Jardun's Embrace

by Rayna Tyler

  The masters in charge were merciless in their survival teachings, setting our tasks during the hottest temperatures and worst conditions. A few hours spent in the cool shadows beneath the trees and quenching our thirst from the natural bubbling ponds had been a gift.

  I slipped from the chaugwas’s rump, then held out my hands to Laria. She pursed her lips as if to say she was capable of dismounting herself, yet placed her hands on my shoulders and allowed me to help her from the seat. I enjoyed the feel of her body pressed against mine and lingered with my hands on her hips longer than I should have.

  “You guys coming?” Celeste asked, then shot Sloane an annoyed glare after the other female smacked her arm.

  I was unsure what had transpired between the females, but it brought a hint of red to Laria’s cheeks. “We should go.”

  “Yes.” I reluctantly released her.

  After everyone removed their bags from their animals, Garyck led us through some thick foliage to the clearing where he’d chosen to make camp.

  Sloane kicked at the tall grass surrounding her feet, then squinted in Garyck’s direction. “Not to criticize your choice of places to spend the night, but the blanket sleepers we brought aren’t going to do much good if it rains.”

  “Not to mention keeping out any of the little creatures squirming in the dirt,” Celeste added.

  “We will not be sleeping on the ground.” Zaedon walked over to some large blue fronds with streaks of purple running along the veins.

  He pushed aside the giant leaves, exposing a large, cavernous area naturally formed within the trunk of the trees. It was wide enough for three or four people to sleep comfortably. Or at least as comfortably as anyone could on the hard, partially flattened surface.

  “There are several of these hidden within this area.” Zaedon grinned at Celeste. “Do not worry, zyrdena. You will not encounter any squirming creatures inside.”

  “You know, Zaedon”—Celeste placed her hands on her hips and straightened her shoulders—“Sloane’s not the only one who knows how to shave someone’s head while they sleep.”

  He snorted, letting the leaves drop back into place. “Are all human females as amusing as you?”

  Celeste’s face reddened, her fingertips toying with the handle of her blade. “I’ll show you...”

  “Okay, then.” Laria stepped between them and hooked her arm through Celeste’s. “Why don’t we go find a place to sleep?”

  LARIA

  Because of the flat terrain, any fire used for warmth or cooking could be seen from a great distance across the wastelands. Jardun didn’t want Doyle detecting our presence, so our evening meal had consisted of dried rations Zaedon found when he’d raided the storage building back at the outpost.

  The compartment inside one of the tree trunks wasn’t exactly comfortable, but it did provide Celeste, Sloane, and me with a cozy shelter. I rolled onto my side and listened to the heavy breathing coming from both of my friends. As usual, Celeste’s stones weren’t far from her head. I’d expected having to spend this much time around the ketaurrans would dredge up old memories for her and was glad to see her resting peacefully.

  Sleep eluded me, and my body pulsed with energy. The nap I’d gotten earlier had refreshed the exhausted state of my body. I couldn’t explain why spending time in Jardun’s arms felt perfect, right, safe.

  Afraid my restlessness would wake my friends, I carefully pushed aside the leaves covering the entrance and slipped outside. The air was cool yet refreshing. Even with half of their rounded edges cast in shadows, the planet’s two moons filled the evening sky with light. A light that gave the surrounding plant life a soft blue glow. Burke had taken an alcove not far from ours. I could hear his rumbling snore as I crept by.

  I didn’t have a particular destination in mind, but wasn’t surprised when I arrived in the same clearing as Jardun. It was as if I had a natural ability to sense and home in on his presence.

  He was sitting on the edge of a large boulder, staring at the horizon. The moonlight glistened along the scales on his arms and tail, making their pale blue surface shimmer. His bag sat on the ground near his feet, an indication that he had yet to select a place to sleep.

  His head jerked in my direction, the hand covering the hilt of his sword immediately relaxing. His concerned frown was replaced with a smile. “Laria, why are you not with the others?”

