“It’s not my fault you feel so good.”
He stared at her, resisting the urge to laugh.
“I was wrong. You’re a vixen not a sea fairy.”
She did laugh, squeezed the hands that held hers above her head. “Apparently, I’m not very good at it, because you are not doing anything with your cock. Or anything else.”
“What else should I do?” he asked, not that he would.
He was the one in charge in this bed and they both knew it. He wanted to know everything that turned her on, though. She bit her bottom lip and blushed.
“You could suck on my nipples again,” she said, voice hesitant. He leaned down and took one hard tip between his lips, sucked hard. She bowed her back and her cunt grew slicker around him, convulsing again. He released her with a gasp.
“Are you going to talk dirty to me every night?” he asked only half teasing, before returning to taste the other nipple.
“If this is what it gets me? Hell yeah.”
She wiggled her hips, and figuring he’d pushed her as far as dared for one night, he gave her what she wanted. Hard, fast, definitely rough. But he was still in control. With a final lick, he lifted his head to meet her gaze. So much need and pleasure in her eyes, and he’d put that look there. He released her hands, moved one of his to stroke the side of her throat while the other slid between their bodies to find her clit. Her eyes grew cloudier, her body tenser, and when he squeezed her clit she exploded in his arms. Her cunt contracted around him and he fucked her through it, trying to hold back his orgasm, but it was a lost cause.
“Mine,” he growled.
It was panic not acceptance he saw in her eyes. If he wasn’t in the grip of the best orgasm in fucking life, he would have protested. He settled for the next best thing, found that sensitive hollow between her shoulder and neck that tempted him so damned much and bit her. He sucked her skin hard, catapulting her into another orgasm. It felt like a long time later before he had the strength to roll to the side and pull her into his arms. She was still and quiet and it worried him. He didn’t want her manufacturing reasons she shouldn’t be with him.
“Well, think you can walk?” he teased.
She laughed, relaxing against him, and he exhaled a long sigh of relief. “Not a chance in hell.”
He ran his hand down her spine and when she moaned and relaxed even more, he did it again. Her breathing evened, the heart pounding against his slowed, and he brushed the hair off her face. She murmured a sleepy protest when he maneuvered them into a more comfortable position.
“Don’t worry, baby,” he whispered. Promised. “I’m not going anywhere.”
***
He woke alone, though he didn’t panic. The bond was far from complete but he still felt Parker. Quiet. Subdued. He was half surprised she hadn’t fled as soon as she woke up. He would have chased her, of course. Scowling, he rose and walked naked into the main room. Her eyes widened when she caught sight of him, her gasp audible. He sauntered closer, not at all opposed to using sex to break down the barrier around her heart.
“Like what you see, baby?”
Donning a look of complete indifference, she turned back to the cook top and he finally registered her attire. Lady Rona had been busy. Parker was wearing tan, deep red, and the dun colored boots many priestesses adopted. A blade and a sleek, though lethal, laser pistol sat on the end of the center island. A comm unit rested nearby and he picked it up, called up the number, and entered it into his. The silence stretched, only broken by the sounds of meat sizzling as it cooked.
“Parker?”
She glanced at him before turning back to lift food onto a platter and pour the contents of a bowl into a skillet.
“It looks like bacon and eggs. Hope it tastes the same,” she said with her back still to him. “Aren’t you getting dressed?”
Not when she was acting so damned strange. Instead of demanding answers, he waited her out. When she scooped the skillet’s contents into a dish and turned to set it on the center counter, he intercepted her, moved the food to a safe place, and pulled her into his arms.
“Tell me,” he ordered. He knew it was the wrong approach when he saw mutiny in her eyes.
“What?” She squirmed until he released her. Glared when he blocked the way so she couldn’t pass him. “Why are you still here? Most men don’t bother to stay the whole night.”
He saw red. How many were most exactly? He reigned in the thought before he could ask. Before didn’t matter. Only now did. And everyone in the Keep knew she was his.
“Why would I leave my der’lan’s bed if I didn’t have to?” he countered.
“Ready to explain that?”
To borrow her phase, not a chance in hell. Not until he’d seduced her so thoroughly she never considered an alternative.
“You want to find out, you know what to do, baby. Start breakfast. I’m going to shower and dress.”
He pressed a quick kiss to her lips and strolled away, but he hurried to rejoin her. She’d set a plate out for him and he filled it while the night’s messages and reports loaded on his comm. There wasn’t anything urgent, but neither was there anything he could ignore. It promised to be a long, busy day, but it was starting off on a positive note. First sharing a meal with his mate, then going to Roarr’s wing to witness Kareena’s tattooing.
“We only have a few minutes.”
Not nearly enough time to strip her and take her back to bed. She nodded.
“I know.”
So she was already aware of Kareena’s morning plans. Her expression was so even, so serene, he couldn’t begin to guess what she thought about it. He was no longer intrigued by her ability to block him out.
“I hate it when you do that,” he snapped before he could stop himself.
She looked startled at the sudden outburst. Good.
“Do what?”
“You shut down so completely I have no idea what you’re thinking.”
