“Chasing rebels in the desert,” he finally answered.
It felt like a vice closed around her heart. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d known so much fear for someone else, but she knew what these rebels were capable of. She also knew he was holding a hell of a lot back.
“You took a team with you? Is everyone okay?”
“Worried about me, baby?”
“Not at all,” she lied through her teeth and he knew it, damn him.
He stepped close to her, stroked his fingertips down her neck. She shivered and leaned closer, needing his lips on hers, his hands on her body. She knew better, but still she craved him. She moved away when Zola knocked and walked right in. Her friend must have sensed her distress. She glanced back and forth between Parker and Kaje.
“Should I come back later?”
“No,” Parker blurted out. “He was just leaving.”
But when she turned to look at Kaje he was wearing a thoughtful, almost suspicious look. “What are you two up to?”
She ground her teeth together. She was not about to start answering to a man who fucked her and then ignored her for two days. No matter what he’d been doing.
“Exploring,” she said, not waiting for a response as she picked up the cloak draped across the back of a chair and moved towards the door. “See yourself out, please.”
Zola opened the door and they were off. Parker should have known he’d be difficult, though. It seemed a specialty of Delroi warriors. He caught her elbow in the corridor and pulled her to a stop.
“Exploring where?” This time his voice was hard.
“Outside the Keep,” she said, refusing to wince when she heard the huskiness in her voice. She hated that he could do that to her. Fluster her with nothing more than a demand and a tender touch.
“Not alone.”
She glared up at him. Did he have to be so freaking tall?
“I can take care of myself. So can Zola.”
He stared at her a long moment and she easily picked up his thoughts. No you can’t. Since he didn’t voice it she decided she’d let him live. For now. But she couldn’t help defending herself.
“That was a special circumstance,” she said softly. “Is someone going to drug me here? You said we’re safe.”
His expression changed, became hard. There was none of the charming rogue left and she should not find that fascinating.
“If you were just anyone, you’d have a bit more freedom of movement. Not much. Most warriors won’t allow their women to wander the city unescorted.”
She knew that’s how things went on Delroi, but it was still a shock to hear. Outrageous.
“I am not Delroi. I’m not a servant or a slave. And don’t forget I’m a priestess. You don’t get to control what I do or where I go.”
His eyes glowed, challenged, as he shifted close enough his body touched hers. He cupped the back of her head and pulled her tight against him.
“You’re wrong about that, der’lan,” he whispered. She bit back a moan of need. He managed to put her under his spell without even trying.
“I’ll just meet you later,” Zola interrupted.
“No, Zola,” he said, without breaking eye contact with Parker. “If you two want to explore, we’ll go. I have some things to I need to do in the city today, anyway.”
He released her abruptly and stepped aside, gesturing for them to go first. Zola gave her a questioning look and queried her mentally. It had taken longer for Zola than Parker and Kareena, but thankfully her telepathy had finally come back. It made things much easier.
“What do you think?”
“We go along, but out the main entrance. There’s no need for him to know we found the other ones.”
She still had every intention of exploring on her own. She didn’t like feeling caged. She’d had plenty of that on Earth. While she’d had her private conversation with Zola, Kaje had been messing with his comm unit. He punched in a series of numbers and fell a few steps back, but not so far she couldn’t overhear his side of the conversation.
“I’m going into the city with Parker and Zola. Meet us at the main gate.”
“Who was that?” she asked when he disconnected the call.
“Vidar.”
“Oh.”
She didn’t ask why his brother had cancelled their last meeting. For all she knew she’d be ratting him out if she did. Vidar was waiting when they got to the gate, like the others with a cloak slung over one arm. He held his up.
“I doubt we’ll need these today,” he said to Kaje. “You want to leave them here?”
Parker was all for that. She’d discovered they were absolutely necessary on most of the southern continent where the wind was often fierce and the sand scouring. But from the little she’d been able to discover sand was less a problem high up the mountain of the Keep and its city, and the wind was not the same howling presence that was so unsettling in Saber City. The altitude did nothing to alleviate the high desert heat, though. She’d gladly forgo the cloak, and when she handed hers over to Vidar her relief was obvious. Both men chuckled.
She sighed. “It’s not funny.”
Kaje put his arm around her waist and leaned down to kiss her cheek. “I don’t mind you being soft, baby. In all the right places, I recall,” he murmured.
For a moment she was so stunned at the public display of ownership, she froze. Thankfully that only lasted a few seconds. He held on when she tried to jerk away, however, and led her through the gate after Vidar and Zola as if unaware she was furious. She considered her options. Making scenes had never been her style and she didn’t think she could verbalize her feelings without ending up yelling. That left telepathy. She was strong enough to speak mentally to someone who had no talents, but she was reluctant to do so with Kaje. It was intimate, a barrier she might be permanently lowering, an unfortunate side effect of telepathic communication sometimes. But she felt his amusement, his lust, and his certainty that he’d be in her bed as soon as the city outing was over. It infuriated her, which probably wasn’t entirely fair. She’d fallen for the playboy and he was just acting in character.
