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Authors: Charlene Hartnady

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BOOK: A Mate for Gideon
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A
year and a half ago. It was not a very long time. Not to a vampire. Not to him,
since he had already lived nearly one hundred human years. The last eighteen
months had felt like a lifetime, yet not nearly long enough. Certainly not long
enough for him to forget.
Her.
Gideon stumbled forward, forgetting about
the very real threat, forgetting about the evacuation plans. He pulled the
closest guard to the side so that he could see into the center of the
formation.

Her
small, delicate frame was burned into his memory, as were her large brown eyes
which flew to him as he growled. They widened in both recognition and longing.
Her succulent mouth rounded as she gasped, trying to pull away from the male
next to her.

Jenna.

At
first, he completely froze, sure that she was some kind of apparition because
there was no way that his Jenna was here. No fucking way. The guard clasped her
arm tighter, not allowing her to escape. The little green flecks in her irises
brightened as her eyes blazed in anger and she gave her arm another yank, her
whole body pulled towards Gideon. Everything angled towards him. Gideon took a
step forward as a snarl was ripped from his throat. “Let her go.”

Her
beautiful eyes stayed wide, only now he recognized fear in their depths and she
shrank back from him. Gideon felt himself frown. Jenna was afraid?…of him?
Unacceptable.
The realization made him take pause. It was enough time to regroup and to calm
the fuck down. He saw that all eyes were on him.

“I
need to question this female.” He said, working hard to keep his voice devoid
of emotion. Gideon stepped forward and gripped her elbow, pulling her into his
side. Thankfully, she allowed herself to be drawn to him.

Fuck.

He
tried not to notice how perfectly she fit against him. That harsh clench was
back and he held his free hand to his chest. “Keep loading the vehicles. Titan,…”
His second in command was already looking his way. “Take over for a minutes.”

The
male nodded immediately before stepping into position. “You heard our leader,”
Titan growled. “Bring the next female…stay focused.”

Thankfully,
no one questioned his motives. He could hear that her heart threatened to beat
right out of her chest. Her breathing came in sharp little pants. She allowed
herself to be led back into the club. Gideon moved with long strides down the
hallway and Jenna had to jog to keep up. He turned a corner and pushed her up
against a wall, careful not to hurt her in any way.

He
could scent her acrid fear and as his eyes settled on her, he realized that she
was not only afraid, but she was afraid of him.

What
the…

He
may still be angry with her, and with good cause, but she had no reason to fear
him. Gideon clenched his jaw for a few beats, fighting for control. Seeing her
here, right now, in this situation, had adrenaline coursing through his veins.
The need to protect her rode him hard, followed by the need to rut her as a
close second. “Jenna.” It came out on a low growl and some of the tension
drained from her.

Her
eyes were still wide in her head and her breathing was a little shallow.

“What
are you doing here?” Gideon kept his eyes locked with hers.

“I
had to come.” Hearing her soft, sweet as honey voice almost brought him to his
knees.

He
swallowed hard, gripping her by her elbows as if to keep her there. It was a
guise. The truth was that he really needed to touch her, even if just for a few
seconds. It was so fucked up but he couldn’t make himself let go. “Why are you
here?” He repeated, his voice a little harsher this time.

Jenna
flinched but quickly regained her composure. “Why do you think I’m here? Surely
it must be obvious.” Two grooves appeared between her eyes when she frowned.

Gideon
shrugged. “I’m fucked if I have even the slightest clue.” Then he made a low
growling noise. “It had better not be for the breeding program.” His grip on
her tightened and he watched as her eyes clouded in fear. The scent permeated
the air. “Why are you afraid? We have the situation contained. I will protect
you. My team will keep you safe.” He quickly added the last, not wanting to
give her false hope that there would ever be anything between them again. It
was not going to happen.

She
swallowed thickly, squeezing her eyes shut for a few beats. His eyes were drawn
to her long neck and to the strong pulse at the base of it. His mouth watered.

