Her Savage Mates

by Jayne Ripley

  All around him, the zarankost began to spasm and jerk as it died. He held on to his sword for dear life, very aware of the gnashing teeth. It was so dark in here that he couldn’t see them. Those teeth were as big as daggers, but he’d been lucky so far. He was covered in disgusting fluids, he’d been thrown around like a child’s doll, but he wasn’t even bleeding from a serious wound.

  He’d been eaten, but he wasn’t hurt. The absurdity made him laugh. He got disgusting monster slime in his mouth because he was laughing.

  The zarankost crashed to the ground and gave a last, shuddering groan as it died. It also spit him out. Or its jaws opened, and its tongue pushed him out. He wasn’t exactly sure. The truth was, he didn’t want to think about it too much. This was not his proudest, most inspiring and epic battle.

  Not at all.

  He leaned on his sword and used it to lever himself out of a puddle of stinking green-black slimy goo. When he was standing, he used his free hand to wipe the gunk off his face and flung it away in disgust.

  Had he told himself he’d been lucky? If this was luck, he really needed to change his definition of the word.

  But then again, he was alive.

  He was alive. Jennifer was alive. That meant he could waste no more time dancing around his feelings for her. Tonight he would claim his mate.

  After he cleaned himself up, of course. Thoroughly cleaned himself up.

  He lifted his sword to the crowd. The audience cheered wildly. He let them enjoy the spectacle. This was what they wanted. What they loved.

  Nahkar knew what he wanted. What he loved.

  Yes, he had said those words. Why deny the depth of his feelings for his mate? Why should he believe he needed to be unsure of his passion for her until that at-long-last moment when he would finally admit the truth aloud? He wanted to cut through to the heart of it. Right now. He had no patience. The way he lived, he couldn’t afford it.

  Filled with purpose, Nahkar walked out of the arena. He was covered in gore and slime. He reeked to the highest of heavens. His ears were still ringing. But he was glad it was over.

  He let out a relieved sigh and rubbed his aching head as soon as he stepped inside the tunnel and the gate doors shut behind him, cutting off the roars and cheers of the crowd. He couldn’t rest, no matter how tired he might be. He needed to find Jennifer. He needed to make sure she was safe. That fight had to have traumatized her. Grox, it had traumatized him.

  “Nahkar!” Jennifer’s voice cut through the ringing in his ears. Her usually melodic voice was brittle with relief. Hearing her voice made his heart leap in his chest. Excitement rushed through him. He was already smiling as he turned toward the sound.

  She hurled herself at him as if she were launching herself out of an airlock. Her enthusiasm made him feel good. Deeply, truly good. With a laugh, he caught her in mid-air. She wrapped her arms around him and squeezed him as tightly as she could.

  “I’m so glad you’re alive,” she told him. Her voice was caught between a laugh and a sob, shaking with emotion. There were tears in her eyes but a grin on her face. “I thought you were dead. Why did you let it eat you, you big lummox?” She pounded a fist on his chest, which made him smile. “Are you insane? Figures I’d get the mate who was five cans short of a six-pack.”

  He didn’t know what a lummox was, but he guessed it wasn’t a positive thing. He had never heard of a six-pack either, but when her lips said the word “mate,” his heart filled with so much joy it damn near exploded.

  “It will take more than being eaten to stop me, my sweet little Terran,” he assured her. “But I am sorry I worried you.”

  Then she realized he was covered in monster slime, drool, and blood. Her eyes got wide as she stared at the slime on her hand…and all over her fancy clothing.

  “Oh my God, this is absolutely disgusting. You are filthy! And now I’m filthy! And I ruined my pretty dress!”

  “Good,” he growled, looking her in those blue eyes and giving her his most arrogant smile. “Then you won’t mind when I tear it off you.”

  She flushed pink. Her mouth dropped open, but she couldn’t seem to think of anything to say, so she simply shut it again.

  Darkon walked over to them at a leisurely pace. The Quindon slapped a hand down on his shoulder. His palm squelched when it hit. “You win this one on style points and drama. I’m not angry one bit to lose. You earned it.” His smile widened. “You also look terrible and smell even worse.”

