The Stone Prince

  "Flesh and blood thou may be," he chanted, focusing all his energy onto his mother, "but stone is all the eyes shall see."

  "Do not do this," she uttered once more, her eyes wide with horror.

  He closed his ears to her pleas. Had she listened to his pleas all those spans ago? Nay. She had seemed all too eager to abandon him. Scowling, he finished his curse. "Cold as marble, hard as rock, with this curse I thee lock. The Stone Queen you shall forever be, unless my life's blood sets you free."

  Wind suddenly burst forth, beating through the night like a devil's breath. Lightning erupted from the sky and crashed against the sands. Bit by bit, her flesh hardened to silver stone.

  There. 'Twas done.

  But he did not feel the relief, the ease of suffering, he'd hoped for. Nay, he felt...shame, a trickle of sorrow and need. Deep, abiding need for all that he'd ever longed for, but had never possessed. He reached out, then let his hand fall to his side. She stood so beautifully before him.

  His shoulders slumped. "Should I set you free already?" he asked, though he knew he wouldn't. "I am going to search for Jorlan. You know that, do you not? Just because you sent him to another world does not mean I cannot find him."

  Overhead, the stars slowly disappeared as thick gray clouds formed. A roll of thunder echoed, then stilled. It was as if the emotions churning inside him were changing the weather. "You and I both know time passes differently from one world to the next. One day has passed in Imperia, but how many days have passed for Jorlan? Is he free? If so, is he old and wasted away? No matter what his age, what his life, I will bring him home. Time and distance have no hold upon me."

  Percen knew he shouldn't leave Imperia. But he would do it. He would take leave of this world and never return if it meant finding his brother. The Druinn needed him, for something dark hovered just over the horizon. Something the citizens of this land were not prepared for. He did not know what it was, a war, mayhap, but he knew many lives would be lost soon. Yet his vengeance meant more to him than the safety of his world.

  Droplets of rain began to fall, splattering upon the sand and stone. Several drops landed on his mother's face and ran down her cheeks like tears. "If I present him to you, will your heart fill with joy and make you at last feel tenderness for me? True tenderness, not the empty emotion you professed this day?"

  Silence.

  Silence so thick it cast an oppressive shadow across the white sands, and at that moment it seemed as if even the rain dared not pitter-patter. Percen dropped to his knees, pressed his forehead against her midriff, all the while craving her arms around his shoulders. "If I give him back to you, will you truly love me? Mayhap even love me more than you love him?"

  Again, silence.

  He expected nothing different, but could not stop himself from hoping for a sign that she heard him, that she welcomed his need to please her. But as he gazed up at her face, her expression clearly proclaimed: You are my greatest disappointment.

  And it did not have to be so.

  "I will find him," Percen said finally. Purposefully. He pushed to his feet and stroked a hand across her soft white cheek. "I will search the galaxies, if need be, and find exactly where you sent him. And then, sweet Mother, I will bring him back to you."

  Broken and destroyed.

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  WHILE KATIE MANEUVERED the enchanted transportation along the winding roads, Jorlan weighed his options. The woman was obviously in a temper. Her breath was coming in short, shallow pants and her fingers were clutching the steering wheel as if it would fly out the window if she let go. He needed to gently sway her from her pique so that she could at last admit her desires for him. But how?

  He could make her laugh with a story of his childhood. He could whisper sweet, seductive words in her ear. Or he could simply wait until her anger crumbled on its own.

  "I don't think this is going to work between us, Jorlan," she said.

  A dark, primitive blaze uncurled inside him. "It will."

  "Of course it works for you. You gain everything and lose nothing."

  "So I must lose something to win you? Then so be it. Name it and it is gone."

  "That's not what I meant."

  "I have less than thirteen days, katya. 'Tis a mere flash." He had considered begging before, dropping to his knees and begging her for her affections. His desire for permanent freedom far surpassed any pride he harbored. "You have only to tell me what you need of me and I will do it."