“You aren’t coming anywhere near me, bubba.”
The look he gave her was so startled it was her turn to laugh.
“I wish I could talk to you like that. I know you can…share my feelings, but to converse would be incredible.”
She wasn’t sure how to respond to that. Tell him the truth? If she was holding the connection open, he probably could talk to her.
“Some mates develop a bond so strong, they can talk mentally,” he went on, as if she hadn’t grown quiet and unnerved. “Do you think we can do that?”
That’s exactly what she was afraid of. Kareena and Roarr had the bond Kaje was talking about, and Parker had seen others back home between telepaths. It wasn’t the connection she was afraid of but the nature of it. It couldn’t be broken, ever, and on Earth at least, they weren’t sure how it was formed except prolonged mental contact had a lot to do with it. So she didn’t want to hold a mental bridge open between her and Kaje. The pull she felt towards him was strong enough as it was. At the same time, she didn’t have it in her to lie to him.
“Parker?”
“If I initiate contact you can probably respond.”
“How do I answer?”
She looked up to see his grin. “It does work.”
She shrugged, ignoring the flutter of nervous excitement in her stomach, and looked around. “I thought we were going into the city?”
They’d walked through a maze of short, narrow alleys that looked like storage buildings.
“Around the next corner, we’ll enter Chief’s Square. It’s the largest open market in the city. You can buy anything from anyplace on Delroi there,” he said sounding so much like a tour guide she had to bite back her smile.
“You have business there today?”
He gave her a look she couldn’t read, but she got the impression he wished she h
adn’t asked.
“I need to speak to some of our suppliers. Roarr and Kareena will have a ceremony and a banquet to celebrate their mating. The Rebirth Celebration is coming up. And there’s an information broker I want to find.”
He added the last softly. She turned the term over in her mind. Was that a spy? An informant? Before she could ask the alley ended and opened to the huge open area Kaje had told her about. It was…magnificent.
She knew she was gawking, but who cared? She’d spent plenty of times in huge, bustling cities. This was something else. For one, the surrounding buildings weren’t impersonal skyscrapers. They were five or six stories tall, packed together, whitewashed, with columns, balustrades, and carvings. Pretty. Most of them had stalls and tables in front on the sidewalk displaying wares. The center of the square was dominated by a massive fountain. There were four figures in the statue, three men and one woman that she assumed represented the Delroi pantheon.
Kaje led her to a food vendor, got his comm unit off his belt and pressed a button that made the thing fold out four times. She’d never seen anything like it.
“Does mine do that?”
If he was surprised at the question, he didn’t show it.
“No, yours is strictly comm. I’ll get you one of these. I think on your world it’s called a computer tablet?”
“Well, we have those but ours don’t shrink.”
He grinned. “We have a few years development on you, baby.”
“Apparently,” she murmured, unable to pursue her curiosity because the grocer had joined him with a similar device.
She walked a few feet away to join Vidar and Zola as they waited, just in time to see a procession pass. There were probably twenty people, but it was the two in front who held everyone’s attention. The warrior was as tall and severe looking as she’d come to expect. Until he looked down at the woman at his side. He still looked fierce, not a man you’d mess with, but his expression softened. His devotion to her easy to read on his face. He wore black, weapons, and was the first male on Delroi she’d seen wearing medals on his chest. This must be their dress uniform. He was impressive. But nothing compared to the woman. She was arresting.
She wore the tight, sleeveless, midriff cropped top and loose diaphanous pants of Delroi in a light, peacock blue. It was pretty but not any different from what she’d seen so far on Delroi. The thing that caught Parker’s attention was the headdress. The woman’s hair was pulled back and she wore a long veil over it, embroidered in a fine blue lace with jewels sown in to it. The front was threaded gold and blue beads with a large teardrop lapis lazuli gem hanging on her forehead in the center. She was stunning. Kaje rejoined her, his hand settling on the curve of her waist.
“Janica and Bearce,” he said. “They’re going to the warrior god’s temple for their mating ceremony.”
His tone was completely neutral. It made her jealous in a way she’d never experienced before. “You know her?”
“I know him. He’s one the Keep’s guards.”
And that was the problem with being a telepath. She knew he was lying to her. She also knew there was no point in calling him on it. People only changed if they wanted to, and a woman couldn’t change a man.
“You’re reading it wrong,” he said softly, but she heard his exasperation and decided it was an argument she didn’t want to engage in.
She shrugged. “Not my business. Out of curiosity though, what do you Delroi males do when you find your wife cheating on you?”
He turned on her so suddenly she didn’t have time to dodge.
“Don’t test that, der’lan. If I find you with another man, he’s dead.”
She was in his arms, pressed close, and she knew she should protest the display of dominance and ownership, but damn did she like it. She shook her head, knew the objection was weak. Why couldn’t he be a different kind of man? Would she still be so attracted to him if he was? She shoved at his chest until he set her free.
“I’m not an object to be possessed.”
“No,” he agreed somberly, in a ragged whisper. “You’re the mate of my heart. You are the only person in the universe with the power to break me.”
