by Lynnea Lee
“What did I say? Humans make horrible slaves. And their females sure are feisty.”
They announced the start of the knife-throwing competition, and Zharor pulled up a chair to watch despite their proximity to the former Dominion captain. Good. The two males needed to put their differences aside if they wanted to help Kean keep Vosthea under control effectively.
Sarah started moving her hips in small circles on his lap once again, rubbing against the erection that had not fully gone back down. Dull little nails scratched at his scalp, sending tingling down his spine. It was going to be hard to pay attention to the competition with such an effective distraction.
They announced the start of the competition and introduced each competitor. There were eight competitors in total, and Kean recognized three of them as talents local to his original territory. Brawn was an aptly nicknamed bear of a male, and he was the reigning knives champion in the local pubs, and the next pair was from the territory Kean had recently taken over from Gadrek. There were four Ckarn brothers who were also quite talented. And the last male was a traveler to the planet.
They had vetted the participants beforehand. And as they announced each participant, they stood and picked up their set of knives from the game master. Each participant had time to flex and demonstrate their skill to get the crowd started. As the last participant took the stage to garner the crowd’s applause, he turned suddenly, a sly look on his face, and threw his knives.
Kean’s keen senses saw the projectiles coming as if in slow motion, one aimed at his shoulder and the other at his face. But with Sarah lying over his body, he froze, not wanting to stand and possibly have the knifes hit Sarah instead. He hesitated for a split second before curling his body over Sarah’s. He ducked and rolled to the side. Kean knew it was too late. The second, lower projectile that had been aimed at his shoulder would hit him on the side of his head. Fuck!
But Ulrek’s reaction was quicker. His booted foot came out and swiped the two knives from the air. Ulrek had saved his life, and they were even again. It was becoming a common occurrence throughout their friendship. By the time the blades hit the carpeted floor, Zharor was already across the room, tackling the male to the ground.
The entire audience gasped and then was silent. The only sound in the room was the impact of Zharor’s fists, hitting the male’s face again and again.
Stars! That could have ended badly! The knife could’ve hit Sarah instead. His heart pounded erratically in his chest at the thought of seeing her bleeding out in his arms, and he had to touch her face to calm himself.
Sarah looked around in question. She’d been facing the other way and had missed most of the action. Then her gaze landed on the pair of blades on the ground, and her eyes rounded with that realization of what had just happened. She turned her head towards Zharor and the male he was pummeling. But Kean pressed her face back down onto his chest. He didn’t want her to watch.
“You don’t need to see this.” She didn’t protest. Kean turned to Ulrek. “Thank you for saving my life. We are even again.”
Ulrek nodded solemnly.
The crowd erupted in applause, and Kean looked up to see that Zharor had beheaded the would-be assassin with the claws of his feet and was holding the head up like a bloody trophy. He roared his victory, and the crowd went wild. A mostly Tallean crowd was easy to please; they love sex and violence. They would speak of this unintended entertainment for years to come.
Before returning to his seat, Zharor turned to Ulrek. “Great reflexes. But you are still an ass.”
Again, Ulrek just nodded.
After a quick clean up of the competition floor, the knife-throwing competition resumed. As Kean suspected, Brawn took home the generous prize money. More hired entertainers followed, and the night wore on. With most of the guests too drunk or high now to notice, Kean excused himself from the party, carrying Sarah with him.
It was tempting to bring them to his suite, but Kean knew that it would be impossible to resist her if he did. And now was not the right time for that, not with all the Euphora in her system. He headed to her room instead. As he deposited her gently on the bed, she lifted her arms to him.
“Stay with me. I need you,” she pleaded with soft, bedroom eyes.
It was the Euphora speaking. But this was good; it meant that Kean would hear these words again from her one day.
“Not tonight, little one. But make no mistake. You are mine.” He cupped her face in his palms and looked into her eyes. “If tomorrow you still wish this, I will claim you.”
