He glanced up at a beeping noise. Juna had entered, checking readings on one of the multitude of machines monitoring her vital functions as well as the baby’s.
“How much longer can she sleep?” he asked her.
“It’s a coma, Ram. A deeper state of unconsciousness.”
“I understand, but she seems restful, like she’s sleeping.”
Small worry lines appeared between Juna’s eyebrows when she looked from Eryn to him. “This is difficult for me to bring up, harder because she’s a friend of mine. It’s been a week, and the swelling in her brain isn’t abating.”
“What are you saying?” he questioned sharply, although he suspected what would come next. It had been the same with his mother who had been struck by falling debris during the Rain of Fire. She had lingered for days, his father keeping vigil, like he did with Eryn. In the end, his mother had succumbed no matter their efforts.
“She’s critical. If it comes down to a decision—”
“Stop. It won’t come to that. I won’t allow it.”
“I understand you want to save them both, Ram. It’s my most fervent wish, too, but Eryn’s brain injury may be too severe. If she does make it, she could be…different, not the strong, determined woman we all knew before.”
“If so, I will deal with it, doctor. She is my mate.”
“You have accepted her, then?” Maggie stood in the door, holding two cups of coffee. She’d sat with him day and night since she’d heard the news. “Regardless of this terrible thing she says she did?”
“She spoke of it?”
“Vaguely. She said she betrayed you, doing something so terrible you can’t ever forgive, and believes you hate her for it. She also said you planned to go to the elder council to seek dissolution.”
He stood and faced the closest thing to family Eryn had. “I don’t hate her, Maggie, although our parting was contentious. What she did is between us, yet it is done, and I have forgiven her.” He walked to her bedside, running the backs of his fingers along her downy cheek and placing his other hand on her swollen belly.
At first, his emotions had been intense—anger, resentment, even contempt, or something close to it. Betrayal was hard for anyone to bear when it came from your mate… As the weeks and months passed and she haunted his dreams, his body aching for her, his emotions changed and the harshness had faded somewhat. Disappointment still simmered inside him when he remembered that day, but, most of all, he regretted his role in it all—especially now, with her unconscious, her life in the balance, and carrying his child.
The Princep, the elder council, and Kerr’s leaders, including him had known taking another species as captive mates would have challenges and had weighed the risks long before they encountered the Earth women. They’d considered it at length. But rather than fade from existence, they’d all agreed they would do anything to save their people. Taking the Earth females and his claiming of Eryn had been part of that “anything.”
One real possibility they’d discussed, and the most difficult to overcome, Eryn had displayed throughout their time together—resentment. As had Eva, and to a lesser extent, the other women. Their mates had managed to prevail over this obstacle, and Ram had thought he was getting close, but Eryn’s determination to fulfill her duty to her people and complete her mission had been insurmountable. She had a sense of loyalty and commitment to an extent the other mates didn’t possess. But they were scientists. Eryn was in the military and a warrior like him. Could he say he wouldn’t have fought as hard, used every tool available, as she had, to keep his oath to his Princep, his people, and himself?
“The answer to your initial question is yes, I have accepted her,” Ram responded after his long silence. “As for the dissolution, I did inquire, but couldn’t bring myself to go through with it. We shall deal with our past difficulties when she is better. I’ll also inform her when she wakes that we are still mates, and she and our child will be joining me on the next ship to Primaria, where we’ll start over as a family.”
Maggie and Juna shared a glance. “Uh, Ram. Although I understand your resolve to see this happen, maybe don’t make it the first thing she hears when she wakes.”
He gazed at the two Earth women and their identical expressions. Urging him to use caution was sound advice coming from Maggie, who had keen insight into mated pairs, being part of one herself. He nodded. “Agreed. It shouldn’t come first.”
They both huffed a long breath and sent him smiles of approval.
“It will be second, after I give thanks to the Maker for bringing her back to us.”
Their smiles faded into frowns.
“Or perhaps third, because I owe her a stern lecture for going off after dark to an unguarded, unsafe area and putting herself and our child in the position to get hurt in the first place. Or fourth, because I need to inform her keeping secrets from her mate in the future won’t be allowed—”
“Maybe I’ll get Roth to have a few words,” Maggie muttered while shaking her head.
* * *
Lips at her throat curved into a smile before drifting upward. They captured her earlobe and nipped, but the slight sting of the sensuous bite eased the next instant with the soothing, gentle glide of a hot tongue.
Her eyes flew open; her dreams had never seemed so real.
The mouth moved along her jaw, giving her a glimpse of mussed ebony hair and golden-brown skin. This was no dream.
She tensed which made his dark head come up, his passion-filled gaze taking her breath away.
“I thought you’d never wake,” he said in a husky whisper.
No longer slow and reserved, he moved with masterful intent above her. One hand capturing her breast while the other slid up to her chin, tilting it up for his kiss. His lips demanded while his tongue claimed, both searing in their possession, and she couldn’t suppress the moan rising from her throat—an invitation he accepted.
Shifting from his elbow, he dropped down to lie half on top of her, fingers threading into her hair and fisting, keeping her still for his hungry lips. After a firm pinch and roll on a taut nipple, his hand left her breast and slid lower, finding the heat between her thighs.