  “I couldn’t sleep.” I perched on the empty space next to him. “Are you still on watch?”

  He shook his head. “Zaedon already relieved me, but I could not sleep either.”

  “Were you thinking about tomorrow, worrying about what we’d find?” Or whether we’ll be able to get out alive once we make it inside the ship?

  He shifted to face me, his gaze darkening and locking with mine. “No.” He cupped my cheek, grazing my lower lip with his thumb. “I was thinking about you.”

  “Me... Why?” The moment he pulled me into his embrace and his lips captured mine, all other thoughts disappeared from my mind.

  His growl was feral, his kiss possessive, more demanding than our last. It was as if he was staking a claim, one I was more than willing to accept.

  “Ketiorra.” The soft words murmured against my lips were barely more than a whisper.

  Had he really called me his mate? My breath hitched, my pulse raced, my core heated.

  He grazed the column of my throat, lavishing my skin with gentle kisses. “Share my bed with me tonight.”

  His request sent a shiver tingling along my spine. Even if it was only for one night, I wanted to be with him, to caress his skin, his scales. To run my hands over his firm body. To know what it felt like to have him inside me. “Yes,” I gasped.

  Another growl vibrated from deep within his chest. He lifted me off the ground, and I wrapped my legs around his waist, rubbing against his hard shaft and eliciting a groan.

  With one arm keeping me in place, he leaned forward to grab his bag. He carried me to an alcove far enough from the others so we wouldn’t be heard. He pulled the leaves aside, then gently set me on the edge. After I scooted farther inside, he tossed in his bag and climbed up next to me. The moonlight filtered through the leaves, providing dim lighting.

  In a matter of minutes, he’d used his blankets to make a bed and taken off his vest and folded it into a pillow. After removing first his boots, then mine, he braced his back against the smooth trunk and pulled me onto his lap. He tugged the end of my braid. “I wish to see what your hair looks like when it is not bound.”

  I nodded my permission, then held his gaze as he tugged on the binding.

  He slipped his fingers through the strands, slowly pulling apart the braid until the lengths cascaded over my shoulders. “I like it this way.” He gave a curl an absent tug, then reached for the ties securing the front of my vest. Starting at the top, he peeled back the fabric, leaving a blazing trail of heat wherever his thumb touched my skin. By the time he’d bared my breasts, I was shuddering with need.

  “There is no other creature on all of Ketaurrios that possesses your beauty.”

  Before his words could register, his lips were on mine, tasting and teasing, using his tongue to possessively take control of the kiss. At the same time, he splayed his hand along my ribs, moving upward to cup my breast. He brushed his thumb across the nipple, and I moaned. The warmth from the midday sun was nothing compared to his heated touch or the effect it was having on my body.

  After grasping the hair at my nape, he tipped my head backward, using his arm to brace my upper body as he scorched a trail with his lips, moving downward from my shoulder. When he curled his tail around my ankle, I couldn’t resist running my fingertips along its length, the scales flat and smooth to the touch.

  Jardun shuddered and groaned, then tugged on my wrist. “My tail is extremely sensitive to stimulation. If you continue your caresses, I will explode like an inexperienced male.”

  “Really.” I smirked. “Does that mean you’re sensitive her
e as well?” I playfully swiped a path across the scales on his breastplate, then held back a satisfied grin when he sucked in a breath.

  “Female,” he growled, then grabbed me around the waist, rolling me onto my back with his hips wedged between my thighs.

  “Laria,” I corrected, then reached for him again, only to have my arms pinned above my head with one hand. Everything about him exuded power and control, and I wasn’t surprised to discover it extended to his seduction skills. I found that I liked his dominant behavior, that it aroused me even more.

  “Let us see how you like being teased, Laria.” He purred my name, then cupped one breast, giving it a squeeze before lowering his mouth over the other.

  The man definitely knew what he was doing. Switching between sucking and swirling his tongue, he transformed the nipple into a hard nub. It wasn’t long before he had pleasure spiking from my core. “Jardun.” I rubbed against his erection, frantic to have him inside me.

