“Did screwing me make you hot?” he snarled.
She smiled belligerently and nodded even as she worked her berry-ripe nipples with the palm of her hand. “I’ve wanted to ride you since the first time I saw you. You looked like you needed a stiff cock shoved up your smart ass. That was the best I could do.”
Her bold words made him groan. Damn, she was a piece of work.
Gripping her feet, he spread her legs wide to see her glistening cunt. She was so wet, her thighs shiny, liquid proof of her excitement. Working him into a frenzy made her this wet. His blood whizzed through his veins, from his heart to his cock, as he positioned himself at her opening. The hands gripping her delicate ankles actually shook. If he took her as hard as he craved doing, he’d probably hurt her.
As though reading his mind she put one hand on her cunt and spread her lips in invitation. “Don’t hold back. I want everything you can give me.”
There was only so much an immortal man could take. His shaft was so hard he didn’t even need to hold it, just ram inside her hard and fast.
She gasped as he buried himself to the hilt, her soft tunnel giving way under his unforgiving assault. The angle was perfect for slow, sensual play, but Zan was too far gone for that. He drew back and drove into her again, hard. Fucking her with zero finesse. Quick, greedy thrusts into her wet, welcoming heat, doing all he could to lose what felt like a gallon of cum weighing his balls down.
Gia screamed, clawing the sheets as he pounded into her, her position making her all but helpless. The toy in his ass rubbed along his hot spot, shoving him higher than he’d ever been, and he bore down on it while her feminine muscles gripped his cock in a similar hold.
Her eyelids shut and she threw her head back when he gripped both her ankles in one hand and put her bare feet against his chest. The position elongated and tightened her tunnel. With one hand free, he flicked her clit, demanding her surrender.
“Come now, Gia.”
She complied in a wet rush, her mouth open but making no sound, her hungry pussy practically sucking his dick dry. He bellowed as he followed her down, shooting deep into her in great, spurting pulses.
On and on it went, his body tightening, then releasing again for what seemed to be an eon. He met her gaze, almost panicked at the powerful release that had taken over. She pulled him down on top of her, cradling his head to her breast even as he kept coming, and coming, and oh, fuck, still coming.
“It’s okay,” she whispered while she stroked his hair. “Ride it out, I’m right here.”
Finally, it ended. He listened to the steady thrum of her heartbeat, trying to collect himself, scrambling for any perch he could find. It was like being adrift in a shimmering sea—part of him wanted to drown, to never come up and just lose himself in its glory.
His cock was, unbelievably, still semihard inside her. Sweat and lube had them practically bonded together. And he loved it. Marking her this way, branding her with his spooge, made his weakness all right.
Gia knew more of his secrets than any living being. He wanted to tell her everything, to share himself completely with her, open up like he had with . . .
Isabella.
Her name echoed through his mind like an accusation. Being with his wife was the last time he’d felt this way. After sex she would cradle him to her breasts, the same way Gia was doing now. He’d been stripped bare of the façade he needed to wear as Xander’s heir. With her he was free to be himself. They would whisper secrets in the dark, then make love again.
Make love. For fifty years he’d been fucking whenever, wherever, and whomever he could. And never once had he felt disloyal to Isabella’s memory.
Until Gia.
Grief washed over him, followed quickly by rage. He pulled out of her, removed the toy, and lobbed it back into the stand. He slammed the lid with unnecessary force.
“Zan?” Gia propped herself up on her elbows, gravity doing amazing things to her plump tits. He wanted to move back to her and suckle those tight little nipples until she begged him to take her again. Her eyebrows drew down. “Is everything all right?”
He wanted to laugh at that—no, to howl like a beast. No, all right was not even in the same sector as they were. Stranded on Hosta with someone he was stupid enough to have feelings for, he probably wouldn’t recognize all right if it bit him on his still-throbbing ass. He couldn’t tell her that though, because despite all her tough talk and nonchalance, Gia was a woman and women always wanted to talk shit through.
Not in this lifetime.
Instead, he squared his shoulders and headed for the bathroom. “Enough fucking around. We need to clean up and be ready to move.”
He turned and strode for the bathroom before she could argue.
Because next to fucking, arguing with him was what Gia did best.
If he had slapped her across the face Gia couldn’t have been more stunned. What the hell was wrong with him? He’d come so hard she could practically taste it, then snuggled up to her like he never wanted to let her go. What the hell was going on in his head to transform him all of a sudden?
She listened as the shower turned on, and wrapped her arms around her knees. Maybe it was like he said, they needed to be ready to move. Naked and covered in cum wasn’t exactly her definition of ready. But it wasn’t what he’d said, it was the way he’d phrased it.
She snorted. Really? Was she going to turn into that girl now? The one who took offense at every little implied insult from her lover and then stewed about it for hours, days, even weeks after?
Apparently she was.
More than anything she wished she could call Gen. Not only did her best friend know Zan, but she’d spent time with him, maybe had some insight into the way his mind worked. He’d been all possessive of Gia after the attack, and he’d let her do things to him, let her take liberties and make him vulnerable. Though she hadn’t known him long, a part of her knew he didn’t do that with just anybody. He was a space pirate, captain of his own living ship, and heir apparent to a misogynistic bastard. Showing weakness wasn’t something he could afford.
