by Hope Hart
I open my mouth, once again struck dumb by the insane male in front of me, but he doesn’t wait for what was sure to be a very well-made point that would shut down all his arguments.
Instead, he pulls me to him, catching my lips with his as he hauls me into my kradi.
I moan into his mouth, and he grins against my lips. I valiantly manage to pull my head back, taking in the way he glowers down at me—his face a combination of fury and lust.
But there’s something in his eyes. Something that looks a lot like hope.
“What are we doing?”
“Mating.”
I blink at that. “Wait. You want to mate with me? You know I’m getting on that ship, right?”
Strangely, the thought no longer makes me tremble with anticipation at kicking Grivath ass.
He nods, flashing his teeth at me. “You can be my temporary mate.”
“Have you gone temporarily insane?”
He shrugs. “I never imagined I’d have a mate for life.”
“Why not?”
He shrugs again, but it seems more like an attempt to be nonchalant. “That kind of life is not for me.”
I frown at that, opening my mouth to explore this some more.
No, Sarissa. He’s offering you the chance to get whatever this crazy chemistry thing is out of your system. Take it.
“Okay, then. Show me what you’ve got.”
His smile is pure male challenge. “I believe I already have,” he purrs, and I blush at the reminder of the way I was grinding against him this morning.
Was it truly only this morning?
He walks me backward toward the furs on the far side of the kradi. Then he spins me in place, turning me until I’m facing the kradi wall as he gets to work on the laces of my dress.
He deftly unties the laces, pulling at them until my dress is loose and then pushing it off my shoulders.
My dress falls to the floor, and he lets out a low sound that’s somewhere between a groan and a growl. I glance over my shoulder at him, but his gaze seems to be glued to my butt.
His hands cup my waist, then one of them slides over my ass, and that same low sound escapes his throat.
Obviously he appreciates all those squats I did on Earth.
I shiver as he pulls me close, his hands sliding up to cup my breasts from behind. His fingers are rough and calloused, and they feel like heaven as he strokes my nipples.
I gasp, and he spins me again. His eyes are liquid silver, and they seem to see all the way into my soul. His mouth slants over mine, and I moan as he gathers me into his arms, laying me back on the furs. I shiver at the feel of the fur caressing my back and his hard body on top of mine.
Korzyn kisses me as if he’s a drowning man and I’m his only hope for air. He kisses me like this is his last kiss ever and he wants to remember it for the rest of his life.
I throw everything I have back into our kiss, stroking his tongue with mine as I wrap my arms around his neck. I can feel him, so very hard and thick against me, and I squirm, suddenly desperate to feel him inside me.
He lets out a low laugh, raising his head, and for a moment, I think he’s going to leave me frantic for him.
Instead, he kisses me again, his hand sliding down to rub at the most sensitive part of me. I let out a choked sob as need claws up my spine, and his kiss turns gentle as he pushes his fingers inside me, finding the spot that makes me shudder in his arms.
This is really happening.
I’m going to have sex with the commander.
And I can already tell it’s going to be world-shattering sex.
Is it a bad idea? Yes. Am I doing it anyway? Also yes.
Korzyn curls his fingers inside me, and I gasp. He laughs, removing them, and I stare as he raises them to his mouth.
“Mmm,” he says. “Delicious.”
“Dirty, dirty commander.”
His smile is devilish, and he drops his head to my breasts, nuzzling at them before taking one nipple in his mouth. He sucks strongly at it, and I go tense as if I’ve been electrocuted, pleasure engulfing me.
He laughs again as I gasp.
Two can play at this game.
I run my hands through my hair and then gently scrape my nails over the sensitive scales along his shoulders and down his back. He shudders against me, raising his head.
“Inside me,” I order, and for once, he doesn’t argue.
He takes his time though, driving me out of my mind as he winks at me, pulling back and positioning himself against me. He uses his cock to gather my wetness and then strokes it against my clit, laughing at my gasped curse.
And then finally, finally he slides inside me, filling me up in a way I couldn’t have imagined, even though I’ve checked out his cock every chance I got.
It’s more than just the way we fit together though. It’s the feeling of coming home. His eyes burn into mine, and I arch against him until he’s seated fully within me.
He leans down and takes my mouth, and then he’s moving, plunging into me with a desperation I match, lifting my hips and grinding against him. His thrusts turn rough, and he seems to force himself to hold back.
I don’t think so.
“Harder,” I say, and he growls as I rake my nails down his back.
He gives me what I want, thrusting deep and hard and grinding against my clit in the most delicious way. I clutch at him, shocked at the pleasure spreading through my body.
“More.”
“If you insist.”
I thought he was deep before, but he bares his teeth at me in a feral grin before nipping at my bottom lip.
And then he plunges into me, again and again. He twists his hips, hitting my G-spot with every stroke, and liquid pleasure turns my muscles to jelly.
I groan as I shudder, my orgasm turning everything around me into soft golden light.
Everything except his face, and those eyes, still burning into mine as he empties himself inside me.
