by Vonna Harper
“What’s your name, Wilding? Tell me and I’ll give you what you need.” Maybe.
For long seconds her silence pushed against him. Then she took a strangled breath. “Jola.”
Jola. “Do you have a mate, Jola? Someone you share your life with?”
A shiver ran through her. Even as he studied her taut muscles, he sensed that this new reaction had nothing to do with her being sexually stimulated. Instead, no doubt about it, hatred rolled out of her to press against him. He wasn’t surprised when she wrenched herself around so she was on her back once more and staring up at him. Her glare reminded him of a predator’s single-mindedness.
“He’s dead.”
What? “How?”
“At your hands. Yours, or one of those you’re part of.”
“We call ourselves ‘Ekewoko.’”
“I call you murderers.”
Leaning back, he rested his hands on his thighs. Although she still fascinated him, he had no desire to break through the barrier she’d thrown up around herself. Her hard glare told him that her pussy no longer welcomed him. He could have taken her, of course, but she’d only hate him more, and for reasons he couldn’t fathom, he didn’t want her loathing.
If only he understood what he wanted.
Jola walked behind Nakos of Ekew. The man who called himself an Ekewoko had released her leg, thank goodness, but because her wrists were still tied, her resentment of his superiority continued. Perhaps she should be grateful because her arms were in front of her instead of still anchored to the waist rope. Instead, she cursed the soft leather around her neck and the rope he’d fastened to it so he could lead her wherever he wanted.
The day was going to be warmer than the last few, almost as if winter wasn’t going to come after all. The breeze she suddenly noticed seemed to come from all directions, cooling and heating her skin at the same time. Determined not to give him the satisfaction of hauling her along like some dumb beast, she matched her pace to his. Because when she was in human form she always went barefoot unless the ground was frozen, her soles barely noted what she was walking on. She kept her head up in part so her tangled hair would stay out of her eyes but mostly because she didn’t want him guessing how defeated she felt.
Not just defeated.
If only she could ignore what was taking place between her legs. She should have been able to relax as soon as he’d stopped sexually teasing her, but if anything, her sense of anticipation and need had increased. Every step sent her tissues gliding against each other. Sex juices coated her labial lips, and she occasionally caught a hint of what she smelled like there.
Every time she let down her guard and stopped reminding herself of how much she wanted to see him dead, vivid memories stole over her. He knew too much about her body, too much about what excited a woman.
He called himself a warrior, so did that mean he spent much of his time in battle or preparing for war? If so, she didn’t know how he’d found the time to become an expert about the opposite sex. She wouldn’t ask him about his experiences with women, of course. She certainly didn’t care! But until she’d gotten free or her people came to rescue her, she and Nakos would be together. Only a fool wouldn’t realize how vital it was to probe him for his strengths.
Weaknesses? Did he have any?
Studying the way his legs worked forced her to contemplate that he might not have any physical weaknesses. He certainly hadn’t demonstrated any. In fact, the longer she regarded him, the more she acknowledged that her captor was built for his role in life as a warrior. Yes, he was well armed, but without muscles, sinew, and bone capable of responding to every need, his weapons might not be enough to keep him alive.
Ah! The heat, the fire in her pussy! Even being thirsty did nothing to tamp things down.
His ass was hard and neat and muscled beneath the short leather garment that hung from his waist. She’d been so focused on herself during their struggles that she hadn’t taken note of how the garment was constructed. Most men took care to protect their cocks so maybe there was more to what he was wearing than a skirt that barely reached his knees. The logical conclusion was that his cock rested inside a pouch of some kind, but maybe not.
His hair brushed the tops of his shoulders. It was slightly curled and nearly as dark as hers. If anything, his eyebrows and lashes were even darker than what was on his head, which, although she didn’t want the thought, led to musing about the hairs at his groin.
Damn him! He’d seen her sex. Touched it. Invaded it. Awakened need. In contrast, she was forced to stare at a sun-kissed back made for battle and legs designed for an active life. He wore leather shoes.
She’d slowed while deciding how to get around an ant mound when something tugged at her mind. Grateful for any distraction, she immediately looked skyward. Yes, there it was, a Falcon. It was so high that someone who didn’t know what he was looking at might not know what it was, but she had no doubt that this predator was one of her kind and not just a bird, because her heart and nerves never lied about the difference.
As hunters, Falcons were solitary creatures so she hadn’t been surprised to see only one earlier. Just the same, she’d tried to believe that her rescue would come about when a large number of Falcons attacked Nakos.
Obviously, her kind didn’t believe that time had come, if it ever would.
The strap around her neck pressed against her, reminding her that she’d slowed down. But although she picked up her pace a bit, she didn’t take her attention off the bird. Watching it filled her with a sense of belonging. This was her land. Nakos was a stranger and as such unwanted. He and the other Ekewoko should return to Ekew!
But he’d said they couldn’t.
Why?
And why had his leaders commanded him and the other warriors to come to Falcon Land?
“What?” he asked, startling her.
