Hadaen [The Marujan Brothers Series] Book One (5 page)

Hadaen but looked her, angry and
wondering how she could laugh at anything he had just said. He
wanted to shut her up but somehow he found himself liking the sound
of her laughter. He had never heard her laugh in Maruj… at least
not while she was aware of his presence. Rising to his feet slowly,
he returned the chair to its original position with one flick of
his wrist. He then glanced at his watch and snapped his finger s at
her. "Get up and let's go. I need to show you
something."

"What? I'm not going anywhere with
you!"

Hadaen seriously could not be bothered
with her obstinacy at the moment. He needed to get rid of the
stupid hardon he was currently facing. So the sooner he got her to
understand her fate, the better. He refused to die from blue-balls.
Hell, he'd already suffered for seven centuries. And much as he had
gotten more sexual offers than he'd wish to admit to over the
years, he had never found the desire to accept them. He'd been too
busy searching the globe for her. No woman had ever made him feel
so riled up before and he promised himself that he'd have her no
matter what. And when he did, he did not intend on just tasting;
he'd savour her sweetness down to the very last drop. Amelia had
better be prepared to be ravished!

Without giving her the slightest
notice, Hadaen grabbed her up into his arms and flung her over his
shoulder like a light sac. He heard the gasp that spurted from her
lips and smiled. She had better get used to the fact that he always
got his way.

"Put me down, you son-of-a-bitch!" And
he only laughed as she stiffened at the sound of the librarian's
bell and the expected 'Shhhh'. Ignoring the blows she was sending
to his back and hips, he moved quickly out of the library and past
the dozens of eyes that followed his movement. Some persons even
had their phones out ready to dial, looking worried. Others just
whooped, presumably thinking that they were some loving couple
caught up in a little quarrel.

Dumping her to her feet, Hadaen
steadied her before she fell over. She breathed raspingly and
shoved him only in vain. Her attempt hadn't even shifted him. He
then crossed his arms and stared down at her, amused. Her hair now
stood in wild spikes on her head, ruffled and disheveled. And her
shirt had ridden half way up her abdomen. "Are you okay?" he asked,
knowing the type of reply he'd get.

"Bite me." She patted at her hair,
combing her fingers through it and then straightened her
clothes.

"Trust me sweetheart, I've got plans
on that." And his lips curved into a sly smile.

Amelia's head shot up immediately and
her eyes widened. He did not just say that. She then narrowed her
eyes at him, sizing him up. "So you've got a sense of humour now,
do you? Don't get your hopes up, Dean."

"It's Hadaen."

"Like I give a fuck."

"You'd better. You'd do well to
remember it while I pound into that sweet pussy of
yours."

Amelia gulped as warm liquid slithered
downwards, soaking her panties. She tried to find the perfect words
to assault his manhood but only found herself choking on her
saliva. Eyeing him beneath hooded eyes, she pursed her lips and
muttered, "I thought we were headed somewhere."

Throwing her a wink, Hadaen chuckled
and turned towards his motorcycle. "We'd better get to it
then."

Amelia glanced at him and then at the
huge motorcycle. She'd never ridden on one before but the urge had
always been there. She supposed she could just enjoy the ride for
the night and then move to an isolated island somewhere off the
Pacific. She surely had no intention of seeing or remembering when
she woke up in the morning. "How do I know you won't try anything?"
she mumbled, standing akimbo. "You could just be a rapist or some
psycho-murderer for all I care."

Hadaen removed the helmet from the
handle bar and tossed it at her without even turning around. "If I
was a rapist you wouldn't be standing here right now with your
clothes on, trust me." He then turned around, his face dark as
death. "As for me being a murderer,” he said slowly and with
purpose. “That I can't tell you for sure."

Amelia frowned and tossed the helmet
back at him. "Then I hope I fall off and break my neck." Moving
past him swiftly, she then gestured him to get on with it. He eyed
her with a hint of fire in his eyes and then straddled the
bike.

