by T. J. Quinn
“I hate waiting.”
“You’re not alone.”
“Well, take good care of my woman, and I’ll see you in a few days.”
“Sure thing.”
They ended the call, and Kenyon went looking for the women. Neela wouldn’t be thrilled with the prospect of being away from her loved one for a few more days nor would Ashryn and Caisys.
He found them in Samantha’s living room, as she called it, a small chamber she had decorated to fit her taste, during their travel through the quadrant.
“I was wondering how long it would take you to come to talk to us,” Neela said, when he entered the room, with an ironic scowl.
“Then, you must know what I want from you,” he said, taking a seat on a comfortable armchair.
“Yes, we do, but unfortunately, we don’t have the answers you need,” Neela replied in a somber tone. “Ever since the moment we arrived at the auction house, we were kept separated from Samantha.”
“What happened exactly? How did you end up at the auction house?” Kenyon asked, trying to understand what had happened.
“Samantha wasn’t careful. She hated being locked up inside the house so, she trusted the walls would be tall enough to keep strangers from seeing her when she wandered around in the gardens.”
“But they weren’t,” he concluded.
“They weren’t. That afternoon, she came running into the house, startled. A man had seen her and shown a strange interest in her presence at the house.”
“Did they talk?”
“I’m not sure. She refused to talk about it, but we could tell she was distressed,” Ashryn replied. “That same night, Zyrh’s men entered the house and took us all prisoners.”
“It must have been terrible for you.”
“Yes, it was. We had no idea what was going on or what would happen to us, even when Zyrh kept telling us he would send us home as soon as you arrived,” Caisys said.
“He was never interested in any of us,” Neela concluded.
“Why do you think he captured you, then?” Kenyon asked.
“We have no idea. My guess is he didn’t want us making a fuss over Samantha’s disappearance,” Neela replied.
“It’s a possibility, yes,” Kenyon agreed.
“Why did Samantha stay there?” Neela asked.
“I wish I knew,” Kenyon sighed. “She assured me she had made the decision herself, under no coercion but I’m not sure I can trust what she said.”
“Why didn’t you force her to come?” Caisys asked, scowling. Of the three women, she was the oldest, and also the one that had spent several years as a sex slave for the Dreshanians. She didn’t trust men, though Kenyon had heard that was starting to change.
“Because she wouldn’t let me, and neither would Zyrh. Going against him is usually lethal,” he replied gravely.
“What will happen to the woman you brought back here?” Neela asked.
“I don’t know yet. She was supposed to be the bride of Zyrh’s client, but Samantha took her place.”
“Well, you’ll have to make a decision soon. You can’t leave her in that awful cell for much longer,” Neela said, crossing her arms over her chest and staring right at Kenyon.
Kenyon scowled but abstained from commenting. “You’ll have to bear with me for a few more days. Ethan asked me to pick up Jaffar’s vessel from the asteroid where the Sherlaacs hid it.”
The women didn’t look very happy, but none protested.
“I’ll go prepare some food. That will keep me busy,” Neela announced and the other two women followed her.
Kenyon watched them leave and sighed. His well-planned life had been given an unexpected twist, and he still wasn’t sure where it was going to take him now. For now, he had someone he needed to visit.
She might shed some light into it.
He jumped out of his chair and headed straight to the cell where he had thrown her. He opened the door waiting to find her in bed, but she wasn’t there. Fearing she had escaped, he looked around just to see her coming out of the bathroom with a small towel wrapped around her luscious body.
She let out a small cry. “What are you doing here?” she protested.
Lust surged through his body, and it took a colossal effort to control himself. He wanted to take her into his arms and blow her mind with kisses and caresses.
“I thought you might want to move into a more comfortable room,” he said, leaning against the doorway, not even bothering to disguise his desire.
She crossed her arms over her chest, furious. “I’m fine here, thank you,” she assured him.
Sharian was mentally exhausted. The past hours had been stressful. She still couldn’t believe the other woman had taken her place and agreed to mate a man she had never seen. It was obvious the man called Kenyon wasn’t very pleased with the woman’s decision, and for a few moments, she had feared he would take her out of there by force, leaving Sharian behind to face a terrible future.
Now, she was back on Kenyon’s vessel, locked in that tiny cell, with no idea what was going to happen next.
After a few minutes of pacing her cell, she decided to take a bath. Though she didn’t have clean clothes to put on, feeling the water running down her body would do wonders for her spirit.
When she was done, she wrapped her body in a small towel and returned to the room just to find Kenyon at the door.
Her heart missed a beat before it started to beat at a very fast pace. His offer to take her to a more comfortable room sounded too suspicious, and she wished she knew what he was after.
“Either way, I’m taking you to a new room. You’ll be here for a while, so you might as well be more comfortable,” he said, closing the distance between them and standing too close for her taste.
“How long will you keep me here?” she asked, taking a step back, not sure she understood the way she felt around the man.
She had grown up with little contact with men. The Borzans believed their females had to attend the mating ceremony untouched.
