by Biance D'Arc
Justin felt a knot form in the pit of his stomach. A quick look at Callie’s face told him she’d already faced this idea and would fight for her man. Justin admired her grit, but feared for her safety.
“Who?” Davin’s voice was deathly low and filled with malice. “Who ordered my death?”
“I don’t know.” Sinclair pinned Davin with his gaze. “I’d tell you if I could but I’m always activated by code and it could have come from any member of the Council. I haven’t been paying close attention to their activities for months now. I’m officially retired and participating in Mara’s new experiment. I was never supposed to be sent out again, but the code was my failsafe. I had to do this one last job. I tried.” Sinclair’s mouth tightened as his expression grew taut. “But I couldn’t. Thank the Maker.”
“He’s telling the truth,” Callie confirmed aloud, but her expression spoke of sympathy for the alien man. “I’m sorry for what you’re going through, Sinclair,” she said. “And I know you’d tell us if you knew more. As it stands, we’ll have to puzzle this out on our own, though we’d appreciate any assistance you can offer.”
“Anything I can do to help, Lady, I will do.” Sinclair bowed his head in her direction, a sign of respect.
“And we’ll help you.” Callie stood and walked over to Sinclair while Justin, Davin and Rick bristled, watching the alien soldier closely. Callie took his hand and squeezed it. “The next few days will be rough, but you’re a strong man. You’ll come through this and be a better man for it. My family can help.”
“Your help is much better than I deserve. I thank you.”
Callie found herself alone in the kitchen with her mom after dinner as they put away a few dishes. The men had gone out to talk to Sinclair again and the rest of her brothers and sisters were seeing to the animals and finishing up evening chores. Callie had brewed a pot of tea and settled in for a nice talk with her mother.
“What’s on your mind, sweetie?”
Callie should have realized. Her mom always knew when she needed to talk.
“It’s Rick. And Davin too, though he doesn’t think he’s got an issue with Rick. Still, I sense it. There’s a lot of conflict between them. I feel it every time I’m with them.”
“I know. I felt it from the moment you three got here. You’ve got yourself a problem, my girl. No doubt about it.” Jane wiped her hands on a towel and motioned Callie over to the table. It was clear now and the kitchen back the way it had been. The other kids had helped clean up before they headed outdoors.
“So what do you think I should do?”
“You? Honey, this is something you might not have all that much control over. This is something your men have got to come to terms with on their own. I remember when Mick had me pretty much convinced he was okay with our new arrangement. Then he lost it and nearly got away before we could straighten things out. But he was the one who had to deal with his issues. I could sort of nudge him in the right direction, but ultimately, it was his decision.”
“Yeah, I get that, but there’s got to be something I can do.” Frustration made her want to tear her hair out.
Jane smiled and Callie knew that grin. It often spelled trouble, or so the family joke went.
“Well, I think you should seduce him. That always works with your fathers.”
Callie laughed and practically choked on her tea. Jane was known for her frank speaking, but Callie had never discussed her sex life with her mother before. It was a little embarrassing.
“Seduce who? I mean, which one?”
Jane shrugged, grinning. “Whichever one is handy. I know you and Davin have been together a while, but what about Rick? Have you made love with him yet?”
“Mother!” She felt a blush steal over her face.
“I’ll take that as a no. Darn, girl, how can you let a man as good looking as that get away? I bet he’d be a great lover. I remember when your father was about Rick’s age. He could go all night. Still can, come to think of it.”
“Too much information, Mom.” Callie jumped to refill her teacup and busy her hands.
“Well, it’s true. And I’m sure you understand what I mean, now that you’ve got Davin in your life. I know he’s an alien, but he positively steams when he looks at you. And the emotion coming off him is explosive.”
Callie thought about that for a moment and a dreamy smile tugged at the corners of her mouth. “Yeah, it is. He’s something else, Mom. He feels so deeply. Rick does too, but he’s better at hiding it. Half the time, I’m not sure what he’s feeling.”