Sugar
and spice…

When
she raised her lids, the fear was gone. “I’m sorry…it’s just…never mind.” She
sucked in a breath. “I’m not afraid of you. I know you would never hurt me.”
She said it as if to convince herself, which didn’t make sense to him. Gideon
let it slide.

“I
really need to know why you are here. There is not much time.” Any second now,
one of the males would call for them. Most of the females would already be on
their way to the castle.

She
grit her teeth for a few seconds and her eyes hardened with determination. “
For
you
. I came for you, Gideon.” Her eyes stayed locked with his. “Why else?”

It
was his turn to suck in a ragged breath. “No.” Another loud growl was pulled
from him and she whimpered. He couldn’t take her reacting to him in this way,
so he gently cupped her jaw. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.”

“You
didn’t,” she whispered.

Like
fuck he didn’t scare her.

“You
must return home.” Gideon let his hands fall away from her. He had no business
touching this female.
None.
“You are a mated female…what of your child?
You lied on your questionnaire.” Anger rose up in him.

If
only he had obeyed the rules eighteen months ago, this wouldn’t be happening
now. He wouldn’t be going through the agony of sending her away all over again.

Footfalls
sounded. Their time was up.

Jenna
wiped a tear away. “You have it all wrong. You are mistaken.”

He
shook his head. “Bullshit.”

Her
eyes misted and her lip trembled just as Emmet rounded the corner. “The last
vehicle is being loaded now.”

Gideon
nodded. “You may take the female.”

“Are
you done questioning her?” A quizzical look crossed the male’s face.

“Yes…for
a second, I thought”—he held up a hand and shook his head—“forget it. I was
mistaken, you can take her.”

“Give
me a chance to explain.” Jenna implored him with her eyes.

“There
is nothing to explain. Apologies for any inconvenience. You may return to the
rest of the females. Enjoy your evening.” The males would be wondering what the
hell had happened. They could fucking wonder all they wanted. He’d be damned if
he was going to give them any more to think on though. “I’m right behind you.”
He said, his eyes on Emmet.

“You
have it all wrong,” she whispered.

It
almost killed him to do it, but he ignored her, moving his gaze to the hallway
up ahead. Humans were forbidden. Totally off limits. Especially lying,
sneaking, cheating ones. It was crazy how he still struggled to see her in that
light. Even now. Even knowing what he knew.

They
moved quickly. Gideon clenched his jaw as he watched her being escorted and
deposited into the waiting vehicle. Emmet fell in next to him as they waited,
watching the SUV pull off and another take its place. “Fuck,” Emmet growled. “I
didn’t think you were into the human females.”

Gideon
remained silent while opening one of the rear doors.

The
male made a humming noise. “She wasn’t nearly as lush as some of the others but
she had a set of tits on her that could make a—”

Gideon
didn’t wait to hear the rest of what Emmet had to say, he pulled back and
punched the male hard in the face. Not expecting the onslaught, the male landed
on his backside, his nose streamed with blood and his top lip was a busted up
mess. His eyes were wide.

“If
I hear anyone disrespecting the human females in any way, I will personally put
a fist through their teeth.” He paused, looking around to ensure that he had
the attention of every male in the area. They all looked at him with shocked
expressions on their faces. “There will be no mention made of any part of their
bodies or how good they would look on the end of your cock. It is fucking rude.
They are guests. I hope that I’ve made myself clear.” Gideon folded his arms
across his chest. “All of this mouthing off to one another instead of doing
your jobs is getting on my nerves as well. Do your goddamned duties or I will
have you cleaning toilets.” He turned to Titan. “Make sure that my entire team
is briefed accordingly.”

The
big male nodded.

Gideon
got into the waiting vehicle. Two other males got in next to him, and a still
bleeding, Emmet climbed into the front. The male glanced back. “I’m sorry.”

Gideon
knew that he had acted harshly. The churning anger that burned holes in his
insides was being misdirected. He should be shouting at Jenna. Demanding
answers, but there was no point.

