Mated to the Beast (10 page)

“
Ah!” I cried out, my cuffs suddenly radiating a stabbing pain into my wrists. “Fuck!” I stopped moving and wrapped my hand around a cuff. The pain didn’t lessen, but radiated up my arms. It was like being electrocuted but unable to take your hand off the live wire. I wouldn’t be surprised if my hair started to sizzle. What the hell had the warlord done to me?

Honeymoon over, I spun on my heel and stormed back down the hallway. Just before I got within the sensor’s range of the commander’s door, the pain stopped, but sharp tingles lingered. I shook my hands out, getting the blood to circulate. Maybe it was a loose wire in the cuff, a faulty connection or something? I took a deep breath, the pain disappearing entirely. Once again, I turned back around and started down the hall. I made it as far as last time and the pain returned. This time, I knew what to expect and I hissed with rage, not pain.

The asshole. What the hell was he doing? Was it remote control? Was he watching me now and laughing at me?

I marched back to the door, this time not stopping when it opened for me. Standing right where I left them were the two men. The commander looked me over and the warlord had a smug smile on his face.

“You’ve returned,” Dax growled.

I lifted my hands. “Yes, it seems the cuffs you gave me are defective.”

“Oh?”

“As if you don’t know,” I grumbled.

The commander chuckled, slapped me on the back on his way out of the room. “It’s a good thing this little lover’s quarrel is no longer my responsibility,” he said, pissing me off more than Dax.

I pursed my lips and stormed out of the room, but this time I ensured Dax was right behind me.

We were alone in the hall. Only the soft hum of the ship’s systems could be heard when I turned on him, ready to fight.

Dax held up his hands and spoke before I could yell at him. “I have done nothing to your cuffs,” he told me. “They are functioning properly.”

“They feel like electroshock therapy! That’s not functioning properly.” I tugged at them again.

“Unbonded Atlan mates who wear the cuffs must remain within one hundred paces of each other, otherwise their cuffs produce a… pain that demands a return to closeness.”

“Closeness?” I yelled, I knew I was losing it, but being put on a leash like a dog pissed me off.

“Do you always shout?” he responded.

“Do you always hurt your mate?”

His expression, his entire demeanor changed at my question and he crowded me until my back was once more against the wall. I couldn’t help my damn self, I stared at his lips, wondering if he’d kiss me again. “Sarah Mills of Earth, you are my
only
mate. The last thing I wish to do is cause you harm in any way. It is my job to protect you, my privilege to bring you only pleasure.”

I blushed at the lingering feel of his mouth on mine, the way his hard thigh made my clit tingle and swell, but shrugged it off.

“Yet these… things,” I waved my arms in the air, “hurt.”

“Do you not think it hurt me as well?”

I glanced down at his wrists, at the gold cuffs there. “Yours caused pain, too?”

He nodded, a dark curl falling over his forehead. “We are mated and what hurts you, hurts me. What pleases you, pleases me. You cannot be more than one hundred paces from me without pain, but the restriction is placed upon both of us. I cannot be apart from you either until the fever is gone.”

That meant fucking. Lots and lots of wild monkey sex kind of fucking.

I looked him over. “You seem fine now.”

“The fever comes on at random. Like during the battle, I assure you, you will know when it is upon me again.”

“If these cuffs hurt so dang bad, then why didn’t you come after me?”

“Because while you might have been the leader of your squadron, I am the leader of our mating, and our mission to retrieve your brother.”

I shoved my way free of him and began to pace the hallway. “
This
is why I didn’t want a mate.
This
was why I didn’t want to agree to being mated. Men and their rules. You are all completely irrational.”

“You have only been in space two months. I have led coalition troops for over a decade. I know the Hive better than you do. I know
more
about what’s required to get your brother back. And, I’m Atlan and you’re not.”

I didn’t turn to look at him. I was angry and crazy and definitely losing it. I couldn’t go farther than one hundred paces from this guy without terrible pain. Why hadn’t he mentioned that
before
I agreed to put the cuffs on?

“Once we find your brother, we will settle on Atlan. I will show you my world. There are many experiences you have yet to enjoy. I would prefer we both survive to experience them.”

“So you want me to follow your lead since I’m… new to space life.”

“That’s part of it, but I am an Atlan male and I am in charge. If that is not enough to soothe your pride, to make your surrender acceptable, I am also your superior officer.”

“Not anymore. I’m a civilian now, remember?” I pursed my lips. Surrender? God, I was in trouble here because I surrendered to
no one
.

“The male is in charge, Sarah. It is our custom and the Atlan way of life.”

“Yes, you told me what Atlan women are like.”

“Yes, but you
want
me to be in control. You want your mate to lead.” He lifted his hand to my cheek and tilted my face so I looked up, way up, into his eyes. “You do not need to fight, Sarah. No more. I am here now. I will take care of you, as you truly desire.”

My eyes widened in disbelief. “I don’t
need
a man to take care of me and I definitely don’t
want
one!” I countered.

“You do, or we would not be matched.”

“Do I seem like a woman who wants to be led around all the time?”

He cocked his head to study me. “No, but you did like it when I kissed you. You had no control then.”

I winced because I couldn’t deny my reaction to that kiss, at least not honestly. He was right. I had liked it when he’d pinned me to the wall and took what he wanted. What woman didn’t want to be pressed up against a wall and fucked? What woman didn’t want a dominant male in the bedroom? Where was the fun leading a boy around by his balls all the time? There wasn’t any. But that didn’t mean I wanted him to be the boss of me. I had enough bosses in my life. Commander Karter was just the latest in a long string of commander officers and he was a pain in my ass.

I didn’t want to be legally bonded to one of them!