Hadaen waited until she got on behind
him and then handed the helmet back to her.

"You dying is the last thing I'd want
right now, sweetheart," Hadaen slurred, grabbing her arms from
behind and wrapping them around his waist. He felt her tremor
straight down to the base of his cock. "It would mess with all my
plans for ravishing you."

And he sped off down the busy street,
dodging vehicles and chuckling softly as her sizzling words flew
past his head and dissolved into the heavy breeze.

Chapter Three

W
ater dripped from his beautiful dark hair and down the
powerful contours of his chest. Her gaze had no choice but to move
over his sculpted abdomen and fall at a stop—disappointedly—at the
waist of his very low-riding faded jeans. Amelia swallowed down the
heavy dam of saliva that had gathered in her mouth. She was sure
that if she looked down she'd see her mouth hanging there too.
Slamming her mouth shut she blinked the trickle of tears from her
lustful eyes. She had been staring for far too long. He must have
noticed.

Turning from him instantly, she tried
to concentrate instead on studying the decor of his apartment. It
was gorgeous, very refined. Something that was sure to be seen in
some luxury magazine. She scowled, however, at the dreadful taste
in colour. It seemed as if some grey monster had spat out every
piece of furniture and appliances that furnished the living room.
She was sure that they were expensive but the dark colours made her
want to gag. Hadaen Maruj must not be the type to have company
over.

Thick light-gray drapes fell
gracefully before what she could only presume to be ceiling to
floor glass windows. Large leather sofas were aligned neatly facing
a huge flat screen TV that sat in the center of the wall. On both
sides were thin tall speaker boxes along with other appliances she
doubted she could give the names for. Blowing out an impressed
breath, she looked the other direction. A mahogany-coloured parlor
grand piano grabbed her attention. Amelia wasn't sure how she knew
what it was called. Somehow she felt drawn to it and she felt her
legs moving long before she comprehended the movement. Running her
fingers lightly over the keys, she smiled and then sat down on the
narrow leather seat that was positioned before the masterpiece.
Closing her eyes, she inhaled deeply and felt her fingers touching
random keys as if they shared a connection. The sweet melody that
was produced shocked her immensely and she pulled her hands away,
opening her eyes to see Hadaen Maruj staring down at
her.

Jumping to her feet, Amelia ran her
sweaty palms along the front of her jeans. He just leaned against
the piano, his hot gaze piercing through her body.

"B-Bathroom?"

"Second door down the hall," he
said.

Fleeing the living area as
if there was a killer out to get her, Amelia opened the door to the
bathroom and then closed it behind her. Gripping the edge of the
counter as if her life depended on it, she stared at her paling
face in the mirror. What the hell was happening to her? She could
not find a valid explanation for what had happened just a couple
minutes ago. She had played the piano! And played it damn well if
she had anything to say about it. The fluttering pulse in her neck
threatened to go wild as she tried to calm her emotions. She had
never played the piano before.
Ever
. And in this day and age, it
sure wasn't something that could be accomplished with beginner's
luck.

Keep calm, okay?
She tried to soothe herself.
Like I said, it's all in your head.

Splashing some water over her face and
looking at her reflection for what seemed like forever, Amelia
dried it and then took another deep breathe. Time to face the devil
again.

When she re-entered the living room,
she noticed that Hadaen had donned a white long-sleeved cotton
shirt. He had left the two top buttons undone, leaving a glance of
his smooth broad chest. Damn, she was grateful he had finally
decided on the shirt because she wasn't sure she would survive the
decade if he hadn't. As if sensing her presence, Hadaen turned
around from the bar and faced her, two wine glasses in his
hand.

Striding up to her, Hadaen
placed one in her hand and said, "
Picpoul
de Pinet
." He then took a sip while she
stood still eyeing hers dubiously. "I didn't drug it if that's what
you're thinking."

"Can't be too sure," she said with a
nervous chuckle.