  “Not yet,” he murmured with a nip to my skin.

  The more I begged, whimpered, and bucked, the more relentless he became in his ministrations to fulfill his promise of taunting. He kept my arms pinned, then slipped two fingers inside me, slowly pumping, each thrust pushing me closer to the edge.

  He soon found the spot that sent my senses into overload and had me squirming even more. Not long after that, my orgasm hit, one rippling explosion after another, wrenching his name from my lips.

  When I thought I couldn’t take any more, thought I was about to pass out, he replaced his fingers with his cock. Each push and pull from his much larger shaft stimulated sensitive spots within me, hurling me toward another orgasm. One I was certain would be bigger than the last. One that might possibly kill me.

  Several more hard and fast thrusts pushed me over the edge into ecstasy with Jardun following right behind me. We lay there, covered in a sheen of sweat, panting and trying to gain our breath.

  When Jardun finally moved, it was to take a long-drawn-out sniff of my neck.

  “Zaedon mentioned my scent earlier. Is there something wrong with the way I smell?” Since I hadn’t bathed since the day before, I hated to think he found my odor unappealing.

  “There is nothing wrong with the way you smell.” He took another long inhale and rolled onto his back, pulling me close to his side.

  “So why do you keep sniffing me?”

  “The males of my kind are drawn to the scent of their chosen, their life mates.” He adjusted his vest underneath his head.

  “And?” I used his shoulder as a pillow and draped my arm across his chest.

  “And, it is time to get some rest.” He closed his eyes and snuggled me closer.

  Apparently, the frustrating male was done answering any more of my questions.

  Chapter Eleven

  JARDUN

  I delighted in waking with Laria’s body entangled in my embrace, strands of her golden hair splayed across my chest. It was a pleasurable experience, one I wished to prolong but knew was not possible. The first light of the sun’s rays peeked through the gaps in the leaves, and it was nearing time to leave.

  Zaedon must have known Laria was with me; otherwise, he would not be tromping around and making more noise than a chaugwas in heat.

  “I take it someone is trying to get your attention?” Laria opened her perceptive green eyes and propped her chin on my chest.

  “Zaedon.” I ran my fingertip along the silky skin of her arm. “Garyck would not hesitate to interrupt us.”

  “I guess we should be thankful that Zaedon was up first, then.” She winked, then leaned forward and nipped my chin.

  I pushed several locks behind her ear and pressed a kiss to her forehead. “Laria, I...” I what? I did not want to let her go, but what could I say? I could not tell her I wished for a life together. I had no idea if any of us would survive the day. And if we did, then what? What kind of life could I offer her? I was a warrior, bound to protect the drezdarr, to protect my people as well as hers.

  Her smile faded. “I know.” She pulled from my arms, then rolled onto her hands and knees and reached for her clothes.

  With a disappointed groan, I forced myself to do the same.

  Shortly after I emerged from the alcove within the tree trunk, I spotted Sloane entering the clearing carrying two bags. I assumed one belonged to Laria.

  Sloane dropped the bundle at her feet. “Has anyone seen... Oh.” She grinned when I held the leaves away from the alcove’s opening so Laria could exit behind me. I would be the first to admit that I did not understand the ways of human females, but was glad to see that at least one of Laria’s close friends approved of our night spent together. Celeste appeared a few moments later. And though she appeared hesitant, she offered Laria a supportive smile.

  If any of the males disapproved, they kept their comments to themselves. Burke might have been silent on the subject, but his irritated behavior and cool demeanor were indications that he was upset.

  After a quick meal of rations and preparing the chaugwai for travel, we left the loicryn behind and used the nearest ridgeline to complete the remainder of our trip. We made better time than I had expected and reached our destination before midday.

  Leaving the chaugwai a short distance away, we moved in a crouch to the rocky ledge overlooking what remained of the Earthers’ spacecraft.