She tilted her head to the side and studied him, before obviously reaching some conclusion and nodding.
“You’re good at reading people, aren’t you? I bet it’s rare that you can’t and when it happens you get suspicious.”
She was dead on with her assessment and instead of being irritated at her insight, he was pleased. Few people knew him that well and never on so short a relationship.
“Shouldn’t you owe me some secret of your own now?”
“I don’t have any.”
He snorted at the outright lie.
She just smiled, gathered dirty dishes and carried them to the sink. It only took minutes to clean up. When she was he took her arm and turned it over, running his fingertips over the new ink.
“What made you decide?”
“I saw the temple,” she said with a big smile. “It’s a good fit for me.”
He nodded. How could he argue with that? But he a damned bad feeling things were about to get a lot worse.
“We should leave,” she reminded him.
He nodded and followed her into the hall. Zola walked with them, and Kaje remained silent as the two women spoke of visiting the temple after the tattooing. Jarek met them down the corridor. Zola was dressed and armed as Parker was, and Kaje didn’t miss the disapproval in Jarek’s gaze as he took her in. The healer fell in beside Kaje. Quiet. Almost stern. He didn’t say a word until their small group joined everyone else.
“I’d like to see the three of you in the infirmary today.”
“Why?” Zola demanded.
“I feel fine,” Parker contributed.
Kaje leaned down to whisper in her ear. “Do it for me then. It’s just a health precaution.”
One he should have considered before. Fuck.
“I’m okay.”
He tried a different approach, taking her aside.
“But what about Zola? She was in worse shape than you and Kareena, who didn’t argue I might add,” he said softly.
Parker rolled her eyes. “Fine. Wh
en Kareena is done I’ll go to the infirmary.”
Zola didn’t look pleased but she also reluctantly agreed. Thirty minutes later he escorted Parker and her friends to Jarek’s office. He held her back before she could enter. Brushed his fingertips down her cheek.
“I probably won’t be able to get away for lunch today, but I’ll see you tonight.”
She lifted her hands to his chest as if to push him away but curled her fingers into his shirt instead.
“That’s probably a bad idea.”
Her lips parted and he kissed her, stopping her before she could continue her protest. How could he resist? Stop? He pulled her closer, prepared to pick her up, carry her to his room, and worship her. The hell with duty and honor and responsibility. He had a mate to claim. Unfortunately, before he could act on in his desire his comm chimed with Roarr’s private code, one he only used if the situation was urgent. He released her reluctantly.
“I’ll see you this evening, baby.”
He waited until the daze cleared from her eyes and she entered the infirmary, then sought out his chief. He wasn’t hard to find. He was in his office in the warrior compound scrolling through information on a tablet that he handed to Kaje.
“Take a look at this.”
“What am I looking for?” Kaje asked.
There was an image of a small desert settlement, five buildings and several hover craft. Such small communities were not uncommon. The desert was littered with them, but Kaje didn’t recognize this one.
“Family or commercial?” he asked his chief.
“It’s a research facility. Listen to the audio,” Roarr said, voice grim. Kaje pushed play.
For several seconds there was only static, then two shouted words, security breached. The recording ended abruptly, the feed going black for several seconds. When it came back on the compound was gone, the lens pointing at a different place in the desert. Kaje brought up the specs on the satellite and discovered it belonged to the Saber clan. Somehow he doubted Barak Trace was responsible for this, however.
“Do we know what happened? Is there something there someone wants?”
If anything Roarr’s expression got even grimmer. “They had a working prototype of a device that will cloak any vehicle, from hover to starship.”
Kaje stared. Considered the possibilities. Cloaking technology had been banned for centuries, but the caste Overchiefs had lifted that ban a couple of years ago.
“Who owns the facility?”
“We do, with the Traces. I need you to meet Falkor out there and find out what the hell happened.”
“They have a way to counteract the effects of this device?”
“Fucked if I know,” Roarr grumbled. “Obviously, we can’t trust our comms right now. Barak took a risk sending this.”
“Compromised then.”
“Maybe. It was in a code Falkor and I used before his father died.”
Kaje knew that was because they had suspected the former clan chief was a rebel. Roarr didn’t have to say that they hadn’t shared that code. Which didn’t mean some enterprising rebel hadn’t hacked it. He noted the site coordinates, set the tablet on the desk, and entered the connecting office, where he grabbed a bag he always kept prepared. It held a change of clothes and extra weapons and ammunition. Just in case. He had no idea how long this would take but had every intention of returning that night.
An hour later he landed next to another craft, pulled a cloak over his head to shield his eyes and face, and stepped into the morning glare. The place looked and felt deserted. There were five smaller buildings, living quarters, a mess, and a supply and power station, surrounding a larger central one. He found four bodies neatly laid out before its front door. He squatted next to them. All four were Southern warriors he didn’t know, and all four bore the marks of laser fire on their faces and torsos. He heard movement inside the building and stood. The door was open and after a moment Falkor stepped through.
“Do you know them?”
Falkor was second in command in Saber City, and all the Southern clans answered to his brother, Barak. Falkor nodded.
