by Amy Pennza
“Killed?”
“It doesn’t happen often.”
He wanted to gather her into his arms. She’d grown up with the constant threat of death over her head? It turned his stomach. “Did they ever threaten to cancel you?”
“I had some problems as an adolescent. ‘Impulse control,’ they called it.”
“That sounds like every adolescent I’ve ever met.”
“Are there children here? On Tolbos?” She looked so hopeful. His heart turned over.
“Some. Not many.”
“Oh.” She played with a loose thread on the blanket.
He cupped her chin. “The sterilization doesn’t always work. I’m proof of that. And with kaptum… Who knows?”
She tilted her head. “Is that how you became a leader? Because you’re a native?”
“Sort of. It’s not that simple. My family has led for three generations. But if I were weak, you can be sure I wouldn’t be here.” He fell back on the bed with a sigh. “There are always threats, mostly from other warlords who would love to attack the mountain and take over the water supply. For most of my time as leader, the Council has ignored us. Since we started growing our own food, though, they’ve taken an…active interest.”
She stared down at him. “How long have you been in charge of the mountain?”
“Twelve years. Since my father died when I was eighteen.” He smiled, but he felt no humor. “It’s a miracle no one killed me in those early days.” He rubbed his fingers over the scar near his eye. “Plenty of people tried.”
“Eighteen. That’s awfully young to be in charge of so many people.”
He looked at her. “My father was born here—one of the first to survive. His father had been sentenced for defying the Council over its decision to turn the mines over to warlord rule. The Council decided if my grandfather cared so much about the prisoners here, he could join them.”
“And your mother?”
Ivar grinned. “Not a native. For the longest time, father wouldn’t tell me why she’d been sentenced, but I finally got it out of him.”
“And?”
“Prostitution. And before you ask, she was definitely guilty, according to my father.” Unable to help himself, Ivar reached out and traced a fingertip around one rose-colored nipple, pleased when it hardened at his touch. “He bought her, you know.”
Nadia frowned, but her arms fell slowly to her sides, and the pulse in her throat jumped.
Ivar wondered if she even realized she was thrusting her breasts toward him. He hid a smile. She was such a hot little thing. He’d nearly come in his pants when he’d held her on his lap downstairs. He’d had to shove her back onto the bench before he’d disgraced himself like a teenage boy in front of his men. His cock hardened at the memory.
“At an auction?” she said. “Here on Tolbos?”
“Mmmm, just like I did you.”
“What did he pay for her? Water?”
Ivar leaned up and took the nipple in his mouth. Her fingers clutched the back of his head, holding him to her. He smiled against her skin. “Kaptum.”
His cock grew painful. He’d never experienced such a fast recovery after sex. Something about this woman made him insatiable. He sucked at her sweet flesh until she moaned.
“Father didn’t discover the water under the mountain until I was a boy,” he said against the firm, damp skin of her breast. He nipped sharply at the tight bud so she’d release him, enjoying her yelp of surprise as he lay back again, his erection jutting from his hips.
She rubbed at her breast, a perturbed look on her face. “What happened to her? Your mother?”
“She died.”
Nadia’s face softened, and her hand stilled. “I’m sorry, Ivar.”
He shrugged, but he was touched by the genuine concern he saw in her face. If anyone understood what it was like to grow up without a parent, it was Nadia. “It was a long time ago,” he said, caressing her knee. “I was so young I barely remember her.”
She covered his hand with hers. “How did she die?”
“My father told me she got sick. Conditions on Tolbos were much harder then, if you can believe it. I’ve worked to make them better.”
She bit her lip. “That’s why you’ve started growing food. So you’re not reliant on the Council.”
He nodded.
“But they don’t like it.”
“They usually don’t interfere, but they’ve sent spies in the past.”
“Did you kill them?” Her eyes were stark.
At least he could reassure her there. He leaned up on his elbow and cupped her cheek. “No. I don’t know how many spies the Council has sent to the surface. But there have been rumors… Other warlords have seen people meet up with ships. Raddoc killed one in public after he discovered the man was bugged.”
