I gripped her dainty drawers in my hand. When I’d slid them down her thighs, the fabric had been damp with her arousal, had touched her pussy, and still held her scent.
Slipping from my place atop the roof of her home where I’d spent much of the night standing guard watching for Neron’s approach, I followed her, my footsteps silent in the tall grass. I had to watch over her, protect her, even from things she did not know existed.
She ran from me, from the intensity of our mating bond, and yet I could not feel regret that I had slipped into my mate’s mind as she slept. I knew the way to her mind now, could enter her dreams at will. The physical contact we’d shared just hours ago made it easier for my mind to find hers, for my fantasies to pleasure both of us as we slept. Physical contact was too banal for what I’d done to her. Seeing her pussy for the first time, licking and sucking on her wet pink folds, making her come against my mouth was… transcendent. I knew her taste, her scent, the sounds she made when she came. No matter where I was in the future, I would never sleep alone again, and neither would she. I would join her every night until we were mated and from then on. We were one, our minds already linked as I longed for our bodies to be.
Cassie’s effect on me was even more dangerous than I’d first feared. My desire was now obsession, especially now that I could still taste her on my tongue. I’d kept her garment because her heated scent lingered. How foolish and impulsive, but I had to balance my voracious need with her lack of knowledge about her mark. If she didn’t know about the mark, then she didn’t know about Everis.
Sighing, I knew it would be a struggle for her to grasp her new reality—her mate was from another planet. Hell, she had to grasp what a mate was and that she had one. I knew I asked much of an Earth woman with zero knowledge of the vastness or diversity of life in the universe.
I allowed her to get far enough ahead that she would not hear my whispered communication with Thorn, but close enough where I could see her unbound hair and the color of her dress in the distance. I tapped the O-C behind my right ear and waited for Thorn’s deep voice to rumble through my head.
“Thorn.”
“I found her.”
“Does she carry a mark?”
“Yes. On her palm, just like an Everian female.”
“I assume you have acquired her and are on your way to the ship.”
“No. There are—” How could I say this? “—complications.”
“Uncomplicate them.” For him, it was simple. Toss my mate over my shoulder and carry her back to the ship. He’d not been affected with the awakening of his mark, of seeing his mate, of touching her. He did not understand the complications of being mated to an Earth woman.
“She doesn’t know what she is. She’s an orphan and knows nothing of our world or our ways.”
“Where is she now?”
“Running from me. I am simply reporting in to tell you I might need a few more days to… persuade her to come back to Everis with me.”
He had the audacity to laugh. “Divine luck to you, Mad. You’re going to need it.”
“Fuck you.”
His laughter cut off abruptly as he disconnected and I shook my head, grinning despite the fact that I chased my mate over long stretches of rolling hills. I’d explored the area upon approach, and was confident I knew her destination.
A few minutes later, I knew I’d been right. Quietly, I walked toward her where she sat surrounded by trees. From my research, the stately giants were called cottonwoods and often lined creeks and rivers, their roots drinking water from beneath the ground. Cassie sat on a large gray rock, her shoes rested a few steps away on the shore and her bare feet dangled in the ice-cold water. The swiftly moving water was no deeper than her ankles, the water’s edge lined with the tall cottonwoods obscuring my view of what might be on her other side.
She’d opened the top of her dress, the top third of the buttons undone, and her skin glistened under the first rays of Earth’s rising sun where she’d splashed the cold water on her chest and neck. My cock pressed painfully against my simple Earth pants. I was eager to lick every one of the drops of liquid that beaded and slid down over her smooth flesh.
She seemed content, relaxed, her head thrown back and her eyes closed. The rising sun kissed her skin with a soft pink glow and I struggled just to stand and admire her. Not wanting to disturb her peace, I was content to come upon her slowly. She jerked with a start, as if startled by something I could not see. She turned her head to her right, away from me, toward the trees lining the water’s edge.