  “To tell you the truth, I’d expected to see signs of Doyle’s men long before now.” Burke set his bag on the ground, then flattened his body next to an outcropping of rocks to get a better look below.

  “It is possible that they arrived after we left and started searching the other outlying outposts, as we intended,” Zaedon said.

  When I had devised the plan, I knew the odds of it working were not in our favor. So far, taking the direct route over the ridge into the wasteland seemed to be successful. It did not explain the uneasy feeling creeping through my system.

  Burke reached inside his bag and pulled out a medium-sized pouch. “I figured these might come in useful on this trip.” He opened the pouch and retrieved an object that resembled two thin cylinders joined in the middle by a small piece of metal.

  “Where did you get the viewers?” Celeste grabbed them out of his hand and held them up to her eyes.

  “I acquired them from another Earther.” Burke held out his hand and wiggled his fingers until she returned them.

  “Don’t you mean you confiscated them without paying for them?” Sloane asked.

  “No, I believe that’s your area of expertise.” Burke smirked. “A guy owed me a few cradassons and couldn’t pay, so he gave me these instead.”

  “What else have you got in there?” Sloane rolled on her knees and reached for Burke’s pouch.

  Burke snatched it from her hand. “Nothing you need to see, touch, or abscond with.”

  Sloane harrumphed, then crossed her arms. “Well, you’re no fun.”

  “I’m a lot of fun, but I’m rather fond of my belongings and would like to keep them.”

  “May I?” Laria waited for Burke to give her the viewers, then turned and handed them to me. “These will magnify the view and make everything appear closer. Hold them with the smaller end to your eyes and point them at whatever you want to see. You should be able to get a better look at the ship’s exterior and the entrance. You should also be able to see how many guards Doyle has posted.”

  “You have done this before?” I asked.

  Laria smiled. “Once or twice.”

  I knew very little of her past, but becoming skilled at what she did took practice. I would bet she had been in similar situations more than two times, but refrained from stating my opinion. I held the viewers as she had instructed, and watched the world in front of me change focus. I was amazed at the clarity and detail.

  I had not been a part of the old drezdarr’s emissary group who had greeted and initiated the rescue of the humans. I had seen several pictures of the vessel taken before their exploring expedition began, a
nd shared via the data sources the survivors had provided to Khyron and his father.

  The vessel was much larger than I’d imagined, and from this viewpoint, the majority of the hull appeared to be intact. The portion closest to the bottom of the rock wall was partially covered with drifted sand. The rumors that Doyle had turned the vessel into his personal compound were accurate. “I count five transports, including the one the human male Rick used when he left the outpost.” They were all situated in an area to the left and not far from the large space vessel. “I do not see the solarveyor used by the soldiers.”

  “Perhaps our assumptions that they were working with Doyle were incorrect,” Zaedon said.

  “It is possible they served under Sarus during the war, then maintained a pretense of loyalty to the drezdarr afterward to escape punishment.” Disdain filled Garyck’s tone.

  My friend rarely shared his views, but I was aware of the emotional and physical scars he had received in connection to that particular subject. “It is possible they simply abandoned the outpost for fear of being imprisoned for attempting to steal the females.” My chest tightened. I glanced at Laria and was reminded of how differently the events of that evening could have gone.

  “Are there any guards posted outside?” Burke asked.

  I tilted my head slightly so I could see the area on the opposite side of the vessel. Several males meandered along the perimeter. They appeared heavy in conversation, their demeanor indifferent, leaning toward boredom. “There are three armed with swords.” I lowered the viewers and returned them to Burke.

  He moved away from the ledge, then squatted near a smooth area in the loose sand and used the tip of his blade to draw a diagram. “From what my friend told me, the ship has an access entrance close to the point where the ship butts up against this rock wall. There’s a lot of damage, but we should be able to use it to get inside. From there, locating the engineering level shouldn’t be a problem.”

  Burke tapped a spot on the outer edge of the circle he’d drawn. “The lifts won’t be operational, so we’ll have to use the tunnels to reach the upper levels.”