by Gail Koger
“Mate? She wears no ownership band. We are tired of filthy hybrids getting the best females. This one is mine.” Keyan reached for me.
I zapped him. Keyan flew across the room and slammed into the wall. “Next time you try to touch me, I’ll kill you.”
The other warriors stared in astonishment as tendrils of smoke rose from Keyan’s battle armor.
“Leave,” Jake barked.
The idiots pulled their swords. “Not without the female,” the bigger one said.
“Aw, they want to play.” I tapped my bracelet and my armor covered me from head to toe. “Bring it boys.”
Jake flashed me a grin as his armor enclosed him.
Bellowing ear-shattering battle cries, the warriors charged.
I hurled a lightning bolt at big mouth. Crack! It slammed into his chest and he went flying. The mess hall doors slid open and big mouth slammed into General Jones, knocking him back into the hallway. Oops.
Swords clashed behind me. I spun around and watched Jake’s fury play out in a series of vicious cuts. Blow by blow, he forced the warrior back.
General Jones stormed into the room. “Enough!”
“Stay away from CeeCee.” Jake knocked the sword of the warrior’s hand.
His face a mask of anger, the warrior yelled, “We are full-blooded Coletti. We take what is ours.”
Zarek suddenly appeared. “No. You do not.” The horrifying gentleness of his voice warred with the rage in his eyes.
With a cry of agony, the warrior fell to the floor.
Holy crap! Was he dead? Kinda looked like it. I froze when Zarek’s gaze fixed on me. “Hey, we were minding our own business when Keyan and his thugs showed up. We simply protected ourselves.”
“Indeed.”
I nodded. “I don’t know what crawled up their butts and died, but Jake and I have a murderer to catch.”
“Yes, you do.” Zarek handed a box to Jake. “You will wear Jake’s ownership band starting now.”
My eyebrows shot up. “Ownership band?”
“It’s a type of a wedding ring, except it goes on your neck,” Jake hastily inserted. “It’ll keep Keyan and his buddies from trying to take you.” He opened the box and held it out to me. It contained an onyx neck band with intricate copper etchings.
What was that saying? Oh yeah, better the devil you know than the devil you don’t. I had to face reality. I was Jake’s mate even though we hadn’t done it yet. Plus, I needed his help to catch Cantor. I blew out a long breath. As much as I hated to admit it, I found Jake sexy as hell and he was a damn good kisser. Keyan on the other hand? One of us would be dead within an hour. “I love the band. It’s very eye-catching.”
Relief flashed in Jake’s eyes. “Is that a yes?”
“Yeah, it is. You’re my jackass.”
Jake grinned and fastened the band around my neck. “For all eternity, buttercup.”
The warm metal band adjusted to fit my neck perfectly.
General Jones snorted. “Who said romance was dead?”
Shaking his head in disbelief, Zarek picked up Keyan and the dead warrior. “Detja will arrange a proper bonding ceremony for you, after Cantor has been captured or killed.”
“Yes, my lord.” Jake did the fist-to-chest salute.
I followed suit. “Yes, sir.”
Zarek and the General vanished.
I yawned. “I need a couple hours of sleep before we continue our search.”
“So do I.” Jake pulled me close and teleported.
Poof we were in his quarters. A large bed dominated the room. The walls were covered with an assortment of weapons. “Do you know how to use all of those?”
“I do.” Jake collapsed on the bed. He was as exhausted as I was.
With a groan, I sat down beside him and gave a little bounce. “Great mattress.”
“Warlords get the best.” Jake tugged me down next to him.
“Un-huh.” I snuggled against his chest and closed my eyes. “Don’t get any funny ideas. Just need to rest for a minute or two.”
Jake wrapped an arm around me and sighed. “Me too. Then we will come up with a plan.”
Chapter Eight
I woke up sprawled across a warm, masculine chest. I rubbed my cheek against the firm muscles. He felt so good. I bet he tasted good too. I went to lick a nipple covered with a smattering of hair and froze as everything came rushing back. What was I doing? Had I lost my mind? Probably. I wanted to taste every inch of the Jackass. How sad was that?
