by Aubrey Ross
“You’re…too damn good at that.”
She stayed on her knees, hands locked behind her head, waiting, needing to be commanded.
You’re not her Master. You shouldn’t be doing this.
“Stand up,” he said in a gruff, urgent tone. She stood and he unfastened her pants, pulling them down around her ankles. He worked one of her legs free, shoe and all, leaving her pants bunched around her other leg. Pushing her against the wall, he knelt in front of her. “Put your leg on my shoulder and press your pussy against my mouth. I want to fuck you with my tongue.”
With a little whimper, she did as she was told, raising her leg and tilting her hips until her sex was perfectly aligned with his seeking tongue. He stabbed into her and felt her core ripple around him. Her cream coated his lips and tongue. He pulled back and thrust in again.
She trembled, her thigh flexing against the side of his face. A slave would ask permission to come, but she wasn’t his slave.
“Please?”
The question in her tone was undeniable. She still needed the security of their roles. “Yes.” He pulled back just long enough to whisper the word then he found her clit and drew on the swollen nub until release shuddered through her.
He lifted her against the wall and impaled her with his erect length, keeping her leg draped over his arm. Her inner muscles squeezed and caressed him with their hot embrace. She was spread wide as he drove hard into her, stretched to the point of pain.
“Look at me.” He slowed his pace and gazed into her eyes. “Who’s inside you? Say my name.”
“Mas—”
“No! Say my name.”
“Korbin. My love. The only man I want inside me.”
“Kiss me. Let your tongue fill my mouth as I fill your pussy.”
She shivered, the thought obviously exciting her. Framing his face with her hands, she angled her head and sealed her mouth over his. She matched the thrust of her tongue to the steady rhythm of his cock, taking him as he took her.
He cupped her bottom and drove up into her wet core. She caressed his cheeks and stroked his tongue with hers. Sensations swirled around them, building in intensity. He moved faster. She cried out as an orgasm tore through her abdomen, making her core pulse with distinct spasms. Driving his full length into her, he released his seed in long, hot spurts.
They clung to each other for a long time, kissing and caressing, savoring the stolen moment of passion. Not knowing when—or if—they would ever touch again.
* * * * *
Corry signaled that they were ready to return about an hour and a half later. Korbin activated the transporter and Danette watched in awe as the others materialized in the middle of the shuttle’s main cabin. It really was a miraculous device.
Meredith looked pale, her eyes suspiciously bright. Even the ever-composed admiral seemed a bit shaken. No one said a word as they took their seats and fastened the safety restraints.
Renata sat directly across from Danette, her face ashen, her hands trembling. “I didn’t know,” she whispered. “We’d been told life was harder in the outer settlements, but we didn’t realize… How could we know?”
“It’s your job to know,” Corry reminded her.
The admiral shook his head, as if to dispel the images. “We must declare Wirtanen an official disaster area. We must mobilize troops with provisions and medical supplies.”
“Our action needs to unfold on two levels,” Hayford interjected. “Short-term relief and long-term change. We must meet the immediate needs of these people, but we must also look to the future. There must be a better system of accountability.”
“Wirtanen has a director. All the outposts do.” Renata regained some of her composure. “How could this have been allowed to go on? Someone close to the scene should have been screaming the heavens down.”
Corry pressed her lips together and clutched her armrests. Danette understood her anger and admired her restraint. Corry’s father had done everything in his power to “scream the heavens down”. They hadn’t listened. They hadn’t wanted to know. Still, the council was problem solving, so Corry kept her resentment to herself. Any outburst now would be counterproductive. Danette wasn’t sure she could have mustered the same level of control.
“I’ve received quarterly reports from all the outposts and though complications were noted, nothing like this was communicated,” Hayford said. “Either the individual directors are oblivious to what’s going on or they’re profiting in some way. I’ll launch a full-scale investigation into the directorial boards of each of these outposts.”
“Part of the problem is the directors have no ownership in their assignments,” Korbin said, speaking for the first time since the council’s return. “All of the outpost directors are citizens of Halley Prime. Most of them live on Halley Prime. What difference does a decision make when you’re not affected by it?”
“Only citizens of Halley Prime have the qualifications needed to be directors,” the premier objected.
Korbin shot him a challenging glance. “Did the formally educated, privileged director of Wirtanen keep his people from starving? If it weren’t for the rebel shipments, countless occupants would be dead.”
“What are you proposing?”
“Nothing will change on the outposts until the occupants have a say in the decisions governing them,” Korbin replied.
“We’re no more qualified to decide how the changes should take place than the outpost directors,” Corry pointed out. “Representatives from each outpost need to be chosen by the population, and the representatives should work with the executive council to devise a specific plan for each outpost.”
“That could take months.” Hayford shook his head.
“It could, but it won’t,” Corry insisted. “These people are desperate for change. They’ll welcome the opportunity to work with you and accept any help you give.”
“Isn’t it sad that it took a criminal act to open your eyes?” Danette’s tone was soft, more cajoling than provoking. “What are you going to do with these vicious rebels?”
