He frowned at his mother. He wasn’t quite ready to share the joy he found in her arms.
“If you wish the people to see her as she really is and care for her the way you have, you have to let her mingle with the people. Let them get to know her. She has proven her worth to me and the council, but no one else knows anything about her. Except she was there to greet you yesterday and that caused quite a stir.” She turned on a monitor to show the news feed.
Heather’s face was everywhere with reporters wanting to know more about her. “You know I don’t mind being a kept woman.” He knew Heather hated being the center of attention which was why she joked. She stroked the rim of her cup as she continued. He wanted to be the rim so bad. “I don’t know how to behave around your people. Our ideals are very different. Perhaps keeping me away a little longer is a good thing.”
“You will find they’re not so different after all. Being afraid isn’t the Vespian way. You need to face it and charge on through.” His mother stood and turned to face him. “Tomorrow night you have to let her be herself. Let everyone see why she is your perfect match.”
****
Heather stood in front of the mirror, adjusting her dress for the fifth time.
Storm had argued that he wanted her to wear the red under her dress. She tried to make him understand it wasn’t a good idea. She was even willing to create another garment like the red one but in a neutral color so most people wouldn’t spot it easily but he didn’t want to hear it. He wanted red.
So red he got. She chose a long black gown instead of the white Anseri had her wearing all the time. Her red underwear would show through the white too easily. The dress was a soft jersey type material she had never seen on Earth. It hugged in all the right places and fell softly where it needed to.
The neckline had a high collar just touching the bottom of her ears. Heather assumed it was to hide her mark but the neckline plunged deep and made her worry about things popping out again. The red lace would hold her in place, but how many times would she have to check her bosom to make sure no one would get little flashes of red because the neckline allowed something to expose itself? If Storm had never seen anything like her little lace outfits she was sure the rest of Vespia hadn’t either and she didn’t want to give them an education on it.
Storm had already been called to stand with the elders. As next leader he had to be there when everyone arrived. They had other plans for her.
Ones she wasn’t too happy about. She walked down several corridors by herself. Her black heels gave her a little more height but she still found them to be small torture chambers for her feet.
Several servants greeted her near the reception line, ready to help her as she worked her way through it. They escorted her to the beginning of the line, and followed her as she moved down it and greet each of the elders.
It was to show she was one of the people. But it just made her feel more isolated.
Using all her training, she worked her way through the elders, bowing at the proper time, smiling and nodding when spoken to. She reached Storm and his mother. After she gave the leader of Vespia a proper bow she was grabbed by Storm and given a resounding kiss. One that could have melted the clothes off her body and definitely letting everyone know she was his.
All the work she went through to show proper decorum and grace gone in one kiss.
“That was evil.” She felt a little breathless. Her body hummed.
“How?” he smiled at her as he kissed her again.
“I can’t think when you kiss me like that.” She knew her body vibrated with desire and wondered how he was dealing with his reaction.
“And things like that have a tendency to backfire.” She palmed his length to see how hard he was, the fullness of her skirt hiding her movements.
A smile spread across her face when he sucked in his breath at her touch.
His stiff member jumped at the contact. “That is something you’re going to have to deal with.”
“So is that how we’re going to play tonight?” He looked at her, his eyes glowing with need, accepting the challenge she had thrown down.
She hadn’t planned on challenging him and knew she would lose but in the end they would both win so she gave him a smile then a wink as she took her place beside him. “If that is what you wish for.” He gave her a bone melting smile that she knew meant trouble.
“You two are going to behave, right?” His mother’s voice was very soft but in that tone mothers across the universe seem to know how to use.
“Yes, Ma’am.” Heather answered. She looked at Storm. At least she hoped they would try. It really depended on how much they planned on teasing each other all night. She could be discrete, but she wasn’t sure about him or how quickly it could get out of hand.
Heather had been the first one to walk down the receiving line so they stood there, greeting the soldiers and their families as they passed through.
Most showed their curiosity about her but maintained their best behavior.
There were a few who didn’t hide how they felt about her, drawing a few growls from Storm.
She was used to it and chose to ignore the lewd glares and snide comments. It didn’t matter what they thought, she was there to stay and sooner or later they would have to get use to her. Just like every person who ever worked with her. She had a lot of rocky starts but in the end all of them learned she was a valuable ally.
Once the line ended they took their seats for the meal. Instead of sitting up on the dais which the elders used all the time, the council sat at tables scattered amongst their guests. It surprised her to know they didn’t keep themselves separate all the time. Heather found herself sitting opposite Storm. A nice safe distance away. She knew his mother had something to do with that.
She held up her glass to him. He winked at her and held his glass up as well.Small talk started at the table and it didn’t take too long before Storm was answering a lot of questions about her. They were thinly veiled ones about Earth and how interesting he found the planet but she knew they wanted to know about her. The little oddity he mated with. Too afraid to ask her directly, they went through him.