Jake’s breath stirred my hair.
I took a cautious peek. His eyes were closed like he was sleeping, but he was a hyper-vigilant warlord. Was he playing possum? More than likely. I tilted my head for a better look at his fine body. Jake was wearing red plaid boxer shorts and socks. A giggle escaped me.
“Hey! Show some respect. They’re made from the tartan plaid of our Scottish Highlander’s clan,” Jake groused.
“Apologies, but I thought warlords went commando.”
“Nope, all the Jones’ boys wear tartan plaid.”
“Even the General?”
“Him too. Ethan and Quinn are the only ones who occasionally go commando.”
“Good to know. What happened to my armor?”
“I deactivated it. It’s hard to cuddle with it on.”
I eyed him suspiciously. “Just cuddle?”
“Actually, I require your naked body against mine.” Jake was suddenly kissing me like a starving man.
A shockwave of need hit me and all I wanted was for him to fuck me blind.
“Your wish is my command,” Jake murmured in my mind.
A ghostly finger circled my clit, rubbing it until the bombardment of pleasure had me squirming.
“Like that, do you?”
My breath came in fast, shallow pants. “No. Not. At all.”
“Liar.”
My eyes rolled back in my head as two marauding fingers pumped into me hard and deep while his thumb continued to lazily circle my clit. “Oh. My. God. Oh. My. God.”
“Not God, I’m just really good at mental sex.” Jake suckled my right nipple and my mind completely shut down as ecstasy cascaded through me. “You’re mine, buttercup, for all eternity.” His possessive hands were everywhere, stroking me, claiming me. “I’ll never let you go.”
I came with embarrassing speed and when the brain jelling climax hit me, I literally saw stars. “Whoa! All that practice. Really paid off.”
“Are you calling me a man whore?”
“I’ve heard stories about how often Coletti warriors go to pleasure houses.”
“A warrior has needs after a battle,” Jake replied.
A dangerous edge to my voice, I warned, “I don’t share. You touch another woman and I’ll cut it off.”
“Not gonna be a problem, buttercup.” A shit eating grin spread across Jake’s face. “The only woman I want to touch is you.”
“Good answer.” My gaze fell on his crotch. “Where’s your snake?”
“Snake?”
“Your penis. I wanna see it.”
“Okay.” Jake moved me to the side of the bed and stood. He removed his boxers and stood at a military parade rest position for my inspection.
I eyed his bright red socks for a moment then fixed my gaze on his abdomen. Huh? No pubic hair. No penis. No sign of his balls. There was only a slit on his abdomen. “Okay, where are you hiding the little guy?”
“Junior’s not little.”
I chortled. “Junior?”
Letting out a martyred sigh, Jake pointed to the slit in his abdomen. “Coletti man parts are inside the body.”
“As many battles as a Coletti warrior fights, it’s probably a good idea.” I raised my eyebrows. “Still waiting.”
A slit opened in his abdomen and out it slid. His penis had a copper-colored frill of tentacles around the top.
Whoa! How freaky!
“Freaky?”
“Quit reading my mind,” I growled.
“Not gonna happen.”
“Then you don’t get to whine when you hear something you don’t like.” I patted his chest. “You’ve gotta admit your equipment is different than it used to be. I mean, you no longer have a funky-looking mushroom cap, protruding blue veins or scratchy pubic hair. Now do you.”
Jake shook his head.
“And I bet all that rearranging hurt like a mother.”
“It did.”
I waggled my eyebrows. “Can I touch it?”
“God, yes.”
I wrapped my right hand around his long, thick penis. It was velvety to touch, but I could feel a steel-like hardness beneath the skin. The tentacles slid sinuously against my hand. Up. Down. Up. Down. Heat coiled in my belly. “Wow. I’ll have to ditch my vibrator. These little guys beat it hands down.”
“Vibrator?” Jake’s breathing was ragged.
“A girl has needs after a long day of busting perps.” His penis suddenly got bigger and bigger and bigger. I dropped it and jumped back. “Is it supposed to do that?”