She pouted, and all Kean wanted to do was to capture those pouting lips with his. “Why not tonight?”
“I don’t want you to regret anything we do.”
Instead of replying, she pulled him down onto her and kissed him hard, a violent, needy kiss that turned his bones to jelly.
Stars! She was perfect in his arms.
With a herculean effort, Kean pulled away.
“Tomorrow.”
“Why? I need you now.”
“Because once I have you, I’ll never, ever, let you go.”
And once more, he turned and forced himself out of the room. This time, the task was near impossible.
Chapter 10
Shit! What the hell did she do last night? Sarah knew exactly what she did. Euphora didn’t erase memories, though right now, she wished it did. Not only had she kissed Kean, twice, but she had begged him to stay with her for the night. And he had rejected her.
She buried her face in her hands. How was she ever going to live this down?
Sarah was not touching Euphora ever again. That shit was dangerous! It took all the secret desires that she’d been trying to avoid and threw them in her face. It took all her fears and rationed them to oblivion. The world became the best version of the world she wanted it to be.
Kean was a killer! Remember? She couldn’t want him. But the Euphora forced her to see the truth. She did want him, killer or not.
Though yesterday, someone had tried to kill him at his own party. He’d told her that he could not be seen as weak, and she understood that now. Weakness would kill him, literally. She tried to view him as the monster she had thought of him just yesterday but found it was now impossible.
Was it the experience with the Euphora altering her mind? Or the fact that they had survived an assassination attempt together? Because that was the truth. The knife could have hit her as well. Kean had shielded her from the knives with his body and rolled. He had thought of her first.
She grabbed the glass of water on the dresser and chugged it down, even though it was from yesterday and stale. Then she caught a glimpse of the time display on the door panel. It was almost mid-day!
Scrambling out of bed, she tripped over the skirt of her gown. She was still dressed. Why? Because Kean was too much of a gentleman to undress her. He had, however, loosened the top of the lacing for her so she could get out of the gown by herself in the morning. The man was so infernally confusing!
She stripped out of her party dress and jumped into the cleansing unit for a shower. There was nothing quite like a cool shower to wake her up and get her thinking. Sarah wasn’t ready to see Kean yet. Not after the embarrassing way she had launched herself at him, both at the party and in her room. She’d have to face him eventually, but she wasn’t ready for it yet. She needed to get out of here before he came to see her for lunch.
Pulling out another girly outfit courtesy of Nouma’s granddaughter, she dressed quickly and left her room. Zake wasn’t anywhere to be seen. Maybe he was hungover. It was for the best.
Sarah was on a mission today. She’d given up on ever seeing her sister again, but bumping into the male Gadrek had sold Chrissy to yesterday had given her hope. Chrissy was still out there, and Sarah was going to find her!
Kean was right about those who visited Vosthea; they were often here for Euphora. That meant her sister could have been right here with her new owner. May
be someone had seen her, and who she was with. Sarah planned on asking anyone and everyone if they had seen a woman that looked like her.
After a few hours of asking around, Sarah was ready to give up. Who was she kidding? Chrissy hadn’t been here, and no one had seen her. She leaned against the trunk of the tree and sank to the ground. She was exhausted already by the disappointment. Maybe she was going about this wrong. She should have been asking Kean for help finding Chrissy, instead of asking around on her own. He had told her yesterday that he would help.
A dark shadow fell over her, and she looked up and up. In front of her stood a casually dressed, young Tallean male. Most of the males she had seen had been in guard uniforms.
“You are the one who’s looking for the human female.” The male studied her face intently, then smiled. “Yes, you two do look very similar. Hello, I’m Rax. You must be Sarah.”
“Hi, Rax. Yes, I’m looking for a human woman who looks like me. You’ve seen her?”
“The innkeeper had her the last time I was there meeting with a contact. Unless he sold her, she should be still there. I was there not long ago.”
