by Anna Hackett
“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.”
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.
She let out a small, husky cry.
“I want to be so deep inside you that you never forget how I feel.”
She moaned. “Tannon.”
He skimmed his hands down her arms, lower, until he clamped them on her ass. “Ride me, Mina. Tease me, tempt me, drive me crazy.”
“I want you. I need you inside me.”
Blowing out a breath, he delved deep for his control. His desire warred with his need to protect. “Your clothes don’t come off. Not while your face is still bruised.”
She moved faster, her core rubbing over his rock-hard cock. He watched her bite her lip, her face flushing with pleasure.
He sank his hands into her firm buttocks, moving her faster and faster.
“Oh.” She was panting hard. “Oh—”
Then she let out a sexy cry, her head falling back as she started to come. Tannon had never seen anything more tempting, more beautiful.
Drak. His own release was rushing down on him, all his muscles coiling tight. A second later, he did something that he’d never done before in his entire life. He came, groaning as his seed spilled inside his trousers.
Mina collapsed against him and pressed her face against his neck. Her breaths were warm on his skin. He smoothed a hand up her back.
“That was the best sex of my life and I still have my clothes on,” she said.
With a rusty laugh, he pulled her down to lie with him on the couch. He touched her face, running his finger down her nose. “I need to clean up.”
She smiled lazily, like a thera hunting cat that had just snagged its prey. He kissed her forehead, then rose, and headed for his bathroom. He kept it quick, cleaning up, then pulling on some loose, black silk pants.
When he returned to the couch, he found Mina was already asleep. For a second, he thought about transferring her to his bed. The idea of her nestled amid his sheets had a visceral tug of satisfaction spearing through him.
But his control was already shaky, and he was drakking going to ensure she was fully healed before he took her. Because when he unleased the need inside him, it would be rough, hot, and sweaty.
He slid onto the couch and pulled her body against his. She made a small sound, pressing closer.
Tannon smiled. He was content to just lie there, listening to her breathing.
He nuzzled her hair. “No one will hurt you ever again.”
Chapter Six
Mina’s feet were already sore and she wasn’t even wearing her heels yet. She pulled one foot out of her flats and massaged the arch to relieve the pressure.
She was busy helping set up for the House of Galen and House of Rone shindig. While they were setting up, the servers didn’t have to wear their usual uniform and heels. Still, she’d been carrying in decorations, chairs, glasses, and other things for the last hour and her feet weren’t happy.
She had to admit; she hadn’t been the most efficient worker. Her head was still filled with thoughts of a certain tough, sexy head of security. He’d left her late this morning while she’d still been sleeping. Mina smiled to herself. But she remembered the goodbye kiss and a quiet order to keep resting. And she’d relived their sexy make out sessio
n about a hundred times.
Not to mention, that when she’d woken, she’d found several vases of flowers dotted around the suite—all lush and fragrant. They hadn’t been there earlier. She had no idea how Tannon had known about her secret love of flowers, but it had warmed her insides. She couldn’t wait to thank him.
“Mina?”
She blinked and looked at the woman beside her. “Sorry, did you say something?”
Dayna Caplan laughed. “No, but whatever you were thinking about must be good.”
Heat filled Mina’s cheeks. “A man, what else.”
Rillian’s human mate smiled. “Damn their sexy, distracting asses.”
Mina smiled back. “So, what exactly are these gladiators celebrating?”
Dayna looked around the room, a private smile on her face. “They’re celebrating the survival of the human abductees. That we all made it, despite the odds. Despite the pretty shitty circumstances we all faced.”
Mina nodded. In the desert, survival was one of the most important things. She could understand celebrating that, especially after what she’d heard all these women had been through. She looked at Dayna. The tall brunette wasn’t exactly beautiful, but she was striking and attractive. She held herself in a way that said she could take care of herself. All the glossy, glamourous females that haunted the Dark Nebula had been very upset when Rillian had made it clear he belonged to this one woman alone.
Dayna could probably take down all the simpering women without breaking a sweat. During her abduction, she’d been through a hellish experience and—Mina’s gaze dropped to the faint golden glow visible in the center of the woman’s chest through her shirt—she’d been forced to bond to an alien symbiont. But Dayna had survived. Here she was, in love with the delectable Rillian, working with Tannon’s security team, and thriving.
“We need more chairs over here,” someone called out.
Sighing, and picturing herself burning the heels she was dreading putting on later that night, Mina headed over to help. The large room was decorated in a deep blue, red, and gray. She’d learned that blue was the color of the House of Rone, and red and gray the colors of the House of Galen. The place looked gorgeous. She stopped for a second to take it all in. Large urns overflowed with fresh flowers, strands of glimmering lights were strung up across the ceiling. In places, columns of water shimmered in long vertical lines, held in place by some sort of invisible energy field.