by Lisa Lace
"Thank you, Emissary," said Nayla in the most polite tone Jenn had ever heard from her.
Jenn smiled to herself. Just who was she trying to impress? The Emissary of an alien planet, that's who. Not only was he royalty, everything about him, from his imposing size, runaway muscles, and long dark hair styled in dreadlocks dripped sex.
Kai wore a dark blue uniform jacket and white slacks. There was an unfamiliar crest over the left breast pocket of the jacket. He took Jenn's hand, which disappeared in Kai's large, warm palms. "Hello again, Jenn," he said in a husky voice.
"Hi." Jenn suddenly felt shy. This close, his imposing presence was practically overwhelming. She didn't know what type of cologne Kai used, but it was making her think about what it would be like to touch him.
She shook her head, hoping it would clear her thoughts.
Jenn said little during the limousine ride. In the meantime, Nayla and the Emissary chatted happily with each other. Nayla didn't feel any pressure and found it easy to be her usual bold joke-making self. She had to explain half of them because Kai's English wasn't the best. Jenn slowly became annoyed. It was apparent that the emissary was paying more attention to Nayla than to her.
"Girl! Aren't you listening to what your man said?" giggled Nayla.
"What?" As she thought about it, Nayla's playing up to the Anquesh man was bothering her. Of course Jenn didn't want him. Not really. She was obligated to be with him because she signed a piece of paper that she didn't understand.
They pulled up in front of the restaurant, flanked by a military escort. Someone had set things up ahead of time. The restaurant had no other customers, and the chefs had already prepared several pizzas. Jenn picked a table, and the owner brought over a selection of food.
"Is this restaurant one of your finest eating establishments? Someone took me to a five-star restaurant in Los Angeles."
"A Michelin-rated place? Sounds posh. What did you think about it?" Nayla asked.
"I'm not allowed to voice my opinions." Kai cast a quick glance at his staff standing just inside the door.
"Why not?" asked Nayla, practically squealing.
Kai leaned forward and lowered his voice. "It was awful." He gravely looked them both in the eye. "The women in Los Angeles looked like boys. They had no curves."
Nayla laughed. "You mean they were skinny?"
"They were so thin that I couldn't imagine how they sit on their asses without hurting themselves."
Nayla couldn't contain her laughter, which drew sharp looks from the people watching from the doorway. "You are a hoot, star man."
"Is that good?"
"It means she finds you amusing," said Jenn.
"I'll admit that it's enjoyable sitting with my chosen and her friend. It's unusual to get time for myself."
"Why is that? You don't get out of the palace much?"
"Jenn!" Nayla exclaimed.
The warrior flashed a concerned gaze toward Jenn. "Are you not feeling well? You seem unhappy."
"I'm fine," lied Jenn.
"She's just hungry," said Nayla. "When her blood sugar drops, she gets surly. If she's grumpy, it usually means she needs to eat."
"What is this food?" Kai picked up a slice of cheese pizza. Mozzarella dripped from the sides in strands.
"Pizza," said Jenn. "We consider it Italian food, but pizza like this is an original American creation." She paused thoughtfully. "I suppose you don't care much about our different countries."
"Not really. To me, you're all from the same planet." Kai gingerly picked up a slice. "Eat," he insisted, holding the food close to her mouth.
Jenn looked at Kai's hands like they were radioactive. "What are you doing? I can eat on my own."
"You honor me by accepting my offering. On my planet, one of the first things sindares do with one another is feed themselves."
Jenn started to blush against her will. "It seems a little intimate for a first date."
Kai cast a glance at the soldiers and staff lined up behind the front window, peering into the restaurant. "Usually, it is. It seems we cannot have any intimate moments. Let me try again." He carefully brought the pizza to her mouth a second time, and she reluctantly took a small bite.
"Tastes good. Perfect, in fact."
