The Chameleon Soul Mate

by Evelyn Lederman

  Tarsea could feel the blood rushing to his head and sat. “I was so focused on the attack at The Palace, I had not thought about the questions we were preparing Alexandra for the last few days. The coming together of soul mates should not be done in this manner. It just is not right. I wanted it to be beautiful for her.” He was crushed he could not make it special for Alexandra. However, he understood the necessity to rush things along.

  His father sat next to his son and put his arm over his shoulder. “That is one tough cookie you have there. She is up for what life throws at her. Alexandra will just lift that stubborn chin of hers and trudge forward.”

  It was with those words, the woman they were talking about stormed into the den. She stood in front of Tarsea, ready to breathe fire. “You come with me now, no arguments,” his soul mate demanded. Before he could open his mouth, she was on her way out of the study. She continued walking, but turned her head and shouted, “Now!”

  On his way out of the room, he turned and looked at his father. He had an amused look on his face. “Good luck,” he called as Tarsea left the study and followed Alexandra into his bedroom. He was going to need every bit of luck he could get.

  His soul mate looked ready to kill.

  Alex marched toward their bedroom, she was so angry, she could spit. The shouting match between Tarsea and his father was heard by everyone in the common room. She had never been more embarrassed in her life. Everyone had pretended not to hear what was going on in the other room. Alex had to break up the fight and settle things with Tarsea.

  Entering the bedroom, she sat on the bed and awaited Tarsea, who was right behind her. He closed the door and stood against it. There was uncertainty written all over his face, his body language did not reflect the confident man she was accustomed to seeing. For some reason, he looked defeated. Alex’s anger seeped away.

  “I’m going to talk aloud so there will be no misinterpreting anything I am feeling.” Alex needed to get across to him how she felt and knew she was going to have to open parts of herself she had hidden from everyone her whole life. “I have been invisible most of my life. My two true friends are beautiful and confident, while I blend into the background. The orphanage did not encourage individualism and I just stayed back and supported anything Shirl and Candy wanted to do. In school I could not find anything that excited me. I work in a call center, one of hundreds of employees, working in a nondescript cubicle. What few relationships I have been involved in have been nothing special. Girls my age dated, so I dated.”

  Tarsea moved toward her and Alex lifted up her hand to stop him. “Every man I meet I fantasize about, that he’ll be the one to break the nothingness I feel inside. My brain was going a mile a minute, but my body is still frigid. Then I fell through the portal and saw you and every nerve ending I possess started to burn.”

  Alex got up and started to walk toward Tarsea. She directed him to the bed and pushed him down, so that he was the one now sitting. “You make me burn, Tarsea, but this relationship can’t be directed only by you. I need to be part of every decision made. I won’t be pushed to the background where we are concerned. That discussion with your father should have been with the two of us. It is our decision whether or not we are going to make love in order to start the evolutionary change that could save us.”

  She took a step back and slipped out of her shoes. In the best shimmy she could do, she removed her leggings. “I should have said something last night, when you stopped making love to me because for some reason you thought I wasn’t ready to take the next step.” Alex then slowly brought the tunic up her chest and then over her head. “The thing is, you cannot make the decisions unilaterally anymore. We have to do that together.” She then slipped out of her panties and the material that bound her breasts.

  She stood nude before him. For the first time in her life, she was confident in her body and in herself.

  “There is a strong attraction between us and a strong practical reason to go forward as well. So, do you want to make love to me now?” She did not wait for an answer, she grabbed the ends of his tunic and pulled it over his head. She then sat and straddled his hips, pressing her lips against his neck and started to suck. She continued to lick, suck, and bite as Tarsea lowered them onto the bed.

  She could feel Tarsea shifting to remove his pants, as Alex started to attack his ears. His short hair gave her greater access and she was going to take advantage. Alex was going to taste every square inch of him. She felt his hand on her hips as he flipped her onto her back, taking control from her.

  “I want to taste you again,” Tarsea transmitted to her before his mouth attacked her lips. She opened for him and his tongue dove into her mouth.

  Alex ran her hands over his shoulder blades and down his back. She loved the feeling of his taut muscles, there was not an ounce of fat on his magnificent body. He released her lips and moved down her body to take one of her breasts into his mouth. She was all for an encore of last night’s performance.

  He sucked harder, to the point where ecstasy was on the verge of pain. She could feel him back off with that thought. She really needed to learn how to control what thoughts she transmitted to him. “Oh no, you don’t! Keep doing what you were doing. Don’t you dare back off because you think I feel a certain way! I will tell you if I don’t like something or if you are hurting me.” Tarsea went back to sucking harder and she loved it. Her breathing became labored and she arched her back even more. She released a breath when he switched his attention to her other breast.

  His hand made its way to the juncture between her legs and entered her with one finger. She let out a moan. Oh God, that felt good. “More and faster,” she pleaded with Tarsea and he once again did her bidding. A second finger joined the first and he continued to work his magic. Tension within her body continued to build until she had the second orgasm in the last two days.

