“And this is the crew of the Orion?”
“It is,” Garret said impatiently. “Look, just tell us how much the fine is and we’ll get out of your way.”
The older man raised his eyebrows as he looked Garret up and down. “All of you are to come with me.”
He turned away and the door was unlocked. One of the guards motioned them forward. The guards surrounded the crew as they followed the little man down the corridor.
Everyone was tense and quiet as they walked. Talon wondered what the hell was going on, were they being taken to a different prison? Would he be separated from Garret again? Panic seized his lungs, making it hard to breathe.
Suddenly Garret stepped up beside him, brushing against him. Talon looked up at him. Garret reached out and squeezed his shoulder. Talon knew Garret would do whatever he had to in order to ensure they weren’t separated. His breathing evened out, although he wouldn’t feel entirely safe until they were back on the Orion and well away from this planet.
They were led into a large room, filled with expensive furnishings and art. Toward one end of the room were two ornate sofas and matching armchairs. On one of the armchairs sat Roderigo Lantos, the high ruler of Zebular. On the other armchair, with their back to them, was a woman. Her long, black hair hung like a silken wave down her back.
She turned as they entered and Talon’s breath caught in his throat. Kalia? She looked so different. She was dressed in an ornate jade and silver gown. Make-up enhanced her high cheekbones and round, violet eyes. She looked elegant, beautiful and totally untouchable.
“Oh, good, they’re all here,” she said. “Thank you so much, Rod, you don’t know how much I appreciate all of your help.”
Rod?
Talon looked over at Garret who was frowning at Kalia. They didn’t know Roderigo Lantos personally, but from what they’d heard, the man was a pompous, arrogant ass. At the moment though, he was staring at Kalia with a look of rapture on his face.
“You’re very welcome, milady. I only wish you’d allow me to do something more for you.”
Milady? What did he know about Kalia that Talon didn’t?
“Oh, you’ve done more than enough. Your hospitality has been without fault. Why, you’ve even provided me with clothing, now how many other guests have you had to clothe?”
Kalia laughed lightly. Talon frowned. That wasn’t her laugh. When Kalia laughed she put all of herself into the sound. This was light and fake.
“It was my pleasure. My sister won’t even know the gown is gone. I only wish I had more to offer you. Are you sure you won’t allow me to escort you home? I’d be happy to return you to your family. After your harrowing experience with the slavers you must be nervous about space travel, I can provide you with the very best protection.”
He leaned forward and Talon had to hold back a growl as he touched Kalia’s shoulder. “Are you sure you wish to be around these men? Last time they were here they destroyed a great deal of private property.”
“Oh, I didn’t realize.” Kalia looked over her shoulder at them. “They are rather rough-looking, I give you that. But my father hired them to rescue me from the slavers and if I don’t return with them then they won’t get the rest of what is owed to them. After all the trouble they’ve gone to I wouldn’t feel right if they didn’t get fully paid.”
“You are so gracious.”
“Not at all. I’m sure that they’d be happy to pay for whatever damages they caused last time they visited,” she offered.
“No, no, I won’t hear of it.” He waved away her offer, surprising Talon.
“Sir,” the officious little man finally said. “I just got notification that all repairs have been made to their ship.”
“Repairs?” Siren said with a frown.
Talon elbowed him in the ribs, giving him a quelling look to keep quiet. Whatever Kalia had told Lantos he was buying completely and if it got them off this planet with their credits still in their pockets and enough juice to get away from the slavers bigger but slower ship then Siren would just have to put up with the fact that someone else had touched his baby.
“I suppose it’s time to go,” Kalia said, standing.
“I do wish you’d consider staying.”
“We couldn’t impose, but thank you for the kind offer.” Lantos offered her his arm and she took it, sending him a smile that didn’t reach her eyes.
They followed Kalia and Lantos out to where the Orion was docked. Kalia turned to Lantos to say goodbye as the rest of the crew headed onto the ship. Garret and Talon held back, waiting for Kalia. When she finally pulled herself out of Lantos’s grasping hold, they waited for her to walk on first before following silently.
Once they were onboard and out of sight, Kalia fell back against a wall, holding her hands over her face.
“Kalia? Are you okay?” Talon asked.
She pulled back her hands, revealing her pale face. “I thought for sure at any moment he was going to figure out I was lying.” She shook her head. “Let’s get out of here.”
“Ace, power up, get us out of here,” Garret said through his com. “You two, on the bridge with me.”
They followed him to the bridge, taking seats and buckling in as the Orion powered up and took off.
“Siren?” Garret commed through to the engine room. “How do things look in the engine room? Are the boosters fixed?”
“Yeah,” Siren’s voice came back, his irritation clear. “I’m going to have to go through everything they’ve fiddled with. I don’t like anyone touching my baby.”
“What about Roxan?” Ace said. “You want to outrun him?”
“Actually,” Kalia said. “I think that problem might be solved, temporarily anyway. When I explained to Rod that we were being followed, he sent up a few ships to chase them off.”
Talon turned to her. “You really spun him a tale, didn’t you?”
