He stopped beside the bed and pulled the covers back. "Nice towel," he mumbled. Reaching over, he tucked his finger beneath the thick fabric between her breasts and tugged. The towel came undone, exposing her breasts. "What do you want me to do to you, Sima?"
She stared up, mesmerized by his dark eyes, and blushing at his brash action. A rush of heat filled her. It had been a long time since her last boyfriend, and their harried encounters left much to be desired. As Razi stared at her hardening nipples, she fought back the urge to give in to him. "Can you hold me?" It sounded like a weak request. He probably thinks I’m a virgin. Geez, this is so strange.
He pulled the covers over his body and touched the side of her breast with the pad of his forefinger. "I’ll do anything you want." His finger ran circles around her pink areola, gradually drawing closer to the center. It tickled when he touched her hardening nipple. "Anything."
She reached to caress his brown skin, running her palm across his bulging bicep. She turned on her side to face him, her body tingling with prickles of heat. "Can I kiss you?"
Sima leaned up and Razi bent his head. He brushed his lips across hers in teasing strokes. Murmuring against her mouth he said, "I’ll kiss you all night, all over your body." He nipped at her lower lip and then the upper. All the while, his finger stroked her tortured nipple.
She moaned and tugged him closer, fire burning in her womb. The musky scent of his skin inflamed her yearning. "Not like that. Harder. Make me—"
His mouth covered hers. Razi’s tongue, warm and tasting of peppermint plunged against hers, rolling, pressing. He squeezed her nipple between his thumb and forefinger, kissing her deep. His hand ran over her skin, passing in a gentle motion across her abdomen. The towel blocked his path. He worked the terry cloth away, still kissing her. He pulled his mouth back and spoke against Sima’s lips. "Are you wet for me?"
Breathless, she gazed into his black pupils, lost there.
"Let me make you wet. I can make you drip and cum all over my fingers. Do you want that?"
She closed her eyes and arched her back. He claimed her mouth once more. His fingers probed her inner thighs before searching higher, his touch heavy as he slid his middle fingers between her cleft. She whimpered when he found the growing bud of her clit. He teased it, stroking his finger from side to side in firm motions.
Sima forgot why she ran away, forgot the escape to Alga she’d been planning. She felt lost in this strange, sensual moment with this man’s body urging hers to climax. Razi tantalized her with more force. He slipped two fingers inside her slit, his thumb taking over the teasing. Her clit ached. The hot, wet feeling made her shudder. "Wait," she choked out.
He hesitated and lifted his lips inches from hers, his dark eyes penetrating her soul. "What is it?"
"Just wait. I didn’t mean for you to…"
He withdrew his hand from her body, his lips curling in a half smile. "Whatever you want." His fingers brushed her curled hairs below.
She sucked in a breath. "I’m sorry." She felt ridiculous for letting him go so far, but also intrigued. "I shouldn’t use you." Sima drew her hand away from his shoulder and leaned back into the softness of the pillows.
"Don’t feel guilty for it. You paid for me. I’m yours for three days, to do with as you please." He laid his head beside hers and watched her, his gaze thoughtful. "I’ll be honest; I don’t mind, not for you. You’re very sexy in your towel."
Sima shook her head, warmth spreading over her cheeks and neck. "At least you have a sense of humor." She didn’t know what else to say. Part of her wanted him to continue, but she felt guilty for it. Her pussy throbbed with need, her wet insides still clenching from his invasive fingers. The reasons for running away hung over her thoughts, stifling the passion.
"It’s best to laugh sometimes." He smiled wide. "Keeps me going." His hand came to rest on her abdomen, fingertips thrumming. "The couch isn’t as comfortable as the bed. Can I still hold you?"
She nodded. "I’m sorry," she repeated when he pushed his arm beneath her.
Razi hugged her, the bulge in his pants poking against her hip. "Don’t be," he whispered. "I’m here for you, to make you feel good. No guilt. No regrets." He tenderly kissed the side of her neck, prickling her skin. His mouth drifted higher until hungry lips tickled her earlobe.
She put her hand over his, running her palm up and down his forearm. The hairs there felt soft beneath her curious touch. A lump stood out on his skin. Sima paused. She pressed at it. "What is this? A scar?"
He stopped kissing her ear. "No." His fingers intertwined above her navel. "It’s a Tagian marker. Keeps me here."
