Prime Target

by Monette Michaels

  Damon—Her mental voice was soft, beseeching.

  He hurt you. Not allowed.

  Damon was about to pull her out of his partner’s arms when Cissy intervened. “Put her down, Borac. You’re hurting her. You don’t know your own strength some days, sweetie.”

  Borac flushed, then lowered Susa to the ground and dropped his hands. “Sorry, little cousin. We’re so happy to have you here.” He glowered at Damon. “Did Damon take advantage of you? Tell me. I will handle him.”

  Damon was well on his way to seeing red, but managed to bury his anger under a layer of ice until he could discuss his partner’s issues with the man in private. He refused to embarrass Susa by brawling on the docks.

  She shook her head. “Damon has been everything kind, good, and heroic. He’s taken excellent care of me and has protected me from the day we met. There’s nothing to handle.”

  She glanced at Damon. Nothing to handle now or in private, lubho. You don’t understand—She moved closer to his side and put her arm around his waist. It’s about the mate-bond—

  He hurt you when he was really mad at me. Damon placed his hand low on her back and massaged the tense muscles he found there. No one is allowed to hurt you.

  Borac glared at Damon’s hand. “I am thinking there is definitely someone I need to handle.”

  Cissy looked between Damon and Susa, then looked again, noting Damon’s hand low on Susa’s back. The smile on her face and the satisfaction wafting off her in waves revealed she’d clued into the type of relationship he and Susa had.

  This proved Borac hadn’t married a fool. Borac, on the other hand, was still acting like an irate father.

  Damon looked at Cissy. “Would you show Susa to my quarters? Our bags will be delivered there.” He noted the security guards Borac had brought with him and gave the men a nod. Cissy and Susa would be well-protected until they reached the private areas of the station.

  “Your quarters?” Borac yelled.

  “Yeah, mine, now ours.” Damon patted Susa’s bottom, a move which elicited a vicious snarl from Borac. “Go with Cissy, Angel. I’ll see you later.” He strode toward the atrium entrance and yelled over his shoulder at Borac, “Are you coming, asshole? Let’s talk—in the gym.”

  “Damn right we’ll talk.” Borac looked at Cissy. “Take Susa to our quarters. I’ll transfer her luggage later.”

  “Borac, sweetie—” Cissy stammered.

  “Just do it, peta.” Then he stomped after Damon.

  Susa wasn’t at all happy about the challenge Damon had just issued—one which Borac had all too readily accepted. This fight, no matter what Damon said, was all her fault. She’d forgotten to tell Damon about one of the side effects of the mate-bond—in the early years of mating, only mates could touch one another without pain.

  The issue hadn’t arisen on the cruise, because Damon never let anyone get within touching distance of her—and they’d spent most of the last two weeks in their suite in bed.

  Damon needed to know now. She couldn’t live with herself if he hurt his friend because she’d forgotten to give him all the information he needed about the mate-bond.

  She mentally reached for Damon. But his shield was shutting out all communication. She could probably break through, but both of them would have severe headaches afterwards.

  Letting out a frustrated sigh, she looked down at the much shorter Terran. “Men!”

  “Yeah. Alphas, the both of them. Borac will feel like an ass once Damon stops beating on him and explains. So, you and Damon, huh?”

  “Yes. Please take me to Damon’s quarters. I’m staying with him.”

  “I sort of caught that.” Cissy gestured with an arm. “We take this corridor. We’ll make a short stop at my quarters so you can meet the children, then I’ll take you to Damon’s. Is that okay?”

  “Sounds great. I want to meet my little cousins.”

  As they wended their way through the crowds and toward a central atrium which held lifts and moving sidewalks between the multiple levels of the station, two large men in jump station uniforms shadowed them.

  Borac and Damon were two of a kind where safety was concerned. She’d better get used to being watched over if she was going to make a life with Damon on the station.

  “I hope Damon doesn’t hurt my sweetie too much,” Cissy said. “I’ve never seen Damon so coldly furious before.”

  Well, Susa had, and it had ended up with dead Dornians littering a space dock.

