Forsaken (10 page)

“What happens if I have the protein marker?”

He knew she had the marker, knew because biological compatibility was the only logical explanation for his undeniable need to claim her. He’d known females more beautiful than Raina, yet none of them had filled him with this primal hunger. He chose his words carefully, not wanting to lose the ground he’d gained over the last ten minutes. “Then all of this becomes personal. You won’t just be advocating for human females. You’ll be a potential mate for one of the battle born.”

She sucked in a breath then released it slowly through her mouth, but her expression was too conflicted to decipher. “I’m not good with surprises. How do we find out one way or the other?”

He could just tell her what he sensed, but she was a scientist. She wouldn’t believe him until she saw empirical evidence. “Simple blood test.” He activated a comlink to the infirmary.

“Miss me already?” Irron asked in Rodyte.

Raina couldn’t hear the doctor so Kotto responded verbally as well as mentally. “Do you have time to check Raina for the protein marker? She’d like to eliminate the unknown.”

“I’ll be right up.” The infirmary was one level down, so it shouldn’t take Irron long to arrive.

“Were you still talking to me?” She looked bewildered and Kotto realized he must have been speaking Rodyte. “I didn’t understand any of that.”

“Sorry. I just asked Dr. Irron if he had time to test your blood. He’s on his way.”

She nodded in response to his statement then asked, “Are all the battle born telepathic?”

“Some are true telepaths, but most, like me, have communication implants. Sort of like your cell phone only we don’t have to worry about running off without them.”

“And how many of the battle born are single?”

It was a logical question, considering the situation and still he found it annoying. The only potential mate she needed to think about was him. That wasn’t fair. She had no idea how any of this worked or that he was intensely attracted to her. He forced back the possessive impulse and provided the information. “A few have found mates among other cultures, but most Rodyte females will not bond with a mixed-blood male. Even though we’re stronger and live longer than pureblood males, we’re considered beneath them.”

“What about battle born females? Do they deal with the same stigma?”

He shook his head. “Their ‘tainted blood’ is overlooked as long as they can manipulate magic.”

She crossed her legs then uncrossed them, nervous energy vibrating the air around her. “It seems so strange for a society with this sort of technology,” she motioned the ship surrounding them, “to be obsessed with magic.”

“It’s not an obsession. It’s instinct. Why do the salmon on your world swim upstream for hundreds of miles just to spawn? It might seem irrational to an onlooker, a dangerous waste of energy, but the impulse is too strong to ignore.”

“Dr. Irron to see you, sir,” the computer interrupted, drawing his gaze toward the door.

“Visitor approved.”

The door parted and Irron strolled into the room. He looked at Raina and smiled. “So you’re ready to join the party?”

“Or not,” she stressed. “I just need to know for sure.”

“Not a problem. This just takes a second.” He held an extractor in one hand and a mobile sample analyzer in the other. “Can you push up your sleeve, please?”

She held out her arm and pushed up her sleeve. Irron sprayed the bend of her elbow with a disinfectant mist then extracted a sample of her blood. She hissed, but held still. “That stung.”

“Scanners have decreased the need for blood samples, but when blood is necessary, it still has to pass through skin.” Irron attached the extractor to the analyzer and entered several commands using a holographic keypad. “Are we hoping for a yes or no?”

“I haven’t decided yet.” Raina crossed her arms over her chest, her eyes wide and uncertain.

Irron glanced at Kotto, but looked back at Raina as he said, “It’s positive. Has the commander explained what that means?”

Raina nodded, her expression unchanged.

“Thank you,” Kotto said, anxious to have Raina to himself again.

Irron chuckled, clearly understanding that he’d been dismissed. “If you have any questions, Commander Tarr knows how to contact me.”

Raina nodded again and the doctor departed. She looked at the sofa, but remained standing. “As I see it, there are two separate issues and participating in one doesn’t obligate me to participate in the other.”

“Actually there are three issues.” He moved toward her and she backed up. With a heavy sigh, he halted his approach with several steps still between them. “The outpost gardens, your grandmother’s journals, and your compatibility with the battle born.”

“I’m not giving you the journals until I understand your plans for Earth and you can’t explain the details unless I sign the contract, so those two issues are interwoven.”

He’d rather deal with her argumentativeness than her fear, so he didn’t contradict her conclusion. “Have you decided whether or not to sign the contract?”

“You know I’m intrigued, but I need some time alone—in the privacy of my own home—to make my final decision.”

“I’ll give you until morning.”

“Absolutely not.” She put her hands on her hips as color rose across her cheeks. “I need at least a week to decide something this important.”

“Day after tomorrow, first thing in the morning, I will send Ashley for your answer. If you aren’t going to do this, I need to find someone who will. I can’t afford to lose an entire week while you make up your mind.”

“Agreed.” She slipped her hands into the pockets of her skirt and shifted her weight from one foot to the other. “Now, about the protein marker. Just because I’m more likely to survive the transformation than a full-blooded human doesn’t mean I have any interest in being transformed. I’m not in the market for a mate. My life is fine just the way it is.”

“Your work is so fulfilling, you require nothing more? You have no interest in sharing your life with another or watching as your child explores each new discovery?”

“I didn’t say that. I might consider getting married someday, but I’m certainly not ready right now.”

“What’s holding you back?”

Her chin came up and she averted her gaze. “My personal life is none of your business.”

“I disagree.” He crept forward. “You represent hope for men who have never felt the emotion before. They won’t be able to leave you alone.”

She looked at him with panic in her eyes. “I don’t want that kind of attention. I’m not good in social situations.”