Responding to the second tug on her leash, she glared at her captor. Back when she’d dived into the lake, she’d been so intent on regaining her love of life that she hadn’t cared whether she was naked or dressed. Now, because of him, her nudity seemed to stalk her. She felt defined by her lack of clothing.
“I asked you a question.” He stopped and pulled, making it clear that he expected her to join him. “What were you looking at?”
“Nothing.”
“You’re lying.”
By way of response, she turned as far away from him as she could. He could force her to swing back around, of course, but she hoped she’d made her point.
“What is it? You think your people are coming to rescue you?”
“People? Why do you say it that way, as if we’re less than human? You call us Wildings when you know nothing about us.”
“Tell me, then, starting with what you call yourselves.”
That she’d never willingly do. “It doesn’t matter. What does is that when they surround you, you’ll regret what you’ve done to me—for as long as you live.”
If he was alarmed, he gave no indication as he studied their world. On the verge of laughing at his attempts to see behind boulders and bushes, she tried not to react when he suddenly looked upward. Certainly his eyesight wasn’t as keen as hers but—
“That speck. What is it?”
“I see nothing.”
“Yes, you do!” His hand snaked out and around her throat. Although she resisted, she couldn’t stop him from pulling her against him. They touched from shoulder to hip. “It’s a bird, maybe the same as before.”
“Maybe.”
If she planted her hands against his chest, she might have been able to push away, but somehow it was easier to sink within the contact.
“Something’s happening here.” He sounded a little in awe. “The speed with which you recovered from the poison and that bird—it’s as if it’s following you; us.”
Of course she wouldn’t, but she was tempted to tell him what it meant to be a Falcon. Instead, she let his strength enter her. What she felt went be
yond sexual awareness. It was deeper somehow, a tentative joining of two people with nothing in common.
“I didn’t want to come here,” he told her. “I did because I would never refuse to follow my lord’s lead, but I don’t understand why this place we call Screaming Wind means so much to him and Tau. I still don’t.”
“Tau?”
“Our shaman.”
From the little he’d said, she’d concluded that they’d been forced to leave Ekew. Born and raised in Falcon Land—or Screaming Wind, as he called it—she couldn’t imagine ever living anywhere else.
But if he forced her to leave…
Alarmed, she straightened. He didn’t pull her back against him, but neither did his grip on the leash relax. Looking at the man who was so close that his features blurred, she again wondered if she simply hated him. She’d expected him to be a monster, a beast. But there were so many layers to him.
“Your lord,” she tried. “Are you taking me to him?”
“Yes.”
“And Tau?”
“Yes.”
Soon she’d be turned over to other men, and they might indeed be monsters or beasts. If she’d been truly human, the thought would have terrified her. As it was, she had to tamp down fear, yet she told herself that she was grateful for what he’d just told her. Knowing what he planned for her future made it easier to shrug off her conflicted emotions. She and Nakos were enemies, nothing more.
“Aren’t you going to ask me what Sakima wants of you?” he questioned.
“Sakima?”
“My lord, and the man who took me from boy to adult.”
There, another layer to this complex man. “I don’t have to,” she evaded. “I know.”
Shaking his head, he wrapped his fingers around the rope holding her hands together and lifted. “You can’t possibly know what his or Tau’s intentions are, because they haven’t confided in us yet. Tell me something, Jola. Why are you naked?”
“I’m a Wilding. Do you expect anything different?”
“I’m not sure.”
“Maybe I—wanted to get close to myself,” she blurted, “To feel the sun everywhere.”
“And that would, what, make you feel more alive?”
Surprised by his perception, she said nothing. Falcon Land was a place of great contrasts, but most travelers didn’t note those contrasts. The mostly flat terrain struck most of those who traveled through it as monotonous, even barren, but she’d spent her life appreciating the nuances of color and the impact of each season. She couldn’t help wondering if Nakos would ever see it the way she did.
Probably not, especially if he soon left, taking her with him.
She didn’t want to be his prisoner! She wanted back freedom of movement and privacy and the ability to go to Raptor’s Craig whenever she needed to. She wanted to not think about him.
“It’s still here,” he said.
Certain what he was talking about, she nevertheless glanced up. The speck that she had no doubt was a Falcon was still circling above them. Again and again it traced the same pattern while drifting a little lower with each circuit. Falcons flew like that when they were searching for prey or learning what they needed to about something in their world. In Falcon form, they were ruled by instinct and not intelligence. Just the same, she told herself that the creature above her cared about her well-being. The creature was assuring him or herself that she wasn’t in danger.
And perhaps deciding to leave her alone so she could learn everything possible about the newcomers who called themselves Ekewoko.
“The way you’re looking at it,” Nakos went on, “it’s as if you love it.”
“You think I shouldn’t?”
“It’s only a bird.”
Only a bird. Under other circumstances, she would have laughed at his ignorance. Instead, she let her gaze drift back to him. Because he was still looking skyward, she felt free to study his features. Nature had set his eyes deep in their sockets. His cheekbones were high and his chin firm and square, which lent him an air of confidence and added to his strength. Even his mouth struck her as strong. If he hadn’t taken her breast into it, she would have never guessed at the soft sensuality beneath the firm line.
