The Pearl Heartstone (10 page)

Ally couldn’t take this. She needed to get out of here before her tears overflowed and fell down her checks. She didn’t cry. Two steps back and a slide, and she was at the door. She turned to look at him rooted to the spot she’d left him. He was a complication she didn’t need. Didn’t want. If she didn’t want him then why was her heart tearing to get out of her chest and her eyes brimming with unshed tears
.
She didn’t want him.

She wanted the man he could’ve been.

* * * * *

Jorel turned and looked at his mate. She was heading for the door.

The last barrier around his heart fell away. How was it that she always did the unexpected? Turned him on his ear and treated him no different from any other man?

He’d shared his loss and fears with her, expecting her to laugh or to tell him he was crazy. But no, his mate pushed him toward living.

Explained that she’d suffered more loss than he could have imagined, and she hadn’t cut herself out of life. He watched her open the door and, for a moment, all he could think of was her walking out of his life. So far, he had never known what he was missing. He didn’t know his littermate, didn’t know his mother’s love. But he knew Ally, and if she walked away, something in him cried that he would never recover. Never stop wanting her. He moved before he actually made a conscious decision to do so.

His palm slammed the door shut before she could slip out of the room. He couldn’t say the words, couldn’t make his mouth form them even though they burned his throat. He pressed her against the door and wrapped his arms around her. He might not be able to tell her how he felt, 67

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but he would show her. That, he could do.

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His arms were like steel bars around her. She didn’t need this.

Didn’t want this. Didn’t want him. What she wanted was her old life back.

The life she’d spent years building. A life that didn’t include him.

You don’t mean that. If you did, you wouldn’t be so excited by his cock
pressing in on you.

Her breath hitched, and in an instant, the pain in her chest changed from a heart‐wrenching fever to a different type of heat.

Jorel didn’t move. Didn’t change his comfortingly tight hold. It was she who leaned back into him and moaned as she turned her head to grab his lips. She wanted to feel alive. Needed it.

“You don’t have to do this,” he grumbled before he captured her lips in his. It was a quick, hard kiss.

He loosened his arms, turned her around, then swept her lips up into another mind‐numbing kiss. His taste flooded her mouth. His hands were on her shoulders. In three quick movements, he undid the scraps of cloth that passed for women’s clothing. His hands were all over her. He squeezed her breasts, pinched her nipples, then reached around and cupped her ass.

For a second she thought he was going to pick her up and take her

over to the bed, but he didn’t. He backed her against the wall and propped her up. His lips closed around her left nipple and tugged it into his mouth. He laved the tight bud before scraping the peak with his teeth, and then he turned to give the other nipple the same attention.

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A low moan erupted from her lips. She needed more and wrapped

her legs around his waist, her arms around his neck. He crushed her against the door and quickly shoved off his pants. In one quick movement, he slid her down on his waiting cock.

The delicious friction of his flesh sliding into her tore through her.

He bit down on her neck and held her in place while he pulled out of her and pumped deep inside her. In. Out. Then back in with so much force, he rocked her body against the wall.

Ally bit down on her lip to keep from screaming. After three thrusts, she came. The wet sound of him pounding into her permeated the room. He still pushed into her, and when the euphoria of her orgasm started to fade, he rekindled her fire and another orgasm built deep in her core. Heat infused her body, and suddenly she was right back on the edge of a new orgasm.

He lifted his lips from her neck. “Come for me again.”

All it took was those four simple words to send her over the edge.

This time, he captured her mouth and swallowed her screams of passion.

He thrust into one more time before he reared his head back and roared his own release. Ally slumped against him and held on to every single current of pleasure that flowed through her.

Jorel wrapped his arms around her and walked her over to the bed.

He sat down on the edge and curled around her. He hadn’t let her go since he’d wrapped his arms around her earlier. For the first time in a long time, Ally took a deep breath and relaxed. Totally relaxed. She fell asleep feeling protected and loved. She didn’t question it, just enjoyed it.

Tomorrow she would find out who wanted to kill her, and then she was going home. The smile on her face slowly fell away.

* * * * *

Jorel woke up before Ally. He bent down to kiss her and inhaled her scent. It had changed. Not a lot. Just a bit around the edges. Most wouldn’t catch it. But he knew. He’d been around her long enough to know every miniscule detail of her scent.

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His heart lifted. Their first litter. And all the cubs would live. He didn’t have to worry that they would die like his sister. Something in his chest finally burst. He was about to have his own family.

Ally moaned and rolled over. She wouldn’t be happy when he told

her. He eased out of the bed, grabbed his pants, and quickly made his way to the royal baths. He made quick work of his bath and wasn’t surprised to find a pair of his leather pants and cotton shirt folded up on the side bench when he stopped out of the water.

He found his father in the breakfast room. The need to tell his father that Ally was breeding was a surprise. The king would be more than pleased. He’d announce it to the entire kingdom.

But Jorel couldn’t do that to Ally. He didn’t want her to find out like that. No, he would tell her first. Give her a chance to accept it before the rest of the kingdom went into celebrations. He’d give her a couple more hours to sleep, and then he would tell her.

“Are we going to play the game?” his father asked. The game table

sat between both of them.

When had he moved over here? Jorel shook his head. He needed to

knock himself out of this fog. He stood up. There was only one way to clear his mind. He needed to tell Ally.

“Father, I—” Jorel didn’t get to finish.

“Jorel. I need to leave you. You need to let me go. I can’t stand this anymore.” Ally’s voice rang through the room.

