The subtle change in tone made her throat tighten, her mouth go dry. Betters could make normal humans want to please them simply by modulating their tone. None of them affected her except Alitus. His voice strummed her nerves, resonating within her like the bass of a cello.
You’ve already been to two of your Jades’ beds this morning.The memory of arousing her pleasure slaves from slumber brought a flush of heat to her face. Each had been more than happy to awaken with her sliding into bed beside him.You don’t need to take Alitus, too.
“Your morning reports are ready.” Alitus set a pile of info-chips on her desk and neatened the stack. He slid his tapered fingers up them the way they’d drawn over the peaks of her breasts the night before. He tapped one finger against the top chip. “All the news links are in this one, as usual. I sorted them by relevance and made a second set sorted by date.” He stroked the finger down the side of the chips. “Intel reports are in the next three, with the index and cross references in the fourth.”
Destoiya tore her attention away from his masculine hands and nodded. She swallowed, forcing herself to breathe in and out.In and out. Breathe in and out. Calm and cool. She fought to keep her mouth closed so she couldn’t order him to satisfy her.
Alitus tucked his hands behind him. “Shall I go over changes to your agenda?”
Gaze drawn to the bulge in the front of his pants, she pressed the fingers of one hand against her mouth. He was already half erect.Such a simple thing to free his cock from those confining…
“No!” She shoved herself away from the desk, stood and turned. “I—I mean, that’s not necessary.” Destoiya tugged her uniform jacket into place and smoothed her hands down the scarlet military sash she wore across the front. Its presence and the myriad medals pinned to it reminded her of duty as no other thing could. “I—I already know my calendar. I went over it awhile ago.” She pivoted toward him, putting the chair and desk between them. “I can’t afford to be late. You know how important this is, Alitus!”
A slight crinkle at the corner of his eyes betrayed his struggle to grasp the reason for her irritation with him. She never raised her voice with Alitus. “Of course, Your Majesty.”
Damn it. He’s gone to using my full title. Not what I wanted.He respected her too much to call her by her first name even in bed unless she asked him. She took a partial step toward him, steeled herself and turned away, arms folded. “With all the defections we’ve had since that damn Ruffhaus betrayed me, I want to meet on their ground.”
“I understand.”
While he had his head down, not looking at her, she savored him. Thick lashes lay on his cheeks, the straight fall of his pale, golden hair wisped around his face and ears. Firm chin, high cheekbones … such a manly face and yet, beautiful. Betters were always beautiful. The unwavering loyalty and absolute integrity that defined Alitus had never hardened his mouth. His old-fashioned courtesy and gentle nature made him a wonder. Especially after so many years in a decadent court like hers. Such a sea of virtues wrapped this young man…
I won’t touch him. I won’t. Not today. Just one damn day.Destoiya backed away, but more space did nothing to lessen the lust of her addiction.
Neither spoke. Neither moved. When he finally peeked up at her, he narrowed those dark blue eyes. “Did you sleep any better after I left?”
She omitted mentioning the Jades she’d visited after she’d sent him away. Of all people, Alitus understood the absolute frenzy of her libido. If she kept him in her bed, she ravished him to the point of mutual exhaustion, yet she rarely slept unless he slept beside her. “I got up and came into the office to work instead.”
He shook his head. “I knew I should have stayed so you could sleep.”
“No, no. Not your fault. I’m the one who sent you away. Besides, you’re not a Jade anymore. You need a life of your own.”
He placed a hand over his heart and bowed. “Youare my life, Majesty.”
Not trusting herself to answer without giving in to emotions, she strode toward the rear of the room. The echo of her polished heels clicking on the marble tile only reminded her of how far she was from him.
To distract herself, she slid one finger along the chin of a bronze bust of Destine Pietan, the first Conqueror, and the first role she’d played in the Tarthian Empire, almost eight hundred years ago.How complicated this game is turning out to be. She shook her head.Alitus knows he’s bedding an older woman. What would he think if he knew how old I really was?
“Majesty, are you all right?” He had taken a few steps toward her and now stood beside her desk instead of in front of it. “Pardon me, but you don’t seem yourself this morning.”
Destoiya snapped both hands behind her. “That conference with the Praetorian Guard Commander and her staff this morning has me riled up. There’s so much at stake. I need to be gracious, when what I want to do is snap every one of their necks and beat their heads in for daring to challenge my authority.”
A quick grin dimpled his cheeks. Alitus coughed politely into a fist. “I’ll ensure you’re reminded in time. The meeting atHellTower is in one hour. I sent for your hoversine earlier. It’s standing by. Would you like me to…”
“An hour?” She leaned toward him. The hope in his eyes brought her teetering to the edge of capitulation. “I thought we only had minutes.”
“No, Majesty. They rescheduled due to a conflict. I updated your calendar, but…”
“Well, then, the hell with this.” Destoiya yanked the sash over her head and tossed it across the bronze bust. “Fuck me. Now. On the desk.” She ripped at the buttons of her jacket.
His smile widened. “I live to obey you.” Alitus moved her chair and set aside the items on her desk. With one hand, he unfastened his jacket.