“I have no intention of bring charges against them,” Hayford volunteered.
“Nor do I,” Renata added.
Admiral Tiptonn was the last to speak. “They only did what we forced them to do. I can’t fault their actions.”
* * * * *
“Tell me how your father managed to get the prototype working when our research scientists told me it couldn’t be done.”
They were an hour away from Halley Prime. After outlining a basic agenda for the following day, the conversation turned to lighter topics. Korbin glanced at the premier, debating what to tell him. “What do you know about our father’s murder?”
“Little more than you do,” Hayford said. “I suspected foul play was involved, but I couldn’t prove it. I have investigated the matter.”
Laughing and saying “bullshit” wouldn’t earn him any points with the premier, so he reined in his temper. “I can’t explain how the prototype works. The inventor is dead. Even Corry was only his assistant.”
“Did he keep a journal or some form of technical notes?” the premier asked Corry.
Hayford’s obvious interest in the prototype shouldn’t have surprised her, but suspicion narrowed her eyes and compressed her lips. “This outing wasn’t about the transportation device.”
“I understand that. We’ve committed to taking action on behalf of the outposts. I will see that their standard of living improves immediately. But the fact remains that you possess a technology in which the coalition is very interested.”
“How interested?” Korbin swiveled in his chair to face the premier.
“Are you asking for a monetary figure?”
“No sir.”
Korbin’s easy show of deference should have warned Hayford, but he charged on ahead, oblivious to the trap directly in his path. “Then what do you want?”
“Amnesty,” Korbin said evenly.
“Amnest
y?” the premier echoed. “You will turn over the prototype and all of your father’s documentation if I offer you amnesty?”
“It’s a bit more complicated than that. I would require a written document absolving all the rebels of any wrongdoing.”
The premier gaped like a fish out of water. “All the rebels? I can’t possibly—”
“Korbin is being a bit too vague.” Corry tried to rescue the negotiation before he pushed too hard. She’d always been the better diplomat. “The only charges for which we would expect an acquittal are those associated with the alleged kidnapping of Ashton, Danette and Palmer.”
“That would send a message to the coalition and beyond that we can be manipulated by terrorism. It would be an open invitation for more of the same. There has to be some form of reprisal for your rash actions.”
“But those repercussions don’t necessarily have to involve incarceration,” Corry suggested.
“Let me speak with the rest of the council and we’ll get back with you.”
Chapter Eleven
Korbin shook Larz’s hand and saw him to the door. Triple sweeps had assured Korbin every surveillance device in the apartment had been removed. He took a deep breath, reveling in the freedom. He had smashed the coalition’s microscope!
A person-to-person page drew his attention to the vidscreen. “Accept call.”
Corry’s smiling image appeared and Korbin returned her smile, feeling relaxed for the first time in weeks.
“They couldn’t wait to get rid of you, I see,” she said playfully. “I went to the detention center to say goodbye and you were already gone.”
“They remitted me into the custody of Warden Restien. I don’t have many fans on Halley Prime, but Borrelly can’t live without me.” His smile slipped a bit as he went on. “I hear congratulations are in order.”
“I haven’t decided if congratulations or condolences are more appropriate, but it’s official. I’m outpost liaison, which makes me one of them.”
He winked at her. “You would have been a citizen anyway as soon as Ashton marries you.”
She blushed to the roots of her hair, and Korbin laughed.
“He hasn’t even asked me yet.”
“He will. I’ve seen the way he looks at you.”
They were quiet for a time as her gaze searched his. “Have you spoken with Danette?”
“No, and I don’t expect to. What’s the point? I have nothing to offer—someone like her.”
“You underestimate yourself.”
He just shrugged.
“I had an interesting conversation with Premier VinDerley a few minutes ago. The executive council has agreed to drop all charges and seal the records as soon as I find Dad’s journals. I know they’re here somewhere. It’s just a matter of sorting through all this clutter.”
“Haven’t others tried to find them?”
“Yes, but I know what I’m looking for.”
He chuckled and waved her away. “Get to it! I’m under house arrest until they’re found.”
“Behave yourself. I’ll talk to you soon.”
The screen blinked off and a heaviness settled over Korbin’s heart. He’d tried so hard not to think about Danette. Why did Corry have to mention her?
Long hours of isolation and boredom had forced him to face his deepest fear. He was very much in love with his captive, but even love didn’t change who they were, how they’d been reared. She was a princess and he was a pauper. Korbin had outgrown fairy tales.
The door buzzer sounded and Korbin dragged himself from his discontented thoughts. Larz must have forgotten something. Korbin already checked in with the warden, and no one else on Borrelly knew he was here.
He raised the privacy panel, and felt his heart miss a beat. Danette stood before him, a vision in red and gold. “What— What are you doing here?” He whispered the words, afraid the vibration of his voice would disintegrate the hallucination.
“May I come in?”
This couldn’t be real, yet there she stood, smiling innocently. Swallowing hard, he stepped out of the way and she moved into the foyer. Her fresh scent wrapped around him as he turned and secured the door. He scrambled for an explanation, paralyzed by possibilities.
