Karter stepped back as if in shock, or insulted by her words. “I was tested years ago. I was new to my command. I had no idea what kind of life I would have as commander of this Battlegroup.”
“Day late and a dollar short.”
I frowned. “What does that mean?”
She sighed and looked at me as Karter lowered his hand. “It means, it’s too late. From the testing, she knows what it feels like to have a collar around her neck and be claimed by two males who are delirious with desire and love and need. She’s felt it before.” Chloe walked toward the door, and I didn’t have the heart to stop her. I’d heard enough, my heart aching as if she’d stabbed me with a rounded blade from the dining room.
But she wasn’t done with us. Not yet.
She spun about to face us. “She’s felt it all, just not with the two of you.” The door slid open and there stood our dissatisfied mate, Bard at her side, serving as escort. She looked beautiful in a brown Prillon gown. Curved. Soft. Perfect. She smiled in greeting, but the light didn’t reach her eyes, and I knew Chloe had spoken the truth. Erica was not happy, even with all the pleasure we’d given her. She would not choose to stay with us if we didn’t surrender everything.
I broke, my insides cracking and withering to dust at the idea of losing her and I wanted to pound Kaed into dust for forcing this situation upon her.
She could have me. All of me. Heart. Mind. Soul. I’d lay my sins at her feet and beg her to heal me with her soft touch and wet heat. She was light to my darkness. I didn’t want to exist without her, not now that I’d tasted her, known bliss, the slide of her hot pussy over my cock, her scent, the sounds of her pleasure, the way she’d clung to me in sleep. Mine.
That fast, I knew I would do anything to make her happy. She belonged to me. And if she wanted to feel my desire, feel the need burning through my veins like lightning, I would not deny her. I would resign from the Fleet if I had to, take her home to Prillon Prime and spend my days chasing children and my nights making her scream with pleasure. I’d served my time. I’d fought and bled and suffered for years… for her.
Fuck. I couldn’t lose her.
If Karter didn’t want to give her everything, I’d name a second and keep her for myself.
Commander Karter
* * *
I’ve been mad before. Frustrated. Angry. I’d learned to control it all the way back in the Coalition Academy. No commander could lead if every one of his—or her—emotions were known. Who wanted to obey the commands of a leader who was out of control?
But the Hive had nothing on Erica Roberts from Earth. She riled something hidden within, as if the matching protocol had found some kind of button inside me and it had been pushed. Now. Years after my testing. By a female I’d known less than a day.
By my mate.
The door to my office slid silently open and Erica entered, accompanied by Bard. I was thankful she was with my second-in-command, content that she was well-protected. She did not wear my collar, and I would not have any horny warrior panting after what was mine. While everyone on the ship—perhaps the entire battlegroup—knew of my mating, I would kill any who dared look upon her with lust. I stood, taking every inch of her in. Of course my cock went hard at the sight of her in a traditional Prillon dress in a dark, rich brown.
The Karter family color, the color my collar would turn if Ronan and I claimed her in the traditional way, the way she wanted us to.
Her golden brown hair hung past her shoulders, her blue eyes fastened on me, assessing, not placid nor appeased by my presence, as I wished her to be.
The long, flowing material of the gown, while not overly revealing or sexual, revealed every one of her lush curves. She looked refreshed, her eyes bright, the exhaustion I’d seen on her face as she slept, gone as well.
I’d waited for Ronan to sleep, then turned, watching her face at rest for long hours, wondering at this completely unexpected turn my life had taken. I was not young. I was older than most of the warriors still fighting. I’d seen more than twenty years of battle, more than forty years of life. Everyone I’d known or loved, dead or long gone. Even Ronan, or so I’d believed, until yesterday.
A mate. Gods help me. What the fuck was I supposed to do now?
She eyed me, then Ronan, who had also stood.
I knew how those eyes became hooded when she came, how they lost their focus as she found her pleasure on my cock. I knew the hot, tight feel of her pussy as it milked the cum from my balls and she cried out, losing control.