Jenna.

Here.

Part
of the Program.

Gideon
clenched his teeth, only just holding back a growl. Here for him…yeah right. He
wasn’t buying that. Neither was he buying the whole
it wasn’t what you think
thing. It was exactly what he had thought. Exactly how it had looked. The fact
of the matter was, if she didn’t end up getting him, she would probably settle
for any of the other vampires without a second glance at him. He was a fool for
still being so cut up over her. A fucking idiot.

 

 

Chapter 3

 

Jenna
looked down at her plate. At the two-egg, cheese omelet and slice of brown
toast. The problem was that she wasn’t hungry. There was no sign of Gideon.
Although she had expected that reaction from him, it still really hurt.

He
refused to see her as anything other than some two timing hussy. How did she
make him understand that it wasn’t like that at all?

She
must’ve sighed deeply because Lazarus gave her arm a nudge. “Why the glum
face?”

It
was weird, he was so big and so imposing that she really should be scared of
him but she wasn’t. She looked around the room, at all the big vampires. Any of
them could snap her like a twig without even trying but she knew they wouldn’t.
Vampires nurtured and protected women, they didn’t beat on them.

Unfortunately,
she also remembered her reaction to Gideon last night and swallowed hard. She
had been afraid of him. Even though she had no logical reason to fear him. Jenna
knew that he would never lay a hand on her, yet, she couldn’t stop the fear
that had coursed through her. She’d become hard wired for over a year to expect
the worst from that one person that was meant to protect you the most.

“Earth
to Jenna”—Lazarus nudged her again—“What’s up?”

“Um…nothing.”
What was she supposed to say? I’m in love with the one person I can’t have?
The one person who hates me.

“If
you say so.” He shoved a whole forkful of crispy bacon into his mouth.

“I
thought vampires didn’t eat very much.”

Gideon
smiled around his food and chewed a few times before swallowing. “A liquid diet
isn’t enough to sustain this.” He lifted an arm that was about the size of a
tree trunk. “I need the blood to slow down my metabolism enough to digest
this.” He gestured to his loaded plate.

“I
see.” She smiled at him.

“You’ll
notice that most of the bulkier males eat. At least once in a while. Maybe not
much but some.” He did a fork sweep around the table. She distinctly remembered
Gideon eating. Like Lazarus said, not much, but he had eaten. She’d thought he
did it just to make her feel more comfortable but he obviously needed the food
as well. Jenna looked at the others around the table. There was one vampire to every
two or three women. Competition was fierce to try and win the guys’ attention.

There
were low cut tops, short skirts and fluttering fake eyelashes everywhere. Jenna
had to work not to roll her eyes. She must’ve made a disbelieving noise as she
slowly shook her head because Lazarus looked her way. “What?” He shoved a
mouthful of eggs into his mouth.

She
made a little snorting noise. “This is a total circus.”

“I
know.” He growled, shoveling another mouthful in.

“The
guys seem to be really enjoying it.” One of the vampires…a really good looking
younger guy, actually put his face into one of the women’s cleavages. He
actually shook his head in-between her breasts. When his head came up, his eyes
rolled back and he groaned. The woman was leaning over to his side with both
her hands under the table. Two guesses where her manicured fingers were. One
guess what they were doing. “They’re lapping it up. It’s a freak-show circus.”
She repeated the sentiment, her mouth falling open.

A
sighing noise, at the head of the table drew her attention. One of the vampires
had his tongue buried down the throat of one of the women and he was openly
fondling her breast.

Jenna’s
mouth dropped right open in an all-out gape now and any thoughts about food
completely disappeared. “Oh my good golly…”

Lazarus
chuckled. “Don’t look so shocked. It is my understanding that you were briefed
on how sexual vampires are.”

Jenna
nodded. She knew firsthand how sexual vampires were but maybe she hadn’t given
much thought on exactly what that meant in this type of setting.

