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"Tell me how to help her," he pleaded with Millie

The older wo her little hands "I don’t know this for sure, iven by an unscrupulous wizard" She shook her head, the bun that looked as if it weighed al on her head "But in this case, another witch unleashed this on her, then left her alone… Oh, dear"

"What is it?"

"I believe it’s a fertility spell They’re quite dangerous and require a great deal of power They’ve been banned for centuries Witches inflicted have died"

Died? His heart revved up, pounding in his ears He wasn’t going to lose Anka, not after finally having her back in his arain "What can we do? Whatever it is, I’ll do it"

"I’m afraid it’s not that simple The fertility spell is one that first acts on the inflicted like an aphrodisiac She will usually choose the first es of sexual energy Usually in a few days, the spell wanes The spell automatically makes her repel all mated wizards Their smell is putrid, their touch painful"

Which explained a lot of Anka’s behavior He zipped his gaze over to Bra I’ll keep the others occupied and see what else we can find out about this spell I’ll send Ice out to scout for Morganna Or a banshee"

With that, Bram left

Anka i and twitching now Lucan sat on the bed at her feet and tried to oing to be all right, love" Then he focused on Millie again "What else?"

"As I said, she usually takes the first wizard her body will accept There is one exception, however If a witch’s true mate is in the vicinity, she will reject all others until he comes to um…service her, I’m afraid" The little witch winced

"What?" Shock barked

"She will only have her true mate if he’s nearby" She tried to smile as she looked between the two of them "The way she responds to both of you… I think she’s a bit torn She may accept either of you"

That was hardly news Shock growled at his thought

"The good news is, since Bram left the room, she’s calmed considerably," Millie pointed out, voice chipper

That was thankfully true Anka’s breathing had evened out She no longer cried or screamed or acted as if pain tore her apart Experio of her ankles Shock did the same to her wrists Anka shifted restlessly, eyes closed, arching in invitation and spreading her leather-clad legs Her body searched for a lover

"Get the hell out!" Shock snarled at him

"Why do you think you’re her true ed He had to be it No man would ever love her as he did He hadn’t shown it well after she’d been abducted He hadn’t been there By God, he planned to be here for her now--and every day thereafter

"She came to me after Mathias’s torture, and I saved her I’ve protected her I’ve lived with her I’ve waited for her for over a hundred years You…" Shock sneered "You only fucked around, lost your bloody "

The truth stung like a bitch, and he would have loved to pound Shock into a wall, but Anka needed one of them now He blocked the other wizard out and addressed Millie "How can we knoho her true mate is if she can’t decide?"

"She will It’s been hundreds of years since I’ve seen this spell, mind you, but my recollection is that if any man tries to touch her once her true mate has, he will be roundly rejected"

"You called it a fertility spell Does that mean that the man she accepts…?"

"Becomes the father of the child she will likely conceive? Yes It doesn’t alork, of course It depends on the power of the person casting the spell"

Since Morganna had cast it, it ought to be potent as hell Chances were, if Anka accepted hiht also be herthey would probably conceive

"Great Thank you, Millie Is it too dangerous for Anka if we ask you to leave us?"

The older witch shook her head "Honestly, there’s nothing more I can do for her now I suspect that only one of you two can help Good luck"

The door opened, closed A sliver of air and light passed into the roo over Anka’s face She cried out, a tiny little iven herself earlier had nearly healed, but she was clearly still in son that her desperate body still needed attention

But froh his head was a calculated risk, but could also eli depended on Anka "All right If she accepts you now, Shock, I’ll concede I’ll go away, leave her alone, and never try to win her back again"

"About bloody fucking time Get out"

"You have ten minutes with her If you can’t prove that you’re her true mate, you will leave her to me and not ever try to win her back"

Shock’s head whipped around "You think you’re dictating to o first, then? I don’t ed, trying to hide the worry that he est mistake of his life "It would seeet on with helping Anka"

Shock lowered his head, looking down at the woive their lives to save He could say a lot of awful things about the wankstain, but he had to admit that Shock cared veryto his feet, Shock rolled his shoulders and looked toward theThe shutters had been drawn Between that and his ever-present sunglasses, Shock shouldn’t be able to see a da moment as if the wooden slats closed to the afternoon sun could provide any answers