  "I don't know what I want from you, okay? I only know I can't give my heart or body easily. Besides that, it's hard to think of you as the love of my life when I know you consider me nothing more than a necessary burden."

  "Then I--"

  "We're from different worlds," she rushed on, slicing his apology to a halt. "I have enough trouble with Earth men."

  "Just because you have trouble with men of your own world," he growled, "does not mean you will have trouble with a man of Imperia."

  "No, it just means I have trouble with any man who wants to screw everything female." Katie parked the vehicle, emerged, then strode inside the old house, all without uttering another word. She was beyond angry now, that much was obvious. Her shoulders had been stiff and her chin high and she had never once glanced back to see if he followed. He didn't. He remained within the enchanted transportation.

  The day was not fraught with the promise he'd first supposed.

  Screw everything female? He had already proved those words for the falsehood they were by declining the girl, but he only now realized the full extent of what had transpired inside the cafe. He, a man who had been without bodily contact for more than nine hundred spans, had been unable to summon a single shred of awareness for any woman save Katie since obtaining his freedom.

  The simple fact was that he was fast becoming obsessed with Katie.

  "Katie," he said, wanting to hear her name aloud. "Pretty, courageous Katie James. How can I want you so desperately, yet want no other?" Though he hated himself for it, he did want her desperately. Wanted, if only for a little while, to be the center of her life. Wanted to tear down her resistance and bend her so completely to his will that he could take her whenever, wherever he wanted. More than that, he wanted her cries of love to ring in his ears long after he left her.

  For the first time, however, he considered what would happen to her if he were to win her. Would she suffer greatly if she fell in love with him and he simply abandoned her? Curse it, she claimed she did not need a man's protection, physically or emotionally. Why should he consider her well-being his responsibility?

  Obsessed. Aye, he truly was obsessed, for not even Maylyn had affected him like this. He'd thought of her, but not constantly and she had never confused him. He'd wanted her, but it had been a gentle kind of want, a need to cherish and show tenderness. Now, with Katie, he felt anything but gentle, and all traces of tenderness had already dissipated. He felt an ache, an all-consuming desire that constantly battered against his reservations. He felt a need to dominate, a need to ride her harder than he'd ever ridden a woman.

  What did it mean that he simply had to have her, whether she returned his affection or not? That he simply had to taste more of her? Her lips were too sweet, her scent too delectable, and her body too ripe. What did it mean that a part of him was willing to wait forever, if need be, to have her?

  He didn't want to contemplate the answer.

  The air inside the transportation was hot, cloistering, and sweat dripped down his chest. Still he made no move to leave. He needed more time to gather his wits. Closing his eyes, he thought back over Katie's reasons for ending their kiss. They did not like each other, she had said. He liked her all too well. She thought he still considered her a necessary burden. She was necessary, but no longer a burden. They did not know each other, she had said. He did not like discussing his life, but he would do it, tell her anything she wanted to hear.

  Aye, he would do whatever was required to gain her favor. In the
process, he would do whatever was required to rid himself of his fascination with her.

  Resolved, he emerged from the vehicle and followed the path Katie had taken.

  KATIE SERIOUSLY CONSIDERED doing a dropkick and punch right into Jorlan's solar plexus, followed by a knee to the groin, and as a finale, taking his rolling pin and bashing him over the head. The man was entirely too confident, too cocky (in every way) and most assuredly a jackass. And to top it off, he was too damn sexy for his own good.

  Even the redhead had noticed.

  Just thinking about the redhead sent her already heated blood into a serious boil. Where is that rollingpin? she thought savagely. Where is it? At the moment, she'd even settle for the spatula. Jorlan might need her love, might want to use her body, but he still wanted to sleep with every woman he encountered. Yes, he was a jackass and a womanizer and there was no way in hell Katie was falling for him.

