Claiming Quinn (Other World Series Book Five)

by Ramona Gray

  “A little,” Silas admitted.

  The man nodded. “Aye, I’m not surprised. It is a nasty gash.”

  He looked at Quinn. “He’ll need stitches.”

  “Can it wait until we return home?”

  Naveen shook his head. “I do not believe so. The wound is not clotting very well. It would be best if I do it now.”

  He glanced down at Silas. “This will hurt I’m afraid.”

  Silas leaned away from the old man. “Are you a doctor?”

  Naveen smiled. “Well, in this world we’re called kalans but it is the same thing. Mostly.”

  “What do you mean this world?” Silas frowned at him as Naveen rinsed the wound with water.

  Naveen didn’t reply, just hummed softly under his breath as he wiped away the streaks of blood from Silas’ temple and face. He applied pressure with a soft cloth to the wound on his head for a few minutes, studying Silas’ body and face as he did so.

  “Garna. He’s good looking isn’t he?” He grinned at Quinn.

  Quinn snorted softly. “He had all of them glowing like fireflies.”

  Naveen laughed. “Hell, I don’t blame them. If I could glow I’d be glowing right now.” He squeezed Silas’ arm through his thin shirt. “He’s strong too.”

  “Naveen,” Quinn said softly and the old man blushed.

  “I was just feeling the material of his shirt, that’s all.”

  “Now you sound like Barkha.”

  Quinn spoke in a disapproving tone but Silas could hear the affection under it. Naveen was obviously someone she cared deeply about.

  “Well, we’d better get this done,” Naveen said cheerfully. “Hold his head, massina.”

  Silas stiffened when he felt Quinn’s hands circle his head and hold it firmly.

  “Sorry about this, Silas. I’ll try to be quick.” Naveen held a needle and thread in his hand and he poked the needle through the skin of Silas’ temple.

  Silas jerked with pain and tried to move his head but Quinn held him firmly. “Easy, danen,” she murmured. “It will be over soon.”

  Silas gritted his teeth and leaned his head against Quinn’s firm abdomen. He could feel sweat breaking out on his forehead as Quinn moved one hand down his face and cupped his chin firmly. She held him steady as Naveen continued to sew the gash closed.

  As Naveen began to hum softly again, Silas hissed in pain. His chained hands latched onto Quinn’s firm thighs. He dug in hard with his fingers but if it hurt she made no indication nor did she try to move away. He shoved his head against Quinn, trying subconsciously to move away from the pain. She used her other hand to squeeze and rub one large shoulder.

  “Almost finished, danen. Take deep breaths.” She continued to rub his shoulder and he closed his eyes and inhaled deeply.

  “What does danen mean?” He muttered.

  “Big one,” she replied.

  There was another sharp stab of pain and he twitched his head. Naveen frowned. “Hold him steady please, Quinn.”

  She strengthened her grip on his head. “For a danen you’re kind of a bala.”

  Naveen snorted soft laughter and Silas frowned. “Bala means?”

  “Baby.” Quinn’s full lips curved upwards and Silas squeezed her thighs again.

  “You try getting stitches without anesthetic. Then we’ll see who’s a bala.”

  Naveen actually laughed out loud this time and he patted Silas’ head affectionately. “Oh, danen, you know not what you speak of. The massina carries many battle scars.”

  Silas frowned. They had a weird way of speaking. Forgetting the odd words that were peppered throughout their speech, they had an almost old-fashioned dialect with a slight accent that made them hard to understand from time to time.

  As Naveen tied the thread and cut it, Quinn squeezed his shoulder. “Well done, bala.”

  She pulled free of his grip as Naveen rinsed the wound clean and peered out the opening of the tent. “The weather still hasn’t cleared.”

  Naveen shrugged. “It can take a few days - you know that.”

  “Aye, I do. Although I wonder if there won’t be two this time.”

  “That has only happened once before, Quinn, and it was many years ago.”

  She turned around and frowned at Silas’ white face.

  “Danen, are you okay?”

