Seducing the Demon Huntress Read Online Free Page A

Kerilyn,” he growled. “I promise you.”
    Her rage rose to match his. She hated the surety in his voice. As if she were merely his puppet to play with. Didn’t he realize after all this time she was much more than that?
    “I’ll never be yours, Arawn,” she snapped. “Not while there is still breath in my body. If you know what’s good for you, you will stay the hell out of my way.”
    Reaching into her pockets, she grabbed handfuls of salt and hurled them at the spirit lord before he could protect himself.
    His cry ripped through the night as the salt hit him and tore him apart. Arawn burst into a thousand tiny pieces before her eyes. She knew the disintegration was only temporary, more of an annoyance to him than a true wound, but it gave her long enough to run into the house and shut the door firmly behind her.
    She fell back against the wood, her mind whirling with all she’d learned. Kerilyn had no doubt Arawn would be back. The night was still young, after all.
    She dragged a hand through her short hair. How was she supposed to resist him? Especially this year, when he offered her everything she’d ever wanted at a price far too high to pay.

Chapter Two
    Flames writhed before her eyes. Despite the warmth the fire created, she couldn’t banish the chill permeating her bones. Kerilyn fought a battle within herself. Stay inside and remain safe, or venture back to Arawn and feel more alive than she had in months.
    Trust me.
    The words rang loud and clear in her mind. Words he had never spoken before. Every year she’d snuck out to meet him at the gate. A foolish young girl unable to break free of the tempting attention he’d lavished on her. She’d had so few choices back then. Being born a Whitney had written her fate in stone. But the one thing she’d had, the one thing she could choose of her own will, was him. The battle between desire and logic had faltered every year and she never regretted her weakness. Some nights all they had were a few stolen moments, other times they’d had the leisure of full conversations. As she’d grown from child to woman, those conversations had changed. Become more flirtatious and forbidden. But not once, not one single time, had he ever asked her to trust him.
    Not until tonight.
    She dropped her head to her knees, laughing at her own idiocy. She’d been half in love with Arawn since she was a teenager and there was no getting around that. The dashing, beautiful king had used his one night of freedom to come calling on her for nine years. It was a heady feeling to be the object of such obsession.
    And now to think he wanted her as much as she wanted him? Such a dangerous thought. One which made her wonder if she’d been wrong. What would happen if she opened the gate? She didn’t know if she had the courage to find out.
    “Damn you,” she whispered. Even when absent he filled her mind with visions of battles and embraces.
    A breeze raised the hairs on her arms, teasing gently along her skin. Kerilyn’s head jerked up in shock. The house was closed up tight. There was nothing to create such a breeze.
    The silent wind carried the scent of rich spice and she knew only one person with the intoxicating smell.
    “Arawn,” she growled, swinging to her feet. Her dagger was in her palm in an instant, her body ready to fight. Surely he hadn’t managed to get inside. The alarms would have sounded if he had. A quick glance out the window assured her the lanterns were still lit. Her house was safe. At least, in theory it was.
    But somehow the spirit lord was close.
    Shh . The whispered sound slid through her mind as real as if he had spoken into her ear.
    Kerilyn pressed a palm to her forehead, more thoroughly shaken by the unfamiliar feeling than she liked to admit. “What are you doing?” she demanded, tightening her grip on the dagger.
    Fighting dirty.
    Fear filled her and she did her best to battle it. She scanned the room, looking for any clues he was actually here