by Kate Pearce
Somewhere in the last two hundred years, they’d lost their sense of community and it saddened him greatly.
“Reinn, I wanted to show you the funding mock-up for the greenhouse subsidy.” Sigard nodded to the anteroom where he kept his office. The older man was capable and quiet—a true prince among men, and given Reinn’s privilege, that was saying something. Sigard gave him an appraising look when they reached his desk. “What has you so distracted?”
“This trip.” At least he could answer honestly. “We’re on the cusp of big changes. I want them to benefit everyone, not just—”
“If you want to lead, then you need to get your head in the game.”
He jerked his head back and glared at Sigard. “I don’t.”
“You care more than your brother does.”
“It’s his birthright.” And I don’t want it.
“He wouldn’t be the first to step aside.”
“He wants it, end of story. And this is not a conversation to have here, or anywhere.” Reinn glanced back over his shoulder. “I will serve him as you have served my father.”
“Then you need to stop dreaming.”
Reinn laughed. “Will it reassure you that I wasn’t thinking about work?”
“Ahhh, a woman?” Sigard crossed his arms over his big, barrel chest. “I’d given up hope, my boy.” And that was the difference between Sigard and his father. They both struggled to fully see him as a man, but at least Sigard put my before boy.
“It’s complicated.”
“The young liaison officer.” Sigard rolled his eyes at Reinn’s shocked expression and shrugged. “She’s beautiful, I don’t blame you.”
Reinn gritted his teeth. “It’s not like that.” Fear slithered down his back, feeling a lot like a cold sweat at the thought that he’d been so obvious in his affection for Ashleigh. And now they’d opened the floodgates.
“Of course it is. Get it out of your system.”
“No.” He leaned forward and waited until Sigard stopped chuckling and focused on his face. “I will claim her in good time.”
“You can’t.”
“Of course I can.” He straightened, enjoying the extra breadth and width he had over the other man. “Not a word to my father.”
“He already knows about what happened at the welcome reception. There was security footage.”
Reinn closed his eyes and cursed himself for being stupid. “Does he care?”
“No, and he won’t as long as he thinks you’re just—”
“Don’t finish that sentence,” he growled. He didn’t want anyone thinking of Ashleigh like that, and definitely not his father and Sigard.
He turned and headed back into his father’s common room, pausing only at the door to strap on his weapons. Behind him, Sigard made apologies and offered to pour another round of akvavit. Reinn didn’t look back.
Eight minutes later, he arrived on the other side of the City Core and prowled silently into Ashleigh’s inn. His ID chip let him in the side entrance, but instead of swiping, he waited for a maidservant to come out. She gave him a polite but disinterested smile and held the door for him. Just to be on the safe side, he slid his metal wrist cuff over his chip as he passed through the entrance. It might not shield his presence there, but it couldn’t hurt to think a little. Even if it was probably too late.
He paused in front of her door. He hadn’t thought this through. They were heading north tomorrow, where they’d have space and privacy. But he’d wanted to hold her before he knew his secret was out of the bag. Now he needed to, in case it was his only chance.
He knocked softly, three light taps that thundered around him.
Enough time passed before she swung the door open that he worried she was asleep, but one look at her pleasantly surprised—and flushed—face told him that wasn’t exactly the case.
She blushed as he smiled at her, slow and knowingly. “What are you doing here?”
“I can’t stay away.” Partial honesty. He’d get to the rest in a bit.
Desire and concern warred on her face. He waited on the threshold. It would have to be her choice to invite him in. “Anyone know—”
“I don’t think so. I snuck in.” It was all he could promise.
She sighed and stepped back. Not quite an enthusiastic welcome, but then she mumbled something under her breath that more than gave him hope.
“Pardon?”
“I said, you might as well come in, I was imagining you were here with me anyway.” She glanced back at him, her gaze obscured by a heavy flutter of lashes, but the curve of her smile gave her away.
