Awakening The Shifter. Jane Godman

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СКАЧАТЬ Sarange had been the highlight. The chemistry between them had been tangible to those watching. Rumors of a romance between the bad boy of rock and the world’s most glamorous singer had persisted ever since. They couldn’t look at each other that way and not be in love; that was the argument that pervaded every website, magazine and TV program.

      Always the subject of paparazzi attention—the press was desperate to catch him out in bad behavior...and they often succeeded—Khan had been unable to move out of his New York apartment. Ged had advised him to lie low.

      “Something else will come up in a day or two to attract their attention, and this will all be forgotten.”

      It hadn’t happened. Kha-range—Khan wanted to put his foot through the TV screen the first time he heard that celebrity fusion name—had become a media obsession. Hotels and restaurants, keen to boost business, fanned the flames by hinting at sightings and bookings. Engagements, weddings, a secret baby, breakups...the whole range of stories had hit the headlines in the last few weeks.

      And the job offers had rolled in. The moneymen, seeing the opportunities in a collaboration between Khan and Sarange, had come up with an eye-watering range of ideas. Films, TV specials, a record deal, interviews, photo shoots, advertising, even a book.

      Khan had lost count of the number of times he had said no. Today was different. Today he would get to say the word to Sarange herself.

      “No.” He tilted his chair back so he could rest his shoulders against the wall. At the same time, he placed his feet on the glossy glass surface of the meeting table. The gesture was calculated to annoy Sarange. From the way her light blue gaze grew even icier as it dropped to his scuffed biker boots, he guessed he’d succeeded.

      “I don’t think you’ve quite grasped the concept.” Gurban Radin, the guy who was in charge of the production company, leaned forward earnestly, resting his clasped hands on the table. “What we’re proposing is unlike anything that’s ever been done before. Two major stars being filmed as they travel together to a remote region of Mongolia to see the blue wolves in their natural habitat—”

      “What part of ‘no’ didn’t you understand?” Khan had no problem being rude to this guy. He hadn’t asked for this meeting. He’d started out polite, but now they were taking up his valuable rehearsal time, and they still weren’t listening to him.

      “The Animals Alive Foundation would benefit from your contribution.” Ged’s eyes held a play-nice warning. Khan saw that look on his manager’s face on a regular basis. Sometimes he felt a pang of pity for Ged. He worked so hard to keep Khan, his most famous client, out of trouble. He didn’t always succeed.

      “I’ll write a check. Name your price.” Khan yawned. “The answer is still no.”

      He could see Sarange fighting to keep her temper under control. He could read her emotions, even though he didn’t want to feel that connection to her. Part of the reason he had agreed to this meeting had been to test his resolve. The last few weeks had been torture. Every minute of every day, his body craved her. It wasn’t like going cold turkey on an addiction. It wasn’t getting easier as time went by. He didn’t have any periods when he didn’t hunger for his fix. If this was the rest of his life, he was screwed.

      He really shouldn’t be here. Keeping away from her would have been the wisest move, but the rest of the world was conspiring against him. Even Ged was giving him some powerful reasons why he should consider this latest offer. In the end, Khan had taken a break from precious rehearsal time so he could look at Sarange and see how she was coping with the whole fated-mates, enforced separation situation. He hoped she was doing better than he was. And he wondered if she’d gotten a handle on her inner wolf yet. Because that whole denial thing was seriously weird.

      Now that he was up close to her, he could see she was suffering. His gaze lingered on her face, drinking her in. Today her hair was drawn back in a thick braid that hung to her waist and she wore a crisp white shirt. Her jeans were tucked into soft leather boots. Even in casual clothing she managed to look like a Mongolian princess. Her face was heart-shaped, with flat high cheekbones tapering to a pointed chin. A broad, arrogant nose and full mouth added to the regal look. The only giveaway to her werewolf heritage was her eyes. Set under thick, soaring dark brows, they were twin chips of blue ice. Khan could see pain and confusion in their depths. Unlike him, he could tell Sarange still had no idea why she was hurting.

      Life could be hard, and Khan knew from experience that went double for shifters. He experienced a brief, dangerous pang of sympathy for Sarange. Someone should sit her down and explain how these things worked. Not him. No way was Khan going there. But he wanted to take away that lost, hurt look in her eyes and replace it with the cynicism she would need to develop if she was going to survive as a werewolf in the human world. Maybe Ged could talk to her. The guy who had dedicated his life to rescuing damaged shifters had the experience and the skill.

      “Are we done here?” Khan placed his hands on the table, indicating he intended to leave. Because he couldn’t put his body under this strain for much longer. There was only so much torment he could endure. And fighting the need to drag Sarange into his arms was just about the worst torture he had known. Coming from Khan, a weretiger who had endured capture, imprisonment and near death, that was quite an admission.

      “Wait.” Sarange’s voice was quiet, almost pleading. When she raised her eyes to his, it was as though there was no one else in the room. “Just hear me out. Please?”

      In spite of the voice in his head urging him to get right away from her and do it fast, Khan sank back into his seat. There was a tiny flare of gratitude in her eyes. And, in that instant, he was lost. He understood how medieval knights of old felt when they performed heroic deeds to prove their worth. Climbing beanstalks, defeating dragons—although the only dragon he knew was Torque, and he was generally harmless—and breaking magic spells. She wasn’t going to ask him to do any of those things. But he knew she was going to test his resolve.

      “After to the red wolves, the blue wolves of Mongolia are the most endangered in the world. This pack has been gradually decreasing over the years so that now there are fewer than a hundred left.” Her voice was low, passionate. It was obvious how much this cause meant to her. “I agreed to travel to the region to make a documentary to raise awareness of their plight. Now the production company—” her eyes flickered to Radin “—have said they will withdraw the funding...unless you and I make the film together.”

      “Why would they do that?” Even as Khan asked the question, he knew the answer.

      “Isn’t it obvious?” Sarange gave a bitter little laugh. “They’ll draw a huge audience because of the recent public interest in us.” She said the word “us” the way Khan thought it. Within bitter quotation marks. “It all comes down to money.”

      Radin spoke up quickly. “We will, of course, be making a substantial contribution to the Animals Alive Foundation.”

      Sarange ignored him. “Even if this film gets made, it may be too late for the blue wolves. The prediction is that they will be extinct within five years. But if we can raise awareness, begin a breeding program...who knows? There may just be a chance we can save them.”

      “Why not make the film yourself using Animals Alive Foundation funds?”

      “We couldn’t allow that.” Radin’s voice was smooth. “My company owns the rights to the documentary. How it is made is our decision.”

      The sensation of being trapped was beginning to prickle along Khan’s spine. They thought they had him. Conscience, publicity, environmentalism, guilt...they СКАЧАТЬ