Nikol's Surrender (A World Beyond, #10)

by Howard, Michelle

Darcy ate until she was full. While the ladies were talking about random topics, it was Amia who drew close to Darcy and asked if she needed anything.

  “Shellams, shoes, anything. Nikol would want you to have whatever you need to be comfortable.” She was so sincere, her manner that of a friendly older relative.

  If Cecilee was a comforting guide, Amia was the helper.

  “I do need clothing.” She waved a hand at the shellam she’d pulled up high. “More of these or better yet stuff that actually covers my body.”

  Amia patted the back of her hand. “Shellams are meant to highlight how beautiful your body is. Perhaps sandals since we are in the warm season and perfumes along with scented lotions to keep your skin soft and smelling pleasant.”

  Darcy abruptly stood. She didn’t want to be pampered as if her staying here was a foregone conclusion. “I don’t need to be fattened up like a calf for dinner.”

  Tashire and Cecilee broke off their conversation to focus on her and Amia. Cecilee rose gracefully, her light pink shellam swaying against her ankles. “What is amiss? What bothers you?”

  Temper flaring, Darcy waved a hand at the brightly colored garden with its blooming flowers and paved walkways. The bubbling stream and waterfall added to her anger for projecting a serene environment when she was anything but serene. “All of this bothers me. Don’t you get it?! You sit around and wait for some man to deign to grace you with his attention or sex. Nikol this and Nikol that! I don’t care what Nikol wants.”

  “Well, that is a shame since my wants are the only ones that matter here, Earth woman.”

  Darcy froze. The calmly spoken words came from behind her. Goosebumps skittered along her spine. She slowly turned and faced the horned alien from the night before. Nikol. He leaned against one of the doors to the garden with a carefree attitude, ankles crossed and hands in his pockets as if he’d been there for a while. Listening.

  Gathering her courage, she held his mesmerizing dark gaze. “You’re keeping people against their will. These women are nothing to you but a means of sexual satisfaction.”

  His dark brows arched. “Should they be more?”

  Darcy’s blood boiled. She clenched her hands at her side, fighting the words she wanted to spew at him. Before she could lambaste him for his arrogant attitude, he straightened from his relaxed pose and ran a hand through the black hair that slid forward at the move. Her gut shimmied in a totally opposite reaction to anger.

  The women clustered forward and folded to their knees in a single line, separating Darcy from him. She glared over their heads and his lips curved in an amused smirk she wanted to claw off.

  He touched the top of Cecilee’s head. “Leave us for a moment. I think I need to make a few things clear to our new...guest.”

  The women were on their feet and through the door into the suite without a backwards glance. Their instant abandonment tugged at Darcy’s emotions. Disbelief that they’d leave her to his machinations hit hard. She had to remind herself that no one was on her side. The only person who truly cared if she escaped was her.

  Once alone, Nikol came toward her with a cocky stride, his thighs flexing with each step. She swallowed when he stopped in front of her. “Walk with me.”

  That was all he said as he stepped to the left of her to continue on the path beyond Darcy. He passed so closely on the narrow trail their shoulders brushed. Her nipples tingled and perked up beneath the shellam.

  Darcy gritted her teeth. The contact was deliberate. She considered ignoring him. Considered striding straight into the suite with a dismissive sniff and hiding in the alcove she’d been assigned like some exotic pet. That would show him.

  In fact, the muscles in her legs tensed in preparation to do just that when he must have sensed her pause behind him. His voice was a low growl as he whispered, but Darcy heard him clear as day. “Do not try me so early in our acquaintance, human.”

  The blatant threat had Darcy spinning and following after him. Neither of them spoke as he seemed to pick a path by habit more than any true sense of direction. Not even the retaining wall of colored stones soaring well above her head could distract Darcy from taking in the measure of her captor.

  His strides were longer than hers, but she refused to hurry after him like some lackey. The six foot distance between them served her well enough and allowed her to observe him without withering from the blaze in his eerie brown gaze.

