Taken by Her Mates

by Grace Goodwin

  She clung to the strange black object that hung from her neck. I knew a scope or lens of some type when I saw it, but as I had not believed the device was a weapon, I’d ignored it until now. If it were a weapon, surely she would have used it on the Hive scout chasing her. My arms tightened around her curves. I would not release her. Ever. But I understood her fear and did my best to soothe and reassure her.

  “Ander will destroy them all. You do not need to be afraid. They will not come for you again.”

  “Them? What are they?”

  I had tensed, expecting her to ask What are you? But she hadn’t. Somehow, she sensed I was not any danger to her. She sensed I was her mate, her perfect match, but I doubted if she would believe it, at least not yet.

  “I will explain entirely, but not here, not now.”

  She looked away, refusing to meet my gaze as her hands cradled the black box hanging from her neck. “I still need to go. Please, I do not need you involved in my problems. Trust me. Those things aren’t the only creeps around here who want me dead.”

  My mate had many secrets and I was intrigued. “Creeps? They are like enemies?”

  She nodded.

  “If you have enemies, mate, you need but name them. I will eliminate them immediately.”

  She shook her head and sighed. “You can’t just go around killing people.”

  “Yes, I can.” The confidence in my voice had her eyes widening. “Humans are small and weak. Human bones are thin, and snap like twigs.” This female needed protection. She was frightened and small. Fragile. Beautiful, but weak. “It would be my great honor to destroy your creeps while Ander takes care of the others.”

  She actually smiled at me then, as if I were jesting. “That’s not the point.”

  “Name your enemies, female. I will destroy them.” Frustration replaced pride and I knew I scowled. Why would she deny me the right to protect her? Was I not worthy of this most basic gift?

  She leaned back in my arms, her neck arching as she rested her head against my shoulder to look up at me. “Is this he-man thing for real? Who are you, exactly, and why do you keep calling me mate? Are you from Australia or something? Because you are a long way from home.” She pushed against my shoulder. “You need to put me down. I’m not a doll.”

  “I am not from the continent of Australia. I am Prince Nial of Prillon Prime, your matched mate.”

  Her body froze, her eyes wide with an emotion I could not name. “But… but—is this a joke? Because it’s not funny.”

  I smiled at her feisty tone, lowered my head until our lips barely touched and whispered, “You are not a child’s toy, but you are mine to play with, mine to claim. You are soft and curved. Your scent makes my cock hard and my head buzz. I smell your pussy and am pleased that you grew wet and ready at your second’s vow to eliminate your enemies. I, too, ask for the right to protect and care for you, just as you want and need to be cared for. You are a worthy mate. You have been matched and claimed, Jessica. The mating ceremony dream, the one where the two men dominated their mate? I can tell by the look on your face you are aware of what I speak. That is what matched us. I know what you need. Ander will help fulfill that. Together, we will pleasure you. I traveled the galaxy to come for you, mate. I will not release you. You are mine.”

  Jessica Smith opened her mouth to argue with me, and I kissed her as I planned to fuck her, hard and fast and deep. I did not give her a chance to catch her breath. I did not want her to breathe. I wanted her to feel, to hunger, to submit.

  Chapter Five

  Jessica

  Holy shit, the guy could kiss. It wasn’t tentative. It wasn’t a simple brush of his lips over mine. It wasn’t quick. It was the kiss, as he said, of someone who’d traveled an entire galaxy to claim me. He’d come from Prillon Prime for me and for this kiss. Every ounce of his energy was focused on my mouth. His lips pressed into mine with the urgency of a man deprived.

  Perhaps he was one, for he too had been denied his mate. The Prime’s personal order had kept him from me, but also me from him. I knew he wanted me in the way his tongue plunged into my mouth and met mine. He tasted of some exotic spice, foreign and yet, absolutely heart-stoppingly familiar. I practically melted in his hold, giving myself over entirely to the kiss. To him.

