Denying Ecstasy (The Guardians of the Realms Series) by Setta Jay Read Free Book Online

realizing that he had to have known. That realization churned her stomach in knots. Why reject her offhand, because she was mortal? Was it the way she’d looked? That wouldn’t account for the hostility in his eyes.
    “There has to be a mistake.” She felt certain it could only be him, and he hadn’t laid a hand on her, except in her dreams. In those he’d done all matter of dirty and sexy things to her. His sexy-as-sin mouth had been all over her body as his eyes filled with lust that was only for her.
    She bit off a snort. That was definitely not how he looked at her in real life. No, his eyes had glowed, but what had sparked in them should have cooled her wild attraction. Shocked animosity had shone in their depths, enough that her breath had caught in her throat. Fortunately for her, he’d left the ceremony the minute Alyssa and Gregoire started kissing. It had been the most awkward, yet, somehow, sexually charged experience of her entire twenty-five years.
    “The extent of your blood work indicates touch. That’s my concern. You were unconscious with the enemy during the abduction,” Sirena said slowly, at the same time assessing Rain with her intelligent violet eyes.
    Rain’s heart rate accelerated all over again at the healer’s words and their implications. She tried to shake off the anxiety. The abduction was for such a brief time, most of which she was unconscious. The experience could have been so much worse. She was safe by the time the drugs wore off. Both she and Alyssa had been taken, but Gregoire and the rest of the Guardians came for them within minutes. At least that was what she’d been told. Could she have been mated to one of the enemy? Alyssa had been awake and would have had some indication if one of Cyril’s males thought she was theirs. She took a deep breath, more sure than ever about who her mate was.
    She cleared her throat. “It wasn’t the enemy. The symptoms started before I was taken.”
    Sirena’s delicate brows furrowed. “Then you know who it is?”
    She thought about keeping it to herself. What if she was wrong, maybe some weird part of her hoping it was him? She felt certain she wasn’t, but she had no idea where that left her. If the Nereid Guardian was her mate, then judging from his angry expression, he wanted nothing to do with her. His senses were a million times better than hers. He knew; he had to. That meant he didn’t want her for some reason. It was like a physical blow. She was generally a confident female, but she wasn’t made of steel. If she was right, Sirena, who’d become a friend in the last weeks, would know what to do.
    “Dorian,” Rain said. All the inhabitants of Tetartos knew the Guardians’ names. He was the only Nereid Guardian, and she’d always found the pictures of him to be the hottest, but they didn’t even come close to the sight of him in real life.
    Sirena snapped off a curse Rain didn’t quite catch. Her violet eyes flashed as she started pacing. Rain was still dealing with her own emotions and wasn’t truly processing Sirena’s reaction. Somehow saying his name out loud made it more real.
    “Damn him. He should have told me. He carried you in after your abduction. He also came to me around the time you moved in, having problems with his senses around Alyssa. I took tests, but at the time nothing showed up. I told him to let me know if it happened again. No wonder he’s been avoiding me for the last few days. It started right after he brought you in.” The healer murmured some more choice words about Dorian, but Rain’s brain stuck on the part about him carrying her unconscious body from the enemy compound. Why had he touched her? He’d obviously scented her during Alyssa and Gregoire’s ceremony. If he hated the idea of mating her, then why chance touching her and pushing them into this situation?
    She frowned hard, irritated that logical thinking was completely beyond her. All she could do was picture being held in his