  “This is the smell of victory,” Nahkar shot back. “Was there ever any doubt I would triumph over you yet again?”

  Jennifer threw up her hands in exasperation. “Males!”

  They both laughed. Darkon caught his eye. For the first time, it felt as if something deeper passed between the two of them. It felt like a connection deeper than simple friendship. Something forged by the presence of Jennifer in their lives.

  For the first time since he’d gone into the mara vrhon, setting all this in motion, Nahkar dared to believe that somehow, some way, things would turn out for the best.

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  Darkon

  Long after the arena had closed and the holo-cameras had turned off, Darkon lounged on a big chair inside their imperial palace suite. He had an Anduros ale in his hand. It was frosty cold, with the perfect amount of spice. Earlier at the arena, he’d used the industrial decontam-shower to wash away the grime and grit from the fight. Now he was clean. He was wearing one of his most dashing outfits. He was looking his best, and he knew it.

  There had been no sign of their owner or the cyborg Bevelle after the Aixen show. That worried him. He knew there would be more repercussions. None of them were talking about it. They weren’t ready to. Tonight had already been too stressful and draining.

  They were together now. That was what mattered.

  But Jennifer knew their owner’s threat to auction her off because Darkon hadn’t taken a dive in the fight. After her relief of having them live through their fights died down a little, he could see the worry creep back into her eyes.

  He hated that. He wanted to save her from all these fears, to give her back her freedom, her home, whatever would make her happy. He couldn’t. Yet. That was why he had defied their owner. He needed to be at full strength in order to escape the station with her. He couldn’t be recovering from wounds. So he’d taken a gamble. It was a huge risk. He couldn’t deny it.

  But the wager had been placed and the gamble made. With Masyra’s help, he would get all three of them far away from this place. He just hadn’t told Jennifer and Nahkar yet. They hadn’t been anywhere tonight where he could be certain they weren't monitored, especially since his defiance. He couldn’t risk exposing the plan.

  That was a risk too. It bothered him to keep it secret, but until Masyra came through for him, he didn’t want to get their hopes up or put them in more danger. He would tell them as soon as he could. He made a silent promise to them.

  Jennifer hadn’t told Nahkar about their owner’s threat to sell her. Not yet, anyway. They had shared an unspoken agreement between them. They wouldn’t tell him tonight. Not after he had come so close to dying. He would not take the news well, and Darkon didn’t want him thrown into a real cell for going into another mara vrhon frenzy and trying to kill his way across the station to protect her.

  They were still slaves, after all.

  No, tonight was for celebration. Tomorrow they would face their problems and the dangers again. This decision felt right. Nahkar, with the strength of the mara vrhon on him, would react badly when he learned Jennifer would be taken from them. He might even blame Darkon. There could be more violence between them. That was the last thing he wanted. Especially after they seemed to have forged a deeper connection between them tonight. He knew that strife between them was the last thing Jennifer wanted.

  The rest of tonight had to be about her. He wanted to make this a night she would remember forever. He wanted the three of them to relax and have fun and lau
gh after all the life-or-death stress of the arena show.

  No, now that Darkon thought about it, relaxing was out of the question. Not with Jennifer so close. Not with the feeling of her in his arms still lingering inside his brain. Holding her, feeling her curves pressed against him… At the time he’d been as focused as he could be on comforting her. But after the fight, the memory of how her lush body had felt pressed against him had been a wonderful torment that wouldn’t leave him alone.

  His blood was hot in his veins. After fighting, he wanted fucking. It was primal. A primitive response to life. After facing death, you wanted to reaffirm life in the most basic, most universal way possible.

  He was more than willing, and from Jennifer’s responses, he knew she was attracted to him as well. Now he only needed to convince her—and Nahkar—that the three of them should explore a wilder side of life. Wild and yet simple. Basic. A core piece of life that should be celebrated.

  Passion. Lovemaking. Fucking.

