The Men of Anderas III: Talon, the Assassin

by C. J. Johnson

  “No man has ever called me beautiful. It’s ironic that the first one to do so is blind.”

  “Not as blind as the men you’ve known. Is this the first time you’ve let your hair down?” Talon wanted to bury his hands in those soft strands again. He couldn’t wait to see it spread across his pillow or brushing his thighs. Just that fast, the semi-erection he’d managed throughout dinner roared to life.

  “Just the first time since you could see me. I’m a mercenary, Talon. Soldiers don’t take a woman serious if all they see is fluff.”

  She stood and started clearing the table until Talon pulled her down onto his lap. “That can wait until tomorrow.”

  She slid her arms around his neck and snuggled against his chest. “I’ve got news for you, slick. It was tomorrow when you got home…I mean, back.”

  “Is the fire banked for the night?” He waited for her nod before standing with her in his arms. “Then I declare dinner officially over. Let’s go to bed, Blue.”

  Chapter Sixteen

  Shadow shook with need. The last time—the only time—they shared a bed Talon was in the throes of detox deliriums and didn’t know what was happening. Guilt still rode her hard over that but she had no choice then. He was wracked with fever and chills and so cold. The only way to warm him was skin-to-skin. His reaction was nothing more than basic animal nature. She could walk away then because he didn’t remember. There would be no walking away this time and not just because he was conscious.

  “You still with me, Blue?”

  She smiled against his neck. “Where else would I be?” She whispered. “Why do you call me that?”

  “What? Blue?” She nodded as he stood her beside the bed. “You wouldn’t tell me your name and I had to call you something. With my old vision, you had a constant blue shell around your body. I still want to know how you have such total control over your emotions.”

  “I never knew my control turned colors.” She slipped her hands beneath his shirt and pushed the material up to reveal his remarkable body. “Enough talk, Assassin, you mentioned something about dessert?”

  Talon pulled the shirt over his head and tossed it aside before reaching for the buttons on her shirt. “Is your skin tanned or pale?”

  “I’m fond of sunbathing in the nude.”

  “Sweet mercy!” He jerked the shirt open, sending buttons bouncing across the floor. “What the hell is that…thing…you’re wearing under the shirt?”

  Shadow laughed at his outraged confusion. “It’s a binding cloth to keep my boobs from flopping around. I’m not a flat-chested woman.” She unwound the cloth, wincing as the blood rushed into her flattened flesh.

  Talon gently lifted the twin globes, tracing the creases in the skin from the folds in the cloth. “I can’t believe I felt your nipples through all of that.” He placed gentle kisses on each pebbled peak.

  Sliding her arms around his waist brought her against the evidence of his desire for her. “I’m not made of glass, Talon. You won’t break anything if you get a little rough.”

  “Let’s get one thing straight, Blue.” He grasped her head in both hands, tilting her face up to him. “I follow your orders outside; but in here…or anywhere else where we’re just one man-one woman…it’s a mutual undertaking.”

  Before she could tell him how special he made her feel or how wet her pants were, his mouth closed over hers in a dominating kiss. He declared himself the victor and she melted in surrender. His tongue pushed between her lips in rapid simulation of what his body would do later, daring hers to join the dance. Only the need for air made him break the kiss, both of them gasping but unwilling to slow down.

  Running his tongue around the whorls of her ear had her squirming against his erection. “I want you naked. Now.” He bit down on her earlobe before kissing his way down her neck to her shoulder.

  Her hands trembled so hard she fumbled with her pants. She finally managed to free the button but the zipper was stuck. “Screw this!” She mumbled before grabbing both sides and yanking. The zipper head joined the buttons on the floor. She shimmied out of her pants and panties, not remembering she still wore boots until everything tangled around her ankles. Tears of frustration and need clogged her throat.

  “Shhhh, baby. Let me.” Talon lifted her in his arms and laid her on his bed.