  Her view encompassed a broad back shifting with ease under the thin fabric of his black shirt. The sleeves were rolled up to his forearms, giving her glimpses of the black hair running over the bronze colored skin. His hips moved aggressively but his steps in the thick black boots were quiet on the pavers. Meanwhile, Darcy’s bare feet sounded overly loud. Or maybe it was the pounding of her heart that made it seem so loud.

  When he stopped near a rock cropping piled to the side of a grassy plot, Darcy shoved her hands under her armpits and faced him. He still wore the infuriating smirk. She pressed her lips firmly together waiting for him to speak.

  “Do you know who I am?” he started.

  Darcy jolted. That wasn’t what she thought he’d say. “Cecilee says you’re Nikol.”

  He snorted, the grin twisting about his lips bearing no resemblance to humor. “My name is indeed Nikol, but that’s not who I am, it’s what I’m called.”

  Darcy glared. “So what?! Should I be all scared because you’re standing there trying to intimidate me with your bigger size?”

  Bigger didn’t mean stronger. Darcy shifted her stance and braced her legs. She was fully prepared to fight if he challenged her.

  Red slashes darkened his cheeks. The taunting smile fell away but she didn’t take it as a victory. He crossed to her, closing the measly gap she’d managed to retain and gripped the back of her neck in a firm hold. He lifted the slightest bit, forcing Darcy to go on her tiptoes or risk choking. Her hands fell to his wrist, attempting to halt his grip. “Impertinent. I believe it is a trait many of the females from your planet possess.”

  Darcy couldn’t get his hand to release her. Fear rocketed through her, but she didn’t turn away from the fury in his gaze. Her voice came out a determined filled rasp. “You mistake strength for impertinence.”

  Leaning in close, he said, “And you must mistake my patience for weakness.”

  His thumb caressed the pulse jumping like a rabbit. Her feet were starting to strain maintaining this position. “You may have control for now. But I will escape.”

  He used his free hand to stroke her hair and catch a curl. His gaze dropped to the single strand. “Such a fiery spirit in the face of your obvious disadvantage.”

  Darcy didn’t bother responding. She wasn’t defeated. He didn’t know her. He didn’t know what she was capable of when she put her mind to it. And she was going to escape.

  “Nothing to say?” he taunted.

  Darcy bit her tongue. His eyes narrowed, the grip on her throat flexed for the briefest of moments. “Know this, Earth woman, I am the master of this suite. In here, I tell you what to do, when to do it and how to do it. Your only option is to agree.”

  “Or what?” The words slipped through without thought and Darcy tensed.

  To her surprise, he released her suddenly. She stumbled, grasping at her neck, then regained her balance.

  “You don’t want to find out.”

  Darcy shook her hair away from her face and stared at him with her upper lip curled. Nikol was on her before she could let loose the barrage of curses building in her chest. His fingers skimmed along her cheek. The bruised skin was still very tender. “What happened?”

  Her gaze flickered. The expression on his face was impassive, the tone devoid of care, yet the question itself conveyed concern. Was he playing a game with her? Despite thinking he was toying with her, butterflies launched in Darcy’s belly. Resistance was the way to go but she found herself answering. “Impertinent. Like you said.”

  His nostrils flared, and a muscle twitched in h
is jaw. The tip of one blunt finger traced beneath her right eye where Brax had punched her. “And here?”

  Heat bloomed in her center. Why did her captor have to be so devastating in appearance? Up close he was more potent, the power of his forceful nature vibrating against her senses.

  “Earth woman?”

  Darcy swallowed. “More impertinence, I guess one could say.”

  His lips quirked and her heart sped up. Who was he really? Forceful alien one moment demanding her compliance or this odd version of concerned...she didn’t have a word to describe this alternate version. Nor did she have a way to explain how he was touching her and the inexplicable reaction she was having.

  “I see. You would rather avoid the truth than give me the answer.”

  Despite his mild statement, fury thrummed through this weird vibe between them. Along with the low-level hum of desire. Was she imagining it? It didn’t feel possible. She was fighting the need to grasp his shirt and test if the chest stretching the material was as hard and solid as it appeared.

