemn to be ruthless and
wicked," she hissed the words out. "Blackmailer!"
    "I do not see that you have a choice,
Princess. Your father's life hangs in the balance."
    Her eyes closed. "I hold my father's
blood on your hands."
    Arun held his surprise. He had thought she
would give into her human nature. That her selfish side would prevail. He
stared at her, looking for any other signs of weakness. Her eyes were fiery
even through her labored breathing. He searched, but there was no other
weakness he could find. There was nothing to exploit and so he bought time
staring at her. And for a brief moment, he saw it. A hint of fragility, and if
he was not mistaken, a look of lust passed through her eyes. He could not be
sure if it really was there, but if it was…
    Alethi continued to glare at him and he
closed the distance, his mouth a hair's breadth from her ear. "You
will," he whispered, "won't you." She responded with a shudder
that racked her entire body and a sharp intake of breath let out through
gritted teeth as a sharp hiss.
    Arun grinned. So it was not just sensory
overload that was assaulting her. His own mating scent was affecting her. It
was his year to mate and he knew his scent, amplified by the Ollan, affected
her and brought out in her raw animal lust.
    "Fiend…" she said less confidently
than before.
    He stepped back staring at her. Staring at
her as she bit her lips together, he formed a thought. The elder did say that
humans talked more in bed. And yes, it was easy to seduce her, but of course,
he would make sure she was a willing party. Besides, she was quite attractive
for a human. Exotically so.
    "Alright, I will let you have a taste
of Imreal," Arun said. "But in exchange, you would have to remain a
prisoner here. Your escort would have to deliver it back to your country his
own."
    Alethi's eyes went wide. "And how long
do I have to stay for?"
    "Until I get what I want."
    "You cannot! My father…he would want to
know that I am safe and well."
    Arun nodded. "And know, he shall. He
may visit you at the edge of our border if he wants to know your state."
    "But what of the succession?"
    "Then you will return when he
dies." Arun crossed his arms beneath his chest watching the rise and fall
of her chest. "This is the only way I will agree to letting you take a
part of Imreal."
    Alethi hung her head. "I…I accept your
terms."

Chapter Two
     
    Alethi couldn't keep herself from shaking as
she watched the elf prince retreat. Carnal pleasures had touched her mind
before, but she never entertained them. Her encounter with Prince Arun had not
only made her entertain the thought, but it had gripped her and pulled her into
its iron grip. While her mind refused to give in willingly, her body ached to
be taken. Remembering it all filled her with so much embarrassment.
    She had felt so heady when she woke up
noticing everything around her without even being fully awake. The roots that
held her did not exactly dig into her skin, but she could feel every ridge and
grain of it as much as she could feel every stitch of her clothing. Her eyes
were clear enough to see every minute detail of cave – from the tiniest bug
that settled on the far end of the wall to the different shades of green the
moss gave off. The cave smelled of ground and wood and moss, but they assailed
her senses so much so that she could distinctly count how many smells went into
the odor of the ground alone.
    The sudden awareness of everything around
her made it difficult to focus on anything, hounding at her consciousness and
fought for her attention, leaving her confused and disoriented. She was still
far from recovering when he came and it was all she could do not to dissolve
into the mindless sensations her senses sunk her into.
    Every detail on his face and his body
registered in her mind, magnifying