Duau, The Lion of Tomorrow
Egyptian Shifters 4

Professional Reviews

4 TOMBSTONES: "This, the fourth novella in the Egyptian Shifters series, is very well done. The erotica is hot without being tasteless, and Chenery does a nice job of weaving Egyptian mythology into a modern setting without it becoming cheesy. I hope that she chooses to write more such stories - these first four were fun!"-- Jennifer, Bitten By Books

"Marisa Chenery has dealt the world a beautiful and winning hand when she decided to take up her pen. Her stories are rich, full of character, love, and an unmistakably sensual aura surrounds the whole body of her work. Never have I been disappointed in a Marisa Chenery read. As with the rest of her book's characters, Duau, The Lion of Tomorrow revels in his sensuality, loves with all his heart, and will go to any lengths to keep those he loves safe." -- Rose, Romance at Heart Magazine

Excerpt

Darcie ran a comb through her damp hair then pulled on the pair of old sweat pants and t-shirt that she wore when she painted. She went back downstairs after that. The lion lifted his head off his paws where he lay on the floor once she reached the bottom step. He really was a beautiful cat. His gold eyes followed her as she went to stand a short distance away from him. She would have to keep an eye on him. He had completely caught her off guard earlier when he'd shoved his head between her legs and tried to lick her pussy. What bothered Darcie most about it was how that one almost stroke of the lion's tongue made her feel. It had felt good, too good for her peace of mind. That alone told her she'd gone too long without a man in her bed. That a lion could turn her on with what would have been an innocent lick really showed how low she had sunk.

Crossing her arms across her chest, Darcie stared down at the lion. She'd planned on painting outside today, but she didn't want to leave him alone inside her house. If he decided to start tearing into her hardwood floors, or any furniture he could get in reach of with his razor sharp claws, she wanted to be around to stop him somehow. She didn't know exactly what she would do, but she would come up with something if she needed to. Her gaze swept the lion from the top of his head to the tip of his tail. She knew exactly what she would do todaypaint the lion's portrait. Darcie knew the chance of having a wild animal such as him this close for her to paint wouldn't happen again. She didn't do many animal paintings, she mostly did landscapes, but she couldn't pass up on this opportunity.

Darcie went to the corner of the room where her easel stood folded together. She set it up near the lion, making sure it stayed out of his reach. Next, she got a blank canvas and moved the small table that held all her painting supplies beside the easel. Picking up her charcoal pencil, she turned back to study the lion before she started to sketch on the canvas. "Okay, handsome, you just lay there and I'm going to paint you."

The lion cocked his head in her direction when she spoke. Darcie smiled at him then she soon became lost in her work as she started to sketch. It didn't take her very long to get the charcoal outline of the lion onto the canvas. Once finished that, she started to mix paints together on her palette until she had the gold of his eyes and the blonde and dark brown color of his mane perfect. Darcie picked up a paintbrush and set to work.

As always when she painted, the rest of the world fell away leaving only the canvas in front of her and what she painted on it as her sole focus. Sometimes it lasted a few hours or the whole day. Lost in her painting, Darcie would at times be shocked to find the number of hours she'd actually worked when she finally came out of it. Her ability to shut everyone out while she worked had been too much for her now ex-husband to handle. When her paintings started to garner interest, and then made some sales through a gallery in Toronto, he'd become pissed off with the number of hours she spent working. He'd complained that she never paid any attention to him. At the end of their marriage, he'd given her the ultimatum to either stop painting or lose him. When he'd then said that he had put up with her hobby, as he called her painting, and that he wanted her pregnant within a month as if she were some brood mare, Darcie knew what her decision would be. She knew she couldn't stay married to a man who would force her to give up her dreams.

The hours flew by as the image of the lion took shape on her canvas. Much to Darcie's surprise the lion made a very good subject. He held his position for the most part, only moving his head back down to his paws when he went to sleep for a couple of hours. When he woke up, she felt his eyes intently watching her as she worked.

Late in the afternoon, Darcie put her paintbrush in a jar of turpentine to soak and she stepped away from her easel. She put her arms over her head and stretched her back and shoulders. Pleased with what she had accomplished, she put the easel back in the corner leaving the canvas on it to dry. Once she had the small table put back as well, she turned back to the lion. He still watched her. Then it suddenly hit her that she hadn't thought to give him anything to eat or drink since he'd awakened the first time.

Darcie looked down at her paint stained hands. She would have to clean up first. Turning her attention back to the lion, she said, "Sorry about that, handsome. I should have given you some water at least to drink. Just give me a few minutes to clean the paint off my hands and I'll get you some. I'll also try and scrounge up something for you to eat."

Before she could step away, the lion stood up. Her brows furrowed together as his body started to blur and waver. Then between one heart beat and the next, a man stood in the lion's place. And not just any ordinary man. Darcie had to stop her jaw from dropping open as her gaze skimmed over him from head to toe. He was beyond gorgeous as he stood there with his chest bare except for her makeshift bandages, with only a snow-white ancient Egyptian looking linen kilt worn low on his hips. She had to tilt her head up to look him in the face. She guessed his height to be six foot ten, which towered over her five foot six. His dark brown hair touched his shoulders. As she met his gaze, Darcie saw his eyes were the same gold color of the lion's. She lowered her gaze to his sculpted lips and swallowed.

Reluctantly, she pulled her eyes away from his sinful looking mouth and met his gaze once more. "Ahwhatwho?" She knew she sounded like a brainless idiot, unable to string a coherent thought together, but how else should she act? She'd just watched a lion shift into a gorgeous hunk of a man. A man that she suddenly wanted to screw until neither one of them could walk.

He smiled at her as his gaze swept down to her breasts. Darcie felt her nipples pebble beneath her t-shirt, the points pushed against the material. His smile widened as he lifted his gaze back up to her face. "I'm Duau." He reached behind his neck and pulled off the belt that she had put on the lion. He let it and the chain attached to it drop to the floor with a thud. He then moved to stand in front of her. His nostrils flared as he took a deep breath in.

Darcie swallowed again at the hunger she saw in Duau's gold eyes, the same look he'd given her earlier when in his lion form. "What are you?"

"I'm an Egyptian god. My twin brother, Sef, and I are the two halves of the Egyptian god Aker, the guardian of the gates to the underworld. I'm also your mate. As for your offer of food and water, I don't require anything except for maybe a taste of your sex, preferably as you come against my mouth." Duau stepped closer so his chest touched the tips of Darcie's suddenly aching breasts.

Maybe it was because she hadn't eaten anything all day, or because Duau overwhelmed all her senses, but whatever the cause, Darcie felt her world begin to spin just before she collapsed against him in a dead faint.

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