Savage

by Tana Stone

  Caro tugged her hands, the rope biting her wrists. She wanted to bury her fingers in his hair and jerk him to her, her body humming with the need to feel his weight pressed against her. It was all she could do not to beg him.

  “Please.” As quiet as her voice was, it still sounded desperate.

  He flinched, pulling away from her so quickly he fell backward. His eyes were large and dark, almost fearful. Whether he was afraid of her, or of himself, she didn’t know, but she felt fear. And it wasn’t hers.

  The sudden absence of his touch left her body cold, the buzz that had made her nearly dizzy with desire fading and a chill taking its place. Caro wanted to lash out at him, for her own weakness and for him making her feel that way. “What are you so afraid of?”

  He gaped at her.

  She tugged at the corner of her bottom lip with her teeth. “Can’t finish what you started?”

  He pushed himself to his feet, towering over her and looking down. “You do not want me to finish it.”

  He turned on his heel and walked out of the tent, leaving her panting and straining against the thick ropes.

  “Fucking bastard,” she said under her breath, although she was as upset at herself as she was with him. She was frustrated and aroused and confused.

  Caro shouldn’t have been any of those. She leaned her head back, allowing it to bump the tent pole harder than she should have. She didn’t care as the back of her skull smarted from the impact. She welcomed the pain. At least maybe it would snap her out of whatever compulsion had come over her.

  That shouldn’t have happened.

  Oh, she knew nothing technically happened, but she also knew what she’d wanted to happen. What had she been thinking? Clearly, she hadn’t been thinking. Otherwise, she never would have been so turned on by a big brute of a barbarian who was holding her captive.

  But she had wanted it. Wanted him. More than she’d ever wanted anyone before. Her body had never reacted like that to any of the perfectly nice guys she’d been with in the past. Or even the not so nice ones. And none of them had been barbarians who’d kidnapped her and tied her up.

  When Rukken touched her, she’d felt almost feverish. Was it possible she was ill? Had she picked up some sort of alien virus?

  Caro arched her head back, peering up at the draped fabric of the tent ceiling. Please let it be a virus, she thought. Anything to explain away why she’d wanted Rukken so badly. Anything but the possibility that she was wildly attracted to her alien captor.

  Fourteen

  Rukken stumbled out of the tent, not looking back as he blindly made his way to the edge of the pool behind his tent. He did not stop when his bare feet hit the cool water, and he waded in until the water had covered his ankles. What he should do was throw himself entirely under the water until he’d cooled off. His skin prickled with heat, as if he’d rubbed himself in a patch of sand nettles, and his breathing was jagged.

  It was impossible. She could not sense what he felt. Only Dothveks could do that.

  He bent over at the waist and let his fingertips dangle in the water. Not even Cresteks, who shared the same descendants, were empathic. It was impossible that an offworlder would be.

  He raked his memories. Had the Crestek he’d saved mentioned anything about the offworld females being empathic? No, he would have remembered that.

  Rukken twisted his neck and glanced back at the tent silhouetted against the rising sand dunes stretching out behind it. It didn’t take much to reach out and sense the torrent of emotions inside the tent. She was angry and confused and aroused. Exactly what he’d picked up on when he’d been kneeling in front of her. It had been the shock of her giving voice to his fear and her strong burst of arousal that had sent him reeling. She’d known he was scared, but how?

  He growled and looked away, focusing on the blue water instead. He must have imagined it. Caro had made it clear she wasn’t interested in him, and that the only thing she felt for him was anger at being taken. He must have confused his own powerful arousal for hers. It was true he’d gotten little sleep since he’d taken her. Maybe his mind was becoming muddled from exhaustion. That would make more sense than the offworlder being an empath or wanting him as much as he wanted her.

  He blew out a breath and tipped his head back. The suns were high in the sky, and their unrelenting rays beat down on his face. He welcomed the heat. Dothveks were used to the heat of the sands. His gold skin absorbed the energy, and used it to keep him warm during the chill of the night. It was why his people required few clothes, and since he’d been exiled, he’d worn even less.

