Crave the Darkness Read Online Free PDF Page A

before.” W K beor her unbell, that is, until I’d been to
O Anel
and beheld Raif’s daughter as a child as well as an adolescent. Time worked differently there. But in the mortal world, I’d thought Shaede children were nonexistent.
    “Our history isn’t a pleasant one,” Xander said. “Our forefather, Artis, took the brunt of his father’s prejudice, and his children suffered. The day he banished Artis’s children to the shadows, Kreighton tried to ensure that our numbers would dwindle. He meant for the Shaedes to be sterile, unable to reproduce. But thank the gods, nature survives where even the strongest magic would have us fail. Pregnancies don’t happen often, but when they do, it’s a sacred thing and the child as well as its mother is revered. It is a slap to Kreighton’s face each and every time a child is born and survives. And I am happy for each birth to deliver that blow.”
    I raised a dubious brow. “You make it sound like you did the deed yourself, Xander.”
    He met my stare with a half smile. “Would you be jealous if I had?”
    “No. But I bet Dimitri would.”
    Xander laughed. “No doubt there. Dimitri would skin a man alive for so much as a passing glance at his wife. I hate to think what he’d do to the man brave enough to lie with her.”
    “I’ve never heard the full story, you know. I only got the CliffsNotes version,” I said thoughtfully as I took a seat in front of Xander’s desk. I propped my feet up on his desktop because I knew it drove him crazy. “The story of how the Shaedes came to be.”
    “It’s a true fairy tale,” Xander said. “Maybe I’ll tuck you into bed some night and tell it to you.”
    Oh joy of joys. Xander couldn’t help but lead with his dick. I bet his brain felt neglected sometimes. “In your dreams, Xander.”
    “Nightly,” he said, his voice thick with longing.
    Time to get back to business. Xander lived for this kind of back and forth. It was all about the chase for him, and if I kept it up, I’d be giving him exactly what he wanted. “Anya,” I said, knocking the toes of my boots together. “Why does she need protecting? Can’t you just keep her locked up in the house? I’m sure Dimitri would be more than happy to watch over her.”
    “Dimitri has duties. And Anya . . .” Xander combed his fingers through the length of his golden hair. “Anya is difficult. She’s not going to be happy if we keep her under house arrest.”
    No shit. “And you think having me around is going to make her happy? Apparently you don’t realize how much we
don’t
get along.”
    “I don’t trust anyone else,” Xander said.
    “Raif?”
    “Really, Darian?” Xander flashed his trademark sardonic smile. “Raif isn’t a bodyguard. He’s the commander of my military, the director of security, not to mention a head of state and prince. You’re reaching.”
    Damn straight, I was. I’d rather clean Xander’s toilets than agree to what he was suggesting. “She won’t go for it,” I said.
    “She doesn’t have a choice.”
    “I don’t like being cooped up.”
    “You could have fooled me.” A shadow crept over Xander’s regal face. “You’ve been shut up in that closet you call an apartment for nearly three months.”
    Low blow
. “That’s none of your business.”
    “Like I said, Darian.
Everything
you do is my business. This isn’t up for discussion. I need someone to watch over Anya. You’re the most capable candidate and the only person I trust to do the job adequately. Besides, you won’t be cooped up. Anya’s not a prisoner. I just need someone around to ensure her safety. I’ve paid you—well, I might add—and you accepted the terms of employment.”
    “You’re forgetting, Xander, in the terms set out for my employment, I said I would only follow direct orders from Raif. You can’t tell me what to do.”
    “I’m not worried. If you refuse to listen to me, Raif will give you the exact same orders. Anya needs