JakesPrisoner

Caroline McCall

Blush sensuality level: This is
a sensual romance (may have explicit love scenes but not erotic in frequency or
type).

Seduced by a treacherous human, Tanith
finds herself in the brig of a starship heading for Earth. Betrayed by Jake—the
man she loves—Tanith is being huntedby every mercenary in the quadrant.
They’re convinced she holds the key to a crime lord’s fortune.

Cyraelian females have that little
something extra, a symbiotic creature called a
Dermatrax
. Hers is about
to fully mature, sending out a call for a mate, turning her into a sensual time
bomb that no man can resist. On a ship full of human males, Tanith is a lethal
weapon—and she wants revenge.

But when Jake risks his life to
save her, Tanith must decide where her loyalties lie. While she’s tempted to
return to her own world, she is just as drawn to handsome Jake. Her choice will
have long-lasting consequences for all.

Publisher’s Note: While this
book stands alone, it contains many of the same characters from
Time Slip.
You
don’t want to miss the adventures of Ingrid and Strom!

Ellora’s Cave Publishing

www.ellorascave.com

Jake’s Prisoner

ISBN 9781419937538

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

Jake’s Prisoner Copyright © 2012 Caroline McCall

Edited by Briana St. James

Cover design by Caitlin Fry

Photography: Bocman 1973, Ralf Jurgen Kraft,
Kiuik/Shutterstock.com

Electronic book publication February 2012

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Jake’s Prisoner

Dedication

For Seoirse, my Techie

Acknowledgements

A big thank-you to my wonderful editor Briana St. James, for
all her help, patience and invaluable advice.

Cyraelian Territories, 2525

The red terra-pod screeched to a halt, throwing up a cloud
of dust on the desert road. Tanith Jasson opened the driver’s door, stumbling a
few paces across the sands before collapsing onto her knees and vomiting. This
was supposed to have been the best day of her life—the day that she would get her
new ID and leave this backward rock of a planet for good. But everything that
had been planned so carefully for months had gone horribly wrong in seconds.

Tanith rose unsteadily to her feet and wiped her sleeve
across her mouth. She couldn’t get the image out of her mind. Her contact, as
he hurried through the spaceport, oblivious to the Internal Security operatives
tailing him. Their shouts, ordering him to stop before they opened fire, the
screams in the crowded concourse. Everyone had dropped to the floor, watching
with horror as the man allowed himself to be vaporized rather than surrender.
She was sick with guilty relief that her new ID had been destroyed along with
him and then she was just sick.

How could she have been so stupid to think that she could
escape Cyraelia so easily? Tanith took a deep shaky breath and tried to calm
down. If the security forces suspected that she was planning an unauthorized
voyage, they would have taken her into custody and thrown her into a women’s
colony. Her savings were gone, her contact was dead and now she was stuck here,
with no hope of escape. Tanith bit her lip, willing herself not to cry.
Climbing into her terra-pod, she drove back to the city.

Back in her residential unit, a light flashed on her
personal com—a message from Raoul. She hadn’t seen him in three years. She
didn’t even know what planet her brother was on. Maybe he was in another galaxy
entirely. His message was curt—go to a party at the Ministry of Intergalactic
Affairs one week from today and spy on some humans. Find out whatever she could
about them. Tanith’s heart dropped like a stone. So far, it had been just
talking, a little harmless flirting for information, but what if Raoul demanded
something more? She didn’t want to think about that.

It would take her months to find someone else who could be
persuaded to give her a new ID. There was no way out. Her residential unit was
registered in Raoul’s name and it was only through his contacts that she had a
job. What consortium would take on a female employee, knowing that she would
resign when a marriage was arranged for her? She had no choice. She had to keep
him sweet.

* * * * *

After a week, she was almost hopeful again. No one had come
for her. The news coms had described her contact’s death as an “incident in
sector nineteen”. She was safe, for now. Tanith rifled through her personal
storage facility, looking for something to wear to the party.
What on
Cyraelia was a human anyway?
Please don’t let it be one of those scaly
creatures with a forked tongue, like the one she got stuck with the last time
she attended one of those diplomatic dinners. If one of those creatures slimed
on her again, she was going to kill Raoul.

Her hand touched the red dress. It had cost a small fortune
in credits and she had never worn it. Well, if she had to go, she might as well
look good. An hour later, her terra-Pod pulled up outside the glass dome of the
Ministry of Intergalactic Affairs. She had no invitation but smiled prettily at
the waiting attendant and he opened the doors for her. Thankfully, dinner was
over. She wouldn’t have to watch a display of live-food eating by the Vashtar
like the last time. Tanith glanced around the crowded reception hall. There was
nothing too scaly or slimy. Perhaps the human creatures had left early.