  Silas swallowed thickly. “I think I’m going to throw up.”

  “Garna!” She grabbed a wooden bucket that was by the opening of the tent and rushed over. She had just enough time to shove it in front of him before he was leaning over and vomiting into it. After a few minutes he straightened, panting harshly.

  Naveen wiped his mouth with a damp cloth and then used another to wipe the sweat from his brow and the back of his neck.

  “He has a concussion I think.” Quinn frowned.

  Naveen gave her a quizzical look. “Concussion?”

  “It’s a,” she gestured vaguely, “head injury. It’s addled his brains a bit.”

  Naveen nodded. “Ah, like a kadeen?”

  “Yes. He’ll have to be watched through the night and woken every few hours.”

  Naveen held up his hands. “Count me out, Quinn.”

  She scowled angrily at him. “Are you a kalan or not, Naveen?”

  “I am.” Her anger didn’t frighten him. “But I am also an old man who needs his sleep. I will be of no use to you if I am up every few hours all night.”

  Quinn rolled her eyes and he shrugged. “Ask Barkha to watch him. No doubt she will find that a very pleasing assignment.”

  Quinn snorted. “Aye, but I want him woken every few hours, not fucked every few hours.”

  Naveen laughed and wiped Silas’ face and neck again. “Then I guess you’re on kalan duty tonight, massina.”

  She sighed and crouched in front of Silas. “How do you feel, danen?”

  “I have a bad headache,” Silas mumbled. “Could I have a drink of water?”

  “Yes.” She gestured at Naveen who brought a tin cup filled with water. Quinn held it to his mouth and he drank greedily. The water was freezing cold and tasted amazing.

  “Thanks,” he said hoarsely. He was suddenly very tired and he wanted to close his eyes and sleep.

  “Danen, take this.” Naveen was holding a white packet of yellow powder in front of his mouth. It smelled like dead skunk and Silas wrinkled his nose and turned his face away.

  “It smells awful.”

  “It will help with your headache. Take it,” Quinn said sternly.

  He swallowed the bitter powder and Naveen held another cup of water to his mouth to wash it down with.

  “Naveen, help him to my bed. I will get the others settled and return shortly.” She hesitated. “Do not let your guard down. He is injured and bound but remember his strength.”

  “I’ll be careful,” Naveen replied.

  Chapter 4

  Quinn entered her tent and studied the sleeping man in her bed. His face was still pale and the smell of the healing paste Naveen put on his wound radiated from him. She knelt on the ground beside him and pulled back the blankets. Naveen had removed his shoes and pants and a small pulse of desire went through her at the sight of his muscular legs covered in dark hair.

  He really was a danen, she thought dimly. Another tremor of lust went through her. Perhaps because of her own height she had always liked the big ones. He was the biggest man she’d ever seen – in this world or the other.

  She reached out with a trembling hand and stroked his chest. It was warm and hard and she eased up his t-shirt so she could study his chest and abdomen.

  Garna. He had an amazing body.

  She traced his flat stomach with the tips of her fingers. Naveen was right - she would take him for herself. When she was done with him there would be no shortage of women lined up for the chance to have him between their legs. He was going to be very popular.

  He snorted softly in his sleep and she hastily pulled his shirt down before touching his f
orehead lightly. It was cool to the touch and she shook his shoulder roughly.

  “Danen, wake up.” There was no response and she shook him again.

  “Danen, wake up.” She spoke louder but his eyes remained closed. A thin thread of panic went through her and she straddled his prone body and smacked him hard on the chest.

  “Danen! Open your eyes and look at me!” She demanded.

  His eyelids fluttered rapidly and he uttered a low groan before blinking at her. She breathed a sigh of relief. Why she would be so concerned about a man she just met didn’t seem to occur to her and she gave him a brief smile.

  “How do you feel, danen?”

  “My head hurts.” Forgetting he was cuffed he strained to lift his hand to his forehead.

  “Can you untie me?” He asked hoarsely.

  She shook her head. “I cannot. Come, sit up for me.”

