She could only lick her lips in anticipation.
His teeth grazed the soft tissue near her collar bone. “I want you to move to the chair.”
Heather didn’t want to move. Her body quivered in anticipation. Then he stopped. She looked up at him in confusion.
“Move to the chair and I will continue, but until then nothing.” She reached for him and he stepped out of the way. “I mean it.”
So he wanted to prove a point. She walked to the chair and straddled it. Feet planted firmly on either side. Then she planted her hands on her hips and turned back to give him another sultry look.
He was pleased by her movement, yet he hadn’t taken a step toward her. What was he waiting for? A sigh escaped her.
“Bored, my heart?”
“With you, never, just trying to figure out your strategy.” She stood there, proud and waiting. “You always have one when I overstep my boundaries.”
“True.” He did move closer then. “And you always seem to forget your place.”
“I never forget that.” He always fought these things even when he knew she was right.
“Then why do you question me when you know you shouldn’t?” He stepped up to her, his face inches from hers.
“Was I wrong to bring up the information I did?” He used these tactics on others and they were always frightened, but she knew he did it to show his frustration. Storm would never hurt her. “Do you truly believe we should have left those people to their own devices?”
“No.” He backed off a bit.
“Did I say anything while you spoke to the doctor?” At least he was admitting the truth now. “Did they see me touch you?”
“I doubt it.” He moved around her. “I have the cameras angled a certain way in case they were to try to contact us while we were engaged.”
“Then why the anger?” She marveled at how he thought of everything to make sure her modesty stayed intact. “Have I ever done anything to make you look bad in the eyes of any other Vespian? Haven’t I always been the good little mate who never questions her man? At least not in public. Why don’t you trust me to do what is right when it is right?”
“I do.” He moved close enough to touch her heart. “You make me feel things I have never thought possible. I fear that all you need to do is look at me a certain way and I will crumble at your feet and it won’t matter who sees.”
“Storm.” She touched his face, understanding his confusion and wishing she could erase it. “That is what love does to you. I know the word love doesn’t translate into Vespian very well but it is the only word I can come up with. It grips you hard and makes you realize that nothing matters more than the happiness of the one you care for. I gave up all I knew to be with you because of the love I have for you.”
“My father was always a strong man. I never saw any weakness in the way he dealt with my mother.” He still saw his feelings as a weakness. She needed to get him to see it wasn’t.
“Love makes you strong, not weak.” She unsealed his uniform so she could touch his heart. The heat of his chest penetrated her hand. “It just changes you so much you fear what is happening. And that is what drives your anger, fear.”
His golden eyes gazed into her soft violet ones. She could see the emotions at war with one another. He had been raised to always be in control, but so had she. She had learned to lock her feelings away after she had heard enough of the cruel things that were said to her because she was so different. That training came in handy now. She could talk to him without letting emotions get in the way. Hopefully, make him see love was a glorious thing, not something to fear.
“You have accepted everything so easily. How?” He used his other hand to touch her face. His fingers brushed her cheeks before they wrapped around the back of her neck.
“Because I don’t show my emotions. I keep it all locked up inside. That’s why I can put up with you so well.”
That brought a snort out of him. His other hand eased the seam of her uniform open all the way down. She mimicked his move.
“Would you have left your world if they hadn’t ordered you to?”
“Now that isn’t a fair question. I knew you maybe a day or two. The question is whether or not I planned on going back home once the treaty was signed.”
“Did you?” She saw that slight spark of fear enter his eyes when he asked that question.
“What do you think?” She had eased his uniform open enough that she could wrap her hand around his hard member. “Did I ever once say anything that would make you think I would want to leave you?”
“No.” He tilted his head back and closed his eyes at the contact. “But you weren’t given much choice.”
“That’s because I chose to stay.”
He opened his eyes as he studied her face. She never kept anything from him, especially now that they could share parts of their thoughts. Their bond grew stronger every day and soon he’d be able to access anything he wanted.
He pulled her face to his and captured her mouth, his tongue pressing for entrance which she gave gladly. His need to dominate was so strong she could taste it in his kiss. Her uniform gone, his hands traveled up and down her body, touching and playing in all the right places to bring her arousal to a white hot flame.
Her body quaked with need and her hand shook just trying to remove his uniform. She couldn’t do it with the same quick precision he did.
He picked her up, cradling her to his chest. Storm moved to the command chair and sat down. From the way his leg muscle moved she was sure his foot pressed a metal pedal. A slight hiss of air and he grinned down at her. Gently, he laid her on the footrest which had now risen to be level with the seat. The back of the chair slid down and back, giving Storm a comfortable place to kneel.
He lifted her legs so he was in between them, then surged into her. The angles built into the chair put her hips at just the right spot. She didn’t need to angle herself to allow him better penetration. He went in deep and her body shook.
“Storm.” It was all she could say before everything shattered around her. Wow, that didn’t take long. That white hot flame consumed her, burning away everything but the joy of her release. Her body gripped him, causing delicious shivers to race through his blood as he continued to move in and out of her. Another wave started to hit her with his movements. She arched against him as this one crested and carried her away.
He pumped faster, his breath coming out in harsh gasps. “My heart.” And he lost control. He pushed into her deeper and faster, his legs jerking a little as his orgasm grabbed him and sent him soaring. He lay on top of her, his heart beating hard. He placed soft kisses on her eyes, her cheeks then took her lips with his in a long leisurely kiss. “We’re taking this chair home with us.”
She laughed, a deep throaty laugh that had him getting hard again. “You sure it’s the chair and not the mind sharing?”
“Oh, the mind sharing has something to do with it.” He nibbled on her throat. “But this chair made everything fit perfectly. Even now, I’m at an angle so I don’t have to break contact for me to play with certain parts of your body I couldn’t reach before.”
“You calling me short again?” She gave him a mock glare. “I could start calling you giant man.”
He pushed himself up on his elbows and grinned. “I like that. Everyone will know how large I am.”
“Not what I meant.” His mouth closed on one peak and brought an “Oh” out of her.
“See?” He licked it, watching it pebble up under his ministrations. “Before I had to leave the warmth of your body to pay homage to your breasts.”
“I think I do,” she said, her voice slightly breathless. She was beginning to like the chair too.
****
“Why didn’t you tell me you had a medical condition?” Toki yelled at his unconscious form. Fear gripped her as she struggled to maneuver the truck. She cringed as she scraped the left wall. He wasn’t going to be happy about that. “Damn it, wake u
p! I can’t do this alone.”
He started to come to, although still dazed for a few seconds. The moment he saw a large rock formation looming ahead and the fact they were heading right for it, he jerked the wheel to the right and moved the truck out of the way.
“Pull over,” she shouted at him over the noise of the engine.
“What?”
“Pull over.” She pulled the wheel enough to get him to find a safe place and stop.
“What is wrong with you?” He glared at her.
“With me?” She grabbed his hand and placed it over her heart. “You feel that? That’s a heart beating in fear. Why didn’t you tell me you had a medical condition that could incapacitate you at any moment?”
“I wish it was that easy.” He turned the engine off. He stared out at the rocky horizon. “I have suddenly picked up some sort of mind meld.”
“How would that cause you to black out the way you did? Your eyes rolled up into the back of your head. Scared me half to death.”
“The meld only happens when the couple’s being intimate. Right at the moment they have an orgasm I’m invited to attend. Can’t fight it. Believe me, I’ve tried. Most of the time it happens early to late evening so there is no real danger. I’m assuming it has something to do with their planet’s cycle. It’s never happened this early.”
“Just how far away is this mind link coming from?”
“I don’t know. I haven’t been able to get a whole lot from my counterparts while we’re connected. I do know they are mates. There’s an intimacy between them that goes beyond casual sex and I’m connected to the woman but I feel both.” It felt good to finally tell someone.
“Both? Really?” She seemed fascinated by it. “So she must have a bond with her mate and somehow you got sucked into it all?”
“That’s the best I can come up with.”
“Interesting.” She climbed out of her side of the truck, walked around the front, and opened his door. “Get out. I’m driving.”
“What?”
“You just said you never know when it’s going to happen. What if they’re just taking a breather?” She held onto the door and waited for him to move.
He wanted to argue with her but he knew she was right. What she had said had happened at least once before. It took him a moment or two before he slid out of the seat. “Only because I don’t want you or my truck…what happened?” He stopped when he spotted the damage, rubbing his hands against the scratched fender.
“Unconscious man behind the wheel with a scared to death woman trying to steer from the other side of the vehicle. Be glad that was all that happened.” She slammed the door shut and started the engine back up. “Where to?”
“We can go back.”
“These people are expecting you and as long as you’re not doing some sort of surgery I should be able to cover for you if it happens again. Let’s go.”
****
The sun was setting by the time they made it back to his home. He fixed a quick meal with her help and they were ready for their guests.
She was quiet while they waited.
“You okay?”
“Yes.” She smiled at him. “Sorry, I was just wondering what it would be like to have the problem you do. You feel their release right?”
“Oh, yeah.” He felt uncomfortable talking about was happening to him. His desire for her would be magnified when he tried to explain the mind meld. Even now it was making him think about sex with her.
“Do you have one as well?”
He didn’t want to answer.
“Sorry. I didn’t mean to embarrass you.” She walked to the window and looked out, not saying anything else.
He knew it was only natural curiosity. If anyone else had found out he would have been hit with a whole lot more questions. “No. I get the erection, but then I’m stuck with it until I can do something about it or it finally goes away.”
“I have seen no evidence of a woman here.” She turned from the window.
“That’s because I have been celibate since I moved here. That’s one of the reasons this has become a problem for me.” He saw the flash just before it entered the room. He dove for her, pulling her down and away from the window.
She glared up at him, his weight pressing her down into the floor.
“Stay put.” He inched to a small panel near the door. He pressed one button and heard a satisfying yelp. Kuarto knew he should have had the force field on before but Toki distracted him. “We should be fine now.”
He stood and walked out the door. She could hear him shouting at whoever took a shot at them. He was positive it was Guapo by his tone. Kuarto came in with a smile on his face. “Don’t think he’ll do that again.”
“You don’t seem upset.”
“That man is an idiot and a bad shot. He’s also tried this before, not with me,” he added when she looked at him in shock. “But he has a history of trying to frighten people when he doesn’t get his way and is never successful.”
“What about the family you asked to visit. Is it safe for them to come?”
“Guapo’s already long gone. He isn’t known for sticking around once he has been found out. The force field I activated will keep him at a safe distance if he tries again.” He pressed a few keys on the panel he had accessed earlier. “But to be safe I have programmed our guests’ DNA into the system so they can pass through where that bane in my side can’t.”
Toki thought about his erection. If they weren’t going to have guests any minute she would offer herself. He was a wonderful lover and had enjoyed being with her last night yet she knew he would never press the issue again because of his celibacy. She would always have to be the aggressor.
Knowing he could possibly always have a hard on could really work in her favor. She felt the thrill of the hunt race through her. Now all she had to do was get past any defenses he might throw up to get in her way.
The young girl and her parents arrived and Toki sat and played with the child while Kuarto spoke to the parents. It took him some time to convince them to see what danger they were putting her in and agree to try to keep her out of the area, or make sure she had an environmental suit on if she was to work there.
He offered them some of the meal they had made, but they begged off and headed back home.
“Do they know of your problem?” she asked as they left.
“What?” He looked at her. “No.”
“They sure flew out of here like they did. Or they knew something was about to happen.” Her eyes widened when she realized she recognized the pattern. Another tiny part of her brain unlocked.
“I have my perimeter defenses on. We should be fine.”
“Do you have a safe room just in case?”
“Yes. It’s under the garage.” He handed her a satchel. “Fill it with all the medical supplies you can. From those cabinets there.” He had one as well. They cleared out the cabinets quickly and stacked the bags against the wall. He had a few more things he wanted moved before they snuck out the back and down into the garage and opened the door. He turned on the light and headed to another door. They walked down a set of narrow stairs that were cut out of the rock the house sat on.
Toki found herself standing in a small underground hanger.
“This looks more like a ship.” She touched the hull to be sure she wasn’t imagining it.
“It is. Mine. One of the reasons I bought this place. The opening is about a mile back so no one knows it’s there. I was able to hide this baby here undetected.” He went to the side of the ship and pressed a panel that allowed it to open. Once she was inside, he secured the door. “I came here to get away from it all, but sometimes my past still finds me, so I knew I needed to be able to get away at a moment’s notice and this ship gives me that chance.”
There was a loud boom and the ground shook. He raced to a row of screens and activated one. A grin spread across his face when he saw someone, probably male, dancing around on fire. “St
upid Guapo. Serves him right.”
“Guapo, the creepy one from last night?”
“One and the same.” He turned on other screens so he could see what was going on all around them. His house still stood, which was good because he’d go after whoever tried to destroy it. It didn’t look like much but it had all the state of the art security equipment and it had taken him some time to load it. “That man who was here today with the file. He wasn’t happy to see you so I’m thinking he hired Guapo to come after you. Which is why he’s being tenacious.”
“He could just want your little bride.” She leaned on a console and stared at the screen.
“True, but he would just try to steal you, not kill us both.” He watched as Guapo looked around. “Damn, the fire is going out.”
“Aren’t you afraid it will kill him?”
“We’re not that lucky.” Kuarto turned from the screen to look at her. “Guapo’s from a planet where it takes a fire from a much hotter flame to do any permanent harm to him. He won’t look pretty for a while, but he’ll be fine.” He pulled the chip out of his pocket and sat it on the table. “So I guess the mystery man doesn’t want to hire me.”
“What are you going to do with it?” She picked it up and started to play with it.
“Throw it away.”
“Why? Aren’t you curious about what is on it?”
“Already looked at everything important when I opened it up the first time. I have a photographic memory.”
“Must be nice.” She placed the chip back on his table.
“All the information also loaded into my mainframe the moment I opened the file.” He pulled up the file so she could see it.
“You strike me as a brilliant man, why are you hiding here on this desolate planet instead of being out there making a difference?”
“I did do that for a while. I was the most sought after doctor in the quadrant because of my research.” He sat at the table. “I was a little too good at my job.”
“And what was your job?”
Passionate Desire Page 6