ARMOR [New World Book 2] by C.L. Scholey Page A

appear
concerned, just interested.
    Amy seemed to asses herself
as she stood still. Dasks felt her hands move under the water near her left
breast. For a moment she smiled, hope soared—then dashed. The smile was
replaced by sadness. He saw and sensed it at the same time.
    “Amy?”
    She took a deep breath and
seemed to brighten although he knew it was forced.
    “Well I certainly am clean.”
    “What’s wrong?” he asked.
    “Nothing,” she whispered. Her
head lowered to hide her eyes.
    Dasks had never smelled this
new scent either. It was something he knew when it assailed his senses. She was
lying to him, and she was not only sad, but afraid.
    * * * *
    Dasks waved his hand over the
control panel. A series of clicks and a small whistle sounded. The noise was
his imprint. No other hand over the door panel could make the same sound, all
were unique. It was how Talsk could identify him as his warrior mate. The door
was solid for privacy. A person’s emotions were their own in the sanctity of their
rooms.
    Talsk looked disheveled when
his door slid open. Dasks looked past him. Meg was sound asleep in Talsk’s bed.
Dasks could scent a different odor to his warrior mate. It was as though Meg
were a part of him, as though her blood flowed through him. And because Talsk’s
blood flowed through Dasks, he felt a sudden rush of protectiveness toward the
woman. If the woman died, so would Talsk.
    “You mated,” Dasks said with
surprise. “Already?”
    Talsk dragged him into the
room and the door slid shut. “It—was—amazing.”
    Dasks’ eyes widened. Talsk
sounded like he wanted to jump up and down. Dasks sniffed the air and grew concerned.
He moved quickly to Meg. There was blood on the bed.
    “She’s hurt.”
    Talsk was beside him,
shushing him. “I marked her. Look.”
    With a great deal of
tenderness, Talsk turned Meg partially so Dasks could see her back. On her left
shoulder blade was the mark Talsk wore on his face on his armor. The mark was
already healed and glowed green. It was perfect.
    “You did that?” Dasks asked.
    “With my fangs.”
    “Didn’t it hurt her?”
    “At first. Remember to bite
Amy before you mark her. There will be no pain if you bite her and she will
hold completely still.”
    “Why the blood though? She’s
healed.”
    “Meg said Castian males have
more stamina than human males. She was too tired to go to the healing waters a
second time after she cleansed so I brought back a piece of the sheet and
washed her while she slept. I didn’t have the heart to wake her so the bed
could change its sheets. She looks so perfect while she’s sleeping.”
    Dasks’ eyes widened further.
His warrior mate was downright smitten!
    Talsk ran a careful hand over
Meg’s bouncy riot of clean red curls. Dasks noted the woman still sported a
spatter of tiny brown dots across her nose and cheeks. They were cute. Castians
had no such markings and Dasks very gently trailed a finger across her skin.
    “Meg calls them freckles.”
    When Talsk looked at Dasks
his eyes were shining with happiness. An astonishing amount of fondness for the
woman oozed from Talsk. No, it was much more than just fondness. The emotion
was…invincible bonding. Dasks felt his guts clench. He wanted to feel the same
way about his female.
    “Give her some time,” Talsk
said.
    Dasks knew his emotions were
in high scent. Talsk was picking them up easily.
    “Meg said you killed human
males in front of your female and scared her.”
    “I saved her,” Dasks raged.
    Meg stirred and frowned in
her sleep, she muttered something a bit fearfully.
    Talsk jumped from the bed to
grab Dasks’ arm, hauling him away. Talsk growled at him.
    “Your anger is scaring her,”
Talsk snapped.
    “I’m not mad at her. You know
I would never ever harm her—she is you, you are one.”
    “Why are you here anyway?
Shouldn’t you be trying to mate with Amy?”
    “Cobra wants us to bring the
mother of the three children to him, with her little