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  faster than my ears work. Are you saying you no longer wish to return

  to your own plane?”

  Meg nodded. “Yes. I am going to give this marriage thing another

  shot. Apparently, if it doesn’t work out, murder is always an option.

  Beck promised me.”

  “Well, that throws a different light on the thing, then,” the red

  man muttered.

  “What?” Meg asked, not sure she had caught that last part.

  His face was jovial as he looked up, as though all the

  consternation had just floated away. “Nothing, dear, nothing at all. I

  think it’s marvelous that you’ve decided to give the king another

  chance. Love is more important than any other consideration. I know

  just how to get you back to your husband, dearie.”

  He started down the path again. Meg followed eagerly. She hoped

  she could get back before Beck realized she was gone. She would get

  back to camp and throw off her clothes. When Beck showed up, she

  would tempt him back into bed where she intended to prove to him

  they were perfect together.

  “How do you know all this stuff?” She hadn’t mentioned that her

  husband was the King. Meg followed the red man off the path. She

  could hear water flowing. It made her feel good. They had followed a

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  river last night to get to their campsite by the lake. She must be

  getting close.

  “I know everything, dearie,” the man stated plainly. “It’s all a part

  of who I am.”

  Before Meg could continue the line of questioning, she was halted

  by a sight so beautiful it took her breath away.

  They had crested a small hill and the river came into view. There

  was an early morning mist floating off the river giving everything a

  hazy, soft feel. Standing gracefully in the shallow water was the most

  elegant horse Meg had ever seen. It was pure white and gave off a

  sheen of sweetness and innocence as it leaned down and drank.

  “It’s so beautiful.” Meg spoke in hushed tones, not wanting to

  scare it off.

  “She’s magic, dear,” the red man explained. “She roams the forest

  and aids travelers in getting to their destination.”

  Meg searched her brain, trying to remember the one class she had

  taken in lore. It had mostly been about the Greek and Roman gods,

  but there had been a small section on Irish folklore. She might have

  skipped that day. Her penchant for urban fantasy and romance novels

  were the only reason she knew what a sidhe was. Now she wished

  Laurell K. Hamilton had covered faery horses in her books.

  “She’ll take me to Beck?”

  There was an odd light in the red man’s eyes. “Yes, dearie. She’ll

  take you to your husband.” He noted her hesitation and shrugged. “Or

  you can walk aimlessly through the woods and never find him. These

  woods are enchanted. If you don’t know your way around them, you

  could be lost forever. Your husband will wander the woods, seeking

  you. It happens all the time.”

  The red man looked like he couldn’t care less what she did. Meg

  frowned. Time was running out. She had decided to take a chance on

  Beck, so it only followed she could take another. “All right. How do I

  get back to him?”

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  The red man was already retreating. “She will tell you.” Meg

  turned, and the red man was completely gone. His voice still echoed

  through the trees. “Just let her lead you home.”

  A shiver passed through Meg. She started toward the river

  anyway. The horse turned her head toward the interloper, and for a

  moment Meg worried that she would startle it away. Then the gentle

  eyes looked right through her, and Meg felt as if the horse could see

  to her soul. Now that she was close, Meg could see that there were

  flowers woven into the mare’s mane. She had obviously been

  swimming in the river because the mane was dripping with pure river

  water.

  Feeling more comfortable, Meg stepped closer. The horse’s eyes

  seemed luminous in the early morning light. It felt like a magical

  moment when she held her hand out and gently brushed the horse.

  She was surprised to find the skin cold. There was no warmth in the

  flesh, but perhaps she was being fanciful. Of course, if the horse had

  been wading through the river, it followed that her skin would be

  cold.

  The horse snickered. It was a sweet sound. She shook her head

  and gracefully leaned down, as though inviting Meg to mount her.

  “Okay, but I gotta warn you, I’m not very good at this.” The horse

  shook her mane. Suddenly, Meg knew the horse wanted her to haul

  herself up this way. “I hope this doesn’t hurt.”

  Meg wrapped her fingers in the mane, noting the flowers seemed

  to be attached to weeds in some places. She managed to get her leg

  over the horse’s back and was pleased when she got into an upright

  position.

  “Piece of cake,” she muttered to herself. Her hands were shaking

  as she tried to pull them out of the mane to get a better hold. “Take

  me back to my husband.”

  Her hands seemed stuck in the coarse hairs. Meg pulled, but they

  didn’t budge. She tried to shift her legs. They held fast to the horse’s

  flesh.

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  The horse snickered. This time it sounded less gentle, more

  triumphant, and not in a good way. The horse’s eyes narrowed and

  became somewhat cruel.

  “Oh, shit,” Meg cursed, knowing something had gone very wrong.