“Sounds like Mick.” Jane held up her cup for Callie to refill from the teapot. “I think there’s something about medical training that helps them close off their emotions—sort of compartmentalize or something. It’s hard to get past, but I hope you know passion is the easiest way to break down whatever mental barriers he can throw up. Seduce him. You’ll learn a lot and get him thinking about what he could have and what he’d be missing if he decides to go lone wolf on you. Give him a taste of what could be between you. That’s my advice, for what it’s worth.”
Callie decided to put her plan—nebulous as it was—into action the next day. She picked a time when all her siblings were off doing chores around the ranch and the adults were otherwise occupied. When she saw Rick head for the big horse barn, she followed.
She’d chosen her outfit carefully. A skirt with no panties for easy access and a stretchy top with no bra. Her nipples were already standing out, eager for a man’s attention. As was Callie.
It was time to give Rick a taste of what he’d be missing.
Chapter Ten
Rick sought solace in the big horse barn. He’d learned how to care for animals from his dad, as he’d learned so many other things. Rick didn’t share the special kinship with animals his father had, but he still loved them—horses in particular. The chance to bask in their uncomplicated presence was calming and something he hadn’t experienced in far too long.
Callie almost snuck up on him while he was grooming a beautiful chestnut mare. Only the horse gave away her presence, whickering as she came into view. Rick put aside the brushes and escorted the animal back into her stall before turning to face Callie. He sensed confrontation in the air, which shouldn’t have surprised him. Callie was as direct and straightforward as any person he’d ever known. He liked that about her. Being a simple man, Rick valued people who didn’t play games but came straight out and spoke their mind. It was just one more way in which Callie was perfect for him—one more thing he had to ignore for the greater good.
“You know horses?” Callie began the conversation on a friendly, slightly curious note as she stepped into the light. Rick’s mouth went dry when he caught sight of her outfit and the two perky nipples sticking out, begging for his touch.
“We didn’t keep as many animals as you have here.” Rick tried desperately to keep his mind on the conversation, but found his gaze drifting to the hem of her short, floaty skirt and the sexy legs flowing from it. “My father and I had one or two horses. He had a way with them, and with all animals.”
“What happened to your dad?” Callie stepped closer, leaning against a saw horse next to him. The mare watched them from over the half door to her stall. Rick watched Callie’s legs cross at the ankle. She wore dainty little boots, but her tanned skin shone in the dim light from the middle of her shapely calves to mid-thigh.
“I don’t know.” Rick concentrated on her question and felt the tightening in his chest he always felt when thinking of those last days with his father. “The Alvians came one night. We took off in different directions as we’d planned, but Dad never showed up at the rendezvous. I waited and waited. I spent a month camped out in the woods near where we’d planned to meet up, but he didn’t come. Eventually, I had to move to lower ground because winter was coming on and the Alvians started patrolling the area more heavily from the air. I can only assume they captured my dad. Or killed him. I tried searching for him in the Alvian
computers once I got to the engineering facility, but I didn’t find anything.”
“We should get Davin to try. He’s got backdoors and trapdoors into almost every one of their systems. I bet he could find out what happened.”
Rick felt his heart clench with that familiar pain and a burgeoning hope he didn’t dare let get out of hand. “I’d like that. If I’m still around.”
“What do you mean, still around?” Callie faced him.
“I was considering heading out in the morning.”
“No!” Her exclamation startled the mare, who backed up into her stall. “I mean, that’s not smart, Rick. They know where Davin fled to. The ranch is the only safe place for miles around because of Harry’s mother. If you set foot off this ranch, chances are they’ll pick you up again.”
“That’s a chance I’m willing to take. Callie, I wasn’t born to live in a cell. A man can’t live that way. I need to be free.”
“But what about all those others you’ve helped? If Davin can salvage this situation, you might be able to help hundreds more. Isn’t it worth sticking around to see how this all plays out?”