His gut clenched then spasmed. He blinked several times and shook his head. “What do you mean, you need to leave?” Her words didn’t make sense. She couldn’t want to leave him after last night.

“I want to go home. I want my old life back.” She leveled her gaze on him, and he could see the tears pooling there. “I don’t want to be here.”

A tear fell from her eyes.

The need to do something almost overpowered him. He balled his

fists and held them tight to keep from grabbing her. “It doesn’t matter what you want. You are mine. Your home is with me.”

“No, Jorel. It’s not,” she whispered, looking down at the floor. “If you won’t take me, then fine. I will find a way to get away from you.”

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How could she say that after last night? He stared at her as if he had never seen her before. Had last night been a lie? Had she tried to get under his skin just to find a way away from him? Something in him said no, but his heart howled in louder. He’d been a fool.

“You are mine. Do you hear me? Mine. And you will stay with me.” Jorel didn’t mean to shout, but the pain swirling in his chest was screaming for release.

“Goodbye, Jorel.” she said, stalking out of the room. He could see the sadness in her eyes.

She really didn’t want him. He could see her heart in her eyes and it was breaking. Did she think he was going to be able to let her go?

Hadn’t she understood last night? Giving her up would be like trying to stop breathing. Neither was an option.

“Are you going to follow her, son?” His father asked.

“No. If I follow her now, I will say something I don’t mean and most likely won’t be able to take back. I need to calm down.” Jorel flexed and unfurled his fingers. The muscles in his fingers hurt. She hadn’t said a word about his confession last night, but it seemed as though she’d screamed every word to anyone who would listen. Why the hell did he say anything? Luckily, no member of palace security would let her out of the palace.

“Your Highness.”

Jorel turned, ready to punch whoever it was. Instead, he nodded his head and grabbed the arm of the chair beside him. He recognized the new man. It was Leone, Fi’an’s mate.

“I’m sorry to disturb you, but my mate just informed me of Fi’on and Princess Ally’s plans.” He cleared his throat. “This is partially my fault. I never should have let Fi’on talk me into waiting to come forward.”

The fur on the back of Jorel’s neck stood up. “Tell me what?”

“A day ago, I overhead a couple of men making plans to kill you and the princess before she could start breeding. I told Fi’an. My mate immediately told Fi’on.” The man took a deep breath. “From what my mate says, both Fi’on and Princess Ally planned to stage a fight with you then use one of the ships to get to the Imperial Forest. The flight plan was 72

The Pearl Heartstone by Leila Brown

most likely sent to all mainframe. Anyone looking would find it.”

Jorel’s heart stopped. If what the man said was true, then both Fi’on and Ally were walking into a trap. Whoever wanted to kill Ally would either be there waiting, or leaving the palace on foot to hunt her.

Jorel ran through the doors and raced down the halls. He burst through the door to an empty room. She was gone. She was gone. No doubt Fi’on had secured a craft for her. He needed to find her. He shifted into his tiger form and followed her scent through the castle. It only took a few minutes for him to catch her scent in front of the royal escape way.

Damn Fi’on.

Luckily, he knew the frequency of the escape pod. He ran for the loading docks and shifted as he jumped into his personal craft.

“Prince Jorel.” One of the guards said, rushing up to stand in front of his ship. “I cannot allow you to go without an escort.”

“Have my personal guard follow me,” Jorel said, trying to get a lock on the escape pod’s signal.

“I’m sorry, sir, they aren’t here.”

The way the guard said the words stopped Jorel. “Where are they?”

“Not in the palace. They left about thirty minutes ago.”

“In a ship or on foot?” Jorel knew the answer and dreaded it because no matter what the guard said, his mate was in serious danger.

“On foot.” The guard had moved from in front of Jorel and now stood beside the footholds up onto the ship.

“Who do you serve?”

“My king and queen,” the guard said without a moment of

hesitation.

“And how do you feel about my mate?” That was the most

important question.

“If she can breed out children, then she and those like her will save us all,” the guard said with his head held high.

“Good. Climb aboard.” Jorel wanted to be gone, but he also knew

he would need proof. Someone to corroborate his story when he found his mate. The same guards that had helped him bring Ally to this world were the same ones trying to kill her.

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No. He could be wrong. It was entirely possible that his guards were following his mate to keep her safe. Something in him said that was highly unlikely. It explained so much. How the assassins had been able to get access to his personal rooms. How they knew when she would most likely be alone.

How could he have missed it? Was he that blind? His inability to see the danger right in front of his face could cost him his future. He got a lock on the escape pod, revved the engine, and cleared the docking station. As soon as possible, he pushed the engines to their max speed. He prayed that they weren’t too late.

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Ally stepped out of the pod expecting to remember this forest but

was disappointed. Nothing looked familiar. She walked around and around but couldn’t find anything to lead her to the white mist that would mark her way home.

That’s when she picked up on Fi’on’s scent. And just as quickly as she caught it, a mixture of more masculine odors overtook the light, delicate scent. The shit was about to hit the fan.

A petite tigress came running through the bushes. For a second, Ally’s heart raced. Even though it was Fi’on who ran toward her, her mind still screamed in terror, and she bounced on the ball of her feet ready to run.

Fi’on shifted and crouched. “Get ready. They were right behind me.”

No sooner had Fi’on said the words than a huge tiger, lion, jaguar, and leopard jumped out of the bushes in front of them. The animals snarled at them, stalking back and forth. Then they shifted. They shouldn’t have shifted. They should have just attacked. Why were they shifting? It only took a second. One second for Ally to be totally devastated. The four men in front of her were Jorel’s guards. The same ones who dragged her into this world. They could have let her go, but no.