by Tana Stone
Another shake of his head. “I can’t. It’s impossible.”
Her eyes flashed and she snatched her hand back. “Can’t or won’t? What? Does having a mate interfere with your big plans of being a spy again? Do you think I’d cramp your style? Or maybe you want to be free to fuck anyone you want?”
He felt stung by her words and felt his own heat rising. “That’s not it. I don’t want to fuck anyone else.”
“You sure you don’t want to keep your options open when you hit the brothels at the alien outposts, or the pleasure planets?”
He opened and closed his mouth. “How do you know about those?”
She shrugged. “People on the space station talk, and I’m a good listener. I know all about how Drexians learn their tricks before being matched up with a tribute bride.”
Kax had been to the pleasure planets—every Drexian warrior had—but they’d given him nothing compared to what Bridget had. “I have no desire to be with anyone else, but I can’t be with you, either. It’s out of my hands.”
She glared at him. “What does that even mean?”
He wanted to tell her, but the shame of admitting he was less than a man made the words choke in his throat. How could he tell her he could never fill her belly with a child, could never give her a family, and could never be a father? He gave an abrupt shake of his head.
“Aren’t tribute brides the Drexians’ most valuable asset?” Bridget asked.
“Yes, but—”
“And aren’t you supposed to give me anything I want? Isn’t that the whole purpose of your fancy space station? To keep us pampered and spoiled so we’ll be happy enough to help you keep your species going?” She didn’t wait for him to reply. “Then I want you. That’s what will make me happy. I want you in my bed every night, fucking my brains out.”
Heat coursed through him. It was all he wanted, too. He took her face in his hand and stroked his thumb across her cheek, feeling his resolve weaken. “You’re sure you want me? You’re sure you want this? Even if…” He paused.
“No matter what,” she said, her eyes meeting his with equal fire as she moved her head to take his thumb into her mouth.
“You don’t know what you’re saying,” he insisted, his eyes fluttering shut as she sucked his thumb hard.
She reached down and clasped a hand around his cock, her fingertips not quite meeting, and he released her face, his eyes snapping open.
“I know what I want,” she said. “I may not believe in fairytales or soul mates, or any of that crap, but I know I’ve never had this kind of chemistry with anyone. I know you make me feel safe.”
He flipped her onto her back as white-hot desire surged through him. He crushed his mouth to hers, devouring the sweet taste of her as he kissed her deeply. Bridget’s hungry noises made his blood ignite. His tongue swirled with hers, his own sounds becoming husky when her fingers caressed his nodes, stroking them to hardness. He reared back and grasped one ankle in each hand. “This is what you want?”
She nodded, her nipples tightening into hard points.
He opened her legs until she was spread wide for him, and he gazed hungrily at her. She moaned and bit the edge of her bottom lip. He pushed the crown of his cock inside her and watched her pupils dilate. “You want more?”
“I want all of you,” she said.
“You make it so hard for me to go slow,” he said, feeling his tightly coiled need igniting.
She ran one finger down her body and teased her own clit. “I like making you lose control.”
“You do, do you?” Her words and the sight of her own finger circling her pleasure center made him moan. “I may have to punish you for that, naughty girl.”
She licked her lips. “Yes, please.”
He surged into her, holding her legs open wide and watching as his thick cock stretched her, claiming her as his. Bridget screamed as he pounded into her, arching her back so he could go deeper.
“You like your punishment?”
“Hurts so good,” she gasped.
“That’s my naughty girl.” Kax didn’t stop until he felt her muscles clench his cock like a vise, the spasms rocking her body and making her cry out. The sensations slammed through him—wave after scorching wave—as he climaxed with a final hard stroke and burrowed his cock into her.
Panting, he looked down at her flushed face and the satisfied grin she gave him. He released her ankles and wrapped her legs around his waist, then collapsed next to her.
Bridget rolled on top of him. “If that was your way of talking me out of it, then you’re going to need to try harder, tough guy.”
