"Send in the next female, Daralei." Jaran hated this part of his duties. Despite centuries of Icarian tradition, he couldn't understand why one person should have to play matchmaker and choose whom each Icarian would mate with. His people were educated, kind and intelligent and perfectly capable of making wise decisions about whom to bond with for the purpose of producing healthy offspring.
Instead of letting them decide for themselves, though, he had to spend the better part of two months prior to the beginning of mating season pairing off all of the thirty-year-old males and females.
At least he was almost finished. There were only a few dozen more matches to be made, then he could get on with the more important business of ruling his tribe. Fortunately so far, everyone seemed pleased with their mating assignments.
He figured that was due to the fact that he had employed Daralei and several other administrators to mingle around and collect information on which couples would make the best pairs. He made no secret of the fact that he would gladly consider recommendations and requests from anyone who had a particular preference for a mate.
Unfortunately there was one of his subjects in particular who had proven very difficult to match. Himself.
Having inherited his position as tribal leader four years ago after Jidar and Namara, well into their seventies, had passed 16
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away, Jaran had now reached the obligatory age of mating. It should have been an easy decision. After all, as leader, he could choose any female he desired, but the one he desired, the only one, hated him.
And now the time had come to choose a mate for her.
Jaran drew in a deep breath and made the decision he'd been putting off for so long. He knew how he would pair Laramee Faulkner. He only hoped he wouldn't regret his decision.
Daralei swept into the room, her outstretched wings momentarily hiding his next guest from view. "I present Laramee Namara Faulkner, my liege, for your decree."
The elder Icarian folded her wings and stepped gracefully aside, revealing the vision that never failed to make Jaran's heart beat double time.
Laramee stood before him naked, as most Icarians preferred in the tropical climate of the equatorial islands. Her white wings made a perfect contrast against her tanned skin, and her brown hair and blue eyes, rare among his people, contributed to her striking appearance.
For a moment he permitted himself to stare, taking in the perfection of her round breasts tipped with large, dark nipples, her supple thighs and the enticing triangle of black curls that hid her sex.
If not for her disdainful expression, she would have been a sight worthy of a commemorative statue in the royal aerie's meditation garden.
"Laramee Namara Faulkner," he repeated Daralei's announcement, and his guest cringed slightly. She hated her unwieldy name, even though, by human tradition, it 17
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represented a tribute to many important people in her life including the mate of Icarus's previous leader who, as the story was told, had helped Lara's mother give birth.
"My liege." Lara dropped to one knee before Jaran, assuming the proper submissive posture, wings folded against her naked back, arms straight at her sides, head bowed. He wondered how much it pained her to demonstrate fealty to him when she despised him as much as she did.
"You may rise," he said, breaking protocol. Traditionally the subject was to remain kneeling until the leader had concluded the audience, but Jaran wanted to look at Lara, all of her, not just the top of her head.
His command clearly surprised her, but she obliged, rising with a singular grace that nearly left him gaping in awe. She was so beautiful and so ... prickly. Once standing, she maintained a subtle air of defiance, one luscious hip jutting forward. After a moment under his scrutiny, she crossed her arms over her succulent breasts.
Jaran commanded his own body to obey, carefully controlling his biochemistry to avoid becoming erect during official business. He did notice Laramee's smoldering gaze fall to his cock, but she looked away too quickly for him to gauge any type of reaction on her part other than annoyance at having to stand before him and await his every word.
"If I may request brevity, my liege, I had to leave several vital experiments back at my lab, and I'd like to get back to them as soon as possible."
Jaran should have been offended by her impatient tone.
Had anyone else implied that he should rush through an 18
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official decree to accommodate their work schedule, he might have considered a year's banishment to teach them some respect. Lara, however, enjoyed some immunity to the rules where he was concerned.
"For you, I'll dispense with the pageantry, though Daralei will be disappointed." The administrator had left the room, but Jaran knew she often lurked nearby because she enjoyed hearing the joyful exclamations of newly bonded couples.
Instinctively, Jaran knew there would be no such outburst this time.
Laramee waited, holding her breath, it seemed, for him to decide her fate. Jaran's heart began to thud, and his throat constricted a bit. This should have been easy, wickedly easy.
Instead he stood with sweating palms and quivering wingtips.
"It was a difficult decision to choose a mate for you, Laramee. I did have to take into account your human heritage and that any child you produce with an Icarian hybrid would be three quarters human rather than only half."
Lara pursed her lips and Jaran forced himself not to let his gaze settle on her mouth as he continued. "I also considered pairing you with an older mate. Daralei's son, Mikal, is one of the last of his full-bred generation and is mateless since Cariana died of blood fever last year."
"He's forty—" She murmured as if doing mental calculations. "He would have only this one mating cycle left."
"Yes, but an offspring of your pairing with him would be a proper hybrid."
Laramee closed her eyes. Clearly she would not be happy with Mikal as a mate, even though the older male was kind, 19
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generous and hard-working. Jaran held up a hand. "It has also been brought to my attention that both Lian and Soren have expressed interest in having you as a mate."
