Taken: The Vampire's Concubine: Part Four

by Desiree Broussard

* * * * *

  Keely walked next to Kosmas along the cobblestone road, enjoying the warmth of his body so close to hers. She reminisced about the night she walked down it before, with a different man escorting her through the darkened town. How scared she'd been that night! And just like that night with Zander, she'd just come from Kosmas' embrace, her body still shaky from his exquisite lovemaking. Kosmas was insatiable, he took her like a man starved, claiming her body with a need that matched her own. It felt like a lifetime had passed since she'd been with Zander, and no longer did she physically ache at the thought of him. It would have been impossible to remain fixated on him, not with Kosmas as her lover.

  He didn't touch her as they walked side by side, but he didn't need to. Keely was always aware of him. Kosmas had left his brand on her, physically and mentally, but it was more than that. She actually craved his presence.

  In the end, he'd stormed her every resistance to him. Night after night he came to her, taking her body as his own private playground and leaving her breathless and pleading for more. And though her initial lust for him should have been fading, the exact opposite was true. The more he satiated her, the more she wanted him.

  In the past week, she'd only left her room a few times. When he was away, she was usually too exhausted to do much more than sleep. Sometimes he would return during the vampire's version of day and make love to her again, his movements frenzied and uninhibited as if his absences were too much for him to bear. Heat filled her body, her lower stomach tingling as she thought about their passionate interludes.

  Her knees felt weak. Keely suddenly stumbled, but before she could fall Kosmas righted her. For a moment, they just stood there as she faced him, her chin tilted up so she could look in his eyes. The world around her faded away, the feel of his large hands wrapped around her shoulders so perfectly right that she couldn't remember a time when she wasn't his.

  “Careful,” he said softly, still holding onto her. “The cobblestone is uneven at places.”

  Keely nodded, suddenly shy. Making love to him was easy, it was the conversations that were hard. She still felt unsure of herself when she was with him, and unsure of her future as his concubine. The sex had changed a lot of her thoughts about him, but it really hadn't changed anything else. “I'll watch where I'm going,” she promised, turning away. Kosmas unsettled her.

  They resumed walking at a leisurely pace. “Where are we going?”

  He smiled, his face relaxed. “To one of our mountains. You haven't had the chance to see much of our world outside of the palace, and I wanted to change that. Although it's always dark here, Legionnaire really is a beautiful planet.”

  Kosmas led her through several streets, the buildings slowly thinning out. “Have you been to other planets?” she asked him curiously. “I mean, outside of Mars and the other ones that are commonly known about?” Mars had been habitable for several years, but she hadn't heard of any new planets being discovered.

  “Of course,” Kosmas replied, leading her to a massive concrete wall. Opening the gate, they stepped out into a heavily forested area, with a paved sidewalk leading through it. “Believe it or not, there are all types of worlds out in space. Humans just don't have the right technology to access them, especially now. Your leaders did humanity a great disservice by bankrupting them. They are content to lead a life of leisure at the costs of others, and they grow lazy and secure in their power. Unfortunately, I believe their time is limited. One day soon, another species is going to decide they prefer your planet over their own. I doubt they'll meet with much resistance.”

  It was a sobering thought. “What will happen to the people that live there, though?”

  Kosmas shrugged. “They would be wiped out or taken as slaves. Things like this has happened for centuries, but Earth has been lucky. For awhile there, humanity was a force to be reckoned with. Between your technological advances and your military forces, most worlds would have considered you too dangerous to mess with. But now your world is weak and vulnerable, and word of that has spread throughout the galaxy. We've been watching Earth for awhile now, but we aren't the only ones.”

  “Oh, God,” Keely muttered, feeling sick. Although she'd resisted her captivity, life on Legionnaire wasn't really that bad. In fact, her captivity had probably saved her life. “So if the plague or crime wouldn't have gotten me, it was possible an alien would have?” It sounded ridiculous, but there was nothing silly about it.

  “Yes, although the alien wouldn't be called an alien,” he confirmed, looking thoughtful. “Each world is inhabited by a different species, and they all have names. The majority of them are quite human in appearance, with only the smallest of differences. There are some worlds, though, with beings that look quite different than you or I. Their attitudes are usually quite different, too. We have alliances with several planets, but we also have a lot of enemies. Although there is always the possibility of an attack, our technology affords us the best protection available. You're safe here on Legionnaire, much safer than you'd ever be back on Earth.”

  They crossed a wooden bridge located next to a breathtaking waterfall. To her surprise, Kosmas took her hand in his, his fingers interlocking with hers as he held her in a loose clasp. “The pool underneath us is deep,” he told her, his voice sliding across her like a caress. “It's at least a hundred feet, and it contains all types of fish, snakes, and creatures that you aren't yet familiar with.”

  Keely looked down at the water, grateful that the bridge seemed sturdy. To her amazement, the fish actually lit up in intervals, as far down as her eyes could see. “I can't believe it,” she gasped, staring up at Kosmas in disbelief. “They are actually glowing.”

  He grinned again. “We call them lightning fish,” he explained, in an amused voice. “But not all of our fish do this.”