Jake’s body trembled. “Yes. I want to fuck you hard and fast.”
My eyes bulged as Junior grew longer and whoosh! It wriggled under my panties and rubbed against my clit. It was almost as if it had a mind of its own. “Okay, that feels really good, but Junior’s never gonna fit.”
“He’ll fit.” Jake crushed my lips with urgent, greedy kisses.
Every nerve in my body did the Tango. Jake was a fever in my blood. I burned for him.
“You’re wearing too many clothes.” Jake twirled me this way and that as he stripped off my clothing.
Mourning the loss of the little guys, I leaned over and gave his right nipple a firm lick. The next thing I knew, I was on the bed.
Jake’s arms caged me. “You drive me crazy. I’ve wanted you from the moment you declared you were going to arrest me. It’s like you were made for me. A fearless cop, a powerful shaman and to top it off, you’re incredibly beautiful.”
“Me? Beautiful? That’s so sweet, but not true. You on the other hand, are sexy as hell.” I took his mouth slowly, deliberately. I sucked on his tongue like I would his penis. “Show me what you’ve got, big guy.”
“As you command, my lady.” His penis flexed and the tentacles pulsated against my pussy. My inner muscles clenched and throbbed. Who needed sex toys when you had tentacles? Another pulse, and a vortex of pleasure exploded inside me.
“You’re so tight,” Jake murmured.
“That’s because I’ve only been with one guy and that was a long time ago.”
“Who?” The word was a snarl.
“Relax. Eddie died in a car accident and most men aren’t interested in doing it with a cop and a shaman.”
“Keeps me from having to kill your lovers.”
“You’re not serious, are you?”
“Warlords are a possessive bunch. Hold on, buttercup.”
The shock of his powerful invasion made me cry out. I felt my inner walls stretching to accommodate him. “Ouch. That hurts. You have to stop.” My body arched as sensitive spots were suddenly stroked and kissed. “Oh. Wow. Hooboy. Never mind. Don’t stop.” Our lips meshed, nibbled, and tasted.
Jake thrust into me harder, deeper. I reveled in the sensation of his penis filling me. The frill of tentacles vibrated and pulsed, electrifying every nerve ending. My body caught fire. I couldn’t think. I couldn’t breathe. He was without mercy as the pulsating tentacles drove me over the edge, again and again.
Jake’s mind pushed hard into mine, imprinting on my soul, and branding me. “You’re mine. Forever. Say it.”
“Yours. Forever.” His mouth was hot and dominant. Wave after wave of rapture shot though me and I screamed, “And you belong to me, warlord.”
“Forever and always.” Jake’s big body convulsed violently. A low, guttural groan broke from him and something hot spilled into me.
“Crap!” I smacked his chest. “So help me God, if you get me pregnant, I’ll neuter you.”
“You don’t want children?”
“I do. Down the road. Not now.”
“Relax. My semen is converting you, not impregnating you.”
“Oh yay, I’ve always wanted fangs.” I sagged against the bed as tremors of bliss continued to rock me.
Jake kissed me gently. “I will do whatever it takes to protect you.”
“I don’t need protection.”
“Yeah, you do. Cantor wants you dead. Females with your abilities are highly sought after not only by Coletti warriors but other species.”
“What other species?”
“The Askole and Nal Rishi warriors are just a few who would eagerly steal you,” Jake explained.
“Let me get this straight. You’re converting me to keep me safe.”
“I am.”
“And the hot sex has nothing to do with it?”
“It’s a nice side benefit,” Jake answered.
“Un-huh.”
Elder Benally’s ghost appeared in the room. “If you’re mating ritual is completed, I have news of the Coyote.”
“Fuck!” I bolted upright and yanked wildly at the sheets. “I thought you had passed over.”
“Death only freed me. I am now able to see and do things that were once denied me.”
“Like being a peeping Tom?” I mumbled.
Jake calmly tapped my bracelet and within seconds black armor covered me. “You know where Cantor is?”