  The horse reared up and took off at a gallop. Meg flew with her

  and then screamed as the horse plunged them both into the deepest

  part of the river. She felt the horse stiffen as something hit it, but it didn’t matter.

  Meg’s scream was cut off as water began to fill her lungs.

  * * * *

  Beck panicked when he realized she had run. She had done it. She

  had left him. His heart started to pound. The anger would come later.

  Now he was overcome with fear. These woods were dangerous. What

  had he been thinking, bringing her through here without a proper

  escort? But then, he couldn’t afford a proper escort. Damn him, he

  shouldn’t have purchased a wife he couldn’t properly take care of.

  She was going to die here, and then he would lie down beside his

  brother and allow himself to fade. Maybe that was what he should

  have done in the first place.

  Stop it. This was no time for doubt or pity. If he was going to save his wayward wife, he needed to think clearly. Find her trail.

  It wasn’t hard. His woman didn’t have any idea how to hide it.

  Her boot prints were plain in the dirt path. Beck tossed his bow and

  quiver over his shoulder. He was fully armed. He had the sword on

  his back and some knives placed in various sheaths across his body.

  He tossed aside the two rabbits he’d killed for breakfast. His appetite

  was completely gone. All that mattered was finding Meg before

  something else found her.

  As Beck began to jog down the trail, his eyes watched for signs of

  he
r, but his mind was caught in a punishing trap.

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  She had run because he had been too rough with her. She had

  given him a second chance after he’d treated her horribly in the arena,

  and what had he done? He’d spread her legs painfully wide and

  shoved into her as hard and long as he could. He’d covered her with

  his heavy body and forced her to take all of him. She was so small,

  yet he’d pushed himself in, all the way to his balls. It had probably

  hurt. She’d said she liked it, but he knew the truth.

  He’d known that his compulsions were perverse since he was

  sixteen years old. He’d had a strong, overwhelming sex drive from the

  moment he hit manhood. He had tried to hide it from everyone except

  his brother, who matched him. Cian didn’t seem to need the same

  things he did, though. Cian could be gentle and sweet with a woman.

  Beck needed to bend her to his will. It was his obsession. He thought

  he had found a good match in one of his mother’s handmaids. She

  was a woman in her early twenties. She didn’t seem to mind when he

  ordered her to take his cock in her mouth or spread her legs so he

  could look at her pussy. She seemed to like it. His father had found

  them just as Beck was discovering the joys of shoving his cock up her

  tight little ass. His father had beaten the crap out of him. Then he sat

  Beck down to explain a few things to him.

  The maid had gone along with him because he was a prince. He

  had power over her, and she feared him. Women were fragile

  creatures. They required gentleness. Anything else was monstrous. If

  they said they liked his rough ways, they were lying to gain his favor.

  His father had explained that if he treated his bondmate this way, she

  would leave both him and Cian, and he would bring great shame to

  his family.

  Beck had been very solemn and careful around Maris. There had

  been no sex at all with her, and sexual contact wouldn’t be allowed

  until they had bonded. He vowed to treat her with honor, and to never

  let her know about the beast inside him.

  Why couldn’t he do the same with Meggie? His heart was sick.

  He loved her. He’d seen deep to her soul. He knew that he could

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  never have cared for Maris the way he did Meg. No matter what

  anyone said, bondmates weren’t interchangeable.

  Meggie was soft and vulnerable, despite that tart tongue of hers.

  She wanted to please him. He had to be a man and show her that she

  didn’t need to. She hadn’t been born into Fae society. She didn’t

  know about the sacred contract between a bondmate and her husband.

  It would be easy to take what she was offering. She would never

  know the difference, but it wouldn’t be honorable.

  She’d left the trail here. He could easily see that she had almost

  walked a complete circle. Maybe she was back at camp, having

  learned that the woods were tricky. Maybe she was waiting for him.

  He would be gentle with her. He wouldn’t let his rage at her

  defiance show. He damn sure wouldn’t do what he wanted to. He

  wanted to pull those pants down, spank her bare ass red, and then fuck

  her until she begged him to stop. He wanted to imprint himself on her

  so strongly she would never run from him again.

  He had almost made it to the hill above the river when he felt her.

  He felt her terror before he heard the scream. It flooded his body,

  causing his heart to pound and his soul to ache. She was so scared,

  and she instinctively reached across the distance to find him. The bow

  was in his hand as he crested the hill. In one smooth move, he pulled

  and notched an arrow. He was aiming before he even knew what

  threatened her.

  A kelpie, he realized, horrified at the sight. She was on the

  kelpie’s back, and it was already taking off. Her scream echoed

  through the forest. Beck knew it would haunt him. He let the arrow

  fly, hoping to hit the heart before the horse got away with his wife.

