“You promised the women would be given a choice if they wanted to leave,” Sparx reminded the other Warlord. “From what Dracur said, the human version of our mating heat will not let that happen.”
Sparx knew the exact moment K’hor understood what he meant. K’hor’s face fell. “It could kill them…”
“You take care of your mate when she wakes,” Sparx said as he took the few steps needed to reach the door. “I’m going to talk to Matrix and see if he has any thoughts on our new situation.”
Chapter Fifteen
Juniper ignored the voice saying her name and snuggled deeper into the softness cushioning her. Keeping her eyes closed, she tried to slip back into the dirty dream she’d been having. As far as dirty dreams went, this particular one had been fabulous.
She’d been naked. K’hor had been naked. They were doing things together naked. It had been fantastic.
Until she’d started to wake.
“Tiny?”
Juniper cracked open one sleepy eye, blinking at the bright light above her. “Hey,” she croaked groggily. Staring up at K’hor, Juniper couldn’t remember why she was in bed, how she’d gotten there, and why he wasn’t in the bed with her. “What’s going on?”
Juniper tried to muster up the will to sit up but failed miserably. Her body felt heavy as if it weren’t ready to be awake quite yet.
K’hor dropped a kiss on her forehead with a gentle smile. “Shhh… Don’t move. Let me get you something to drink.” Juniper watched him walk across a room she’d didn’t remember entering.
Turning her head to the side she took a moment to look around, becoming even more anxious when she saw the machines next to the bed. Raising her arms as high as she could, Juniper watched the connected cords sway.
What the—?!
“Careful, Tiny.” K’hor moved quickly to help her as she struggled to sit up. Pushing a pillow behind her, he helped raise her just enough so she wasn’t flat on her back any longer. “How do you feel?”
Juniper closed her eyes to take quick stock of all her body parts. Her mouth was wicked dry but that could be easily fixed, and although a little stiff, she could move her arms and legs easily.
“Tiny?”
She opened her eyes at the feel of his breath against her forehead. Leaning over her, K’hor managed to block out the overly bright lights behind him, making it easier for her to open her eyes without wincing. There with nothing but worry on his face as he waited for her to answer him. His expression stunned her a little bit.
K’hor genuinely cared for her.
The knowledge made her feel warm all over. This was the feeling she’d gone without after her parents had passed, never finding it in the homes she’d stayed in. The foster families had done their best in most cases to take care of her…but they’d never cared for her.
The difference between the two was night and day.
Juniper stared up at him, mesmerized by the look in his eyes. The longer she stared the more she was unable to stop thinking about the wet dream she’d been having. It had her itching to pull him down flush against her, when she remembered the feel of his weight on top of her.
It may have happened in a dream, but it had sure felt real.
A blush heated Juniper’s chest when her panties flooded with moisture. She’d only been awake for two point five seconds and K’hor already had her lady business tingling. The man was like some sort of goddammed pussy magician. She lacked all control when it came to her body and the way she responded to him. All he’d done was look at her and she was raring to go.
“Tiny,” K’hor prompted, having no idea that the sound of his voice made her skin tingle at the base of her neck. “Are you in any pain?”
“I feel—I feel,” Juniper stuttered, one hundred percent certain she was blushing clear down to her toes at the dirty thoughts inside her head. “I feel pretty good, actually.”
“Do you remember what happened?” he questioned, watching her as if she were a puzzle he was struggling to figure out.
“Ummm,” Juniper drawled as she began to worry why he was acting weird. “My stomach hurt.” Her stomach clenched at the memory as it rushed back to her. “Did I have panic attack or something? I remember feeling all hot and sweaty, but I just thought I was crashing after pulling that stinger out.”
She was still a bit warm now that she thought about it, but it was far from the burning alive level of heat from before. The pain was gone too.
Thank you, sweet baby Jesus.
