Shadow Magic Read Free

the Shadows.   She was glad the golden-haired one had been so bold, but she longed to experience his embrace in reality. 
                  "I would like you to kiss me now."  She spoke softly, startling herself with her own bluntness.  Still, daydreams were short, and if this warrior had stepped out of one of hers, she had no idea how long she would have him.
                  His eyes, the color of a moonlit ocean on a stormy night, darkened.  Still, instead of reaching for her, he crossed his massive arms and frowned.
                  "No tricks, woman.  I have come for one thing and one thing only.  You, I know, have it.  Give me that which belongs to me."
                  Give me that which belongs to me.   Words of ancient legend, of prophetic song.  She had dreamt of him saying such a thing to her, but the manner of his speaking had been different.  Passionate instead of furious, fire instead of ice. 
                  In her dreams, she had been that which belonged to him.  And he'd known it then, as surely as she knew now that it could still be truth.
                  "Surely you have not come so far to settle for less than is yours by right."
                  "You have taken that which is rightfully mine."  Though he did not raise his voice in anger, she sensed this cold rage of his could be infinitely more dangerous.
                  "I have taken nothing," she said. "And I speak only truth.  Unless you talk of what has occurred between us in the world of dreams, and then I took only that which you gave to me of your own free will."
                  For the first time since he'd arrived, hesitation flickered across his hard countenance.  "You utter riddles and lies."  His tone harsh, he accused her.  "Be warned that I do not suffer thieves lightly.  Return my amulet and you have my vow that you shall not be punished."
                  Had her people heard his words, they would have laughed.  Everyone knew that a Shadow Dancer had no interest in thieving petty baubles.  In fact, usually a Shadow Dancer had no interest in anything but her dance. 
                  In this, Deirdre was not a normal Shadow Dancer. 
                  "It is plain you do not know who I am, or what I am."  She spoke with quiet dignity.  "If you knew me you would also know that I have no need of trinkets.  I did not take your amulet."
                  He took a step closer, putting them chest to chest.  Her blood thickened, the slow, aching heat that pooled within her bringing awareness of the sensual pleasures she had shared with this man for many weeks in her dreams while she slept.
                  A gentle breeze turned the night air cool, causing her to shiver. 
                  Seeing this, one corner of his mouth tugged up in a reluctant smile.  "I do not want you to think I would hurt you." 
                  For a moment she could not catch her breath, still reeling from the unexpected beauty of that smile.  Instead of responding, she took a measured step back, away from the compelling heat of his body.
                  His smile vanished. 
                  "I have said I will not hurt you.  I merely seek my amulet.  Tell me where it is."
                  She gave a slow shake of her head, forcing a smile to show that she was not afraid.  The breeze pulled at her hair, making the long, straight length of it dance teasingly around her ankles.
                  "You could never hurt me," she told him, again speaking only truth.  "And you'd best look elsewhere for your amulet.  I do not have it, nor do I know where it might be."
                  While he stared at her with narrowed eyes, a cloud scuttled across the face of the moon, obscuring it and dimming the light.  Though