“I tried to keep it as close to the truth as possible. I told him that I’d been kidnapped and that my father hired you to rescue me. Only we were chased and that’s why we had to land so suddenly on his planet.”
Garret turned to stare at her. “He thought you were someone special.”
She shrugged. “I made out that my father was someone very important but I couldn’t tell him who he was as he didn’t want it known that his daughter had been kidnapped, blah, blah, blah.”
“You were very comfortable talking to him, you knew just what to say, how to act,” Garret said suspiciously. “Are you someone special?”
She looked right at him. “No, I’m not more special than anyone else.”
Garret shook his head. “Fine, keep your secrets. For now. But I won’t be patient forever.”
A surge of relief made Talon lightheaded as he reached over and grabbed her hand. “That means you can stay,” he whispered with a grin.
***
Garret walked into his room and stretched with a groan. “Gods, I’m getting too old for this shit,” he said as he lay back on the bed, fully clothed.
“Well, I did notice a couple of gray hairs this morning,” Talon teased, standing over him. “Maybe you should start taking it easy. You know, catch a nap every now and then.”
Garret grabbed him around the waist, pulling him onto the bed beside him. He rolled over so he straddled the smaller man and reaching up, grabbed Talon’s hands, pinning him to the bed.
Leaning down, he kissed him. “You know, I’m not so old that I can’t take you over my knee, and the only naps I’ll be taking will be the ones after I’m done fucking your ass.”
“Promises, promises.”
“What’s wrong, baby? Feeling neglected?” Garret purred, nibbling on Talon’s neck. “Tell me what you need.”
Talon turned his head to the side, allowing Garret easier access to his neck.
“I need you to fuck me,” Talon told him.
“You want my cock in your ass?”
“Yes, damn you.”
Garret climbed
“Arms up,” Garret commanded, watching Talon carefully for any signs of distress. They’d played like this all the time before Talon was taken, but in no way did Garret want their games to be associated to what he experienced in that dungeon.
But Talon eagerly raised his arms up, letting Garret tie his wrists firmly to each corner of the headboard. Garret kissed him gently before driving his tongue inside Talon’s mouth, conquering him.
When he pulled back they were both panting heavily. “Fuck, you don’t know how many nights I dreamed of having you like this, only to wake up with my hand around my dick and the sheets wet, like I was a teenager again.”
Talon rolled his eyes. “At least you had the option. I was chained up. I couldn’t exactly take care of myself without Kalia knowing exactly what I was doing.”
His gaze softened. “Thank you for letting her stay.”
“Like I had a choice,” Garret replied. “Just remember she’s your responsibility. If she gets into any trouble—”
“I will take full responsibility for her actions, Garret. I promise you won’t regret this.”
Their life was tough. Garret had always been against having women on the ship. He thought they were a distraction, but he also didn’t want the responsibility of taking care of them. Women were fragile, delicate. They weren’t made for the harsh life they led. Plus, he still didn’t entirely trust her.
“You want her, don’t you?”
“You know I would never do anything without you. I would never risk what we have.”
“What we have can’t be broken, mate.” But it could be damaged. “But just remember who you belong to. You’re mine.”
“I’m yours,” Talon promised. “Just like you are mine.”
“Damn straight. Now enough about your fucking pet. I’m not going to blindfold you this time. If you need to stop, you let me know.”
“I don’t want you to stop. I want you to stop jabbering and fuck me already.”
Garret grinned. “All in good time, mate. All in good time.”
He kissed his way down Talon’s body. He licked each nipple, sucking on them before running his tongue over the firm muscles of Talon’s stomach. Completely ignoring the thick erection begging for attention, he kissed his way over Talon’s hips.
Grabbing each leg, he pulled them up and bent them against Talon’s chest. Grasping hold of more silken ties, he fastened each of Talon’s ankles to the headboard.
“Now that’s what I like, having you completely at my mercy,” Garret said as Talon’s breathing increased. “Damn, this is one sexy ass.” Garret smacked his hand against it and Talon let out a low moan. He cupped each cheek, squeezing firmly.
“Please, Garret, touch me, fuck me, do something,” Talon begged. “I’m dying here.”
Garret just chuckled. “Oh, I think you can hang on a bit longer.” He lay on his stomach and taking hold of each ass cheek, pulled them apart. Leaning in, he licked Talon’s asshole before pressing his tongue slightly inside the puckered hole. Talon moaned loudly and Garret glanced up to see his head thrashing back and forth. Garret pushed more of his tongue inside then withdrew.
Talon’s moans grew louder, his thighs shaking. Garret pulled away, unable to hold himself back any longer. Reaching over, he grabbed some lube from his bedside table and slathered some generously over his cock before covering two fingers. He thrust his fingers deep into Talon’s ass while grabbing Talon’s erection with his other hand.
He pumped Talon’s dick as he drove his fingers inside him.
“Please, please,” Talon cried out. “I need you, Garret.”
“I need you too, mate.” Garret pulled his fingers from Talon’s ass. He grabbed hold of his cock, pushing it slowly into Talon’s ass.