  I had no idea how long the kiss lasted. All I knew was my body was burning up, hotter than I’d ever been for any boyfriend—ever, and just from a kiss! Even the slight pain of my wounds only added sensation to my overloaded nerves. Remarkably, the pain woke me up, and made me want more.

  Unfortunately, I wasn’t going to get more. Not right now, in the middle of the street with blood running down my back and an alien prince carrying me like I was the most precious thing in the universe.

  He was huge, professional football player huge. He was dressed like a clichéd bad-boy biker, all black leather and tight black t-shirt that made me want to strip it off him and run my tongue all over his massive chest and shoulders. His clothing stretched tight, like a second skin.

  Never in hundred years had I assumed he was an alien, but now that I had seen his face, the slightly sharper angles, the strange metallic shimmer of the side of his face and neck, I can’t believe I hadn’t figured it out immediately. He was golden, his hair and one eye a dark gold, the other eye a bit lighter, like he wore a silver contact. The odd coloring of his skin disappeared beneath the collar of his shirt and I wondered if that skin felt different, and how much of his body was covered in the paler flesh. The color wasn’t startling, but it was as if he’d used glitter spray and the sparkles had somehow embedded in his skin.

  I wanted to taste it.

  The ripped lines of his muscles made me feel small and weak and very, very feminine. That was something that at almost six feet tall myself, I was not used to feeling.

  Perhaps it was his size that made me want to melt into him, but most likely my new weakness was due to the panty-melting kiss.

  From the look in his eye when he lifted his head, he didn’t want the kiss to end any more than I. This wasn’t the place, and as he glanced around, assessing our surroundings, he knew it.

  All too soon we arrived at his car and he settled me in the passenger seat of the small sedan, buckling me in and fussing as if I were a child, not a grown woman completely capable of taking care of herself. I didn’t argue as his huge hands grazed my stomach and hip as he buckled me in. The heat of his touch was almost enough to push back the cold invading my limbs.

  The adrenalin rush of nearly being killed by the alien things was wearing off and I knew the crash was coming on. My wounds ached, throbbing with each beat of my heart. My muscles felt weak and shaky and I had to focus to take deep, even breaths. My hands trembled and I shivered, suddenly ice cold.

  He closed me in and walked around to the driver’s side of the car. I choked on my laughter as he curled his large body beneath the tiny steering wheel of what was obviously a car much too small for his size. A flower-scented gel was attached to the air vents, a guardian angel pendant hung from the rear-view mirror, and the car smelled like lavender. “Whose car is this?”

  “Warden Egara gave us her vehicle when we arrived.” He started the engine and turned on the heater. Thank God. My teeth were actually chattering now that I didn’t have his strong arms and thick heat surrounding me.

  “She give you the cell phones and ear buds, too?” I wondered, leaning back against the headrest and turning to look at him.

  “You are observant, bride. And yes, she gave me this primitive communication device.”

  He smiled and put the car in motion. We were not far from the bride processing center, if that was where he planned to take me. I didn’t much care where we were going at the moment. He didn’t seem to want to hurt me, which was more than I could say for most of the men walking around this city. If Clyde had known about my investigating, so did others. No one would look for me at the processing center though since no one knew I’d gone there before, so it was a good ch
oice for a place to hide. After my previous interaction with Warden Egara, I trusted her enough to at least have a look at my wounds.

  A hospital was out of the question. I’d be dead before they got my insurance information registered in their computer system. The cartel had eyes and ears everywhere. With Clyde dead, I didn’t have to worry about him telling his cartel buddies I was still here on Earth, but as soon as I showed up in the hospital’s system, they’d come for me. I knew too much.

  I closed my eyes and leaned my head against the doorframe, too emotionally drained to do more than close my eyes and try to figure out what the hell was going on. Clyde’s death hurt, but not as much as his betrayal. That was still processing, and the ache, the feeling of lost innocence made me want to cry. He’d been like a father to me and I’d trusted him completely. Now I felt the fool, the silly little girl who looked up to her daddy with complete trust because she was too naïve, too young and green to recognize that the man holding her hand was a monster.

