by Chandra Ryan
Ulterior Motives
Chandra Ryan
Universal Defiance, Book One
On a rural settler planet, Kat must resort to putting out an ad to find a husband. She doesn’t expect to find love—that’s a dream in these parts—just a partner to help work her ranch. Then the devastatingly handsome Jasper answers her ad and turns her on in ways she never dreamed possible. Too bad he’s not who he says he is.
Jasper doesn’t know what he’s getting into when he ventures undercover to investigate a legal claim against Kat’s ranch. But after a toe-curling night under her roof and in her bed, he’s willing to do anything to stay there. He can’t say no to the tough-as-nails businesswoman who makes his body come alive.
When people start getting hurt, though, both Kat and Jasper have to decide how valuable one piece of land is. And the ranch that brought them together might be the very thing standing between them.
A Romantica® sci fi erotic romance from Ellora’s Cave
Ulterior Motives
Chandra Ryan
Chapter One
Kat stared at the man on the platform. With thick dark-brown hair and a muscular body that filled his clothes out nicely, he was handsome enough. Not that his looks mattered. Not really. She needed a husband to be a partner. She wasn’t some young, naive thing with silly notions of lust and love. Practical and pragmatic were a much better fit for her life. Still, a pragmatic woman could admit that having a man about the house who was easy on the eyes wouldn’t be a hardship.
She chuckled under her breath as she made her way over to him. She doubted she would fare as well if he were hoping for a piece of eye candy for his wife. Oh she could be pretty when she needed to be. But coming all the way to town to collect a man didn’t merit the fuss. She worked long days on the ranch and this excursion had already caused enough of a delay. If she got all gussied up, she’d not only lose that time but also the time it took her to get back into her work clothes when they returned to the ranch. Time was her most valuable commodity right now. She couldn’t afford to squander it.
“Excuse me, sir.” Her calm words broke through the chaos of the port station and gained his undivided attention. This close to him, staring into his rich, brown eyes, her stomach began to churn with nerves. She quickly pushed through the sensation though. She didn’t have the time for silliness. And it was the height of absurdity for her to be uncomfortable around her soon-to-be husband. “I’m Katarina Maxim. My friends call me Kat.”
She held her hand out to him in casual greeting as she tried not to fidget. She’d debated how to greet him as she’d driven to the station. A kiss seemed rather forward. But she did want him to feel welcomed. A handshake seemed like the best idea at the time. Now, as she waited for him to take her hand, she started second-guessing herself.
“Katarina, that’s a lovely name.”
She noted that he’d called her Katarina but tried not to let that color her first impression of him. She didn’t hate the name nor did she hate being called by it. It just didn’t fit her. Not anymore. Katarina sounded soft, delicate—refined even. As she’d been before her family had moved here. She could only hope that he didn’t see her as any of those things. If he did, he would be sorely disappointed when he got to know her better. “Kat. Only my mother called me by my full name,” she pressed.
“Kat it is.” His smile seemed genuine but his palm was as soft as new leather when he finally took hers. If he stayed, that would change. This planet demanded calluses and blisters. Her hands were proof of that. “Jasper Lee, ma’am. I’m honored to meet you. Out of the thousands of applications you must have received, I am grateful you selected mine.”
Apparently his tongue was as smooth as his hands. That didn’t bode well for their future. Smooth men didn’t do well when faced with the harsh realities of settler planets. “I’m not a politician nor am I a starlet, Mr. Lee. Out here we speak our minds and we keep our words straightforward. My ranch is a great opportunity, especially if you’re looking for a fresh start. But I think we both know there aren’t thousands of men out there looking for backbreaking work on a world so uncivilized that its brothel is its only restaurant.” She took a moment to look him over carefully. He wasn’t a dandy. His stance spoke of power and awareness. She couldn’t very well start patting him down like a horse at auction, but as far as she could tell, her first impression had been spot-on. The man looked to be in shape. “But if you’re willing to put in the time and the work, I’ve a feeling you could make it here.”
He returned her careful examination and then nodded. “I’ll do my best.”
She couldn’t ask for more. “That should do. If you’ll grab your bags, my transport is just over this way. It’s not a long drive to the ranch but I don’t make it back to town very often. If there’s anything you need to pick up from the store, now would be the time to tell me.”
He grabbed two suitcases and then shook his head. “I think I’ve got everything I need.”
She led the way to the transport, all too aware of his gaze burning into her back. “The ranch is pretty self-sufficient as far as food goes. Most everything else can be bought in town as long as it’s nothing too fancy or extravagant.”
“Sounds good.” He could’ve said the words sarcastically but she chose to believe he was being sincere.
At her transport, she pressed her palm against the registry’s biometric screen and waited for the device to scan it. The doors clicked softly as they unlocked when her identity had been confirmed. It only took a moment to store his bags in the back and then they slid into their seats and were ready to go. Only, as he shifted in the passenger seat to lock the restraint, all the space between them seemed to disappear. The man took up entirely too much room. Even though not a single inch of him touched her, she could feel the warmth radiating from him and it made her stomach flutter and her hands shake a little.