Kax ignored the gnawing feeling in his gut as he slid one arm underneath her and pulled her closer.
Chapter Twenty-One
Bridget ran through the darkness, her bare feet barely landing on the loamy soil as she dodged trees and tangled with underbrush. Her toes felt cold, so she looked down and saw frost glistening on the ground. The moonlight made it shimmer, and she thought how pretty it was before her brain questioned why there was snow or a moon. The mining colony didn’t have a moon that she recalled.
Somehow she knew she was on Earth, but that didn’t make sense. How had she gotten back to Earth? The last thing she remembered was being with Kax.
She glanced desperately around. Where was he? He wouldn’t have left her by herself, would he? The woods seemed empty, aside from her, but that also made no sense. Her head spun as she heard the sound of footsteps in the distance. These weren’t soft like hers. They pounded the ground and echoed in her ears, and she began running again. Bridget’s heart raced as she ran, and she looked back over her shoulder, seeing nothing but the dark.
Looking ahead, she saw a hand reaching back for her. Bridget reached desperately for the hand. She couldn’t tell if it was a man’s hand or woman’s hand, young or old, she just knew she had to grab it. She was so close, their fingertips were nearly touching. Then she lunged, and the hand dissolved into a swirl of mist.
Bridget bolted upright in bed, her breath heavy. The room was dark, but she wasn’t in the woods, and there was no frost on the ground. She snatched her feet up under her to warm them as she tried to calm herself.
“It was just a dream,” she whispered to herself, comforted by the sound of her own voice in the stillness.
Kax grunted and rolled over, still deep in sleep.
She didn’t want to wake him. Nightmares were par for the course. She’d been having them since she was a child. She was always running—being chased by someone she never saw—she was always alone, and she was never able to reach the hand. It didn’t take a shrink to pinpoint her abandonment issues. Not that Bridget had ever gone to a psychiatrist. Her grandmother had raised her with the philosophy that you didn’t complain and you soldiered through—no matter what. Life wasn’t fair, but it didn’t do you any good to dwell on it. That’s why they’d almost never talked about her parents’ death. The only time she allowed herself to feel fear or doubt was in her dreams. She rubbed her arms briskly.
“Are you okay?” Kax’s voice made her jump. He was propped up with his elbows behind him, the sheet down around his waist and exposing his bare chest.
“Of course.” She stopped rubbing her arms. “I’m sorry I woke you.”
He sat up and pulled her close. “You’re shaking.”
“It’s nothing. A nightmare. I get them all the time.”
“You’re safe now,” he said. “You’re with me.”
Considering what had happened and where they were, she wasn’t sure that was entirely true, but the warmth of his body comforted her. She let herself sag against him. “But you won’t always be around. No one ever stays forever.”
“I’m not going anywhere.”
“I know you don’t want to,” Bridget said, her voice small. “But people always leave, whether they want to or not. That’s why I can’t…”
“Can’t…?” he prodded, his tone gentle.
She let out a long b
reath. It was easier to say it in the dark where she couldn’t see his reaction. “Why I can’t believe in happily ever after, or soul mates, or forever, or any of those things. Love doesn’t save you. My parents loved each other, and me, and that didn’t save them from being killed in a car crash. My grandmother loved me, but that didn’t mean she could prevent herself from dying and leaving me to the foster system. Love made everything hurt more. Life isn’t like a fairytale. Not the life I’ve known, at least.”
He stroked her arm. “Life isn’t always fair.”
She gave a brusque shake of her head. “It doesn’t matter. Losing people toughened me up. I can survive being alone. I’ve had to be on my own enough to know I’ll always be able to take care of myself.”
“I know you’re tough,” he said, amusement in his voice. “I’ve seen you fight. I’ve also seen the side of you that isn’t so tough.”
She thought of their bodies entwined, and her cheeks warmed. She wanted to insist that it had just been sex, but that would have been a lie. It had been great sex, but it had been more than that.
