Night Embrace

  "There's no way to keep Sunshine."

  He hadn't realized he'd spoken aloud until Eros said, "If you love her, then I'm sure she'll pay for it."

  Talon braced himself for what he had to do. Even though it tore his heart out and made him want to cry. He knew he had to do this. It was the only way to protect her. "Fine, then. I have one last request."

  Eros gave him an understanding look. "You want me to shoot you guys with the lead arrow to kill your love."

  He nodded. Eros pulled his bow necklace from around his neck and made it larger.

  Talon grabbed his hand as he aimed it at him. "Not yet. Okay? I just want a little more time with her. Can you wait until midnight?"

  Shrinking the bow back to necklace size, Eros nodded and patted Talon on the shoulder. "Love bites, man. Believe me, I know."

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  Talon thought about Psyche and he felt a twinge of jealousy. "Yeah, but you got to keep your love."

  "True. I'm damn lucky in that department." Eros shifted as if something had made him uncomfortable. "Where do you want me to shoot you?"

  "Someplace that won't hurt."

  Eros rolled his eyes. Talon answered seriously. "The club Runningwolf's. I'll have her there at midnight." Nodding, Eros took two steps away. "I'll see you at midnight."

  "Thanks, Eros. I owe you."

  "Yes, you do."

  Talon inclined his head in mutual understanding. Now he was indebted to Vane and Eros. At the rate he was going, he was likely to lose a whole lot more than his soul before all was said and done. He just prayed that in the end, Sunshine didn't lose her life.

  But he wouldn't think about that now. All he had was a few more hours to spend with the woman he loved. He wanted to enjoy what little time they had before she learned to hate him. Talon left the room and stopped as he caught sight of Sunshine downstairs playing pool with Psyche.

  She was so beautiful there. The stage lights played off her midnight-black hair. And her lush, sweet body

  It was perfection. Sunshine was everything to him. Talon's thoughts scattered when he realized that a thin man of average height was talking to Sunshine and she didn't look happy about it.

  Suddenly, their conversation escalated into a verbal fight. Sunshine was animated as Dark Hunter Series (04) - Night Embrace - Sherrilyn Kenyon Page 355 of 460

  she poked the man with her finger and pushed him back. Psyche put her cue down and stepped between them. Talon saw red.

  Without thinking about the patrons or anything other than Sunshine, he placed his hand on the banister and swung his legs over and dropped to the floor below. The people downstairs gasped and scattered.

  Pain shot up his leg and worsened as he took a step. Talon didn't care. The only thing he saw was Sunshine's distressed face. The only sound he heard was her angry voice.

  "How could you do this, Jerry, you snake!"

  "I told you before, Sunny, everything's fair in business."

  "But he was my client. I sat out there all day today waiting on him to show."

  "Yeah, well, you snooze, you lose."

  "Here's another saying," Talon said, grabbing the guy and turning him to face him. "No one messes with my girl."

  Sunshine froze at the look on Talon's face. It was truly scary. He stared at Jerry as if he were one inch away from making Jerry fillet.

  "It's all right, Talon," she said, not wanting him to get into trouble or, worse, arrested for beating the slug. She could tell by Jerry's expression that he was dying to say something snide, but the sheer size and ferocity of Talon kept his lips sealed.

  She took Talon's arm. "C'mon, babe, let's go."

  Talon really wanted to tear the guy apart. How dare he steal Sunshine's client from her?

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  He knew how much it meant to her. His anger snapped and hissed, straining against the control he was using to keep it leashed. "Who is this dick?" Talon asked Sunshine.

  "I used to be her husband, what about you?" Talon's eyes flared. "Ditto."

  Jerry couldn't have looked more shocked had Talon actually hit him. Talon looked at Sunshine. A part of him felt extremely betrayed that she had dared marry someone else. It didn't matter that she'd had no idea about their past life together. It still hurt.

  Her eyes apologized to him. "I was going to tell you."

  "When, Sunshine?"

