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  He stared into my eyes, his face full of conflict. Then his need took over, and he kissed me back.

  What started in the shower, ended on the floor. It was a wondrous thing to have someone make love to you. I knew without a doubt in my heart that Ares and I loved each other. In those moments, it didn’t matter to me that I had been destined for him or that he was a killer at times. He was mine and I was his. That was all I needed to know. We lay, breathing heavily on the floor, as our bodies tried to calm down. I turned my head and stared at his handsome face. He smiled at me, making his eyes shine with the happiness he felt. It was the first full smile I had seen on him. I asked, “Will it be like that every time?”

  He shook his head and I frowned. He laughed and pulled me against his body, proving that he could go again if I wanted to. He said, “It’s better, the longer you are together.”

  I smiled at him, and then Koda cleared his throat. I looked over the top of Ares’ body at him and frowned. “How long have you been there?”

  Koda smiled. “Don’t worry, we just came in.”

  Ares sighed. “Koda, what is it?”

  Koda blushed a little and spoke in a voice barely above a whisper, “I do not mean to interrupt, but we too have craved the attention of our pack mate.” I stared at Koda in shock. He shook his head and waved his hands back and forth. “Not like that! We just want to sleep with you.” I gaped at him, and Koda groaned. “Artemis! To sleep with you, you know… Sleep!”

  Matt tossed two robes at us. Ares quickly put his on and faced his two pack members. I slipped mine on and stood beside Ares. “Are you asking for me to come to bed so we can sleep in our pack?”

  Koda and Matt nodded in unison.

  I smiled. “Very well.”

  We walked quickly to the bed and I hopped up in the center. Ares climbed in on my left side and I laid my head down on his chest, while Koda climbed in behind me and molded himself to my back. Matt lay down at our feet and wrapped his arms around my legs. I smiled happily and closed my eyes. “I love you all.”

  Koda kissed my cheek softly. “I love you as well.”

  Matt kissed my foot. “Me as well.”

  Chapter Eleven

  We left France early in the morning, but without Victor or Jean Pierre. They were forced to stay behind to discuss some impending threat, which I assumed was regarding the attacks on the other countries. The connection between Ares and me was stronger than ever. I needed to have constant physical contact. We grabbed the first flight, and I felt my worry ease as we left France.

  “Where are we going, Ares?” I asked as I relaxed against the seat.

  Ares smiled happily. “My home, in Germany.”

  My eyes widened for a minute and I then smiled. He did have German features, as did Koda and Matt.

  My smile left as a thought came to mind. “Great. Big, German, werewolf women. You couldn’t have come from a country with small women, could you?”

  Ares kissed my cheek. “You’ll be fine.”

  I smiled evilly. “Maybe I’ll just toast them with a fireball.”

  Ares shook his head. “You aren’t allowed to use your Sidhe powers unless absolutely necessary. No one must know that you have them.”

  I groaned. “Great. I finally get powers and now I can’t use them.” After a little accident, this morning, where I’d torched a hand towel, we realized I was able to use my Sidhe powers.

  The plane touched down, and we walked through the airport to the waiting vehicle. A man, standing at least seven feet tall, leaned against the hood of a strange European vehicle. He smiled at Ares and bowed at the waist. “Greetings, Ares.”

  Ares bowed. “Greetings, Brother.”

  The man turned to me and smiled as he spoke to Ares. “I see your taste in women has improved.”

  My lip twitched in a snarl, and Ares wrapped his arm around my shoulders. “This is my mate, Ulger, and your Princess.”

  Ulger dropped to one knee in front of me. “Forgive me, Princess. I had not heard that Prince Ares took a mate.”

  I looked at Ares for help, but he just smiled. “Uh, you’re forgiven,” I said awkwardly.

  Ulger stood and kissed the back of my hand. “Thank you, Princess.”

  Ares cleared his throat, and Ulger turned to him. “Darius wanted me to tell you that Darren has escaped our trackers. We aren’t sure where he has gone, but we’ve sent additional trackers to pick up his trail.”

  “My dad got away? He’s still alive?” My voice grew higher in pitch.

  Ares wrapped his arm around my shoulders and whispered, “I won’t let him hurt you.”

  His words and touch calmed my nerves, and I relaxed against his side. “I know.”

  Ares opened the back door of the car and smiled brightly. “Are you ready to meet more of our kind?”

  I huffed. “No, but what choice do I have?”

  We drove in silence for a few hours, and my mind began wandering. What were these women like? Were they all as beautiful as the ones I had seen? Ares tried to pull me into his lap, and I resisted, pulling away from him. He frowned. “What’s wrong?”

  I saw the look of concern on his face and forced the words out before I lost my nerve. “If I let you, would you leave me, for these women?”

  Ares smiled, his blue eyes sparkling. “Not a chance. Artemis. I love you. I thought you were over this?”

  “I’m sorry. I’m just nervous.” I leaned against him and closed my eyes.

  He whispered, “You are the only woman for me. Whether you feel the same for me or not, I will always love you.”

