That’s when Mina realized that she was still clutching her tray. Nice. She whipped it up and smashed it into the woman’s face.
With a groan, she went down.
But before Mina could celebrate, the man rushed her.
Drak.
The big guy lifted her off her feet and slammed her into the wall. Pain rattled up her spine.
* * *
“Tannon, I believe we have a problem.”
Tannon turned from where he stood at the edge of the crowd, monitoring the eager customers standing close to the stage.
One of his security team, Inigo, was standing to attention with a panicked-looking server. He flicked through his memory. “Briella?”
More explosions came from the stage and the music thumped loudly.
Briella’s mouth moved, but he couldn’t hear her.
He leaned closer. “What is it?”
Briella swallowed. “I saw Mina. She said some customers had dragged a dealer into a maintenance corridor.”
Tannon felt his muscles tense. “Where?”
“On the far side of the floor. Near the rakarran tables.”
Tannon looked at Inigo. “Get two more guards and meet me there.”
The man nodded and melted into the crowd.
“We’ll find her,” Tannon said to Briella.
The woman bit her lip. “She went into the corridor, Tannon. She wouldn’t wait.”
Anger and fear surged through him. The little fool should never have left the floor. He charged through the crowd. Most people saw him coming, took one look at his face, and moved. He’d been getting that a lot today.
He reached the maintenance door and saw the blocked security camera. His lips firmed. Drak.
A second later, Inigo and two of the security team—a man and a woman—appeared. Tannon nodded his head and the four of them stepped into the corridor.
Instantly, he heard the sounds of a fight. His pulse rate spiked and he broke into a run.
He turned the corner and saw a terrified dealer, uniform and hair askew, watching the skirmish in one of the equipment rooms. She was clutching an arm to her chest, but appeared unharmed.
A brown-haired woman was slumped against the wall. Her eyes were open, but she was barely conscious.
And in the center of the room, a large, horned man had Mina pinned against the wall. She was hammering at his head with one hand.
Molten heat swelled in Tannon, energy charging inside his body.
As he bore down on the man, he saw the man swing a fist at Mina.
Drak. Tannon was too far away to stop it.
In a fast move, Mina jerked her head to the side and the man’s knuckles hit the wall. Then Mina rammed an elbow up, slamming it into the man’s throat. He gagged and she slid free.
Tannon was almost there when he saw Mina step sideways. Then she launched herself at the man with an intricate series of deadly kicks. Her small skirt flipped around her thighs.
The horned man stumbled back under the force of her blows. It was almost comical, the tiny woman beating up the huge alien.
Tannon’s steps faltered.
Mina jumped into the air, her kick catching the man’s face. He dropped to his knees with a groan. Mina followed with a brutal chop to the back of the man’s neck.
The man pressed a hand to the floor, struggling to stay upright. Mina landed one more vicious kick to his middle, flipping him over. He collapsed on the floor, breathing hard.
Tannon stared, feeling like his body was locked in place. How could she fight like that? His neck prickled. Mina had secrets. Secrets he wasn’t aware of.
Then the horned man let out a bellow and surged up like a wild beast. His head rammed into Mina’s middle, driving her backward.
He slammed her into the wall and her head snapped back, hitting the wall with a loud thud.
Tannon leaped forward. He grabbed the man’s neck and yanked him back. Tannon rammed a punch into the man’s lower back and he cried out.
He saw Mina slide to the floor.
Enraged, Tannon pummeled more blows into the man. This sandsucker had hurt Mina. The horned man toppled to the floor, and Tannon leaned over him, and punched him again, and again. Rage welled up, along with his power.
“Sir? Sir?”
Tannon kept punching. This man had hurt Mina.
“Tannon, he’s dead.”
Rillian’s cool voice broke through Tannon’s fighting rage. He dropped the man and looked up.
Nearby, the dealer was sobbing. “They were going to cut off my arm to get my ID. She saved me.”
Tannon turned his head and saw Mina was trying to push up to her feet. A trickle of blood was running down her neck.
Fighting for control, Tannon strode past Rillian until he reached her. He gripped her arms and helped her up.
“Hey.” She blinked at him, her eyes a little unfocused. “Stars, you’re pretty.”
Drak, the blow to her head must have hurt her. Suddenly, she collapsed, and he scooped her into his arms.
“They wanted her ID,” Mina said. “Planning…something. Something for the House of Galen and House of Rone party.”
“Okay, we’ll sort it out.” He caught Rillian’s gaze and the man nodded. Then Tannon looked back at Mina. “How did you know how to fight like that?”
“What?” Her brow creased.
“How, Mina?”
She shook her head. “Don’t know.”
Secrets. Tannon dragged in a breath. He couldn’t let her keep her secrets. The safety of everyone in the casino depended on him doing his job.
A part of him wanted to trust Mina more than anything. But Tannon had learned that people rarely told the truth. “You’re lying to me.”
“No.” She gasped, then she pressed a hand to her head and sagged against him.
Drak. He had to get her looked at, then he’d deal with whatever Mina was hiding from him.