  Tarsea removed his fingers and moved up her body, once again capturing her mouth. Alex pounded her fists on his back and demanded, “Flip over! It’s my turn to take control.” She felt confident and ready to consummate this relationship. Wait a minute, she thought, consummate, she had been reading too many historical romance novels about virgin brides. Her mind was ripped from that ridiculous thought as he flipped them and she could feel the cool air on her back.

  Alex pushed her now wet hair out of her face and gazed at the man looking at her with utter wonder. She bent down and kissed him like her life was dependent on it. She knew she should say something to him, but she could not figure out what. It was too early to say she loved him, she felt something, and Alex was just not sure it was love. There was certainly a lot of lust involved!

  Lifting her mouth from his, she adjusted her position, straddling him and grabbed his fully aroused member and slowly impaled herself on his shaft. She went slowly, inch by lovely inch of him. He moaned as she brought him into her body.

  “Alexandra, you are killing me,” he managed to say. Tarsea yet again flipped them and he drove himself into her fully. She screamed, half surprised and half in amazement. He pumped in and out of her, increasing the momentum gradually.

  “Oh, God! Faster, faster,” Alex exclaimed. As instructed, Tarsea increased the speed and she was keeping pace with his thrusts. Yet again, she felt the friction building and wanted to hold off as long as she could so they could climax together. She milked him and she knew he was close, oh so close. Then they both fractured together.

  As they both let go, she felt something in her head sizzle. She did not know how else to describe it. Tarsea collapsed on top of her, holding her tight. He was still inside her and she tightened her legs around him to keep him there. She still felt odd, but having him deep inside her made her feel better.

  The strange feeling in her head continued and she could not ignore it any longer. “Tarsea, something is happening to me. My head feels strange, I can
’t explain how, but it does.” The euphoria of their lovemaking was waning and Alex started to have a mini panic attack. “Something is wrong!”

  “It is all right, relax. Your brain is excreting a hormone. This happens when soul mates make love the first time.” Tarsea pushed strands of hair out of her face and looked into her eyes. “The same change is happening to me as well. I have to admit, I had forgotten about this part while we were making love.”

  This whole time, a part of her did not believe in all the nonsense she was being told about soul mates. The fact that she felt the hormone excretion proved what she had been told was true. Tarsea was truly her soul mate. It was her turn to look at him in wonder.

  “So, we are going through this evolutionary change? This will protect us against mind control? When does it stop? Are the effects immediate?” Alex had a zillion and a half questions, but she also knew she had to get herself under control. She took a deep breath, closed her eyes and concentrated on Tarsea’s body next to her. His arms encased her, she wore him like a coat. Her breasts were smashed against his chest. She could hear his heartbeat. Her heart started to beat in sync with his. His staff was still inside her, she could feel it come back to life. She moved her pelvis and then moved it again.

  Tarsea moaned and raised up on his forearms and looked down at her, smiling. “You little minx! Since all decisions are to be made together, I assume you want to go another round.”

  “God, yes,” Alex answered him. He growled and started moving back and forth again. Tarsea increased the speed with each thrust, just as she liked it. She appreciated how Tarsea adjusted how he made love to her, taking her feelings into account.

  “Are our brains going to do that funny thing again?” Alex asked breathlessly as she kept pace with his thrusts. It had not hurt, but she was still freaked out about her brain excreting anything. Obviously, the desire for sex again trumped any true concern. She decided to stop worrying about it and concentrate on making love to Tarsea.

  They climaxed for the second time before he answered her. “It only happens once. I am not sure how quickly we are going to feel the change, though.” He kissed her lips and withdrew from her body. “I think we should take a shower and then grab something to eat. If we are lucky, there are leftovers from one of the dishes that Tolfer made. Can you cook?”

  “If you are half as good in the shower, as you are in bed, cooking can become my second passion.” Tarsea got a gleam in his eye, collected Alex and carried her to the shower.

  Chapter 12

  The house was quiet. It did not reflect the changes and energy that had occurred in it over the last several days. He had met and made love to his soul mate. Tarsea’s life had changed, but the kitchen where he sat was as it had always been. He was not really sure what he had been expecting, but not normalcy.

  Alexandra walked into the kitchen. Her hair was still wet from the shower. She was all in black and had eye makeup on. “Are we going somewhere, why the make-up?”

  His soul mate smiled. “If I am going to be brought in for questioning, I want to look good.” Although she hid her anxiety with a smile, he knew she was worried about being brought before Troyk officials or even Jeryl Jarlyn himself. “Besides, I wanted to look good for you.”

  “You always look great,” Tarsea said. “Even when you are falling through portals in those ridiculous boots of yours.” He knew he would get a rise out of her whenever her diminutive size was mentioned. His little pixie was adorable when she got her dander up.

  “Those boots were very expensive and are very stylish,” Alexandra replied. “Besides, they were a birthday present to myself. I’m starving! I owe you a meal after that performance in the shower.” He was memorized by the smile that graced her face as she said those last words. It was somewhere in between saucy and innocent.