Her knees went weak. She felt his sincerity when he said it, and she didn’t doubt he meant it now. But later? She couldn’t believe he’d feel the same when the new and shiny wore off. So she pretended she didn’t hear him. Frankly, she just wanted to go back to her rooms and figure out how to get far, far away.
“You really want to do that, baby? Run from what we could have?”
She’d opened the link between them and it was apparently still active. She could hear the hurt in his voice and she was more confused than ever.
“I don’t understand you.”
He gave her a killer, sexy smile. “You have to get to know me then. Give me a chance to win you over.”
The end of the procession passed. Kaje took her hand and they continued walking, Vidar and Zola a few feet ahead of them.
“So why were the two of you trying to sneak out?” He didn’t sound upset about that, just curious so she gave him the truth.
“We’re paranoid.”
He scowled down at her. “Excuse me?”
“We’re both used to running. Hiding from enemies. You can’t hope to eradicate years of caution in a few days, Kaje,” she said, giving him an easy answer rather than trying to make him see what a threat Tel was. This wasn’t the time or place for that.
“So you planned to make yourselves targets? You know the rebels here would take you if they could.”
“Don’t snap at me,” she said, as mildly as she could manage. He seemed to operating under the assumption she was helpless. Getting angry at him wouldn’t change his mind. “We just need to learn the city. If anyone comes, we’ll be ready.”
“You’re not a warrior,” he ground out then took a deep breath, like he was trying to calm himself. “It doesn’t matter. There is no way anyone can get to you here.”
She snorted. “Don’t count on it.”
“No one will touch you,” he said firmly and continued before she could argue. “You’re under my protection, Parker. No one will get through me.”
His declaration was sweet. Foolish and stubborn, but a girl liked to be taken care of every now and then, and it had been a long long time since anyone had wanted to do that. She softened a little more for him. Knowing that was a bad idea, she changed the subject.
“What else do you have to do today?”
They turned down a narrow street and he pointed to a building at the end. She couldn’t read the sign over the door.
“We ordered new shuttles, but delivery has been delayed twice. I need to find out why.”
They joined Vidar and Zola in the square, this one much smaller and open on one end to overlook the sea. There were tables and chairs by the rail and a kiosk selling food and drinks.
“Why don’t you two find someplace to sit and I’ll get us a refreshment,” Vidar said.
“I’ll join you in a few minutes,” Kaje added.
Well, that was disappointing. She was curious to see Mr. Diplomacy in action. Instead she joined Zola at a table nearest to the wall and looked out over the ocean. Several sailboats were docked far below them.
“Do you sail?” Zola asked.
She shook her head. “Never had the interest to learn.”
They fell silent for several moments.
“So what do you think?” Zola asked. Parker knew she was talking about the city and their ability to fight or hide in it.
“It’s not bad, especially on a windy day requiring cloaks. A day like today? Strangers stand out.”
Zola nodded and rubbed her hands up and down her arms, like she was trying to warm herself.
“And we’re the strangers. I can feel everyone watching us.” She paused. “We need to get known well enough that they stop that. It’s messing up my warning system. Anyone could sneak up on me right now.”
“Yeah.”<
br />
She’d felt eyes on her since she’d entered the public area of the Keep so she knew just what Zola was talking about. It was creepy, like a spider skittering over the back of her neck, but she didn’t feel any danger or hostility. Her shields were as high as she could keep them, which kept out most stray thoughts.
“They aren’t as strict about movement as we’ve been told,” Zola said. Pointing out several groups of women who appeared to be unescorted.
“I noticed.”
She frowned when she saw Kaje approaching. Her mental barriers were excellent, but he didn’t seem to have any trouble getting through.
“What now?” he asked, cocking one eyebrow.
“Nothing.”
Vidar returned with four cups and sat down. “What news on the shuttles?” he asked his brother.
“End of the week they say,” Kaje responded. “Production got backed up during the war and again during last quarter’s strike.”
“Strike?” Parker wasn’t sure if she should laugh or gape. Delroi seemed so well ordered. She couldn’t imagine anyone tolerating a strike. “Seriously?”
Kaje snorted. “A well honored tradition in the artist caste.”
“For what?” Zola asked. “Is it an issue between the castes? Some old conflict?”
“No, nothing like that. The strikes are usually over internal matters,” he said.
“Usually?” Parker asked.
The brothers exchanged a long look and she knew, just knew, they were going to lie to her. Finally, Kaje shrugged.
“The last one was a pay dispute.”
“They think something else was behind it,” Zola said. “Why keep that from us?”
“Probably more of their protecting weak helpless females crap.”
“Can’t you read him? You two have…grown close.”
“No,” she said.
Even telepathically, the response was abrupt, bordering on rude. She felt an inexplicable draw towards Kaje and every time she touched his mind it got stronger. It might be too late, but she knew further contact increased the possibility of creating a mental bond she wouldn’t be able to break. And that was unacceptable.
“I think it’s time we head back,” Parker said. The sooner she could distance herself, the better.
Irresistible (Delroi Prophecy) Page 7