He smiled though he wasn’t sure how to soothe her. Would the Rodyte concept of mating make things easier for her or terrify her even more. “Rodytes approach courtship far differently than humans do. The idea of dating is confusing to us. A Rodyte couple either has chemistry or they don’t, and scent is all that’s required to make that determination. At least for the male.”

“Scent? Rodytes can
smell
their mates?”

“That’s a bit too simplistic. If a couple is biologically compatible, the female’s scent triggers a reaction in the male. Then his touch triggers an equal response in her. It’s either there or it’s not. There’s no point in games or deception.”

“Does the male ever feel the attraction but the female doesn’t or vice versa?”

“Occasionally, but much more often the attraction is mutual.”

Her tongue peeked out to wet her lower lip and his gaze narrowed on her mouth. “What sort of reaction are you talking about?”

“He feels restless and anxious, aggressive toward other males. He’ll pursue her, do everything in his power to convince her that he’s strong enough to protect and provide for her. It’s elemental, instinctual. Like those salmon, the couple is drawn together by a force they can’t control, have no desire to control. There are no one-night-stands, no weekend hookups. Rodytes bond for life.”

“Do Rodytes only have sex with their bonded mate?”

“Sex is so much more intense with their bonded mate that infidelity is barely a temptation. But don’t confuse sex and bonding. They are two very different things. Rodytes who have yet to find their mate enjoy sex every bit as much as humans.”

“And the transformation only takes place when the couple bonds?” She still sounded uncertain.

“Correct.”

“Then there might not be anyone on this ship that reacts like that to me.” Her chest rose and fell, breathes fast and shallow. Was she afraid or turned on by what he was describing?

“Come here.” He held out his hand. If she wanted to make an educated decision, she needed all the facts.

“Why?”

“I’m trying very hard to be patient with you. If you make me come get you, we’ll do this my way.”

Her throat moved as she swallowed with difficulty. “We’ll do what your way?”

“Come here or you’ll find out.”

She licked her lips again and his control snapped. He closed the distance between them with two long strides and pulled her into his arms. Bending low enough to reach her mouth was awkward, so he slid her up his body. His lips covered hers, pressing, learning her texture. Her eyes were tightly shut, her arms trapped between them. She remained tense and still, not struggling, yet not responding.

“Open for me, Raina.” He whispered the words against her mouth then teased the seam of her lips with the tip of his tongue. “Let me in.”

“Why are you doing this?” Her tone was breathy and shaken. She didn’t open her eyes.

“You know why. Now kiss me, so we can see if you feel it too.”

She tugged her arms free and pushed against his chest, her eyes finally opening. “I’m not going to mate with you, so it doesn’t matter what I feel.”

“Ah.” He nipped her bottom lip, enjoying the tantalizing press of her soft breasts against his chest. “You already feel it, don’t you?” He brushed his lips back and forth across hers. “I still want to kiss you.”

“And I want to go home.”

“Kiss me and I’ll set you free.”

She arched away from him, which only pressed her pelvis more intimately against his erection. “You already promised to set me free.”

“I said I’d let you go as soon as our conversation is over. The conversation ends as soon as you kiss me.”

“Fine.” She sighed then took his face between her hands and placed her mouth against his.

Kotto enjoyed the tentative press of her lips over his for a moment then took control of the kiss. He walked to the nearest chair and sat down with her straddling his lap. Her hands shifted to his shoulders as he cupped the back of her head with one hand and wrapped his other arm around her waist. His tongue teased its way past her lips and she surrendered with a soft groan.

Tilting her head to one side, she opened for him, allowing him to explore at will. He stroked the underside of her lips and curled his tongue around hers. Her taste flowed through him, combining with her scent until his head spun and his fingers tingled. He wanted her naked and arching beneath him, needed the snug embrace of her willing body. But he had to go slowly, give her time to adjust to everything he’d thrown at her.

With absolute reluctance, he eased his tongue out of her mouth and separated their lips. His honor required that he make the situation clear. “There could be others with whom you’re compatible, but our compatibility is undeniable.”

She scrambled off his lap and smoothed down her skirt, looking flushed and adorable. “I haven’t even decided if I’m going to help you with the outpost. Until I do, the rest is moot.”

Nothing was gained by arguing with her now so he said, “I’m a man of my word. Where would you like to be taken?”

“I took the Metro in this morning, so I guess just take me home.”

“What’s the Metro?”

“The subway, underground train system.”

He nodded as he pushed to his feet. “Ashley will visit you on the morning after next. I hope you’ll agree to help us. You could be invaluable to our cause.” Even if she refused, she was a potential mate. No, she was
his
potential mate. Whether Raina liked it or not, their interactions had just begun.

* * * * *

Standing at the master control console aboard the
Relentless
, Akim Farmon let the events of the previous day percolate through his mind. Even with the most powerful hyperdrives Rodymia had ever produced, it took twenty-six hours to return to Earth. Quinton knew Akim was racing the rebels toward a common goal. Wasting the better part of three days was inexcusable. And Quinton’s tantrum was irrelevant. Scratch that. Quinton was irrelevant. The crown stirate was weak and malleable. Watching him bend and twist with each new influence had motivated Akim to leave the palace in the first place. He would not serve someone he didn’t respect and Quinton was unworthy of esteem.

Javin Aidentar, on the other hand, had built the Integration Guild into the most powerful force in the star system. If he chose to step out of the shadows many, perhaps most, of Rodymia would accept him as crown stirate. But that wasn’t Javin’s style. He preferred his privacy, his secrecy, leaving everyone to wonder if he was involved in each event or not. And the mystique surrounding his guild made him even more powerful. Only those chosen by the Integration Guild ever understood how it worked, so everyone was afraid to cross them.