  She paced the living-room floor, her movements clipped, jerky. The soles of her shoes squeaked with each step. Her palms were clenched so tightly her nails dug half-moon crescents into her skin, and her knuckles had long since lost all traces of color. Five minutes later, her muscles were still clenched. Somehow, and God only knew how, she managed to paste a carefree smile on her face when the screen door groaned in protest and Jorlan entered the house. His massive frame filled the entrance.

  "You are tense," was the first thing he said.

  Tense! Tense! She rounded on him, one finger pointed at his chest. "Are you blind? I've never been more relaxed in my life."

  One inky brow rose in mocking salute. "Then why is your eye twitching?"

  She spun away from him, blocking his view of her face. "There's something in it. An eyelash, I think."

  "Then there is no need to tell you that the girl--"

  "Girl? What girl?" Katie tried for a carefree laugh, but couldn't quite manage it. Jorlan could do what he pleased, with whom he pleased, and show interest in little redheads all freaking day if he wished. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

  "Then allow me to remind you," he said at last. Silently, he moved behind her, placed his fingers at the base of her neck and gave a gentle squeeze. He bent down, allowing his breath to fan her ear. "The girl found me desirable. Had I shown any interest, I could have had her sooner rather than later," he said.

  Lord, she both hated and loved his words. "You showed no interest?"

  "Nay."

  Slowly, she released a breath she hadn't known she'd been holding.

  "I should have been interested," he added in a self-disgusted growl. "She was a woman who knew what she wanted and was not afraid to try and obtain it."

  "Just what are you implying?" Katie spun around to confront him. "That I'm too cowardly to go after what I want?"

  He clasped a pale lock of hair from her ponytail and brushed the strands across his lips.

  She shivered.

  His gaze locked with hers. "That is exactly what I am saying, katya. You have been afraid of what I make you feel since the beginning."

  "That may be true," she retorted, "but how dare you judge me? You don't know me, not my likes, my dislikes or my past. You have no idea what made me the woman that I am."

  "You are right," he said, his voice just as dark. "I do not understand you, nor do I know much about what makes you do and say the things that you do." Then, "But I would like to."

  But I would like to, echoed so sweetly in her mind and so shocked her, she could only blink up at him. His tyrannical disposition she could resist. This...gentle caring she could not. Suspicions sparked in the back of her mind, like a candle in a shadowy room. "Is this a ploy to make me fall in love with you?"

  He ignored her question. "From the moment I first appeared to you, you have driven me half-mad. I cannot explain the connection between us, but I do know that it is there."

  This was everything she'd ever wanted to hear from him, and yet self-preservation proved tenacious, clinging to her with a sharp grip. "What you're saying is wonderful, and I want to believe you. I do. But how can I truly believe that you're interested in me as a person and not just my love?"

  "Can I not say the same to you?" he demanded quietly.

  He could, she realized then. He really could. Since he first appeared in her garden, she had lusted after him like he was the last piece of chocolate in a PMS survival kit. She probably would have slept with him already if he'd claimed just once to love her or even that he would stick around for a while. But she'd never once stopped to consider the man beneath the brawn.

  He lightly fingered her earlobe. "I want you to know about me, and I want to know more about you."

  "What do you know about me already?" She didn't mean to sound so desperate, like a child pleading for assurance, but she just couldn't help herself. Things were changing between them with every word he spoke, and she liked the changes. Maybe too much.

  "I know that you do not smile nearly enough. I know that you were generous to allow me into your home when I had nothing to offer you in return. And I know that I hurt you by calling you a necessary burden." His fingers released her ear, traveled to the base of her neck and lightly massaged. "For that, I am truly sorry."

  Katie stilled, absorbing the warmth of his hands and the glow of his apology. But surely she had misheard him. Surely this man, this warrior who took great pleasure in ordering her around, had not just apologized.

  "Jorlan--"

  "Nay. Say no more. I once thought taking only your body while remaining distanced was best. Not so now."

  And yet, she thought suddenly, he seemed more distanced from her than ever before. There was a flat tinge to his eyes that clashed with his honeyed tone. For the life of her, she couldn't make herself care that this might be a ploy.