“I would if I could, but this is just getting too hard, Callie.” Rick felt every one of his muscles tighten at the thought of never seeing her again. “I can’t do this.” He turned away, but she followed.
“Can’t do what? Rick, I love you.”
“Oh, God.” He shut his eyes against the look on her face, but she stepped right into his space, looping her arms over his shoulders. He could feel the warm press of her breasts against his chest, the brush of her thighs against his. His cock stood at attention at the first hint of her caress on the sensitive skin at the back of his neck.
“Rick?”
Steeling himself, he opened his eyes, ready to push her away, but one look at her face and he couldn’t. His resolve began to disintegrate.
“You belong with Davin, sweetheart.”
“Yes,” she agreed. “But I also belong with you. You’re every bit as important to me as he is.”
“That’s crazy, Callie. You and Davin have a solid relationship. You’ve known each other a long time. I don’t want to come between you. It’s not right.”
Callie moved closer. “What if I was the one between you and Davin?” Her big eyes turned sexy and she licked her lips. “Lately I’ve been fantasizing a lot about being the filling in a Davin-and-Rick sandwich. I’ve never been with two men at once but my mom says it’s like nothing else.”
“Good God, woman. Are you trying to kill me?” Rick tried hard to move away, but he was caught in the magnetic field that was Callie O’Hara. She pulled him in like nothing he’d ever experienced before. She was a force of nature.
“Only with pleasure,” she answered on a sigh. “And I haven’t even started that yet.” She smiled up at him and he knew he was a goner.
“Don’t do this, Callie.”
“I must.” She reached up and pulled his head downward. He didn’t put up much of a fight. His head knew he should stop, but his heart wanted nothing more than to taste Callie’s kisses again. “Can’t you tell how much I want you, Rick?” Her whispered words against his lip nearly stopped his heart.
Then there was no talking as she kissed him, wild and deep. It wasn’t tentative or gentle. It was pure passionate fire and it burned through both of them.
Rick backed her up against the barn wall, reaching between them to lift the skirt she’d chosen to wear that day. When he encountered nothing but bare, womanly skin, he nearly lost it.
“Where are your panties?” His brain wasn’t working very well or the question wouldn’t have slipped out.
“I left them off this morning in your honor.” She smiled up at him. “But it’s a bit chilly. I think you need to warm me up, Rick. Give me some of your heat between my legs where I need it.”
“Damn, woman.” Rick had never been so aroused. Would it be so wrong to taste her this one time? Just once, and then he’d go his way, never to see her again. Just one perfect fantasy fuck to remember through all the lonely years ahead. He was only human, after all.
Decision made, he pressed her into the wall. There was no more time to think. No time to reason. His brain was out of the equation now and he was acting purely on instinct. And all his instincts were clamoring for him to get his cock into this woman as fast and hard and deep as possible and fuck her ’til they both came in wild, gasping passion.
There was no reason. No thought-out plan. Just the urgency of the male animal needing its mate.
Rick pushed her against the wall and she gasped. His fingers went straight to her pussy, pleased by the warm wetness that coated his hand. Rick pulled back a short distance to lift her top with his other hand, stretching the knit fabric up past her taut nipples. His head dipped as he captured one hard peak in his mouth, plying the other with the tips of his fingers, twisting and pinching as she writhed under him.
“Rick!” Her gasping cry was music to his ears. She was as hot for him as he was for her. There would be no stopping him now. No need to wait any longer.
He licked her nipple, switching to the other one after placing a delicate bite on her soft skin. She tasted like heaven and responded like his very own personal she-demon, molten fire in his arms. He’d never had a woman who reacted as quickly as this one—this perfect one—his mate, though he refused to think weighty thoughts at this moment. Right now there was only bliss and the urgent hunger that demanded to be fulfilled.
Rick slid two fingers up into her core, stroking deep in an ancient rhythm that made her whimper. She was more than ready for him. He wanted to stretch this moment out, but he couldn’t wait. He needed her too badly.