Sima held her breath. She ran her finger around the implant beneath his skin, her mind turning over the strangeness of it. "I thought they only used those on animals."
"How long have you been in Irnia?" he murmured.
"Just flew in today from…" she hesitated, not sure how much information she should offer, "…Taraf."
Razi chuckled. "Ah, Taraf, a free nation. That explains you." He nuzzled her bare shoulder and she could feel the curve of his cheek as he smiled against her skin. "No wonder you thought this was a hotel. No wonder."
"I don’t understand." Sima placed her palm over the marker, frowning. "Who put this in you?"
"My owner."
A chill swept over her. She chewed at her lower lip. "Who owns you?"
"Technically, Hicklan Corporation. My mother thought she was selling me to a farmer from upper Unangi. The guy paid a small fortune." She felt him nodding. "It was for the best. My family was starving because of the rebellion. My dad went to fight and never came back. Mom sold me for enough shens to last her years. I’m glad for it. I have three sisters and because of me, Mom kept them."
Startled by this, she turned in his arms. "How old were you?"
"Unangi tribes don’t keep track of their age, but I was probably thirteen or fourteen. Hicklan sent me to school, first rank, then two years college in Kentell. They gave me a place to live, a roof over my head, three meals a day. There’s a big market for educated escorts. I worked in northern Irnia until I was about twenty-three, after that, Hicklan sent me here. Seems the corporates like their males younger."
"This would never happen in Taraf or Alga." She placed her hand on his cheek. "Razi, do you want to leave this place?"
Doubt crinkled his brow. "Leave? How can I leave? I’m marked." He shook his head, but his voice sounded as if he tried to convince himself as well as her. "It is not a bad life, Sima, especially not at the moment."
Before she could answer, he smothered her mouth with his. She gave in to the hard kiss. When he pulled away she wanted to push his hand back down and beg him to pleasure her, but she resisted. "Goodnight."
"Night," he whispered back.
Chapter Three – Oemir Leuj
The morning television news blared at the Oemir of Irnia from where he sat, perched on his favorite royal blue settee, deep in the confines of the royal palace. Leuj raked his slim fingers through his neat, blond hair, his green eyes trained on the screen. Irnia’s channel nine reporter, Dahlia Montez, shot the camera her best look of stern horror. Her widened eyes and slightly turned head looked almost comical.
"Witnesses who wish to remain anonymous have told channel nine that the Shiemir of Taraf’s daughter, Sima Alonwei, was seen running away. Yes, that’s right, away from her bodyguards. Rumors abound over her father’s meeting with Irnia’s Oemir, but speculators say that the Shiemir plans to strike a treaty with Oemir Leuj."
The camera winked out and a striking image of Sima standing by the sea overlook in Taraf caught his already strained attention. He gazed at her with longing, a burning desire to possess her. No price her father asked seemed too high. "Now she’s gone," Leuj muttered. He rubbed his squared chin and frowned. "But why would she run away, and in southern Irnia of all places? Dogs don’t venture to that side."
It did not concern him that his city harbored such a swarthy mix of hum
an traders and black market shops. In fact, he collected the taxes there with a sense of greed the prior Oemir’s failed to possess. In his view, money spent the same no matter its background.
"Nolden?" The picture of Sima winked out, replaced by a bolded numeric symbol of the exorbitant reward offered for her return. Leuj looked over his shoulder. "Nolden!" he shouted. "Come in here."
Leuj’s personal guard came marching into the sitting room, his shaved head shiny under the chandelier’s gold glow. The black Irnian uniform he wore made his coloring seem pale. "Yes, my Oemir?"
"I want the police to sweep the south district. Miss Alonwei must be found. I will not have her tainted by the coarse people there. I worry about the Unangi rebellion. They will hold her for ransom if they discover her first." He eyed his guard.
The large, pasty man pursed lips over a wide set of teeth and nodded. "The will of my Oemir will be carried out." Nolden turned with heavy grace and marched away, the crimson tassels at his shoulders shaking in time with his steps.
Leuj got up from his chair, snapping his fingers. A serving boy, dressed in inconspicuous shades of blue, turned off the television. The Oemir walked in slow steps to his balcony. The serving boy followed, silent as a prowling cat, ready to appease his master. On the marbled veranda, Leuj leaned on the carved railing. He scowled at the city below. Irnia spanned the horizon, all the way to the Pelian Sea. Plumes of smoke loomed above the mines. Smog polluted the air over the central city. Even from such a distance, he saw the Myrnian ships flying across the blue sea to dock at Irnia’s bustling ports.
