Zovak: Worldwalker Barbarians: Sci-Fi Alien Shifter Romance, page 7
Sparks crawled over her skin as the machine readied itself, and in an instant Emily made a decision. She threw herself from the chair, diving off the platform it stood on, hitting the ground with a painful thud as a blinding light filled the underground space.
Blinking back tears, she pulled herself to her feet and looked behind her. The chair was gone, flung back across space to Earth, leaving her behind.
12
Zovak
The Gate crackled with energy beside him, and Zovak knew it had done its work. His heart ached with a sadness he knew he could do nothing about, but he told himself that at least Emily was safe and on her own world now. He hoped that she would find happiness there, somehow.
Beneath him, Gorvar struggled, pinned to the ground by Zovak's weight. He hissed and squirmed, twisting to throw Zovak off, howling in pain as Zovak landed a punishing blow on his enemy's ribs before rolling to his feet. The two of them circled, the other Fire Wolves quiet now. They watched intently, tense and ready to pounce. Zovak didn't know whether they were going to interfere or not, but now he didn't care.
Emily was gone. Nothing much would matter for the rest of his life.
The pain of that thought drove him on, and he leaped back into the fray. Driving punch after punch at his enemy's face, he rocked the Fire Wolf backward with his undiluted fury. Gorvar countered, striking back hard, but Zovak ignored those blows. It was only pain, and he could take more of that than this man could dish out.
Grabbing him by the throat, he twisted and pulled Gorvar down to the ground again. This time he set his weight on the man's neck, squeezing hard and pinning him to the floor. Gorvar's hands groped at Zovak's neck but he couldn't find purchase and his strength ebbed as his face darkened.
A growl gave Zovak just enough warning to turn and duck as one of the Fire Wolves rushed him. Charging in wolf form, the warrior slammed into his side, teeth snapping shut on thin air, and the three of them tumbled across the ground. Zovak had to let go of Gorvar's throat to hold off the wolf, and the others were closing in too.
Zovak smiled grimly, twisting clear of the fight enough to smack the lead wolf across the face and get to his feet.
"You think you can beat us all?" Gorvar said, his voice hoarse from the choking. He pulled himself up, standing weakly and staggering a little. His smile was vicious as the other Fire Wolves gathered around him, facing Zovak.
"No," Zovak said, smiling wider. "But I can kill you before your friends can take me down. And I'm not sure how many of them will walk away from that fight, either."
He met Gorvar's gaze steadily and without fear. It was the simple truth, and as he watched, the Fire Wolves started to look less comfortable with their advantage. Gorvar looked around at them and took a step backward.
Zovak stepped forward, closing the distance and growling, his teeth bared and ready for the kill. His wolf strained against his control, eager to be free, to rend and tear at the enemy, and one of the Fire Wolves saw the look in his eyes and turned to run.
That was enough to break the confidence of the rest of them, and as one they turned, fleeing north across the plain. Gorvar was the last to turn, shooting Zovak a poisonous glare before shifting and running after his Clanmates. Zovak stared after them, his emotions mixed. He was half disappointed to have won, half surprised to have survived.
He took a deep breath, and when he released it much of the weight he'd been carrying faded with it. He couldn't be happy without his mate, that was certain, but accepting his fate brought him a kind of peace. He would do the best he could for Clan and family, guide them as best he could, and that was all anyone could ask of him.
Watching the retreating Fire Wolves, he knew that they'd be back. He might frighten them off for now, but their Clan was too big to defeat that simply. He'd have to work hard to keep his own Clan safe from them, but he knew he was ready for the task. It would be something to fill up the time he had in front of him.
His focus was entirely on the future, and the sound of movement behind him came as a shock. He whirled to face whoever had crept up on him, too slow to avoid a solid thwack to the arm. The counter-punch he started froze in midair as soon as he recognized his attacker.
"You idiot, you'd really have let me leave?" Emily said, face flushed with emotion. She was panting, as though she'd run up the stairs from the Gate below, but it wasn't enough to stop her hitting him again. "Idiot!"
The second punch stung, but not enough to stop him roaring with joy and sweeping her into his arms. She squirmed, helpless in his strong grip, as he swung her around and around.
"Emily! You stayed, you came back," he cried out, incredulous and joyful, the enemy forgotten. Putting her back down, he held his mate at arm's length to look at her. "Why?"