“I don’t understand. Why not just send a representative to talk to you?”
He tucked a strand of her bright hair behind her ear. “You saw Raddoc and his men. Not everyone craves peace, Nadia. Some people thrive on the lawlessness of this place. Kaptum is everywhere here. If the Council showed up and violence broke out, the whole planet could blow. Boom. No more Tolbos.”
“So the Council does their meddling in secret.” She shook her head, and a soft, humorless laugh escaped her. “I guess I can’t blame you for being suspicious about me.”
“We investigate every entry, Porter and I, so we left the mountain as soon as we saw your pod burn up when it entered the atmosphere. When we saw you at the auction, we were immediately on guard. A woman so gorgeous… Well, you don’t see that every day.” He let his gaze wander down her body. Her clit peeped between the pouty lips of her pussy, the sleek bud shiny with her juices. He longed to put his mouth there again, to savor the sweet taste of her. He kept his eyes on it as he said, “But damn me if I didn’t want you despite my instincts warning me to string you up and interrogate you. From the moment I saw you, I wanted inside you.”
He rolled to his side and slid two fingers into the plump flesh between her legs. She was so wet, his hand was immediately covered in her juices, and he rubbed his thumb over the hard center of her desire. “I want inside you right now,” he said softly. “Is that what you want?”
She nodded, her full lips parting on a trembling sigh as he caressed her.
He sat up and used his momentum to push her onto her back. Straddling her, he said, “I’m going to fuck you again, but before I do, tell me something.”
She gasped. “What?”
“What was your fiance’s name, again?”
“S-spencer…”
Ivar drew one of her legs up, his gaze dropping briefly to her slick folds before lifting to her eyes. “Ahh…now, he was a fool.”
20
“And this is soybean,” Ivar said, pointing to a row of leafy plants. “I’d love to get your opinion on them.”
Nadia smiled as she knelt in the dirt. She captured a broad greenish-brown leaf between her fingers and turned it over, examining it. The edges were withered and dry—clear signs that the plant wasn’t getting enough water. “It’s not doing as well as the others, I’m afraid, but it’s a start.” She looked over her shoulder to where Ivar stood watching her. “Are these the first soybeans you’ve tried?”
He nodded and pointed to the end of the row. “Just these few here.” He hunkered down next her, and his sigh ruffled the fine hairs near her nape. “Why do you think they’re not thriving?”
Nadia scooped some of the rocky soil away from the plant’s base. She pursed her lips and thought for a minute as she let it sift through her fingers. For the past two weeks, Ivar had dragged her from one field to the next, picking her brain about the state of his agricultural experiments near the mountain and at various settlements he’d established in his territory. At first, she’d been skeptical about him taking her seriously as a scientist. He was a warlord, after all. How could a man who bought women at auctions trust one to look after his precious crops?
But he’d surprised her—and exhausted her. The morning after he’d made love to her for the first time, he’d woken her by presenting her with clothes, a hat, a pair of sturdy boots, and several scientific tools she’d never thought to see again in her lifetime.
“I don’t understand,” she’d said, looking them over with awe. She’d pointed to a sleek device stamped with a Council logo. “This is a nanomicroscope. How on earth did you get your hands on this?”
“Not on Earth,” he’d said with a smug smile. “I have my ways, Na-dee-ya. Now, will you be my chief botanist? I happen to have an opening for one on my staff.”
She’d been reluctantly impressed by the state of the fields, as well as the obvious care they’d been given. Although crops weren’t necessarily her area of specialty, she was willing to lend her expertise where it was needed—and it wasn’t like she was going to get any other opportunities to use her training.
At first, she’d been worried Ivar was just humoring her, but that worry had vanished almost instantly. He not only listened to her, he took her advice. When she’d recommended digging channels next to the potato plants to deliver more water to the fields, he’d assigned a crew of men to the task within an hour. Not only that, he seemed proud of her—something she’d never been able to say about Spencer, who had viewed botany as dirty and boring.