Destoiya stepped out of her heels and dropped her uniform coat on the way. She threw herself into Alitus’ arms before he could complete three steps.
His mouth came down on hers as he caught and lifted her against him. Destoiya savored his taste and wrapped her arms around his neck to hold his mouth against hers.
He shoved her skirt up her thighs as he carried her to the desk and set her atop it. Her new desk put her at exactly the right level for sex; she’d designed it to suit Alitus’ height. Destoiya leaned on her hands and smiled up at him as he freed his shaft.
He nudged her thighs apart and brushed his fingers down her mound. “Mmm, no panties. I love it when you come to me already hot.”
“I’m always hot. Stop dallying.” Destoiya lay on her desk and lifted her ankles to his shoulders as Alitus slipped his cock inside her. She moaned aloud. His shaft’s width relieved the heat inside her, like a good hard rub on a maddening itch.
Alitus slid her toward him on the polished surface and closed his eyes with an expression of dreamy abandon. “Oh, you’re so wet! I love the feel of you around me.”
The bare ecstasy of his cock stretching her open spread heat from vulva to thighs and breasts, up into her throat and across her eyes. Destoiya arched her neck, head thrown back on the hard desk. A breath sobbed from her throat.
Alitus wrapped an arm around each of her thighs and dragged her up hard against him as he thrust.
“Yes. Oh, yes…” A breath hissed in over her teeth. “Oh, Alitus.” She relaxed her neck and shoulders, squirming to open herself and take him deeper. “Yes. Like that. More. More.”
Destoiya gripped the edge of her desk while Alitus rocked in and out of her. When the clean apricot scent of his pheromones filled the air, she sucked in another deep, shuddering breath and succumbed to the euphoria she’d fought so hard to resist. Her heart stuttered, then began to pound as if she’d run a marathon. Mouth dry, she fought for air, her lungs heaving.
All the while, Alitus thrust into her, rocking her hard, slamming himself against her mons, driving himself into her cleft. Taking her ever closer to ecstasy. He slowed, the rich blue of his eyes darkening as he squinted.
Destoiya thrust herself up against hi
m, showing him without words she needed no breather. No mercy. No respite from the glorious sexual high.
He slid both hands down her thighs and under her backside, lifting her toward him as he angled down, ramming into her so hard her breasts bounced and swayed. Heat stifled her. Sweat stung her eyes.
The heavy desk scraped across the floor, screeching against the tile. Choking on a dry swallow, Destoiya stuffed a knuckle in her mouth and bit it hard to stay quiet. A scream would summon Praetorian.
Alitus moaned, grimacing in pleasure-pain. “Oh, God,” he whispered over and over. He rocked side to side within her, rising on his toes. He bounced as he pressed himself into her.
The heat of him inside her as he came flooded her with more pheromones, calming her heart and bringing her body into a soothing rest. She came down slowly, like a feather floating on a breeze over the heathers of her homeland.
“Oh, Majesty.” Alitus eased her backside down to the desk and bent over her. Leaning on his elbows, he brushed his lips across hers, tangling his fingers in her hair. “I love you so.”
Destoiya slid both arms up around his neck and drew him down for nibbling, biting kisses that lasted forever. He withdrew, opened her desk drawer and fumbled for a soft cloth which he used to dry the skin of her thighs. He pressed it gently against her labia and held it there while she sat up.
She used the cloth herself and handed it to him as she stood.
Alitus cleaned himself and tossed the cloth in the recycler before wrapping both arms around her. He drew her against his body. Nearly as tall as he, she ducked her head a bit and leaned against his chest, lulled by his warmth and the steady beat of his heart.
“Not the way I’d pictured starting the morning, love.” Destoiya snuggled harder against him. “I was going to resist you today. Had it all planned.” She lifted her head as he looked down. Cracking a smile, she said, “I tried to convince myself the addiction was all in my head. Again.”
He gave a soft laugh and hugged her, her head beneath his chin. “I’ve stopped having such illusions. I can’t focus when I try to ignore my feelings for you. You might eventually get over me, but I’ll never get over you.”
Destoiya stepped back. “Oh, Alitus, I’ll never get over you.” She stroked a hand down his smooth cheek. “Nor will I ever want to.” She adjusted her skirt and padded over to where she’d left her black heels and jacket. “I only wish I could think straight. You’re a walking aphrodisiac. I can’t keep my hands off you. Though, God knows, I try.” She slid her feet into her shoes. “I promise you. I try hard.”
Alitus righted his clothes. “Don’t forget your sash.” He nodded toward the bust.
She gave the statue a mocking bow. “Thank you, Destine. I’ll take this now.” She lifted the scarlet sash over the bust’s head.
“You know,” Alitus moved to stand before the bust. “She has an uncanny resemblance to you.” He turned toward her. “Especially the nose and chin.”
“Do you think so?” Destoiya took extra pains with her sash, avoiding his direct gaze. “My mother liked to claim a distant relationship.”
“Yes, I recall. I’ve been studying Destoiya the Great.”