  “I wanted this to be special and I’m screwing it up!” She wasn’t this awkward her first time. As bad as she wanted the man currently unlacing her boots, she would die of humiliation if she looked at him and saw disgust or—gods forbid—pity.

  “You’re special, Shadow. Don’t ever doubt that.” He lifted her foot and slid the tangled clothing free, tossing them to the floor. “Besides,” he placed a kiss in the arch of her foot. “I think you’re kinda cute when you get flustered.”

  “I’ll show you flustered, you son of a….”

  Her brain quit working completely when Talon stepped out of his pants. Dammit, he had sense enough to pull off his boots before he made an ass of himself. She’d seen him naked before and not just the first time they had sex. His arms bulged with newly strengthened muscle and perfectly complimented the well-defined pecs and rock-hard abs. The light covering of hair across his chest tapered to a mouth-watering treasure trail leading straight to his groin. He was impressive—long and thick and already glistening with that early drop of moisture.

  “Like what you see, Blue?” Talon asked, still holding her foot against his chest. “I certainly like the view from here.”

  Her gasp was all the answer he needed. Every muscle in his body was tight enough to shatter as he fought the need to thrust into her in one mighty push. He kissed his way from her ankle to her knee, grinning when he found a sensitive, erogenous spot in the crease.

  “Please…,” she whispered, her hands clenched tightly in the blanket.

  “Easy, sweetheart.” He whispered against her soft skin. “I bet I could bring you to climax by focusing just on this spot but I’ll save that for another time.”

  His balls were pulled up tight warning him that his playtime was about to come to an end. He could see the wet sheen of her arousal and wanted desperately to feast on that bounty but he was too close to the limits of his control. Soon, he promised himself, he would devour her until she screamed his name.

  Just thinking about how she would taste made his cock twitch in warning. “Blue, this first time is going to be quicker than either of us expected, but next time….”

  Talon moved up her body, pausing to place a wet kiss in her belly button and on both breasts. He wanted to feast on those fruits as well—another time. Her lips were swollen from his kisses and he couldn’t resist another deep penetration of her mouth with his tongue. Her legs circled his back and her arms grabbed his shoulders. He slid into her wet core. Holding perfectly still, he wanted to remember this perfect feeling of her tight channel gripping him for the rest of his life.

  “Move.” She demanded. “Talon! You’re killing me.”

  He tightened the grip on his control. He would give her everything she wanted if it killed him. Pulling slowly out until only the head remained; he pushed in just as slowly. He repeated the motions several times, keeping the tempo slow.

  “Harder. I’m so close.” Shadow whispered against his neck.

  He couldn’t hold back any longer. His strokes became hard and deep. She arched her back, giving him the angle he needed for an even deeper penetration. Sweat covered both their bodies as he pounded against her willing body.

  “Talon!”

  She screamed his name, her body convulsing, her internal muscles milking every drop of his climax.

  When both their tremors slowed and breathing became almost normal, Talon rolled to his side, bringing Shadow with him, still held firmly in her core.

  Her fingers traced patterns in the hair on his chest. When he softened enough to slip from her body, she kissed his cheek and pulled out of his arms.

  “I’ll be right back.” She headed towar
d the bathroom and Talon could hear her cleaning herself up.

  He processed all of that with one small portion of his brain. The majority of his mind was totally focused on the last few seconds before Shadow’s climax. Her blue aura disappeared in an explosion of light and color so brilliant it literally burned his eyes to see it. In the two years since his accident, he had never, ever seen such a glorious display of emotion. Every color ever seen or dreamt burst through her control.

  “Do you want me to stay here or go back to my room?” She asked softly from the door. He hadn’t heard her leave the bathroom.

  “You don’t sleep anywhere but here from now on.” He slid over giving her plenty of room. When she snuggled against him, he pulled the blanket over them and gathered her in his arms.

  “I’d like that.” She mumbled. “At least until you leave.”

  He didn’t like the sound of that. Didn’t like it worth a damn.