“Is that what you want?” he asked, his voice soft. “To be alone?”
“What do you want?” she asked, too scared to give him an honest answer. What she really wanted was for him to tell her he loved her and would fight to be with her, and that he’d never leave her. She wanted him to prove her wrong and fill the gaping hole in her heart.
“Something I can never have,” he said, his voice thick.
The hopelessness in his voice made her skin go cold. Before she could make him explain, she heard it. A footstep. The heartbeat she’d just calmed began racing again. “Do you hear that?”
He went still. She held her breath while they both listened. Another thud on the floor—not robotic, though. Someone was on the hallway.
“Not machine,” he whispered, tensing beside her.
Steady footsteps—from more than one set of feet—grew louder as they got closer. Kax slipped out of bed, pulling his cargo pants on quietly and handing Bridget’s clothes to her. She fumbled to get dressed in bed and joined him at the door.
“Do you think the Kronock are back?” she asked, her voice barely audible.
“Doesn’t sound like them,” he said. “Too hesitant. The Kronock would come in with blasters firing.”
He pushed her back with one hand. “I’m going to go out and see. You stay in here.”
“Are you nuts? What if it is them or someone worse?”
“Then they’ll get in here eventually.” He pressed his lips to her forehead. “I’d rather take them on my own terms.”
She let out a breath. What was it about men that made them always want to run headfirst into battle?
The footsteps had stopped, so Kax pushed the dresser away from the door and opened it with his blaster drawn. The hallway was illuminated by a single emergency light at the far end, the warm glow making it possible to identify shapes and not much else.
“Drop your weapon.” The voice did not belong to Kax, but it was familiar.
“Dorn?” Kax asked. “Brother, is that you?”
A loud sigh. “Am I glad to see you. This is the third floor we’ve cleared. I was starting to think you and the bride had been taken. Is Bridget still with you?”
“Right here.” Bridget stepped out from the room and gave a little wave, trying not to feel irritated at being called “the bride” again.
Dorn stood halfway down the hall, with several other Drexian soldiers. He wore his military uniform, his dark hair shaggy around his ears. He cleared the distance between them in a few long strides, holding a bulky rifle across his body. When he got closer, she noticed the brilliant emerald eyes she’d grown accustomed to in Kax’s face.
“There are a lot of people back on the station who’re eager to see you,” Dorn said, giving her odd attire the once-over and turning his attention to his brother. “And eager to award you commendations.”
“Commendations?” Kax lowered his blaster as the Drexian soldiers with Dorn joined them, forming a semicircle behind their commander.
“For rescuing a tribute bride out from under the nose of the enemy.” Dorn clapped a hand on his shoulder. “Looks like you haven’t lost your touch.” His eyes dropped to Kax’s bare chest. “Although you seem to have lost your shirt.”
Kax ignored the comment and the curious look his brother gave him as he looked between her and him. “Then they’ll be even more pleased when we tell them what we know about the Kronock’s plans.”
Dorn cocked an eyebrow. “Anything that should worry me?”
“They’re planning an imminent invasion of Earth. Have been for a while,” Kax said. “They didn’t take Bridget to get a response from us. They took her so they could use her DNA to create some sort of hybrid human-Kronock.”
Dorn’s mouth gaped. “What?”
“They didn’t get to,” Bridget said. “At least I’m pretty sure they didn’t, but they said something about making it easier to invade Earth.”
Dorn tilted his head at her. “That doesn’t make sense. Then again, the Kronock have a lot more tricks up their sleeves than we thought they did. At least you stopped this part of their plan.”
Bridget didn’t mention that the plan to take her seemed more like a personal mission of Krav’s, than anything else. She didn’t like thinking he might still be coming for her.
“I hope you have room for us,” Kax said, ducking into the room and grabbing both his and Bridget’s environmental suits. “I had to blow up the shuttle.”
Dorn gave him a look. “I’m assuming you had an excellent reason.”