He closed his eyes. His body ached, longed for—for things he had no right to want.
“I did it.”
Her casual tone made him turn around. She tucked a strand of long blonde hair behind her ear. Her blue eyes sparkled, and her full lips formed a perfect smile.
“You did what?” He was afraid to move, afraid to breathe.
“I had it out with my father once and for all. I told him I was leaving and I wasn’t coming back. Even if you…don’t want me, I will not live like that anymore.”
He cleared his throat and moved toward her, a moth captivated by a flame. “Does your father know where you are?”
“I don’t think so. He’ll expect me to charter a private cruiser, so I took a commuter shuttle like everyone else.”
His disobedient heart leaped, established a rhythm that made his head spin. They’d been on the same ship. He’d been contained belowdecks, away from the other passengers, and all the time Danette had been just above him.
“Are you sure this is what you want?” His mouth was so dry he could hardly speak.
She untied the belt securing her ankle-length coat and shrugged out of the garment. Korbin grabbed the wall for support. Her luscious body was contoured by the slave costume she’d worn the night he took her to the Pleasure Palace.
“I want nothing more, Master.”
Korbin circled her on trembling legs. She was spectacular, perfect and blissfully submissive. His body tightened with demanding need. He would protect and treasure her. He would cherish and pamper her… But first he must claim her as his.
“I asked you before and you refused to tell me. As a demonstration of your obedience, tell me now. Who brought you to the Pleasure Palace? Why did you agree to be trained?”
Composing his features into an expression of carnal demand, he gazed boldly at her full breasts and long, toned legs. Licking his fingers, he rolled her nipples, watching as they tightened and flushed.
“I was invisible.” Her voice shook.
“Raise your hands behind your head and continue.” Her breasts thrust forward as she lifted her arms. Korbin cupped them, rubbing her hardened nipples with his thumbs. “Speak or I’ll stop touching you.”
“I was never alone, but no one really saw me. No one thought about my wants and needs.”
He grabbed the teasing thong and ripped it from her. Danette gasped and fought back a smile. “You’ll not get what you need from me either if you keep stalling.”
“I tried to seduce my bodyguard, but one of the reasons he was chosen was—”
“Did you kiss him?”
“Yes.”
He took her face between his hands and rubbed her lips with his. “Did he make you cream?”
“I ached for a man…any man.”
Delving between her parted lips, he kissed her long and deep, filling her with his taste, his texture, claiming hers in return. “Where did you take him? What did you do?”
“I took him into my father’s office. It was during a party at our house.”
Korbin’s mouth wandered along her throat, his hands returned to her breasts, squeezing, pinching her nipples until they stood tall and proud. “Did he touch you like this? Did you suck his cock?”
“I would have.” She panted. “He didn’t want me to.”
He arched his brow at this. What man didn’t want his cock sucked? “What did he do to you?”
She swallowed hard and licked her lips, her gaze filled with hesitation. Korbin stepped back, removing his hands from her. She whimpered. Her hands were still clasped behind her head.
“I taunted and teased him. I unzipped my dress and let him see my breasts.”
“And he still didn’t fuck you?”
She averted her gaze. Ang
er and fear twisted through Korbin. Had he hurt her? Humiliated her?
“He forced me down over my father’s desk and raised my skirt. I wanted to be frightened. I should have been frightened, but I was so excited I nearly screamed. He fucked me with his fingers and I came really hard.” She rushed through the tale, obviously confused by her reaction to the incident.
Korbin slipped his hand between her thighs and groaned. Just talking about it had made her cream. He traced her slit, caressed her slick folds, never going near her clit. She closed her eyes and Korbin kissed her, needing the tenderness more than she.
With his fingers still stroking her pussy, he released her mouth so she could speak. “I started crying. I didn’t understand what was wrong with me. He finally told me he was gay. That’s one of the reasons Father chose him to be my bodyguard.”
“So he took you to the Pleasure Palace?” He brushed her clit once, rewarding her obedience and encouraging her cooperation.
She nodded, her lips trembling, eyes passion glazed. “He suspected I needed to be dominated. The rougher he handled me the more excited I got. But he didn’t trust my training to just anyone.”
“He gave you to Paul.”
She shook her head. “He introduced me to the six Masters he’d approved. I allowed Paul to claim me.”
Without explanation, Korbin swept her into his arms. Her sexual adventures had begun with an unfinished fantasy. He’d heard it in her voice, in the things she didn’t say. She’d wanted the bodyguard to fuck her while she was bent over the desk. She’d needed him to be so desperate for her that he wouldn’t care about the possibility of discovery. Instead he’d gently rejected her and turned her over to another man.
Korbin knew exactly how he’d claim her, the combination of reality and fantasy that would excite and thrill them both. Striding down the hall, he carried her into his office. Moonlight outlined the furniture, showing him all he needed to see. His wide, sturdy desk would be perfect for what he had in mind.
“I’m going to finish what your bodyguard started all those years ago,” he whispered into her ear, his voice low and menacing. “We’re going to do all the things he wouldn’t, and probably quite a few more.”