He spun and saw Rillian standing with the dealer. The casino owner’s face was set in hard lines. His black-and-silver gaze swept over the two attackers lying on the ground.
Tannon saw the woman’s head was slumped, foam around her mouth. Drak. She’d committed suicide.
“Just wanted to help,” Mina muttered.
“We’ll take care of it,” Tannon said.
“Wanted to help you…because you looked out for me.”
His hands clenched on her. She sounded sincere and he wanted to believe her. “Quiet now.”
“Okay.” Her eyes closed and she went still.
He looked at Rillian. “She needs a healer.”
“I’ll call Healer O’Garrie.”
Rillian’s personal physician was one of the best healers in the city. Tannon gave one single nod. “I’ll be in my suite.”
Chapter Five
Mina swam back to consciousness with a viciously throbbing head. She stifled a groan. Her cheek was resting on something firm.
“Stay still.”
Tannon’s deep voice washed over her, and that’s when she realized that she was resting on Tannon’s hard thigh. Oh.
She sensed movement and opened her eyes.
A slender, old man with long white hair was kneeling in front of her, spreading med gel on her head.
“You’re a lucky young lady,” the man said.
She made a sound of agreement and her head throbbed even harder. She reached a hand up to touch it, but Tannon pushed her hand away.
“I don’t feel very lucky right now.”
The man smiled and Mina thought he looked about a million years old.
“I’m Healer O’Garrie, Rillian’s physician. I’ve given you something for the pain, so it should be gone soon.”
“Sorry you had to leave your bed,” she said.
“My mate is used to it, and he tells me that it’s the burden of loving a healer.” The man smiled. “And Rillian has me on retainer, so I’m well-compensated.”
The healer straightened and Mina got the sense that
the man would help someone in need, even without the pay.
“There.” Healer O’Garrie patted her arm. “Rest up, and you’ll feel better in the morning.” The doctor looked at Tannon. “She took a significant blow to the head. It’s your job to make sure she rests.”
“She’ll rest,” Tannon said darkly.
Mina rolled her eyes and saw the healer smile again. He packed up his bag and left quietly.
She moved a little so she could look up at Tannon. “Is the dealer okay?”
“She’s fine.”
Tannon shifted, stretching out horizontal beside her on the couch. He pulled her close to his chest, careful not to jostle her head.
“You fought like a trained expert.”
Mina stiffened. She heard the accusation in his voice, and felt a slash of pain under her heart. “I don’t know how to fight. I don’t have any training. In the desert, we learn some basic self-defense.” Agony in her head, like claws clamping down on her brain.
Tannon’s brow creased and his eyes were hard.
“I’m not lying to you,” she snapped. “It must have been the heat of the moment. A response from my body to the danger.”
He reached over her and grabbed a cloth from the items the healer had left. He touched it to her nose.
“What?” She frowned.
“Your nose is bleeding.”
Drak. She took the cloth. “It’s been happening lately. I think the change from the desert to here is doing it.” She saw the bright-red stain on the fabric.
“Just relax,” he said. “We’ll work it out.”
His tone sounded like it had thawed a little bit.
“I promise I’m not hiding anything, Tannon.” She pressed into him and her nose brushed the triangle of skin at his throat. She breathed him in. “Did you question the man and woman? They’re definitely planning something—”
“They’re dead.” His tone was flat.
“Oh?” She swallowed. “Did they kill themselves?”
“No. One killed herself and the other one, I killed.”
Mina rolled onto her back, looking directly at him. “Why?”
“Because he touched you.”
Warmth flooded through her. No one had ever looked out for her like this man. She cupped his cheek. “Tannon—”
He caught her wrist. “No. The healer ordered you to rest, so you’ll rest.”
She made a harrumphing sound and tangled her legs with his. “I am resting.”
“Resting means staying still.”
Her nose wrinkled. “I’m not good with still.”
Tannon snorted and Mina couldn’t hold back a giggle.
“Tannon?”
A sigh. “What?”
“I’m feeling really turned on right now.” As the healer had promised, her pain was fading rapidly.
Tannon’s diamond eyes glittered. “Rest.”
“I can lie here and make out at the same time.”
“Tonight, I’m not touching you.”
She pressed her hands to his chest, kneading the hard pecs under the white shirt. “So, I’ll touch you instead.” She started undoing the buttons on his shirt. Each one that slipped loose gave her access to more of his powerful chest. She slid her fingers inside, touching warm, sleek skin.
He made a sound that could’ve come from a predator. “Mina—”
“I like how you feel, Tannon. And how you look.”
“I’m…not handsome and elegant.”
“Oh, I know,” she purred. “You’re strong, rough, and sexy.”
A pause. “You know that I’m Riani. A killer.”
His tone was devoid of any emotion, but Mina sensed emotion buried deep. “I know you’re a workaholic who spends all his time protecting this casino and its people.”
“But before, I was an alien hunter.” His body was stiff under her hands. “My species is good at killing, and I spent years as an assassin.”
“I know you’re loyal to Rillian. I know you care about the people who work here. You’ve looked after me.”
He just stared at her, like he couldn’t work her out.
“And I also know that you don’t let yourself get close to many people,” she said.