"Again." She found herself taking one bite after another. Jenn had to admit that there was something unexpectedly tender and touching about a huge warrior feeding her. There was a different kind of look in his eyes, something Jenn had never seen before in other men when they looked at her. His gaze seemed gentle and caring.
She didn't catch all of the last bits and a dribble of cheese slid down her chin. Simultaneously, they both tried to wipe it off her face, and Jenn laughed.
"You're making me feel ashamed. Let me take my turn." Jenn grabbed a slice and practically shoved it into the Emissary's mouth.
He carefully took a bite and a giant smile appeared on his face. "Humans aren't the best at fighting, but you might be the best at cooking." His grin, full of warmth, melted Jenn's heart to the consistency of the gooey cheese. Their eyes met, and Jenn could not pull herself away.
"It looks like you two could use some time by yourselves," suggested Nayla in a quiet voice.
"Unfortunately, that's not possible," said Kai. He sounded sad.
"Anything can happen when Jenn and I get together. The restrooms are down the hall."
"Restrooms?" said Kai.
"Yes. Work your way over there. I think I'll take a taxi home by myself." She pulled out her phone and winked at the couple.
"But Nayla, that's too expensive!"
"Don't worry about it. TerraMates spotted a couple hundred credits to my account for my trouble today. I consider it a donation to a good cause."
Nayla's phone beeped. "That was quick. It's here already."
"I don't understand," said Kai.
"I'll show you the way to the restroom, Emissary," said Jenn loudly, standing up and tugging at his arm.
"You do that." Nayla had a mischievous look on her face. "I'll wait here for you to come back. I'm prepared to wait a long time."
Kai followed Jenn even though he didn't understand her intentions. At the end of the hall was a metal door.
"We have to move quickly before our handlers realize we're starting a jailbreak." She opened the door and took his hand. "Let's go."
Chapter Nine
Kai clutched his sindare's hand as she led him into an alley between two buildings.
"We shouldn't be doing this."
Jenn stopped suddenly. "You're right. We probably shouldn't. Do you want to go back?"
Kai looked into her blue eyes for a moment, then stepped back and gazed at the human speculatively. Everything about her was beautiful. Her presence triggered a fundamental desire to hold and protect her. At that moment, he was torn between his duty to his Emperor and the need to be with his sindare.
He'd read the poems and stories about what happened when someone found their sindare lovemate. He never imagined his feelings would be overwhelming. His heart pounded in his chest as he started thinking about touching her. Now that Kai had experience with sindare love, he understood why the Emperor's face immediately changed whenever he saw Kai's mother. Being with Jenn made Kai realize he had found a missing part of himself that he didn't know he lacked.
They expected Kai to give her up.
Impossible.
But keeping her would result in her death.
Perhaps they could spend a few precious hours together. Eventually, he would have to explain what Jenn needed to do to satisfy honor and put an end to this impossible mission. That way Jenn could walk away with her life. It would be painful for him, but she would survive.
"No," Kai said carefully. "I don't want to go back to the restaurant."
"Then let's move. The taxi's waiting and I'm sure the meter is running already." Jenn dashed away.
Kai slowly realized what the conversation about the taxi meant. He strode quickly to catch up with
her as they moved out from the alley a few doors down from Nardones. He glanced at the small crowd of people waiting for them to come back from the restroom, but they all had their backs turned. Kai climbed into the car, and the vehicle started moving down the road.
Jenn was already settled into her seat and flipped down the control panel on the self-driving car. "Is there any place you want to go?" she asked.
The cab was cramped. Kai couldn't help but sit extremely close to Jenn. He breathed deeply, taking in her scent. He didn't care where they went.
"I don't know much about Earth. The one thing I know is that I want to be with you."
Her face flushed, and her fingers idly worked on the control board, pushing buttons at random.
"How can you be sure of that?" she asked. "We barely know each other."