  Angel, I won’t kill him. He’s my friend. His mental voice sounded less pissed and more amused. And what is this “not being touched by others” and the mate-bond all about? Damon, obviously, could maintain his shield for one-way monitoring of her, but keep her out of his head while “talking” to his cousin, all at the same time.

  Damon, I forgot to explain. Quite simply, in the early years of mating, all other touches, male or female, will hurt us. If Borac had known we were newly bonded, he wouldn’t have touched me at all.

  Okay, that puts a different twist on it. So I’ll only rough him up a bit. Then I’ll tell him we’re mate-bonded and marked. You’ll be in our quarters when I get done, right?

  Yes. I need to touch you.

  I’ll be there as soon as I can, love.

  A short time later, after a quick stop at Cissy and Borac’s suite of rooms, Cissy had escorted Susa to Damon’s, and now her, new quarters. Once Cissy had made sure Susa had all she needed, her new cousin-kin left.

  Susa explored the very masculine suite of rooms consisting of a living area with a small kitchen, a large bedroom, a large bathing area, and a smaller room which looked to be an office. Susa had just settled in the office and was checking her messages when a small window in the corner of the monitor lit up.

  In the window, Cissy appeared with her infant son in her arms. “Sorry to bother you so soon, but there’s a call for you from Bria. I’ll switch it over to Damon’s unit. Oh, and when Damon gets back, make sure he knows we have reservations for the four of us for dinner in the Rim Runner restaurant on the casino level at 1900.”

  “Thanks, Cissy. I’m looking forward to dinner.” Maybe she and Damon could be efficient and combine sex with the shower? “Won’t the children be joining us?”

  Zoey was a darling little girl and a snuggler and had decided to call Susa, though a cousin, Auntie Susa. The baby Eban had been down for a nap and she hadn’t gotten the chance to hold him yet. Susa’s hormones surged at the thought she might already be pregnant with Damon’s child. If not now, she soon would be as many times as he made love to her.

  “One of the bartenders’ wives is babysitting. She has one Zoey’s age, and they love to play. I wanted your first night dinner to be all-adult so we could talk.” Cissy laughed. “Don’t look so disappointed. You’ll get your chance to be auntie. I would love to take naps when Eban does. So be assured, I’ll be asking you to watch Zoey.”

  “Good. I want to help. You need to rest and maybe even pamper yourself. You and Borac should take a short vacation off-station. I think Damon and I can handle two small children.”

  It would be good practice for them.

  “We’ll see, cousin. Now here’s Bria. See you later. Dress sexy. I am.” Cissy’s image flashed off and Bria’s appeared.

  “Hey, Bria.” Susa smiled at her friend. “How’s the pregnancy going?”

  “Hey, Susa.” Bria aimed the camera downward and showed a barely there baby bump poking at her tunic top. “Four months along and everything’s fine.” Her friend rubbed her stomach. “I love being pregnant.”

  “You look even more glowing than a month ago.”

  “That’s sun. I was gardening until Iolyn made me come inside and take a nap.” Bria giggled. “Well, I did lie down, but the nap got put off for something else, then I slept.”

  “So, the bonding sex is still going strong?” Susa asked, curious about how a pregnancy affected the early mating urges.

  “Yes, and from all I’ve heard from the many
mated women I’ve interviewed for my studies, the need for one another will continue. Iolyn says Ilar and Lorinda, even after all these years, are still going at it up to three times a day. I can’t imagine how many times a day they had sex before they slowed to that pace. Iolyn and I are still averaging six times a day, but we’ve also managed to do our jobs. So mental rigor has some effect.”

  “Well, you both are very disciplined and have important jobs.”

  While Damon had the jump station to run to distract him, Susa would be at loose ends. She’d need to ask Damon if there was something she could do to help with station operations. On Cejuru Prime, she had her garden and social activities with the other sex surrogates and her new friends to fill her days. She wasn’t one to be idle.

  “The reason for my call,” Bria said, “is because Cissy sent me a message hinting at some sort of intimate relationship between you and my brother. That you’re staying in his quarters and not hers and Borac’s. So I decided to come straight to the source and find out exactly what’s going on, especially in light of the questions you broached in your earlier message.”