  Clyde had been my commanding officer for two years. He’d taken me under his wing, trained me to shoot, and trained me to protect myself, encouraged me to feel invincible, to fight. He’d made me believe we were doing something good and right in the world, that we were making a difference in the fight between good and evil. And all the while, he’d been lying to me. All the while, he was the devil in disguise and I’d been blind to the truth.

  As that thought filtered through my mind the pain intensified, like a knife twisting in my gut. How could he have been so evil? Why hadn’t I seen it? I should have known. I should have at least suspected. Perhaps I had, and I’d simply been in denial.

  Had I been so weak, so needy, that I overlooked the clues?

  I’d always trusted my gut, but this time my instincts had betrayed me. That shook me more than anything else. I felt like I was on unstable ground, and I didn’t like it. Not one bit.

  Clyde was dead, at the hands of the Hive. I’d been rescued by my matched mate and his second, Ander. My mate! His arrival, the presence of my one perfect match in the entire universe, was more of a concern now. He was driving me about and I was completely at his mercy.

  And the look of him! He was bigger than any human man I’d ever met, more defined. Just… more. He noticed my inspection and his eyes narrowed before he returned his attention to the road. “Do not worry. The Hive technology will not contaminate you.”

  “What?” Contaminate me? Was he crazy? Had I made the wrong call getting in the car? I could jump out when it came to a stop sign, but he’d catch me. There was no question he was bigger, stronger, more fit, and definitely sharply focused on me.

  He grimaced, his hands twisting on the steering wheel until it actually looked like it might bend. “The Hive technology you see will not harm you.”

  “What are you talking about? The silver?”

  His gaze flashed to mine as if he were surprised by my response, but I honestly had no idea what the hell he was talking about. “Yes. When I was captured by the Hive, I was tortured by their implant teams for several hours. Most of what was done to me was removed. What you see now is permanent. I also carry their mark on my shoulder, across my back, and down my leg.”

  I was actually beginning to feel sorry for him. The Hive had really worked him over. I’d heard too many stories about the torture and suffering of soldiers behind enemy lines. And I knew firsthand that some scars didn’t show on the surface. “Is it dangerous?”

  “No.”

  “Does it hurt?”

  “No.”

  “Okay.” I shrugged and turned my attention back to the road. “So what? Does it make you super fast or incredibly strong? Does it heal quickly or give you some kind of advantage in a fight?” I shivered, wondering what amazing things I could do with a bunch of cyborg implants. I’d be like the bionic woman times ten. I could buy a costume and do the whole superhero thing for real. That would be pretty damn cool. I’d go all black, and take down bad guys in the dark.

  He remained silent so long I turned back to look at him.

  “Yes. I am much stronger than most warriors. The implants also increase my reaction speed.” He was watching me with a confused look on his face. “You ask odd questions. Do you not fear me?”

  I choked on my laughter. I was sitting in his car, already shot and chased down by a freaky alien monster that was trying to kill me. “You’re the least frightening thing I’ve had to deal with for days.”

  He frowned at me and I turned away to watch the trees pass by outside my window.

  Just great. Of course I’d somehow insulted him. I’d known him for all of ten minutes, and already put my foot in my mouth. He’d rejected me before. Why was he here now? Before I’d been left stranded on that exam chair in the processing center, my transport denied, I would have felt elation and excitement, anticipation at meeting him. Now? I felt no relief. Or hope. I felt hurt. Betrayed.

  Why come for me now? What had changed? Was there not someone else who was better suited? I wanted the answer, but pride prevented me asking the question. Not only was he here, but who the hell was this Ander? A second? What did that even mean? And why was Ander, strange alien man, so obsessed with me—I’d never even met the alien—that he was willing to kill for me and boast about it?

  What bothered me even more was why the hell did that get me hot? I didn’t normally go for the he-man type. Hell, I didn’t date much at all. Normally, I was perfectly happy taking care of myself. In my experience men were too egotistical to deal with a strong female. They wanted whining, simpering schoolgirls who pawed all over them and told them how wonderful they were in bed, how strong and handsome and all the other constant praise that it seemed weak-minded men needed to hear.