"How can I not?" Kai's gaze swept over Jenn's beautiful body. Her skin seemed to glow and encouraged him to touch it. The swell of her breasts peeked out from the neckline of her dress. Kai wondered what it would feel like to lick them. He wanted to explore the curve of her creamy neck. Jenn's legs, barely covered by the short Earth dress, led his eyes from her petite feet up their graceful curves to the mysterious place between her thighs.
Everything about Jenn was delectable. Kai knew in his soul that they were destined for each other. Nothing in the universe would make him feel different.
With her overwhelming presence and his thoughts focused on the gorgeous exotic beauty, Kai's passion stirred and his cock swelled to an aching hardness. Kai was a soldier trained for discipline, order and duty. At this moment every fiber of his being cried out, needing to possess this woman. With a bold move, he engulfed her with his broad arms and bent his head to her lips. All his desire and longing came out in a fiery kiss. She melted into his arms as he pressed his lips to hers, taking her mouth with hungry kisses. He felt her heart hammer against his chest.
Kai's hand traveled below her waist. He pulled up the edge of her dress, using two fingers to lift the lacy fabric between her legs and caress the cleft of her fleshy mound. Jenn's breathing sped up, and she softly mewled as he explored her soft folds which were growing hotter and slicker with each stroke.
"Please," she moaned.
"What?" he whispered into her ear.
"Harder."
He found the sensitive bud in her cleft and smeared her wetness in and around it. She panted with her mouth open, and he kissed her again, this time penetrating her mouth with his tongue. Kai was knowledgeable about Anquesh sex, but he felt new sensations now that were more intense than anything he had experienced before. He slid his fingers into her hot channel and pumped them in and out while he swirled his thumb around her hard bud. She moved her body against his hand, her eyes going wide as he pushed his tongue further into her mouth, stifling her cries. Jenn wrapped her arms around Kai's neck, clinging to him as she moaned.
Jenn pulled back suddenly. "I never...I mean...I don't," she stammered. Her breathing and heartbeat slowed down. She pulled her arms away and smoothed her dress. She looked distressed, and Kai didn't understand why.
"Did I do anything wrong?"
"No. It's just...what must you think of me? We barely know each other, I feel like I'm representing the entire planet and I let you..."
"You're right." As Kai thought about the ramifications of what he'd done, he felt the cold chill of sobriety overtake his body. He drew back and sat upright. "I should not have touched you like that before I won your rights in the wedding ceremony battle. It was dishonorable on my part. It's my fault, and I apologize."
"It wasn't dishonorable. Definitely honorable. Kai, no one has ever cared enough about how I felt to take the time to...you know...bring me pleasure. Not like that. Um…what battle?"
He swallowed hard. A single question rushed to his brain.
"Other men have touched you?"
Jenn gave Kai a quizzical look. "Well, of course."
"Of course!" Kai's voice rose to a roar. "Who are they? I will challenge each one to battle!" It was wrong for other men to touch his sindare. Kai had never felt jealousy before in his life. The new and foreign emotion seized him with a fierce longing to prove that he was her mate, and no other.
"Emissary!" she gulped, drawing her body into the corner of the seat. Jenn was shaking. "Like a punching battle? You wouldn't do that, would you? What kind of aliens are you, anyway?"
"The kind of aliens that don't let other men touch their sindares!"
"Why do you keep calling me that?"
Kai gave a growl from deep in his throat. "It is the way of things."
"Maybe out there, but not here. People can and do have histories. Are you telling me you've never had lovers, Emissary? Should I hunt them down as well?"
He hated Jenn using his title instead of his name, and he didn't like her angry look. But her words had the desired effect, starting a calm flow of logic in his lust-driven brain.
What was the matter with him?
Is this what it meant to have a sindare? Would all his responses be outrageously exaggerated? Is this what other Anquesh felt when they met their sindares for the first time? It was a kind of madness.
Jenn was right. The thought of her with another man woke the battle urge in him, coiling in his gut, making him ready to strike. Of course he had lovers. But now Kai realized none of them had been important to him.
