by Mina Carter
“I’m good. Thank you for asking, though,” she murmured, patting his thigh, so close to hers. “You really are a sweet man.”
He didn’t want to be sweet. Not when the slight touch of her hand sent his body into overdrive. He managed to bite back the hiss that wanted to escape, schooling his body to remain perfectly still as he fought down his erection. All he wanted to do was haul her into his lap and claim her lips, devouring her like a starving man. Screw the rest of the people around the table.
“So, what’s it like for an army girl to be commanding a destroyer?” Another voice broke in across the table. He looked up to see the human female at Xaandril’s side—Kenna—smiling across at Dani. Unlike some of the pointed barbs from certain warriors around the table, there was no malice in her expression. “I thought you guys were all dirt-bound. Got space sick if you spent too long off planet.”
He caught the quirk of Dani’s lips. She was obviously amused at the barb, patting her lips with her napkin in an elegant gesture before answering.
“Well, we’re adaptable like that.” She leaned in toward him, but her comment was obviously meant for Kenna. “Poor thing. It’s not her fault… she’s a marine. It stands for Muscle always required, Intelligence not essential.”
He almost spat the mouthful of alcaia wine he’d just taken across the table, snorting and swallowing at the same time.
“What?”
“Hey!” Kenna gasped in protest, amusement in her eyes. “I resemble that remark. I should call you out, settle this once and for all.”
Several warriors around the table stopped talking, eyeing the two women with interest. Even Sardaan did. The idea of the two females fighting was… intriguing. And it would allow him to see exactly how Dani fought. That she was a warrior was undeniable… and the very idea fascinated him. She was so tiny. How did she manage?
A warrior further down the table snorted with laughter. “An entertaining interlude on Earth no doubt, pitting females against each other. It’s not like they could do any serious damage. They’re obviously there to look pretty and then the males take over the real fighting.”
All three humans turned to look at him, and Sardaan swore the temperature in the room dropped several degrees.
“Actually, Major General Black has been All-Forces Champion, our most difficult and dangerous military competition, for several years running,” Madison, the Terran vice president spoke up, her voice as cold as a cutting arc. “All our military women are just as highly trained and capable as our men. A fact more than a few Lathar have found out to their cost, I believe?”
She threw the comment out to the room as a whole, one eyebrow raised. Sardaan was forced to bite back his grin. The human woman had them there and no mistake. Stories of how the Sentinel women had bested the T’Laat and how one of them had executed that bastard Ishaan F’Naar had sent ripples through the empire.
“A mere fluke,” the warrior scoffed, amusement in his voice as he leaned back in his chair. He wasn’t K’Vass but from one of the clan ships that had arrived with the emperor. And, as far as Sardaan was concerned, needed a lesson in damn manners. He leaned forward to argue, but Dani put a small hand on his arm.
“You are, of course, entitled to your own opinion,” she said calmly. But the words you’re a draanthic idiot hung in the air unsaid. Sardaan sat back, not bothering to conceal his grin. Point to his beautiful little major general.
“Prove it. I challenge you.”
Shit. Sardaan shot upright in his seat at the words, the mood in the room changing in a heartbeat. He hadn’t expected any warrior to be impolite enough to challenge anyone tonight of all nights, but the tiniest smug look on the emperor’s face made him groan internally.
Of course. This was his cue to step in and protect the lady’s honor. To prove himself to her as a potential mate. He eyed the other warrior. Great. He was huge. Couldn’t they have found a smaller male?
“I accept the challenge on behalf—,” he growled, half out of his seat before a hand on his arm again stopped him in his tracks.
“You will do no such thing, Sardaan K’Vass.” Her voice was low but firm, that of a woman who was used to being obeyed. She looked at the warrior in question, her expression hard. “I accept your challenge. When and where?”
From the look of surprise in Daaynal’s eyes as he met Sardaan’s look, he hadn’t expected the human major general’s response either.
“Dani…” he turned to her with a soft murmur. “Are you sure this is wise?”
