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a Hunter. A soft grunt left his lips as he hooked his hands into his belt. He didn’t want to be here. His instincts were not centered on the convicts around him but back in the Hunter sphere where Fay was.
    “She’ll be there tonight.”
    Hawk’s voice was gruff. Janus didn’t offer his partner any comment. He and Hawk knew each other too well—it was something that made them more effective as Hunters.
    But when it came to Fay, Janus found himself feeling possessive. He shouldn’t be. He’d shared Hawk’s mate because they viewed each other’s actions every day to ensure fairness in both their decisions. When Hawk had taken Tova into his bed, there was no way to prevent lust from rising up for her as he watched them during those everyday 23
    Dawn Ryder
    viewings into Hawk’s actions. Sharing was expected and normal among the command ranks of Hunters like they were. Hawk had known that fact and firmly insisted that Tova accept it and allow Janus into their relationship.
    Today, the idea of returning that action bothered him. Hawk suddenly lifted an eyebrow and smirked at him. It was an expression Janus had given him during Hawk’s courtship of his mate, Tova. Hawk chuckled before sweeping the area around them again.
    “Worry not, Janus. I don’t hold grudges. Even if you deserve it.”
    Janus shook his head. “Aye, I did earn a few set-downs, didn’t I?”
    Hawk offered him a dark frown. “You did, but Tova endures your surly attitude so I must do the same.”
    “I make up for it.”
    Hawk glared at him. The sexual comment wasn’t exactly misplaced, but Tova was his pledged mate. The sharing nature of their relationship was only a buffer against lust souring their working partnership. It was something he would have to accept when he brought Fay to heel. Hawk would see every encounter with her. The other Hunter had already witnessed their heated exchange from last night. Sexual interest was a normal side effect in any healthy male. He should be grateful that Hawk had found a mate first.
    Tova could keep most of his partner’s lust away from Fay.
    But it wasn’t her body he craved so completely. It was her submission, an unconditional acceptance of his possession. The goal wasn’t gaining her flesh—it was to touch her soul in that single place where a female trusted a male. One single male. It was the most perfect union. Not once in his life had he ever touched intimacy, but Janus was willing to pursue it until his last breath.
    It was time Fay understood that.
    * * * * *
    People were fickle.
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    Janus’ Conquest
    Fay found that fact unusually fascinating as her day wore on. It should have troubled her, stabbed at her feelings, as those who normally greeted her turned around when they saw her drawing near. Instead, she was curious to discover who was willing to brave the public scorn to be seen speaking to her.
    There were not many.
    A precious few, but somehow she would rather have those friends than the large number she believed she had just last sunrise. Her heart gave a twist, and her emotions threatened to collapse as she looked at her desk and the current project she should be directing her attention to. She had always held a talent for numbers. Now that her schooling was complete, she spent her time working with engineers helping to calculate the mathematical equations that made future buildings sound. For the last year, she had especially enjoyed the unfeeling numbers because she could hide in her work and ignore her rising passion for Janus. She had hidden among the mind-numbing tasks in order to avoid facing the truth that she wanted to spread for him more and more as the nights passed. No other male distracted her from it, in spite of her efforts to find one who would overshadow Janus.
    Today, there was no solace to be found. Her memory replayed her last moments with her father over and over again. Shock still held her in its grip from watching her sire stripped of his uniform. It was