The memory of the stomach cramps from hell rolled over her as if it had happened just seconds before. It was a level of pain that she’d never felt in her life. At first it had been easy to ignore, nothing more than cramps reminiscent to the normal period woes she dealt with every month. Then it had morphed into a stabbing sensation. The sharpness had been so realistic, she’d half expected to look down and see a knife hilt protruding from her gut.
“What’s wrong?” K’hor asked, tipping her head back to search her face when she shivered.
“I just remembered the pain and—” Juniper brushed both the memory of pain and his concern away with a shake of her head. “Nothing.”
She really was fine. Horny, but fine.
Juniper couldn’t help it. The minute she’d heard K’hor’s voice, it had been as if someone had turned the spigot on her downstairs sprinkler system. His concern and worry over her condition only managed to make him that much more irresistible.
Pfft… Who was she trying to kid?
Every single aspect of K’hor was irresistible. The sound of his voice, the feel of his skin, the way he smelled. She wanted him on an instinctual level. There was no point in fighting the inevitable so she’d decided to just go with the flow.
Juniper tried not to wiggle as the wetness in her panties spread.
Apparently, her body took going with the flow literally.
“I’m starting to get a little warm…do you mind?” Juniper tugged on the blanket he’d pinned down with his big body when he sat down next to her.
It took her a second to notice that K’hor had gone completely stiff at her words. Before she could ask what was wrong, he was placing a hand on her forehead. Letting it sit there for a few moments, he had a grim look on his face as he looked over her shoulder.
“Are you checking my temperature?” Turning her head with his palm still attached to it, she glanced behind her to see what he was focused on. Her gaze landed on the bank of monitors, but she didn’t understand exactly what she was looking at. “Is it high?”
“Yes,” K’hor answered swiftly, his eyes moving over the numbers flashing on the machines she was connected to. “It has risen since I first entered the room.” K’hor gave her side a squeeze before dropping a kiss on the top of her head. “Don’t worry, Tiny. I will go and get Dracur. He’ll know how to fix this.”
“Wait!” Juniper startled both of them with the shout that came out of her mouth. Clutching K’hor’s tunic, she kept him from moving off the bed they were on. For some reason, the idea of him stepping away was uncomfortable. She didn’t even want to imagine him leaving the room.
Just the thought of it made her palms break out in a sweat and her stomach roll. “You can’t leave me.”
K’hor settled by her side once again, bracing himself on an arm as he checked her over. “Are you in pain?” he asked as he probed her stomach. Each time she shook her head, he would move on to a new location, careful not to press too hard as he scanned for injury. Juniper knew he wasn’t going to find anything but kept her mouth shut, hoping he’d continue touching her.
“I just felt sick for a minute. It passed,” she whispered, biting her lip as she watched him. Juniper wasn’t satisfied with the clinical touch he was using as he moved up and down her body.
She wanted more.
As he leaned over her, Juniper pulled in a lungful of his musk. She savored the fragrance as it slipped past her senses to fill her insides. Unable to stop herself, she was soon
sucking in another whiff. After three or four more, her entire body had relaxed back onto the bed. Juniper wanted to roll in the smell of him. Literally.
The mental image of her rolling around on top of K’hor did nothing but dial up the heat she could feel under her skin. Juniper found herself tracing the arch of his brow and curve of his cheek before she realized she’d even moved.
“Please kiss me,” she whispered, unable to hold the words back.
K’hor placed his hand against hers where it rested before moving her hand to his mouth. Kissing the sensitive palm, he closed his eyes for a tick.
“What’s wrong?” Kisses forgotten; Juniper knew something was bothering him. She wasn’t sure how she knew he was upset about something, only that it was a feeling she couldn’t shake. The worry he held inside was enough to put a slight damper on her hormones—at least for the moment.
“Tiny—we need to talk.” K’hor sat up, pulling her with him.
Juniper swallowed hard when she heard the standard breakup line of doom. The idea of him leaving her twisted her stomach so much that she had to hold herself in check to keep from gagging. She was about four seconds from losing it when K’hor cupped her face in his hands and dropped a kiss on her lips.