Lara shifted her weight from one bare foot to the other and managed now to appear extremely disinterested in the proceedings. Jaran knew just how to regain her attention, and the time had come to wake her up.
"After careful thought on the matter, I've decided the best possible choice for your mate is ... me."
Lara's eyes snapped open, and she glared at Jaran. "My liege," she said through clenched teeth. "That is not funny."
"It's not a joke, Laramee Namara Faulkner. I have paired you with me. We are compatible in age, temperament and DNA category, and once the mating cycle begins I have no doubt we will be able to produce a healthy child."
"You ... I can't ... why would you do that, Jaran? Didn't you torture me enough when we were children?"
Jaran's pulse thundered in his ears now. He'd known Lara would protest, but he hadn't been prepared for how much her rejection of his radical choice might sting his pride. "Yes, I believe I did. It's time I made things up to you."
"By making me your mate?" Lara shook her head and her wings. In fact, her entire body seemed to be quaking with rage. "You must be out of your featherbrained mind!"
Jaran raised a brow, and at the distant archway to the room he saw Daralei peeking nervously around the corner as Lara's outburst echoed around the room.
"No, I believe I'm completely rational. My decision makes sense, Lara. You pose a problem as far as the Icarian gene 20
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pool is concerned. You've shown no interest in any other Icarian males, and in order to serve my people, I need to choose a mate for this cyc
le. You are ... convenient."
"I'm convenient?"
Jaran immediately wished he hadn't used that particular word, but proximity to Lara always affected his mind. His thoughts seemed to skew, and his frustration at not being able to touch her manifested in insults and incoherent ramblings.
"Convenient!"
"Perhaps contrary is a better term."
"How is it an informed, logical decision to choose a mate based on convenience?"
Jaran considered for a moment. Nothing he could say at this point would please her. "It seems perfectly logical to me, and since I don't have to justify my decisions to anyone, my choice stands. You and I are matched as of this moment."
Lara fumed. Every individual feather on her wings seemed to stand on end and she balled her fists in fury. "You're doing this just to punish me, aren't you, Jaran? You've always hated me because I'm human, and this is your greatest revenge, isn't it?"
Jaran stood now, anger taking the place of his arousal. He hadn't expected Lara to embrace the idea of mating with him right away, but he had thought she would be composed and civil. "This is not revenge for anything, Laramee. This is based on carefully considered factors. As I said, I do not owe you any further explanation of my choice. I have chosen you as my mate. We have several weeks to get to know each other 21
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before the mating cycle begins and we should make the most of that time. With respect to the importance of your work at the research station, we can forgo the customary celebration in the aerie gardens this afternoon, but come evening, I expect to find you in my chambers and by nightfall you will be in my bed, prepared to consummate our union. Is that understood?"
Lara met his gaze. The fire in her eyes could have turned every feather on his wings to ash, it burned so hot. "I understand perfectly, my liege. And I will abide by your decree." Without waiting for his dismissal, Lara whirled around and stormed out of the room, her wings spread in anger, her strides long and purposeful.
Daralei hurried in as soon as the proverbial dust settled. "I believe you have a difficult path ahead of you, my liege."
Jaran kept his gaze on the main archway, watching until Lara's shadow disappeared. "Difficult is an understatement."
"Perhaps you should have explained the full significance of your pairing to her. She might have been more accepting if she knew the truth about your father."
Jaran shook his head. "Not yet. In the state she's in now, she might tell anyone or everyone and I'm not ready for that information to be made public yet. It's not something I want her to be able to use against me."
Daralei eyed him, and the wisdom of her seventy years showed in her expression. "Then you run the risk that she may find some other weapon to wound you with."
Jaran sighed. "That's a risk I'll have to take."
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22
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Chapter Two
Lara's stomach twisted into knots the moment she left Jaran's audience hall. Out in the gardens, behind the statuary, she found a stone bench and sank down onto the hard surface, clutching her midsection to combat the growing emptiness she felt.
Jaran hated her. He always had. From the moment he'd been old enough to understand the genetic difference between them, he'd considered her an outsider. Her parents were both human, his both Icarian. In his mind, despite the fact that nearly all of the children of their generation were hybrids, there could be no middle ground between them.
He'd always been cruel to her because of his prejudices, but this went beyond any of the childish taunts, the icy stares, or the snubbing he'd subjected her to as they matured. Could he really be so twisted as to want to mate with a woman he despised?
A wave of dizziness washed over her, and she planted her hands on the cool stone to steady herself. How could she fly back to the research station in this state of mind? How could she obey his instruction to present herself in his bed chamber this evening? The thought made her shiver. The idea of climbing into bed with Jaran—having him put his large, long-fingered hands on her body, having him mount her and...
Heat suffused her from head to toe at the illicit image of Jaran spreading his wings as he fucked her. Golden wings, golden hair, golden eyes ... the worst part of their tumultuous 23
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relationship was that Lara had always found him devastatingly handsome.