“Fuck, that feels so good,” Talon cried out as Garret pushed himself fully inside.
“I can’t go slow,” Garret told him.
“Don’t, don’t!”
Garret drew back then drove his cock inside him. Each movement had his head spinning, his blood heating as arousal bubbled through his veins. Reaching between them, he grabbed Talon’s dick, pumping it firmly as he moved harder, faster.
“I need to come, please,” Talon begged.
“Come, mate. Come for me.”
Talon shouted as he found his release. Garret let go of Talon’s cock, concentrating fiercely as reached his own release. His balls tightened, electricity firing through his veins as his orgasm slammed through him.
Chapter Five
“You don’t have to stay and babysit me,” Kalia told Talon.
This was the third planet they’d been on since they’d left Zebular and so far, Garret hadn’t let her step one foot off Orion. Talon had kept her company each time, but she could tell he was dying to leave the ship.
“Just because I have to stay here doesn’t mean you have to suffer alongside me.”
“I don’t know, suffering with you has its benefits.” Talon sent her a wink. They were lounging on the sofa in the rec room.
She rolled her eyes. He was such a flirt. Not that he flirted with any of the other crew. In fact, she’d never seen him flirt with Garret, either.
But then Garret didn’t seem the flirting type.
Talon grabbed her legs and drew them onto his lap. He pulled off her slippers and massaged her feet. She let out a low moan of pleasure, dropping her head back onto the arm of the sofa.
“You’re so good at that.”
She was now five months pregnant and she was starting to show.
“Anytime, darlin’, anytime. Are you hungry?”
“No, I’m still full from breakfast.” Talon was constantly trying to feed her. “I understand why I’m not allowed off the ship. Garret doesn’t trust me, which is fair enough. You really don’t have to stay. You could even lock me in my room.”
Talon shot her a quelling look. “No one is locking you in your room.”
She didn’t mention that Garret had done exactly that when she’d first come on board. He’d eased up a bit but she had no doubt that one little slip up and she’d be locked in her room again.
“Siren is around. He can watch out for me.”
“You know, I’m beginning to think that you don’t want me around,” Talon teased.
“Of course not.” She placed her feet on the ground and sat up, worried that she’d hurt his feelings. He grinned at her.
“Stop teasing me.” She sat back against the sofa. “Why are you here babysitting me, Talon?”
He sighed. “When I brought you on board Orion, I took responsibility for you.”
“Responsibility for me?”
“The life we lead isn’t always safe or easy. There have been more than a few times where we’ve barely made it out of a situation with our lives. Sometimes survival depends on following orders. Garret leads, we follow. You’re not used to that sort of life and Garret is worried that you’ll do something to put the crew in danger. I promised him I’d make sure that didn’t happen.”
“So if I mess up then you’re at fault. That doesn’t sound fair.”
Before these last few months, she’d never experienced the slightest bit of danger, never feared for her safety. Even though she didn’t like the idea of Talon being responsible for her, she had to admit that she had no idea how to look after herself out here. She was completely out of her depth.
“Okay, I guess that’s understandable. I mean, I don’t intend to do anything to put anyone in danger.”
“When I first joined the crew it was a bit of a learning curve.” He chuckled. “These are good guys. They’re loyal, smart and tough. But there are a lot of personalities onboard—” He sat up suddenly, pressing a finger against the com in his ear. “Okay…right…got it.” He stood and raced toward the bridge.
; “Talon? What is it?” she yelled out, doing her best to follow him.
“Garret and the others are coming in hot,” he replied, sprinting ahead of her. By the time she reached the bridge he was in Ace’s seat.
“What?” she asked, panting.
“They’ve got a tail and we need to get out of here fast,” he replied tensely. “Buckle in.”
“Is there anything I can do?”
He shook his head. “Siren?” he queried, pressing the communications button to the engine room.
“I heard,” Siren replied. “Luckily I just got the last part put in. I’m boosting her up now.”
“Good. Here they come.”
Talon jumped out of Ace’s seat and took a seat next to her, buckling himself in as Ace, Garret and Lucan raced into the bridge and took their seats.
“Tripp, Griz, get that merchandise secured then get your asses up here in case they decide to follow,” Garret ordered. “Ace? We ready?”
“Leaving now, Cap,” Ace replied and the ship quickly rose into the atmosphere.
Kalia held onto her breath as they swiftly made their way off-planet.
“Any sign of them following us?” Garret barked.
“None. They probably didn’t have a ship ready and waiting,” Ace replied.
Garret sat back in his chair as Griz and Tripp ran onto the bridge.
“Looks like we got away,” Garret told them. “This time. We’re going to have to stay off Moon 9 for a while.”
“Never liked that moon anyway,” Ace said with a grin.
“What happened?” Talon asked.
“Two of the guards caught us grabbing the merchandise and took exception,” Tripp replied. “We took care of them, but they must have somehow alerted the others.”
Kalia was confused. “What do you mean, they caught you? Aren’t we transporting this merchandise for them?”
Everyone was silent.
“Are you saying you stole it? That you’re all thieves?” She gaped at Garret. “That you stole from these poor people?”
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