  She turned and glanced at Jerry. "You're such a jerk. I can't believe I was ever stupid enough to marry you."

  She started through the now silent crowd.

  "Hey, Sunny," Jerry called after her. "Make sure you go to Fallini's sometime and admire my work. Remember when you look at it that the best artist won."

  Talon saw the tears in her eyes. His temper exploded. Rotating his shoulders, he turned and slugged Jerry so hard that he was knocked off his feet. He landed with a solid thump on the pool table, sending billiard balls rolling and bouncing.

  Several members of the bear clan cursed as cameras flashed. "Way to keep a low profile, Celt," Justin said snidely from beside him. Talon ignored the panther. He took Sunshine's hand and led her through the crowd.

  Nick met him and Sunshine at the door. "Man, Ash is going to flip when he finds out about this. I can't believe you pulled something like this with a Mardi Gras crowd to Dark Hunter Series (04) - Night Embrace - Sherrilyn Kenyon Page 357 of 460

  witness it. You're worse than Zarek."

  "Just make sure you clean it up."

  "Clean it up, hell. Do you know how many cameras just caught your stunt-jump from upstairs? My mom now thinks you're on the drugs she suspects Kyrian sells. We're screwed. My life is toast. I'm about to get lectured about working for drug dealers again. My mom, bless her heart, is so goofy, she doesn't even realize she works for bears. I'm so screwed."

  "Don't worry about it," Dev said as he joined them. "We have your back, Celt. Cleaning up indiscretions is our specialty. No human here will remember it tomorrow and we'll make sure none of the electronics show anything either. Everyone will be ticked off that all they got for a picture was a big black blob."

  "What about me?" Nick asked. "I don't want any of your mind-meld stuff."

  "I said humans, Nicky."

  Nick looked extremely offended. "Thanks," Talon said to Dev.

  "Any time. I'll see you tomorrow for Mardi Gras."

  Talon inclined his head to the bear and led Sunshine outside even though his entire leg felt as if it had been broken by the jump. Once they were on the street, he confronted her. "You were married?"

  "It was seven years ago, Talon. I was young and stupid."

  "You were married," he repeated. "To him." Sunshine took a deep breath and sighed.

  "Yes."

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  "I can't believe this."

  "Oh, c'mon, Talon, give me a break. Don't hold something against me when I had no idea you even existed. If anyone has a right to be mad, I think it should be me."

  "Excuse me?"

  "Selena told me about you and your rep, bud. How you've pretty much laid every woman in New Orleans. You want to tell me about that?"

  "That was different."

  "Why? Because I'm a woman? You knew I wasn't a virgin, Talon. What did you expect?"

  Talon didn't know. But then, it didn't really matter. After tonight, she'd hate him anyway.

  The last thing he wanted was to spend the evening fighting with her. This was all the time they would ever have.

  "Okay, Sunshine. You're right. I'm sorry."

  Sunshine was stunned. This was the first time she'd ever known a guy to cave so easily.

  "Are you really?"

  "Yes," he said, his eyes sincere. "I don't want to fight, okay? Let's just forget about him and go eat." She lifted his hand to her lips and kissed his knuckles. "Sounds good."

 
As they walked to a small cafe on Iberville, she noticed he had a slight limp. "Are you okay?"

  "Yeah, I just twisted my leg when I jumped over the railing," he said. "Whenever I get mad, I tend to lose my Dark-Hunter powers, and without them, my body becomes Dark Hunter Series (04) - Night Embrace - Sherrilyn Kenyon Page 359 of 460

  human."

  "Do you need a doctor?"

  He shook his head. "As long as I stay calm, it should heal while we eat."

  Talon kept her close to him the entire time it took them to reach the restaurant and be seated. He memorized everything about her. He would always remember her like this and those memories would live inside him right along with the ones of her as Nynia. Or would he lose those memories when Eros shot him?