  She started going through the cabinets, pulling out different items and examining them. When she got to the spices, she would open each bottle and sniff its contents. Some of the spices were placed back in the cabinet and others were kept out. He loved to watch the variety of faces she made as she reacted to the scent of any given herb. She went into the cold storage area and pulled out a few more items. “Is this chicken?”

  He looked at the package she presented and he nodded. She proceeded to unwrap the chicken and wash the pieces as she pulled them out. A bowl was taken out of the cabinet, as well as several pans. Alexandra started humming while she cooked, and it fascinated him. Time passed as he was transfixed watching her. Her black tunic was covered with the remnants of the spices she had used. The aroma of the dishes she was making pulled him out of his daze and his mouth started watering.

  “So,” Tarsea said, “we have a birthday to celebrate. How old are you anyway?”

  “Twenty one,” Alexandra said with a smile. “I’m officially a grown-up. How about you set the table.”

  He got up and started to do as she had instructed. In addition to the dishes he placed on the table, he brought out two wine glasses. From cold storage he grabbed a bottle of white wine and poured two glasses, handing one to Alexandra. She started to sip the wine while she put the finishing touches on their dinner.

  They sat at the large table in the common room, next to each other. She watched him intently as he took a bite of the first meal she prepared. Flavor exploded in his mouth, it was delicious. The chicken was succulent and the side dishes were superb.

  “I think I’ll keep you,” he communicated, while he continued to shovel the meal into his mouth. Alexandra smiled at him and started on her own plate.

  Tarsea was on his second helping when the front door opened and a crowd entered the house. The solitude he had with his soul mate had come to an end for the time being. His father, Tolfer, and their friends went straight to the kitchen and helped themselves to a plate of Alexandra’s creations. It was a good thing she had made enough for an army.

  “I thought you went to dinner,” he shouted at them.

  “We did,” his father said, “but this smells too good to pass up.”

  Tarsea watched as his father came into the common room, sat down, and ate a bite full of the meal Alexandra prepared for him. He saw his dad’s appreciation of the dish written all over his face.

  “Tolfer,” his father mumbled with a mouth full of food, “you have some competition. Alexandra, this is wonderful.”

  “Thank the Supreme Being,” Tolfer replied, as he joined them. His brother sampled the food and he saw his eyebrows rise in respect for her culinary talents.

  The last of his friends sat with their own plates teeming with food. They quickly devoured Alexandra’s efforts. All three mumbled various comments as the food on their plates disappeared.

  Koel had just come back from getting what little was left of Alexandra’s food when Leenea, Alexandra’s aunt, and Koel’s sister Tarah came into the house.

  Tarah generally did not spend time with them, so her presence surprised Tarsea. He looked at Koel and transmitted through their closed link, “What is your sister doing here?”

  She was a mind control telepath and he was not sure where her allegiances stood. Although Koel was always clowning around, he was serious about the fact they could trust his sister.

  Between bites Koel said, “Tarah is going to question you. We will see if you both are able to protect yourself against mind control.” He turned and faced Alexandra. “This is excellent, sweetheart. How about leaving Tarsea for me.”

  “Sorry, Koel, you are too much of a goof.” She leaned over and kissed Tarsea on the cheek. “Besides, I kind of like the big guy here.”

  “If the legend is true,” Tarah said, “I should not be able to tell if you are lying to me. Everything you say will be read as the truth.”

  Once again, he glanced over at Koel, who shrugged. Was there anything he did not tell his sister? Tarsea then looked at the bl
ond woman before him. Tarah was thirty-two years old and he had little contact with her over the years, particularly when they were growing up. Koel had not started hanging around him and Darden until they were teenagers and Tarah was already at school.

  He had nothing to lose. “We will give it a try,” he communicated to Tarah.

  Tarah sat back and glared at Tarsea. “Tell me how you were involved in the latest assassination attempt on Jeryl Jarlyn, instigated by Prime Hosp.”

  Tarsea looked at her in surprise. “I was not involved in this or any attempt on Jarlyn’s life. Prime Hosp sponsored some of the bills that my father and I supported. I met with him on several occasions to discuss that legislation.” As he talked, he could feel her pull on his brain. He was able to answer the question with half-truths, so she would not have been able to determine anything anyway. Mind control telepathic powers could only detect outright lies.

  A mind control telepath could pull out falsehoods and direct someone to take an action that was not contrary to their base beliefs. Someone could not be compelled to kill, if they were not already predisposed to kill that person. The telepath could also not get someone to confess to a crime they did not commit. They could be compelled to vote a certain way or buy groceries at a certain store. As long as any doubt existed, the mind control telepath would be able to influence a decision. Choices people in other worlds took for granted.

  “Do you know where Benko Jarlyn is?” Tarah fired back at Tarsea just as he finished his sentence.

  “I do not have a clue where Benko Jarlyn is. He left when I was six years old. I never even met the man.” As Tarsea communicated orally to Tarah, he leveraged their closed link to scold Koel. “You told her about Benko Jarlyn being in the Ginkgo Terra universe? Are you insane?”