She let him answer. Wanting to laugh as he tried to keep his temper under the barrage of questions. He finally hit his limit when he looked at the woman who wanted to know more about the Earth wedding and said,
“I’m not the one from Earth, she is. Why don’t you ask her?” Then stuffed whatever he had speared with his fork into his mouth so he wouldn’t have another outburst.
“I meant no disrespect.” The poor woman looked stricken.
“And none was taken.” Heather leaned over to pat the woman on the hand, giving Storm and several other people at the table a little flash of red in the process. “If we were on my planet right now the situation would be reversed. People would be asking me all the questions because they would be a little hesitant to speak to the ambassador.”
“Thank you.” The woman adjusted herself in her seat and asked. “So how does your ceremony work?”
She spent the next hour explaining the whole process from engagement to the reception. Including having to explain the rings.
“So that tells your world you belong to someone?”
“Yes.” She flexed her fingers, making the light in the hall to bounce off the diamond.
“And you can’t have multiple partners?”
“Depends on the culture and the couple. My planet has a very diverse group of people. What one might find taboo wouldn’t offend another.” She touched the engagement ring. “This ring shows that I have someone specific in my life and have promised to spend the rest of my life with that person but it doesn’t mean I am his. There is a second ring that is given during the ceremony that shows I have chosen to be with the one person for the rest of my life excluding anyone else.”
“I’m not sure I understand.”
“It’s her mark,” Storm spoke up. “Humans use it to warn people that the man o
r woman is taken and they don’t want any other partners.”
“Must be awfully boring,” the woman commented.
“Not so far.” His comment might have been seen as a quip but she knew he was being honest and she felt his sincerity deep inside.
Heather watched Storm. He looked at her and gave her one of his smiles.
The dinner was cleared and they were allowed to mingle with the other guests. Storm was at her side in seconds.
“I see you wore it.” He slipped a finger under the collar of her dress to expose a red strap.
“Yes.” She slipped it back into place. “Now you will know and still have to wait.”
“Not really.” He looked around to see who was paying attention to them. “No one would think twice if I were to take you right here, right now.”
“And you’d have an audience to see what your sexual prowess is like.” She ran a finger around the edge of his shirt, smiling when she saw a row of goosebumps pop up with her touch. “You sure you want to know what your friends think of your technique?”
“You’d go along with whatever I decide?” His finger dipped a little deeper into her neck line, playing with the lace as well as her skin.
“I trust you.” The words were so simple but the effect they had on him was immense. He bent his head toward hers just as someone stepped between them.
“Mom said for you two to break it up.” Storm’s sister looked up at him and grinned. She enjoyed being the bearer of bad news. “She wants you to mingle, not steam up one corner. So I have come to steal your mate for a little while. Introduce her to some of the people here.” Heather waved bye as she was ushered off. She felt she needed to defend herself. “We had only been talking for a few moments.”
“Please, you two were all over each other. No one would dare interrupt and whatever you just said to him thrilled him to the bone. I sensed it. If I hadn’t stopped you I do believe everyone would have gotten quite a little show.” She brought her over to a small group of women. “Besides, my brother needs to learn to wait.”
“You trying to teach him patience?” Heather nodded to the ladies. Let the awkwardness begin. No one spoke for a few moments.
“Mother is.”
The women around them just stared at Heather. As usual she was some strange oddity no one knew how to deal with.
Storm’s sister rolled her eyes. “Heather do you bite?”
“Well, I guess it depends on the circumstances.” What was she getting at? “Like now. Would you bite any of these women? Growl at them? Take their heads off?” She pointed to the silent mob staring at her.
“That is more your brother’s job. He’s the one who growls and bites heads off.” She looked up and found him watching. He stood amongst several young men who vied for his attention. As they spoke to him he would look away from her to answer a question but only for a moment. He only had eyes for her. Heather had to ask her sister-in-law. “Is he going to do that all night?”
“What?” Storm’s sister looked over before looking back at Heather and grinning. “I’m afraid so. He’s been like that since he met you. Be flattered.
A lot of the men here don’t pay any attention to their mates.”
“Aren’t you warm in that?”
Who said that? The comment came out of nowhere. Heather glanced to her left and there stood the woman she had met before. The woman Storm had dated for a short while. She ran her fingers through the soft material of her dress as she thought of an answer.
“You look like you’ve been dressed by the elders.” She looked at Storm’s sister. “You should have dressed her so she could at least fit in.” So many thoughts ran through Heather’s mind. The first was, look who she’s been living with, of course it would like she was dressed by elders.
Another was why did it bother her, it wasn’t her body that it covered, but instead Heather elected to be nice. “The median temperature of your planet is about nine degrees lower than mine so I find it to be a little cool and cover for comfort. I’m sure as I adjust it will change.” And then the woman moved on.