His rapidly stiffening cock led the way into the room and he nudged the door shut behind him as he snagged her by the waist and pulled her close. No sooner had the latch clicked than he had her pressed against the heavy wood, his hands in her hair and his lips on hers. She tasted even better than he remembered, like warm spices and melted sugar. “Tell me more,” he muttered, licking his way down her neck. She was always so buttoned up, seeing her like this in a robe and—Gods—nothing else, he discovered as his hand slipped between the silky garment…it was too tempting for words.
He’d spent almost two weeks subtly analyzing the curves under her uniform. He knew exactly where the gentle weight of her breast began, and with unerring precision slid his hand up her side, nearly undone at the softness of her skin. He stopped just shy of where they both wanted his hand.
“Please,” she panted, arching against him.
“We should talk,” he muttered unconvincingly.
“About what?”
He didn’t want to tell her. He almost didn’t. But he wanted this woman to be more than a hard fuck against the door. And if he lied to her now, that’s all she’d ever give him.
“My father knows of my affection for you. Our secret is no longer a secret.”
5
“What do you mean?” Ashleigh scrambled to close her robe between them. Confusion flooded over her and she knew she needed some distance from Reinn for whatever he was about to say next, even if both her body and heart protested the rude interruption to the light speed seduction that had been about to happen.
He gave her enough space between their bodies to cover up, but kept her bracketed against the door with his strong arms and one long, thick thigh. Her hip brushed the inside of his leg as she adjusted herself and she wanted to lean into him. Savor his strength and trust that he had this under control.
But she hardly knew him. And if other people knew they’d been flirting, it wasn’t within his control any longer. So flirting would be where they’d have to draw the line, even if that felt like a strangely large sacrifice. Because you know him better than you think you do. On another level. She shook away the strange thought.
“Where did you go just now in your head?” He glowered down at her and she fought back her first instinct to reach up and smooth the frown lines away with her fingertips, then touch his lips and hope that he’d nip at her skin. Instead, she offered a frown of her own and placed her palms flat on his chest.
“Move,” she said quietly, her gaze never wavering from his face.
“You’re worried.” He stated it like the fact that it was. With a quick nod, he shoved off the door and paced away.
“No.” She dragged out the word, buying herself a few seconds to sort out what it was that she was feeling. “Tell me what you mean. Who exactly knows what and what exactly is not a secret?”
“There is security footage of us from the welcome reception.” He ground out the words like he wanted them off his tongue and out of his mind. Too bad that wasn’t how life worked. She closed her eyes and did a mental replay of her first night on Midgard. A kiss, then a long embrace as they watched the performance. A show which surely would demonstrate that what they had done was boring, practically nothing. Lies, she chided herself. Not nothing at all.
But it could be rendered as such, officially. She locked the ache away. “A momentary lapse in judgement on
my part, but hopefully when we don’t do anything else, the watchers will tire of paying us any attention and move on to a more exciting drama.”
“You can just wipe our connection away like that?” He glared at her, incredulous disbelief rolling off of him in waves.
“I’m disappointed,” she admitted after a beat. “This would have been fun.”
He spun around, glower still firmly in place. He raked a look down her body and back up again. “Fun?” His dark brows hooded his gaze, but the intensity didn’t take a hit at all.
She stood her ground, even as it felt unsteady. “Sure. I don’t usually do this type of thing, but you seem like a nice guy and—”
“A nice guy?” He stalked toward her, not stopping until they were pressed hip-to-hip and nose-to-nose. “I try to be kind. And from time to time, I suppose I’m fun. But what I feel for you is neither light nor frivolous, and I won’t be tossed aside so easily.”
Nothing cloaked the hot, hungry way he looked at her now. She dropped her gaze from his eyes to his mouth, but that didn’t make it easier. “Then you’ve gotten ahead of me. I’m sorry.” Her voice cracked ever so slightly on the apology and she pressed her lips together, afraid to say anything else.