Accepting a glass of
kurprit
from a passing
attendant, she asked him to point out the humans. Tanith stood close to a
marble pillar, trying to observe them. They were quite tall by Cyraelian
standards. One was very fair with dark eyes. His face looked as if it had been
carved from stone, except for the mouth, which had a hint of sensuality. The
brown-haired one looked bored and uncomfortable and from the number of empty
glasses in front of him, he was enjoying the hospitality a little too much.

The last one was tall and lean, with dark, wavy hair that
curled about his face. His eyes were framed by thick, dark lashes and they
appeared to be green. Tanith looked again. They must be implants, whoever heard
of green eyes? The dark one glanced in her direction, forcing her to slide
farther behind the pillar.

A fair-haired girl stood forlornly at the welcoming desk.
Tanith recognized her as a niece of the ambassador and wandered over to join
her. She handed Tanith a copy of the ambassador’s speech. “Can you believe it?
Over one-third of the human crew is female and some of them are officers.”

The girl was buzzing with excitement. “The females were here
earlier, dressed in uniforms just like the males. And do you know the best bit?
They’ve gone to a bar and the males let them.”

With that last breathless piece of information, she turned
to serve another customer. Tanith waited impatiently while she directed a
middle-aged man to the cleansing facilities. “Is it an all-human ship or do
they recruit other species?”

“I think this one is all-human, but Captain Hallstrom said
that he looked forward to the day when he could serve alongside a Cyraelian.”

Tanith’s heart raced with excitement. The captain’s wish
might come true sooner than he expected. Her contact might be gone, but this
evening might not be such a loss after all.

“I need a drink,” Pete growled.

Jake eyed the empty glasses in front of him. “You’ve already
had three.”

“Three tiny glasses of
kurprit
.” Pete snorted,
staring at the granular residue in the bottom of his glass. The Cyraelian
national beverage was sickly sweet, even for him. “Do you think they have beer
here?”

Jake laughed. “Sorry, Pete, no beer. They have something
like wine, it’s called
venon
. You can probably trade for some back at
the spaceport.” Jake glanced across the table at the captain. Strom didn’t look
as if he was in a hurry to go anywhere. All the junior officers had left when
dinner was over, but he was still politely listening to Cyraelian diplomatic
talk. They had done the respectful introductions, encouraged the trade
inquiries and accepted as many invitations as they could reasonably get through
over the next few weeks. As senior officers, they would have to wait until
Strom was ready to bring the evening to a close.

A flash of scarlet caught his eye. The girl in the red dress
was slender. Her sleek blue-black hair was elaborately arranged. Ivory skin
contrasted with her dark slanted eyes, heavily made up with dark eyeliner to
make them appear even more dramatic. Her lips were pure carmine. Jake whistled
softly. “What’s the protocol on relations of the non-diplomatic kind?”

Strom flashed him a warning glance. “Don’t even think about
it, Jake. Cyraelians are very protective of their women. Stay away from her.”

Jake watched as she crossed the room. She didn’t so much
walk as glide and she was heading directly for their table. “That might prove
difficult. She’s coming this way.”

“Who is she?” Strom murmured to the diplomat sitting beside
him.

“Her name is Tanith Jasson.”

Jake’s ears pricked up when he heard her name. Raoul Jasson
was a vicious terrorist, wanted on more than a dozen planets, and they had a
very personal score to settle with him.

Strom maintained his usual impassive demeanor, but the hand
that rested on the table curled into a fist. “Is she any relation of Raoul’s?”

“I’m afraid so,” the diplomat replied. “She is his sister.”

Jake
, Strom commed silently,
she’s Raoul’s sister.
You have free rein
.

Jake stood up and smoothed his uniform tunic. This was one
mission that he would take great pleasure in. He winked at Pete. “See you
later.”

“Ah, Ms. Jasson, how delightful to see you.”

Tanith cringed. That voice was the last one she wanted to
hear tonight. She turned and nodded politely to Atam Sorza, hoping to extricate
herself without any further contact, but the plump hand on her arm prevented
her from leaving.

“Have you heard from Raoul lately?”

Tanith gave an elegant shrug. “You know brothers.”

“You would tell me if he was in contact, wouldn’t you,
Tanith? Raoul has something that belongs to me and he’s been a little remiss in
returning it.”

Tanith tried to sidestep past him. “I know nothing about
your business with my brother. Excuse me, Atam.”

“Not so fast.” Atam’s fingers trailed slowly down her arm.
She kept her expression blank, trying not to show her revulsion. “I’ve sent
Raoul several inquiries regarding your bride price, but he hasn’t responded.”