“Is there anything else you can tell me about her? Any distinguishing features?” Sarah needed to know it was Chrissy for sure before she let herself hope.
Rax paused in thought. “Other than an arm of tattoos, which I thought was rare for human females, she was quite normal.”
That was what Sarah had been looking for. Chrissy had started that sleeve of tattoos the day she moved out of their parents’ house. She’d wanted it for years. The look on Mom’s face the first time she saw the first installment of ink had been priceless. It hadn’t looked like much at the time, just an outline. After a lot of work, Chrissy had gorgeous koi fish swimming on her arm.
“That’s Chrissy!” Sarah couldn’t stop the building excitement. “Can you take me to her?”
He hesitated. “You shouldn’t be leaving the compound. After last night, we all know Kean wishes to keep you safe.”
Sarah wasn’t above stroking a man’s ego to get what she wanted. “But you are so big and strong. No one will mess with you. You can keep me safe!”
Rax stood a little taller, puffing out his chest. Yes, it was working. “My security shift doesn’t start until tonight. If we make it quick and get back before anyone finds out, we could go. But we have to leave now.”
“Perfect! Let’s go now and get back quick!” That was too easy!
Kean rubbed at his chest, trying to dissipate his disappointment. Sarah was not in her room; she’d gone back to avoiding him. He’d thought of her all morning; every second ticking by felt like an eternity. He barely paid attention to the males who sat across the negotiation table. When mid-day rolled around, he’d been excited to take his meal with her as they’d done when Sarah had first joined him at the compound, before she’d run from him.
For some reason, he’d thought Sarah would welcome him after yesterday. Being wrong sucked. He regretted not taking Sarah back to his suite last night. She belonged there with him.
His comm buzzed from his pocket. What now? It was always something or another. He sighed and took out his comm unit. Zake’s panicked face met his.
“She left with Rax. I didn’t know until they were by the door, and then they were gone before I could stop them. She was asking around for her sister. I didn’t think she would leave the compound.”
It took a second for Zake’s words to register. When it did, he roared. Sarah had left him. She’d run from him!
Kean knew that she was afraid of him because of his ability to kill. But he hadn't thought that she would run away, and not with Rax of all people. Rax was a good male and a reliable guard. He was young and had been working here for a few years. He was not one Kean thought would betray him.
Rax was younger, more innocent. He hadn't had the chance to experience and participate in the violence and depravity that Kean had. Was this what attracted Sarah to him? It didn't matter. Sarah was his, and he intended to get her back.
And once Sarah was safely inside his suite, he planned on keeping her there. She wouldn’t be leaving until she belonged to him.
He stalked towards the exit they’d used, vision red with anger. The guards at the door had let them through, thinking Kean had known they were leaving. Idiots! All of them. They confirmed that the pair had left on foot. They couldn’t have gotten far; their scent trail was still fresh.
Kean stalked them, following their scent, and soon found them walking side by side. He roared, and Rax turned, the casual look on his face turning to terror when he saw Kean. The male knew he was going to die. With a feral snarl, Kean leaped for the male, intent on gutting him with his claws.
Sarah screamed, and instead of getting out of the way, she jumped in front of Rax. She was protecting him. Kean twisted to the side at the last second to avoid cleaving Sarah open with the kick meant for Rax. That was close. She could have been seriously injured.
“No!” she screamed. “Don’t kill him. Please! I asked him to take me. It wasn’t his fault. He didn’t even want to. Please don’t kill him.”
Pain sliced through Kean that his female had jumped in front of a deadly blow to protect the other male. How had he missed the developing relationship between the two? When did this start? He hadn’t even been suspicious, hadn’t even known they knew each other.
Tears streaked down Sarah’s face, and she pleaded with him not to kill the male who she had left with. “Please, Kean. This is my fault. I asked him to take me. Don’t hurt him. Punish me instead.”