He sucked in a breath. “I’m dangerous, Mina. I’ve done terrible things. It’s best if people…don’t get too close.”
“Our past doesn’t define us, Tannon. We all have the chance to learn and do better. It’s what we choose to do now, the actions we take today, that make us who we are. My dad used to tell me that.”
Then she frowned. She couldn’t actually remember her father saying that. He was a gruff, hardy man of the desert who was far too busy running his desert farm to offer sage advice to any of his twelve children.
Tannon’s fingers brushed the hair off her temples. She leaned in to press a kiss to his bare chest, and he sucked in a breath. She moved her lips until she found one flat nipple. She raked her teeth over it and he groaned.
“Mina.”
She slid her hands down his stomach, tracing the defined ridges she found there. Her fingers touched his belt.
“No.” He grabbed her wrist. “You need to rest.”
“Tannon—”
“I saw you get hurt, Mina. I need to make sure you’re okay.”
Drak, how could she fight him when he was trying to take care of her? A part of her—the seriously turned-on part of her—wanted to protest and fight him. This man got his own way far too often. His team jumped to obey his commands.
But a wave of lethargy hit her. She was more tired than she realized.
“Sleep.” He curled his big body around hers. She felt so warm, so safe.
Mina let her eyes close. She listened to his steady breathing, felt his lips brush her temple, and before she knew it, she drifted off to sleep.
* * *
Tannon was dreaming. A man was on his knees, pleading for his life. But Tannon didn’t hesitate. One smooth blow and the man’s blood sprayed the ground. Then a surge of electric energy and nothing was left but a dry husk.
The man’s face was replaced with another begging for life.
Then another.
Tannon’s heart pounded, energy rushing through him. Kill. Kill. Kill. Shadowy faces from the Alien Hunters Guild. You’ll never take enough lives, Riani. You’ll always hunger for it.
No. Tannon twisted, trying to fight the endless urges.
Then he felt smooth hands stroking his face, a female voice murmuring to him. He jerked awake.
“It’s okay, Tannon. It was just a dream.”
It was a nightmare. His never-ending nightmare.
He stared down into Mina’s face. He didn’t want her to see him like this. He pressed his face to her hair and held onto her small, curvy body.
She held him tight. “Tell me?”
They were still on his wide couch. His suite was dark, the only light spilling in from the windows. He was wrapped around Mina, and for the first time ever, he didn’t mind being in the darkness.
“I’ve never told anyone about my nightmares.”
“You were some sort of bounty hunter,” she said.
“I was an alien hunter, which is just a prettier term for an assassin.”
Her hand moved up and down his back in soothing movements. She didn’t pull away from him in horror or disgust.
“I did it for years.” So many endless years. “I was good at it.”
“Well, Tannon Gi would never be crap at something,” she said tartly.
A laugh broke out of him. Drak, how could she make him feel amusement at a time like this? Mina always knew how to amaze and astound him.
“I killed for money, Mina.”
“Did they deserve it? Were they murderers, rapists, slavers—”
“Yes. Some were thieves, terrorists—”
“And yet you beat yourself up?”
“I killed for so long…”
She pressed closer. “And it chipped away at your soul.”
&
nbsp; Tannon wasn’t sure he still had a soul. “In the end, I couldn’t see a purpose in it anymore. I couldn’t do it anymore.”
She snuggled into him and he felt her breath puff against his bare chest. He breathed in the sweet scent of her hair.
Then he felt her lips kissing his neck, then up to his jaw.
“It still haunts you,” she said.
He dropped his head and took her lips with his. He kissed her deeply, plunging his tongue into the depths of her sexy mouth. Her hands slid into his hair. They both groaned.
When he pulled back, the faint light from outside illuminated the lines of her face. He saw the ugly bruise marring her skin and cursed himself. She’d been hurt.
“You’re still under orders to rest.”
“Tannon.” Her voice was frustrated. “You’re so strict.”
“I’m not touching you.”
She wound her leg around his hip, then slipped her other leg between his thighs. Drak. They both groaned.
Tannon curled his hands into fists and wondered how she could erode all his control. “Your clothes are staying on, Mina.”
“So stubborn.” She undulated against him, pressing the soft center of her to his hardness. “But luckily I’m very creative.”
He stifled another groan. He had no doubt.
She rubbed against him, her breath quickening. His cock was hard and throbbing.
“You’re a tempting desert witch.” Because he needed to taste her again, he kissed her. Long, drugging kisses. They rocked against each other, her hands kneading his chest.
Then she shifted, urging him to sit up. Tannon sank back against the cushions and Mina straddled his lap.
“I feel like a teenager,” she panted. “Making out.”
Tannon kissed her again. He’d already been drafted into the Alien Hunters Guild by his teens, so he’d never shared stolen kisses with girls in the darkness. He cupped her head and kept kissing her. He never wanted to stop.
“I don’t feel like a teenager.” His voice was little more than a rough growl. “I want to drag you down on the floor, rip your clothes off, then thrust deep inside.” He bumped his hips against her, grinding his cock into her belly.
Hunter: Galactic Gladiators #12 Page 12