“Totally agree. Want to start a committee on that?” Ann nodded with approval. This was much better than listening to Penelope droning on about color schemes and what wolves were allowed and not allowed to wear.
“I gather textbooks when I come across them, and non-fiction books too. I’ve kind of started a library in a building behind our house,” another woman said quickly, her dark brown eyes alight with joy. “If anyone wants to use my books, I’ll be glad to show them to you.”
“That’s really great. What else can we do, ladies? It’s time to stop waiting on our mates to do things and start thinking for ourselves, a little bit.”
The room filled with excited chatter and Ann felt her own relief, at last. She might have overstepped her bounds, telling them all that the wolf shifters were stronger and all of that, but it was the truth. Even Rager had said they were. They were a threat to the purity of the DNA here, though, and that was the only reason they were being kept at a lower rank. Since they’d come back from their trip, they’d talked a lot more, and he came home earlier in the day than he used to.
They’d even broached the subject of the forced servitude of the wolves. It hadn’t exactly been a calm discussion, but Rager had listened. He didn’t see it as slavery, but Ann did. She thought she’d started to make some inroads on that front, and was hopeful, at least. Now, she’d taken control of these vapid meetings these women insisted on having, maybe she could make some more progress.
She’d sat through most of these luncheons wondering how these women had survived. They were even looking for a nail technician, who could do their nails for them! Ann had a lot of worries on her mind, and today had been the day that it all broke. While she’d hated to lose her temper, she could see now that maybe it was what had been needed. The women were excited as they talked about all of the things that would move their lives forward in positive ways.
Later, once everything was rebuilt and life started to move forward, they could discuss things like what to replace hairspray with, and getting their nails done, but right now, they needed to work on far more important things. Ann was glad to see that had begun.
It was hard for her to trust people, the situation was too new, too out of the realm of possibilities. Her mind wasn’t made up about what was safe and what wasn’t. Not even Rager had situated himself into a box yet. Ann’s body was certainly addicted to the man, but her mind still wondered.
She’d wanted to love the man she married, mated in this case, and the idea of an arranged marriage would have horrified her when she first fell for Rex. It had horrified her, up until the moment their modallas were merged. Then, everything had changed. She wouldn’t exactly call what she felt for him love yet, but it was bordering on severe infatuation. Given time to learn to trust him, she might. Maybe. He was still an overlord.
Ann decided to get a glass of juice and walked over to the table where a servant stood waiting to take orders for drinks. “May I have some apple juice, please?”
“Certainly, ma’am.” The young woman kept her eyes down and even did a little bob up and down. Ann frowned and looked back at the women behind her.
This was exactly what she didn’t want. Rager told her that his world advanced because they’d taken a totally different path to the one the people of Earth took. This was an old path, and one that hadn’t worked. “Do you need a break?”
“What, ma’am?” The woman looked up, startled at the question. Humans didn’t often ask her questions like that, Ann had to assume.
“Are you tired? Do you need a break? We can have someone else serve drinks if you are.”
“No, ma’am. I’m fine, honest.” The young woman with curly, dark hair and bright blue eyes looked worried, her eyes on Ann’s for only a second before she looked down again. “I’m a good worker, I promise.”
“Where were you before you came here?” Ann asked as the woman handed her a glass of juice with ice in it.
“At Ms. Penelope’s, ma’am.” Ann didn’t think it was possible, but the woman’s head sank even lower.
“I see.” Ann glanced at the woman in question and wondered what she could do about that woman. “Well, you don’t have to call me ma’am, and you certainly don’t have to curtsy, please don’t do that anymore.”
“Yes, ma-, er,…” her voice trailed off. Confusion and panic warred on her face and Ann realized that was her fault.
“Just call me Ann. What’s your name?”
“Robin. Do you want anything else?” Ann could see she was frightened and decided it was time to back off. For now.
“That’s all, Robin, thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” A tiny hint of a smile appeared, but then disappeared but Ann saw it before she turned away. It wasn’t hard to be nice, after all.
“Ladies, I have another appointment after this, so if we can start wrapping up the conversations, I’d appreciate it,” Ann called out as she headed towards the door. Another hint that it was time for them to get the fuck out. She didn’t want to be rude, but she could tell now that she had to be direct, or they’d ignore her.
Her head had started to pound, and she just wanted to be in Rager’s arms for a minute. She didn’t really have another appointment, she just wanted them to all go away. As if she’d conjured him, her mate appeared at her elbow and pulled her out of the room.
None of the women saw him, and none seemed to notice that she’d disappeared. They’d basically ignored her dismissal, too caught up in new ideas and the beginnings of plans to get up yet, so Ann let him pull her out of the room and down a dark hallway. It led to a storage area that was rarely used, so it was dark, quiet, and cool. His lips found hers as he pressed her gently against the wall.
She felt every inch of him pressed up against her, and still on the high of finally taking control, she pulled him tighter to her, kissed him with far more desperation than she normally did. She was so hungry for him. The sweet taste of whiskey on his tongue, the sensual feel of his hands as they roamed her body, all of it, and she didn’t protest for a moment when he lifted her against the wall, with her own red dress now around her hips, and tore her underwear away.