  I didn’t have time for that. I was a soldier for four years. My dad was a cop, killed by a drug deal gone wrong when I was sixteen. My mom died of cancer four years later. I’d grown up without siblings or blinders on. I knew who I was and I was not the woman a man—or alien—traveled across the entire galaxy for. Hell, no man even drove across town for me. My parents had lived in the real world. I knew about drugs, prostitution, and corruption before my tenth birthday. Because of this, I knew how important the fight for justice truly was.

  Without good people fighting for this world, it would go to hell in a handbasket. I could see the corruption, the evil tearing at the basic fabric of society. Knowing it was men like Clyde who’d only made it worse made me seethe with anger and frustration. I’d been a fighter. I’d tracked drug money, written exposé articles about corruption at every level, and I’d refused to be bought off.

  My reward? I’d been set up, found guilty, and sentenced to serve a lifetime as the bride to an alien warrior I’d never met.

  Until even he didn’t freaking want me. Yeah, I was odd. Opinionated. Strong-willed. Too tall, too big, and too direct. I’d joined the army to learn how to fight using my body, and to college to learn to fight using my mind. I didn’t play nice, I didn’t lie, and I didn’t take any bullshit from a man. Ever.

  This guy shows up, he and his friend act like Neanderthals, swooping in to save me from the bad guys and I get horny and wet?

  What the hell was wrong with me? I didn’t need a man to rescue me. I didn’t need a man for anything. Not even sex, not when a trusty vibrator could do the job. Except for that kiss…

  “I’m losing my mind.”

  “You are injured and in shock. Do not worry, mate, your mind is intact.”

  Okay, mister hot alien. “Literal much?”

  “I do not understand your question.”

  “Never mind. What were those things, exactly?” Turning my head again, I opened my eyes to study the man who had rescued me from certain capture. His face was strong, his features slightly more angular than a human’s would be, but in no way less appealing. He filled the small space in the car like a mountain squeezed into a thimble, but he handled the vehicle with an expertise I found fascinating, as I was sure he’d never driven a
car before coming to Earth.

  Never mind that the sight of his strong hands conjured images of him using them to touch me, to slide those long fingers inside my body and make me come all over him. And that kiss? I wanted more. Holy hell, any conscious woman would want more. He was big and hard and made me feel things I’d never felt before, like awe. Respect. And he was part machine. From what he’d said about being captured by the Hive and used as some kind of experiment he was now, and forever would be, part machine. The idea was insane.

  Even so, he was gorgeous, well-muscled, and huge, big enough to make me think he could wrestle a grizzly with his bare hands and win. The odd glistening of some of his skin acted like a beacon to my fingers. I wanted to touch it, explore him and compare the difference in his body, taste the tissue that made him stronger and faster than others of his kind. The Hive may have been trying to create a weapon they could use, but had created a formidable enemy instead.

  And that made me want to crawl into his lap and stake a claim of my own. The thought of him touching another woman, carrying her in his arms, pledging to kill for her, protect her, talking of fucking her… it made me see red. I wasn’t sure what I wanted from him, yet. But the thought of another woman touching him was completely unacceptable.

  Besides my reaction to his sexy-as-hell appearance and size, which meant the wet heat in my panties labeled me as totally superficial, shallow, and horny, he made me feel… safe.

  He made me feel protected and secure, the way my father had before he’d been killed. Then, when he’d been gunned down I’d learned my first real truth—no one was ever safe, and no man would ever be strong enough to protect me. So I pushed down those feelings he elicited because I didn’t need a man. That was my mantra. I didn’t need a man.

  Thank God Nial started talking, because while I was thinking about how much I didn’t need a man, my libido was thinking about keeping him around for another one of those ridiculously hot, out-of-this world kisses. My pussy grew wet again thinking about how my lips still tingled, and I knew he could smell it. How, I had no idea, but his nostrils flared and he turned to me, his eyes burning me up in my seat, before turning back to the road.