If her brother thought for one minute that she would accept
this one as a mate, she would kill him. The thought of belonging to someone
like Atam made her skin crawl. “Not every female wishes to marry, Atam. Many
females of my generation would prefer to lead independent lives.”

Atam’s small, thin mouth curled up in a sneer. “You should
consider yourself fortunate to have any offers, Tanith. In fact, you should be
a lot more grateful.”

His hand slid from her arm to her waist. This was going to
get nasty. If she slapped him, she would have to leave and she hadn’t spoken to
the humans yet. She glanced over at their table. Two of them were still sitting
there, but the other one was heading her way. The dark-haired one raised an
eyebrow when he saw Atam’s hand on her waist and his eyes flashed a questioning
glance.
Oh great, just what she needed, another male who wanted to rescue
her.

“Lieutenant Jake Svenson, ma’am. I believe you promised me
this dance?” His voice was deep, his accent unfamiliar and she found herself
smiling at him.

“You’re new here, Lieutenant.” Atam’s gravelly voice was
loaded with menace. “Don’t become involved in matters you don’t understand. Ms.
Jasson will remain here with me.”

The human was taller than Atam and there was a challenging
glint in his eye that was difficult to ignore. “I think that’s up to the lady
to decide.”

Atam’s hand slid away and the human led her onto the dance
floor.

Up close, Tanith could see that his eyes really were green.
The same color as the wild felines who lived on the outskirts of the city. His
dark good looks and seductive smile promised wicked things and it had been a
while since anyone had dared to look at her like that. Her brother’s name was
usually enough to dissuade most suitors.

“I didn’t need to be rescued,” she said as she stepped into
his arms. “I could have taken care of him.”

His lips twitched as if he was trying not to laugh. Jake’s
arms slipped around her waist and he pulled her close. “I’m not the rescuing
kind. You just might be in more danger from me.”

* * * * *

Jake tried to hide his amusement as he watched the older
Cyraelian pace around the edge of the dance floor. He had been staring at them
for the last twenty minutes. Surely he didn’t think he had a chance with
someone like her? “Old friend?” he asked.

“He wants to marry me,” she confessed, darting a vicious
glance in Atam’s direction.

Jake took a step back. She had to be joking. “Please tell me
you said no.”

Her eyes flared with anger. “I wish I could. Females have no
choice here. Their senior male relatives select a mate for them. Welcome to
Cyraelia, the largest women’s prison in the galaxy.”

He hadn’t expected to feel sympathy for her. She was the
sister of a terrorist. Hell, she was probably a terrorist too.
Keep your
mind on the job, Svenson. This is strictly business.
“And your male
relatives?”

“Just one brother,” Tanith replied. “I haven’t seen him in
almost three years, but he contacted me last week.”

Now this was getting interesting but he could hardly
interrogate her on the dance floor. There was a terrace outside, but the older
man was still hanging around. He would have to risk it. “Would you like to go
someplace else?”

Tanith laughed. “You really are new here, Human. A hundred
people are watching us and at least one of them will report back to my
brother.”

“And do you always do what you’re told?”

She raised her chin at the hint of challenge in his voice.
“No, but I have to be discreet.”

Jake lowered his head until their faces were almost
touching. He inhaled, catching a hint of her perfume, heady and unfamiliar. She
had a very sexy mouth. He wondered what the diplomatic protocol was on kissing
an exotic stranger in the middle of a crowded dance floor. “So, be discreet,”
he whispered.

Her eyes held his, dark with amusement and a hint of
something else. “There’s a red Terra-pod parked outside. I’ll see you there in
ten minutes.”

With that, she turned and walked away into the crowd.

Jake commed Pete silently,
Don’t wait up
.

Pete commed something unintelligible back to him, it sounded
like bastard and Jake tried not to grin as he headed for the exit. This was
going to be a piece of cake.

* * * * *

The low-slung red terra-pod was empty when he arrived in the
parking lot.
Too eager, you’ll have to watch that.
It wasn’t locked and
Jake opened the door and slid into the passenger seat. Tidy, he noted, apart
from a pair of high-heeled shoes on the floor. The mirror was angled downward
as if she’d been checking her reflection and there was a faint hint of her
perfume. He heard the click of heels on the pavement outside and the door
opened. Tanith tugged off her shoes and tossed them to him. “Sorry, Human. I
wasn’t as discreet as I thought.”

With that, she pulled up one side of her dress and unclipped
something from her thigh. There was a brief flash of laser-light under the
dash. “Terra-pod, implement manual override and disengage speed safety
protocols.”