“You’re going to end up with sycophants, you know that, don’t you?” he purred into her ear as he pulled away just enough to undo his pants.
She wanted to reply but he slid into her before she could. All that came out was a moan, and then his mouth was on hers again and she didn’t care. All she knew was the feel of him, the ragged sound of his breath as he drove into her, and the way it felt to have him slide inside her.
It was quick, but oh so satisfying, the way he drove into her. Even the punishing clench of his fingers on her ass felt good, and she whispered his name against his lips. He pulled away, to kiss her just below her ear as her fingers started to clench on his shoulders.
She concentrated on the way he pressed into her clit as he thrust into her, on the exotic smell of his skin, and what it felt like to bite down into his neck as the first wave crashed over her. He grunted when her teeth nearly broke the skin, but he didn’t protest. He seemed to like it, and that was a new, heady thought to her. So much power in one single day.
And then he hit something inside of her, some spot that only he had ever touched, and the world became only them. His touch, his sound, his smell, his taste, and the sensations that came with each of them. There was only pleasure and the strangled sound of his own release.
When it was over, when she’d slid down the wall, patted the skirt of her dress back into place, and removed what was left of her underwear, she looked up into his face. He was so much taller than her that she had to crane her neck back to see him. His lips came down to rest on her forehead, and he breathed her name.
It had started as a dirty and very passionate escape, and now, for the first time, there was something… more. There was an intense look in his eyes when he pulled back, and she felt the echo of it in her own. “Rager?”
“I’m proud of you, Ann. You took
control today, and you’ve started to lead the women in a new direction. You made me… proud.”
He looked as if he’d wanted to use another word, or to say something more, but he pulled away. She reached for him, but he moved to the side.
“I have to get back to work. You did really well. I’ll see you this evening.”
She watched as he walked away, and tried to get her hair back into the bun she’d tied it up in. He had started to care for her, she hoped, and if she’d made him proud, well, maybe she should trust him?
She went back to find that the women had all started to leave and she told them all goodbye, even the terrible Penelope. When she closed the door on the last one, she leaned back against it, a smile in place. It wasn’t the best thing to do, to insult a woman like Penelope, but she’d done it, and taken her rightful spot in the meeting. Luncheon, whatever. She pushed away from the door and strode up the stairs, ready for some music, and to make a few plans.
7
For a minute, just for a minute, Ann wished the old world was back. Yeah, she had high hopes that the world would be better, and she planned to work hard to do that, but she missed things like Pinterest and Google. It would be nice to order something from Amazon again, or even Ebay. Now, she had to take what was brought to her or go and scavenge for it.
There’d been rumblings about problems in the sector that she often hunted for finds in, and now she had to bring a guard with her when she went out. She stared at him for a moment, the back of his head covered in a helmet that gleamed dark blue in the sunlight. She didn’t like it one bit.
She turned and walked through the aisles of what had once been a furniture store, the contents now were mostly destroyed, but sometimes she’d find hidden treasures. So far, she’d found a lamp in the shape of a tree with prisms that dangled from small limbs. She wasn’t sure where she’d put it, but she’d find a place.
Once she was certain she was done with the place for the day, she turned and started toward the doors. The sound of booted feet as they marched on the road outside stopped her. She looked back at her guard and wondered what to do. She didn’t want to talk to a bunch of soldiers right now, so she pretended she was interested in some curtain ties that had molded into a mess a long time ago.
She knew they’d probably only stopped for a break, so she waited and moved down close to the door to look at some Christmas decorations that had lost most of their paint. It was a holiday of the past, one that she might resurrect, she decided. She moved closer to the door as she walked by each row of decorations, all hung up on a pegboard that barely clung to life.
She went still as she heard two of the soldiers come close to the door and glanced at her guard. He didn’t look concerned, just bored, and waited patiently. He stepped a little closer when she turned, but voices stopped them both. Rager had quickly made it a rule that all of the aliens had to speak English when they were not on board their ship. It still hovered in the sky, almost big enough to block out the sunlight as the sun made its way across the sky. Because of this, the ship moved every day, not far, but enough to make sure all of the gardens had enough sunlight.
“I heard Rager’s human bitch is out here somewhere. He shouldn’t have mated to her. We need pure blood.”
Ann felt ice water run through her veins. Not this shit again. She glanced back at the soldier that guarded her and knew he’d heard it too.
“You really need to shut up about that, Melno. Somebody will hear you. Then we’ll both be fucked.”
“I don’t give a fuck who hears me. Rager has dishonored us all by marrying that human. Her DNA isn’t as strong as ours, it’s not as good as ours. She’s nothing but an inferior breeder. We’ll have women of our kind here soon enough; he should have waited.”
Ann felt rage replace the ice, and she looked at the soldier again. He was recording everything that was being said.
“Our men and women bred with the humans here before, Melno. You know we’re virtually the same. The difference in our DNA is so minute you can barely tell the difference. Why has it got such a huge bug up your ass that he mated to her?”