  “No. I’m tired.” He pouted like a little boy and she sighed harshly and hooked her hand into the collar around his neck.

  “Sit up, danen.” Still straddling him, she pulled him into a sitting position and steadied him. “Do you feel dizzy?”

  “A little,” he muttered.

  “Do you feel like you’re going to throw up?”

  “No. But it feels like there’s a hammer pounding in my head.” She could hear the dry click of his throat when he swallowed.

  She reached for the water and poured him a glass. “Drink slowly.”

  She held the cup to his mouth, pulling it back a bit when he drank greedily at it.

  “Slowly,” she admonished before wiping the water from his chin. He stared hazily at her as her fingers lingered on his skin.

  He had beautiful eyes, she decided. Light green with flecks of hazel in them. His nose was crooked, like it had been broken a few times, and his hair was thick and dark with threads of grey at the temple. He obviously worked outdoors. His skin was tanned and there were small lines around his eyes from years of working in the sun. His body was thick with muscles gained from a lifetime of labour, not from working out in a gym. She traced the dark stubble on his chin as his eyes flickered to her mouth and then to the tops of her breasts.

  “You’re so pretty,” he whispered.

  She swallowed back the tingle of pleasure that went through her and reached for the small white packet lying beside the bed. Keeping the powder in the middle, she unfolded the packet and held it to his mouth. “Open.”

  His nose wrinkled. “I don’t want to take that again. It tastes horrible.”

  “I know.” She stroked his face soothingly. “But you must. It will help with the pain. Open up, danen.”

  “My name is Silas,” he said. “Why won’t you say my name?”

  “Open up, Silas.”

  He pressed his lips together like a little kid and shook his head stubbornly.

  “I can make you take it,” she warned him.

  Why she was so anxious to have him take the pain relief was beyond her. It was his problem if he wanted to be in pain. Except she didn’t want him to be in pain. It made her feel guilty for some strange reason.

  His eyes dropped to her mouth again. “One kiss.”

  “What are you talking about, danen?”

  “Kiss me and I’ll take the medicine.” He smiled at her but she could see the cloudiness in his eyes.

  “You’re not yourself, danen.” She squeezed his shoulder. “The blow to your head has confused you.”

  “I’m not confused.” He smiled again at her. “One kiss, Quinn, or are you too chicken?”

  A shudder went through her when he said her name and his grin widened. “You are afraid of me.”

  She bristled and set the paper packet on the floor of the tent. She threaded her fingers through the thick hair on the back of his head and tugged until his head was bent back.

  “I am afraid of no one,” she whispered against his mouth. Her soft lips pressed against his firm ones and they both shivered. After only a few seconds she moved her head back.

  “There, danen, I have - ”

  “Again.” The softly-growled word had her head bending and her mouth back against his before she realized what was happening. Although she was straddling him and his hands were still cuffed firmly behind his back, he took control of the kiss. He sucked her bottom lip into his mouth before releasing it and licking her upper lip.

  “Open your mouth,” he demanded and once again she obeyed him immediately. He thrust his tongue between her lips and she moaned when he rubbed it roughly against hers. The kiss seemed to go on forever, the seconds spinning into minutes as they explored each other’s mouths.

  Quinn pressed herself against his broad chest. Her clothing felt too tight and restrictive and she wanted to shed the heavy leather and free her breasts. She could almost feel the firm pull of Silas’ lips on her nipples. She was actually reaching to undo her clothing when his rough voice brought her back to her senses.

  “Release me, Quinn. I want to touch you,” he muttered against her mouth.

  She leaned away, breathing heavily and staring at a spot on the side of the tent. She was mortified by her behaviour and she took two deep breaths before forcing herself to look at the danen. His eyes were closed and she patted his shoulder.

  “Danen? Are you awake?”

  “Yeah. Kind of,” he muttered. “You taste good, Quinn.” He shifted under her and for the first time she clearly felt his erection.

  She flushed and reached for the packet of yellow powder. “Open up, danen.”

  He opened his mouth and she poured the packet of powder onto his tongue. He closed his mouth and made a sour face as she reached for the cup of water. “Drink.”