“I didn’t tell you this so you could shut down, Ashleigh.” He said her name like he knew her soul and he was pissed that she didn’t. Well, screw him. It was her damn soul, and if she wanted to lock it down tight that was her prerogative.
“Too late. I’m not interested in drama. I lost my head a little, but this was a good wake-up call.”
With the slightest of growls, he dipped his head and nudged her hair with his nose, not disguising his deep inhale nearly as well. “Oh woman, what am I going to do with you?”
“Nothing,” she whispered, standing stock still. “That’s the point.”
“No,” he whispered right back, but his words weren’t shaky in the least. Just intimate. Rough and commanding. “That doesn’t work for me, because you just told me you lost your head over me. And I know I’m gone for you. So one way or another, we’re going to find a way to work this out.”
“What do you mean, you’re gone for me?” She felt like Alice down the rabbit hole. Ten days ago she’d never have imagined falling in lust like this. And now Reinn was looking at her like…Jeez, she didn’t even want to name it. Instead, she pushed back. Hard, using language she knew was too crude and way over the line. “Is it because I’m different than your ex-wife? I’m a convenient distraction?”
He tensed around her. “Don’t.”
“Do you just want me to be an agreeable wench you can rut with?” Even as she said it, her nipples tightened, betraying how much she wanted him—even if it wasn’t smart. Even if that’s all he wanted her for, a quick fuck to erase his pain.
But Reinn wouldn’t let her think that, not even for a minute. “You’re not made for rutting. I don’t think you think that, either, but let me be clear—I don’t want a quick fuck with you.”
“Wow, jeez, you really know how to put a girl in her place. The good news for you, buster, is that I’m not disappointed to not be the object of your…rutting intentions.” She stormed past him, but didn’t get far because he snagged her wrist, carefully manacling her with his thumb and forefinger. Like a magic switch, her body responded, her nipples stiff and her sex flooded at the barest of restraints.
“You are the object of intentions. But not just rutting.” He curled in behind her, cradling her in his arms. “Sparing. Mating. Breeding. Laughing. Sleeping. And yes, rutting, but we can’t fuck without knowing where we stand. Not now that it’s no longer a secret.”
Something told her he’d ordered those verbs like that to bury the scary ones in the middle. “You want to breed me?”
He chuckled into her hair. “With you, min elskede. In good time. That is the point of fucking, after all.”
God, she couldn’t breath. The thought of Reinn surging into her, over her, intent on conceiving a child…it didn’t scare her as much as it should. And that was terrifying. Her big, medieval Viking wanted her for more than a roll in the furs. It was impossible. Insane. And entirely too attractive for her liking.
“No,” she said, more confidently than she felt inside. “Really, no. If I’ve led you on, I apologize. But none of that can happen.”
“You’ve done nothing of the sort.” He slid his hand up her arm, leaving a trail of goose bumps in his wake. “We’ll move on then, from this.” He traced his fingers over her collarbone, and she tipped her head back, letting him explore the exposed flesh there. “Bury this attraction between us.” He was teasing her. He wasn’t moving on. He was winding his magic again, making her forget she was an officer with a duty.
“We could just…for one night…” she whispered, silently willing him to slide her robe off and touch her everywhere.
“No. If I claim you, I’m never letting you go.”
“You’ll need to. I’m here for a few months and then I’ll be returning to Earth. A year from now I’ll be on the other side of the galaxy.” Her words sliced through her own heart, and without looking up at him, she knew he felt the same.
He rubbed his cheek against her hair and kissed her temple. “And if I ask you to stay?”
“It’s not my choice to make. There are policies and procedures. A lot of money has been spent to train me for this mission. I’m an investment. They won’t just let me go.”
“But if it was your choice?”