“Absolutely,” she said, putting her napkin on the table and standing. She didn’t look at him, instead catching Kenna’s eyes.
“If I could trouble you for a change of clothing. Mess dress is not the most comfortable thing to fight in…”
The marine grinned as she too stood. “Of course. Just this way.”
“Your Majesty!” Sardaan protested, trying to get the emperor on his side. “The major general is our guest. This is impolite and unfair…”
Plus, if anyone was getting her into a circle, it was him, for a claiming bout. Usually they were between males competing for a female’s affection, but with the lady in question being a warrior herself…
Daaynal just shrugged and Sardaan knew he wouldn’t intervene. What did it matter to him which male claimed Dani? As long as one of them did, it was all the same to the ruthless leader of the Lathar.
He stood, stunned for a moment as he realized there was a very real possibility he might lose the female he wanted before he’d even had a chance to claim her.
Not fucking happening. Not as long as he had breath in his body.
4
“Cool. Yeah, these’ll do.”
Dani smiled at Kenna as she handed over a pair of leather combats and a tank top. The leather was well worn and so soft she could tell it would move easily with her. The tank had built-in bra support, so she wouldn’t have to worry about anything moving that didn’t need to be.
“Here, try these.”
Dropping the clothing onto a low couch in the side chamber Kenna had pulled her into, she took the boots the marine woman held out and kicked a heel off to measure it against the bottom of her foot. She recognized the type. Standard issue, multi-fit size 2-Z-7. Her size. Even second-hand, they would fit like a glove.
“Yours?” she asked, casting a glance down at Kenna’s feet. She wore what had to be Latharian combat boots over her leathers, the buckles and laces halfway up her legs.
“Yeah. Right outta Sentinel Five, baby. All yours, just so I can see you kick Konaat’s ass.”
Dani snorted as she shrugged out of her formal jacket. “That the big guy’s name? Seems a bit of a dick.”
Kenna nodded, motioning for Dani to turn around so she could unzip her dress.
“You could say that. Konaat T’Kiis. Stuck in the mud traditionalist. Not as bad as the purists, but just as argumentative.”
“You can’t fight.”
The deep male voice from the doorway made them both look that way. Sardaan, her escort, stood there, his handsome face drawn tight.
“I can, actually. And quite well,” she told him as she shrugged out of the dress to her underwear. Instantly he averted his eyes, a flush on his cheeks.
She chuckled. “Don’t tell me the Lathar are prudish?”
“No,” he bit out a growl, venturing a look down and meeting her eyes as she pulled the leathers on. “Just didn’t expect you to bare yourself right in front of me. Do you do that with all males you just met?”
She just smiled and continued dressing. “Military women are not shy, handsome. Can’t be when you live in barracks.”
“You sleep in the same room as males of your species?” He blinked, shock on his handsome features. “How do you stop them claiming you any time they want?”
Dani looked over at Kenna for clarification.
“Claiming… When a Latharian male wants a woman, he ‘claims’ her. It’s like engagement and marriage all rolled into one. Th
ey don’t really do casual sex,” the marine explained.
“Yeah, what she said.” He stalked toward her, stopping just shy of her being able to feel his body heat against hers. She pulled the tank top on and reached for the boots.
“How do you stop males who want you?”
She shrugged as she put the boots on. As expected, they reformed around her feet perfectly. “Because if they were ever stupid enough to try it, I’d relocate their male equipment to where the sun doesn’t shine. And make them thank me for it.”
“Huh?” His expression revealed his confusion, so Kenna stepped in.
“She’d rip their dick and balls off and shove them up their asses.”
“OH!”
Dani smothered her chuckle as she turned to Kenna, pulling on combat gloves the other woman had also provided. Bunching her fists, she bumped them against the marine woman’s.
“Live hard, die young…” she murmured, grinning as Kenna’s voice joined hers in the chorus. “Take as many of the bastards with you as you can.”
“You’re both fucking crazy,” the big Latharian muttered, looking at them in something akin to horror.