“He is in Pinon, Arizona. He has used his mental powers to enslave the members of a gang called the Red Kings.”
I frowned. “Damn. We just arrested their leader for murder and we’re in the process of rounding up the rest of the gang.”
“The Coyote has them actively hunting for you, CeeCee. Your talents have drawn much attention and many wish to possess you. He plans to sell you to the highest bidder,” Elder Benally warned.
Jake bared his fangs. “Cantor’s a dead man.”
“Yes, he is,” I agreed. “Father was severely injured by the Coyote, and we haven’t told him you were murdered.”
“Samuel is aware of my death and that the Coyote wants to claim tribal land as his own. You must stop the slaughter of our people,” Elder Benally advised.
I entwined my fingers with Jake’s. “We will hunt that bastard down and end him.”
Elder Benally vanished.
“Pinon’s one of the most isolated towns on tribal lands. The Red Kings had tried to turn it into their own private fiefdom until Father and I shut them down.”
“Time for that memory download of all things Navajo,” Jake said, merging with me. Thousands of images and memories suddenly spun through my head. My knowledge became Jake’s and his mine. I now knew how to field strip a laser canon, fly a warbird and Coletti battle strategy. Whoa! Zarek made the Apache look like pussy cats.
“Sepulcrum ibidem solus novum. Vem Hum. Domum rotundam,” Jake chanted. A tiny black cloud formed overhead. “Miraculin. Vivtorie construxit!”
I giggled as a few drops of rain fell on the bed. “You’re gonna have to do better than that.”
“Yeah, yeah.” Jake’s forehead knitted in concentration.
I felt a wall of energy abruptly wrap around me and I couldn’t move. “You’ve got the freeze ray down pat.”
“Uncle Saul’s gonna love it.”
“Yippee. Another weapon in the Coletti arsenal,” I groused.
Jake caressed my cheek. “Think of all the lives it’ll save.”
“True. Try calling lightning.”
With a thunderous cracking boom, boiling black clouds filled the room. Electric blue flames danced around us.
“Shut it down! Shut it down!”
“Trying,” Jake rasped.
I seized control of the storm and quickly dissipated it. “Shit! From now on, we practice outside.”
I stared at him in horror. “Sorry, sir. Next time you might want to announce yourself.”
Zarek raised an eyebrow. “Announce myself? On my own ship?”
Jake pushed me behind him. “The fault is mine, my lord. The storm got away from me.”
I inserted hastily, “We know where Cantor is.”
“Excellent. I will call a war council.” Zarek vanished.
I blew out a long breath. “Whew! War council?”
“Unfortunately, women aren’t allowed. Wait for me here.” Jake teleported away.
“Like hell.” After a quick shower, I was going to visit my father.
Chapter Nine
I walked into my father’s private room and my stomach clenched. It was empty. I linked with Jake. “Has something happened to my father?”
“Relax. He’s fine.”
“Where is he?”
“Zarek wanted his input on the Red Kings,” Jake answered.
“Ah! I got it. Since he has a penis, he was invited to the war council.”
“We’ll talk later.”
“You bet your ass we will.” I headed for the mess hall. Some German Chocolate cake sounded pretty damn good. The doors slid open and I gaped at two seven-foot-tall medieval knights standing in front of a food replicator. Each wore black horned helmets and battle armor.
I accessed Jake’s memories. I’ll be damned. They were Askole.
The warriors turned and studied me. Their black armor seemed to absorb the light until all you saw was their glowing yellow eyes.
A deep growly voice asked in my head, “Where is your male?”
“War council.” I fingered my ownership band nervously. If I had to fight them, I’d end up damaging the ship big time.
The knight pushed an emblem on his gauntlet. The helmet shrank away revealing an alien nightmare. Tentacles squirmed about his snakelike features. Holy crap! His black skin was armor-plated. He bared some nasty looking fangs at me. “I am called Trayon.”
Was that the Askole version of a smile? God, I hoped so. “I’m called CeeCee and my male is Jake Jones.”
“We have fought beside him against the Tai-Kok. We were not informed he had taken a mate.”