Needing more and wanting him badly, her body took over; she bent a knee and canted her hips upward, offering him everything. And he didn’t disappoint, stroking over her wet, swollen skin as he parted her slick folds and let his fingers glide through. When his thumb located her clit, he made slow circles at first then rubbed back and forth across the top. After giving it several rapid flicks, he settled in for more sensuous circling, working it expertly, while bringing her close to climax. On the edge of coming apart, she gripped handfuls of his hair, the long thick silky strands an anchor, adding to the tactile pleasure of the moment.
His hips covered hers, and when the hard length of his cock nudged her inner thigh and his knees pushed her legs wide in preparation, she trembled in eager anticipation. At the same time, she heard a sound she couldn’t quite fathom.
“No.” The word came as a whisper, unconvincing at first. Thank God, her mind cried out, when he didn’t stop and instead angled his head to deepen the kiss while sliding two fingers into her drenched channel. Next, he pumped slowly in and out, pushing her closer to a stunning release.
The plea repeated, growing sharper. “Please, don’t. You promised you wouldn’t.”
His growl spoke his frustration as well as her own, yet his head came up and his fingers retreated. Eyes, which had changed to burnished gold, gazed down at her with hungry need.
“You want it, little rebel, so much your body weeps for me.”
I do. Don’t leave me hanging here, her mind screamed, but her mouth would not be stopped.
“Please…”
As her hands slid up his body, her own igniting at the smooth hardness of his chest, like satin over steel, indecision battled within her. She couldn’t decide if her last urgent plea begged for more, or for him to keep his word, and cease.
&nb
sp; Another voice whispered a warning in her head. Much more and you’ll surrender fully and be mated to this man. What of your mission? Don’t do this.
At once, her caressing hands pushed against him, and she shook her head. “I can’t.”
Low and harsh, a groan erupted from his throat, but he nodded and rolled away. With a snap, he flipped back the covers and sat up, swinging both long legs over the side.
So consumed by him and his touch, with this slight distance, Eryn now had enough perspective to determine that she was in Ram’s bed, on the Intrepid, the following morning.
But this lucid dream differed from the last when she could only watch. This time, she could see, feel, and taste, experiencing everything. Except her words and actions didn’t come of their own volition, not in this moment.
Somehow, rather than watching from afar, she’d jumped inside cock-blocking Eryn-from-the-past’s head. And although she delighted in reliving Ram’s touch, it was torture because the woman she’d become would never have denied him.
Oooo! None of this made sense, and the frustrating, confusing quagmire stirred up more questions without answers.
As she watched him, tingling from his kisses, body alive with sensation from his touch, she knew everything he would do and say next because this had all happened before. And though she desperately wanted to set history on a different course, she seemed helpless to stop it from repeating.
While sitting on the side of the bed, elbows to his knees, his hands covering his face, she took in his glorious back—the smooth bronze skin, the planes, and contours of his defined muscles as they tapered to a lean waist, and his marking, a dark, intricate scroll resembling a tribal tattoo which adorned his neck and upper back. She memorized every detail bared to her greedy gaze.
Close enough to reach out and touch, her fingers itched to do so, but couldn’t. It wasn’t in the script, dammit.
He speared his hands through the dark tumble of his hair, raking it off his brow then surged to his feet. When he turned, she came face to… Um, yeah…not his face, but rather, his large, very impressive erection. She remembered it well. How could she not when every part of his anatomy came perfectly proportioned to his towering height and broad build? Still, after so long, she gaped at the blatant proof of his desire for her.
He noticed, arching that damn brow. It spoke volumes without Ram having to say a single word. This time it declared, “What did you expect?”
Her face flushed with heat. She had responded to him, opening her mouth and thighs, losing herself in his touch then shutting him down. The hard shaft pointing accusingly at her the result of her unintended teasing, but he didn’t say a word as he bent and retrieved his uniform trousers. He pulled them up his long legs, grimacing when he tucked his uncomfortable-looking erection inside then zipping up.
“Shower while I get us breakfast and you something to wear.” He delivered this brusque order as he snatched up his red tunic and, with it in hand, strode stiffly out the door.
The breath she’d been holding left her body in a whoosh. Flopping back on her pillow, she shut her eyes, needy tremors racing through her. How had she resisted with him naked on top of her, his lips everywhere, and his cock hard and ready for what they both wanted? And no matter how much she fought it, the Eryn of the past wanted him, as much as she did today.
She sat up, tucking the sheet around her. Or, rather, the other Eryn did. If she could just get through to her somehow, she could change what had gone wrong between them. And even better, tell her to quit fighting, to go for it, and do what she wanted—to jump his bones.
A sound from the outer room had her leaping from the bed, taking the sheet with her. In a flash, she fled to the bathroom.
She really didn’t like this dream and wanted to wake up. Already having lived through it once, this déjà vu replay, which she couldn’t control, was torturous. Waking had also slipped beyond her power. With no choice except to go along for the ride, she sat back, watching and listening as Eryn from the past took over.