  The comforting heat did nothing for his condition, though, and the flush of his skin had nothing to do with the suns. Glancing down, he saw that his cock strained the stiff animal skin he wore around his waist. He jerked the leather down and it sprang up, long and rigid.

  Rukken groaned, his mind going to the female tied up in his tent. He fisted his cock and closed his eyes. He’d been alone long enough to know there was only one way to cure himself of the pounding need. One way that did not involve the female.

  He stroked his hand up until he reached the swollen crown, his fingers brushing the wetness at the tip and his body shuddering in response. He imagined her small hands in place of his—slender fingers instead of large, rough ones, and his grip on his cock tightened.

  Rukken arched back, pumping his fist up and down the rings of his shaft. He thought of her lips, the curve of her lower lip and the bow of the upper—both pink and soft. He wanted nothing more than to plunder that mouth and taste her. The thought of his rough beard against her soft cheeks as he kissed her made his cock throb even more.

  He wanted to savor her soft, unmarked skin, but he also wanted to mark it. He wanted to see where his face had rasped against her pale cheeks, the enflamed skin evidence of his claim. His eyes rolled back in his head as he tightened his grip on his cock and envisioned the pink marks he would leave down her throat and across her chest. He would suck on her perfect breasts until the nipples were hard, and the flesh pebbled.

  “Sons of the goddesses,” he swore under his breath, as heat coiled in the base of his spine.

  Pumping faster, he imagined tearing off her leg coverings and spreading her legs. In his fantasy, she was no longer tied up, and she opened herself willingly to him. Her gaze was molten, and her tongue traced across her lower lip, as she let one finger wander down to part her own folds and tease her slick entrance.

  She wanted him, her hungry expression beckoning him, begging him. She arched her back and let out a breathy sound.

  “Please,” she begged, her voice just as needy and filled with desire as it had been in the tent. Then, it had been confusing, her own thoughts a confused jumble. In his fantasy, it was pure want.

  Caro wanted him. She wanted him to touch her and taste her and fuck her. She slipped a finger inside herself and moaned, her eyelids fluttering as she writhed beneath him.

  Rukken’s desire built, as he stroked himself and envisioned grasping her hips roughly and notching his cock at her wet opening. He knew she would be wet and tight, her heat enveloping him as he thrust inside. He would not go slow. He would take her fast and hard, hearing her scream as he buried his cock inside her.

  A roar tore from his throat as he imagined her stretching around his cock as he filled her to the hilt, holding himself and staring at the place where their bodies joined. She would be tight and hot, he thought, and only his. His mate to claim and take and fuck.

  Rukken exploded, his body jerking uncontrollably as he spilled hot seed over his own fingers and cupped his other hand quickly underneath to keep it from dripping into the water. When he’d stopped jerking, and the deafening roar in his head gave way to the sound of his own panting, he staggered out of the pool and tugged his leather garment back up.

  Plucking a wide leaf from the nearby copse of grasses, he wiped his hands. He’d stroked himself many times before, but he’d never had such a powerful release. His body
quivered, and chills made him brace his hands on his knees as he caught his breath.

  Sons of the goddesses. If that was what it felt like just imagining himself inside her, what would it feel like to actually claim her?

  He glanced up at the tent again. His own emotions were too intense for him to pick up any of hers, but he could feel the faint pulse of her in the deep recesses of his brain. After so long alone, the presence of another mind filled an aching emptiness he hadn’t known he had. Rukken knew he would never be able to give her up. He would never survive being alone again. Not after feeling her mind in his. Not after knowing what it might feel like to claim her as his mate.

  He thought of her as she’d been in his fantasy—ready and willing—and his cock began to swell once more. He wanted to feel more than her mind. So much more.

  Fifteen

  Caro’s head slumped forward, her chin hitting her chest, and she jerked awake. How long had she been asleep?

