Hers To Cherish (Verdantia Book 3) (31 page)

About the author:

Patricia A. Knight is the pen name for an eternal romantic who lives in Dallas, Texas
with her horses, dogs and the best man on the face of the earth – oh yeah, and the most enormous bullfrogs you will ever see. Word to the wise: don’t swim in the pool after dark.

I love to hear from my readers and can be reached at
http://www.trollriverpub.com/
or 
http://www.patriciaaknight.com
. Or send me an email at
[email protected]
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As many of you know, reviews assist an author tremendously. Please consider leaving a review with Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Goodreads, Smashwords or any other website of your choosing.  Thank you so very much – P. A. Knight

More of those Verdantians!

If you enjoyed
Hers To Cherish
, you might be interested in the beginnings of the Verdantian saga,
Hers To Command, Book One
, is the story of how all of this began.

Blurb:
In an intricate dance of friendship, erotic partnership and selfless love, three natives of the sentient planet Verdantia must come together in an extraordinary effort to save their world…and themselves.

With the lives of the people of the planet hanging in the balance, Verdantia calls three of her own to restore her power. The impossible but gorgeous Conte Camliel Aristos DeTano, the beautiful, innocent future queen Princess Fleur Constante, and the conte’s loyal aide, the angelically handsome yet emotionally-scarred Visconte Doral DeLorion, must fight their own personal demons and assimilate in a poly relationship, lest their planet be lost.

The attraction between the three is palpable and so strong it will either bind them together forever—and restore strength to the energy shield of their planet’s capital—or destroy each of them.

What ensues is a passionate journey that explores and tests trust, friendship and the true meaning of love.

It was perhaps an hour later when her guard tapped lightly. “Your Highness.”

“Yes, Eric.”

“Conte DeTano is here.”

“Please admit him.” She watched from her seat on the chaise as Ari strode into the room.

“Your Highness.”

“Conte,” she smiled. “Please, sit.”

“I prefer to stand if it is the same to you, Your Highness,” he replied curtly.

“It is not. I dislike having you
loom
over me like a bomb about to explode.”

A laugh startled from his lips and he smiled as he sat down in the chair Patricio had vacated.

He is so handsome when he smiles.

“My second-in-command sent me some troublesome news today. I am out of sorts. I didn’t mean to direct my temper at you, Your Highness.”

“Apology accepted. I would like it very much if you would call me Fleur. You did before.”

“Yes, well. Being balls-deep between your legs creates a certain intimacy,” Ari said with a wicked grin. “If that is your wish, Your Highness, Fleur, it is.”

Heat crept up her cheeks.
He says the most unexpected things.
Taking a deep breath, she regrouped, handing Ari the scroll. “Tell me about this.”

He scanned carefully as he unrolled the stiff parchment. He stopped midway,
then rolled it back up. With a soft chime of medallions, he re-tied the ribbons, placing it on a low table beside him. “What is it you wish to know?”

Oh dear.
She studied his austere expression, trying to decide on a diplomatic way to start. “Why is marrying me so distasteful that you would flee the planet for fifteen years?” She winced inwardly.
Tactful, Fleur—very subtle.

Ari’s eyes narrowed and his fingers started drumming on the arms of the chair. He rose and paced to the window, then stood looking out.

“It was not the thought of marriage to
you
that was distasteful. What was distasteful was the thought of a marriage to anyone based solely on my genetics. It is how you breed animals, not people. I am not a stud horse to be bred to Patricio’s favorite mare.” His back stiffened. “My apologies. I did not mean…”

“Please, Ari, sit down,” she interrupted.
Patricio’s ‘mare’? Ouch.

“I prefer to stand,” he responded curtly, not moving from the window.

She rolled her eyes in exasperation. “I am not used to speaking to someone’s backside half-way across the room. Will you at
least
turn around?”

A smile flickered. He turned. “I didn’t want to ‘loom’.” Laughter lurked in his eyes, and a half-smile turned his lips.

He really is quite extraordinary.
A soft laugh escaped her. “Thank you.”

He nodded and folded his arms across his chest, then crossed his legs at the ankles as he leaned back onto the windowsill. The heavy muscles of his arms and chest stretched his black knit sweater, and the black leather leggings tucked into his over-the-knee boots left little for her to imagine.
Such a handsome man.