Gia knew that, and the fact that he’d done it for her had gotten under her skin. Just like his risking capture when coming back for her did. Maybe that was what was bugging her. Zan wasn’t the type to go out of his way for anyone, but he made exceptions for her. Made her feel special. His cold dismissal stung like frostbite after the heat he’d turned her way.
Back to business. Okay, she could do that. If bonding time was over, then so be it. They both had more important things to worry about now.
With her mind made up, Gia climbed off the bed and strode to the bathroom. She didn’t even hesitate in pushing open the broken door and going inside. It didn’t matter what he was doing in there. She’d licked his ass—it didn’t get much more personal.
Steam billowed out from the corner. The shower didn’t have any doors or walls, and the water was forced up in hard, streaming jets, like geysers. Again Gia was reminded of the accommodations onboard his living vessel. Zan stood in the middle of them, covered with soap. He scrubbed his chin stubble, his eyes closed, and water droplets clung to his thick, dark lashes.
She shivered as she remembered what he’d felt like, coming inside her. The look of bliss at the first spurt, then panic when the jets of semen kept working their way out of his body and into hers. He’d been so incredibly vulnerable, so beautiful and so different than the man who fucked her like there was no tomorrow. That side of him turned her on, made her wet, but the other was what she’d attached herself to. Her clit throbbed remembering as he bent low to wash his crease, letting the jet hit him where she’d explored with fingers and tongue.
He tasted salty there, she remembered, even more so than his cock. What would he do if she just knelt behind him and started licking him there again? Would he brace his hands on the wall and let her have her wicked way with him? Or would he push her away?
The thought of his rejection cooled her ardor. Turn
ing to the sink, she washed her hands and face and used what she hoped was toothpaste to clean her mouth. Her hair was completely hopeless without the use of the shower, but she stalled, waiting for him to finish, say “It’s all yours” or something to that effect.
He didn’t. Leaving the water running, he stepped away from the jets and grabbed a shiny towel. She watched as he dried his hair, those big, muscular arms flexing as he worked his way down to his chest and belly. A cursory swipe at his groin and then one leg at a time before wrapping the fabric around his hips. Walking past her, he left the bathroom without even a glance in her direction.
Fine. That’s how he wanted it to be? She wouldn’t forget the fact that he was the one who’d pursued her. If he had kept his pecker in his pants, she wouldn’t be in this mess to begin with. Gia strode to the shower, then washed herself efficiently, sudsing her hair with the purple soap that looked suspiciously like her Nutri-packs. No wonder Zan had balked at eating them; he must have thought she was trying to feed him soap.
Stop thinking about him! she ordered herself, but with the water hitting her throbbing clit the way it was, that was damn near impossible. What the hell was wrong with her? Her sex drive had always been high, but Zan sent it into orbit.
A few quick strokes would set her right again. Leaning against the wall, she angled her hips so the water hit her sex in just the right spot. Her nipples tightened to the point of pain. There were so many other little tidbits of naughtiness in that barrel. The whip had made her palms sweaty. She could easily envision Zan standing behind her, working the long lash between her folds, making her ride it before flicking it across her ass, her thighs, until she came. Then he’d kneel behind her and dine on her sopping wet sex before he fucked her hard and fast, his big cock plunging in and out of her slick channel the way two of her fingers were doing, growling her name. . . .
“Gia.” Zan’s snarl echoed in the bathroom.
Forcing her heavy lids up, she stared at him. Busted. “I was just—”
“You and your greedy little cunt,” he rumbled, his tone approving. “Fuck, I can’t stay away from you.”
She met his gaze, held it. “Then don’t.”
Dropping his towel, he stepped back into the shower. His fingers thrust into her wet hair, gripping the strands and forcing her head back. Her fingers went to that gleaming chest, scraping her nails over the firm muscles. His lips parted, his face hovering inches above her own, his golden eyes searching for something, almost frantically. His scrutiny should have unnerved her, but all she could think about was the rock-hard shaft pressing into her belly, the scent of clean male skin and Zan’s unique spice.
Gia closed her eyes, parted her lips, and waited for him to accept her invitation. With a groan he did, his lips locking on hers. He ran his tongue across her teeth, exploring her mouth before retreating into his own. She followed, plunging after him, ready for a deeper taste. She barely noticed when he gripped her ass and lifted her so her back pressed against the wall.
He devoured her mouth as his cock parted her nether lips, angled too straight to plunge inside. Instead he rocked against her clit, his shaft causing friction on the oversensitized bundle of nerves. Gia’s sank into his arms and broke the kiss, needing air almost as much as she needed him. “Zan.”
“You want me in you?” he asked, his smile pure wickedness.
“God, yes,” she breathed as he rocked against her again, harder. Her empty channel clenched in frustration. An electric buzz filled the air around them and between them. She thought her heart would explode at any minute. “Fuck me, Zan, please.”
His expression changed, amusement falling away, leaving something stark and desperate behind. “Not this time,” he rasped.
She didn’t have a chance to ask him what he meant before he lifted her higher and impaled her on his thick shaft.