“Comfortable?” she asked, her tone holding more chill than she’d intended. It couldn’t be helped though. His sudden nearness made her twitchy and she hated being twitchy.
“Absolutely. Mind if I nap awhile until we get to the ranch?”
Mind? That might just give her enough time to collect herself. And, put into that context, nothing had ever sounded better. “Feel free.”
As soon as he shut his eyes, though, the need to ask a million and one questions bubbled up inside her and threatened to burst. She didn’t know much about the man and now that he was here she wanted to know everything about him. But if she woke him up, she’d have to deal with him taking up too much space again. She didn’t seem as twitchy around him while he slept. If she could just wait until they got to her ranch, she could ask her questions while keeping her distance.
It seemed like a solid enough plan at first, but the more she tried to concentrate on the road in front of her, the more questions kept popping into her head. She couldn’t really be blamed for her natural curiosity. Her mother had always encouraged her to read and reading had made her an inquisitive person. Not only that, but it’d also given her a colorful imagination. The two combined were hard to control on the dullest days and today was anything but dull.
She held the questions at bay as long as she could. But shortly before they reached her ranch she finally gave in and asked, “Why did you answer my ad?”
He opened one eye to look at her.
“Sorry, I told you to nap.”
“That’s okay. I figured you’d have some questions. Truth is, I needed a fresh start. With all the farmable land settled, I couldn’t stake a claim of my own.”
She’d figured as much. The inner worlds were overpopulated. If a person wanted someplace to call his own, he’d have to move to one of the settler worlds. But there were no guarantees eve
n if a person did move. Land disappeared quickly once a doctor and a teacher decided to settle on a planet. “We moved here when I was in my teens. Our ranch was one of the last parcels left.”
“From what I saw at the surveyor’s office, it’s a good parcel.”
She couldn’t stop her smile of pride. Her land meant everything to her. “It is. Not many settlers came here to ranch. They were miners or farmers. Couldn’t see the jewel right in front of them.”
“Must’ve been hard on you though. A teenage girl taken from the comforts of the inner worlds and dropped out here? I can’t imagine you thanked your parents for that one.”
“Not at first.” Oh the temper tantrums she’d thrown. She’d sworn at the top of her lungs that she hated her parents more times than she could count. Half the time she wanted them dead, the other half she thought they were trying to kill her by bringing her out here. “But I grew to love it over time. Everything has a cost. The more precious it is, the higher the price you pay. It’s the way of things.”
“So it was worth it? Was the ranch worth losing your childhood?”
She took a second to glance over at him before turning her attention back to the road. As she turned down the long dirt driveway to the ranch, she gestured at the rolling land around them. “No. This is worth so much more. All the luxuries and comforts of an inner world are fake—brittle. If you reach out to grab them, they’ll crumble like cattul rock. This is real.”
She parked the transport in front of the house and looked around again. It was a hard life but she really did love it. She could’ve sold after her parents’ deaths. Some had even encouraged her to do so. But somewhere along the way her parents’ dream had become hers as well.
He grabbed his bags from the back as she got out of the vehicle. The delay gave her just enough time to walk up the sidewalk and swipe her keycard through the lock. The front door opened smoothly just as he joined her on the stoop. “Now may I ask you a question?”
She stepped into the house before nodding. “Seems fair.”
“Why did you place the ad? Men outnumber women four to one on this planet. If you were looking to find a husband, those are pretty good odds.”
She had to suppress a shudder as she thought about her options on the settlement. “I grew up here. Most of the men are like uncles and fathers. Those who happen to fall in the right age group are like brothers. A couple asked but I couldn’t marry any of them. Just didn’t feel right.”
“I see.”
She stopped in the foyer as she debated where to put him. She’d spent so much time planning his trip and organizing all the paperwork to get him here that she hadn’t given any thought to what she was going to do with him once he got here. Now she could kick herself for her lack of foresight.
They were going to be married so it only made sense to put him in her room. But they weren’t married yet and putting a stranger in her room seemed like a bad idea. However, being in separate rooms would make it more difficult for her to judge their compatibility. Then again, he might be just as uncomfortable with the idea of sleeping in her room and might want some privacy.
Thankfully he interrupted her debate by asking, “Everything okay?”
“Where should I put you? In my room or a guestroom?”
“Wow, you certainly do speak your mind, don’t you?” He put his bags down as he glanced around the front room. “I’m okay as long as I have a bed under me, but I wouldn’t want to do anything to tarnish your reputation.”
Her reputation? Nobody out here cared who was sleeping next to her. Still, his open look of sincerity went a long way in changing the situation from an awkward to a humorous one and, before she could stop herself, she started laughing. “The only thing people care about out here is if your word’s good. We’ve got too many real problems to worry about what’s going on between the sheets.” She cast a glance down to his suitcases before asking, “No guns, knives or weapons of mass destruction in those bags are there?”
His eyes reflected her humor as he shook his head. “No ma’am. Just a couple changes of clothes and some data readers.”
