Total pages in book: 99
Estimated words: 94091 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 470(@200wpm)___ 376(@250wpm)___ 314(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 94091 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 470(@200wpm)___ 376(@250wpm)___ 314(@300wpm)
No true S’rentha would act in such a fashion, T’zaren thought, frowning. A true S’rentha was cool, calm, and collected at all times. She was stern and she demanded loyalty, obedience, and respect. So though he found the short, curvy blonde extremely attractive, he reluctantly ruled her out. She might be available, but she would never cause his Sen Stripe to flare—he was sure of that.
And then her foot slipped and she fell into the river.
Her friend gasped and began to shout for help at once. Then she closed her eyes tightly and seemed to be sending a mental message to her bonded mate through the connection they shared, but T’zaren didn’t wait to see if he was near enough to come and help her. He was a Monstrum warrior and the Monstrum were a branch of the Kindred. Which meant that a female’s safety came first for him—even a female he didn’t know.
Luckily he had no shirt or shoes on. Like many of the Monstrum who lived on the Dark Side of the ship, he usually wore a pair of black trousers as his only form of clothing. So he didn’t have to struggle taking everything off—he simply dived right in with his trousers on and began swimming as hard as he could.
The river was rough in this part of the Mother Ship—the current was swift and the water was dark. Also, visibility was limited. Luckily, T’zaren could see in the dark as well as he could in the daylight, so the little female’s blonde hair—even though it was matted to her head—was clearly visible to him as she bobbed along.
She was in the middle of the river where the current was strongest and she was headed for a place where the water went underground for a ways. This underwater tunnel was a favorite haunt of the Mer-Monstrum—huge, muscular males whose lower halves were piscine in nature. They were natural predators and might look at the little female as prey, rather than a possible mate.
But even if the Mer-Monstrum didn’t get her, T’zaren doubted she could hold her breath long enough to emerge on the tunnel’s other side. He had to reach her before she went underground!
He sent a quick, desperate mental prayer.
“Please, Goddess, let me get to her!”
And then he redoubled his efforts, stroking hard with the current, swimming as fast as he could to reach her. The water chilled him to the bone but he barely noticed it. At last, she was within an arm’s reach and he was able to reach out one long arm and tangle it in the soft, silky fabric of her upper clothing.
He kicked backwards, struggling against the current now, desperate to get her to the side of the river and out of the water before both of them were dragged into the underwater tunnel. And then, his free hand found something—a root from one of the huge old trees that overshadowed the river was sticking out. It almost seemed as though it had been put there just for him, T’zaren thought.
He grabbed for the root and held it tight while he kept a firm grip on the little blonde’s blouse. She had realized that he had her now and turned to him, also kicking against the current.
“Can you hold on to me?” T’zaren shouted, trying to be heard over the roar of the river. “I can pull us both in but I need both hands to do it!”
She nodded mutely, her eyes wide and frightened. But there was a determined set to her chin as he pulled her closer.
“Put your arms around my neck but don’t strangle me!” T’zaren ordered. “I’ll pull us in.”
She nodded again and found a grip on his arm and then his shoulder. Her little nails were sharp as they dug into his flesh but he barely noticed. Because suddenly, when she touched him, he felt as though someone had poured a river of fire down his spine.
He gasped and nearly let go of the tree root—only instinct kept him clinging. What was this? Was he imagining it or had his Sen Stripe flared for the very first time?
There’s no time to think of this now—I have to get us both to safety! T’zaren lectured himself. I’m probably imagining it anyway.
So he ignored the strange sensation and concentrated on survival. When he felt both her arms around his neck and her full breasts pressed against his broad back, he began pulling them both, hand-over-hand, up the length of the root. Slowly, fighting the current every bit of the way, he got them back to the banks of the river.
Help was already waiting. The huge Drake Monstrum called Dra’vik was leaning over the water, offering a hand. It was his scent that T’zaren had smelled on the other human female—the pregnant one who was crying with worry and distress, tears rolling down her cheeks as she looked for her friend.