  I looked up at him and saw the pain in his eyes. He thought I was trying to tell him that I didn’t truly care for him. I whispered, “I do love you, Ares.”

  Ares whispered, “It’s our destiny to be together. Are you rehashing old issues because you don’t want to discuss the new ones with me?”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I said indignantly and looked out the window to my left.

  Ares whispered, “I know it’s hard to deal with the fact that you aren’t a virgin anymore, but isn’t it satisfying to know that you’ll be with the one that you gave it to, the rest of your life? Not many humans can say that.”

  I turned to him and kissed his lips. “I love you Ares. I’m just insecure.”

  He nuzzled my neck. “You have no reason to be insecure. I only have eyes for you.”

  Koda groaned and turned around from the passenger seat. “That was so cliché, Ares. You’re how old and you couldn’t come up with something better than that? I mean, you did work with Shakespeare!”

  Ares frowned. “I was trying to be cute. Thank you for ruining our moment.”

  Koda winked at me. “Just here to help.”

  We drove for hours through a thick forest on an unmarked dirt road, until finally coming to a small gate with two male guards. Ulger rolled down his window and spoke in German to the guards. The guards opened the gate, bowing to our vehicle as we drove past. The trees began thinning, and we came to a large wooden barn. Ulger stopped the car, and we all climbed out. I stretched my arms up over my head, squealing as I moved.

  Ares wrapped his arms around my waist and kissed my cheek. “You keep doing things like that and we won’t make it to the village.”

  I blushed and tried to step out of his arms. “Ares, don’t tease me.”

  He licked my cheek, holding on tightly to me. “I believe I was just saying that to you.”

  Ulger parked the car inside the barn and then returned to us, cracking his neck from side to side. “Ready?”

  Ares nodded, smiling wide.

  I asked, “Ready for what?”

  Koda pulled his shirt and pants off, and then dropped to his hands and knees, shifting forms flawlessly in seconds. His wolf form was more beautiful than I remembered. I fought the urge to run my hands through his fur and turned towards Ares, who was taking his shirt off.

  I sighed. “Fine, but I’m not changing back until we�
��re somewhere I can get dressed. I don’t want to parade around naked.”

  I took my shirt off slowly, noticing Ares watching me and folded it nicely on the ground. I slowly pulled my pants off, wriggling my butt excessively. Ares took a step towards me, and Koda stepped between us, whining and barking. I stripped my underwear off quickly and changed shapes. It felt good to be a wolf again. My wolf felt ecstatic at being let out and we stretched from head to tail. Ares sniffed my shoulder and I wagged my tail. Let’s run!

  Koda’s tongue lolled out the side of his mouth. Loser has to run around the house naked?

  Matt snorted. No one wants to see you run around naked, anymore than we already have to.

  Ares whined. Loser has to give the winner a back rub!

  We all ran down the dirt road, kicking up dust behind us. My muscles stretched and my blood pumped harder as I ran. The boys were lengths ahead of me when a familiar scent tickled my nose. I jumped into the forest to my right and ran through the trees towards the smell. Mom.

  I could hear Ares, Koda, and Matt barking for me, but they could wait. I had to find my mom. Ares spoke through my head. Where are you going? What’s wrong?

  I ran faster trying to follow the scent before it disappeared. My mom’s here. I can smell her.

  I jumped over a fallen log and the forest quieted. I strained my ears to listen to Ares’ approaching barks, but not even the wind whispered through my ears. I changed back to human and crossed my arms over my chest. “Hello?”

  A bright light darted through the trees, coming towards me. I lifted my arm to cover my eyes and the light dimmed. A man with pale skin and blue vines etched in his arms and across his chest walked towards me. He wore only a pair of pants and was sleeker muscled than Ares, built more like a runner or swimmer. I swallowed in fear. “Who are you?”

  He spoke and the leaves rustled. “I am Achilles.”

  “What are you?” I asked in the silence.

  “I’m Sidhe.” The leaves rustled again as he spoke making me shiver involuntarily.

  “What do you want? Why are you here?” I asked, growing more and more nervous and wishing Ares was here.

  He smiled and held out his hand, his body glowing slightly as though a light was turned on inside of him. “I’m here for you. I’m your fiancée and I’m here to take you,” he said in a soothing voice.

  Ares touched my shoulder and the sounds of the forest crashed into my ears deafening me. I dropped to the ground covering my ears with my hands and moaning in pain. Ares voice boomed like thunder, “You’re not taking her anywhere!”

  Kiss of a Star

  Artemis Lupine Series, Book Two

  Kiss of a Star by Catherine Banks.

  Copyright © 2010 Catherine Banks

  All rights reserved.

  Cover design by Covers by Combs.

  Logo by Avery Banks.

  Published by Turbo Kitten Industries.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Without limiting the rights under the copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, by photocopying, recording or otherwise) without the prior written permission of the copyright owner and the publisher of the book.