The
couple excused themselves, practically running in the direction of the door.
Their arms around one another. His big hand on her ass.

Jenna
made another little snorting noise. “Please don’t tell me…” Her eyes tracked
them as they disappeared. “That they’re going to…”

“Rut?”
Lazarus growled. Another rasping chuckle erupted from deep inside his barrel of
a chest. “I’d put serious money on it.”

“I’m
sorry.” She wiped her mouth with her napkin even though she had yet to eat.
“I’m not a prude, but really? None of us know one another well enough for…that.”

Lazarus
shrugged. “It’s a matter of testing compatibility. It is a must. A male will
not take a female as a mate unless they are compatible. And vice versa as well
of course.”

“I
guess I expected it to take a few more days at least before…well…before this
started happening.”

“Why
wait? If a male and a female are attracted to one another and get along with
one another then they should rut.” He shoveled the last mouthful of food into
his mouth.

“If
what you say is true, then you vampires must sleep with a ton of different
people.” The thought of Gideon having sex with a whole bunch of women didn’t
sit right with her.

Lazarus
nodded. He swallowed his mouthful, putting his knife and fork on the plate in
front of him. “You could say that.”

Jenna
pursed her lips for a moment and took a couple of deep breaths. “I mean, what
are we talking here? You have sex with a different partner every few weeks?”

Lazarus
just smiled at her.

Jenna
gasped. “A different partner every week?”

He
raised his eyebrows and crossed his arms across his chest.

“Oh
my god…” She shook her head. “You have sex with a different woman every few
days?”

“It’s
not like that.” He shrugged. “We have sex often…yeah…and often with different
partners but we also have our favorites. Those we are compatible with
physically but not that we see as mate material. Most of us have rutted many
different partners.” He gave a feral grin. “Sometimes even more than one in one
day.”

Her
mouth fell open but she quickly closed it, putting her napkin against her lips.
She went from feeling a little ill to feeling a little annoyed. Jenna blew out
a breath through her nose as she started to feel downright mad. If Gideon was
here right now, she would let him have it. She’d been with a hand full of men
in her whole life. Too few to count on one hand. Yet he was mad at her and he’d
been with tons of women? Whole strings of them by the sounds of it. The
knowledge made everything in her tighten. It made her want to throw things.

Lazarus
must have sensed her change in moods because he turned more towards her and
even touched her arm lightly. “We also mate for life, Jenna. Once we have found
the right partner, we never let go, are very loyal and protective. There are no
half measures. It’s all or nothing with us. Any previous partners we have had
pale in comparison. Our mate becomes our everything.” He said it with such
heartfelt emotion.

Something
in her softened. There was still a part of her that was feeling pretty mad
though. “I just don’t like double standards. I’m sorry.”

“What
do you mean by double standards?” His brows lifted.

“Nothing…it’s
nothing. You’re really sweet. Why aren’t you chatting with any of the ladies
here?” She forced down all the confused emotions that coursed through her and
smiled at him.

“I
am.” He smiled back. “I’m talking to you.”

“Yeah,
but”—she looked back down at her plate—“you should really be speaking to
someone you can actually have.”

His
face clouded and his Adam’s apple worked as he swallowed hard.

“I
didn’t mean it like that.” She touched the side of his arm.

He
shrugged. “It’s fine. I know there is nothing more than friendship between us…I
was only joking around. Thing is…” He paused, sucking in a deep breath. His big
chest lifted. “You are the only female here that isn’t petrified of me. Also,
you do know this is a breeding…dating program right?” He rolled his eyes at the
use of the word ‘dating’. “You are supposed to be available, yet I don’t see
you trying to win any of the males.”

“None
of them are my type.” She chewed on her lower lip. “I guess I don’t want a guy
that wants a girl who throws herself at him. I hope that makes even the tiniest
bit of sense.”

Lazarus
nodded. “Yes it does, although I must admit that I would love a human female to
throw herself at me. Looove.” He rolled the word off his tongue.