The contact not only made her stomach settle but it also distracted her from the urge to vomit. Furrowing her brow in confusion, Juniper couldn’t help but wonder what the hell was happening. One second he was starting the ‘it’s not you, it’s me’ intro and then he kisses her.
“What’s going on?” Juniper put her hands over his where he was cupping her cheek. Nestling into it, she waited for him to speak.
“Dracur, our elder healer, believes he knows what made you collapse earlier,” he began. “After running some tests, the healers believe the mating heat is to blame. They’ve said the level of heat in your system is so high it has become dangerous for it to continue.”
“Okay. So, we just lower it, right?” Juniper wrinkled her brow. “Is there a pill or something? A shot?”
“Not exactly.” K’hor shifted beside her, moving farther away with each adjustment he made. “They tried to administer hormone therapy to calm it some, but your system did not respond to the treatment.”
“Do we have a plan B?” she asked with a frown. It was getting harder to focus the farther he scooted away. Wiggling her body where she was trapped under the blanket, Juniper squirmed until she could feel his body heat once again. The contact was such a relief it almost had her sighing out loud.
“If you’re asking if there is another option, then yes, we have a plan B,” K’hor answered as he began to stand.
“No!” Juniper popped up from beneath the cover and grabbed his shoulder as if she were a human jack-in-the-box. “You can’t leave.” To emphasize her words, she tightened her grip on the leather beneath her fingertips.
K’hor couldn’t leave—hard stop. No if, ands, or buts about it. Juniper wasn’t sure what would happen if he tried, but deep down, she knew it wouldn’t be good.
His gaze flashed from her face to the monitors behind her and back again. “The numbers have risen again.”
Juniper shrugged. She felt fine…different, but fine. The pain and sour stomach were a distant memory, leaving her waiting for…something.
It was weird.
There was no denying the rush of anticipation that filled her. Her body tingled, goosebumps spreading across her skin in a rush as she shivered. She was as amped up as the one time she’d gone skydiving. Scared shitless but still ready to take the leap regardless.
K’hor’s eyes dropped to her breasts when she drew in a deep breath. They were only there a second before the machines she was tethered to beeped again.
“I promise, I feel fine.” Juniper cupped K’hor’s cheeks to keep his gaze on her and off the machines beeping behind her. “I know it sounds crazy but I know I’m going to be fine.”
K’hor blinked slowly, a look she couldn’t read reflecting back at her when he met her eyes. “Tiny—”
“Stop,” she cut him off, pulling him closer until they were nose to nose. “Every instinct I have is telling me to keep going…to trust this.” Juniper dropped one of her hands to grip his. Pulling it to her stomach, she flatted his large palm over the curve there. “You take it all away, K’hor. Your touch is the one that makes the pain stop. Your scent is what calms my stomach when it feels like it’s trying to tear itself apart. My body is telling me something I already know. I need you touching me as much as I need to breathe.”
“I need you too, Tiny.” K’hor dropped his forehead to hers as he kept himself braced partially over her. “I wanted to give you more time, but the mating heat could kill you if we don’t complete it.”
Juniper’s mouth fell open at his words. “What do you mean?”
K’hor hugged her to the front of his body, still somehow managing to keep a majority of his weight off her own. “You’re responding much stronger and faster than any Djaromir female has before, Tiny.” The words rushed out of K’hor as if he’d had them waiting for an eternity to escape. “Our mating heat could kill you—”
“But that’s only if we try to stop this, right?” Juniper interrupted, already knowing the answer in her gut.
“Yes, but—”
Juniper placed her finger against his lips before he could continue to argue.
“Let’s finish this.” There was no way she was going to mince words when it came to something this important.
K’hor ran his fingers through his hair before letting out a curse. “I want you to be sure. I wanted to give you more time.”