Sarissa
I wake, choking, confusion making my movements slow. The air is thick with smoke, and I cough, stumbling out of bed. I know enough to get on the floor where the air is clearer, but it takes me a moment to understand what’s happening.
Fire.
Oh God.
Claire.
Our parents left us here with Opal, our nanny, and I yell for her, but there’s no reply. I press the back of my hand against the door handle, and it’s warm. As long as it’s not burning hot, I can open it. Right?
I have no choice. I fling it open. I have to get to Claire’s room.
The smoke is even thicker here, a dark fog that crawls into my mouth and down my throat, choking my lungs.
“Claire!” I scream, but I hear no reply. All I hear is the crackle of flames as I crawl down the hall, toward her room.
The ceiling groans, and I glance up. The fire is above us. I have to get to Claire and get her out.
A creaking sound makes me jump, and I get to my feet, stumbling faster down the hall and toward my sister.
But the hall is getting longer and longer, and no matter how fast I run, I can’t seem to get any closer to her.
I sit up, my face damp with sweat. Beside me, Korzyn is awake, his gaze steady on my face.
Shit.
“What is it?” he asks. His voice is low, careful, and I let out a shaky breath.
“Just a nightmare.”
“Do you want to talk about it?”
“No.”
I lie back down, and he reaches his arm out, pulling me close. He rubs his lips against mine, exceedingly gentle, and I open my mouth.
Nothing comes out.
Korzyn kisses me again and then runs his hand through my hair, gently untangling it.
“I lost my sister in a house fire,” I finally manage to get out. “I was eleven, and she was eight. Our housekeeper fell asleep with a cigarette in her hand, and our nanny had snuck off to be with her boyfriend. My parents were in Cabo after my father had had another affair and m
y mother had threatened divorce—a big step for her. My father was never home, and my mother was usually drunk.
“They’d added a wing onto the house and hadn’t checked that the new smoke detectors were properly connected. My father had decided the company working on the project was ripping him off, so he’d fired them.” I realize Korzyn has no idea what I’m talking about, so I attempt to explain.
He frowns at my description but slowly nods when I tell him how smoke detectors give advance notice of smoke so people can escape a fire.
I let out a wet laugh, my chest aching. “All that money, all that help, and no one cared enough to check if we were safe.
“How did you escape?”
I shrug. “I was running toward Claire’s rooms, but the ceiling was engulfed in flames above me. The heat…I can’t even describe it. I was trying to get to her when something collapsed on me.”
I shift, staring at the kradi wall. “Even now, I have dreams where I find her and lead her to safety. Sometimes, they’re nightmares, and I find her body because I was too late. A neighbor dragged me out. I had second-degree burns on my legs, a concussion, and smoke inhalation, but other than that, I was fine. Claire didn’t make it.”
“And your parents?”
“My mother slapped me across the face. She said I should have taken better care of my sister. She was right.”
“You did all you could have, Sarissa. A tiny child of just eleven summers? You were lucky to survive yourself.”
“Why? Why was I the lucky one and Claire wasn’t?”
“I don’t know. I wish I did. But I can tell you your sister would want more for you than a life spent sacrificing what you need for others.”
I glance up at him, my eyes wet with tears, and he gently brushes his lips across mine.
I fall silent. My throat aches so much that if I talk any more, I’m pretty sure I’ll devolve into full-blown sobs.
When you lose someone—especially when you lose them too early—it never gets easier to wake up, knowing they’re no longer in your world. Knowing you’ll no longer see them, hear them, touch them. Your pain never lessens—you just learn how to hide it better, walking around with a giant hole in your chest.
“I’m sorry,” Korzyn murmurs, his hand stroking my hair. “I can’t imagine what it must have been like to lose a sibling so young.”
My heart aches for him. At least I was allowed to know my sister. “You never got to visit?”
“My trainer believed I needed to be wholly devoted to Arix. I snuck back to the village once, and my father beat me for dishonoring him. I wanted to see if my mother had had the baby—wanted just a glimpse.”
Fury makes my face hot at the thought of how rejected Korzyn must have felt. All he wanted was to see his baby brother or sister. I would’ve done the same thing.
“I never went back,” he says. “My father made it clear if I ever dishonored him in such a way again, he would kill me.”
“I’m so sorry.”
He shrugs, but when I lift my head to look at his face, his eyes are hard as he stares at the roof of the kradi.
“I once asked my trainer why I was the one picked from our tribe. Why I had to leave my family.”
“What did he say?”
“He said I was larger than the other males my age, better with a sword, and easily expendable.”
“What?”
He nods. “If I saved Arix’s life, my life would be considered well spent. I may have been strong for my age, but my real skill was my speed. They thought I would be ideal as Arix’s closest guard—able to step between him and anyone who would attack him. My trainer said my life was worthless unless used to save the king.”
“Wow. Sounds like we both had shitty childhoods.”
He chuckles at that, stroking my hair some more, and within a few moments, my eyelids are heavy.
Korzyn
I wake with the hellion in my arms, and my body instantly responds, hard and ready. She’s curled against me, soft and warm and deceptively innocent.
I almost snort at that.
She opens her eyes, a deep green this morning and blurred with sleep. I can’t help but lean down and take her mouth, hardening further at the way she opens for me.