  If she thinks we’re just going to be fuck mates until I go after Draagon, she has another think coming. No way in hell am I letting this woman get away.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Shadow handed Talon a fresh cup of tea before joining him on the steps. It took them just over nine hours to strip the meat from the eldorak and load it into the smoke house. She was grateful Talon was able to repair the small ‘building’ behind the house next door. Without refrigeration or even a cool room, any meat they didn’t eat in a few days would spoil. This way they wouldn’t need to hunt for food for months—if it took that long for Talon to complete his training.

  She couldn’t stop stealing glances at him. Gone was the lean body of a man who didn’t eat on a regular basis and got very little exercise. His arms strained against the sleeves of his shirt and no amount of pulling would close that shirt above his pecs. Every shift of muscle had her mouth watering—and places south of her belly button clenching in need. Last night was wonderful. Amazing. Unbelievable.

  Stop! Just because it was the best sex you ever had doesn’t mean you have to sing his praises constantly. She NEVER slept with a client. It was totally against all of her self-imposed rules of conduct. The only solution was to put their relationship back on the trainer/trainee footing. She didn’t even want to think about the possible consequences if she didn’t. How to convince Talon that her decision was their best course of action was the biggest problem.

  “Why so quiet, Blue?” Talon asked softly, frowning when she shifted away from his touch. His gut churned in denial. “Something you need to get off your chest?”

  Pushing herself off the dusty porch, she focused on the sun rapidly disappearing behind the trees; the birds flitting from branch to branch in the bushes by the fence getting ready for the night; and the pair of kava hopping through the grass, their long ears twitching. Drawing a deep breath for courage, she turned to face him.

  “Last night shouldn’t have happened. It goes against every rule in the book.”

  His expression morphed from curious to hurt to anger.

  Yes! Get angry. Get so fuckin’ pissed that you hate me. Gods help me if you discover how my heart is breaking.

  “Bullshit.” He tossed the mug of tea into the yard, scattering the birds in a flurry of indignant chirping. “And don’t even think about making me do pushups for saying that. I gave you more than fifty last night and again this morning.”

  She fought the rush of desire his reminder created even as her heart wanted to scream I have no choice! The tears would come later, when she was alone in her cold bed.

  “Where are you going?” She asked when he lurched up and jumped off the porch.

  “Wherever the hell I want.”

  Talon stormed into the gathering darkness. His new vision gave him the freedom to escape before her little speech made him any angrier. Her rejection was eating a hole in his chest.

  Like hell it shouldn’t have happened. If she thinks she can hide behind some unwritten rules she is sadly mistaken. He didn’t know where their relationship was going or if it would go anywhere beyond this island. Men don’t think about shit like future and commitment. He didn’t know what he was supposed to feel.

  What I do know is that I’m not ready to give her up. What kind of future does she think I’m planning? A husband and wife con game? Me waiting at home while she jumps around the galaxy looking for a fight? She’s polishing my skills so I can track and kill Draagon. I probably won’t live to brag about what I do to that bastard.

  “Well, damn. I just justified her decision.”

  With a disgusted huff, Talon plopped down under a tree. Leaning back against the rough bark, he stared across the wide expanse of the park. He could make out her silhouette moving between the window and the fire pit. She was either finishing up their dinner preparations or pacing the floor. When she stopped in front of the window for the second time in as many minutes, it hit him.

  “Son of a…she’s worried about me.” He could finally draw a deep breath. Her brain may be telling her to throw him out of her bed but her body wasn’t listening. He needed a strategy—a plan—but it had to be subtle. If she caught on to what he was doing…well, he didn’t even want to think about what would happen.

  The strident voice of conscience screaming warnings of expectations and heartache fell on deaf ears. As long as it was just sex between consenting adults neither of them would count on a happy-ever-after nor suffer a broken heart. Talon shook away the eerie sensation of laughter. It was just the breeze rustling the leaves, not the gods setting him up for disaster.