Taking the glass firmly
from her hand, he took a sip, licked his lips and then smirked. "I
think I love myself too damn much to commit suicide." Staring
blankly at the glistening moisture across his lips, Amelia gulped
and took back the glass, downing the contents in one swift swallow.
She heard his chuckle and chanced a glance at him. The laugh lines
were now evident around the corners of his eyes but his face still
wore that hardened expression. "Next time you should
savour
, love. Appreciate
the taste of fine wine."

Something about the raw
sweetness of his accent tickled her insides, bringing forth a
feeling she had not been accustomed to.
Desire
. She must truly be paranoid.
"Are you going to tell me what happened with the piano?"

Hadaen took another 'savour' from his
glass, his gaze never leaving hers. Those big blue glossy eyes were
bound to undo him. Grunting inwardly, he settled on the sofa,
pulling her down next to him. "Whatever do you mean?" he asked,
testing her. She pulled her hand away.

"I know you know something that I
clearly don't."

"Ahh… So
now
you wish to
listen."

The space between her brows furrowed
deeply. "If you're looking for some endearment, you're not going to
get it. So tell me."

"We—both of us lived in Maruj seven
centuries ago." Amelia exhaled, hoping she could believe him. "We
were to be married."

She frowned. "From what I saw in my
dream, I didn't like you one bit."

Hadaen smiled devilishly.
"You hated me and I knew from the beginning that I had to have you.
But you disappeared before your initiation. No one could find you."
He didn't think it necessary to tell the entire story. Surely not
that he had forced himself on her and she had only used her
mana
to escape his
carnal wrath.

She scoffed. "If what you're saying is
true, and it does sound like a load of crap, I'm glad I
disappeared. Who were—are you exactly?"

"I'm the ruler of Maruj. The first
born. My two brothers take seats at my sides."

He has brothers too?
God help her if they looked anything like him.
"So you were some big powerful guy, right?"

"Make no mistake about it, Amelia. I
still am."

Amelia held his gaze for a moment
while the question that was gnawing at her finally surfaced. "Does
it still exist? You’re Maruj place?"

Hadaen stared at her for long as if
considering his answer carefully. "Maruj exists if you want it
to."

"What does that mean?" She shifted so
that she could get a better look at him.

"It means that things are
very complicated.” Placing their glasses down on the crystal center
table, he looked straight ahead of him, reminiscing. “Months after
you’d…
disappeared
, the kingdom was attacked by the enemy.” He couldn’t let her
know that he had been so wrapped up in finding her that his
defenses had somehow been dropped. He had not suspected an attack
at all. “The Kankul Dynasty had swooped in, hundreds of thousands
of men, all with one thing in mind: total demolition. Thousands of
Marujans died, some of our women were taken. In an effort to
prevent another attack, we’ve hidden the kingdom.”

Amelia had been so caught up in the
story that she hadn’t even realized he was no longer speaking. She
shook her head. “What do you mean ‘hidden’?”

“We’ve made it unreachable to
outsiders of the kingdom; completely undetectable.” He turned to
face her, holding a hand out to her. “Take my hand.” She hesitated.
“I’m not going to hurt you.”

Sliding her hand into his,
she flinched at the sudden heat that coursed through her. It was as
if some warm energy was flowing through her veins, running along a
hidden pattern up towards her throat. Her eyes shot his.
“What
is
this?”

He continued, “Noble Marujans have a
special power that was granted to us by The First.”

“Who’s ‘The First’?”

“He is the Marujan Supreme
Being; the Creator of all things.” She nodded slowly,
understanding. “Our power is called
Mana
. To have
mana
means to have influence and
authority which is why only the nobles were gifted with it. We
serve to protect the people and ourselves.
Mana
was never meant to be used
violently.” Hadaen had always felt guilty for what he had become.
“While I was a lad, the Kankul Dynasty had made their first attack.
My father had been ruler then. He was murdered mercilessly and the
Kankul leader had somehow managed to obtain
mana
.”