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.His legs were spread in a bracing stanceand his crossbow was targeted on her chest. Why, Saxon rumbled, does everybody think I m an& an& Imbecile? Danjer offered. No& Idiot? Pink gave him the word with a fond smile. Yeah, Saxon drawled. Why does everybody think I m an idiot? My sense ofdirection might be a bit whacked and I may lose a few words sometimes, but I m notstupid. I ll take those, Danjer insisted in the next breath, striding forward and collectingthe flat metal instruments from the baroness scientists, taking a moment to spit onthem before he shoved them into the top of his leggings. I ll take your lab jacket aswell, he informed one of the scientists who quickly divested herself of the long whitecoat.This Danjer wrapped around Pink.With the samples secured and Pink covered inside the crisp white jacket, Danjerturned to face the baroness. You re coming with us, he informed her.Glaring back at him, the baroness pressed her lips together. You can either come with us alive or stay here dead, Danjer informed her in nouncertain terms.The baroness s eyes nicked across the room to where Saxon stood, his crossbow stilltargeting her chest. You wouldn t kill an unarmed woman, she stated tentatively. Jake! Danjer barked as he lifted his small handbow and leveled it at the baroness.The younger man flinched. He ll d-do it, Jake stammered as he rushed to tell her. Earthers are& are animals when they re provoked.He ll kill you in a heartbeat. Danjer grinned mirthlessly. And then your heart will never beat again. He k-killed the Silver Duke& and his men, Jake told her.Saxon lifted the nose of his crossbow. I helped, he pointed out, cutting an askanceglance at Jake. He killed the duke with his bare hands, Jake went on. He destroyed a giant tickwith nothing but a knife. 102 Made For Two MenSaxon s jaw dropped at Jake s exaggeration as well as his omission.Slowly, heshook his head as his handsome face wrinkled up in disgust.Still the baroness hesitated. The men on the walls won t open the gates. They will if they think we re going to kill you. The men in the gatehouse are droids, she argued nervously, now clearlyconcerned that she might die if the droids refused to open the gates. They onlyrespond to voice commands from their superiors.Threatening to kill me won t get thegates open. Then you ll give them a voice command, Danjer countered. They ll never hear me from inside the gatehouse tower. Danjer and Saxon exchanged a brief, nasty smile. Good thing we brought our ownsound system, Saxon said with a grin.Returning his wire cutters to his belt, Danjer punched open a saddlecase andreached inside for the head of the keytar the long piece capped by the microphone. You can tell your droids to leave the gates open, Danjer mentioned casually. Andthey might as well lay down their arms at the same time.I m expecting some friendssoon.Have you met the Iron Duke? Horrified, the baroness shook her head. Well, you re about to. Frustration and rage ate at the baroness s face, turning her lovely features into anugly mask of fury.Her angry eyes cut to Jake then back to Danjer.Danjer nodded. If you haven t figured it out yet, we re musicians and soldiers, hetold her.103 Madison HayesChapter FourteenDanjer stood beside Pink in the great hall of his newly acquired villa, a gift from thequeen in appreciation for his services in the war.The hall was long and well lit withlarge windows through which the afternoon sun fell to splash on the tiled floor.Thewalls were textured stucco and painted a soft white.But the floors beneath his feet weretiled with pink marble.He liked the large windows.And the thick walls.But most of all he liked the oldmarble floors.As he gazed through the south-facing windows, the mountains rose onhis right.A dense green forest stood behind the house and snaked down the east side ofhis property.Straight ahead were open fields of long grass which led to the distant sandwastes.A month had passed since the baroness had ordered the palace gates open.Nodoubt, the edge of his sword tucked under her chin had been a great inducement.Andthe microphone on Saxon s keytar had definitely come in handy.The gates had swunginward at her command and that was how Au Banner had found them when he darrived with his army an hour later.The baroness had been removed from her station and would henceforth bespending the rest of her days incarcerated in a comfortable tower at Iverannon, whichthe queen was happy to provide for her.The queen had offered Danjer the baroness spalace, along with the title of Copper Duke, but Danjer had quickly refused.He didn twant be tied to a large property that he couldn t walk away from whenever the whimtook him.Instead he d settled for a sprawling villa tucked up against the mountains,south of Aranthea.He was planning the addition of a recording studio.He already had a staff of one.Pink s new guard.The guard who had been boundto Pink after tasting her release the one who hadn t been killed by the baroness sbowman had followed her to the villa.Briefly, Pink had considered ordering Molerato return happily to his past life.But the career soldier didn t appear to have a past lifeof any note, nor any family to speak of.He joined Danjer s staff.Danjer was pleased to learn the man had some experience making brandy.Smiling down at the woman beside him, Danjer realized he should probably checkout the rest of his new property but he was too content immensely content within thismoment.Standing at her side.In his home.Alone with her.Saxon was off exploring the grounds with Molera.It was a large property.With anyluck, he d be gone a long time.The bedrooms would be upstairs, he told himself as he reached for her hand andlifted it to his lips, dragging his mouth slowly over her fingers, reveling in the pleasureof her smooth skin against his lips, drinking in the silken texture of her slender fingers.104 Made For Two MenSaxon had been right about her.There wasn t a place on her that wasn t soft.With his other hand, he pulled her against his body and tilted his head as henudged his lips against hers and slid his tongue into the small, pink kiss of her daintymouth
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