How to Seduce a Vampire (Without Really Trying) (Love at Stake) by Kerrelyn Sparks Read Free Book Online Page A

handsome appearance. She’d never seen an unarmed man survive one of her attacks before. He’d also proven a worthy opponent during their verbal sparring.
    A challenge, that was what he was. A challenge physically, intellectually, and even emotionally. She’d lived long enough to know such an occurrence was extremely rare. Precious, even. So it was something she wanted to keep to herself, hoarding it like a treasure.
    But at the same time, she felt some anger with him and herself. He’d agreed to mate with her, but then he’d run away. Why should she protect a man who couldn’t honor his agreement? How could he kiss her like that, then leave?
    Just thinking about the kiss made her stomach flutter. Remember me, he’d whispered. As if she could forget a man like Zoltan. So strong and handsome. Fearless and noble . . .
    She winced. How could she be so attracted to a man she hardly knew? Maybe it was a good thing that he’d run away. She couldn’t allow herself to develop feelings for him. The women of Beyul-La could not have relationships with men. It had happened a few times before, and the results were always bad. Disastrous, even.
    “I wouldn’t worry about it, your majesty,” Lydia said as she prepared the dough for their flatbread. “It was probably a drunken villager who scurried back home once he realized he’d ventured into our territory.”
    Nima sighed. “Probably so.” She dropped the fish into the hot skillet.
    “If you like,” Tashi said, “the next time I’m in the village, I could remind them that invading our territory means death.”
    Nima nodded. “Do that.”
    “Yes, your majesty.” Tashi ducked her head and smiled.
    Neona exchanged a look with Winifred. Freddie suspected that Tashi had taken a lover in the village, and that was why she volunteered to go there once a month to barter for rice, flour, and the occasional bolt of fabric.
    For weeks, Neona had refused to believe that Tashi would bed a villager. The men there were farmers, not warriors. Their seed would not produce the exceptional daughters who were needed to protect this sacred valley. Besides, developing a relationship with a man was dangerous. They could never be trusted with the secrets of Beyul-La. That was why they were not allowed here. And it made no sense for the women of Beyul-La to leave the valley to live with a man. Neona had seen numerous villages in Tibet and Nepal, and in each place, the women lived poor, subservient lives. It was not a life a warrior woman could ever accept.
    But something new had happened to make Neona reconsider her disbelief of Tashi’s alleged affair. Zoltan’s kiss. Even now, her lips tingled at the thought of his mouth on hers. If that was the sort of excitement Tashi was enjoying, then Neona could understand the desire to take a lover. She hadn’t wanted Zoltan to stop. The movements of his lips and hands had awakened a yearning deep inside her. She closed her eyes, remembering the touch of his hand on her breast.
    “The bread is ready,” Lydia announced, jerking Neona back to reality. Lydia stacked hot loaves of flatbread into a basket and passed it around.
    Neona spooned rice into six bowls, then passed them around till everyone had one. Another wave of grief swept over her. It was hard, at moments like this, not to recall that only two weeks ago, there had been eleven of them sitting around the fire. Now there was an empty space next to her where her sister, Minerva, had sat.
    Minerva had been able to make delicious salads from the vegetables grown in the garden and from the many wild plants and berries that flourished in the valley. Neona hadn’t attempted to duplicate her sister’s recipe yet. Just the thought of it brought tears to her eyes.
    “Here.” Nima chopped off the fish heads and scooped them into a wooden bowl. “Give this to your cat, Neona.”
    “Thank you.” Neona took the bowl over to Zhan. Luckily, the queen had accepted her pet. The leopard had earned