by Tina Gayle
“I’ll carry my own bag.” She stepped away from his hand and lifted her bag with a smile.
Stihl didn’t argue.
Snubbing him, she turned away and slid on her coat. He waited until she secured it then shrugged on his own coat. “It will be crowded once we leave the cabin. This is the last stop on the line before the transporter turns around for its return trip to Royal City. Stay close. I’ve reserved an IPT car, which should be waiting outside the terminal for us.” Stihl touched Marohka’s arm, ignoring the look of disgust she sent his way.
Cyd lifted their luggage. “I guess we better do this.”
Chapter Four
Marohka stared stiffly out the window of the IPT car and ignored the man by her side.
The copper and silver structures lining the streets of Central City glowed with the light from the two suns of Lustralia. Some of the taller buildings had climbing stones up the sides of their steep walls. A few climbers, enjoying the city’s favorite hobby, hung high above the crowds, stretching for the next hand or foothold. Safety lines fell like ribbons around them. Huge granite blocks sat in plazas with thorny cacti and towering palm trees. The desert patches displayed shiny stones of blue and purple.
Central City, the last city before the wilderness country of Lustralia, offered a spectacular view of the rugged snow-capped mountains in the distance. The pulsating beat of the city danced through the window at Marohka. The town’s wild rhythm and her own unsettled emotions sent her blood jumping through her veins.
Should she allow herself to be attracted to Stihl? Let him get close? How could she stop him? He sat close beside her in the car, crowding her against the window. His arm stretched possessively around her shoulders. She fought to tame her unruly thoughts of being his willing mate.
Sports, a lecture, a subject, she fished for some topic to divert her mind off Stihl.
“The history of Central City.” Dr. Spears’s voice echoed through her head. She focused on his boring lectures, which she’d sat through during her last term at school. “As the original landing site of the Royal Clan, the elders selected the area because of the central spot on the continent. They hoped the location would give them protection from hostile enemies.”
Dr. Spears had played with his pointing pole, rubbing it back and forth in his hand. Marohka remembered she’d used his habit to keep herself awake.
“The settlers were seeking peace, having come from a warring planet. They wanted to avoid the same types of problems here, so they set up a diverse community. They welcomed others from different areas. This gave the people from Periva the right to move in. They flooded the area with new ideas and culture growth.”
With a shake of his head, Dr. Spears had added, “But the Royal Elders disliked the new city. They longed for a cultural area for themselves, one in which they didn’t have to share with outsiders. So they relocated their settlement to the coast and established Royal City.”
Marohka stared out the window and wondered about the reasons for the elders moving the city.
“In their new town, they took control and planned every detail. Buildings could be no more than four stories. Each section of the city had its allowable activity. No mixing of design from one area to another. Parks and open land were required every few miles.”
Central City, Marohka noted, imposed none of those rules. A bar could sit next to a high-rise, a ballpark by a mall. All types of designs graced the streets. She loved the diversity, the freedom, the excitement.
“We’ll be arriving at our decker home in a few minutes.” Stihl glided his hand along her shoulder.
Marohka stiffened. His words and caress jerked her back to the present. Holding her hand, guiding her through the crowd, assisting her as she stepped into the car, he’d shadowed her every move since they’d left the train. He hadn’t let her do a single thing for herself. She felt like an invalid.
The car drew into a covered station. A large plaza stood next to it. Colorful robes, white turbans, leather jackets, all types of attire graced the bodies walking around carrying shopping totes. Red, blue, and blond-haired children played on small multi-tier rockets. A solar-powered jet lifted them to the top. Long tubes spiraled around and through the center of the display, which sent the children on a wild ride to the sandy playground below.
“This building has a mall and offices connected to it, so you never have to leave the area. It’s all right here.” Stihl captured her hand upon disembarking.
Marohka waited until Cyd cleared the door with the luggage before she tugged her hand free. “I don’t need any help.”
He smiled. She strolled past him and entered the lobby. He stopped her by laying a hand on her waist. “I wasn’t helping. I was touching.” He drew her up against his chest. “You keep forgetting we’re a couple.”
Her anger demanded she shout at him, but in a controlled whisper, she fought his rights. “We haven’t blended. And with your current rate of charm, it won’t happen any time soon.”
His eyes twinkled. Marohka wanted badly to knock the humor out of him with a punch to the gut. But before she could respond, he shocked her with a light kiss on the cheek.
“We’ll see.” His arm still around her waist, he led her toward the lift. “We’d better get moving. Cyd’s waiting.”
With him so close, the urge to ram her elbow in his stomach almost became a reality. Until as if reading her mind, he shifted his hand over her arm. He kept her from doing any damage. In the lift, Marohka stood very still. Even though she wanted to step away from him, he held her close to his side. The heat radiating from him smothered her with his presence.