“Death or glory,” Dani winked as she walked past him.
As soon as she stepped into the main hall, all amusement dropped from her face. The dining table had been removed and warriors crowded the edges of the walls. There was even a circle marked on the floor. Impressive how they’d arranged it all so quickly. She could almost believe it was a setup to get her to fight.
Her opponent, Konaat T’Kiis, was already in the circle, grinning as he spotted her in the doorway.
“Come in here, female, and let me show you how it’s done.”
“The T’Kiis are traditional fighters,” Sardaan said in a low voice as he walked at her side. “He’ll try to pull you in and use his strength to overpower you. Stay out of range and for goddess’ sake, don’t let him take you down to the floor. You won’t win there. He’s too big.”
He stopped her with a hard hand on her arm. “Please… Let me take your place. You can’t win this. And I don’t want you to lose.”
She favored him with a hard look, allowing the edge of her anger to show. “Full of confidence in my abilities. Aren’t you? Listen, I’ve been on more battlefields than you’ve had hot dinners, sunshine, and now I have something to prove to him, and,” she jabbed him in the center of his chest, “to you. Because you don’t think I can do it.”
Whirling on her heel, she entered the circle and stopped opposite Konaat. He looked her up and down.
“I’m missing dessert for this, asshole,” she snarled at him. “So let’s get this done and I can try this chocolate cake of yours everyone goes on about.”
Konaat cracked his knuckles, slamming one beefy fist into the other hand. “I might treat you, after I’m finished with you in my bed.” There was a gasp at his announcement and Sardaan surged forward, only to be held back by two big men.
“No! This is not a claiming bout!” he shouted, trying to get the emperor’s attention. “That should have been announced before she stepped into the circle!”
“I agree. This really is not appropriate,” Madison spoke up. “Major General?”
Dani danced lightly on the spot as she loosened up all her muscles, aware they were all watching her.
“I got this, ma’am.”
“Very well,” Daaynal’s deep voice announced. “The bout continues. Major General… Commander… in your own time.”
Dani let everything else fall away as she concentrated on her opponent. Konaat was tall and heavily muscled, a behemoth of a man. Like Sardaan said, she’d have to be careful not to let him get ahold of her or let him get too close or she was toast. The last thing she wanted was to end up some alien asshole’s bride.
* * *
“Draanth’s sake,” Sardaan muttered, prowling the edge of the circle as the tiny woman inside paced around the bigger Latharian. Fear hit him hard and fast. She was going to get hurt. Badly. And worse, when Konaat beat her, he’d get to claim her as his mate.
She’s mine, his instincts snarled. And she was. She’d been his from the moment he’d seen her on that viewscreen. He felt the pull toward her. She had to be his. The goddess wouldn’t have been so cruel as to show her to him only to snatch her away again. And Konaat wasn’t a gentle male. The thought of his delicate Dani in the big male’s bed… it made him sick to his stomach.
“Don’t panic. She’s got this,” Kenna said quietly.
He paused and looked at her in surprise. He hadn’t heard her sneak up on him and not many could. Not on him anyway. Riis maybe, the male was as clueless as a dronat in a forest.
“How?” he demanded, turning to the human woman, his voice low and urgent. “Tell me just how she’s got this! He’s twice her weight, nearly twice as tall. He’ll kill her! Or worse.”
Kenna folded her arms, that maddening little smile on her lips. “She’s won the All-Trial seven times, handsome. She can handle one little fight. Easy.”
“That’s a human thing,” he threw back, raking a hand through his hair. “I heard that before, but what does it mean?”
“The All-Trial?” Kenna raised one eyebrow. “It’s a series of seven trials, of agility, strategy and endurance. Competitors are drawn from all our service branches to battle it out over a week on the wastes of Jentaris Four. It’s tough, like real tough. Not only do those competing have to master the challenges, but they have to do it while others try and take them out of the competition.”
Sardaan blinked. “They have to fight others at the same time?”