Heather didn’t know what to say.
“Forgive her. She talks that way to everyone.”
“And she dated your brother?” Heather’s gaze followed her until she got lost in the crowd.
“Yeah. He tried. She’s a beautiful woman and the daughter of one of the elders but the moment she opens her mouth. Well.” She grinned at Heather.
“You can see why it didn’t work out.”
“So why did you rush me away from her the last time?” Heather shook her head. “I wondered if there was anything between them because of that.”
“You have to be kidding.” Toki gave her an odd look. “Who is my brother still watching?”
Heather looked up and found his gaze hadn’t wavered. “Okay. Point taken.”
****
“She is a beautiful woman, Storm.”
“I know.” He looked at the young man who made the comment.
“Remember that she is mine.”
“You know we would never approach her without your permission.” He took a sip of his drink. “Besides, I have heard that humans are a bit prudish.”
“They are sexual beings, too. They just feel that it is a private thing and what she does when the doors are closed makes me want to keep them closed all the time.”
“Really?” The young man sat his drink down. “Perhaps I should ask for that permission now.”
“Only if you wish a pounding.” He glared at the young man’s audacity.
“My mate is not to be approached by anyone or I will cause bodily harm.”
“You never cared before.” One of the other young men commented.
“What makes her so different?”
“I say he just hasn’t grown tired of her yet,” said another.
Storm growled, he didn’t like the comment at all. Grabbing the man by the collar, he lifted him up into the air. “Keep up your thread in this conversation and I will take you outside and teach you how to show respect to me and mine.”
The man swallowed hard. “I am sorry, sir.”
He felt the gentle pressure of her hand. It didn’t matter that she couldn’t have heard what anyone said, she knew enough to stop him before he made a mistake. Heather’s soft voice washed over him. “Everything okay?” He dropped the man and took her into his arms. “Of course. Why?”
“I don’t know.” She looked at the man holding his throat. He knew she had sensed his anger. Just like he could sense her awkwardness of being around all these people without knowing how to talk to them.
“Everything is fine now.” He bent his head to hers. No sister to stop him now. She tasted a little like the wine she had been drinking. He tightened his hold on her for a second more but released her before someone from his family ran interference. “Go on back to my sister.” She nodded and started back to Toki. Unfortunately, she didn’t watch where she was going and ran into one of the servers. Glassware and drinks went everywhere. Heather crouched down to help the young girl. She leaned forward to pick up fallen glassware, allowing her dress to gape open and give him a beautiful view of the red lace underneath.
He was hard again in seconds. The lace hugged her, moving as she reached for the fallen glass.
“What is that?” someone asked.
He wanted to enjoy the view as long as it lasted but something told him to turn around and find out what intrigued the men behind him so. He found every man nearby staring down the front of her dress as well.
Chapter 11
He moved fast. As much as he liked what he saw he didn’t want everyone else gawking at his mate. Grabbing her by her hands, he eased her to a standing position. “Don’t do that again.”
“What?” She looked confused.
As discreetly as he could he rubbed a finger against the collar of her dress, his finger slipping inside where she would feel the heat of his hand.
She looked down and then back at him, her ey
es widening as she realized what she had done. “And everyone saw?”
“It was a beautiful sight.” His eyes sparkled with his desire.
She buried her face in his shirt in mortification. “Well, I just became the subject everyone will be wondering about for the next week.” She peeked up at him. “A very good look?”
He rubbed himself against her so she would know what it did to him.
“My men are speechless at the moment and that is hard to do.”
“Well, great.” She thought about it for a minute, then cocked her head to the right. “Then I guess I’m winning for the moment. I not only got you, but half the ballroom. Can you top that?”
He grinned, need still blazing in his eyes. “Let me think about it.”
****
She smiled and gave her skirt a little switch as she headed back to Storm’s sister. All the women stared at her in awe.
“They want to know what that was,” said Toki.
“It’s known as lingerie. Undergarments. Years ago women on earth wore them to keep things in place. Now it’s used for arousal.” Heather picked up the drink she had been nursing and downed it. She needed three more, fast.
“Unfortunately, I was only trying to arouse one person, not everyone here.”
“Can we see it?”
She wasn’t about to parade around for these people so they could see her little outfit. “There is more than one piece and I don’t think my husband, sorry, my mate wants me to make this public knowledge. He’s asked me not to bend over like that again.”
“He’s got it bad,” said one of the women.
Heather grinned. She did feel empowered after it was all said and done.
She made men speechless and didn’t have to do anything more than bend over. And Storm now had that gleam in his eye. The ‘you’re about to have a wild night’ look that she had come to enjoy.
The waitress she had run into brought her another drink, which she downed just as fast. “Three more.”
The young waitress nodded and went to the bar.
“Have you drunk our alcohol before?” Her mate’s sister looked concerned.
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