  Once he was finished she pushed him back gently onto the pile of blankets that made her bed. He closed his eyes with a soft sigh. She crossed to the other side of the small tent and quickly shed her skirt and top before slipping into her nightdress. Shivering in the cool air, she returned to the bed and climbed under the blankets next to him.

  He groaned and pulled at the restraints as she drew the blankets up over them both. “Danen, go to sleep.”

  “I’m not comfortable and I’m cold,” he muttered.

  She shifted onto her side and then helped him turn on his side until he was facing her. She had only one pillow and she was uncomfortably aware of just how close their faces were.

  “Better?” She whispered.

  He squirmed even closer. Although she knew she should stop him she made no objection when he threw one heavy leg over her hip and buried his face in the curve of her neck.

  “Yes.” His warm breath brought goose bumps to her skin.

  He strained at the cuffs and she rubbed his back. “Do not do that, danen.”

  He muttered something she couldn’t understand and then groaned softly. She kneaded the back of his neck until he relaxed against her.

  “Go to sleep, Silas,” she whispered.

  “Okay.”

  He slipped into sleep but she continued to run her hands over his broad chest and back for a few more minutes. Her pelvis was throbbing and her nipples were hard. She sighed harshly. It was ridiculous to be attracted to the danen. It had been many years since she was with a man but until she had the revenge she so desperately sought there was no point in even thinking about the danen.

  * * *

  She woke him again a few hours later. Silas blinked and tried to focus. He thought his head wasn’t throbbing quite as much and he didn’t have that sickening rolling in his stomach when she helped him sit up and drink some water.

  “Better, danen?”

  “Yes.” He looked around. “Where am I?”

  “You don’t remember?”

  He thought back carefully. He remembered being led into the tent and having his wound tended to by a man named Naveen. He remembered the woman sitting beside him calling him a baby and he remembered throwing up and feeling like his head was going to explode. He thought that Naveen had removed his pants and boots before putti
ng him in the bed. After that it was a blur.

  “Sort of. This is your tent?”

  She nodded her confirmation and he looked down at the nest of blankets he was in. “Your bed?"

  She nodded again. “Are you hungry?”

  “A little.”

  She crawled out from the blankets and crossed the tent. Her long dark hair which was braided earlier was now loose and flowing around her shoulders. Her bustier and skirt had been replaced by a plain, white shirt that fell to the middle of her thighs. A large scar twisted its way from her knee and up her thigh before disappearing under the hem of her shirt.

  As she dug through a small leather bag, he said, “My brother. Where is he?”

  She returned to the bed carrying a smaller leather bag in one hand. She slipped under the blankets and sat cross-legged beside him.

  “The one called Gage?”

  Silas nodded. “Yeah. Tell me where he is right now.”

  She smiled. “You are in no position to be making demands, danen.”

  “I want to know where he is.”

  “He’s fine. Sleeping I would imagine.” She brushed off his question and opened the bag. She withdrew a small pink plant and tore off part of the stalk. “Here.”

  He leaned away from it. “What is it?”

  “It’s good. Just try it.”

  “It doesn’t look like food.”

  “It is. Trust me.”

  He snorted and she rolled her eyes and popped the piece into her mouth. She chewed and swallowed before opening her mouth and showing him. “See, danen?”

  She tore off another piece and he opened his mouth and allowed her to place it on his tongue. He chewed gingerly and then grunted in surprise. “It’s sweet.”

  “Yes.” She rummaged in the bag and this time brought out something that would have reminded him of a bun if it hadn’t been blue and shaped like a star.

  “Try this.” She tore off a section of it and he ate it slowly.

  “Is it – is it bread?”

  “Close enough.”

  She took her own section and ate it. Silas watched her chew and found himself fascinated with her mouth. Her lips were full and pink and she had straight white teeth. His eyes travelled over her face. She had a small, straight nose and high cheekbones. Her skin was tanned and her eyes were a smoky grey colour. She was, in a word, gorgeous.