Something about the way his eyes explored her body sent heat up and down her spine then straight to her lady-parts. She remembered the weight of him as he lay atop her. She remembered looking up into his gold-flecked eyes, feeling his mobile lips caressing her cheeks, feeling the rough brush of his beard on her tender inner skin as he—
mind on present business, Fleur!

“Ahem,” she cleared her throat. “So, have you given this contract any further thought? Do you still find it so distasteful?”
Oh, by the gods, Fleur, show
some
subtlety. What is wrong with you?

“Why? Are you going to ask me to marry you?” He eyed her dispassionately.

She held his gaze steadily.
How did this conversation get away from me?
“Not today.”

“Good.” He looked at the timekeeper on her table. “Your Highness, I am very short on time. I will continue this discussion with you another day.” He started toward her door.

“You haven’t answered my question, sir!”

“Yes. No,” he tossed over his shoulder as he left the room.

Argggh!
She slumped back onto the couch.
Yes? No?
What?
She replayed their conversation.

Have you given this contract further thought? “Yes.” Do you still find it so distasteful? “No.”

Her mouth gradually developed a delighted smile.

Blurb:
Scarred from her years as prisoner to the off-world Haarb, Lady Sophillia Glorianna DeLorion, found refuge, purpose and familial love with Verdantia’s desert-dwelling
Oshtesh
. But her sentient mother planet called to Sophi to exercise her unique birthright and join with a hardened warrior in a sexual rite that would bring prosperity and comfort to the people of the war-ravaged planet. After her years as a prisoner, Sophi doubted she could be a fit sexual partner for any man, even the warrior Verdantia sent to her – the one whose green eyes made her remember what it felt like to desire.

Commander of the Queen’s Royal Guard, Eric DeStroia had grown up watching the corrosive, soul-killing effects of arranged, aristocratic marriage. He would rather remain single his entire life than be joined to a woman he didn’t love – or who didn’t love him. In post-war Verdantia, any woman was a rarity. An aristocratic woman bearing a unique genetic marker matching his was beyond price. So, when the geneticists ordered their joining, he capitulated, consoling himself with fantasies of sheltering a wounded dove under his mighty arm. Instead, He discovered a fierce falcon that refused to stoop to his lure.

In the aftermath of their resounding defeat, the Haarb leader, Krakoll, plotted a return to Verdantia to exact retribution. His painstaking plans bore fruit. The time was ripe for return and his first objective was the recapture of Lady Sophillia Glorianna DeLorion. She had been unreachable until she went to the
Oshtesh
. Now, only Eric DeStroia stood in his way.

At dusk the next day, Sophi’s
flight
filtered into
Sh’r Un Kree
from the surrounding hillsides. As they gathered in the designated courtyard, she made a small adjustment to Brio’s bridle.

“Are these the legendary wasteland horses we lowlanders hear stories about?” Commander DeStroia’s deep voice caught her attention.
I didn’t hear his approach
.
Taught stealth by my brother, no doubt.

“Yes.” She followed his gaze as he examined her
flight’s
small, hardy mounts and the equally small, hardy women astride them. “Petrina – she has a fiery temper to match her red hair, but she is my right hand. The brunette beside her is Adonia, our medica. Her knowledge of herbs is indispensible and then Rhea, our best tracker. Layna, Eudora and Maeve complete our
flight
. Their precision in hitting their targets is uncanny. We don’t look like much, but we will not burden you, Commander. We are quite self-sufficient.”

“I never imagined otherwise, Lady DeLorion.”

She stiffened. “I do not use my courtesy title. I am no longer that person. I prefer ‘
Flight Leader
’.”

His eyes examined her but he nodded agreeably. “
Flight Leader
. We will leave upon the half-hour. Take position beside me at the front. Your
flight
can muster behind you.”

“No. It is not our way. We will ride the ridges and shadowed places in twos and threes. We will be there but you
will not see us.”

His eyes narrowed. “I don’t like it. I cannot protect you if I cannot see you.”

“I do not ask your permission, Commander. I am in far less danger with my
flight
than with you. I knew you were coming hours before you arrived. Sound carries great distances in the wastelands – and the dust! Your numbers hang a sign in the desert air, ‘attention – riders approach’.”

She swirled her robes away from her legs and vaulted onto her gelding. A whistled birdcall caught her archers’ attention. “We flank Commander DeStroia. Ride out.”

Sophi felt the Commander’s eyes on her as she and her
flight
faded into the desert night.

* * *