Page 54 of Kameer's Mate
Because I know how much he wanted me. How much he needed me.
I can feel it through the bond. His mind is open, his desires laid bare for me to see, as well as his losses and fears.
Now that I’ve experienced the intimacy of the heartbond, and I can feel the intensity of his initial attraction to me, how his ancestral markings had tingled when he encountered me during the uprising on Selection Day, I understand his willingness to commit vile deeds just to have me.
Another truth hits me, and I almost gasp at the realization. Because it’s a little dark. A little messed up. I’m flattered. Flattered by his cold readiness to commit an atrocity on my behalf.
Good little female. I knew you would eventually come around to my way of thinking. It’s true. I would commit countless atrocities just to keep you. I would become the worst villain the universe has ever known.For you. Only for you.He drags his sharp teeth along my neck. I shiver as my scalp prickles with endorphins and goosebumps cover my arms.
Then the heat comes. The quaking pleasure between my thighs.
I squirm on my mate’s lap, reveling in the steady vibrations from his scrotum, delighting in the shaky breath he inhales as I rub my bottom over his hardened dual shafts.
He straightens and cups the side of my face, forcing my eyes to his. I stare at him as though I’m seeing him for the first time. Maybe I am. Because we finally, finally understand each other.
He places a hand on my stomach.I’m going to stack some pillows on the floor, pretty human, and you’re going to kneel and take my shafts in your mouth, one after the other. I want to nourish you. I want to fill your stomach with my seed until you’re too full to swallow another drop.
Chapter 28
KAMEER
I lie awake,watching my beautiful golden-haired mate as she sleeps peacefully. One of her arms rests outside the covers, and I study the ancestral markings that decorate her skin, a signal to all the universe that she now belongs to me.
Not only will she be safe from the attention of unmated Darrvason males, but I shouldn’t have too much difficulty tracking her if she’s ever in danger. However, I still plan to have Doctor Zahhn implant a tracking device as soon as it can be arranged.
As I think about my would-be assassin, I swallow the growl that builds in my throat. I pray the trap that Officer Brute is arranging will help flush out the true culprit behind the attempts on my life. I also pray Officer Brute is wrong about his number one suspect. My friend, Officer Gorrsum.
I rage at the prospect of my oldest comrade wanting me dead, yet I cannot deny the proof that Officer Brute showed me. The encrypted messages between Gorrsum and his brothers, whoare his purported accomplices, are highly suspicious, but the recovered surveillance videos from theRorrsaare even worse.
On the night I was nearly stabbed in the eye socket, Gorrsum’s youngest brother could be found in my home corridor shortly before the attack. On the morning my food replicator exploded, nearly maiming me, Gorrsum himself was spotted working on a control panel on my home deck.
Fluxx. Why would the male want me dead?
I brush away a lock of hair that’s fallen across Mandy’s forehead, then lean down to kiss her cheek. I take a deep inhale of her familiar floral scent, an aroma that reminds me of the wildflower fields on my destroyed homeworld. Being close to her helps ease some of the turmoil churning through me, though I know I can’t remain in bed all day. I must get up. I must face the troubles I wish to conquer.
After giving my mate one last kiss, I climb out of bed and head for the shower. Too tired to clean up after our exertions last night, we’d both collapsed in bed and fallen fast asleep, covered in one another’s essence. I bite back a grin as I consider how Mandy will probably have to peel the sheets from her legs when she awakes.
I get dressed and send her a wave of affection before I depart the bedroom, hoping it’ll help her sleep remain peaceful. Then I hasten to the entryway where I retrieve my wrist comm from the floor.
To my surprise, nothing urgent awaits me, though I’m pleased when I find a message from Officer Brute announcing the release of Mandy’s father from the brig and a confirmation that all charges against him were dropped.
Excellent.
Though I’m eager to share the news with my mate, I decide to wait until she wakes up. Her father presents another problem I am uncertain how to handle. She seems to care for him—I’vefelt her affection for him—but she also fears him and they share a rather complicated relationship.
From what I’ve gathered as I glimpsed some of her memories, he’s a cold, calculating male who cares more about his reputation than the welfare of his wife and daughters. It’s my understanding that he was trying to use his daughters to advance his own social standing. Yes, by betrothing Mandy and Tasha to Founders, he’d hoped to keep them from becoming Darrvason brides, but his reasons were also clearly selfish. It’s obvious that he wishes he were a Founder, but the closest he’ll ever get is forcing his daughters to marry one.
I don’t want Mandy to spend time in his presence. Yet I’ve promised to let her visit her family in the human settlement, and I don’t want to go back on that promise.
I resolve that when I next encounter the human male, I will demand a private audience so I might lay out my expectations for his behavior around my mate. There will be no more name calling or insults of any kind. Not unless he fancies a broken nose or perhaps a dislocated shoulder.
As I approach the viewscreen in the living room, the nearby video comm dings. I take a seat and answer the incoming call without pausing to look at the number. When Officer Gorrsum’s face appears on the screen, I’m careful not to reveal any emotions. If the trap is to work, it must remain a surprise. My guts twists under the cold knife of betrayal.
“Officer Gorrsum.” I lean forward. “Any updates from theJansonna?”
He nods, his eyes wide. “Ensign Harrek was very slow to install the new control panel on Deck Five, and he kept making mistakes that I was forced to go back and correct. The other ensigns and officers who helped him weren’t much better. I think they are becoming lazy in your absence. They were keen to impress you while you were stationed on theJansonna,though I fear their work ethic has vanished in the wake of your departure.” He clears his throat, and I can’t help but notice how much he’s sweating. Nervous. He looks nervous.
Good. The trap is working.