“Mate,” I growled. She licked her lips at my tone. I saw her shiver and knew it wasn’t from being cold. It hadn’t been long since we’d first fucked her, and I could imagine our combined seed sliding down her thighs. I wanted her to feel our possession of her even now, even when we weren’t touching her. Despite the fact that her neck was bare, her body responded to me, and we were fully clothed.
And yet Chloe claimed my mate hadn’t been satisfied? Two Prillon warriors had left her disappointed, even after what we’d done with her? And worse, she’d spoken of her dissatisfaction with Chloe?
Not only did it stir up every one of my leadership instincts to fix the problem—it was in my nature to ensure my people were satisfied—but it also pushed my mating instincts to full strength. I needed to ensure her happiness, both in bed and out.
“Commander Karter.” She nodded in my direction, nodded.
“Commander Wothar.”
I settled when Ronan received the same treatment from our female. No wonder Atlans turned beast. I felt as if I was coming out of my skin, as if I wanted to grab her, kiss her, get in her, fuck her, claim her with an intensity that was terrifying in its mindless demand.
I’d given in to her request and broken the custom of only the primary mate fucking her pussy and planting his seed until pregnancy was assured. She’d wanted both of us to fuck her, to fill her with a child. Ronan had combined his seed with mine deep inside her. A baby would be ours. I’d even given in to her request and kept her on the Karter with me as we awaited data from the probe, even with the possibility of danger. Not just danger, being blown from space by some long-range Hive weapon. But now?
Now we suspected the Hive would move to Sector 437 next. Battlegroup Karter would be next.
As I stared at my mate, non-essential personnel were already being transported off the forward ships, others in the battlegroup moved to safety, just as Varsten had ordered.
And once I proved to Erica that her mates could well and truly satisfy her every need, she would be transported to safety. To Prime Nial himself. His mate, Jessica, was also a female from Earth and would ease Erica’s transition to Prillon Prime. Erica would be wined and dined and sleep in silken sheets while I battled the Hive. While Ronan went off and did fuck-all with the I.C.
She would know the satisfaction only her mates could give her, and then we would see her transported safely to the home planet. We would master her body and ensure her safety as any good mates would.
Starting right now.
I strode toward her and she took a step back, eyes widening. Then again until she was pressed up against the wall. I crowded against her, my hard cock pressing into the softness of her belly. Reaching up, I tangled my fingers in her long hair, tugged gently so she had no choice but to meet my gaze. She was pinned in place.
“Chloe, out,” I snapped. “Take Bard with you.”
“Okay then,” Chloe said behind me.
I hadn’t shifted my gaze off of Erica from the second she walked in. The air in the room crackled like the air on Prillon Prime before a lightning strike.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Chloe walk over to Bard, grab his arm and tug him toward the door. “Have fun!” she called as the door closed behind them.
“I like seeing you in traditional Prillon dress,” I said. Even more, I loved seeing her in my family color. Brown. Rich. Soft. Full of life.
Like her.
She licked her lips, whispered, “Th
ank you.”
“It is a shame I will rip it to shreds, but the S-Gen machine can make you another.”
“What?” she asked. “Why? I like this dress.”
I gave her hair a little tug. Nothing painful, but it was time to assert my dominance. I was her primary male and she would know that. “Because we have learned from Commander Phan that you have not been properly satisfied.”
She did not deny it, and my cock pulsed with pain.
“Kaed, I just—”
“It is our fault,” Ronan said from behind me. He moved to stand beside us as he traced the line of her neck with a finger. He touched her, but his eyes were on me, the question—no, demand—clear. He wanted to collar her. Here. Now.
She shivered again, and I knew she would let us take her with or without the collar. “We are going to make sure you know who your mates are, female.” My hand roamed the softness of her hip and outer thigh, moved up to cup her large breast. I wanted to rip the dress to shreds to reach her bare skin.