"Why, he asks," Emily said, addressing the sky and shaking her head. "You know why, Zovak. What I want to know is, why did you try to push me into going?"
"It's what you said you wanted," Zovak said, confused. "You told me you had to go home. You had a life there, waiting for you. And I would never keep you against your will. Your happiness is everything to me, Emily."
She sniffed, and he could see the tears in her eyes. Tears that mixed sadness with joy. "I was wrong, Zovak. Everything was happening so fast, and I made a mistake. There's nothing on Earth worth giving you up for."
Those words were enough to drive the air from his lungs, and the words from his throat. Speechless, Zovak pulled her to him, holding her tight and kissing her passionately. She gasped and then returned the kiss with equal passion.
Her eyes were bright and wide as she met his gaze. "Take me home, Zovak."
The End
Thank you for reading Zovak! Please take a moment to leave an opinion about the book, we appreciate every review.
If you’d like to hear more about our upcoming releases, sign up for our mailing lists:
Juno Wells newsletter
Leslie Chase newsletter
About Leslie Chase
LESLIE CHASE
I love writing, and especially enjoy writing sexy paranormal romance. It lets my imagination run free and my ideas come to life! When I’m not writing, I’m busy thinking about what to write next or researching it – yes, damn it, looking at castles and swords counts as research.
If you enjoy my books, please let me know with a review. Reviews are really important and I appreciate every one. If you’d like to be kept up to date on my new releases, you can sign up for my email newsletter by following this link.
My website can be found at here
Follow me on Twitter
My Facebook page is here
Email me at leslie@leslie-chase.com
About Juno Wells
JUNO WELLS
Juno Wells grew up on Florida's Space Coast, watching the shuttles take off from Cape Canaveral. When she hit college, her childhood fantasies about space travel turned highly romantic. Now her mind reels with space adventures of fantastic alien lords in distant galaxies, and the earth women they love.
Wells' stories explore the complex, sensual relationships between inhabitants of different star systems. There are always happy endings just as there is always a new world to explore.
Her work is exclusive to Amazon, so read as much as you like with Kindle Unlimited.
Have a comment? Make first contact with Juno at authorjunowells@gmail.com.
If you want to here about her new releases, sign up for her mailing list
Check out her Author Page on Amazon for all her books
Also by Leslie Chase
Paranormal Romance
Arcane Affairs Agency
A shared world of shifters, vampires, far, and witches - full of everything that goes bump in the night! Check out the full list of books here.
The Bear and the Heir, by Leslie Chase
When Cole North arrives in Argent Falls to investigate reports of magical storms, he doesn’t expect much to come of it. Not after the series of pointless missions the Arcane Affairs Agency has sent him on recently. This time, though, it’s different. The small town is plagued by bizarre weather, the storms are trying to warn him off, and there are fae running wild. And then there’s Fiona.
No matter how much the bear shifter tries to focus on his mission, he can’t get the hot, curvy girl out of his head. But the fae are after her too – and when they try and kidnap her, Cole’s mission and his feelings for Fiona collide.
Guardian Bears
Ex-military bear shifters providing protection from the threats no one else can deal with. Each book is a stand-alone plot, as the sexy bears find their curvy mates.
Guardian Bears: Marcus
Guardian Bears: Lucas
Guardian Bears: Karl
Tiger’s Sword
A four-part paranormal romance serial about Maxwell Walters, billionaire tiger shifter, and his curvy mate Lenore.
Box Set, collecting all four parts
Book One: Tiger’s Hunt
Book Two: Tiger’s Den
Book Three: Tiger’s Claws
Book Four: Tiger’s Heart
The Lion Princes
Roman, Mattias, and Gabriel are the heirs to the throne of Leotania, a small kingdom ruled by lion shifters. Each book tells the tale of one of the brothers finding his mate as they see which one of them will inherit the throne.
The Lion’s Castle
The Lion’s Share
The Lion’s Throne
Also by Juno Wells
Alien Barbarians of Zandipor
Kim Fox & Juno Wells
Barbarian One (Avery and Turic)
Barbarian Two (Rolanda and Pontuck)
Barbarian Three (Straykeer and Mandy)
Red Planet Dragons of Tajss
Miranda Martin & Juno Wells
Dragon’s Baby
Dragon's Mate
Warrior’s of Fisoar
Shea Malloy & Juno Wells
Kozan
Aizak
Leslie Chase, Zovak: Worldwalker Barbarians: Sci-Fi Alien Shifter Romance
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Blinking back tears, she pulled herself to her feet and looked behind her. The chair was gone, flung back across space to Earth, leaving her behind.