Tantalizing thoughts teased her mind. Her heart raced. Every touch awoke nerve endings, which sizzled over her skin. She couldn’t breathe or relax. His hand caressed her waist, his breath ruffled her hair, and his chest crowded her shoulder. She shifted on her feet, and her arm brushed his bicep. The desire to wrestle him to the ground battled with the need to run away.
The lift doors opened. She drew in a quick breath and reaffirmed her resolve to stay. He directed her down the hall and released her to open the door to his home. He allowed Cyd to cross the threshold first.
“Cyd’s room is on the right, ours on the left. The door on the far wall leads to the service room.” Stihl ushered her into his home. “This is our place in the city.”
Marohka walked slightly past the foyer. In front of her in the middle of the room sat two Z-frame couches with plush, black-striped cushions. A small table stood between them. Another larger black table graced the back wall with two metal chairs on each side. The brushed metal walls held no artwork, the tables no pictures, no flowers, no frills—cold home with no personality, a functional house at best.
“Here is our computer system.” Stihl pointed to an alcove to the left. “You should be able to access anything you need.”
Marohka turned to examine the setup.
Cyd stepped out of Stihl’s room. “I put your bags on the bed, Marohka. Stihl, yours are in the dressing room.”
He strolled past her and paused at the entrance to his room. “I’ll see you Lukes later. I’m kinda tired after our trip.”
“In here is our room.” Stihl placed a hand on the small of her back and led her to his room. “Located behind the curtain is the dressing area. If you walk through it, you’ll find the lily pad.”
Marohka studied the gray metal walls. A king-size bed sat at the north end of the room. A black-and-white-striped comforter covered the surface. Each corner tucked into an ornate black iron podium. Copper nightstands framed the bed.
Her muscles tightened. She pictured some of the things Stihl might want her to do in bed. Surely, he didn’t expect her to sleep with him, not this soon? Before commenting, her gaze caught a scene on the far wall. The display captured her attention. Spellbound, she stared.
“That’s the view from the back porch of my family’s home in the mountains.” Stihl’s voice added a low, soothing quality to the scene. �
��I like having the scene as a reminder of what I’m missing by living in the city.”
She surveyed the details of the huge picture. Small animals scurried in the underbrush, disappearing in and out of sight. Large colorful birds, spreading their wings, flying effortlessly, graced the sky. Trees whispered in the wind. Leaves danced in sunlight. Both cast shadows on the ground. The landscape glowed with life. The mountains stood in peaceful solitude.
“Every thirty seconds, the picture updates to follow the changing light of suns. On a clear night, you can even see the distant stars.”
“It’s gorgeous.” The image tugged at her heart. “The mural puts you right there like you’re viewing it in person.”
“That’s the way I wanted it to feel. With an interior apartment with no windows, I decided a wall mural would enhance the place.
“Why don’t I take your coat?” Stihl toyed with her collar. His fingers brushed her neck.
Marohka jerked in reaction to his touch, drawn out of the tranquil countryside. She quickly recovered, undid the snaps, and let Stihl lift her coat from her shoulders. He carried her cloak behind the curtain. She turned, yanked the wimple off her head, and threw it beside her bag on the bed.
She needed to calm down, after all the changes that had occurred during the course of the day. With slow steady breaths, she released the clips holding her hair on top of her head.
“I have some work to do and a meeting around eighteen hundred . . .” Stihl stepped up behind her, and she glanced at him over her shoulder. His hand stroked the long braid running down the center of her back. “I forgot about your dowry.”
“No, my penance for not having a mate.”
“Well, the council has approved our joining so I believe we can have your hair cut.”
He lifted her hair in his hand and tested the weight. “With its length, we should receive a good price.”
Stunned, Marohka stepped forward. The tug of her hair stopped her progress, and she turned. Stihl didn’t release her braid. “You want me to cut my hair?”
“It’ll be easier to take care of”—his hands worked the band off the end of her hair while his gaze stayed glued to her chest—“if it’s shorter.”
“Stihl.” Marohka glanced down, fascinated at his large hands untwining her braid. “I like my hair the way it is.”
Mesmerized by his actions, she drew no air into her lungs. Then his knuckles brushed her nipple. Her breasts tingled with awareness. A low moan escaped from her lips.
With his hands on each side of her head, he freed her hair from its confining weave. His fingers combed through the multicolor strands and caressed her scalp with the mild tugging of his strokes. Her wavy hair rained wildly down around her shoulders. She longed for him to continue.
“I believe I’d like it about shoulder length.” He lifted her hair so the ends brushed softly against her shoulders. “If you want, you’ll still be able to wear it up.”
He stood in front of her, his hard muscular body crowding hers. No argument formed in her head. Then his gaze drifted to her mouth, and his brown eyes grew smoky. Butterflies fluttered into flight in the pit of her stomach. She couldn’t breathe, much less think. Her skin burned for his touch.