Ivar also treated her with a reverence she’d never received from Spencer. One night, when they’d sat side by side watching the stars from the ledge in his chamber, his big arm around her shoulders, he’d pressed a soft kiss to the top of her head and murmured, “I will never again force you to do anything against your will, Na-dee-ya. I vow it.” The old-fashioned words had touched her deeply, as did the slow, gentle way he’d made love to her afterward.
He watched her now, his face patient as he waited for her thoughts.
She pointed to the thin veins on the underside of the leaf. “These should be thicker. I don’t think the plants are happy with this spot. It’s too dry. Soybeans are more particular about the quality of the soil than the potatoes you’ve been growing.” She squinted at the sky, where the suns had begun their late afternoon descent toward the horizon. “They also prefer a much cooler climate. We could try rigging up some shade like you did for the carrots.” He’d picked her up and whirled her around the day she’d figured out why his carrots wouldn’t cook properly.
“My smart, sexy botanist,” he’d said as he lowered his mouth to hers. And what he’d done to her afterward…
She shivered.
“What are you thinking about?” he asked her.
“Oh…nothing.” She brushed some dirt from her knee.
“Mmm,” he rumbled in what she’d come to think of as his characteristic Ivar grunt.
“What?”
His long black eyelashes made shadows on his cheeks as he looked at her with half-lidded eyes. “I was just thinking it’s been twenty-four hours since you were in my bed.”
Nadia blushed and looked back at the leaf she’d been studying. “Well, you and Porter were scouting.”
He tugged at the knot she’d fashioned at the base of her skull, making her hair spill around her shoulders. “And did you miss me?”
“I wish you wouldn’t do that,” she said, exasperated. “It’s hot, and you know how I hate it when my hair sticks to my neck—”
“You know what I think?” he interrupted.
“What?” Her pulse sped up. She recognized this game.
“I think you’re wearing too many clothes.”
Her heart pounded. “Oh, really.”
“Mmmm.”
“We came all the way out here to check on these plants—”
He pressed a thick finger to her lips. “Shhh, slave. Master has other things on his mind.”
Damn him, but he knew her weaknesses. She could see the wicked gleam in his eyes, even though his hard face was completely impassive. She shook her head a little to clear it. “I’m not playing this game with you right now.”
He shoved her—gently but hard enough to knock her on her behind—and she let out an oomph. A dark shadow fell over her as he stood and began unbuttoning his pants. “I don’t recall asking you if you wanted to play. Now take off your clothes.”
She laughed. “What?”
His expression darkened. “Take them off. Because if I do it, I’ll rip them. And I don’t think you want to walk back to the mountain naked.” His eyes gleamed. “Or do you?”
An image of her naked on his lap, her thighs spread wide, flashed in her mind. Ever since she’d thrown herself on top of Rogan, the mountain’s inhabitants had treated her with a deference that was almost embarrassing. Rogan had thanked her profusely for sparing him from what would have almost certainly been a serious injury. Even Talitha had apologized for her mistreatment. No one had mentioned the embarrassing scene in the dining hall, nor had anyone referred to Nadia as a bed slave.
However, that hadn’t stopped Ivar and her from carrying out the fantasy in private.
She looked around now, worried about someone seeing them. They were a fair distance from the mountain, but the pit workers’ voices drifted toward them every now and then.
“If I have to ask again, I’m definitely going to march you back without clothes,” he said.
Nadia scrambled to obey. Her bare toes dug into the soil as she hurried to skim her pants and underwear down her legs. Naked now, she dared to take the time to fold her clothing and stack it in a neat pile. Fabric was too precious on Tolbos to treat it with anything other than the utmost respect. When she was done, she knelt in front of him.
“Spread your legs,” he said in a low voice.
She moved her knees apart.
“Wider.”
She bit her lip and opened her legs a few more inches.
“Wider.”