Orgasm tore her apart as soon as he buried himself inside her. The electric shocks raced up and down her spine and she screamed until her lungs ran out of air as her body milked his in wet pulls. Zan held still, though his fingers dug into the fleshy globes of her ass, keeping her perfectly still as she rode the wave of ecstasy.
The tide ebbed, and she forced her eyelids up to look into his eyes.
The man who held her, whose cock was deep inside her, wasn’t the irreverent bastard space pirate or the rutting beast who fucked her. His pupils had dilated and the golden irises shimmered iridescently. She couldn’t look away if she tried as he slowly withdrew and then plunged back into her, slow and deep.
Gia clutched his shoulders, watching him stare into her eyes as he rocked into her. He looked down and she followed his gaze, seeing the thick male flesh that parted her puffy pink lips disappear inside her until his pelvis touched hers. Then slowly, he backed out, and she sucked in a breath at how tightly her body tried to cling to him, to keep him inside her.
“Look at me,” he growled.
Lifting her gaze she met his stare, and he rewarded her with another slow thrust.
Suddenly his words made sense. This was so much more than fucking. It wasn’t about getting off, satisfying a bodily need. It was the difference between living on Nutri-packs and dining at a gourmet restaurant. Zan had wanted her just for the pure pleasure of being inside her, of connecting to her flesh with his.
She’d been living on Nutri gel for a long time. Losing herself in his eyes, she tightened her inner muscles, letting him know without words that she got it. He needed this, and deep down she needed it too.
His lips trailed down her neck, the rasp of stubble contrasting with his soft lips and tongue. She tilted her head back to give him better access. Her hands roved his back, exploring and enjoying him. He stepped closer until her breasts crushed against his chest. She loved the way the crisp hairs on his chest abraded her nipples, just as his pubic hair tickled her clit. Instead of withdrawing completely, Zan gyrated, making his cock swivel inside her. She gasped and fisted his hair, bringing his face back up to hers.
Gia lost all sense of time, of place, of everything but the man who invaded her every sense. He stroked over her G-spot until her release was imminent.
“Come inside me. Now.” She squeezed him again for all she was worth.
He groaned and did, shooting his load inside her while she worked her muscles on him, coming in sync with him. The two of them shared the moment, gazes locked as intensely as their flesh.
“Well, isn’t this sweet.” The voice was cold and mocking. Zan snarled and pulled out of her, blocking her naked body with his own.
The water shut off and a man who could have been Zan’s twin moved forward. His eyes fixed on her, and she shivered. His yellow eyes held none of Zan’s warmth, his fire. This man looked as though he could suck her soul out with his eyes and enjoy watching her suffer.
“Son.” He dismissed her and focused on Zan. “I see you’ve been busy. Now kill her.”
13
Even with his attention fixed firmly on his father, Zan heard Gia’s surprised gasp. Did she really think he would follow Xander’s instructions? He hoped that she knew him a little better than that by now. If not, they hadn’t a prayer of getting out of this alive.
His father stood there, waiting for him to obey. Behind him, four large goons blocked the exit. His father’s personal guard stood ready to protect their liege lord to the death, to do his bidding, no matter how despicable.
Forcing his shoulders straight so he looked less defensive, he stared his father down. “No need.”
Xander’s lips twitched. “You came inside her. I witnessed the deed myself. You know my law—she must not live past the night. Or have you forgotten my code in the many years since you’ve last been home?”
Zan had never been one for prayer, but he uttered a silent one as he pulled a quiet Gia forward. Her lips were swollen from his kisses and his seed trickled down the inside of her thighs, evidence that might damn them both. Her green eyes were full of fear.
“Gia, activate your healt
h guard.” He moderated his tone, making it nonchalant and easy. As if her life didn’t matter to him one bit.
Her lips parted and he backhanded her across the face before she could protest. His hand connected with a sickening crack and he fought the urge to vomit. “I said now, woman!”
She slipped on the wet floor of the shower, but his grip on her arm kept her on her feet. A trembling hand rose to the spot where he’d struck. He narrowed his eyes and pulled his hand back in warning. Her free hand went to the inside of her elbow and she pressed. The soft hum of the shielding filled the silence.
Zan barely contained his sigh of relief when his jism vanished, obliterated from her skin as though it had never been there. He dragged her closer to Xander. “Go on, examine her.”
Gia whimpered when his father bent down and touched her pussy. The shield snapped as skin cells from his body dissolved on contact with her skin. “Incredible,” the older man breathed. “What is this device?”
“The inhabitants of a planet called Earth created it for all the people. It’s to prevent the spread of disease and unwanted conception. You could have your medic examine her and all he would find was proof that she’d been fucked, but not who did the deed.”
Gia gave a slight shake of her head, to indicate that wasn’t so. He’d reckoned that much, since she had turned it on prior to lovemaking, but what Xander didn’t know might save them.
“Gia, deactivate it,” Zan said. She did immediately.
“Consequence-free intercourse,” Xander mused, and shoved Gia back at Zan. “This is a prize, though not the one I want. Where is the hybrid ship?”
No Mercy Page 10