“Mmm,” she says against my mouth, and I roll her onto her back. She blinks up at me, seeming to realize where she is, and a blush climbs up her chest to her cheeks.
“I’m in bed with the commander,” she mutters, and I laugh, warmth unfurling in my chest.
“Yes, you are.”
And I’m going to make her feel so good that she never forgets me.
The thought of her getting onto that ship suddenly stabs into me like a dull knife, twisting into my gut. I push it away and take her mouth again, stroking my tongue against hers until she lets out a needy moan.
She rubs against me, one of her legs wrapping around my hips, but I shake my head, pulling away.
“Not yet.”
I throw the furs off, exposing her incredible body to my hungry gaze. Her breasts are round and firm, perfect for my hands, while her flat stomach and curved hips tempt my eyes down…down.
She takes a deep breath, her breasts rising—hard, peaked nipples tempting me—and I give her a look.
She laughs, and her breasts jiggle. I can’t help but lower my head to them, nipping and sucking until she’s writhing against me. I kiss my way down her stomach, smiling as she sucks in a breath and then lets out a giggle. I raise my gaze to hers, and she clamps her hand over her mouth at the sound, but her eyes are laughing at me.
I lick at the spot near her hip, blowing cool air on the sensitive skin, and she shivers against me.
So I move lower and do it again. And again.
I slide my hands around the back of her thighs and up until I can elevate her, positioning her exactly where and how I want her.
I raise my gaze and find her staring down at me, entranced.
I hold eye contact as I give her a shallow lick against her slit, and her eyes widen. I slide my tongue further down, and she gasps, throwing her head back.
My signal to continue.
Her body tenses, her thighs clenching beneath me already, and I let out a low laugh against her, making her groan. I flick my tongue against her sensitive nub, and her breaths become heavier, faster.
She’s so responsive, her body made for me.
I quash that thought and lick her faster as she raises her hips, grinding against me.
“Korzyn…”
My name on her lips is delicious. But not as delicious as the taste of her, so wet and warm beneath me.
I thrust two fingers into her, swirling my tongue around her clit, and she begins to tremble, on the edge.
I frown. Too soon. I could do this for days.
“Korzyn, please.”
I sigh but comply, twisting my fingers as I close my lips on her nub, sucking and licking.
She goes perfectly still as her breath catches.
And then she shatters against me, quaking around me, burying her hands in my hair as she moans above me.
Perfection.
I kiss my way up her body, positioning myself against her. She opens for me, but her body is still relaxed, her eyes closed.
I slide one hand down and over her clit, and she opens her eyes with a gasp.
“Now that I have your attention.” I thrust inside her, and she’s so tight I see stars as she spreads her legs wider. Her breasts are a temptation I can’t ignore, and I lean down, nipping and sucking.
She raises one foot and presses it against my leg, spurring me on, and I pull back, thrusting again and again as she cries out beneath me.
I lose all control, almost falling over the edge.
Not without her.
I strum my thumb against her clit, and her breath catches again, the sound music to my ears as she goes tense.
And then she moans, shuddering against me, and I plunge into her, deeper and deeper, until she comes again, pleas
ure ripping down my spine as I empty myself inside her.
I gasp, suddenly weak as I roll away, careful not to crush her. The poison may be out of my body, but the effects remain.
“Are you okay?”
“Better than okay.”
I have the hellion in my arms, and she sighs against me, closing her eyes. I watch her until my own eyelids become heavy.
The kradi bells ring.
Sarissa groans, her eyes opening to slits. I can’t help but laugh. It feels strangely right to have her in my arms after all this time. I freeze at the thought, staring at her, and she frowns up at me.
“What?” I ask.
The kradi bells ring again, and Sarissa mutters a curse under her breath, burying herself beneath the furs.
“Yes?”
“Rakiz requests your presence in his tashiv,” a deep voice I don’t recognize says, and I sigh.
“I will be there momentarily.” I roll away from the temptation of Sarissa’s body and reach for my pants.
Sarissa sighs, and my gaze wanders toward where she’s stretching, the fur falling from her breasts.
I instantly harden again. “You little witch.”
She grins at me, and I stalk toward her, leaning down and burying my hand in her hair as I take her mouth. Why am I not surprised that even this will be a power struggle?
With Sarissa, I will never be bored.
Until she leaves.
That thought allows me to pull away from the hellion, who drops onto her back and sighs.
“I suppose I should go meet Alexis and Kate,” she murmurs. “By now, they’ve probably tried the control chip.”
The thought darkens my mood, but I nod. “I will see you later.” She opens her mouth, but I leave the kradi, the cooler air outside helping me collect my thoughts.
Dragix is sitting in Rakiz’s tashiv when I arrive, his mate by his side. Charlie has regained some color in her face, but her eyes are still ringed with dark circles.
The dragon himself seems to have recovered, although his body is tense and he holds himself as if still in pain.
Dragix glances up at me, nodding in greeting. “I will go to Arix today,” he says.
I tilt my head. “Are you sure you’re healthy enough to travel?”