"Where are you?" he murmured. "I can’t believe you would run from me. There’s something else going on here." Leuj closed his eyes and held his breath, the memory of kissing Sima for the first time sweeping over him. His cock twitched in the loose bindings of his haberes. He shifted his weight, reaching down to pull at the fabric as he remembered her mouth. Sima tasted of lemons and sugared dates. The memory made him hungry for her.
"Boy?" he grumbled.
"Yes, my Oemir?"
"Go and tell Jahid to get ready for me. I want her in my bedroom. Now." He opened his eyes, squinting at the three low palaces jutting up to the west, one for each of his wives and their respective lovers. Political weddings held no more interest for him. "I can have any woman, and the one I want has gone missing." He turned on his heel and stomped across the marble floor.
As he walked into the candlelit corridor leading to his room, he rubbed at his crotch, anxious to relieve the burning heat swelling his member. Paintings of his forefathers looked down on him from both walls with stark, disapproving glares. He ignored them, having assassinated two to make his way to the throne. Their silent hatred meant nothing to Oemir Leuj.
He waited as another boy opened the door for him. The servant kept his gaze to the floor. The Oemir smirked. What would he think if he looked up and saw my hand? Snorting, Leuj entered his room. He waited until the door eased shut.
Jahid stood in front of his bed, wearing the red silk dress, a copy of the one he’d gifted to Sima upon their first meeting. She looked almost identical to Sima, except for the tiny brown mole above her lip. He contemplated having the imperfection removed. Jahid is not perfect; she is only my placebo.
He walked toward her, his gaze sweeping over the ample curve of Jahid’s hips, the swell of her breasts above the hem, tempting him every time she took in a heavy breath. Gold bracelets tinkled on her ankles. "You look stunning," he muttered.
She smiled in her shy way, always wary of speaking, for he told her many times that her voice did not please him. Their romps held silence unless the Oemir cried out or grunted in pleasure.
"Are you ready for me?" he asked, crossing the distance to stand before her.
Jahid nodded and held her arms above her head. She closed her hazel eyes and quivered as he touched her. Leuj fingered her nipples, teasing them into obedience. He ran circles over each one, pleased with how quickly Jahid became aroused. He reached around her to unzip the dress. It shimmered down the woman’s body, catching at her hips. Gently, he slid his finger down the crack of her ass and urged the fabric away. Naked then, she stood there glowing with beauty.
Leuj slipped his hand into his haberes and clutched his stiff rod, squeezing it with short bursts, imagining what it might feel like to ram it into Sima, to feel her orgasm sucking at him. He let out a breathy moan as he pushed his haberes away. His hand steadied the length of his phallus. Moving forward, he rubbed its tip across Jahid’s abdomen, teasing the skin above her trimmed nest of hairs. Semen dribbled out, smearing wet lines there.
Groaning, he guided his sensitive purple head to the wet cleft between her legs and teased her clit. He liked to watch her face. "It’s difficult to be silent isn’t it?"
Jahid twisted slightly and bit at her bottom lip, a reaction he had taught her to mimic.
Leuj smiled. He slid his cock along her wet folds. "You want to cry out, don’t you?"
She made a tiny sound far in the back of her throat. Leuj pulled back. "Be quiet," he warned. He let go of his throbbing cock and gripped Jahid’s shoulder. Leaning closer, he laid his cheek against hers and breathed deep. "You’re not wearing her perfume."
She gasped.
"I wanted you to be ready and this." He pushed her down against the bed. "This is not what I desire."
Jahid’s wide eyes reflected her disappointment.
His upper lip curling with disgust, he reached for his cock again. Holding its length with a harsh need, he began to stroke himself. "Open your legs," he ordered.
She spread her legs slowly, revealing her damp slit. Leuj studied it as he worked his member. The pink skin, the little nub just above her tight entry, made him ache.
"Touch yourself," he growled out. "And think of me."
Slender fingers crossed the trimmed hairs, reaching for her clit. Even her manicure matched Sima’s down to the exact coral shade of lacquer. Jahid drew her flesh between two fingers and tugged it up, teasing herself.