“We didn’t realize how needy your pussy was,” Ronan added, correctly interpreting my lack of an answer as my answer. We’d fuck her now, get her to safety, and figure out the rest later. My feelings on burdening Erica with my emotions had not changed. I carried darkness and death. I did not wish that for her.
“My—what? No, that’s not what I meant.”
“Perhaps you were matched to us because you needed not one mate, but two. We can satisfy your insatiable need,” I vowed.
“Here?” she squeaked. “Anyone could walk in.”
She wasn’t denying her need, or protesting the fact that we would fuck her… dominate her, here and now. But she didn’t want us to be discovered. For now. I had no doubt she would not mind being witnessed, for the testing would not have matched us had she felt otherwise.
Ronan reached out, slapped the wall beside the door and engaged the lock. This would be the only concession we made.
“She will need her dress. After,” Ronan reminded me, not stating that she would transport immediately after, and neither of us wanted her to be naked. Even being sent to the ruler of all of Prillon Prime, I would not send her vulnerable and bare. Showing her off while fucking, letting others see the beautiful female that was ours and ours alone, was one thing.
It was tradition for an Interstellar Bride to arrive to her Prillon warriors naked and unashamed. But now that she was mine, I found myself increasingly unwilling to share her beauty with the rest of the galaxy.
Ronan was right. I would not tear her dress, for I had no S-Gen machine in my office to prepare her a replacement. Grabbing the long hem, I raised the dress, higher and higher still until it bunched in the front at her waist. With the hand I removed from her hair, I cupped her pussy, found it bare. Wet. Despite what I’d thought, the thick smears of seed that had coated her last night were gone, even along her inner thighs.
I growled and her eyes, which had fallen closed, flared wide at the sound.
“Your pussy is empty, mate,” I said. “Where is our seed?”
“I… I took a shower.” She gasped and rolled her hips as I slipped one finger inside her, reveled in how she responded.
“Really?” I asked, slipping my hand from between her legs. “To erase our touch from your body? To forget whose bed you slept in last night?”
“No.” Her mouth fell open, then her eyes changed. The haze of lust lifted as they narrowed and went cold. “What is your problem, Kaed?”
“You speak of being unhappy, mate. But not with us, your mates. With Chloe Phan, an outsider. She is not a member of this family. She is not ours.”
Erica shoved at my chest, but I did not move. Not one inch.
“You sent her to me. A friend from Earth. You expect me not to speak of being here? It’s not like I told her how big your cocks are. I do have some discretion.”
“Tell us what you need,” Ronan said. “We will fix it.”
“How? You think a good, hard fuck will solve all my problems?” Erica’s fury spiked, as did her heart rate, the scent of her arousal filling my office to the point that even Ronan growled.
I grabbed her hand, pulled her over to my desk. With an aggressive swipe, I cleared the surface, picked her up and sat her upon it.
“We will not leave here until this is resolved,” I said.
“You have all the answers. Know everything. Why should you consult me? I’m just your perfect match, your bride, the woman good enough to fuck but not good enough to marry.”
“Mate,” I growled, pushed to my limit. I would never harm a female, never harm my mate, but she was pushing me. “I do not know what marry means, but you are my mate.”
“Are you sure about that?”
“Our seed in your womb makes us sure,” Ronan added.
Her cheeks flushed a bright pink.
“Explain your concerns, mate,” I repeated, trying to slow this down, get myself under control.
She crossed her arms over her chest in a stubborn gesture I’d seen Chloe do. I had to wonder if her mates felt as I did now.
“You might both be commanders, but you can’t boss me around.”
I looked to Ronan, who nodded.
“Perhaps a good spanking will get you to answer us,” I replied.
I lifted her with ease and flipped her over so she was bent over my desk.
With Ronan’s hand on her upper back, he held her down when she tried to push up.
“Hey!” she shouted.
