Dragon's Mistress Read Online Free PDF Page B

is ‘us’?” she asked suspiciously.
    “The nobles and the Guild,” he said. “Why do you think you’re here?”
    “I thought I was here to pleasure you,” she said quietly. He gave her a mocking look. “Well, to spy on you then.”
    “Karya sent you because she believes we can trust you,” he said quietly. “You’re uniquely qualified to help us. You’ve been in Saurellian space, and you have contacts there. We know you’ve already helped at least one Imperial slave escape. Don’t bother to deny it,” he said, holding up one hand when she started to protest. “Dani, you’ve been very careful, but we know you’re smart and you’re loyal to the Guild. You’re also the perfect go-between for the Saurellians and us because no one will suspect you.
    You aren’t a Guild functionary, you hold no office and you have no power. In short, you’re not important enough for the Emperor to suspect you.”
    Dani snorted at his description.
    “No, don’t be offended,” he continued. “That’s what makes you perfect for this role. Karya has had her eye on you for a long time. She trusts you, and I trust her.”
    “That’s not what she says,” Dani said, her anger growing. Who the hell did he think he was?
    “Well, that’s what she says when she’s being spied on by the Imperial intelligence service,” Drake said. He reached forward, clutching her shoulders in his hands and pulling her toward him. He stared into her face, as if he could make her believe him by sheer force of will. “This whole evening is a set-up.
    Karya and I have been building toward this moment for a year. We’ve carefully created a rift between me and Guild so that no one would suspect us of collaborating.”
    “What is the point of all this plotting?” she asked harshly. “What are you going to do, overthrow the Emperor?” she asked, laughing at the idea. As if anyone could topple a sitting emperor. The thought was ridiculous.
    “I can’t tell you that,” he said, dropping his hands from her shoulder and sitting back. “I’ll only tell you what you need to know. It’s safer for everyone that way.”
    “Oh, Goddess,” she whispered, searching his face as the realization hit her. They were planning to do that very thing. “You’ll have to kill him.”
    “Yes.”
    “Oh, Goddess,” she whispered again, and sat back heavily on the floor. Life had suddenly gotten far more complex than she could ever have dreamed. “I’m supposed to be on vacation, you know.”
    “Yes, I know,” he replied. “I’m sorry, Dani, but it’s already too late for you. You’re part of this whether you like it or not. You're the only one who can help us.”
    "Why me?" she asked quietly. "Why did you have to pick me? There are thousands of other pleasure workers who've been in Saurellian space. Why couldn't you pick of them for this? I don't want this!"
    "Because to carry out our plans, we'll need to work with the Saurellians," he said. "And you're the only pleasure worker with the connections we need. That slave you helped escape, her name was Calla?
    She's more than an escaped slave. She's become the daughter-in-law of the Saurellian Federation Council's President. She's going to be in Tyre over the next six months with her husband on a diplomatic mission, and you're the one woman in Imperial space she'll trust."

Chapter 4
    He stared earnestly into her face, willing her to believe him. They were almost out of time. He'd managed to arrange a temporary power failure that would keep the Emperor's spies from listening in on them, but they would suspect something if the power didn't come back on soon.
    She bit her lip, staring up at him with those stunning, unreal blue eyes. Despite the seriousness of their situation, he felt a twinge of desire for her. It filled him with dark amusement. Here he was, plotting to overthrow an emperor, and still all he could think about was bedding this incredible woman.
    He was so caught up in his thoughts that