  He wanted to kiss every part of her body. He wanted to worship every inch of her flesh. He wanted her naked and open for him. His eyes would drink her in. His hands would skim and tease along her soft skin, making every nerve ending sing with pleasure.

  He didn’t want her worrying about the future. Or about what had happened in the arena. He didn’t want her apprehensive over how his defiance of his owner’s scheme might have put Nahkar’s life in danger and might lead to her being sold again.

  All because of him.

  If he thought about it too much, he would only want to drink himself stupid. He’d had no choice. He’d been in an impossible position. All he could do now was pray Masyra came through for him in time. If he could get his hands on a ship, everything would change. But the waiting and the powerlessness was grating on him.

  He took another deep drink from the ale, desperately trying to push his dark thoughts away. He needed to stay positive. They had tonight together at least. He intended to make the most of it.

  Now he was waiting for Nahkar to finish cleaning monster gunk out of his ears so he wouldn’t stink up the suite. This was his second shower, the first one being a heavy-duty decontamination hose down at the arena. Nahkar had been…filthy.

  Darkon was also waiting on Jennifer. After they’d returned to the palace suite, she’d given them both a shy smile and told them she needed to freshen up and change before vanishing into her room.

  He refilled his glass with more ale. It didn’t surprise him that Nahkar had put on the most dramatic show possible. Being swallowed alive? How could you hope to follow something like that? For a few gut-wrenching moments, he’d been sure his friend was dead. Until Nahkar had killed the beast from the inside. He should’ve punched the big Ikestran in the jaw the first time he’d seen him again after that stunt…and then hugged him…and maybe punched him once more for good measure. The show-off.

  Before he’d finally dismissed the idea as crazy, he’d even wondered if Nahkar had done it on purpose—if their owner had ordered Nahkar to try that stunt to impress the crowds or rig the bets in his favor. The same way he’d first wanted Darkon injured so he could make big amounts of credits when they sent Nahkar to save him. If saving him had really been the goal… He couldn’t shake the feeling his owner wouldn’t have minded if Darkon had actually died.

  Even though he was an arrogant show-off, Nahkar wouldn’t have done that to Jennifer, even if their owner had ordered it. He wouldn’t hurt her like that. Darkon still couldn’t forget the raw sound of anguish that had escaped Jennifer’s lips when the monster gulped Nahkar down. The sound had shattered his heart like glass. So much pain, so much distress had been in her wordless cry. He’d put his arm around her and pulled her tight against him, trying to get her to look away from the scene. But she wouldn’t. She watched with tears in her eyes, trembling against him, but she wouldn’t look away.

  The possibility that Nahkar’s death might be Darkon’s fault had nearly crushed him. He’d chosen to defy their owner and killed the razor-dreng as fast as he could. Their owner had retaliated by sending Nahkar against this new monster. This zarankost abomination that had swallowed the reigning champion as if he were dinner’s first course.

  Only a miracle had saved Nahkar tonight. Jennifer had clutched at Darkon, bouncing on her toes and crying with joy as Nahkar cut his way free and, covered in slime and gore, raised his sword to the wild cheering of the crowd. Yeah, his Ikestran friend had a flair for the dramatic. He couldn’t deny that. He also couldn’t deny how happy he was to see his friend alive, having literally escaped the jaws of death.

  He was distracted from his troubled musings when Nahkar finally walked out of his room, still wet from his second sani-shower.

  “It’s a miracle,” Darkon said. “You actually look somewhat presentable now. You’re lucky all that slime didn’t stain.”

  Nahkar was shirtless, as he preferred to be. Darkon was well-built and well-muscled, but he had to admit he’d probably be doing exactly the same thing if he were as huge as Nahkar.

  The arrogant bastard.

  Nahkar was still drying himself off with a towel. He smirked at Darkon. “You’re jealous that you’ve never been eaten alive and managed not just to survive, but to win with style.”

  “Exactly. Because I wanted to be completely covered in reeking monster guts like you. Tell me, how much of that beast did you get up your nose?”

  “Enough to know it smelled even worse than you usually do.” Nahkar glanced around the room. “Where’s Jennifer?”