Jenna
had to laugh. She gave his arm a little slap. “You might want that for a quick
roll in the hay but not as a long term relationship…come on, admit it.”

“A
roll in the hay? Have you lost your mind? I wouldn’t roll in any hay with her.
I would bend her over and—”

“Okay
already, I get the picture.” Jenna had to laugh some more. “A roll in the hay
is a human saying for having sex.”

His
eyes lit up. “Then I would very much like it if a human female threw herself at
me so that we could roll around in hay.” He groaned loudly.

“Talk
to one of the ladies then.”

“I’ve
tried. They’re all scared of me.” He rolled his very broad, very muscular
shoulders.

“You
shouldn’t wear all those knives to the table.” She pointed to the one on his
thigh and the other one on his belt. Judging by the bulges on his ankles and
various other places on his person, she suspected he had many more concealed
weapons as well. “Human women are not into violence and aggression.”

Lazarus’
eyes narrowed. “I won’t take them off after last night. No fucking way. I need
to be able to protect you humans.”

“You
are so sweet.” She put a hand on his arm. “I am sure that once these ladies get
to know you, they will see you in a whole new light.”

“I’m
not any prettier in different lighting.” He shrugged. “This is me.”

Jenna
covered her mouth, trying hard to hold back a laugh. “I don’t mean a change of
lighting. What I mean is, they will like you lots once they get to know you.”
She kept her hand on his arm. They had established that what they had was a
friendship so she wasn’t worried about him getting the wrong idea. “For the
record…you are an attractive guy. A woman would have to be crazy to not want a
built and seriously badass vampire like you.”

Lazarus
gave her a toothy grin. “Damn straight. I fuck like a demon as well.”

“That’s
a little too much information—” before she could finish her sentence, there was
a meaty thud that put Lazarus on his back with a face full of blood.

Gideon
stood over him, looking so magnificent that it took her breath away. His chest
heaved, his eyes blazed, his hands were fisted at his sides. All of his focus
was on the vampire that lay on the ground.

“What
the fuck?” Lazarus spat out a mouth full of blood. He stayed on his back, his
own eyes burning just as fiercely. “Gideon?” He sounded shocked and even
blinked his eyes a few times.

Gideon
made a loud growling noise, his lip curled away from his teeth exposing long,
sharp fangs. A shiver ran up her spine. Gideon cursed loudly, then he turned
and stalked away.

Although
everyone at the table watched him go, as soon as the door closed, the focus
turned to Lazarus.

“What
did you do?” One of the males asked.

“It
must have been bad.” Another chuckled.

“Fuck
if I know.” Lazarus responded as he pulled himself into a sitting position.

Jenna
grabbed her purse and quickly made for the exit. No one would think for one
second that she was going after Gideon. They would assume that she was shaken
and that she had decided to return to her suite. Then again, they probably
wouldn’t even notice at all. She closed the door behind her.

Jenna
caught a glimpse of him as he rounded the corner up ahead. She was tempted to
shout after him but didn’t want to garner any attention. Maybe she had it all
wrong, but she was pretty sure he had acted that way out of jealousy. Why else?
If he was jealous, then she had a chance to make him understand.

She
broke out into a jog and crashed straight into him as she rounded the corner. He
was on his way back. Gideon put his hands out and grabbed onto her waist so
that she didn’t fall onto her ass.

She
made a little gasping noise.

“What
the hell?” he growled.

Held
in his tight grip, staring into his blazing eyes, she felt herself panic and
scrambled to get away.

“Jenna.”
His voice was pleading and his eyes were filled with concern. Thankfully, she
felt the fear melt away as he said her name.

Jenna
sucked in a deep breath. “I…” She didn’t quite know what to say. “Why did you
turn around?”

His
jaw tightened. “I wanted to apologize to Lazarus. It’s not what you think.”

As
in, he wasn’t jealous.
Like hell
. She pursed her lips together and
nodded. “If you say so. I’m glad that you are going to apologize. That was
uncalled for.”

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