“Also, I . . . we have plans for tonight.” Stihl’s concentration, locked on her lips, didn’t waver. “First dinner with friends, and then I think Lisha said something about the theater.”
“Lisha?”
Stihl ignored her gasped question. “I’ll arrange for a hair appointment and order you some formal clothes for the evening.” With one final stroke, he released her hair and his hands dropped. “If you want to pamper yourself, you can relax in a bath. I’ll be in the other room.”
Not waiting for her answer, he walked across the room and closed the door on his way out. Marohka gulped in a large breath of air. Oxygen hit her brain, and she popped out of her trance. Irritation hit her at the audacity of the man. With typical male arrogance, he’d demanded she cut her hair and hadn’t even listened to any other options.
“Wonderful.” She brushed back the tresses with a defiant hand, and a mischievous grin bloomed on her face. “Fine, I’ll cut it the way I’ve always wanted.”
From the moment she’d seen him on the train, he’d been getting everything his way, but not this time. He needed to learn she had a mind of her own. With his hands all over her, she’d been unable to process a coherent thought. But now, with him in the other room, she could start making some definite plans.
Today, she admitted, she hadn’t scored any points. In truth, she’d lost a sizable piece of ground. But she wouldn’t surrender just yet. She’d go to dinner. Not because he demanded her to, but because she needed to eat and she enjoyed the theater. No harm in having a little fun, but tomorrow, things would be different.
“Now, with him out of my way, I can get some things done.” She tugged her ECD out of her bag, placed it on her ear, and hit the connect button. “Seven, four, three, eight, seven.”
She waited for her messages.
“Marohka.” The tension in her father’s voice rang through her head. “I know you’re headed for the Trisar Mine because Almon told me you received the reports last night. I have confidence you’ll figure out the problem, but there’s a new twist.”
After a long pause, he continued. “Giulio is selling the mine, which means our contract will be up for renegotiations. This might relieve us from the current financial drain, but it could also mean we lose the mine and any potential profit.”
She clenched her hands into knots.
“Just thought you’d want to know.” His voice softened. “Be careful, baby. I’m sorry. I couldn’t detain Stihl. Love you.”
Great, which means we have no way of recovering the losses we’ve already incurred.
Half listening to the next message, she checked the time on the clock beside the bed. She needed to review those core samples at the local branch office. A useless feat with Stihl stationed outside the bedroom door. Even if she did disregard her stupid deal with Stihl and run away, it wouldn’t eliminate her problems.
The trouble at the mine still required her attention. The reports Almon sent her only confirmed that production was off and that the direction of the drilling was wrong. The dirt samples would tell her how far they’d gotten off course. She had to make a trip to the mine. But how could she convince Stihl to accompany her?
The rest of the messages on her ECD played in her ear. She picked up her bag and headed for the lily. Why was Giulio, the old worm, pulling this stunt now?
Plagued with problems from the very beginning, the mine offered nothing but trouble. First with delays in getting the required permits, then with equipment problems, and now with the drilling, she didn’t need Giulio adding his investment problems to the mix.
The foxy miner landed something new on his shovel. With his nose for mining, he probably found a new site to purchase.
In the lily, the soothing sound of rippling water caught her attention. In the corner sat a three-leg-length-tall waterfall. Water trickled down over large granite rocks and ended in a large black pool. Purple plants grew in planters on the wall. Yellow and orange flowers danced in a trough around the water’s edge. Smooth shiny stone lay glued together at her feet like an island oasis.
A clean white bath sheet sat folded on a large black rock positioned next to the pool. Marohka eyed the cool clear water with longing. A bath might be just what she needed to relax.
The men in her life weren’t giving her a break or appreciating her efforts. Her father, Stihl, and Giulio, they were all testing her resolve.
With the door locked, she undressed. Winding her wild mane up into a knot, she caught Stihl’s unique scent in her hair. Visions of his hands running through the fine texture had her quickly deciding to place Stihl at the top of her list of worries. The way the man turned her insides to jelly could cause her some real problems.
She sank slowly into the soothing warmth of the water, closed
her eyes, and let her mind settle. First, she had to find a way out of this crazy arrangement with Stihl. The rules stated if she didn’t blend with him for the next six months, then she could claim they were unsuitable. The council would overturn the mating bond, and she’d be free. Even if he did set her on fire with anger and a little lust, she needed to stay focused on her objectives. She couldn’t become involved.
Sighing, she drifted farther into the pool and relaxed. Why, she wondered, couldn’t the tasks in front of her be easy? Stihl, her father, Giulio, they all wanted her to give them answers and bow to their demands, but at least they didn’t treat her like a pretty bird.
She smiled and picked up the scented soap. They must think I have a brain.
* * * *
Stihl sat staring at his computer screen, searching for a special dress to accent Marohka’s sexy body.