Ameera, Sharian’s best friend, used to say they didn’t want their females comparing their future mates with their past lovers. That would make things a bit harder for the parents when convincing their daughters of taking the possible mates.
Sharian used to laugh at her friend’s conjectures, but now she was starting to think she might be right. She had never reacted that way with the males her parents had introduced her to. In fact, she hadn’t felt anything at all, not even the warm feeling she felt when caressing a baby.
If she had known this man before, she would have rejected her suitors even faster than she had.
“As long as it takes,” he replied, running a finger down her cheek, loving the silkiness of her skin.
“That’s not an answer,” she grumbled, starting to heave with each breath she dragged in. His finger had drawn a path of fire on her skin, and she had no idea what to do.
“It’s the only answer I have for you,” he assured her, with a mischievous grin. He could tell his closeness was affecting her the same way it affected him and that pleased him very much.
“Will you take me home? I’m sure my parents would pay you for your trouble,” she asked, taking a step back and reaching the wall behind her.
“Oh, really? And why should I believe that?” he asked, taking a step closer to her and standing just inches away from her.
He was so close he could hear her heart drumming in her chest, but he was sure fear was the last thing she was feeling.
“We… we could… call them…” she suggested, having trouble breathing. His musky scent was playing tricks with her hormones, and she couldn’t concentrate on the only thing that should matter to her – going back home.
He caressed her other cheek, loving the way she gasped at his touch. “Yes. I guess I could, but why would I? What would I get from it?” he asked, taking his finger further down until he reached the edge of the towel she used to cover her delicious body.
/> “They… they would… pay you…” she stuttered, doing her best to ignore his finger and pretend it didn’t affect her.
But she knew she wasn’t convincing anybody, not even herself.
“I don’t need more credits,” he replied, wickedly. “However, I could use someone to warm my bed,” he added, leaning even closer.
The shock on her face was almost comical. Incredibly, at that moment, she looked way too innocent, as if she had never been with a male before.
“Please… let me call my parents… I’m sure they will reward you…” she insisted, pushing herself against the wall as much as she could.
He chuckled, and with a devious grin, he brushed his lips over hers, enjoying it more than he should have before he stepped back.
“I’ll think about it. Now, get dressed so that I can show you your new room before the girls announce the meal is ready,” he suggested, walking towards the door and waiting there for her.
Still breathing hard, feeling as if her lips were on fire, she picked up the tunic she had been wearing, from the bed, and returned to the bathroom to put it on as fast as possible.
He was still waiting for her when she came out.
“I’m ready,” she announced, and he guided her down the hallway to Samantha’s chambers.
“You can stay here. After I recover my friend’s vessel, we’ll go buy some clothes for you. Meanwhile, you can use whatever you find in the closet,” he informed her, opening the door for her. “This used to be Samantha’s chambers, and as you know, she won’t be needing any of the things she left behind.” His tone hardened a bit when he mentioned his friend.
She gasped, feeling uncomfortable and even a bit guilty. “Thank you.”
“I’ll pick you up to eat when the food is ready,” he said, just before he disappeared out the door, closing it behind him.
Chapter Six
Sharian sighed, relieved when she was finally alone and looked around. The room was a lot better than the tiny cell he had her in. She wondered why he had changed his mind about keeping her locked up, but she was definitely happy he had.
She walked to the bed in the middle of the room and let herself fall on it, suddenly exhausted. If she could turn back time, she would never complain about her dull life again. She’d had enough adventures for a million lifetimes.
Though she was tired, her mind was too busy to allow her to rest. The Asloran warrior disturbed her too much, and that kiss had moved the floor underneath her feet. She didn’t even know that could happen. Like all females on her planet, she had been kept away from males that weren’t part of her family, so she had no idea what happened between a man and a woman. On the past moon cycles, she had been introduced to the suitors her parents had been considering, but she had never felt anything like what the Asloran conjured within her.
She let out a deep sigh and jumped out of bed, she was still in the tunic she had been wearing since the day before. Yet she was not comfortable with the idea of going through the other woman’s clothes. She was trying to decide whether she should move to the closet or remain in the same tunic before he returned for her.
However, a gentle knock on the door told her she had taken too long deciding on what to do. “Come in,” she invited, with a none too friendly tone.
It wasn’t the Asloran. At the door was one of the women that had come with them from the auction house.
“Hi, I’m Neela. I thought you might appreciate some clean clothes,” she said, stepping into the room with a friendly smile, with some clothes in her arms.
“Hi, Neela, I’m Sharian,” she replied, smiling back at her. “I was trying to decide whether to change out of this tunic I’ve been in since yesterday,” she said with a scowl.
“Then, I’m just in time,” Neela smiled. “I noticed that you’re taller than Samantha so her clothes won’t fit you, so I took the liberty of making some tunics for you with some of the fabric that Samantha bought from one of the planets she visited on this journey,” she explained.
“Are you sure she won’t mind?” Sharian asked, with a slight frown.