  Susa should’ve known. Cissy had left her far too quickly. Her cousin-kin must’ve run to her quarters and sent Bria a message immediately.

  “It’s easier to show you.” Susa stood, pulled up her tunic and then tugged down the waist band of her leggings. “We’ve bonded, and both have marks. He’s my gemat, and I don’t know how I ever lived without him.”

  Bria clapped her hands and squealed. Tears of joy formed in her friend’s eyes. “This is fantastic. My brother is so lucky to have found you. And the fact you’re mated is beyond anything I would’ve dreamed of for both of you.”

  Susa’s eyes welled with tears of relief. “I’m so happy to hear you say that. I was worried—”

  Bria waved her off. “I’m thrilled you’re with my brother. He’s a wonderful man.”

  “Yes, he is,” sighed Susa.

  “Now, I’m going to take off my excited sister-kin hat and talk medical research. You’re the first Prime female to mark a non-Prime male that I know of.”

  “Have there even been any Prime females dating non-Prime males?” Susa asked.

  “Yes, I’m monitoring them closely, but they haven’t mated even though some of them are in serious relationships. So, you can imagine how greedy I am to get blood and tissue samples from you and Damon as soon as possible.”

  Susa bit her lip. “I just arrived—”

  “I understand. No worries.” Bria frowned, and Susa imagined her sister-kin’s brain seeking and rejecting solutions at high speed. Then Bria’s expression brightened. “Blood is easy. The paramedic on the station can obtain that, run the tests I need, and send me the results. Tissue is another matter. Hmm, maybe I can twist Iolyn’s arm into coming to the jump station for a visit. No, that won’t work.” Her nose scrunched, and she rolled her eyes at Susa. “He’s being an overprotective ass now that I’m pregnant. Not that he wasn’t overprotective before, but you know—Damon is just the same.”

  Yes, she did know and he was.

  “Oh well, tissue can wait.” Bria sighed. “But for now, tell me all about your mating process from the beginning until today. Don’t leave anything out. I’m recording it.”

  Susa shook her head and snickered at the excitement on Bria’s face and in her voice. Her friend was truly happy for her and Damon, but Susa felt the medical aspects of the bond excited the doctor in Bria even more.

  “Okay, it all started when he came to rescue me from the Dornians…” Susa spent the next fifteen standard minutes telling Bria all the details, skimming over the more personal aspects of the lovemaking. “Today, Borac’s touch was very painful. Damon wasn’t happy and was ready to flatten Borac until I explained it to him telepathically.”

  “The pain will lessen the longer you’re bonded, we’ve found, but touch from a stranger will still be uncomfortable—” Bria paused and then stared into the monitor. “Telepathic? You have more than empathic feelings?”

  “Yes.” Susa frowned. “From what I’ve heard and read, the telepathy could mean we’re battle-mates. So, that means, both Damon and I have to have the markers in our genes. But I don’t recall any battle-mates in my family. Maybe Borac will know.”

  “Ask him. I’ll have Cheri research your family history anyway. Her mate Zaek has been consolidating all the Prime family lines’ information into my database. We’ve begun tracing back battle-mate genetic markers and then cross-checking with the recorded histories we unearthed in Tenar’s home after his death.” Bria’s eyes shone with happiness. “Your news is fantastic. We’ll need tissue and blood samples more than ever now. Pregnancy or not, I’ll be twisting my mate’s arm to take a short jaunt to visit soon.”

  “Don’t do that, Bria. Damon and I have had some conversations about maybe splitting our time between the jump station and our home on Cejuru Prime. We plan to discuss the arrangement with Borac and Cissy. We thought they and the children might also like to spend some time on Cejuru Prime.”

  “That sounds wonderful. I know Iolyn and his brothers would enjoy meeting Cissy and the children and welcome Borac back home.” Bria sighed. “This is what the Prime race needed, more families. Things are getting better here every day.”

  “I’m so glad.” Susa looked toward the door and found Damon leaning on the jamb and smiling at her. “Damon is back from his discussion with my cousin. He looks all in one piece. So things are good here also.”