“Then my room it is. If we’re going to be spending the rest of our lives together, best figure out who gets the south side of the bed.” She took a couple steps toward her room before stopping and facing him again. “It’s me, by the way.”
His laugh washed away the last of her unease. “I didn’t doubt it for a second,” he said, his voice almost too soft for her to hear.
Their easy camaraderie lasted for the rest of the day. After she’d helped him get settled in her room, she’d shown him around the ranch and had introduced him to the hands and the workers. He’d asked intelligent questions about the livestock and had taken an interest in some of the more specialized equipment. Overall he’d shown a remarkable grasp of the business of ranching. She got the distinct feeling that Mr. Lee did his research before jumping into a new venture. Not a bad thing as far as she was concerned.
The mood that evening over dinner, however, changed. With the cushion of the workers gone, a heavy silence slipped around them. He fidgeted continuously and she became obsessed with trying to think up the perfect conversation starter. It was a losing battle. She apparently couldn’t think up a decent conversation to save her life right then.
“So, if you don’t mind me asking, why didn’t you sell after your parents passed away?” His voice was tense and his body stiff as he sat in his chair. “I mean, I know you like it here, but I’m sure you could’ve made a handsome profit.”
The question itself didn’t bother her. She was actually relieved that the silence had been broken. And they were going to be sharing this land in good times and bad, which gave him the right to question her devotion to it. Still, the awkwardness of the evening had her on edge so she took a little extra time to steady her nerves before she answered. “There were some offers. And, yes, some were more than profitable. But this is my home. Ranching is the only skill I have. Where would I go if I sold? What would I do?”
Her answer didn’t seem to relax him the way she thought it would. His posture remained tight as he asked, “Didn’t you dream of doing something, being something, before you moved here?”
“I dreamed a great many things, Mr. Lee. That’s part of youth. When I became an adult, I put those dreams aside and stepped up to the responsibilities of my life.” She took another bite of her dinner only to have it land like a lead ball in the pit of her stomach. Her nerves were officially shot. Damn shame too, seeing as how much effort her cook had put into the meat-and-vegetable pie in honor of Mr. Lee’s arrival. “Now, may I ask you a question?”
“Anything.”
“The background check I ran said you were a lawyer. What kind of law did you practice and why did you decide to give it up?”
He gaped at her for a moment but then managed to mumble, “You ran a background check on me?”
“Of course. What kind of a businesswoman do you take me for?” She bristled at the insinuation. She might have gone looking for a husband through slightly nontraditional channels, but she had a brain. “I did a background check on my cook before I hired her and the worst she could do is steal the silver. After ten years, half my land becomes yours. I can’t let a criminal or a gambler get his hands on half my land. Besides, it was your background in law that made you stand out. An understanding of the law could be a big help around here.”
“I don’t think my field of law will be particularly helpful.”
She couldn’t imagine a field of law that couldn’t be put to some use. Even if he made his living chasing ambulances, he had to take coursework in other fields. “Why don’t you let me be the judge of that?” She smiled weakly at her pun but he didn’t seem amused.
He looked down at his food and sighed as if the weight of the world were on his shoulders before looking back up at her. “Okay. I guess it’s only fair you know. I represent the government in cases of eminent domain.”
An alarm went off
in her head. “Eminent domain?” Her pulse raced with anger as she digested the words. The government didn’t let its lawyers just walk away. It paid for the lawyers’ school, gave them hefty loans and flashy gifts in return for a lifetime of servitude. It owned its lawyers from graduation to the grave. Which meant marriage had never been Jasper Lee’s goal. He’d been after her land from the start. And she’d foolishly given him a damn tour of it. “Get the hell out of my house.” The words were soft but her voice was steady and, thankfully, held its power. “And get the hell off my land.”
“Look, Kat—”
“Don’t call me that.” Her chair fell to the floor as she stood suddenly. He jumped at the noise but otherwise didn’t move.
“I’m not here to take your land.” His words were clipped but spoken loudly enough to ensure she heard him.
“No, of course not. You wouldn’t do that,” she said with a sneer. “The government does the actual stealing. Keeps the whole process faceless and civilized-like. I’m not an idiot!”
“The government is not in the business of stealing land. If you’d let me explain—”
Her brash laugh had so much force that it actually hurt her throat. “Forgive me if I have a hard time believing you, but you’ve been lying to me since the moment we met.”
“Fine. You don’t have to hear me out. You can plug your ears and hum the national anthem for all I care. But if you want to keep your land, you might want to at least pretend to listen.” He stopped to give her a chance to argue but when she held her tongue, he continued, “You have a major problem. It’s not me though. I’m here because a citizen filed a complaint with the Land Authority. He said there were major mismanagements of land and finances taking place on this ranch.”
“He’s wrong.” Her voice was sharp with anger. “I run a tight ship. There’s not a head of livestock or so much as a dime missing from the books.” She righted her chair and then sank into it as she weighed Mr. Lee’s claim. He could still be lying. This complaint of his was obviously filled with trumped-up charges. Charges he could be using to make her less suspicious of the government. Then again, if he wasn’t lying he might be her best shot at proving the complaint was filled with lies.