She sighed.
“Nadia.”
Heat pooled in her belly as she spread her thighs as wide as they would go. A rare breeze teased at her hair and played over the wetness between her legs.
Ivar used the toe of his boot to nudge her knees even farther apart. “There,” he said, his voice laced with satisfaction. “Touch yourself.”
She made a sound of protest and looked up at him.
“Now.”
Tentatively, she stroked her fingers over her labia and clitoris. Smooth, buttery warmth built between her legs and spread to her breasts. Her nipples pebbled. Zips of fire shot through her chest. She inhaled a sharp breath.
“Harder,” he said, crossing his arms, his eyes riveted to her sex. He lifted a hand and rubbed his fingers over his mouth.
She moaned softly as she increased the pressure, her fingers growing slippery. The wet sounds of her fingers moving over her intimate flesh were loud, even with the breeze picking up. The warm air played over her flushed chest, teasing her nipples to hard points. Her breasts felt heavy. A hot flush spread down her chest, making her nipples ache.
He crouched in front of her. The contrast between their positions—him fully clothed, her naked and vulnerable in the dirt before him—ratcheted up the intensity. Tiny flames ignited in her belly and spread to her pussy. The breeze picked up, like teasing fingers on the hot, wet lips between her thighs.
She dropped her head back, making her hair tickle the top of her ass. An incessant, furious buzzing built between her thighs. She spread her legs as wide as they would go. The buzzing built higher…intense to the point of pain. The muscles along the inside of her thighs pulled taut. Her knees dug into the dirt. Small rocks pressed into her skin, tiny pinpricks of pain. She ignored it. She rubbed herself in small, furious circles. Hot waves gathered. Her hand ached. There…almost there. If he’d just toss her to the ground and fuck her, she could come!
“Ivar,” she panted, “please…” Her voice was a shameless, begging whine. She pulled her fingers away from her clit, unable to bear it.
“Keep going, slave. I didn’t tell you to stop.”
With
a groan, she put her hand back, her breaths coming in short pants. She lifted her head. His stare held her prisoner, and she found she couldn’t look away. A light sweat broke out across her body. A tight, hot ache built between her legs. She let out a low, keening moan. Her eyes drifted shut. Strong hands touched her—lifting her—and suddenly she was on all fours and he was behind her on the ground, the thick length of him impaling her.
He sank to the hilt, stretching her. He filled her so completely, she writhed on his cock as she adjusted to the burn. Her cunt spasmed around him. He withdrew almost to the tip, and she cried out at the loss. Her pussy clenched on air. Frustration and anger broke over her. She tried to thrust backward, but he grabbed her hips.
“Do you want me?” he said, his voice low and wicked behind her.
She growled. “Yes.”
“Then ask nicely.”
She’d do whatever he said. Say anything he told her to. As long as he gave her what she wanted. She dropped to her forearms and stuck her ass in the air. “Please, master. Fuck me.”
He plunged inside her before she even finished her plea.
Her orgasm ripped through her in hot, pulsing waves. She screamed as she came, her cries matching his groans of pleasure as he began a pumping rhythm so fierce little puffs of dirt flew with each thrust of his hips. She dug her fingers in the soil, holding on for dear life as he rode her. Her breasts jiggled furiously as he grasped her hips in a bruising grip and held her pelvis against him.
“Nadia,” he growled, in her ear, “that’s it, love. You feel so good.”
If he hadn’t been holding her up, she would have collapsed. His big body covered hers. His hips slapped against her ass with a smacking sound punctuated by her soft gasps and his guttural grunts. His balls brushed her clit with each pounding thrust, making fiery aftershocks ripple across her skin.
He came with a shout, flooding her with warmth. As he emptied into her, he slowed his thrusts to a more leisurely pace and ran a warm palm from the base of her neck to the bottom of her spine, stroking her like he might an exotic pet. Still inside her, he leaned over her and murmured, “I can’t go that long without you again.” He kissed the back of her neck.