The wrenching in his chest was debilitating. He struggled to breathe as if he were suffocating. Kean wanted to tear the male to shreds for taking his female. But doing so would push Sarah away permanently. She had cared enough about this male to run away with him.
Instead of killing Rax, he stalked towards Sarah and picked up her shaking form. “I told you, you are mine. If you want anyone, it will be me and only me. You care for this male enough to beg for his life, so I will not kill him. But I can’t let him go free.” Kean nodded to Zake, who had followed him. “Take him, lock him up.”
Small hands pushed at him. “No, you don’t understand. He wasn’t taking me away. It wasn’t like that.”
“I don’t fucking care how it was. I’m finished with you avoiding me. I’m finished waiting for you to lose your fear of me. You are MINE. Do you understand? You are mine and mine alone.”
Kean didn’t wait for her to reply. Instead, he tossed her over his shoulder.
“Put me down!”
He ignored her.
“He wasn’t taking me away, Kean. There’s nothing between us. He’s helping me find my sister.”
“Quiet.” Kean spanked her hard across her buttocks. This was not the time to quarrel. He couldn’t argue with her in public. He stomped back towards his compound, the hollowness in his chest threatening to tear him apart and destroy him.
Chapter 11
No! No! No! Everything had gone horribly wrong. Sarah needed to explain everything once Kean calmed down. He was beyond angry, and Sarah was surprised he’d been able to stop himself from killing Rax. This was all her fault. Kean thought she had run off with Rax because she wanted him. And now, Rax’s life was in danger because he’d tried to help her.
Sarah couldn’t see where Kean was going, but going by how fast they were traveling, they’d get there soon. They traveled through the corridors and up the stairs, with Kean taking the stairs three at a time. He slammed the last door closed before dumping her unceremoniously onto a large bed. This must be his room.
His eyes were still filled with rage, and the look terrified her. “If you need anything. You come to me. I will be the only male who touches you.” The words were barely more than a growl.
Not knowing how else to get through to him, Sarah shouted, “I don’t want Rax that way! He was taking me to my sister!”
She’d been so close to seein
g Chrissy again. And all of a sudden, Sarah wasn’t afraid of Kean anymore. She was too angry to be scared. He had cheated her of the opportunity to find her sister.
“You know what? I’m done cowering from you, you big bully! You’re being an ass, and you won’t even listen!”
Balling her hands into fists, she punched at his chest, putting all her weight into the punches. Kean didn’t react.
“You idiot!” she screamed. “I’m not interested in Rax. He was helping me find my sister!” She continued punching at him as tears of frustration welled in her eyes. “You didn’t even bother to ask. You fucking asshole! All you’re good at is attacking things.
“Do you know how fucking hard it is to live without her? She’s my best friend. I need to find her. But you, you’re too high and mighty to listen. You just kill first and ask questions later. Argh! I hate you!” She screamed the last three words.
Kean just sat on the bed as she punched at him, unmoving.
“I hate you! I hate you! I hate you! I never want to see your face ever again.” She didn’t know where the words came from, but they poured out, seething with anger.
He still didn’t move. Eventually, with all her anger spent, Sarah just sat with him, sobbing.
“I’m sorry.” The words were quiet but clear. He stood from the bed, his body drooping. The big, scary warrior who controlled a planet was gone. In his place was just a male, a sad-looking male. “Help yourself to anything from the replicator. The bathroom is over there. I have a cleansing unit and a tub if you want a bath.” He picked up a PPC, a portable personal computer, and turned it on with a retina scan, then placed it on the bed in front of her. “As long as you don’t close the screen, it will not lock again.”
Then, with one last, sad look at her, Kean just walked out.
What the fuck? He just left. He didn’t try to argue or fight; he just said sorry and left.
“Stupid man! Argh!”
Sarah pounded the mattress with frustration. How the hell was she going to yell at him if he wasn’t even here? She wiped the last of the angry tears from her eyes with the back of her hand.