12
Zovak
The Gate crackled with energy beside him, and Zovak knew it had done its work. His heart ached with a sadness he knew he could do nothing about, but he told himself that at least Emily was safe and on her own world now. He hoped that she would find happiness there, somehow.
Beneath him, Gorvar struggled, pinned to the ground by Zovak's weight. He hissed and squirmed, twisting to throw Zovak off, howling in pain as Zovak landed a punishing blow on his enemy's ribs before rolling to his feet. The two of them circled, the other Fire Wolves quiet now. They watched intently, tense and ready to pounce. Zovak didn't know whether they were going to interfere or not, but now he didn't care.
Emily was gone. Nothing much would matter for the rest of his life.
The pain of that thought drove him on, and he leaped back into the fray. Driving punch after punch at his enemy's face, he rocked the Fire Wolf backward with his undiluted fury. Gorvar countered, striking back hard, but Zovak ignored those blows. It was only pain, and he could take more of that than this man could dish out.
Grabbing him by the throat, he twisted and pulled Gorvar down to the ground again. This time he set his weight on the man's neck, squeezing hard and pinning him to the floor. Gorvar's hands groped at Zovak's neck but he couldn't find purchase and his strength ebbed as his face darkened.
A growl gave Zovak just enough warning to turn and duck as one of the Fire Wolves rushed him. Charging in wolf form, the warrior slammed into his side, teeth snapping shut on thin air, and the three of them tumbled across the ground. Zovak had to let go of Gorvar's throat to hold off the wolf, and the others were closing in too.
Zovak smiled grimly, twisting clear of the fight enough to smack the lead wolf across the face and get to his feet.
"You think you can beat us all?" Gorvar said, his voice hoarse from the choking. He pulled himself up, standing weakly and staggering a little. His smile was vicious as the other Fire Wolves gathered around him, facing Zovak.
"No," Zovak said, smiling wider. "But I can kill you before your friends can take me down. And I'm not sure how many of them will walk away from that fight, either."
He met Gorvar's gaze steadily and without fear. It was the simple truth, and as he watched, the Fire Wolves started to look less comfortable with their advantage. Gorvar looked around at them and took a step backward.
Zovak stepped forward, closing the distance and growling, his teeth bared and ready for the kill. His wolf strained against his control, eager to be free, to rend and tear at the enemy, and one of the Fire Wolves saw the look in his eyes and turned to run.
That was enough to break the confidence of the rest of them, and as one they turned, fleeing north across the plain. Gorvar was the last to turn, shooting Zovak a poisonous glare before shifting and running after his Clanmates. Zovak stared after them, his emotions mixed. He was half disappointed to have won, half surprised to have survived.
He took a deep breath, and when he released it much of the weight he'd been carrying faded with it. He couldn't be happy without his mate, that was certain, but accepting his fate brought him a kind of peace. He would do the best he could for Clan and family, guide them as best he could, and that was all anyone could ask of him.
Watching the retreating Fire Wolves, he knew that they'd be back. He might frighten them off for now, but their Clan was too big to defeat that simply. He'd have to work hard to keep his own Clan safe from them, but he knew he was ready for the task. It would be something to fill up the time he had in front of him.
His focus was entirely on the future, and the sound of movement behind him came as a shock. He whirled to face whoever had crept up on him, too slow to avoid a solid thwack to the arm. The counter-punch he started froze in midair as soon as he recognized his attacker.
"You idiot, you'd really have let me leave?" Emily said, face flushed with emotion. She was panting, as though she'd run up the stairs from the Gate below, but it wasn't enough to stop her hitting him again. "Idiot!"
The second punch stung, but not enough to stop him roaring with joy and sweeping her into his arms. She squirmed, helpless in his strong grip, as he swung her around and around.
"Emily! You stayed, you came back," he cried out, incredulous and joyful, the enemy forgotten. Putting her back down, he held his mate at arm's length to look at her. "Why?"
"Why, he asks," Emily said, addressing the sky and shaking her head. "You know why, Zovak. What I want to know is, why did you try to push me into going?"