Jenn was important to him.
To make things worse, even though they shared a kiss that had shifted Kai's world, the look on her face suggested that she hated him. Jenn did not feel the same way toward him that he felt about her. Was she his sindare after all?
The thought crushed him. It brought him down fast and hard from his sexual high, like he was landing from a high-altitude jump without a parachute. The memory of Jenn's impending danger reasserted itself in his mind. If Jenn became his wife, her life was at risk. Kai could not allow harm to come to her, especially through his selfish actions.
He would not be able to marry her. Being with her now was futile.
"We are in an impossible situation," he said formally, falling back on his military training, the one constant in his life. "I respect your wishes in this matter. When the time comes for the marriage ceremony, I will not resist. You may defeat me in battle and honor will be satisfied."
"What the hell are you talking about?" Her voice rose to an ear-splitting pitch that hurt Kai's ears.
"It should be simple enough." Kai was angry at himself. To keep his rage under control, he bottled up his emotion. As a result, his voice came out cold and dismissive. "Since you will never be my wife, I will allow you to defeat me."
Chapter Ten
Jenn stared at Kai. In an instant, he could switch from fervent passion to glacial coldness. She did not completely understand the alien or what was happening, but she knew one thing.
She was pissed.
Jenn was mad at TerraMates and the United Earth Alliance from keeping critical information from her. She was angry with Kai for toying with her feelings. Most of all, Jenn was furious with herself for allowing him to touch her intimately. He must think she was a slut or worse. That was why his attitude had changed.
"You'll have to explain everything to me."
"There is nothing further to explain." Kai's voice was hard, and his eyes looked off into the distance. "I told you. Should the time come, I will allow you to defeat me."
"I'm not going to fight you."
"I understand." Kai nodded his head. "If I immediately surrendered, you would be dishonored. You are correct. I should not treat a member of a worthy warrior race like they are unworthy. Very well, then. I will do my best to defeat you." Kai gave Jenn a wink.
"What?" she screeched.
"Does that not satisfy your honor?" Confusion spread across his face.
"I didn't have a problem with honor until you started talking about it. What is wrong with you people?"
Kai began speaking a string of words in Anquesh. Jenn assumed he was swearing.
"I do not know how to satisfy you then," he said frostily. "Take us back to the TerraMates facility."
Jenn shot him a cutting look. "Fine."
Kai stared straight ahead.
"If that's how you want it," she snapped.
He refused to rise to the bait and said nothing. Jenn programmed the destination into the car. Kai began to tap his fingers on his thigh, staring ahead, sitting stiffly in his seat.
But he was still close to Jenn, and his leg touched hers. A spark of passion moved into her core. She hated it.
Whatever cologne he wore drove her crazy. It was the sexiest scent she'd ever encountered. Now it was forever entangled with the crazy, passionate moment they recently shared and Kai's strange desire for combat.
She gazed out the window, looking for something to distract her. How could she have let herself get so carried away? With Anton, she hadn't done anything physical until a month after meeting him.
Jenn glanced at the side view mirror, a remnant from automobile designs of long ago. She noticed the same white car was always behind them. It seemed to be getting closer, but it wasn't moving into the other lane to pass.
"Is that vehicle one of yours?"
"What?" said Kai distractedly.
"The car behind us has been following this one since the restaurant. It's not Earth military. We use marked vehicles. Look at the side mirror."
"Are you sure?"
At that moment, their vehicle turned onto a ramp on the right. The other car followed suit.
"I'm pretty sure."
The taxi lurched forward. The vehicle following them accelerated to touch their bumper, causing the taxi to blink its lights and activate a siren. "Warning!" it blared. "Unsafe driving! This vehicle will report you to the police."
Jenn pulled out her phone from her pocket.
"What are you doing?"
"I'm going to sending Nayla a message. She can give our location to Earth's military."