  “She’s still freshening up,” Darkon said, then took another sip of his strong ale. Thank the stars for liquor on days like this. “Get yourself a drink. If she is like every other female in this universe, we could be waiting here a while.”

  Nahkar laughed and went to the sideboard. He glanced over the selection and grinned. “They have Ja’matan Fire Draft. I haven’t had this in years. The last I heard, there was a blockade and no one could get it at all.” He gave a pleased sigh. “It’s good to be champion.”

  For some reason, the Ikestran’s attitude suddenly irritated Darkon. He wasn’t prone to wild swings of emotion. He was overreacting and he knew it, but he was helpless to bite his tongue this time, maybe because he blamed himself for the risk to his friend’s life. And if they lost Jennifer, it would be his fault too. Those things were dragging down the happy-go-lucky optimism that had helped carry him through his exile and his enslavement.

  “Champion?” he said to Nahkar, his eyes narrowing. “We are glorified slaves. They make us believe we’re worth something, even giving us fancy liquor and letting us live in a classy place like this. But they expect us to jump when they give the commands as if we are good little robots. They play with our lives as if we are toys.”

  Nahkar looked at him as if he’d lost his mind, clearly startled by the intensity of his outburst. Maybe he had lost his mind. His mood had certainly taken an abrupt turn for the black. He should be celebrating another win. He should be focused on Jennifer, on winning her heart. But even that suddenly made him feel upset, aggressive, possessive, worried.

  His culture allowed him to share Jennifer—if that was what her heart desired—but he still wasn’t certain Nahkar was interested in that. Maybe that was part of his sudden rancor. If Nahkar wasn’t interested in the three of them in a da’katal, then things would get bad. After holding Jennifer and comforting her tonight, Darkon couldn’t let her go. He could finally admit it to himself openly. She had stolen a piece of his heart.

  He would fight to have her.

  Nahkar seemed to sense the storm of emotions inside him. After pouring himself a glass, Nahkar lifted the crystal cup to his lips, staring at Darkon over the rim. The feeling in the air suddenly grew fraught. The air hummed with raw tension as it did right before a big fight. Enemies facing off against each other, sizing each other up, looking for weaknesses, and trying to gain the advantage. That was what it felt like now.

  But Nahkar was his friend, not
his enemy. They’d always been competitors, but it hadn’t interfered with the friendship that had developed over the years.

  But now there was a female between them. A human they both desired. Darkon wanted her to be happy above all else, but again, he wasn’t going to let her go without a fight.

  “You look like you have something else on your mind,” Nahkar said in a deep, careful voice. “Not just us being slaves for the arena.”

  “I think you know what’s on my mind.”

  Nahkar grunted. His golden eyes flashed. “Did she weep for me when everyone thought I was dead?”

  The bastard. “She was upset,” he replied flatly.

  “But you weren’t. It meant I was finally out of your way, didn’t it? You could be Aixen champion. You could have Jennifer all to yourself.”

  “It wasn’t like that at all,” he shot back, outraged by what Nahkar was implying. “You know me better than that.”

  “I thought I did.”

  A muscle twitched in his jawline as he stared at Nahkar. “What are you saying?”

  “We both want her. I can feel your desire for her coming off you in waves. The same as it comes off me like lightning because of the mara vrhon. So you can’t hide it from me. I feel like I must have her or I will die. Every breath without her near me is painful.” His golden eyes narrowed dangerously. “What’s your excuse?”

  “I don’t need an excuse. Jennifer is the kind of person I’ve searched for my entire life and never found. Until now.”

  Nahkar was standing still, but the intensity in his eyes and his clenched jaw told Darkon that the big Ikestran was barely holding it together. The mating urge after combat was dialed even higher than usual. After facing death, the primal part of him wanted to reaffirm life with touch, with procreation. With fucking. Right now, Nahkar saw Darkon as an obstacle to having Jennifer tonight.

  Too bad. Darkon wasn’t going to back down. He never surrendered. She was too important to him now.