I was not close, but my hunter’s ears heard her voice clearly. I used every hunter’s sense I possessed and activated the heat scanner and bio-electric monitor implanted in my right eye. If anyone or anything were near, I would know; their heat signature or the bio-electric impulses of a beating heart would appear on my retinal monitor.
I saw nothing, and yet she spoke to someone.
“Who are you?” She held the top of her dress closed with one hand.
The reply was masculine, a low deep rumble I could not make out, even with my hunter’s skill and I increased my pace, moving steadily toward her. This was impossible. My scanners picked up nothing, and yet I heard a man’s voice with my own ears. Cassie answered him.
“But, I don’t know who you are.”
Another rumble as her visitor replied as I edged around to the side, trying to position myself between my mate and the voice, where I could protect her, but unable to do so because of the giant trees.
Cassie shook her head and pulled her feet out of the water, reaching for her shoes, her discomfort obvious. “I don’t think so. I have to get back.”
She leaned over, her delicate hand straining to reach her shoes. Shaking. She was shaking.
All pretense of stealth forgotten, I raced toward her. “Cassie, come here at once.”
Her face lifted in my direction and a startled squeak left her before she grabbed her shoes and hopped off the rock. “Just a minute.”
“Now!”
She rolled her eyes and walked toward me. I rushed to meet her, moving swiftly to place her behind me. Pulling my ionic pistol from my pocket, I approached the rock so I might see who had frightened her.
Scanning the area, I found the wooded area appeared to be empty, but in the mud lining the shore I saw the imprint of a man’s boots. Very large boots.
Cassie’s hands settled on my back as I completed my scan of the area. Nothing, unless you counted the two stalwart fish hugging the edge of the water, a small, furry creature burrowed inside the nearest tree, and birds, most still sleeping in their nests. So who had frightened her so? And why hadn’t my scanners picked him up?
“Who were you talking to?”
“I don’t know who he was. I’ve never seen him before.” Her hands tightened into fists in my shirt and I turned, pulling her shivering body close, tucking her safely against my heart as I hid my pistol away. My anger began to simmer, knowing that someone had frightened her.
“What did he say? What did he want? Did he threaten you?” I’d hunt him down and kill him.
She shook her head, the strands long and wild down her back, and I relaxed a bit until her next words registered. “No. He gave me a message.”
“A message?”
“Yes. It was for you.”
Chapter Six
Maddox
I rubbed her back with my hands, my gaze scanning the surrounding land for any sign of my prey, but I knew it was too late. I knew now who had approached her and my hands fisted. Neron. He’d be long gone by now. He was born and raised a Hunter of Everis, just as I was. The fact that he’d gotten so close to my mate before I could reach her made my heart rise into my throat until I felt as if I would choke on the damn thing. I’d never felt this sensation before, and was not happy to feel it now.
Fear. I’d not tasted it since Maddie had gone missing, and the bitter tang did not sit well on my tongue.
What technology had Nero
n acquired that blocked my retinal scanner? Had he somehow acquired a Hunter’s Cloak after his escape from prison? The suits were very valuable and extremely rare, as they made whoever wore them invisible to the eye and undetectable on most scanners. They were reserved for elite Hunters, those who worked for the Sevens. Anyone else caught in possession of one was fined and placed on probation, or worse, sent to the mines.
Was this how he’d escaped Incar’s prison mine? How he’d escaped me these last few days? And if he were in possession of such an advanced technology, how and where had he discovered it? Did the other criminals have this as well? If so, Thorn, Jace and Flynn could be in grave danger.
As was my mate.
My judgment had been clouded by my need to see my mate happy. I should never have let her out of my sight. She’d been open and exposed. Vulnerable. The worst had happened. Neron was here and knew of her. Fury and panic coursed through my veins. My mark pulsed, burned from something new.
Worry. Not for me, for her. My Cassie.
“What was this message?” I tried to keep my voice even, calm. She was cautious enough of Neron to seek shelter from me. I did not intend to frighten her further.