  Beck heard the thud of the arrow striking flesh, but it didn’t slow the

  damn thing down. The horse plunged into the icy river and his wife

  disappeared.

  Beck felt her panic. He did the only thing he could do. He

  forcefully cut the connection between them. He couldn’t do what he

  needed to do if he was overwhelmed with her fear. Beck rushed out

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  into the river, cursing the cold. He took three deep, long breaths to fill his lungs, pulled out a cold iron knife and dove after them.

  The river was clear, and the early morning light illuminated the

  scene. The kelpie had gone deep. She was sitting patiently at the

  bottom of the river among the thick reeds that swayed with the

  current. It would be a peaceful scene except for the woman struggling

  to survive. She couldn’t. The horse would hold her in place until the

  river took her life. When she was dead, the kelpie would release her

  and devour her. If Beck hadn’t found her, all he would have been left

  with was her heart. The kelpies never ate the hearts.

  Meg was still struggling, but he could tell she was losing. Her

  eyes flared as she saw him swimming toward her. She tried so hard to

  push her body towards his, as though in her last moments, she needed

  to get as close to him as possible. He swam straight to her and took

  her head in his hands. He kissed her, forcing the air he’d held in his

  mouth down to her lungs. It wasn’t much, but he needed every minute

  if he was going to save her.

  Why the hell had she climbed on a kelpie’s back, he wondered as

  he tried to saw through the thick hairs holding her down. The horse

  was having none of that. She kicked out, trying to catch him with her

  powerful legs. He didn’t dare touch the mane with his own hands, lest

  he get as trapped as his wife.

  The horse caught him in the chest. He flew back in the water, all

  the air blowing from his lungs. He floated helplessly back up to the

  surface. His mouth opened instinctively. He dragged air into his chest.

  The knife was still in his hands. He’d managed to hold onto it.

  How long had she been under? How long could a human go

  without breath in her body?

  She wasn’t Fae. Her small body was more fragile. Goddess, he

  was going to lose her. Beck breathed in one last time and dove again.

  This time Meg was slumped over. She moved as the current

  moved, and her beautiful hair swayed with the reeds. Beck refused to

  give up. He went straight for the monster who was trying to take his

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  woman. Beck avoided the strong, kicking legs of the kelpie and

  savagely went straight for its throat. He didn’t even try to keep his

  hands clear. He forcefully planted his left hand in the horse’s mane. It

  stuck immediately. He couldn’t move it, but it served as an anchor. If

  he couldn’t kill the fucker, he would go down with her. He would die

  as close to his mate as possible.

  With a sort of savage glee, Beck shoved the blade he held in his

  right hand deeply into the hors
e’s throat. The kelpie, unable to kick

  him at this angle, tried to use her teeth to bite him. Beck dodged her

  mouth. He used every bit of strength he had left to drag the blade

  through the kelpie’s thick flesh. As the water around him clouded

  with blood, Beck knew he would kill the monster, but realized it was

  too late. He felt his consciousness begin to fade. They would die

  down here. Cian would never know what happened. They were too far

  from each other. Cian would fade, never knowing why his brother

  hadn’t returned.

  Then his hand was free, and he felt himself beginning to float.

  He shook his head as his lungs started to burn. He forced himself

  to move. He had to get a hand on Meg. He pulled at her shirt and

  started to swim for the surface. He kicked his legs, even though he felt

  so weary. He used every bit of his will to propel himself and Meg to

  the air above.

  The sun was warm on his skin when he reached the surface and

  was finally able to breathe in sweet, clean air. Meg was a dead weight

  in his arms. He knew he had to get her to land before he could try

  anything. He swam as fast as his legs would take him. Seeing her skin

  so blue sparked an adrenaline rush that powered him through the

  water. When he could touch the bottom, he pulled her small frame

  into his arms and raced to the shore.

  “Please come back,” he muttered as he laid her down. He filled

  his lungs and then opened her mouth. He covered her lips with his,

  sealing them together and then pushed the air into her lungs.

  Nothing.

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  He tried again, his heart racing. She couldn’t be dead. He would

  have felt it. He was sure he would have known. But then he’d thrown

  up barriers. He’d felt like he had to. But if she died alone, he would

  never forgive himself. She would have died reaching out to him, and

  he’d coldly closed their bond.

  He tried a third time. Suddenly her eyes fluttered, and her whole

  body convulsed. He quickly turned her over as she threw up the water

  in her lungs. Her body shook as he pulled her close. He freely opened

  the connection, letting her feel the relief flooding his body. She

  started to cry and turned over to clutch at him. Her arms wound