* * *
Desperate to bathe to cool her overheated body more than anything else, she stood inside the bathroom, scowling at the door. Yet another sensor and she had no idea how to operate the lock if it even had one. But she didn’t have time to figure it out. He’d told her he would be back soon; if she wanted a shower, she had to hurry. Dropping the linen at her feet, she stepped in and let the half dozen nozzles soothe her with a hot pulsing spray.
“Mmm,” she moaned, not from the lingering arousal still coursing through her body, but rather from the pure bliss of the water against her skin. It had been too long. They took foaming baths on the Odyssey, conserving water for drinking and cooking since they had no idea when they would find more. They had means of sanitizing salt and contaminated water, but it took energy they needed to run the other ship functions. She dipped her head back and let the spray soak into her hair. It had been a year, at least.
Lost in the pleasure of the real thing, she didn’t move until a knock on the door made her jump.
“Breakfast, mate. Hurry it along. This time, you will eat while it’s hot.”
“Bossy, autocratic man,” she grumbled.
She punched a button on the dispenser. A gel which looked and smelled like shampoo poured into her hand. As she began to scrub, her irritation at being ordered about washed away. She finished rinsing, and found conditioner behind another button—with such long hair he’d need it—and the third contained body soap. A razor would have been nice, but she figured if she resembled a Sasquatch, he might not be so eager for the breaching.
After using the sponge-like ball to scrub herself clean, she rinsed quickly, certain he would barge in to fetch her at any moment, and, after skipping dinner last night, her growling stomach sounded like a hungry bear. When she stepped out, she realized she’d forgotten a towel. Using the discarded sheet, which quickly adhered to her wet skin, she still needed something for her hair. When the sole cabinet under the sink produced nothing, and with no towel rack to be found, she resigned herself to dripping dry. She gathered the mass into both hands and with a twist, wrung out the excess water.
“Step back in the shower and hit the last button. It’s an air dryer.”
His voice in the quiet of the bathroom echoed like a sonic blast. She jumped, letting out a girlie scream. With the soaked sheet molded to her like a second skin, she turned her back, sending him an incensed glare over her shoulder.
Arms crossed over his chest, he stood in the doorway while leaning a shoulder against the sliding panel, holding it open. Her lips parted to say something snippy about the lost art of knocking, but her words caught in her throat as his eyes did a slow, thorough scan over every inch of her.
“Adjust fast to being mated, little rebel. Lovely as you are, I’m not sure how much of this torment I can take.”
After one more heated glance, the door whooshed shut behind him. She stared at it for a moment, the tingling ache of desire igniting within her again. On rubbery legs, she stepped back in the stall and raised a trembling hand to the control panel. Warm air swirled around her, drying her hair and her skin. Closing her eyes, she willed herself to be strong because she didn’t know how much more she could take, either.
The real Eryn, the one watching in consternation, shook her head, realizing what a damn fool she’d been.
* * *
“Can I trust you to be good, little rebel?”
After a silent breakfast, where she’d wolfed down every bite, he announced he had a meeting to attend. This set fine with her—less temptation to deal with, and more time to figure out a way to escape.
All wide-eyed innocence, she answered with an agreeable and out-of-character, “Of course.”
His brows gathered into a frown which made her smile. Let him sweat for a change.
After he left through his broken door, she shifted her attention to Dray, the green-shirted workman, who’d been summoned to make the repairs.
About
half a foot shorter than her alien, he still topped her by several inches, and by her guess, outweighed her by at least sixty or seventy pounds. This meant tackling and subduing him were out, and she’d have to move to plan B, which she still had to come up with.
“When you’re done there,” she began, getting up from the couch and walking up behind him, “could you check the dryer in the shower? It never got hot this morning. Or, maybe it isn’t something you do.”
“I’m in engineering, Ram’s mate.” He eyed her with undisguised suspicion. “Everything on this ship is something I do.”
Ram. What an odd name. Despite all the kissing, touching, and sleeping in his arms, she realized she hadn’t asked his name, nor had he offered it.
“I will check it when I’m done here.”
“Um, what?”
“The dryer,” he reminded her with an air of impatience.
“Oh, right, thank you.”
That Ram had distracted her by the mere mention of him in conversation bothered her. If she didn’t get away from him and back to her ship soon, she would be in big trouble.
“I’ve heard the warriors talking about you, so don’t get any ideas.”
“Oh, I won’t.” She gave him a sweet smile.
He shook his head. “Due respect, but I wasn’t born yesterday.”
The old Earth expression being universal surprised her. That her behavior had already earned her a reputation didn’t. She had fought him after transport, and in the med-bay, with plenty of witnesses. Evidently, gossip on a Primarian vessel ran rampant, which meant men were just as guilty at spreading it as women.
While leaning against the wall, watching him rewire the sensor, she caught a few suspicious glances aimed her way. When she smiled, he said nothing and continued with his task. After just a few minutes, he had the door gliding open and shut.
“Now for the dryer.” He packed his scattered tools into his box.
“You know the way?” she asked, although she knew he did. There were only two rooms—if she counted the miniscule excuse for a bathroom, two and a half.
His Rebellious Mate (Primarian Mates Book 3) Page 17