The bottom of her dress was tossed up and bunched at her lower back, exposing her bare, glorious ass. I spanked her once. Not hard, but enough so she knew I would follow through.
Her hips wiggled as my handprint bloomed bright pink on her pale skin. As she thrashed her legs about, her pussy became visible. I had to adjust my cock in my pants.
“You are satisfied with our cocks. I can see your pussy is swollen and dripping with heat. Do you see how hard her clit is, Ronan? Is that it, mate? You need to come again?”
“Do you need Kaed’s big cock, Erica?” Ronan asked, stroking her hair back from her face.
“Men! You think everything can be solved by sex. This is not about your dicks.”
I slid two fingers deep into her pussy and she moaned, pushing back against me, trying to force my touch deeper. I complied, eager to see if she was truly disinterested. I knew her wetness could be attributed to our earlier play and not her current arousal. I doubted that, but I would make sure. I would not fuck her if she were not willing.
To my surprise, and perhaps hers as well, she came, her inner walls clenching rhythmically around my fingers. She cried out my name as her hands slapped the desk.
“By the gods, Kaed,” Ronan whispered, watching. “She is magnificent.”
“Let me up,” she gasped.
Stunned by her powerful response, we let her up, but she surprised us once more by spinning about, dropping to her knees before me and tugging open my uniform pants. With eager hands, she pulled my cock out and pumped it once, twice, causing me to stumble back. She followed until I ran into the wall. This time, I was the one trapped. She had my cock in her small hands; I wasn’t going anywhere.
I shouted her name when she leaned forward and put the wide crown into her mouth. “This,” she said, after a swirl of her tongue. “Do you feel this with others?”
I barely had brain function as she continued to pump and lick. Just seeing her on her knees, my cock in her hold… fuck. “What?”
“Do other females make pre-cum slide from you?” she flicked her tongue over a pearly drop.
“Mate, you doubt our honor?” Ronan asked.
She offered him a glance. “Do you doubt mine?”
She took me deep, although there was no way she would ever be able to take all of me. Her fist around the base kept me from going too deep, but gods, the hot, wet suction was making me lose my mind. I couldn’t think, couldn’t speak, couldn’t function with her mouth on me. The Hive could break through the locked door an
d I wouldn’t be able to respond.
And so, with a willpower stronger than I’d ever used before, I gripped her under the arms and lifted her up, sat her on the desk once again.
The air was cool on my wet dick and my balls ached for release.
“You think we doubt your honor?” I asked.
Her chin tipped up. “Well, something is obviously wrong with me.”
“You are perfect, female.” I meant it. Perfect.
“I don’t wear your collar.”
Ah, that was it. She must have seen a Prillon claiming in her testing dream, knew of the collar’s importance.
“You arrived from Earth in the midst of death and destruction.”
“I’m not afraid of death,” she replied. “I came out here for a reason, Kaed.”
I felt… proud of her in that moment, realized she hadn’t been the least bit panicked at her odd arrival. She’d jumped right in, offering help to the wounded, even if it were just holding a hand, giving a smile and words of encouragement to our injured warriors. She hadn’t feared the danger. But I had, for her.
“No, you were not.” I tipped my head toward Ronan. “Neither is your second. But with your lack of fear comes my responsibility. I am the leader of this battlegroup, Erica. My life is wracked with guilt, grief, anger. Hatred. So many negative feelings would come through the collar, just from me alone, that I am not sure you would survive a connection to both of us with your mind intact.”
She frowned. “I could die? Are you telling me that if you two put your collar around my neck, it might kill me? Because I’m calling bullshit on that one.”
“No, but sometimes, perhaps you will wish you had. The collars connect us, Erica. Not just sexual pleasure, but all emotion. The good and the bad. I will not burden you with a connection to me. To what I must endure in my role as a fleet commander. As for Ronan… I can only imagine the pain and depth of feeling he’s had from being in the I.C.”
The Commanders' Mate Page 10
