The Mating Intent-mobi by Bonnie Vanak Read Free Book Online

together.
    “Sienna, imagine a fire hose able to deliver thousands of gallons of water and a person trapped by roaring flames. Point the hose at the trapped person and you could seriously hurt them. Point it at the fire and you save their life. I daresay Terithen used his powers to put out the fire at one point.”
    She went cold all over. The king’s son and heir had been a friend once, united with her as they worked to restore blighted areas to their natural state. She’d seen Terithen extinguish a forest fire by calling down the rains and ending the drought that had plagued a Midwest area. The locals had been able to plant crops, and jobs were created for the once-dying town. He wanted no praise from his father, only shrugged it off as part of the job.
    Ever since making love with Gabriel, she’d felt disillusioned and frustrated living a shadow life. Touching him, sharing her body with him and feeling loved had given her wholeness. But she wasn’t permitted to have relationships with men. Such relationships would distract her from performing her duties as the king’s Shadow Guard.
    Gabriel had his clan and a world where he belonged.
    She had a world where she wanted to belong.
    But would they ever accept her?
    For years she felt like a hungry, homeless person standing outside a restaurant, staring through the window at those dining in splendor. Gabriel didn’t know what it was like to want something so badly you’d do anything, even sacrifice a little of your soul, to gain it.
    “They are my people. Cael is my king and my master. They respect me.”
    Gabriel’s look became filled with contempt.
    “They never respect anyone different and you’re a Shadow Elf. Do you truly wish to belong to an exclusive club where they strip away all your individuality? Where you remain a shadow of your real self?”
    He had the freedom to go where he wished, do as he wished. He did not understand the constraints of her life.
    The water in the pond began to churn as she clenched her fists. “Easy for you to talk, panther. You don’t know what it’s like. You have the power to do as you please!”
    Affected by her fury, the pond boiled furiously like water heated over a burner. Gabriel dropped to his knees and tried rescuing a lily pad, but steam hissed and he withdrew.
    Horrified, she stared at the pond as it slowly returned to normal. The water had nearly dried, the waterfall no longer ran and the lily pads were scorched.
    Running a hand through his thick hair, Gabriel sighed. “Good thing I removed all the koi last week when I cleaned the pond.”
    Guilt arrowed through her as she crouched down beside him, staring at the burnt lilies. “So pretty,” she whispered, touching one. “I did this. The darkness inside me killed it.”
    “Your anger killed it, Sienna. But it will grow back, if you direct healing love at the plant. That power also resides inside you. You only use it when King Cael orders you to use it.”
    Gently, he pulled out a dead lily pad and placed it in her lap.
    Grief pinched her heart as she studied the sad remains of the plant. Gabriel was wrong. She could not restore life with Terithen’s dark magick, only bring death.
    Sienna gently replaced the lily in the dried pond. “I can’t.”
    “You can, but you won’t try.”
    “There’s no use in trying, not when I know all I can do is destroy with this power.”
    “That’s what you think. But trust me, pixie, I’ve seen what Elven can do with black magick.”
    “How would you know?” she asked.
    “I spent time at Cael’s court while you were in Portland on assignment.”
    The news surprised her. “Why? I thought you didn’t like Elven.”
    “I needed to ask Cael something,” he said vaguely. “While I was there, I saw a light Elf who had little power of his own absorb dark magick through a spell.  The Elf was experimenting with Cael’s permission. And this Elf managed to use that dark magick to heal a section of forest that had a