Ice Planet Barbarians (Ice Planet Barbarians, #1)

by Ruby Dixon

I lick my lips, hating that they already feel numb with cold. I’m a Southern girl. We do not do well with cold.

And then I am shocked anew as my khui resonates inside me. My inward being, which has lain dormant for so long, which recognizes no mate amongst my people? It vibrates and sings at the sight of this new creature. I stare at it.

Really, for a big barbarian, he’s being the perfect gentleman.

From now until my spirit departs this plane, there shall be none for me but her.

“This is my mate. I resonate for her.” As if on cue, his chest starts to vibrate, the thick, steady purr jiggling my cheek. “She is beautiful to me. Different, but beautiful nevertheless.” He brushes his fingers through my hair. “I have seen her bravery, her spirit, and her will. She has trusted me when she has no reason to. She has given me her body when she has no khui to compel her. And it does not matter what any eyes think of her but mine . . . and to me, she is the most wonderful, most attractive, and most compelling of creatures.”

“Never,” he says fervently, and his fingers trace my jaw. “If you are asleep, I shall wake you up by mating your mouth.” A scorching blush colors my cheeks. “It’s called a kiss, Vektal.” Saying it like that makes it utterly filthy. And I’m perverted enough to be completely aroused at the thought.

Young, brawny Salukh will go. Laughing Aehako. Quiet Pashov and his sibling Zennek. Hotheaded Rokan, who has a quick tongue but even quicker senses. Skilled Zolaya and grim, unsmiling Haeden, whose sad history serves as a lesson to others. I suspect that, come morning, Raahosh will show up and join us. He is an excellent hunter, for all his bitterness.

“A Great Dane can still make a Chihuahua pregnant,” Liz points out. “Guess which one you are.”