“He said to tell my mate that Maddie was just the beginning.”
Rage, red hot and nearly uncontrollable rolled through me and I choked on it, stilled my hands on Cassie’s shoulders to be sure I would not hurt her with my anger. “Did he say anything else?”
She squirmed, uncomfortable or embarrassed and I looked down into her face, shifted my hands to cup her jaw and lifted her gaze to mine.
“Tell me.”
She bit her lip and I ached to kiss it, but did not. My every sense was tuned to the surrounding wood, to listening and learning the sounds of the wild creatures so I would hear the smallest snap of a twig, so the jagged breath of a man would be out of place. If I could not rely on my scanners, I would have to hunt for Neron the old-fashioned way, with wits and strength and patience.
“Tell me, Cassie. Please.”
With a sigh, her gaze dropped to my lips, then darted back to my eyes. “He said—he said I was very beautiful and that I smelled like roses. And—”
I leaned over and breathed in her sweet scent. Roses. He’d been close enough to scent her. Long hours of the hunt, of training and discipline, held me still as I waited for the rest. “And?”
“And he asked me to walk with him.”
A thousand shards of glass splintered in my mind at the thought of Neron touching my mate, but I could not stop myself from asking the next question, the answer to which might destroy me.
“And did you want to, Cassie? Did you want to walk with him?”
I stared into her eyes, daring her to speak the truth, to deny my mark, deny the pull between mates.
“No. He made me—”
“What? He made you—?”
She licked her lips, her hands twisting in my shirt in a subconscious gesture I was sure she wasn’t aware of making. “Anxious. He wasn’t. He didn’t.” She sighed, her cheeks turning an enchanting shade of pink I hadn’t seen before. “He wasn’t like you.”
I couldn’t resist running my palm over her hair, to feel the sleek softness of it. I hoped it was a soothing gesture for her, for it eased something in me. “And what am I like? Do you fear me?”
“Yes.”
I stiffened and she must have felt my withdrawal, for her hands flew to my shoulders, her fingers gripping me with vigor.
Her eyes widened, the flare of desperation and confusion filling them. “But not like that. It’s not the same.”
I took a deep breath. “Then explain it to me. I don’t want you to fear me, Cassie. You are mine, my mate. I would die to protect you, kill for you.” I looked in the direction Neron had fled. “That man, he’s dangerous. And the next time I give you an order regarding your safety, you will obey, or I will spank your bare bottom until you can’t sit for a week.”
“What?”
“You heard me.”
She shoved at me and stepped away. “I don’t think so.”
Knowing Neron could be anywhere, I did not have patience for this argument. Grabbing her by the arms, I pulled her close enough that our lips touched. “If you ever refuse to obey me when your life is in danger, I will spank you, Cassie. If you lie to me, I will lift your dress, bend you over my knees and spank your pretty round bottom until it’s as pink as your sweet lips.”
She frowned at my words, but her eyes flared with desire, with a want I did not have time to address. But I would, soon. I would wrap her wrists in gold and make her mine.
“We must leave this town, leave these people behind. You aren’t safe here.”
Her mouth fell open in surprise. I felt her little fingernails dig into my shoulders. “I do not understand the word ‘mate.’ Why did he use that word? And what do you mean leave town? I can’t leave. I have a job. Mr. Anderson needs me.”
I had conveniently forgotten she knew nothing of her mark. I’d wanted to ease her into the truth, for it would be hard for her to leave this planet, her entire life behind. I could feel the heat of her birthmark against my shoulder, but it meant nothing to her and that was the crux of the problem. She didn’t understand the importance of our marks, the extraordinary blessing it offered, the risk. Especially now that Neron had found her.