  The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book via the Internet or by any other means without the permission of the author is illegal and punishable by law. Please purchase only authorized printed or electronic editions and do not participate in or encourage electronic piracy of copyrighted materials. Your support of the author’s rights is appreciated.

  www.CatherineBanks.com

  Turbo Kitten Industries

  PO Box 5012, Galt, CA 95632

  Contents

  Acknowledgments

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Acknowledgments

  Daqri, thank you for these beautiful covers. You’re a cover magician and I am so glad I was introduced to you.

  * * *

  Pauline, you have quickly become one of my favorite people. Thank you for all of your help.

  Chapter One

  Ares, Koda, Matt, and I left France early in the morning, but without Victor or Jean Pierre. They were forced to stay behind to discuss some impending threat, which I assumed was regarding the attacks on the other countries. The connection between Ares and me was stronger than ever. I needed to have constant physical contact. We grabbed the first flight, and I felt my worry ease as we left France.

  “Where are we going, Ares?” I asked as I relaxed against the seat.

  Ares smiled happily. “My home, in Germany.”

  My eyes widened for a minute and I then smiled. He did have German features, as did Koda and Matt.

  My smile left as a thought came to mind. “Great. Big, German, werewolf women. You couldn’t have come from a country with small women, could you?”

  Ares kissed my cheek. “You’ll be fine.”

  I smiled evilly. “Maybe I’ll just toast them with a fireball.”

  Ares shook his head. “You aren’t allowed to use your Sidhe powers unless absolutely necessary. No one must know that you have them.”

  I groaned. “Great. I finally get powers and now I can’t use them.” After a little accident, this morning, where I’d torched a hand towel, we realized I was able to use my Sidhe powers.

  The plane touched down, and we walked through the airport to the waiting vehicle. A man, standing at least seven feet tall, leaned against the hood of a strange European vehicle. He smiled at Ares and bowed at the waist. “Greetings, Ares.”

  Ares bowed. “Greetings, Brother.”

  The man turned to me and smiled as he spoke to Ares. “I see your taste in women has improved.”

  My lip twitched in a snarl, and Ares wrapped his arm around my shoulders. “This is my mate, Ulger, and your Princess.”

  Ulger dropped to one knee in front of me. “Forgive me, Princess. I had not heard that Prince Ares took a mate.”

  I looked at Ares for help, but he just smiled. “Uh, you’re forgiven,” I said awkwardly.

  Ulger stood and kissed the back of my hand. “Thank you, Princess.”

  Ares cleared his throat, and Ulger turned to him. “Darius wanted me to tell you that Darren has escaped our trackers. We aren’t sure where he has gone, but we’ve sent additional trackers to pick up his trail.”

  “My dad got away? He’s still alive?” My voice grew higher in pitch.

  Ares wrapped his arm around my shoulders and whispered, “I won’t let him hurt you.”

  His words and touch calmed my nerves, and I relaxed against his side. “I know.”

  Ares opened the back door of the car and smiled brightly. “Are you ready to meet more of our kind?”

  I huffed. “No, but what choice do I have?”

  We drove in silence for a few hours, and my mind began wandering. What were these women like? Were they all as beautiful as the ones I had seen? Ares tried to pull me into his lap, and I resisted, pulling away from him. He frowned. “What’s wrong?”

  I saw the look of concern on his face and forced the words out before I lost my nerve. “If I let you, would you leave me, for these women?”

  Ares smiled, his blue eyes sparkling. “Not a chance. Artemis. I love you. I thought you were over this?”

  “I’m sorry. I’m just nervous.” I leaned against him and closed my eyes.

  He whispered, “You are the only woman for me. Whether you feel the same for me or not, I will always love you.”

  I looked up at him
and saw the pain in his eyes. He thought I was trying to tell him that I didn’t truly care for him. I whispered, “I do love you, Ares.”

  Ares whispered, “It’s our destiny to be together. Are you rehashing old issues because you don’t want to discuss the new ones with me?”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I said indignantly and looked out the window to my left.

  Ares whispered, “I know it’s hard to deal with the fact that you aren’t a virgin anymore, but isn’t it satisfying to know that you’ll be with the one that you gave it to, the rest of your life? Not many humans can say that.”

  I turned to him and kissed his lips. “I love you Ares. I’m just insecure.”

  He nuzzled my neck. “You have no reason to be insecure. I only have eyes for you.”

  Koda groaned and turned around from the passenger seat. “That was so cliché, Ares. You’re how old and you couldn’t come up with something better than that? I mean, you did work with Shakespeare!”

  Ares frowned. “I was trying to be cute. Thank you for ruining our moment.”

  Koda winked at me. “Just here to help.”

  We drove for hours through a thick forest on an unmarked dirt road, until finally coming to a small gate with two male guards. Ulger rolled down his window and spoke in German to the guards. The guards opened the gate, bowing to our vehicle as we drove past. The trees began thinning, and we came to a large wooden barn. Ulger stopped the car, and we all climbed out. I stretched my arms up over my head, squealing as I moved.

  Ares wrapped his arms around my waist and kissed my cheek. “You keep doing things like that and we won’t make it to the village.”