  Damon came up behind her and gave her ear a quick kiss and nuzzle. She shivered and was immediately aroused, needing him inside her.

  Soon, love.

  “Hey, little sister.” Damon’s warm breath brushed Susa’s cheek and her pussy grew wetter. “What do you think of our news?”

  “Hi, big brother. I’m beyond thrilled for you both.” Bria’s cheeks glistened from renewed tears. “Have you told our parents yet?”

  “I’m pretty damn happy also.” Damon kissed Susa’s cheek. “And no, I haven’t spoken with Mom and Dad, yet. We’ll do it later tonight. So don’t spoil my surprise, brat.”

  Bria stuck her tongue out, then grinned. “I won’t. I promise.”

  Rubbing her cheek against Damon’s, Susa smiled at Bria. “We’ll get the blood samples to you as soon as we can, and we’ll talk again soon. Oh, and please spread the word that Susa Anghard is now Susa Anghard-Martin. Love to you all.”

  “Love from all of us as well. Bria out.” Her picture flashed off.

  “You need me, Angel.” Damon pulled her from her seat, gathered her into his arms, then carried her out of the office. “And I sure as fuck need you.”

  Susa put her arms around his neck and hung on as he whispered about all the sexy things he planned to do to her.

  Chapter 25

  One standard week later, Club Hades

  Damon took a sip of his Valerian whiskey and observed Susa and Cissy as they led a meeting of the jump station’s sex workers and dancers. “Should we have had this kind of meeting before?” he asked Borac.

  Borac shrugged. “Not sure. We’ve always had an open-door policy for any issues that might arise. There are rules in place to protect the women from unwanted harassment and abuse. All we can do is address whatever comes up—as we always have.”

  “Yeah, you’re right.” Damon gestured in the general direction of the women with the hand holding the whiskey glass. “There seems to be a lot of discussion.”

  “Not sure if that is good or bad,” Borac said.

  Susa turned to look at Damon and smiled. It’s all good, lubho. Some healthy bitching. The rest is details. For the most part, you and Borac have done well.

  “I sensed the mind-talk. What did your gemate tell you?” Borac asked.

  “She said we’ve done well.”

  Shaking his head, Borac stared into his beer. “I still can’t believe you mind-talk as battle-mates do. Though I shouldn’t have been surprised. For a Terran, you fight like a Prime warrior and have
handed me my ass in training too many times for me to discount the fact you have Prime DNA.”

  Borac took a deep gulp of his beer, then looked up. “As we mature, Prime males are taught about the gemat-gemate bond, so we’d recognize it if it happened. But the battle-mate symbiosis was more of a legend. So, what does it feel like to have the close bonding of battle-mates?”

  Damon drank in the beauty, grace, and strength of the woman he now couldn’t live without. How could he put into words something that was indescribable? Something that grew ever stronger with every second he spent with her. A bond so intimate it felt like a sacrilege to share.

  Tell him, lubho. He’s Prime, and this is a part of his heritage he’ll never experience. The least we can do is share the wonder of our connection with those we love.

  I miss your touch, Angel.

  As I miss yours. We’re almost done, my gemat.

  Turning his attention back to his friend, Damon began, “I was fine before Susa came along—”

  Borac coughed. “Bria?”

  Damon’s response was a vulgar hand gesture. Borac laughed.

  “Now that I’m with Susa, I know what I felt for Bria wasn’t, for lack of a better word, right. At the time, it felt as if my heart had been torn from my chest.” Damon looked across the room and found Susa smiling at him. “With the mate-bond, Susa completed me. She’s part of my heart and soul. The battle-mate aspect takes the oneness up another notch, because she’s also a part of my mind. Even when she’s away from me, she isn’t.”

  Borac grimaced. “Not sure I’d want Cissy, whom I love more than my life, being able to know my thoughts.”

  “I was worried about that also,” Damon said. “It seems I’d already built strong walls around my innermost thoughts. Possibly because of the Prime DNA, but most likely due to the fact I did undercover work for the Alliance Military for many years and needed a mental shield against the enemy’s psychic abilities.”