He watched, his body quivering with mounting desire. When she pressed her fingers down, plunging them inside herself, he moved forward. Forcing her hand away, he crammed his dick into her hole and grunted. Pounding against her body, his release came in shaky bursts. Leuj rammed his cock as far as it would go and held still.
"I want to feel you cum. Make your body do it. Now," he choked out.
Jahid obliged, her finger returning to her clit. She rubbed hard and fast until he felt the undulating embrace surrounding his softening cock. Slick moisture dribbled from the tight meeting of their bodies.
He closed his eyes and imagined Sima beneath him. She would cry out; she would not submit to him so easily. That is what excites me. He waited until Jahid’s orgasm waned, then pulled out. Turning his back on her, he crossed the thick rugs to enter his bathing room.
The Oemir slid the door shut, giving Jahid ample time to gather herself and retreat to her adjoining chamber. He studied his rounded face in the gleaming mirror. Sweat beaded his brow. He wiped his sleeve across the droplets, narrowing his gaze. "Where are you, Sima?" He unfastened the carved buttons on his cream-colored shirt. The sweaty garment fell to the floor. Leuj slipped his feet from the casual leather shoes and shirked off his habere. "I will find you."
He smoothed back his blond hair, and turned to go into the shower. Just as he drew back the glass door, a servant’s voice called to him.
"My Oemir?"
"What is it?" he grumbled.
"Shiemir Alonwei is here to see you."
Leuj paused. Glowering at the closed door, he said, "Tell him I’ll be down after I bathe. Entertain him, feed him, keep him busy and don’t let him leave."
"Yes, my Oemir."
Leuj stepped into the shower and turned it on. Heated water sprayed his skin, soothing away the tension in his muscles. "You have me worrying more than I do over my own city, Sima." He lathered soap over his chest, closing his eyes.
When Leuj came down to the fanc
iful parlor to greet Shiemir Alonwei, his plan was already turning in his mind. It will work, he convinced himself. It will work. He adjusted the silver scarf-belt at his waist, marching toward the Shiemir with purpose. A tall man, large across his middle and with skin the same light color as his daughter’s, Leuj decided that Sima’s father was unattractive. Not that he cared for men in general, but he did not care to look too long upon this one’s face.
"Oemir, I am sorry about this. I’m sure my guards will find Sima before another day passes." The Shiemir moved forward to grasp Leuj’s hand with a clammy grip. "She is a disobedient woman. I have faith that you can teach her to be otherwise."
Leuj felt one of his brows rising, the Shiemir’s words causing a rush of lust to stir his loins again. Oh, I will tame her. "Is this the first time she has run?" He plied his hand away and wiped it across his fresh haberes.
Embarrassed, the Shiemir’s face flushed crimson. "No. This is the third. I’ve punished Sima, but my tactics are not harsh enough it seems." He moved to the couch and sat down, the velvet pillows crushed beneath his solid weight.
He sauntered around to face Sima’s father. "Enrue, do you think she does not favor me?" He narrowed his eyes, awaiting the answer.
"Sima favors who I tell her to favor. This is a matter of politics, not the heart. I need your signature on those treaties. If all you desire is my daughter, then I will pay you her heart in return."
Leuj frowned. He fingered his belt, rubbing over its satin sheen. "It sounds as if you do not value her. Sima is a fine woman, a beauty, a wife to be treasured. I assure you she is worth my name on the three treaties you want signed, but it seems we have a dilemma now." He let go of his belt. Leuj sat beside the Shiemir. "If your guards can’t find her then I will be forced to send my troops to Taraf. There is no way around it."
"They will find her. I only ask that you wait." Enrue stared into him, his wide gaze plaintive.
His daughter has the same hazel eyes, Leuj realized. He swallowed a lump in his throat. "How long must I wait? Your shores are calling to me. Irnia will grow and expand, as any nation should that wants to survive beneath Kyleena Rule. Either you bring your daughter to me or your nation becomes part of Irnia. It does not have to be by force." Leuj leaned forward, tapping his knee. "There is a third choice." Surrender your rule to me. You can retire to the Taraf shore and live out your days in peace. I promise no harm will come to you or your family. I know your people will resent you for it, but I can promise high guards to watch over you."
Nimmet, Goddess of Love Page 2