  She licked her dry lips and his eyes followed the gesture. Then they went lower to take in her full body. Slashes of red filled his cheeks again. From anger or desire she couldn’t tell. His hand dropped away and before she could mourn the loss of contact, he yanked the shellam down to her waist in a quick move. Darcy gasped. Her heart skipped a couple of beats, then pounded rapidly. She instinctively raised her hands to cover her breasts.

  “The shellam is to be worn thus. It is in your best interest not to forget again.”

  Embarrassment warred with her misplaced arousal. Darcy growled but kept her arms crossed over her chest. She was leery of what he’d do if she struck out at him. The corner of his mouth lifted.

  “We will cover more of your role in detail later.”

  He shot one last dark look at her and left.

  Chapter 8

  Nikol felt the Earth woman’s stare burning the back of his neck. He didn’t need such a lovely distraction. And that’s what she was. A huge distraction, lovely or not. He jammed his fingers through his hair and locked his jaw.

  Now was not the time to solve the problem of what to do with her. He needed to follow up on the discrepancies he’d found at one of their distribution sites. He was already running behind because of his concern and need prodding him to check on her this morning. Cecilee had voiced her concern that the Earth woman wouldn’t eat.

  When he woke, he’d gone into her alcove and studied her sleeping form. Exhaustion and fear had etched lines in her forehead during their confrontation yesterday, but sleep had eased them. Seeing her unaware had fed his protective instincts. Nikol hadn’t felt like this since his bruher was a small baby. Harat was the only one Nikol went out of his way to protect.

  A frustrated sigh slipped past his lips. He had more important matters to attend to and would deal with the Earthling later. He stormed through his suite, ignoring the tutanis watching him with a wariness it had taken him years to dispel and cursed the Earth female again.

  Dain met him outside his suite. “Was all well?”

  Nikol nodded and left it at that. Dain was closest to him and Nikol trusted him more than anyone else but there was a limit to what he’d discuss. Tseju and Garmon, the two guards Nikol currently had at the entrance of his kitse, had been with him for several years and followed his orders. It was one of the few things he’d put in place to protect the women his father had cast off to him.

  There was a growing number within Lothar’s guards who gave their allegiance to Nikol and a significant portion of the staff were loyal to him now as well.

  With time and care, he was slowly replacing all of those with blind faith in Lothar with his own men. Individuals Nikol knew wanted to live on Marenia without the attention Lothar garnered with his spiraling obsession for more and more.

  “What are you going to do about the female?” Dain asked, breaking into his thoughts.

  “Nothing for now. I will have Tseju take her to the medic, though. There are bruises on her face.” Bruises that angered Nikol just thinking about them. No one should have marred her beauty.

  They strode shoulder to shoulder down the hall. Dain studied his profile and Nikol held his breath, awaiting the inevitable question.

  “She has roused you?”

  Nikol frowned. He wanted to rub at the beginning pain at his temple but the physical sign of weakness would be witnessed by someone in the halls and reported to Lothar. Nikol tried not to let his guard down outside the privacy of his suite. The only saving grace was that no one could hear their conversation. Security vids were images only and lacked sound.

  Nonetheless, Nikol lowered his voice. “She is trouble. There is more to her presence here than Lothar wanting to get a reaction from me.”

  “True. Do you sense a trap? Is she a part of his plotting?”

  Nikol snorted as they turned toward the exit that would lead them outside. “Everything he does is about his plotting.” Nikol blew out a breath then added, “If she is, I’m not sure she’s going about it the right way.”

  He thought of how she’d stood up to him yesterday, the defiance on her face moments ago. If Lothar thought to have the woman sway Nikol to some hidden agenda, he’d not picked the right one for the task.

  They arrived at the armored hover-car Nikol reserved for his private use. Dain sat in the driver’s seat and Nikol took the passenger seat. He never drove if he could avoid it. This way he could work on his data pad and comm, making the most of his time. Despite his wishes to the contrary, there were some things regarding Lothar’s business that Nikol could not let slip.