  "You intrigue me," he continued, "and I find myself constantly thinking about your thoughts and actions. Were I home, I would still wonder, and I would regret not knowing. We have this day, and only Elliea knows how many others, to learn of each other. If you wish."

  If she wished, Katie silently repeated. What did she truly want from this man who had no plans to stay? Just how much of herself was she willing to risk? The answer had seemed so clear only this morning.

  "No alliance is one hundred percent secured," he said. "In this, at least, we know the final outcome."

  He was right, of course, but that didn't make her decision any easier. "Saying goodbye will be harder if we've initiated any type of emotional relationship."

  "Only if we make it so."

  So where did that leave her? She truly had tried to ignore her attraction to him, but it hadn't gone away. It had only grown stronger. So strong, in fact, she had only to picture his face in her mind and bam! She desired him. Katie closed her eyes. Opened them. Gazed up at him. "Just give me a little more time, okay? That's all I'm asking."

  He lightly pressed his lips to her collarbone. Flames uncoiled in her belly, and she almost blurted her capitulation then and there. But Jorlan pulled back, and said softly, "I remind you that time is our enemy, katya. Do not forget that fact."

  "How can I?" she answered, her tone just as soft.

  A long, protracted moment passed. She stayed exactly as she was, afraid to sever--or perhaps afraid not to sever--the tentative bond growing between them. Then, suddenly, Jorlan stepped back and clasped his hands together, brisk and formal, as if they'd never shared such an intimate moment. "What labor would you have me do? I am eager to begin."

  The heavy sexual tension eased with the small distance between them, making her feel as if she had been released from some sort of captivity. "I need you to move the large rocks that line the edges of the driveway to the back fence. It's a tedious and back-breaking chore, and I hate to ask you to do it, I really do, but you're free labor, and I..." She shrugged.

  The blue of his eyes twinkled. "Have I not told you before that I welcome the chance to exercise?" He turned and tossed his next words over his shoulder as he strode to the door. "Worry not, for
I fully intend to lose myself in whatever physical task you place before me."

  With the sexual innuendo lingering in the air, Katie found herself alone.

  Alone.

  Time to think about the kiss, her mind shouted.

  "No. I'm not ready," she grumbled.

  Kiss, kiss, kiss.

  Realizing she could delay the inevitable no longer, Katie sank onto the scarred hardwood floor, rested her chin upon her upraised knees and remembered. When she'd first felt Jorlan's arms anchor around her waist, smelled his hot, masculine scent, she hadn't wanted to run. She'd wanted to feel and touch him, to allow him to feel and touch her in return.

  And oh, how he had touched her. He'd stroked his tongue into her mouth, sending scalding heat all the way through her. The world around her had faded to black, and she'd known only Jorlan. Desire had coiled deep in her belly, tightened her nipples, and pooled between her legs. She'd been completely lost. Lost, as if she no longer existed as a separate being. She'd reveled in every moment and hungered for more--more of the glorious sensations. The consuming ache. The sheer need. Her entire body had come alive, each nerve ending on alert and ready for completion.

  She'd been kissed before, but this had been different somehow, more than a simple meeting of lips. Thinking back, she realized every other kiss she'd ever experienced had left her cold and hollow, and she had always craved escape. With Jorlan, she had craved forever.

  For the first time ever, the chemistry had been exactly right.

  I'm going to sleep with him, she admitted then. She could no longer deny the inevitable. Like Jorlan, she would always wonder what could have been if she didn't take what she wanted now, while she had the chance. Besides, she'd played things safe with Jorlan so far and look where that had gotten her. Frustrated and unsure. Confused. Why not dive headlong into whatever pleasures awaited her in his arms? Damn the consequences?

  Feeling more lighthearted than she had in days, weeks, even years, Katie gathered her heat gun and putty knife and jumped into her work. Two hours later, she was humming under her breath and tearing up linoleum in the upstairs bathroom when Jorlan reappeared.