  Kosmas tugged at her hand, leading her up a path after they exited the bridge. The terrain was hilly, the winding path leading them in a steady upward direction. After what seemed like a mile, she finally saw the entrance to the mountain. Lit up from within by lanterns mounted on the walls, the entrance was smooth and polished, as if someone had taken a lot of time in making it accessible for the vampires to visit.

  “According to all accounts, our earliest ancestors used the mountains and caves as their homes,” Kosmas informed her, his eyes locked on the entrance in front of them. “Even though our bodies are extremely strong, there are creatures native to our world that are even stronger. We survived, though, and our numbers increased. The vampires left the caves and mountains behind and built towns. One of them was Golden Harbor.”

  Keely was enchanted by his story. She followed him into the entrance, marveling at it all. The ceiling was high, the width more than comfortable. “This is amazing. Who did all of this?”

  “I did,” he replied, leading her through the tunnel. “I didn't do the work myself, but I did oversee the details. In a few minutes, you'll see why.”

  She certainly did. Cresting the steps made out of rock, Keely couldn't believe the sight in front of her. Her hand dropped out of his as she moved forward in awe, her eyes attempting to take it all in at once.

  They were in a large cavern. Someone had painstakingly cut out a large section of the opposite wall until it resembled a movie theater screen before replacing it with glass. But it was the view beyond it that held her attention. Stopping at the thick glass, she rested her palms against it as she admired the beauty of his world.

  From where she stood, she was at least two hundred feet above the ground below them, the lush landscape spread out in front of her for miles. The light from the moons was enough to illuminate the animals across the countryside, some of them similar to those found on Earth, while others were much, much different. In the distance was a large body of water, much like the oceans she was familiar with. “This is breathtaking,” she whispered, transfixed by the mysterious, intriguing world she now called home. “Did you make this viewing area, too?”

  Kosmas slid
up to her back, his arms wrapping around her waist to pull her close as he nuzzled her neck. “I did,” he admitted, in between slow, lingering kisses. “I designed it in the hopes of one day experiencing this very moment.”

  Keely swallowed hard. “What do you mean?”

  He slowly turned her around to face him. Keely was startled by the intensity in his dark eyes, his expression serious as his hands settled on her hips. “I want to mate you,” he announced, without any delay. “And I want you to accept.”

  A hundred thoughts and reactions slammed into her at once. His proposal hurt as much as it excited her. She shook her head as she tried to pull away from him, but his fingers refused to release their firm hold. “Damn you,” she hissed out, her voice hoarse from emotion. “Isn't my body enough?”

  “Oh, it's enough,” he replied grimly. “It's enough that I want to make sure that another man doesn't get a taste of it. I can't bear the thought of losing it to someone else. Accept my proposal, Keely, before you force me to turn it into something ugly. I'll have you regardless, but I prefer for you to come to me of your own free will.”

  His hands slid up her sides, his fingers moving to cup her breasts. “Even you can't deny the passion that constantly simmers between us,” he added, his voice turning seductive. “We're united by the dark desires that we both have. I know what you need, even before your realize it. No man could ever satisfy you the way that I do, and we both know it. It could be good between us, Keely, if you'll just yield to me. Agree to mate me, and you'll never want for anything else again, I vow it.”

  Her body trembled, his talented fingers quickly arousing her. “You don't love me,” she retorted, but it didn't sound convincing, not even to her own ears.

  Kosmas leaned forward to capture the tip of her nipple in his mouth through her shirt, his hand sliding down to rub her slit through her pants. “No, I don't,” he admitted in a growl, his voice thick with his increasing lust. “Maybe it will grow in time, who knows? But is love really so important when we have this, Keely?”

  Her hands slid in his hair to press his face closer to her chest as she drowned in the sensation of his heated mouth. “Oh, God,” she groaned, struggling to think past her arousal. She was weakening by the moment. Any hopes she'd ever had of love had been destroyed by the harsh life she'd led on Earth, long before ever landing on Legionnaire. And Kosmas was right. The passion between them was strong, the way he made her feel incomparable. “You don't play fair.”

  “Of course not,” he agreed, dropping to his knees to bury his face against her cloth-covered lips. “Have you made your decision?”

  Her breath hitched when his nimble fingers undid her pants before curling around the waistband to pull them down. “Yes,” she muttered in a ragged voice, her breathing harsh. Kosmas leaned forward to dip his tongue inside of her, groaning immediately. “God, yes. I'll mate you.”

  He leaped to his feet, his mouth lowering to take hers immediately. Her acceptance unleashed something wild and passionate within both of them. Keely pulled at his shirt, whimpering in frustration when she remembered the buttons. As if he could read her mind, Kosmas ripped it off before pulling off her own. Within seconds she was naked, her body lifted and pressed to his as he kissed his way down her neck.

  “You're so beautiful,” he said, in a low voice. One finger trailed down the intricate tattoo across her back as Keely shivered in reaction. “Seeing my markings on your voluptuous body makes me hot.” He lowered her back down to her feet, his face set in a determined expression. “Turn around and put your palms on the glass. I'm going to take you from behind.”