  It was still light outside, the brightness of the sun spilling in through the tent flaps and the heat stifling in the small space. Sucking in the hot air, she rubbed her eyes, then stopped, holding her hands out in front of her.

  She was untied. She spun around and saw that the ropes were gone even though she still sat propped up against the tent pole. Clearly, she hadn’t pulled herself loose, so when had he untied her?

  She peered out the flap that was pulled back, but she didn’t see Rukken at the fire. He hadn’t left her, had he? Somehow that thought made her stomach clench. As much as she didn’t relish being held captive by a primitive alien, she disliked the idea of being alone in the desert even more. Especially after her botched escape attempt had landed her in a pool of desert quicksand.

  The sounds of splashing made the knot in her gut relax. He was still there. She pressed her lips together as she stood, trying to ignore the unwanted flush of pleasure when she realized he was outside.

  I’m just glad not to be alone out here, she told herself. She’d never liked being alone. Her relief was that. Nothing more.

  Caro ducked as she stepped out of the tent. The fire burned low, his herbal tea simmering over it and sending a wisp of steam curling into the air. She edged her way around the fire, shielding her eyes with one hand as she stepped out from under the fabric awning over the tent’s entrance.

  She’d been right. The suns were not right above her, but they blazed down—one orange and the other almost white-gold. If she had to guess at a time, she’d put it at mid-afternoon. Not that she knew how long the days were on the planet. They’d felt shorter than Earth days, but she couldn’t be sure, since she no longer had the ship’s clocks to guide her.

  More splashing sounds made her pivot to face the small pond the tent backed up onto, and then she froze. Rukken might have untied her, but he probably hadn’t expected her to wake up so soon. That, or he didn’t care that he was bathing naked out in the open.

  She should have turned away, or closed her eyes, or something, but she couldn’t. She stood and stared at the gold-skinned barbarian, who had his back to her. Most of his legs were submerged in the blue water, but his ass was not.

  Caro’s throat felt coated with sand as she tried to swallow. Damn, he had a nice ass.

  It was hard to remember the last time she’d actually seen a man’s bare ass in person. Hazy memories resurfaced of the Valox resistance fighter she’d fallen for when she first joined the movement. It had been so long ago, she’d almost completely repressed them, and even now, his face was a blur. They’d both been kids. Stupid, headstrong kids.

  Of course, the last time she’d seen his face in person—not in the faded photo she’d kept for so many astro-years—he’d been lying motionless on the floor of their ship. One of the many killed in that battle. It had been long enough ago that the pain was also muted, a faint echo of the ache she’d experienced for so long, every time she’d thought of the fighter who’d been so idealistic and who’d stolen her heart.

  She pushed aside the memories, remembering why she avoided them. And remembering why she’d gone out of her way not to fall for anyone ever again. Strong feelings always ended one way—pain. Caro had experienced enough of that in her life already. She was content to focus on her crew and friends.

  No matter how nice the alien’s ass was, she told herself, as she tried to tear her gaze away from the very naked and very gorgeous Dothvek.

  Rukken splashed water onto his arms and chest, scooping it up with his hands and dribbling it over his body. His movements were graceful—almost languid—and she was mesmerized by how sensually he moved, especially for a guy who didn’t know he was being watched. Her gaze went from the ridges sweeping across his back to the scar slashing along one side. He wasn’t the first Dothvek she’d seen with a battle scar, and she wondered how he’d gotten it. Her heart beat faster as she imagined him wielding a blade, his face fierce with intensity.

  Rukken dipped down so that his chest was submerged, then stood back up, the water sluicing off him. The ends of his long, dark hair were wet and trailing streams down his back and perfect backside. Part of her desperately wanted him to turn around, and another part of her wanted to run back into the tent and pretend she’d seen nothing.

  As she watched, motionless, Rukken went under the water completely. She held her breath until he remerged, facing her, his eyes closed. He swiped at his eyes and dragged his hands down his dripping mane of hair as he strode out of the pool in her direction.