“It’s dishonorable. He shouldn’t mix our genetics with them, any more than any of us should mix with those wolf-people. Creepy fuckers, all of them.”
“They aren’t creepy, any of them, you moron. Come on, let’s get back in formation before you get us into trouble.”
“I’ll need you two to stay right there.” Ann looked back as her guard spoke up and walked past her.
“Shit, I told you, Melno!” the other one whined, but the happy chatter didn’t say much of anything.
Ann didn’t know the ranks of the alien soldiers, but she knew her guard outranked most of the foot soldiers. He called their superior over and for the next two hours, she sat in the furniture store and wished she’d just walked away from the soldiers. Then she wouldn’t have heard that man and she would have been home by now.
There’d been a lot of whispered conversations, questions from the leader of the squad on patrol, and then, a lot of nothing happened. She was told to stay put, so that’s what she did. She waited, on a recliner that she covered with a blanket she’d found wrapped in plastic. The blanket and chair both smelled moldy, but it was a place to sit.
“Are you alright, Ann?” Rager’s voice came from behind the chair.
“Oh, I’m fine. It was just some asshole running his mouth. Can we go home now?” She was tired, dirty, and hungry. All she wanted to do was go home.
“Of course. Let’s get you out of here.” He kissed her dirt-streaked forehead, and they left the building. She climbed into her transporter and followed him home. It was a quick trip, and she was in the shower before too long. He sat outside the glass cubicle, and talked to her about what had happened.
“Nothing really happened, Rager. The guy just said some things about how I was inferior and that alien women were coming soon, and you should have mated with one of those.”
“I don’t want any of those women. I wanted you before I even saw you, Ann. It happens like that sometimes. Not for everyone, but true mates have that ability.”
“So you don’t want some tall, buxom alien woman instead of me?” She rinsed the shampoo from her hair and waited for his answer.
“No, although, in our world, we can have more than one mate. I don’t want another mate, though. Just you.”
“Another mate? You mean polygamy?” She was surprised, but not completely shocked.
“Yes, men and women can take more than one mate, if it’s agreed upon by all involved, in our world.”
“Oh. Women can have more than one mate?” Her voice was steady, but she was still surprised.
“Of course, why not?”
“It’s just, well, not the usual way here.” She scrubbed off the rest of the dirt and sweat from her body and turned off the taps. “We usually only mate with one person down here. At a time, at least. People get divorced or break up, then move on, but normally, it’s one person at a time.”
“Except for the people that had lovers on the side,” he responded, a chuckle in his voice.
She looked at him as she toweled herself dry, her head tilted. “Try it and I’ll break your legs.”
“Try what?” He put on an innocent look and blinked at her.
“That whole mistress thing,” she said with a smile of her own, a very sweet one that didn’t match the look in her eye. That look said she might be playing but she meant it. “I’m not that kind and…”
“Neither am I, you feisty little monkey. Calm down.” He pulled her into his arms and pulled her close. The towel fell off, but it didn’t matter. She was in his arms.
The day dropped away as he kissed her in a way that told her there never would be anyone else that he could kiss like that. She blinked when he pulled away, surprised that he’d stopped.
“You need food and so do I. Oh, that man will be prosecuted, by the way, and probably sent back to our home world. I refuse to have someone lik
e that on our planet and what he said cast doubt on me, not just you. My family leads our home planet, and that’s my role here, to do the same.”
“What will happen to him?” Ann asked as she went through the door to their bedroom. She pulled a silky gold nightgown from the wardrobe and a robe that matched. She slid her arms into the short sleeves and tied it at the waist.
“I don’t know, he may be sent to one of the other planets, or maybe imprisoned. We don’t imprison people often, we try to put them in places where they won’t cause problems and can adjust to life. He’s obviously not suited for this planet.”
He wouldn’t meet her eyes, instead, he turned away and opened the bedroom door. She followed him on bare feet. Most of the servants would be in their own quarters now, or out with their friends and family. Only the kitchen staff would see her and they were all women, so she didn’t care that she was in her nightclothes.
“I guess we can drop it then.” She was glad the man would soon be gone, the tone of his voice hadn’t necessarily frightened her, but she hadn’t liked it. What if he’d decided to do something about it, or had started others thinking the same way? It could cause problems for them all.
Rager wasn’t the only one that took a human mate. Some of those beneath him had, and other soldiers had as well. This was the second time something like that had happened, and she had a feeling it wouldn’t be the last. She’d have to be vigilant and listen more carefully from now on.
What a mess, she decided as she sat down at the dining room table. His men didn’t want him mated to her, and the wolves wanted to be the rulers of this new world. They seemed to have forgotten it was the aliens that cleaned the place up, not them. It was the aliens that had made it possible for them to all live outside of their bunkers and shelters. It was ridiculous that the wolves thought they should be the leaders now.
Ann finished her dinner quietly, and then she went up to bed to read a book. She put her music on and read for a little while, but the events of the day and her worries played on her mind. She couldn’t settle into the book, and she’d read two chapters without having any memory of what she’d read.
His to Mate Page 5