"It's what you said you wanted," Zovak said, confused. "You told me you had to go home. You had a life there, waiting for you. And I would never keep you against your will. Your happiness is everything to me, Emily."
She sniffed, and he could see the tears in her eyes. Tears that mixed sadness with joy. "I was wrong, Zovak. Everything was happening so fast, and I made a mistake. There's nothing on Earth worth giving you up for."
Those words were enough to drive the air from his lungs, and the words from his throat. Speechless, Zovak pulled her to him, holding her tight and kissing her passionately. She gasped and then returned the kiss with equal passion.
Her eyes were bright and wide as she met his gaze. "Take me home, Zovak."
The End
Thank you for reading Zovak! Please take a moment to leave an opinion about the book, we appreciate every review.
If you’d like to hear more about our upcoming releases, sign up for our mailing lists:
Juno Wells newsletter
Leslie Chase newsletter
About Leslie Chase
LESLIE CHASE
I love writing, and especially enjoy writing sexy paranormal romance. It lets my imagination run free and my ideas come to life! When I’m not writing, I’m busy thinking about what to write next or researching it – yes, damn it, looking at castles and swords counts as research.
If you enjoy my books, please let me know with a review. Reviews are really important and I appreciate every one. If you’d like to be kept up to date on my new releases, you can sign up for my email newsletter by following this link.
My website can be found at here
Follow me on Twitter
My Facebook page is here
Email me at leslie@leslie-chase.com
About Juno Wells
JUNO WELLS
Juno Wells grew up on Florida's Space Coast, watching the shuttles take off from Cape Canaveral. When she hit college, her childhood fantasies about space travel turned highly romantic. Now her mind reels with space adventures of fantastic alien lords in distant galaxies, and the earth women they love.
Wells' stories explore the complex, sensual relationships between inhabitants of different star systems. There are always happy endings just as there is always a new world to explore.
Her work is exclusive to Amazon, so read as much as you like with Kindle Unlimited.
Have a comment? Make first contact with Juno at authorjunowells@gmail.com.
If you want to here about her new releases, sign up for her mailing list
Check out her Author Page on Amazon for all her books
Also by Leslie Chase
Paranormal Romance
Arcane Affairs Agency
A shared world of shifters, vampires, far, and witches - full of everything that goes bump in the night! Check out the full list of books here.
The Bear and the Heir, by Leslie Chase
When Cole North arrives in Argent Falls to investigate reports of magical storms, he doesn’t expect much to come of it. Not after the series of pointless missions the Arcane Affairs Agency has sent him on recently. This time, though, it’s different. The small town is plagued by bizarre weather, the storms are trying to warn him off, and there are fae running wild. And then there’s Fiona.
No matter how much the bear shifter tries to focus on his mission, he can’t get the hot, curvy girl out of his head. But the fae are after her too – and when they try and kidnap her, Cole’s mission and his feelings for Fiona collide.
Guardian Bears
Ex-military bear shifters providing protection from the threats no one else can deal with. Each book is a stand-alone plot, as the sexy bears find their curvy mates.
Guardian Bears: Marcus
Guardian Bears: Lucas
Guardian Bears: Karl
Tiger’s Sword
A four-part paranormal romance serial about Maxwell Walters, billionaire tiger shifter, and his curvy mate Lenore.
Box Set, collecting all four parts
Book One: Tiger’s Hunt
Book Two: Tiger’s Den
Book Three: Tiger’s Claws
Book Four: Tiger’s Heart
The Lion Princes
Roman, Mattias, and Gabriel are the heirs to the throne of Leotania, a small kingdom ruled by lion shifters. Each book tells the tale of one of the brothers finding his mate as they see which one of them will inherit the throne.
The Lion’s Castle
The Lion’s Share
The Lion’s Throne
Also by Juno Wells
Alien Barbarians of Zandipor
Kim Fox & Juno Wells
Barbarian One (Avery and Turic)
Barbarian Two (Rolanda and Pontuck)
Barbarian Three (Straykeer and Mandy)
Red Planet Dragons of Tajss
Miranda Martin & Juno Wells
Dragon’s Baby
Dragon's Mate
Warrior’s of Fisoar
Shea Malloy & Juno Wells
Kozan
Aizak
Leslie Chase, Zovak: Worldwalker Barbarians: Sci-Fi Alien Shifter Romance