She needed to know the truth. All of it. Deep down, she knew that Neron was deadly. She’d sensed it, come to me for shelter, but that was not enough. I had to get her away from him and to safety where the others could protect her as well. The ship was genetically coded to the DNA and retinal scanners of the four hunters who had flown her to this planet. Me, Thorn, Jace and Flynn. No others could get on board. The ship’s hull was impenetrable to any weapon that existed on Earth, and to most from my own world. The Sevens took their security very seriously and our ship, though small, was one of the strongest, safest vessels in the entire Coalition Fleet. If I could just get her on board, she would be beyond Neron’s reach forever.
“If Neron has found you, he will try to possess you. Once he tires of that game, he will kill you.”
“Kill me?” Her voice quavered and she gripped my shirt even tighter.
“I won’t let that happen. We must go to my ship.”
“Ship? What ship? Where are you from? Seattle? San Francisco? I don’t want to go on a ship. The swaying of a carriage makes me ill. I don’t think I could survive on the ocean, swaying and tilting. I’ve read about the sickness in books. No ships.”
“You will survive with me. Trust me, Cassie. Please. Let me take care of you. It’s not safe for you here. You can’t go back to that town.”
A deep V marred the smooth skin of her forehead. “Why? What aren’t you telling me?”
“That man is a criminal, Cassie. A murderer who escaped from prison. I was sent here to track him down.”
“You’re a bounty hunter?” Her words were filled with surprise.
“I am a hunter, yes.” I nodded once. “But I will not collect a bounty, not this time. I gifted my bounty to Thorn. I am here to avenge my family and nothing more. Maddie was my sister. That man, his name is Neron, and he killed her.”
She released her hold and stepped back, stumbled. “He… that man killed your sister?”
I thought of Maddie, of her dark hair, her quick smile, and the usual pain filled my chest. “Yes.”
“And he came to me… here.” She waved her hand in the air to show the desolate spot by the water. “He could have, I mean if he wanted, he could have—”
She couldn’t even speak clearly. Her fear was palpable to me and I rushed to reassure her. “He’ll never get that close again. I won’t allow it. I underestimated him, Cassie. I relied on my new scanners and not enough on my natural senses. For that, I am very sorry. But he won’t get near you again. He’ll have to get through me first.”
I hooked an arm about her waist and pulled her forward, returning her to her rightful place in my arms. Her hands came
to my chest, pushed at me, but I would not relent. She would run no more.
She couldn’t look me in the eye, but stared at the buttons on my shirt instead. I could see she was thinking too hard, that she did not receive any comfort from me or my words. “I… have to go back. I have to warn Mr. Anderson.”
“No. I can’t allow you to go back there.”
“Can’t allow? This is my home! If there’s a murderer wandering about, I need to let Mr. Anderson know so he can take precautions. There is a rifle above the kitchen door, Maddox, and I know how to use it.”
“It is too late for that. Neron knows who you are, where you live. The rifle will not protect you. You will not return to that house.” I changed my words to a command.
“Watch me.” Cassie pulled away and shoved her feet into her flat brown shoes. She whirled then, and started running in the direction of the boarding house.
In two strides my arms were around her, locking her to me as I made my intentions clear, as I staked my claim. “You can try to run, Cassie, but it changes nothing. You are mine, my marked mate, and I won’t allow you to go.”
She kicked and fought, but I held her as easily as I would a small child. Finally, she grew weary and fell limp in my arms. “Please. He’s my father. He adopted me when I was four and I had no one, no family, no home. We have to warn him. Please, Maddox.”
Her pleading should have fallen on deaf ears. Returning to the house was a risk I did not wish to take, but I could not bear the idea of her pain. If I forced her away now, would she ever forgive me? I had not realized her relationship with Mr. Anderson. Her father.
On Everis, family was all. This, I understood, despite my desire to deny it.
“All right, Cassie. But we will go together. Once he has been warned, we will leave this town and travel to my ship. I won’t leave Earth without you.”
She stumbled forward, out of my arms, and turned to face me, her eyes round as disbelief filled her gaze. “What did you just say? What do you mean, you won’t leave Earth without me?”
Cowgirls vs Aliens Page 5