Kenna nodded. “It’s totally no holds barred, absolutely brutal. People have died competing. I only did it the one year, ranked at thirty-four. Never again.”
He turned to assess the slender female in the center of the ring with new eyes.
“Seven times reigning champion,” Kenna leaned in to whisper. “Your guy is fucking toast.”
He folded his arms, a less than impressed look on his face. He hoped she was right, like really hoped she was right.
“Come on then, little female,” Konaat taunted, his arms spread widely as he mocked the woman in front of him. “Or are you too scared? We can call this off and I’ll claim you in my bed instead.”
Sardaan’s lip had begun to curl back into a snarl, but before he could complete the sound, Dani moved in for the attack. His jaw dropped open at her speed as she darted in. Before Konaat had the chance to block or defend himself, she’d landed three strikes, rapid fire blows to his ribcage before a stinging hook that bloodied his nose.
“Oh my lady…” he breathed in awe as she broke away, dancing lightly on her feet and out of Konaat’s range.
“Told you,” Kenna chuckled. “Toast.”
“Oh, you little… draanthic,” Konaat hissed, wiping the blood off his face with irritation. His anger at being shown up so publicly was palpable. “I’ll make you pay for that.”
“Anytime, sweetheart,” Dani threw back as she rolled her shoulder, dancing lightly on her feet on the opposite side of the circle.
No, Sardaan realized, not danced. She prowled. Like a predator. A slender, delicate predator, but a predator all the same. He watched, forced to admire her technique as she methodically tested Konaat’s defenses and range with lighting fast strikes. She kept out of range all the time, making the big warrior growl every time he lunged. He tried to tangle her up in his hold and missed.
It didn’t help that she slapped him as he passed, every time, the stinging, contemptuous blows designed to enrage. Clever, Sardaan thought. Make the bigger warrior lose his temper and focus.
It worked. Well.
Konaat roared in fury and charged. Half the warriors around the circle winced at the sloppiness of the move, his guard lazy on the left-hand side. The small human dropped the act and moved in for the kill.
Her movements were precise—surgical as she moved like a lethal, well-oiled machine. Ducking under Konaat’s wild punch, s
he hammered two hard punches into his ribs, the controlled movement one that spoke of long experience. The sharp crack that rolled around the room said she’d broken a rib.
Konaat gasped, staggering to the side a bit before getting himself back together. It didn’t take long. Sloppy warriors didn’t last long in the empire, especially not at Konaat’s standing. He snarled and turned on her again.
She didn’t quail in the face of his attack, merely dropping to the ground. A hard sweep of her leg took out one of the big warrior’s and he stumbled again. She leaped to her feet and moved in, a flurry of blows aimed at his head and neck. He bellowed, bringing his arms up to guard, but he couldn’t block them all.
Sardaan sucked his breath in as one blow snuck through, catching the big male square in the face. His head snapped back on his neck and he swayed, a stunned look on his face.
“Yes!” Sardaan hissed, surging forward to the very edge of the circle. She was winning. Gods, he would never have believed it possible, but she was actually winning against Konaat.
Make that won.
Another flurry of blows and the big male was done. Blood streaming from his nose, he toppled over backward like a felled tree. Dani stepped back, her stance still wary in case Konaat managed to make it to his feet again. He didn’t, collapsing onto the floor with a groan.
The crowd around the circle roared. Even though their warrior had lost, they didn’t care. Latharian culture revered strength and ability and the human woman, tiny as she was, had proved to be the better warrior. That was all they cared about.
“An excellent fight! Well done, Major General!” Daaynal beamed in approval, clapping, but something about the set of his body put Sardaan on high alert. He watched the big emperor like a hawk.
There. The slight flicker of his gaze toward a warrior on the other side of the circle and he realized what was going on. They were going to keep throwing warriors in the circle until she was worn down and tired… until she lost to someone.
He growled. That someone was going to be him.
Stepping into the ring, he announced in a loud voice. “I challenge Major General Black for the right of claiming.”