Not that he was complaining in the slightest.
He fisted his hands in her long blond hair, holding her in place above him as he kissed her hard and hot, which didn’t do a damned thing to take the edge off the horns that’d been riding him since they got back to the compound. Mine, he thought fiercely, and again, mine.
It wasn’t just the magic of the god, though they both felt it, a kernel of gold at the base of their souls, something they could draw on when they needed it in the months and years to come. They’d won only a single battle. The war was yet to be joined. It wasn’t just the relief of having her still there, either, though that was huge. The thought that he could’ve lost her had him sliding his hands down her shoulders to her waist and drawing her snug against the hard ridge in his jeans. And it wasn’t just the total turn-on of wearing their matching marks, the beloved marks.
It was her. Leah. His woman. His love. There were no guards between them, no barriers. There were only the two of them.
‘‘I love you,’’ he said when they came up for air.
‘‘That’s convenient, ’cause I love you back.’’ With a lithe twist, she slipped out from underneath him and came up with her fingers wrapped around his belt. Tugged him toward the solarium. ‘‘Come on. Jox finally gave up and moved a bed out under the stars. We’ve got a box spring and everything.’’
‘‘No shit?’’ Strike laughed. ‘‘There might be some romance in the old guy’s soul after all.’’ But he pulled her farther down the short hall. ‘‘I’ve got a better idea.’’
The torches came up when he opened the door to the small ritual chamber, and the air smelled of copan even though he hadn’t burned any. Leah flowed past him, shedding clothes as she went, so she was naked by the time she turned and hiked herself up on the chac-mool, put one foot up onto the poor guy’s head, and crooked a finger at Strike. ‘‘I like your thinking.’’
He went to her, putting his feet in the red outlines on the ceremonial mat, and fitting the rest of his body exactly where it was meant to be—up against his woman. His queen. And when they kissed and the torches dimmed, and he glanced into the obsidian mirror behind the altar, he saw only the strong, delicate curve of Leah’s spine, and her face in half profile as she turned it into his neck and breathed him in.
The ghosts, and the past, were gone, leaving them to live the future yet unwritten.
Together.
The End
SIGNET ECLIPSE
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First published by Signet Eclipse, an imprint of New American Library,
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First Printing, June 2008
Copyright © Jessica Andersen, 2008
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SIGNET ECLIPSE and logo are trademarks of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
To the other Jess, my road trip partner on the writing highway—speed bumps, roadkill, and all. Thanks for bringing me along, and yes, you’ll probably always have the cooler car.
AUTHOR’S NOTE
The Nightkeepers’ world is well hidden within our own; bringing it to light wasn’t always an easy process. My heartfelt thanks go to Deidre Knight, Kara Cesare, Claire Zion, Kara Welsh, and Kerry Donovan for taking this book from a dream to a reality; to J. R. Ward for critiques and help each step of the way; to Suz Brockmann for being a mentor and an inspiration; to Angela Knight for early reads and encouragement; to Marley Gibson and Charlene Glatkowski for being there for me every day without fail; to Sally Hinkle Russell for keeping me sane; and to Brian Hogan for too many things to name in this small space.
Just as the few surviving Nightkeepers live among us today, their ancestors lived with the ancient Egyptians, Olmec, Maya, and Hopi; they left their imprint on each of these civilizations, and were influenced in turn. Thus, while their culture is best reflected in the myths and beliefs of the Maya, the parallel is not absolute.
That being said, I drew upon a number of sources to understand the Nightkeepers’ world. These include the excellent hieroglyphic dictionaries of John Montgomery, Allen J. Christenson’s translation and annotation of the Popol Vuh, Miller and Taube’s illustrated dictionary of Mayan gods and symbols, and the vast online resources of the Foundation for the Advancement of Mesoamerican Studies, Inc. In addition, I used various resources to understand the cataclysm predicted for 12/21/2012; these included works by Patrick Geryl and John Major Jenkins. Finally, works of Erich von Däniken, Kenneth L. Feder, Stephen Williams, and Charles Pellegrino were used for their discussions of Atlantis, alien influences on prehistoric cultures, and other so-called pseudoscientific theories. For a full list of references and recommended reading on the ancient Maya and the 2012 doomsday prophecy, please visit www.JessicaAndersen.com.
Table of Contents
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
CHAPTER ELEVEN
CHAPTER TWELVE
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
CHAPTER NINETEEN
CHAPTER TWENTY
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE