by Rebel Miller
He leaned over me to take my mouth and I moaned against the fullness of his lips. His kiss too was harsh and demanding.
Suddenly, Gannon pulled back and started to fuck into me with short, hard strokes. It seemed he was in no mood to make this a drawn-out encounter. I was grateful. I was close to combusting as it was.
“Lahra,” he ground out.
I clenched eagerly around his cock and we both groaned. I drowned in the feel of him lengthening and impaling me. Struggling against his fierce grip on my thighs, I unwound my legs from around his waist and hitched my heels on the edge of the desk on either side of me. The bracing position offered him even greater access. He closed his eyes as he slipped unbelievably farther inside.
“Fuck, Kira.” He leaned over me and closed his eyes, pounding into me mercilessly. He was chasing after a goal, mindless of whether I was with him or not.
When he opened his eyes, Gannon pinned me with a look so fierce, my pulse ratcheted up, taking my breath away. Then he suddenly took my mouth again, capturing my gasp as he drove into me. His kiss muffled my cry as I came. Gripping the edge of the desk, I moaned on wave after wave of pleasure while he continued to delve between my lips. He sank his teeth into my bottom lip as he flexed and drove into me hard one last time as he reached his own release.
I gasped when Gannon pulled away from my mouth and rested his forehead against mine. We panted around each other’s breaths. As our pulses took on a more regular pace, I became aware of the numbness in my arms. I shifted, groaning now for an entirely different reason.
Gannon drew back and wrapped his arm around my waist, helping me to sit upright. The change in our position caused him to pull out of me and my sex clenched at the absence.
For a few quiet moments, I watched his bowed head as he worked his thumbs across my wrists and forearms, soothing them.
“How did you know Tai was with me?” I asked quietly.
He glanced up at me, releasing my hands. “I didn’t. I made a guess, and your responses last night and just now confirmed it.”
“Oh.”
We stared at each other silently.
He crossed his arms. “He turned you away again, didn’t he?”
I was startled by the accuracy of yet another of his guesses. I thought about how I had tried to seduce Tai but instead made a fool of myself. Seeing the pity in Gannon’s eyes, I looked away, but he reached for me, pulling my head against his chest. He ran a palm over my head and the small of my back.
“When will you give up on him?” he asked after a few moments.
“Last night.”
I felt the tension in his body ease as he nodded above my head, his chin brushing my hair.
“I don’t have it in me to stand aside,” he said. “I thought I could do it.” I shifted in his arms, and he gave me enough room to lean back to look up at him. “I thought I could maintain a distance and treat this like a casual affair, but I can’t.”
My lips parted. I didn’t know what to say. There was vulnerability in Gannon’s eyes I had never seen before.
“I’ve tried to give you space,” he continued, “but then to know he was with you last night …” He inhaled deeply. “I will fight for you if I have to.”
My breath stilled. I’d known Gannon was attracted to me, but considering our castes, I’d never allowed myself to think about us beyond the superficial. “Gannon,” I said now, “what are you saying?”
“I need to know that you’re mine.”
Then understanding took root. I slipped off the desk and slowly righted my skirt, studying him. As he straightened his pants, I squeezed the insides of my damp thighs together. “You … want a formal relationship with me?”
We had already discussed this. Relationships between senators and subordinates went nowhere. Any subordinate involved in such an affair was seen as opportunistic and cheap.
“What I’m asking for,” he said, “what I need, is for me to be the only one you’re with. No one else.” His eyes bored into mine.
I should have felt a comforting spike of moral outrage, but I couldn’t summon up the emotion. Why shouldn’t Gannon make such a request? I was already sleeping with him. I no longer had any moral ground to stand on.
I considered why he would want to formalize our relationship when he was already enjoying the benefits. Perhaps he wanted to stick it to Tai. I’d told Gannon I had given up on him, but deep down, if I was honest with myself, I wasn’t entirely sure I ever would.
“But,” I ventured, “what about my feelings for Tai?”
“I’ll have to work around that.”
I blew out a quick breath. I hadn’t expected that.
Gannon clenched his hands, jaw firmed. He seemed to be fighting off a desire to bend me to his will. I thought about how unusual it probably was for him to have to wait for anyone to submit to his desires. My body thrummed at the idea that Gannon Consul, a man who could have anyone in the Realm, wanted me so much that he would tolerate my feelings for another man. Meanwhile, the irony was not lost on me that Tai was pushing me away while Gannon stood before me demanding that I be his.
And why shouldn’t I be?
Over the weeks, Gannon had become a solid figure in my life. I’d found myself looking forward to talking with him, to learning about his world and interests. I admired so many things about him. Speaking with Gannon was a maze I anticipated getting through, enjoying each turn to find new and surprising facets about his character that made him who he was. Truly, his intellect and ambition could only be rivaled by Tai’s.
All of a sudden, I realized that Tai had been such a prominent figure in my life that he was like an eclipse blocking the sun. Now that I had come to terms with his inability to act on his feelings for me, I was starting to see what — or rather, who — was right in front of me. Someone I could call a friend as well as a lover. I wanted to be with Gannon.
I nodded.
Gannon exhaled deeply, his blue eyes flashing. “Say it, Kira.”
Of course a nod wouldn’t be enough for Gannon. I licked my lips, as a surprising swell of relief and excitement filled me. “I’m yours, Gannon. I will be only with you and no one else.”
He closed his eyes. When he reopened them, he palmed my cheeks, his eyes holding mine.
“Thank you. You don’t know how much this means to me,” he said. “I will do everything in my power to take care of you.”
I sighed. “Gannon, I don’t need you to take care of me. I need you to respect me.”
He looked confused.
I tried to explain. “I couldn’t respect myself if I knew I entered into a relationship, even a covert one, and you had others behind my back.”
He stiffened. “You think I’m tallying women as I arc from one world to another.”
“Not like that.” I shook my head. “But Gannon, you must understand, I know how this works. I’m young, not naive.”
He glared at me. “What type of self-respecting woman would willingly put herself in a relationship with the type of man you’re describing?”
The air left my lungs. My palm itched to slap him, but he was only holding up a mirror: I was seeking to educate him on respecting me while at the same time suggesting I didn’t have any for myself. My shoulders slumped.
He sighed and thinned his lips. “Kira, you won’t believe me, but I haven’t been with anyone else since we first met.”
I gave him a careful look and ran my fingers across his lower lip. “Gannon, you have me now. There’s no need to l — .”
“Do not finish that sentence, Kira.” He pivoted away.
Three sharp raps on the door made me jump. As Gannon stalked toward it, I darted around the room, collecting my leggings and panties from the floor and dragging them on. Then I lunged after my boots.
“It’s okay,” he said over his shoulder. He picked up the envelope he had set on the side table when he’d arrived and faced me. “It’s Talib. I have to go. I’m supposed to be on my way to a ceremony
on Hale. I’m already late.” I zipped up my second boot and straightened. He was holding the envelope out to me.
“This is for you,” he said. “Destroy it when you’re done. It can’t be traced back to the sender or you, but I’d prefer if you burned it all the same.” His tone left no room for argument.
I glanced down at the plain white envelope.
“What is it?”
Gannon groaned in exasperation, took my hand and placed the envelope in it.
“Read it and you’ll find out.” He reached beside me and collected his jacket before striding to the door, where he paused to shrug into the garment. He was indeed, I realized now, dressed for an official ceremony. My blood heated at the sight of him in all his glory.
“If you don’t stop looking at me like that,” he said, “I’ll take you again, and a handful of protectors won’t receive their commendations for saving citizen lives.”
I giggled. “All right, I suppose that’s worth letting you go.”
His gaze became dark and hot. “What was that?”
Puzzled, I said, “I … laughed and —”
“No, you giggled. I’ve never heard you do that before.” His eyes ran over me. “Perhaps my father could do the honors in my place,” he murmured, stepping toward me.
I laughed out loud and held up my hands. “No you don’t. Go!”
Gannon smiled. Before reaching for the door, he looked at me meaningfully. “No matter what you say, I will take care of you, Kira. Now that you’re mine, that extends to anyone you care about.”
The door slid open with a muted whoosh, and he stepped out. He said a few words to Talib before another protector, Jonah, whom I hadn’t seen earlier, stepped toward him.
I approached them. “You’ll need a code to leave the building.”
Gannon glanced my way. “Yes, I know.” He leaned in and gave me a chaste kiss on the mouth before pivoting and walking away, Jonah falling into step behind him.
Talib looked at me. “I’m to take you home. I’ll be outside when you’re ready to leave.”
I raised my eyebrows. So I had become a modern-day kept woman, personal bodyguard and all.
I gave Talib half a smile before retreating into my office, letting the door slide closed behind me.
I shook the envelope as I walked toward my desk, testing the weight of its contents. Falling into my chair, I ran my thumb along the fold and tore it open eagerly. I tilted it and two sheets of paper and one still photograph fell out into my hand.
What I saw told me that I would trust Gannon Consul unequivocally for the rest of my life.
CHAPTER TEN
My family was safe. Aunt Marah, Uncle Paol and Adria were hiding in a rural town called Husk, only twenty towns away. According to the first sheet, my family had been on the move for the past month, using aliases and staying in hostels or rented rooms in the region. As of four days ago, an unnamed source had been supporting them, putting them up in a small residence and initiating a weekly stipend.
The second sheet of paper was a letter written by my aunt’s own hand.
My loving family,
We are as safe and as well as can be. Our daughter believes we’re on an adventure, and indeed we are. Though we live with uncertainty, we are comforted by knowing that if we are careful, our child will have a future. We do this for her.
We have recently come across a bit of fortune and will be staying put for a little while. I’m not sure how long it will be safe to stay, but I so love the mineral waters of this place and will happy to be close to them.
Yours, M.
I didn’t understand the last sentence. I flipped back to the typed sheet to confirm what it reported to be their location. Husk was nowhere close to waters, much less mineral waters. Was she trying to hide her location, cover her tracks?
The line of thought slipped my mind as my eye caught the subjects in the photo. My aunt, uncle and cousin were seated on a bench outside, bundled in thick coats, scarves and gloves. They were braced against swirling winds, but Adria was smiling and her parents looked well, though their eyes were somewhat haunted.
It must have been staged. There was nothing in it to give away their location. The landscape in the background could be from anywhere in our world, especially at this time of year. There were no people, houses or other distinctive markers of any kind.
A drop of water fell on the image, blurring my aunt’s solemn face, followed by another. My tears melded, slid along my thumb then ran to the edge of the photo before falling off. I placed the documents on the desk and sobbed, my face in my palms. After a few minutes, I wiped at my cheeks and stared unseeingly at my office door.
Gannon did this for me. He put himself in a perilous position to let me know my family was well. Going by when the unnamed support came into play, I suspected Gannon was the source of that, too. All Above, should anyone find out what he had done, he would be charged with treason, possibly imprisoned!
I activated my comm to try to reach him, but I couldn’t connect. Instead, I messaged him, asking that he contact me as soon as possible. I thought of Uncle Khelan and automatically started to enter his code, then stopped. Uncle Khelan would want to know how I came across the information. I couldn’t — wouldn’t — implicate Gannon. I thought hard and messaged Rhoan to check whether he would be home that night. Rhoan would know what to do.
* * *
“Four Sovereign Ladies, please!”
The bartender, who was wearing a tie-dye version of a Senate uniform, topped up four large glasses with light purple liquid. When my order was filled, I tapped my comm against the digital panel affixed to the bar to honor my bill. A group of subordinates crowded in beside me. The liquid from my drinks sloshed over the rims.
“Here, let me help!” Asher came through the thick crowd and reached for two of the glasses.
I mouthed my thanks to him — the bar was so loud and clogged with people, I could hardly hear myself think. I followed him back to our quieter booth and plopped onto the cushioned seats.
“Well, I guess this place is a hit,” I said with a smile.
Asher grinned as we passed around the drinks. Simeon and another colleague from work, Andres Proctor, had joined us for the end-of-the-week drink. It seemed that Drunk Dominion was the place to be after work. With so much going on over the past week, I was happy to be with friends in a place where I could relax.
Two nights before, after I’d carefully repacked the documents into the envelope Gannon gave me, Talib had taken me home. Unfortunately, Rhoan not only wasn’t there, he ended up being out the entire night. I sent him multiple texts, but it was only the next morning that he responded, concerned for my well-being after finally picking up my numerous and urgent messages.
I didn’t message Rhoan why I needed to see him — just that I had to. I was afraid to say over the line anything that would incriminate him, me or Gannon. Rhoan threatened me repeatedly for information, but I refused to give in until I saw him at home. When I showed him the contents of the envelope, he took one look and gripped the top of my shoulders so tight they hurt.
“Where did you get this from?” he demanded.
I opened my mouth, but nothing came out. Finally, I said, “I can’t tell you.”
“Kira, tell me!”
“I can’t!”
He released me and gestured at the documents in my hand. “How do we know this is even real?”
I held up the letter. “It’s Aunt Marah’s handwriting.”
“Anyone could have forged that.”
“It’s her. I know it!”
Rhoan glanced over the letter again. “We have to tell Uncle Khelan.”
“No.”
Rhoan stalked over to the monitor in our sitting area and entered our uncle’s call code. I followed him and deactivated the device.
“Are you out of your mind?” Rhoan glared at me. “What are you doing?”
“We can’t tell Uncle. He’ll want to know who I got it from. We h
ave to think something up ourselves.”
“Of course he will. It’s a reasonable question!”
I held Rhoan’s wrist as he tried to re-engage the monitor. “What difference does it make who it’s from?”
He looked at me as if I was crazy. “It will tell me whether our family is being baited into inadvertently telling the authorities where they are! It will tell me whether the source can be trusted. Should I go on?”
They were good points, but I stood firm.
“Trust me,” I begged him.
“If this is genuine, it’s coming from a high source, Kira. I need to know that we’re not in danger. Who. Gave. This. To. You?”
I shook my head.
Rhoan threw up his hands then grabbed the documents from my hands. He rifled through them, his shoulders set. He stopped at the photo and, after a few moments, exhaled deeply.
“She looks bigger — Adria, that is. Just weeks, and she looks so different,” he murmured before looking at me. “Let’s think about this carefully. We’ll sit tight and figure this out tomorrow. We probably should give it some time to cool down rather than run straight to Uncle. It would be what’s expected if we’re being tracked.”
I was sure we weren’t being tracked, but then, Rhoan wouldn’t know that. I was just glad to have him thinking now about the bigger picture rather than who had given me the information.
Andres leaned forward and surveyed the bar. “I think everyone from the Judiciary is in this very room, right this moment,” he said, looking slightly unnerved.
I followed his gaze. The bar was dimly lit, the only light coming from candles that flickered on each table and from low chandeliers designed in the shape of the Corona’s bird’s-nest crown. I was a bit surprised by the decor. The owner must have had a dangerous sense of humor or incredible audacity to choose this in the epicenter of Prospect governance and law. At every turn, the bar made an effort to flaunt our system’s order. In addition to the bastardized Senate uniforms, servers wore equally corrupted garments of the Protectorate and Elite. All drinks and meal options were named after leadership or characteristics of our politics. The walls were painted an unapologetic bright purple. As I looked across the crammed space, I decided I liked it.