  His temple throbbed again, and this time, Nikol gave in and scrubbed at the ache. Dain’s gaze flickered in his direction. “Do you require a pain aid?”

  Ever since Nikol returned from his brief imprisonment on Enotia he’d been having blinding headaches and finally succumbed to using an oral pain med Dain smuggled to him from off-world. “No, I’ll be fine.”

  The rest of the trip was made in silence. When they arrived at the private transport station, only two ships were inside. The one Lothar used and the one Nikol used. Both sleek designs were testaments to the best engineering Marenia had to offer and fitted with the latest technology.

  Nikol’s ship was one of the fastest on the market and modified with an arsenal capable of taking down a much larger vessel. It was the only way he felt comfortable traveling as often as he did on Lothar’s behalf.

  As soon as Dain parked along the one wall reserved for vehicles, he shut down his data pad and hopped out. Upon his approach, sensors activated and dual red beams shot forward from the nose of his aircraft. Nikol halted, dimly aware of Dain behind him while waiting for the retinal and full body scan to complete.

  ‘Wulven, Nikol. Commander. Access Granted.’

  Once his identity was confirmed by the ships onboard computer, the entrance ramp lowered with a smooth glide. Dain spoke as soon as they were within the secure interior. “Should we leave the Earth woman unattended?”

  Nikol was in the process of taking his seat and froze. He hadn’t considered her beyond the problem she posed. In order to be efficient in his role, he had to prioritize in a split second, and his mind had already shifted gears with the ease of practice making his current focus the distribution numbers. Thoughts of the Earthling had been shelved to deal with later.

  Now a vision of her defiant features flashed across his mind, the startled blue eyes—wary but spirited. He sat and gripped the arms of the pilot chair while Dain assumed the seat beside him. A few deep breaths calmed the spike in his pulse from Dain’s question.

  If she was a spy for Lothar, he’d see to her safety. It wouldn’t do to endanger her before she had a chance to work her wiles on her intended target. Him.

  Nikol’s lips firmed and his nails dug into the synth leather of his armrests. If she was an innocent party caught up in machinations not of her making, his kitse was the safest place for her and Cecilee would see she
came to no harm. The rationalizations soothed his unexpected concern.

  “She will be fine, Dain.” A sliver of doubt niggled at him after he said it. Nikol flicked the switch on the main panel and accessed the comm. He hesitated over sending a quick message for his guards to pass to Cecilee. His concern would be noted and could create more problems than necessary. He moved his hand to the side and activated the initiation sequence. The engines started with barely a rumble.

  ‘Voice confirmation required for launch protocols.’

  “Nikol.” His voice was a dark rasp, anger at caring about the Earth woman coloring his tone.

  ‘Approval code required,’ the computer prompted.

  “754CA2,” he snapped, drawing a bewildered look from Dain.

  This wouldn’t do. He couldn’t focus on his task with his emotions in flux. That’s how mistakes were made. Nikol didn’t have room for mistakes in the nature of his business. He reached deep for the steely reserve that enabled him to do what needed to be done with savage calculation.

  Worry. Concern. It all melted away as his heart iced over and his mind became blank. His lips twisted at the familiar draw of cruelty running through his veins. Yes. This was what he needed. The human female would not—could not—be a distraction.

  ***

  Darcy spent her days learning pointless protocol to be a worthy tutanis. Pleasure giver. Or whore as Darcy liked to think of the meaning her translator gave.

  “Nice. Very nice. Up, please.”

  Her mouth curled into a snarl as she rose from the kneeling position Cecilee had forced her to repeat over and over until Darcy could glide down to the floor without losing her balance. “Whatever.”

  At least her knees and thighs didn’t ache when she did the move anymore. The last three weeks had been filled with relentless lessons on poise, posture, and an abundance of servile mannerisms. None of which Darcy wanted any part of.

  Cecilee smiled. Her innocent and genuinely pleased expression dinged Darcy’s conscious. It wasn’t Cecilee’s fault Darcy was stuck in a harem.