Page 31 of A Delicate Conquest

Mavrel felt like he was on the back foot, moving at her whim.

Not that he minded—for now.

“Very well,” he conceded. “But this is not agame.”

“Figure of speech. We humans have a habit of saying things we don’t mean or changing the meaning of words to suit our purpose. It’s so ingrained in us that most of the time, we don’t even realize we’re doing it. I certainly don’t take this as lightly as a game, though.”

“Humans have a habit of being indirect,” Mavrel agreed. “It’s confounding to me. You aren’t going to be leading me around in circles with your hidden meanings and wordplay, are you?”

“Leadingyouin circles? I highly doubt that I could, and I wouldn’t want to, anyway.”

They reached the large doors that led to the vast Central Chamber—a space that was usually reserved for military ceremonies. Before the Qualum system registered their presence, Mavrel stopped and leaned in.

He took a deep breath, savoring her intoxicating aroma.

She gripped his arm tighter.

A shudder coursed through him.

He was hard again, but that came as no surprise. He was almost used to existing in a constant state of arousal by now.

She looked up at him, so very earnest, almost apologetic.

Mavrel’s expression softened. Perhaps she was tense, too. She hadn’t realized that he was only teasing. “Beatrice, you cando no wrong by me. If you understand whatthisis,then you should know that.”

She stiffened, but he sensed no alarm from her. It was more like… she was in thrall. “You know, it’s strange. I don’t usually like it when people call me by my full name. But when you do it, I don’t mind.” She closed her eyes, long, dark lashes fluttering against dewy cheeks. Absolute perfection. “I figure you might already have guessed this, Mavrel, but I want to make it clear so there’s no misunderstanding. Zharek told me exactly what’s going on. The fact that I’m here with you should tell you all you need to know. I’m interested… but I want to use this as an opportunity to get to know all about you—the planet you’re from, your people, your culture. To be perfectly honest, I could jump your bones right now—that’s how attractive you are to me—but I’d prefer to get to know you first.”

Mavrel breathed in sharply.

Oh, this woman wasforward.

She was testing him, wasn’t she?

This was a human test of how serious he was.

Their dance had already started. It was delicate and exquisite, and it could descend into madness at any given time…

If he allowed.

The next move is yours to make. Do something.

He found her fingers, which were still tightly curled around his arm. Mavrel gently disentangled them and held her hand. He stroked his thumb along her palm and leaned in until his lips were almost touching her ear. “I’m delighted to get to know you,” he whispered, wondering where these words came from. He’d never felt like saying such things before. “There’s no pressure. No rush. No matter what state I’m in,youdon’t need to surrender to my urgency. Just let time flow, and remember that I will never force you to do anything against your will. I willnever harm you. I want to learn all about you, too, even if I’m already certain I’ll like what I discover.”

Never before had he been so sure of anything.

This was nature.

This was inevitable.

The frisson of energy that ran through him seemed to transfer to her, for she trembled faintly. “Sounds like fun.”

“Indeed.” He wanted to kiss hersobadly, but he held back because some instinct deep within him told him it was the right thing to do.

But,maybe…

Slowly, carefully, he slid his arm around her waist.

To his delight, she didn’t resist.

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