Page 2 of Tamed

“Do you always follow the rules?”

Arcon growled, literally growled, then pulled her away from the wall and dragged her toward a nearby bench. He sat and draped her face down over his legs. Kendra was too shocked by his actions to resist. This couldn’t be happening. She had bonded friends. She knew males disciplined their mates, but Arcon was her teacher—no, she had teased him like a potential mate and he was acting accordingly.

With two firm tugs he had her pants and panties down around her knees, baring her upturned bottom. Heat suffused her face and she finally started struggling. She kicked and twisted, trying to push herself up off his lap. He drew her hands to the small of her back and held them there with one long-fingered hand. She continued to kick and buck, but he simply ignored her.

He brought his hand down hard against her bottom. The obscene sound of his open palm connecting with bare skin brought a startled gasp from her throat, but the biting sting momentarily halted her struggles. Another slap followed the first. He was spanking her. Arcon was actually spanking her. Shock gave way to anger and her feet started kicking again. She twisted and cried out as throbbing heat radiated through the initial sting.

“Stop it!” she yelled. “You can’t do this. You’re not my mate!”

“That’s right.” Smack. “I’m your teacher.” Smack. Smack.

She cried out and twisted as his hand fell over and over. It hurt much worse than she’d imagined lying awake in her lonely bed. He moved from side to side, peppering her entire bottom with stingy slaps. Yet under the discomfort, heat sank through her bottom and lodged in her core. Why was this humiliating spanking making her feel restless and needy?

“You know damn well I can’t have you,” he growled out, accenting the statement with several particularly hard spanks. “Yet you offered me your body.” He pushed his hand between her thighs and squeezed her pussy.

His grip was firm and possessive, meant to stake a claim rather than arouse. She pressed her lips together, determined not to cry out.

“You’re soaking wet, red.” He spanked her again, even harder this time. “I can smell your arousal.” More fast, hard slaps assailed her bottom. “Do you have any idea what that does to a male?”

Tears blinded Kendra and a sob shuddered through her chest. “I’m sorry.”

Arcon released her wrists and drew one of her hands between their bodies, pressing her fingers against his rock-hard cock. “I want to fuck you so badly right now, I’m not sure I can resist.” He continued the spanking, each swat intensifying the throbbing heat in her lower body. “Most would not even try to resist. They would have bent you over the nearest table and fucked you senseless.” He dragged her pants and panties to her ankles and forced her legs apart. “Is that what you want, red?”

He slapped her pussy. The sting was much sharper than on her bottom and Kendra wailed in reaction. He slapped her again.

“This pussy belongs to your mates.” Yet his fingers lingered against her folds, rubbing, exploring. “Do you want some random controller to fuck you hard and walk away?”

“No,” she lamented. She wanted him, but not as a frantic hookup. She wanted him by her side for the rest of her life.

His hand was still on her pussy as if he couldn’t make himself pull away.

She stilled, thighs shaking as his long middle finger sank between her folds. Pressure built, physically and emotionally. “Please,” she whispered, desperate for release from the tension coiling inside her.

He traced her slit, momentarily brushing over her clit before he pulled his hand away. “You don’t belong to me.” He pushed her off his lap and stood up, glaring down at her. “Pull yourself together and think about your behavior. If I have to discipline you again, it will be much worse.”

He left her kneeling there with her clothes bunched around her ankles, cheeks nearly as red as her bottom. She stood up and pulled up her panties and then her pants, wincing as the sturdy material scraped over her inflamed flesh. There was a changing room with a shower tucked into the corner of the training room. She was thrilled at the opportunity to regain her composure before anyone else saw her.

She closed and locked the door to the changing room and then stripped off her exercise outfit, stuffing the garments into the recycler. Stepping into the shower enclosure, she sighed as the warm water ran down her body. Her thoughts were troubled and her bottom and pussy throbbed. She really needed a long, hot shower. No, she needed a long, hot cock!