  Would his mind somehow distort them so that he couldn't love her anymore? His stomach knotted at the thought. What would it be like to not even have the comfort of his memories of Nynia and Sunshine?

  To not remember the softness of her touch, the smell of her patchouli on his skin? The way her eyes lit up every time she looked at him? Grinding his teeth, he tried not to think about that, or to feel the pain in his heart. This wasn't about him and what he stood to lose. This was about her.

  He had to do this for her. She sat in the booth across from him, her head bent while she ate. The candlelight reflected the darkness of her hair, making her skin a creamy tan. A creamy tan that made his mouth water for a taste. Talon watched the graceful gestures of her hands as she cut into her garbanzo bean salad and ate it. He loved those long, tapered fingers. Loved teasing them with his mouth, feeling them on his body.

  "What made you want to be an artist?" he asked.

  "I love working with my hands."

  He reached across the table and took her left hand into his. He studied the delicate Dark Hunter Series (04) - Night Embrace - Sherrilyn Kenyon Page 360 of 460

  curve of it, the way it felt so dainty in his palm. "You have such beautiful hands."

  She smiled and squeezed his with hers. "Thank you. They're the most valuable thing an artist can ever have. I used to have nightmares that something would happen to them, a severe scar or burn that would prevent me from ever using them for pottery or drawing again. Art is my life. I don't know what I'd do if I couldn't create."

  Talon closed his eyes as agony washed over him. His emotions swirled, but he forced them down. He had to. The clock was ticking for them. Sunshine fed him a bite of her salad and he did his best not to cringe. "Why aren't your eyes amber anymore?" she asked.

  He swallowed his bite and took a drink of wine. "Part of the whole Dark-Hunter package.

  We're turned into predators so that we can track down and kill Daimons. Our eyes become black and dilate a lot more than human eyes so that we can see in darkness."

  "And your fangs? Do you use them to suck blood?"

  He shook his head. "No. Blood has never been to my taste. The fangs are just part of the package too."

  And do you like what you do?"

  "There are times when it's fun and challenging and times when it's kind of boring. For the most part I don't mind."

  She seemed to accept that.

  She ate for a few minutes before she spoke again. "Talon, why did you give up your soul?"

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  He looked away. In his mind, he could see that day so clearly. He had been lying on the altar, his hands tied above his head, his chest bare and marked in blood with the sacrificial symbols. It had been a cool day, and every member of his clan had been there.

  Dressed in black robes, the Druid priest had looked down upon him and smiled cruelly.

  "Seize Ceara."

  His cousin's words had rung in his head. It had taken a full minute before he understood what was going on. Horrified, Talon had watched his men grab his sister's arms.

  "Speirr! Help me, brathair,please !"

  He had fought against the ropes until his wrists had bled and stung. He had screamed out for them to release her.

  Like a caged animal, he had tried to reach her. Over and over, she called out to him.

  "It's the will of the gods that you both die for what your mother did."

  His cousin had sunk his dagger deep into Ceara's heart.

  She had looked to Talon, her eyes terrified and tear-filled as she struggled to breathe.

  Worst of all, he had seen the disappointment in her eyes.

  She had believed in him, trusted him to protect her.

  The men had released her and she had stumbled to the ground, landing on her hands and knees.

  "Speirr?" Her voice had trembled as she reached a bloodied hand out toward him. "I don't want to be dead," she whispered, her voice that of a child.

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  Before his eyes, she had died.

  Panting in fury, he had let his battle cry roll out and then he had cursed them all. He had called down the wrath of the Morrigan and she had ignored him.

  It was Artemis who had answered his cry for vengeance.

  The last thing he'd seen was the Druid holding his head back and then making the savage cut across his throat.

  Talon breathed deeply in and out and he sought to bury those memories. That was the past and now he had Sunshine to watch out for.

  "It was youthful fury," he said with a calmness he didn't feel. "I had lost so much in such a short time--my aunt, my uncle, you, and our son. After I lost you, I walked around cloaked in grief. I struggled to make it through every minute of every day. The only thing that kept me going was knowing that the clan and Ceara needed me.