“Part of our elite forces. They were doing sensitive research here, but it was kept very quiet. I just got here myself. I have no idea how they were compromised yet.”
“You found the bodies like this?”
Falkor nodded. “Hell of a message. This is either the work of rebels or another clan making a move on mine.”
“Is that a possibility?”
Everything in Kaje went still at that suggestion. If it was he and Roarr should have been notified. Hell, they should have heard from their own sources that something was in the wind.
“No.” He met Kaje’s gaze. He saw nothing but honesty and concern in his old friend’s eyes. “One of us would have heard something.”
“We would have,” he agreed, but Falkor had to be thinking the same thing Kaje was. The rebels were getting gutsier, better organized, and much better equipped. “Any answers inside?”
Falkor turned and Kaje followed him into a large open space. Two warriors were bent over a comm console on the far side and straightened when Kaje and Falkor joined them. Kaje spared them a glance, recognized them from the group Falkor had led at the temple and knew they were trustworthy. Then he looked at the console before swearing under his breath. It had been shot to hell, as the Earthlings would say.
“Can you salvage anything?” Falkor asked.
“Not from here, my lord. There might be a backup in one of the other buildings.”
“Supply and power shed,” Kaje suggested. At Falkor’s curt nod, the others left to check it out. “What about the satellite?”
Falkor looked thunderous. It stunned Kaje. The warrior rarely showed emotion.
“For five minutes it was completely out of our control, and its memory erased of everything but the altered video feed.”
That was a serious breach in security.
“Barak is looking into that. We need to find out what happened to the researchers here and what the rebels are planning. I’ll send you the information on the researchers.”
It could be done securely with both their devices in the same room. Falkor took out his comm and expanded it to tablet size. Kaje did the same and a moment later opened the file. There were six names, four males and two females. All experts in military technology and from varying clans.
“One of these is likely to be a traitor.”
He didn’t have to look at Falkor to know that knowledge made him furious. Kaje shared the sentiment. He focused on dossiers. With any luck he’d be able to figure out who the rebel traitor was. A few minutes later Falkor’s warriors reported in. They hadn’t found a usable backup drive.
“Fuck,” he muttered. That was bad news. They had no idea what had happened here and Kaje didn’t see anything in the backgrounds of the scientists that jumped out at him. “I’ll take half the list.”
“Agreed. Use Roarr’s code when you report in.”
Kaje nodded then turned to leave. He would have to visit the family of each of the missing researchers, dig into their backgrounds. It was going to be a long couple of days.
Chapter Eight
Two days later Parker accepted her night with Kaje had been a one time thing. She stood on her balcony and stared out over the water, pretending it was no big deal and she wasn’t pissed off about it. Her body wasn’t so sure. She ached. She’d never had sex like that in her life, edgy and mind blowing, and she’d been ready for more once she’d got over the fear. Which was about half a second after Kaje had kissed the hell out of her in the infirmary. But okay. That was over. Fun for both of them, but nothing permanent. She was moving on. No more Kaje.
Hell, even Vidar canceled their second appointment, as if he knew his brother was done with her. It was damned convenient actually. She’d been free to explore with Zola and Kareena. They found several exits into the city, all guarded. The best way out would be through the temple grounds.
Sh
e didn’t see a hint of Kaje as they learned their new home, though and she refused to ask Roarr about him. She pretended like she didn’t care at all about the man who’d so easily walked away from the best sex of her life. She should have known better. She’d recognized him for what he was, and she’d chosen to ignore it for a moment of excitement.
Someone tapped on her door, but she ignored it. It was probably Zola or Kareena and they’d let themselves in once announcing themselves with a knock. She and Zola were sneaking out of the Keep today. She tilted her head back, closed her eyes, and focused on the feel of the wind in her face.
“Parker?” A soft enquiry. Entreaty. Her heart stuttered then raced. She’d sensed him and refused to believe he was back. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Tried to slow her racing heart. Kaje. The mysterious alien who had her turned inside out with so very little effort. She cracked an eye open.
“What do you want?”
“You,” he said boldly.
Like hell he did. She’d found out what a der’lan was in his absence. It literally translated as mate of my heart. If he wanted her that much, he wouldn’t have stayed away for two days without any explanation or word, would he?
“Yeah, right,” she scoffed not bothering to hide her bitterness. “Have a bridge to sell me while you’re at it?”
“You’re angry,” he said softly. “I assumed someone would tell you where I was.”
She shouldn’t say anything, shouldn’t let him see how much it hurt that he hadn’t let her know himself. The words slipped out before she could stop herself.
“You could have let me know. You should have.”
“I’m sorry, baby. I’m new at this too.”
He gave her that sexy half smile that made her heart race. She tried to remember why getting involved with him was a bad idea. She moved around him, back inside where she glanced at the clock in the kitchenette. Damn it, she needed to get rid of him. Or get a chaperone.
“So where have you been?”
She couldn’t resist asking. Damn it. He sighed, rubbing the back of his neck in the first sign of weariness she’d seen from him. She had to resist the urge to step forward and take over the task.
Irresistible (Delroi Prophecy) Page 6