  “Face it, man.” He groaned aloud. “You don’t have a clue about how to stage a seduction.”

  Choices. It all came down to choices and the consequences they brought with them. He chose to dedicate his life to destroying Draagon and his evil empire. The consequences of that decision robbed him of any right to a normal life. There would be no loving wife, no children to carry on his name.

  You made your choice and now you’re complaining about the results? Get past it. Focus on that depraved piece of shit and quit dreaming. You gave up the right to be anything more than you are right now—a half-blind con man who’d rather crawl into a bottle of strong alcohol than between the legs of a good woman.

  Talon pushed to his feet, dusted the grass and leaves from the seat of his pants and started back. Back to the warmth of the fire pit. Back to the hot meal she had waiting for him. Back to Shadow. He slammed the door on his brain before it could put the next thought into words. Self-preservation demanded he not even think the phrase back home.

  “Anything I can do to help?” He asked quietly from the doorway. She knew he was back because she watched him cross the central square.

  “You can set the table. The roast will be done in about ten minutes.”

  “Smells really good in here.” He wanted to slide his arms around her waist and pull her back against his chest. Instead, he gathered the dishes and silverware and arranged them on the small table. The pattern of small flowers on one of the plates caught his attention. Shadow’s fascination with the remnants of his village was a treasured glimpse into a side of her he knew no one else ever saw. She wasn’t as hard and ill-mannered as she claimed.

  You deserve a man who could give you a complete set of dishes, Blue. Too bad for both of us but I can’t be that man.

  “Firewood looks a little low. Think I’ll have time to bring in more before you’re ready to serve dinner?” It wasn’t much but he wanted—needed—to feel important to her even if it was for nothing more than filling a wood box.

  “Take all the time you need. It won’t hurt for the meat to stand for a few minutes. I’ll get everything else on the table.”

  Shadow held her breath until she heard the door close behind Talon. “Gods! I am in so much trouble!” Taking several deep, cleansing breaths, she willed her heart rate to slow. From the moment he started back toward the house, she’d fought to keep a lid on her emotions. She wanted…what exactly did she want? For things to go back to what they were ye
sterday? To finish this job and get back to her real life? The thoughts and emotions ricocheting around and around her brain were driving her crazy. Before she could sort through the jumble or to make sense of what was happening to her, she heard the door.

  “Kill the lights and douse the fire. Hurry!”

  “What? Why?” She instinctively followed his instructions. Talon didn’t play games. If he felt there was danger, she believed him. After dumping the pot of hot water over the fire, the room plunged into darkness.

  “A hover-boat just pulled into the harbor. This is a private island but it’s well documented that it’s abandoned and no one comes here. Get the weapons and we’ll see what they’ve got in mind.”

  “You actually sound happy about all this.” She quickly gathered all the weapons she’d stored away since shortly after arriving on the island. When Talon pulled the bow from above the fire pit, she shook her head.

  “That won’t be very effective. I’ve got something better.” With a quick look at Talon, she shrugged and pushed a button on her belt buckle. A soft, golden ball of light formed about waist level and quickly spread up and out until it was about the size of a door. A small flash of white light temporarily blinded her. When she opened her eyes, the ‘doorway’ was open.

  “What in the name of all the gods of the universe is that?” Talon demanded.

  “Just a little something I brought back from a security job about five years back. There’s a princess whose name I promised never to reveal who was very appreciative of my skills. I saved her from a forced marriage and she rewarded me with a dimensional storage locker.”

  “A what?”

  “Think of it as an invisible closet. It’s just in another dimension. Here.” She handed him a wicked looking crossbow and a quiver of arrows before pulling out a rifle and small metal box.

  “Damn. The scientists on that planet are beyond genius. What kind of weapon is that?”

  Shadow knew exactly which weapon he was talking about. “It’s a U.S. Marine sniper rifle and an ammo box. Another little souvenir from Earth.”