“Have you?” His words brought her head up. She’d been her own “mother.” When the game she and her fellow immortals played allowed her another turn at the role, she’d reinvented herself as a long-lost daughter, faked her own death, then executed a swift coup over Destoiya the Great’s administration and taken over as Destoiya the Conqueror. She gave Alitus her best smile. “Why the sudden interest in a dead woman?”
His swift frown changed to a look of denial. “Nothing sudden about it.” Alitus dragged one hand through his hair. “History has always fascinated me. Especially of the Tarthian Empire and its various rulers.”
If you only knew how many of them have been me, or one of my people.Sempervians had ruled over the empire a dozen times or more in the past few centuries.How many times have I served in some sort of parliament or been a judge? Time had little meaning to her any more. The years turned into decades before she knew it.I really ought to leave before the next round. It’s getting way too dangerous to stay here.
He held out his hands and she put hers into them. The blue of his eyes twinkled like stars reflected in deep water. “Of all the rulers we’ve had, you are the most magnificent.”
Her cheeks heated. “You mustn’t say such things.”
Alitus curled a finger beneath her chin to lift her face. “I’m not offering vain flattery, my Conqueror. I’ve studied the others. You truly are the best. It’s as if everything the others did has culminated in your leadership.”
Their gazes held for a long moment, neither speaking. At last, she sighed. “Thank you, Alitus.”
He offered his arm. “Shall we go? I know you’re anxious to deal with the Praetorian.”
With a sigh, she accepted his arm and leaned against him. “I only hope I can turn the tide and retain their loyalty. The rebels are gaining a military stronghold. The Praetorian are our last line of defense if the palace is attacked.”
Alitus stopped and turned toward her. “The rebellion has no chance against the might of the Imperial Armada. But even if everything went wrong and we were attacked, I swear to you, before they got to you, I would be the last thing your enemies saw before I blasted them into the hereafter.” He lifted his chin. “Or I died sending them there.” He tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. “Come, My Conqueror. I want to watch you turn these ferocious Praetorian into the kittens they truly are.”
Chapter Two
TarthCity, Conqueror’s Palace,HellTower
Office of the Brigade Commander
Sumertsag 34
The royal hoversine arrived atHellTower , a pure-white alabaster building rising twenty stories without windows. Prisoners sentenced to “Hell” never again saw the light of day, even after death. Androids buried them without ceremony in an unmarked grave the next moonless night.
Alitus fidgeted in the silence. The trip to Hell never failed to sober Destoiya. This was the only destination where she remained on her side of the vehicle during the entire trip, too preoccupied to speak.
He stepped out of the hoversine, moved aside and resisted the urge to assist her. She expected it anywhere else—but here, the Conqueror showed no such dependence. She stepped out of the car and paused, head held aloft like a wary huntress scenting prey, the morning breeze catching and ruffling her hair, tousling a few unpinned curls. The streak of silver near the right side of her brow shone in the early sunlight.
Stars, she’s magnificent.Alitus fell-in two steps behind her, following her personal android bodyguard.
A dozen guards in the stark black-leather uniform of the Palace Praetorian lined their path. The golden fists emblazoned on their upper right chests and arms marked them as the elite handful who guarded the empress herself. Bristling with weapons, the massive Kin males stood with feline ears back, shoulders stiff, spines erect. Destoiya’s height put the top of her head at the tip of Alitus’ nose and though he stood six feet tall, the shortest Praetorian’s shoulder was above Alitus’ head and the guy weighed half again as much as he.
Destoiya paused and spoke to each, calling them by name and asking about family. She always knew if her soldiers had siblings or cousins serving. While she spoke to him, each Kin male softened into a smile and flicked his ears outward in respect. Each accepted her gloved hand and bowed over it, but the moment she passed, back went their ears, fangs bared at Alitus as if he were the enemy.
The ultra-sensitive Kin sense of smell made them susceptible to the influence of Betters. Indiscreet use of pheromones around a Kin was like smearing yourself with honey and jumping into a bear cage.
A stray thought brought a tinge of jealousy to the fore.Has she slept with any of these guys? Holy shit, I’ll bet they can smell her on me. He swallowed.
At the end of the gauntlet stood Captain Dhia Ruh, the senior Praetorian. As Destoiya approached, the
Kin female snapped to rigid attention, slammed a fist over her heart in salute and bowed.
Destoiya tightened her gloves as she made a fist. “Good morning, Ruh.”
The captain purred before responding, “Welcome to Hell, Your Majesty.”
Alitus shuddered at the ritual greeting. The previous month, Captain Ruh had disregarded a question he’d asked during the annual inspection, only answering when Destoiya repeated it. Today, the captain acknowledged him with a slight bow and a curt nod.
Well, this is a first.Kin females generally ignored males of any species unless they expected some type of service or wanted sex. On their homeworld, the feline race of warriors subjugated males. If Ruh could intimidate males with the physical size and attitude of these soldiers, Alitus would have preferred she hadn’t noticed him at all.
The Conqueror made a small gesture to beckon him to her side and brushed her fingers across his hand when he came closer. Alitus caught her faint but reassuring smile.
Allen, Kayelle - T4 Alitus (2007) Page 2