  "When the Druids came to me and said that I would have to give up my life to the gods to protect the clan, it was actually a relief. I didn't think twice about allowing them to place me on the sacrificial altar."

  Talon ground his teeth as he saw his sister in his mind again. The way she had looked that day. "Ceara was weeping, but she was trying to be strong. Everything was going as it should, until Murrdyd turned on her and told my clansmen to seize her. He said we both had to die to appease the gods."

  "Was that the truth?"

  "No. He wanted to be king. He needed both Ceara and me out of the way since we were Dark Hunter Series (04) - Night Embrace - Sherrilyn Kenyon Page 363 of 460

  legitimate heirs. I can understand his wanting me killed, but he didn't have to kill Ceara.

  It was the injustice of it that I couldn't stand."

  She placed her hand over his. "Baby, I am so sorry."

  He squeezed her hand as he blinked against the agony he felt. The only comfort he had ever known in his life was the touch of this woman. "So were they in the end."

  "What did you do?"

  Talon cleared his throat as he tried to squelch the memories of that night. The regrets.

  He had been like a single-minded monster raging through his village.

  The only thought on his mind had been reaching his cousin.

  Making the bastard pay.

  "I went through the village killing every man who came between me and the ones who had killed Ceara. The women and children fled while I fought my way to Murrdyd. After I took my vengeance on him, I burned the entire village to the ground."

  "And you've been serving Artemis ever since?"

  He nodded.

  "Have you ever met her?"

  "Just the one time when she came to bargain with me for my soul. She met me in the nether region where a soul gets trapped after it leaves this world, but has yet to travel to the next."

  "You haven't seen her since?"

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  He shook his head. "We're not allowed to have contact with the gods. They see us as an abomination." "But what about Eros?"

  He took a deep breath and felt a twinge of humor at the thought of the fun-loving, irreverent god of love. "He's a little different. For some
reason, he likes hanging out with us."

  Sunshine considered his words as they finished dinner. Poor Talon. He had been through so much pain. So much grief.

  To some extent it bothered her that he was still confusing her with Nynia. They might share a soul, but ultimately, they were two entirely different people.

  Not that it really mattered. So long as he was bound to Artemis and cursed by Camulus, he could never be free. He could never have a future.

  While she'd talked to Psyche, the goddess had told her how to summon Artemis.

  Sunshine really wanted to have a nice chitchat with that goddess and see if maybe Talon could earn his freedom again. If she accomplished that, then maybe they could do something to stop Camulus as well.

  After they paid for dinner, they left the restaurant and headed for her father's club.

  Sunshine didn't know why Talon wanted to take her home, but she snuck them in unnoticed so that they could have a little more time alone.

  Talon led her to the dance floor.

  Sunshine had never realized before just how hot a man could be when he danced.

  Personally, she'd always thought most men looked rather goofy.

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  But not Talon. He was the sexiest thing she'd ever seen in her life.

  When the song ended, Talon urged her to introduce him to her father and brother. They were sitting nearby, going over paperwork and accounting stats for the club while Wayne helped them.

  "Hi, Daddy, Storm, and Wayne."

  They looked up and smiled until they saw Talon behind her. "Sunshine, are you all right?" her father asked.

  "I'm fine. I just wanted you to meet Talon. Talon, my father, Daniel Runningwolf."

  Talon offered his hand, but her father declined.

  "I'm a shaman and can't touch you."

  Talon nodded at him with a look that said he understood. "Sorry, I wasn't thinking."

  Wayne excused himself.

  After he left, her father's dark brown eyes glittered harshly as he swept his gaze to Sunshine. "Starla didn't tell me your boyfriend was soulless, kitten."

  "She probably thought you'd flip out. Are you?" "Yes."

  Sunshine quickly sought to change the subject. "How's Mom, by the way?"

  "She's fine. What about you?"

  "I'm fine, Daddy. Don't worry."

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