The expression on the other woman’s face changed a bit, becoming a bit subdued. “She won’t be coming back, at least, not for a long time, so, I’m sure she won’t mind.”
An awkward silence fell between the women. Sharian still felt guilty about the other woman’s decision and she suspected everybody on that vessel blamed her too. “Thank you for your kindness,” she said, breaking the silence.
“It’s nothing. I like keeping myself busy, and Samantha has this incredible sewing machine that sews whatever you need,” Neela explained, smiling. “I believe I calculated your measurements well enough but try it on so that we can be sure,” she suggested, handing her the clothes.
“I will, thank you,” she grabbed the clothes, and after choosing a dark blue tunic, with silvery embroidery, she went to the bathing room to put it on.
Neela had a good eye. The tunic fit her perfectly. Feeling better than she had in several days, she picked up a hairbrush from one of the compartments on the counter and combed her hair into a pair of braids, as she used to back at home. It helped her feel more herself.
She came out of the bathing room with a bright smile. “Thank you, it looks amazing, and it fits me perfectly,” she said.
Neela smiled. “I’m glad you like it,” she said in a kind tone. “The meal is ready. Would you like me to walk you to the meal room?” she suggested.
Anything to keep her away from Kenyon was most welcomed. “Yes, please.”
They left the room and walked down the hallway, right into the meal room. The male crew members hadn’t arrived yet, so Neela introduced her to the other women.
“This is Caisys and Ashryn. We’re from Dreshan, a small planet in this quadrant. I’m sure you’ve never heard of us,” she said with a self-deprecating grin.
“Actually, I have. Dreshan’s king was a suitor for my sister, but he wasn’t able to convince her they were a match,” Sharian replied.
“Oh, she was lucky. That would have been a terrible match. The man is awful,” Caisys assured her.
Sharian nodded. “I never met the man, but she told me there was something dark about him.”
“It can’t get any darker,” Caisys retorted, shuddering.
“Do you know him personally?” Sharian asked, puzzled with the woman’s reaction.
The other women shared some weird look before Neela answered her question with a heavy sigh. “Yes, we all did. We were his slaves.”
Sharian was in shock. “Slaves? What kind of slaves?” but the minute she asked the question, she guessed the answer. The women were young and beautiful. You didn’t have to be a genius to know what kind of slaves they had been. “Oh, I had no idea, my sister would have never accepted that,” she said, shaking her head.
“I doubt she would have a say in it. No one dares to say the word ‘no’ to him,” Caisys assured her.
“How did you get here?”
“Ethan, Kenyon’s boss, found us and rescued us from them,” Neela informed.
“Ah, yes I met him the other day through the video conference,” Sharian remembered. “Why didn’t you go back home?” she asked, intrigued.
“That wasn’t an option, due to way too many complications. Either way, we didn’t want to leave,” Neela replied, with a naughty grin. “Meeting Ethan was the best thing that ever happened in my life. He’s my soulmate.”
Sharian smiled pleased to hear that. “What about the two of you?” she asked the other women.
“We could say we found our soulmates, too,” Ashryn replied, with a shy smile.
“I’m happy for you.”
Kenyon entered the room with a slight frown. It disappeared when he saw Sharian with the other women. “I see you’ve met the girls,” he said in a cold tone.
“Yes, I went to take Sharian some clean clothes her size, and since it was meal time, I brought her here,” Neela explained, with a smile, unaware of
the tension between the other two.
“I’m sure Sharian was very grateful,” the emphasis on her name was only noticed by her, and she smiled ironically.
He had never asked her for her name.
“Oh, I was,” she assured him, with a teasing grin.
The arrival of the rest of the crew interrupted them. Kenyon introduced the men to Sharian, and they all took a seat to enjoy their meal. Kenyon sat next to her, even when he had to know she wanted distance from him.
An android served the food, and they all started to eat while discussing the events of the day. Considering their comments, Sharian realized no one knew what had happened in the auction house. She had no idea how Kenyon had explained her presence in the vessel and Samantha’s absence, but she wasn’t about to ask him that.
When the meal was over, Kenyon suggested escorting her back to her chambers. For a minute, she considered rejecting his suggestion but that might lead him to think she was afraid of him and there was nothing further from the truth.
The truth was she was afraid of her own reactions when he was around. Eating with him so close to her, close enough for her to breathe in his scent and feel the warmth of his body, had been a real torment. A knot of swirling emotions sat in her throat making it almost impossible for her to swallow the food she put in her mouth.
Now, she would have to walk back to her room with him, with her heart drumming in a frantic rhythm, anticipating what might happen when they got there.
“You didn’t eat much. Is our food too different from what you’re used to?” he asked, breaking the tense silence that had installed itself between them.
“No… no… I wasn’t very hungry… I guess,” she replied, and it wasn’t a real lie. His closeness had taken away her appetite.
She shook her head trying to pull herself together. “Will you allow me to contact my family? I’m sure they will offer you a reward for returning me,” she said, changing the subject.
“The third quadrant is too far away,” he replied.