“I’d need more time.” Her answer shocked herself. What? “I mean…” Except that is what she meant. Maybe, in time, if she were free…she’d stay. It was a beautiful pipe dream, but maybe that’s why she could allow herself to revel in it. “But it’s not my choice to make,” she repeated regretfully.
He tightened his arms around her waist for a moment, then effortlessly lifted her into his arms and carried her to the bed. “Do you sleep in your robe?” he asked as he settled her down in the centre.
She slowly shook her head.
He curved his lips into an unexpectedly wolfish smile. “Then let me help tuck you in.”
Ashleigh knew from their few encounters that Reinn had a lusty appreciation for her. This look in his eye was something new and different. A challenge of sorts and she couldn’t back down. She wouldn’t be swayed by pleasure, no matter how tempting. But he expected her to say no, to maintain that wall he insisted was hiding a part of herself. She swallowed hard. She had nothing to hide. Yes, she wanted him. But there were larger concerns at play and he’d come to understand that she was right. She kicked the covers down below her feet and spread her arms wide. “Please.”
He sat on the edge of the bed, his eyes hot and locked on hers, and he unlaced his boots. With each heavy thud, her heartbeat raced a little faster. His tunic was fastened with a few leather buckles and soon that too hit the floor. He crawled onto the bed, still wearing a thin undershirt stretched tight across his chest and around the tops of his impressive biceps. His forearms were dusted in a deliciously light layer of dark hair, and at his waist a narrow strip of skin appeared between his shirt and his similarly snug trousers. He was fully dressed and she was drooling.
It didn’t matter. She could do this and not feel anything—other than pleasure, of course.
Reinn kneed his way between her legs, hovering over her long enough for her to see the desire in his eyes before he covered her mouth with his. Another kiss, another side to this man that made her want oh so much more. This kiss was hard and punishing, which she totally deserved. This push-me, pull-me routine couldn’t go on. But even as he bruised her lips and tangled with her tongue, his hand gently curved along her jaw and he held the rest of his body up and off of hers.
It should have felt like goodbye. It didn’t.
She’d pushed him away and lashed out with cruel words, and he’d crawled into her bed as if to say, your heart is next.
“Stop thinking so damn much,” he muttered against her lips as he pulled away, then chas
ed her lips for one more searing kiss before rearing up on his knees. He stroked her bare legs with his hands, shoving her robe high on her thighs. “Just for tonight. Just feel us together and let it be.”
“I thought you said you wouldn’t…”
He reached for her belt and lazily loosened it. He flicked one end of the belt to the side, then the other. The fabric floating on her abdomen was loose now, sliding apart as if her overheating skin couldn’t bear to be covered. “I told you. I’m tucking you in to bed.”
Unexpected tears bubbled behind her eyelids and she closed her eyes, refusing to grant them permission to fall. Reinn cursed in ancient Danish and covered her body with his again, kissing her eyelids, then her nose, and finally her mouth. “I’m sorry,” he whispered. “I just wanted—”
“Yeah, me too,” she said quietly, eyes still closed. It wasn’t fair, to have come so far for a singular purpose just to stumble across this kind of connection. Love had never even crossed her mind before. Her own parents didn’t meet and marry until they were in their forties. She had assumed it would be the same for her.
No. This wasn’t love. No matter how overwhelming her feelings for Reinn, this was lust, pure and simple. And they needed to satisfy it. Get it out of their systems. “Touch me,” she said, ignoring the catch in her voice.
He hesitated, clearly unable to do the same. “Maybe not tonight.”
“Tonight’s your only chance.” Another catch. Stupid emotions.
“I don’t think that’s true, do you?” He kissed the spot beneath her ear, then drew the bottom edge of her earlobe into his mouth and sucked gently. “But I did promise to tuck you in.” He moved down her body, spreading her robe wide, covering the flesh exposed with his hands and mouth. At her breasts, he plumped up the mound with his hand and drew as much as he could onto his hungry tongue. Each tug shot straight to her sex and lifted her hips off the bed.