“I thought it was the kind of thing you would do.” Kax thumped his brother on the back, then handed Bridget her suit and proceeded to tug his on. “I’d rather not be here when the Kronock figure out I’ve tricked them, though. At the moment, they believe Bridget and I both died in the explosion. I’d like to keep it that way.”
Dorn jerked a thumb toward the exit. “Let’s go.”
The other soldiers led the way down the hall, laser rifles held up. Kax put a hand on her back as they followed and she liked feeling his warmth, even though his arm wasn’t around her.
Dorn glanced over his shoulder. “Her fiancé will be happy to hear we’ve got her.”
Kax’s steps faltered. “Fiancé? I thought he died in the battle.”
“The first one did, but they’ve already made a new match. An impressive match. The son of High Commander Terk.”
Kax’s hand dropped from her back. “So soon?”
“What if I don’t want to be matched with this guy?” Bridget asked, her words sharper than she’d intended them to be.
Dorn glanced back at her, one eyebrow cocked. “I thought you were okay with the deal. Mandy told me you were more eager than she was, although that wouldn’t have been hard.”
It was no secret—even to Dorn—how Mandy had railed against being a tribute bride, until she’d fallen for her fiancé. The problem for Bridget wasn’t the concept of the tribute bride system. It was that, despite her insistence in not believing in love, she’d fallen for Kax.
“Karsh is a decent warrior,” Dorn said. “Not as much of a pretty boy as my brother here, but you can’t have everything.”
Kax didn’t look at her. “You should give him a chance.”
Bridget was glad the other Drexians were facing forward so they couldn’t see her shoot daggers at him. How could he suggest she seriously consider another mate when they’d just rolled out of bed together? She was still sore from him being insider her, and he was fine with this Karsh guy marrying her? She’d spilled her guts to him, and he turned around and told her to accept a match with another warrior?
Her cheeks burned with humiliation. What was going on? Only hours ago he’d seemed convinced by her arguments. Then again, should she really have to convince him they should be together? She knew she didn’t understand Drexian culture, but his reluctance made no sense to her. If anyone deserved
to be awarded a tribute bride, it should be Kax. He was a member of the elite ruling class, and now he’d pulled off a rescue mission, saving her from the Kronock and relaying secrets about the enemy. He should be able to have his pick of brides, even one who’d already been matched with someone else. Why did he seem so sure it could never happen?
She looked at the rigid set of his face as he walked beside her. He’d given her up so quickly she felt like her head was spinning. Had she read things so wrong? Sure, he was attracted to her. He couldn’t pretend he wasn’t when her lightest touch made him hard, but she saw now it wasn’t enough. What she’d thought was something deeper, he must not have. Otherwise, he’d fight for her. Tell the High Command to go fuck themselves and claim Bridget for himself. Maybe to Kax it was just sex. Great, bone-melting sex, but nothing worth going against the Drexian traditions or rules for.
“You’re right,” she said. “No reason not to, right?”
Dorn held open the door to the stairwell, letting her pass underneath his arm and falling in line once Kax walked by. “I’ll brief you on your next mission once we’re aboard.”
“Next mission?” Kax asked.
Dorn put a hand on his brother’s shoulder. “You can take a day or two for R and R if you need it, but then the High Command wants you to do some recon on the Kronock research facility.”
Kax looked straight ahead. “I won’t need any time off.”
Bridget was glad she was holding the metal handrail because her legs nearly buckled when she heard his toneless response. Not only was he not going to fight for her, he wasn’t even going to stick around long enough to say a proper goodbye. She leaned against the cool metal, her hands gripping the rail so tightly she knew without looking that her knuckles were white. She’d been wrong about people before, but never this wrong.
This is what happens when you let someone in, the little voice in her head told her. You knew better than to trust him. There’s no such thing as happily ever after. Not for you.
She bit her bottom lip until she tasted the metallic tang of blood, and she swallowed it down.