  She opened her mouth to explain herself, but she couldn’t think of a single word to say in her defense. She also couldn’t stop her gaze from drifting down to the vee of ridges below his corded stomach, and then to his considerable cock, its thick length swinging between his legs as he walked. Her mouth fell open even more, and she knew she must look like a drowning fish. Were those raised rings around his cock?

  Heat pulsed between her legs, and her nipples hardened into tight peaks. Even her breathing was shallow as she watched him. What would it be like to touch his cock and feel it stiffen? As if on cue, it started to harden and rise.

  Forcing herself to look up, Caro clamped her mouth shut and met his steady gaze. He did not appear to be upset that she was gaping at him. He also didn’t seem to care that he was completely naked and had an enormous erection, although she guessed that you didn’t need to worry about those kinds of things when you lived alone.

  Avert your eyes, Caro, she told herself, finally dropping her gaze as he picked up his clothing from the ground.

  “You’re awake,” he said after a few moments.

  She looked up and saw that he’d put on his loincloth. Even though it was hardly what she’d consider coverage, at least it was something, although it was obvious that his cock was still hard, as it tented the leather.

  “You untied me. Why?” Somehow, the question came out sounding more like an accusation.

  He approached her until he was towering over her, water dripping around his feet. “I could tie you up again.”

  She shook her head quickly. “No, I’m fine like this. But I thought you were convinced I’d run off.”

  “I thought about what you said. You were right. During the day, you cannot get very far from me without me being able to catch you easily. It would be a waste of both of our time for you to run.” One corner of his mouth twitched. “Unless you liked me throwing you over my shoulder and carrying you back.”

  “No, thank you. My ass still hurts from being dropped on the ground.”

  His upturned eyebrows lifted, and he angled his head to look behind her. “I am sorry if I hurt your ass.”

  She got the feeling he was enjoying this, and wasn’t all that sorry. “I think you like this.”

  His eyes shifted to her chest and the nipples that were still hard. “The same could be said about you, female.”

  Crossing her arms, she glared up at him.

  “I suggest you bathe.” He stepped around her and walked to the fire. “The water has warmed up under the
suns. You will not be cold.”

  She found it hard to think of a pool in the desert being cold, but she knew how frigid it could get at night, and she’d also dipped her feet in the pond at the Dothvek village in the early morning. She would not wish to bathe in water that cool.

  She looked longingly at the water. Even if Rukken didn’t have soap or shampoo, it would be amazing to submerge herself entirely in water again. Their ship had only been equipped with showers. She didn’t know how long it had been since she’d taken anything close to an actual bath.

  Caro glanced over her shoulder at him. He was sitting at the fire with his back to her, seemingly indifferent as to whether she stripped down or not. Clearly, he was better at controlling himself than she was.

  “Fuck it,” she whispered to herself. “Stop being such a prude.”

  If Holly was in her place, she would already be naked and floating on her back in the water. Not that she wanted to take it that far. She didn’t have Holly’s confidence, or her incredible curves.

  Giving another quick look at Rukken, who had not turned around, she hurried to the edge of the water and peeled off her clothes, dropping them at her feet and taking long steps into the water. Even though it was not cold, it wasn’t necessarily warm either, and she had to remind herself that the barbarians native to the planet perceived hot and cold very differently.

  She huffed her breath out, steeling herself as she sank down and let the water cover her breasts. After a moment, she adjusted to the coolness, and her muscles relaxed. She had to admit; it did feel incredible.

  Caro extended her arms and cut through the water, feeling it glide over her bare skin. She reached the other side, her fingertips brushing the sandy bottom, before she turned and swam back in the other direction. For a moment, she pushed everything that had happened over the past week or so out of her mind—being marooned by their arch enemy Mourad, losing their ship, almost losing Max, having Holly taken by the Cresteks, Tori flying off on Mourad’s ship, and even her being taken captive. She let it all go, closing her eyes and concentrating on nothing but the cool water cocooning her, and the warmth of the suns.