Yes, her breast had been in his mouth, sheltered and teased.
Just then he shook his head as if dismissing the circling predator and met her gaze. They stood staring at each other, enemies probing beneath the surfaces for weaknesses. At the same time, she sensed something else behind the relentless stare: a questioning, perhaps, or maybe simple acknowledgment that she was female and he male.
Unwanted warmth pressed against her throat. The sensation swept over her breasts to harden her nipples. Caught in the grip of an emotion beyond her control, she shifted her stance, but her attempt to plant her legs more securely under her only sent fresh warmth to her core. Her mouth sagged, and her lids became so heavy she could barely keep her eyes open.
Sensuality danced around and through her, stroked her arms and caressed her legs. Her knees were on the brink of collapsing. Believing she was going to drown had been nothing compared to what swamped her right now. She ached to rub her body against her captor’s and with the act let him know how desperately she needed to fuck.
Yes, that! The hunger she’d lived with since Raci’s death.
When Nakos released her wrists, she tried to quiet the inner rage by telling herself that Raci’s death was responsible. Raci had shown her what it was to be a woman; he’d awakened her to a woman’s needs. With him gone, she wanted only one thing: a cock. Any man’s cock.
Even her captor’s?
“Don’t look at me like that,” he snapped.
“Like—what?”
Wrapping his arm around her waist, he again sealed their bodies together. “If you think you can buy your freedom with—”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” How could he think she was trying to seduce him when it was he who had the power to melt her.
“The hell you don’t! That damnable body of yours—” He thrust his pelvis at her. “Is that what you’re after, is it!”
His cock ground against her, a spear, promise, and threat all at once. Maybe his urgency prompted her to lean into him; maybe her own need drove her. Whatever the reason, she widened her stance and locked her knees. Instead of looking up at him and risking a reminder of the difference in their height, she fixed her attention on his chest. He’d questioned her nudity, but wasn’t he all but naked himself, the lack of clothing screaming at her?
“Damn you,” he growled. Gripping her upper arms, he turned her so they faced each other square on. Then he forced her against him, his cock pressing against her belly. If she stood on her toes, maybe it would slide between her legs, but no, he was too tall for that and she too short, feeling frail and female for one of the few times in her life.
Her eyes closed. Darkness slipped in around her edges to quiet her senses and free her to concentrate on the only thing that mattered. She no longer saw herself as this man’s captive. Rather, they’d become equals with their hearts racing and the fire she sensed in his belly licking out and blending with hers. Her mind spun and her legs trembled, prompting her to lift her arms and work them over his head. Rope pressed against the back of his neck.
She had no intention of kissing him, wanted nothing to do with that kind of intimacy. At the same time, she couldn’t stop herself from wondering what touching her lips to his would be like, what he’d taste like.
“You’re a devil,” he muttered. “A dark spirit.”
“Not me. You.”
When he didn’t respond, she pressed her cheek against his chest. The sun had baked his flesh there, and the warmth seeped into her. Heat met with heat. Spun together.
Dizzy, she struggled to clear her head. Instead, it filled with the image of the slowly circling predator. She delighted in the joy and freedom that came with flight. What she didn’t comprehend, and barely acknowledged, was how an enemy warr
ior could fill her with the same excitement.
“I hate what you’re doing to me.” Despite her words, she pressed her heavy breasts against his chest. “Let me go, damn it! Leave me.”
“Let you go?” His laugh was harsh, nearly cruel. “You don’t want that, I know you don’t.”
He gripped her buttocks and his fingers became her world. They pressed into her soft flesh, somewhere between painful and a sensation she refused to name. Even though she knew it was insane to do so, she focused fully on his strength and mastery. Then his grip strengthened, and he pulled her ass cheeks apart. Exposed her.
“No!”
“No? What are you afraid of?”
Fear wasn’t supposed to be part of her world. Even when she’d wondered if she was drowning earlier today, she’d accepted the inevitable, but this was different. Out of control. “Just because you’ve done this to me”—she pressed the ropes against the back of his neck for emphasis—“doesn’t give you the right to—”
“I disagree, Jola.” He continued to manipulate her ass cheeks. “Everything in life goes to the victor. I’ve decided you will go to me.”
To her shock, her pulse quickened. Possessed, by him? What would that be like? Even though she might have been able to lift her arms off his neck, she didn’t try. Instead, she rocked from side to side, her breasts gliding over him as she did. Because he still held her buttocks, the drawing sensation on them increased. Her effort was hardly strong enough to jeopardize his hold on her, but that wasn’t what she wanted.
Then what was?
7
With every turn, the pressure on her buttocks intensified, only to drop away as she straightened. Anchored, he took in a long and slow breath, grunting a little at the end. When she stopped her restless movements, he waited her out and then worked his fingers into her crack. Something exploded inside her mind.
“You’re so warm in there, wild one. Your moist heat catches my fingers on fire.”
Sucking in a breath, she sought a way to put distance between herself and his knowing hands, but all she accomplished was to seal her belly to him.