Even without the link between them, Juniper would have seen the struggle her mate was going through. Reaching out, she placed her hand against the Hamuir symbol burned in the leather over his heart. Her senses were so in tune, she could feel the twists of the tunnels burned under her palm as if she were tracing them with her fingers.
“I don’t need it.”
Chapter Sixteen
K’hor was too nervous to move.
“K’hor,” Juniper sighed. “I decided to stay before all this happened. You’re not rushing me—believe me, I wouldn’t let you rush me.”
“You need to be sure this is the choice you want to make,” K’hor cupped her face, unable to not touch her.
Juniper snorted before making a funny face at him. “This is the entire reason why I signed up to leave Earth. You’re the reason, K’hor. I know it’s fast. Believe me, I know.” Juniper gave him a look that spoke for itself. “But I can’t fight this. Even if I wanted to—which I don’t—I can’t fight this.”
“I’m sorry,” K’hor apologized, taking the blame he felt was owed.
“Don’t be sorry. I’m not.” Juniper shrugged, giving him a lopsided grin. “Seriously. I am beyond okay with everything.”
“Positive?” K’hor searched her face, looking for any sign of doubt he might be able to see.
“One hundred percent.” Juniper patted him on the chest where she was now stroking his pec. “I don’t have any doubts about this…about us. Do you?”
“No!” he blurted, almost before she’d even stopped speaking. K’hor could feel his cheeks warm in embarrassment even as Juniper giggled at his emphatic response.
It was one of the sweetest sounds he’d ever heard.
“Can we get out of here? It’s a bit too” —Juniper wrinkled her nose as if smelling something unpleasant— “medical office for me.”
“Of course,” K’hor eyed the monitors she was still connected to. “I’ll go and get Dracur to handle all of this.”
Juniper shook her head, “No need. These are all just stuck on with stickers. I can peel them off and we can bust out of here.”
K’hor wasn’t sure if that was a smart idea, but Juniper wasn’t waiting for him to agree with her. As he watched with worried eyes, she peeled off the pads attached to the cords tying her down. As each one disconnected, it was followed by a loud beep from the machines.
“I see you’re doing well,” Dracur observed from the doorway, his voice competing with the abrasive noises from the machines. “Did you need help with any of those?” Moving to the equipment, the elder turned off the alarms with a quick tap of his fingers.
“No thank you. I can manage.” Juniper plucked the last one off her chest with a grimace.
“Tiny, this is Dracur.” K’hor explained when she sent him a questioning glance. “He is the elder healer on Djaromir.”
“It’s nice to meet you.” Juniper stuck out her hand for Dracur to shake. “Are you the one that figured out what was happening to me?”
K’hor frowned when Dracur gave Tiny a besotted smile. That was odd…the cranky old healer never smiled.
“It was not hard to figure out at all,” Dracur said to Juniper. Still holding her hand, he patted the back of it.
Narrowing his eyes at the contact, K’hor growled deep in his chest.
“Did you say something?” Dracur turned slightly to look at him, his expression innocent except for the twinkle of mischief in his eyes.
K’hor glared. “Yes, I want—”
“We want to leave so we can…take care of things,” Juniper interrupted as if she knew K’hor had been on the verge of saying something rude to the much older Djaromir.
“Of course.” Dracur let go of her hand with one last pat before moving away. “I’ve already had some comforts sent to the Warlord’s chambers.” Before shuffling out the door, he turned to give Juniper a wink. “Welcome to Djaromir, Warlord’s mate.”
K’hor bowed to him in thanks before catching the amused expression on Juniper’s face.
“What?”
“He was interesting.” Juniper shrugged.
“He was testing my limits,” K’hor rumbled, scooping her up in his arms without warning.
Juniper squealed before smacking his shoulder. “He was nice. Plus, he looked old enough to be my grandpa if I had one, so no more growling at him.”
K’hor mumbled under his breath, making no promises where his Tiny was concerned. Walking with her in his arms, he made his way through the healing center.
Miners of Djaromir: K'hor Page 12