He pulled his fingers out, raising them to his lips so he could taste and smell the sweet, salty taste of her as he held her gaze. Her eyes flared with passion as he sucked her essence into his mouth. She tasted sublime, but he had no time to spare.
Before he could get to it, Callie’s small hands made short work of the fastening of his pants, freeing his cock. Her touch sent shivers down his spine and when she grasped him and squeezed, he nearly came in her hand.
“Stop that, baby, or I’ll come without you.” He moved forward as she dropped her hand. He caught her around the waist and lifted her off the floor. He was too tall to take her with her feet on the floor, but there were ways. He leaned her against the smooth wall of the barn and trapped her between his body and the unyielding wall. She obliged by wrapping her legs around his hips. Her smile let him know she was ready as she faced him, by all appearances eager for his possession. “It’s going to be hard and fast, baby.”
“Good.” She licked his lips as he moved closer. “I like it hard and fast. I especially like you hard, Rick. I can’t wait to feel that big cock of yours inside me.”
“No need to wait.” He lifted her again and aligned their positions before setting her down a few inches onto his waiting cock. She stretched around him beautifully, as if made just for him.
“More, Rick.” She gasped. “Do it now!”
Unable to wait, even to savor the moment, Rick pushed deep into her in one long movement. She cried out, but he could tell it wasn’t in pain. He felt the little contractions of her sheath around his cock, letting him know she’d gained a small completion at the moment he pushed inside. Well, wasn’t that interesting?
He began to move, shoving her against the wall, but she didn’t complain. Her breath panted across his neck and he bent to take her little cries into his mouth. Pulling back, he watched her tits bounce. They were bigger than he’d thought and perfectly shaped with big, ripe nipples that begged him to suck. He’d do more of that…later. But first he had to come and bring her with him. He was a desperate man.
Rick’s pace increased along with her little moans. As her cries grew in volume, his balls tightened, ready to explode.
“Now, baby. Come for me now,” he coached her as one hand slipped between them to rub her distended clit. Callie screamed as she came
, her body clamping on his cock like a milking hand, only twice as warm and slippery. He erupted in a torrent, emptying himself into her welcoming womb. He’d never come so hard with any woman ever before. Callie was special. Special and utterly loveable.
Rick pulsed one final time and Callie felt the most incredible bliss. Her mother had been right. Seducing Rick was one of the better ideas she’d had in a long, long time. She’d like to do it all again, as soon as possible.
But her bliss was shattered by the soft whine of approaching engines.
“Oh, no!”
They both heard it at the same time. Callie scrambled down and straightened her shirt as Rick shored up his pants. Alvians were about to land. The distinctive nearly silent purr of their technologically advanced engines was unmistakable.
Before they had a chance to get their clothes completely in order, the barn door flew open. Davin stood on the other side, his expression tense.
Callie felt the mixture of emotions running through her first mate with some confusion. There was an uncomfortable hint of jealousy as his eyes swept over them both, followed by anxiety, fear and love in rapid succession, ending with a sort of agonized hope.
“What is it?” she asked.
“Your brother Harry sent a message. He said something about an unlikely ally. Mick sent me out to tell you he wants us to all stay put here for the moment. Caleb sent word through Harry that we might find a way out of this, if we just hear them out.”
“Who’s in the ship?” Rick asked as he tucked his shirt in and stepped forward.
But Davin shook his head. “I don’t know. I had to run over here and duck out of sight before Mick could relay everything.”
Rick’s eyes narrowed as he tried to communicate with the O’Hara brothers, but they weren’t responding. Likely they were too busy attending to their own preparations for Alvian visitors, or maybe Rick’s telepathy was just too weak after the traumatic events of the past few days. His psychic energy was at a low ebb with all the emotional turmoil. Uncertainty had always had a detrimental effect on his psychic abilities, ever since he was a kid.