She wasn’t the only one lusting after Arcon. All the unclaimed conduits gossiped about the males. It was natural. They were sexually curious and in the prime of their lives. More important, because they were conduits their lives would not really begin until they chose their mates. The changes engineered into their genome made it impossible to live a long and happy life as anything other than a power triad. The need to mate gradually intensified until each conduit formed a soul bond or literally went insane.

Arcon was a source. As well as being drop-dead gorgeous, he was personable, financially stable, and highly skilled, so many of the conduits considered him the best candidate for their mate. Unfortunately for them, Arcon had not shown an interest in anyone. He was friendly with Eden because he’d mentored her. And that openness extended to Ansley and Kendra because they were often around Eden. He seemed to enjoy teasing Kendra, but—as this disastrous episode proved—he was not romantically interested in her.

She’d been particularly restless the past few days. Her mind kept wandering into erotic fantasies when she was supposed to be paying attention. Heat would rush through her body and she’d break out in a sweat for no reason. Her dreams were even worse. Vivid images and shockingly intense sensations had plagued her for weeks now. Her lovers were always in shadow, more impression than actual person.

It was too soon for a suppressant booster. The one she’d been given when she arrived was supposed to last at least six months. Besides, suppressants were dangerous. She had been engineered to operate as part of a triad and mid-twenties was the optimum age for bonding. Kendra was twenty-five so her body, her imagination, and her instincts were urging her to choose her mates. Delaying that biological imperative was futile. Masturbation gave her a momentary rush of peace, but the restlessness always returned within a few minutes.

She wasn’t sure what to do, but the urgency was definitely building. The problem was she hadn’t felt a connection with any of the teams who had expressed an interest in her. She’d met with at least fifteen, some more than once, but she couldn’t imagine spending the rest of her life with any of them.

There were only two people who had sparked her interest since coming to the Citadel. Her infatuation with Arcon was easy to understand. Her other crush, however, was confusing as hell. President Zevon was autocratic and arrogant. His long dark hair and flashing gold eyes perfectly reflected his no-nonsense personality. Even by controller standards, Zevon was intense. Most of the other conduits were afraid of him, but Kendra found him fascinating. She was drawn to his power and had the irrational need to undress and sink to her knees whenever his penetrating gaze fell on her. He had never done anything to encourage her obsession, had never indicated with word or deed that he found her attractive. Why would he? Zevon could have any woman he wanted. Why would he choose someone so unremarkable?

Indulging in a deep sigh, Kendra grabbed her towel and dried off before leaving the shower enclosure. Today was her day off, so she went to the garment kiosk and quickly printed a wraparound dress. The leaf-green material complemented her coloring, but the utilitarian style was anything but fashionable. She was of average height with a too round figure. Her waist was small, but her hips and breasts put her on the plump side of curvy. There was nothing wrong with her features. There was just nothing memorable about them either. Her eyes couldn’t decide if they were green or gold, and despite Arcon’s silly nickname, her hair was more brown than red. She combed out the damp strands and bound them at the nape of her neck with an elasticized band. She seldom bothered with makeup, never went anywhere that required dressing up.

Depressed by her rambling thoughts, she left the training center and went directly to the main dining hall. Hopefully Eden and Ansley could cheer her up. Kendra spotted several of the former Still Water residents as she crossed the room. There had been a total of forty-six conduits evacuated that day, so it was inevitable that they run into each other. Despite all Kendra had in common with the other Earth-raised conduits, it was hard not to think of them as competition. The only two Kendra trusted completely were Ansley and Eden.

Ansley was waiting at a table in the far corner of the room, but Eden had yet to arrive. Ansley’s long blonde hair was loose around her shoulders and thick dark lashes framed her sky-blue eyes. She stood up and gave Kendra a hug before they both sat down.

“Your hair is still wet,” Ansley observed. “Did you sleep in for a change or did you just come from the gym?”

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