  She immediately complied, spreading her feet several inches apart. Kosmas pressed against her from behind, wrapping one arm around her waist as he lifted and positioned her to take him. His entry burned pleasurably for a moment as her body expanded to accommodate him. She groaned when his hand slid down to play with her clit, her inner muscles relaxing enough to fully let him in.

  With her front pressed against the glass, he took her in slow thrusts, bringing her quickly to the brink. “I'm there,” she panted, her eyes closed as ecstasy washed over her. He pumped deeper and faster, his own body stiffening by the second. She could feel the tension in his muscles behind her, and she knew that he, too, would soon join her in paradise.

  At the last moment, Kosmas pulled out of her, his shaft resting against her lower back as he released his seed against her skin. The cavern was quiet except for the sound of their breathing. He finally lowered her back to her feet before turning her face to press a kiss against her lips.

  His eyes were serious as they bore into hers. “Tomorrow starts the Celebration of the Blood festivities, “ he informed her, cupping her cheek to hold her head in place. “I'm going to announce our joining tomorrow night at the vampire ball, but I plan to mate you the night after that, Keely.”

  “That soon?” she squeaked, her pulse racing. She hadn't expected him to move so fast. His lips tightened in displeasure at her question.

  “Is there any reason to delay?” he asked her coolly, his expression darkening by the second. “I think not. Tomorrow night you'll take your place by my side, not as my concubine, but as my future mate. So prepare yourself. I expect you to assume the role with dignity and grace, but most especially, I expect you to be enthusiastic and pleased. I won't tolerate anymore resistance or delays. We had a rocky start, but I'm willing to overlook the trouble that you've caused me so long as you don't repeat it. You wear my brand upon your body, and soon you'll carry my seed within you. Accept your future and make the best of it. The past is over and done with. Zander is over and done with.”

  Keely jerked her face away from his hand, stepping away from him to gather up her clothing and redress. “I agreed to mate you,” she told him, her own voice cool, despite her turbulent thoughts. “And I won't break my word. But know this, Kosmas,” she warned him, turning back to face him once she was fully dressed, “I'm not a puppet, and you don't pull my strings. You don't own me. And as for Zander, my thoughts and feelings about him are none of your business.”

  Kosmas redressed, the task completed in seconds. His speed was astonishing. “I'll escort you back,” he told her, his expression dark and brooding.

  “No, thank you,” she hissed, hating his complete lack of respect for her feelings. She was resigned to her fate, she'd accepted that he didn't love her, but it would have made it a lot easier if he'd confessed to feeling something, anything, for her besides lust.

  Was she in love with him? It was possible. Keely struggled to separate her feelings from her desire for him, but it was difficult. Despite her irritation, she couldn't imagine being without him. Not anymore. Keely was falling for him fast, if she wasn't already there. What good could come from loving someone that didn't love you back, though?

  “I need some time alone,” she explained, holding up a hand to stop his advance. “Everything is happening fast, and it's a lot to take in.”

  Kosmas looked as if he might argue, but he finally relented. “Fine,” he muttered, his expression shuttered. “I'll collect you tomorrow evening, so be prepared... for everything.”

  Keely nodded, biting her lip as she turned away. Kosmas didn't immediately follow, but she felt his presence all the way back to Golden Harbor, and she knew he was somewhere close. Watching over her. Without him by her side, the magic of the night was over. Her thoughts remained bleak for the rest of the evening, her mood troubled even after she returned to her room.

  Chapter 6

  Two guards opened the doors to the grand ballroom as Keely's gloved hand trembled slightly in Kosmas'. “Relax,” he murmured to her, his eyes directed toward his guards. It was easy for him to say. His bearing was proud, his chin up in an arrogant tilt. Kosmas was completely comfortable in the role he played, his power and strength demanding their respect and allegiance. But would it be enough for them to honor her, as well?

  They certainly couldn't fault her appearance. While dressing her, Cara h
ad revealed that Kosmas picked out the gown she was now wearing, going so far as to demand that she be dressed in nothing else. Black, with a neckline made of jewels, the gown was made of crepe and skimmed her body as if it had been designed for her. The sheer cutout on the back fully revealed her concubine tattoos. Her ensemble was completed with a half-mask and black gloves that ended right above her elbows.

  She dared another peek at the man that stood beside her, suddenly finding it hard to breath. Kosmas was dressed in a black tuxedo, his tousled hair accentuating his strong, classically handsome face. He was sexy, he was strong, and he was hers. It was mind-boggling.

  The vampires gasped as they got their first full look at them. Kosmas slowly led her down the red runner, ignoring their whispers as they walked past them. “For a mortal, she is rather beautiful, isn't she?” one female vampire mused out loud, but Keely acted as if she hadn't heard her words.

  The rug ended at the steps that led up to his throne. She swallowed hard when she realized a second throne had been placed next to his. It was smaller, more delicate than the one intended for him. Her whole body trembled as they walked up the steps. Keely stared at him wide-eyed, as he turned around to face the residents of Golden Harbor.