From the time they were children she'd been unable to keep from staring at him whenever he was nearby. She'd learned to be careful not to let him catch her looking. Once they'd matured, it had been nearly impossible not to indulge in sexual fantasies of him. Some small part of her tingled now at the thought of him touching her, putting his massive, well-formed cock inside her, commanding her body with his.
"Agh! No no no! This is not happening. This cannot happen."
"Lara? We waited for you in the east garden. Where have you been?"
Kiala appeared then, dragging Breon by the arm behind her.
Lara pasted a smile on her face and cast a calculatedly innocent glance at her friend. "I'm sorry. I just needed a few minutes alone. So, Breon is your new mate, I see."
Kiala squealed, and the sound seemed to make one of Breon's pale eyebrows twitch. He looked vaguely uncomfortable with his new wife's enthusiasm, but to his credit, he gazed at Kiala adoringly while she prattled on.
"Isn't it wonderful? I think we make a perfect match, don't you? We're the same height, the same hair color and we both work in symbion conservation, so we have so much to talk about and we can work together whenever we want."
"It is wonderful." Lara's face felt too small for her skull, as if smiling might cause her taut skin to crack. My life is over, a voice in her head lamented. For the first time in years, 24
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though, the thoughts of her symbion contradicted her own.
Jaran is everything you want. Embrace him.
Confusion eventually replaced Kiala's infectious nuptial glee. "Um ... where's your husband? Who did Jaran choose for you? Soren? It was Soren, right? I would have chosen Soren for you. He's perfect in every way ... oh, I mean unless Jaran chose Lian. He's even more perfect. Who is it? Don't make me stand here guessing like a fool!"
"Ah..." Lara cast a beseeching glance at Breon, who gratefully was wise enough to understand her silent signal.
"Kiala, would you like to talk to Laramee alone? I'll go prepare us some food from the feast table and give you some time to talk to your friend in private."
"Yes, all right. Husband." Kiala gave Breon an adoring grin and kissed his cheek. "I'll catch up to you in a bit."
With that Breon hurried off, clearly thrilled to be able to escape the awkward conversation that was about to begin.
"I like him," Lara said as Kiala shooed her sideways on the bench and sat down next to her. "I think the two of you will be very happy together."
"He's wonderful. I adore him. I've always thought he was a good catch and that any woman would be lucky to have him and now ... well. What about you? You look pale. Oh, Jaran didn't pair you up with Mikal, did he? I know poor Mikal would like a new mate, but he's too old for you. Plus you'd only have the one mating cycle before he became infertile and if you didn't get pregnant this time for whatever reason—"
"Kee, I'm human, remember? My mating cycle is twenty eight days long. Technically, I could have my symbion 25
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hormones suppressed and if I mated with a human have ten children in ten years."
Kiala frowned. "Don't rub it in. I remember. That's why there are trillions of humans in the universe and only two hundred thousand Icarians."
"Kee."
"Oh. Oh! He did pair you with Mikal then, and that's why, so you would have a little more time to co
nceive, right?"
"No."
"That's not why he paired you with Mikal?"
"He didn't pair me with Mikal."
"Well who then? And where is he? Don't tell me you've scared him away already."
"Kiala, hush! Listen to me." Lara steeled herself to say the words even though they tasted sour on her tongue. "Jaran paired me with himself. I'm Jaran's mate now."
Kiala blinked as if she hadn't understood, and her mouth dropped open a little. "Are you teasing me?"
"I wish I was." Lara hadn't intended to let her emotions run wild, but despite her best efforts, her voice broke. "He did this to punish me."
Kiala stiffened, and her wing tips twitched a little, communicating her sudden agitation. "No. Jaran was chosen by Jidar to lead, and for good reason. He's very wise. He would not do something like this just to hurt you, Lara."
"He's always hated me. Why would he want me as a mate when there are five hundred females coming up on a mating cycle? Any one of them would be thrilled to be chosen as Jaran's mate, as co-leader of the tribe. Any one of them 26
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would be more worthy than me. He did this to humiliate me. I know what he's going to do. He'll keep me for a few days, then he'll dissolve the union and say there's something wrong with me. I'm infertile or I'm defective in some way and no one else will want me. That way he can prevent me from ever—"
"Stop!" Kiala vaulted up from the seat. The expression on her face stunned Lara into confused silence. She'd never seen her friend look so angry. "Just stop it."
"Kee?"
"You're talking about our liege. Yes, when Jaran was a boy he was insufferable at times, but Jidar trained him and taught him to be a good man. Namara, for whom you are named lest you forget, treated Jaran as her own after his mother died in exile."
"And his mother tried to kill mine, lest you forget. That's why she was exiled."
"No one will forget that, Lara. But what his mother did isn't Jaran's fault. Namara spent more time raising him than Arilani did, and she loved him as if he were her own. She raised him as a brother to Odan, and he became a good man just like Odan. He's very far above the vile things you're accusing him of."
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