As for the kissing, I had to admit I wanted him to do it again, and not stop until we were both naked and spent. Not because he wanted to take the lead—in everything—but because I was only human and I had girl bits that longed for a real cock.

“So what happens now?” I patted the metal wall beside me, unable to resist goading the beast. “We get it on right here so I can cure your mating fever?”

His eyes narrowed and his jaw clenched. “While the idea of fucking you against that wall is appealing, I won’t take you unwillingly, or in a public place.”

“Why not?” I was relieved at his words, but couldn’t help myself as I backed up and lifted my hands over my head. I pressed my back against the wall and stared up at him with a blatant challenge in my eyes. The need to test his control rode me like a demon. I had to know just how far I could push him, what kind of man I was dealing with.

He stalked toward me until the smallest possible sliver of air separated us. His scent invaded my head and I wanted to drown in it, he smelled too good, like dark chocolate and cedar, two of my favorite things. I licked my lips as I held his gaze, daring him to do something crazy, daring him to break my trust.

His voice was a whisper. “Because you are mine, and no one will see your naked flesh but me. No one will hear your cries of pleasure when I take you. Your skin is mine. Your breath is mine. Your hot, wet pussy is mine. The whimpering pleas that I will force from your throat are mine. I will not share.”

I couldn’t breathe, was drowning in him and the erotic promise of his words.

“But know this, mate, if you continue to defy me, to tempt me to dishonor you, I will pull this armor from your soft body and bend you over my knee. Nor will you lie to me. I will have respect, Sarah Mills, or your bottom will be a bright, hot red before I fill you with my cock.”

What the hell? I tried to process that as he tilted his head and studied me. My pulse was like a drumbeat in my ear as I fought to recover from his dark declarations, all of them, for suddenly the idea of his firm hand on my bottom made me squirm, and not out of anger. Damn him, he noticed.

“Does it arouse you to be spanked?”

“What? No!” I replied, his words like a bucket of cold water thrown over my head. “Don’t you dare even think about it, Dax of Atlan.”

He grinned then and he looked more handsome than ever, and my breath caught in my throat. “You want me, woman. You want my hard cock filling you. You want me to touch you everywhere, claim you, mark you as my own. Admit it.”

“No. I don’t want a mate, Dax. I want to save Seth.” I shook my head but my heart was pounding so loudly I was sure he could hear it, even through my armor. I didn’t want his words to be true, but they were. Holy hell, I did want it. I wanted all of it. But not until I had my brother back safe and sound.

“I will help you retrieve your brother. I gave you my word.” He leaned in, not giving me any air. “You want me to take care of you, too, to keep you safe.”

“No, I don’t. I take care of myself.”

“Not anymore.”

“This is bullshit, Dax.” I shoved against his chest. “We’ve got to go. We’ve to a rescue mission to plan.”

“You are the most difficult female I’ve ever met.”

I pushed my finger against his chest. “You are the most pigheaded, chauvinistic, arrogant—” The dark gray scrollwork that adorned the bright gold cuff taunted me as I poked at him. It was a sign of ownership, like a collar on a dog. Wrapping my hands about my wrist, I tugged at the stupid cuff. “Get these things off of me. I’ve changed my mind.”

I heard a growl rumble from his chest. He took hold of my wrist and tugged me down the hall. He was searching for something. When he pressed an entry button, a random door slid open and he shoved me inside. The room’s motion sensor turned on the light and I could see that he’d pushed me into a narrow room full of electrical panels. I had no idea what they did, but one wall was covered in cables and blinking lights. The floor and other walls were blue, indicating this room was maintained by engineering.

“What the hell, Dax?” I said, followed by a long string of swear words.

“Put your hands on the wall.” He looked over his shoulder and pressed a button beside the closed door, engaging the lock.

My mouth fell open. While the suggestion was pretty hot—at least in connection with the pervy thoughts his command brought about—now I was pissed.

“I don’t know what you think you’re doing, but I’m not fucking you in a closet.”

“Who said anything about fucking?” he responded calmly.

“Then what are you doing?”

“I’m going to spank you, of course.”

I pressed my back against the wall opposite the electric panels, my hands flat on the cool metal. “What?” He was truly out of his mind.

“You need it.” Dax took a step closer. Damn it, he was so big and this room was so fucking small.

“I need what? A spanking?” I laughed then. “Yeah, right.”

“You lied to me, repeatedly. I warned you, mate. You are mine now, and I will do whatever I need to do to make sure you know that.”

“You are crazy. Are all Atlan males this difficult, or is it just you?”

“You are still lying to me, and to yourself. In time, mate, you will come to me and tell me when you are scared, when you need my touch to soothe you, to ease your panic. Until then, it is my job to know when you need a firm hand.”

“On my ass? I think not.”

“You won’t admit you’re scared, that everything that has happened today is overwhelming. You are strong. I know this. But I am stronger. You can trust me to take care of you, Sarah. You are lashing out instead of admitting the truth. You dare me to discipline you with your lack of respect, your insults of my character and my honor. I can only assume you need me to take control but do not know how to ask me to do so. And so I will not wait for your admission, Sarah, I will simply give you what you need.”

His promise made my stomach lurch. He was so big, huge even. He was an alien, an Atlan warlord in charge of hundreds of soldiers, thousands. And as much as I tried to put on a brave face, I
was
terrified. My brother was most likely dead, as the commander had said, or on his way to becoming one of the Hive. I couldn’t fail him. Now I was mated to Dax and I wasn’t a
normal
,
meek Atlan
woman. Surely I would fail him as well. As soon as he realized I wasn’t what he wanted, he’d rip the cuffs off his wrists and send me packing. I’d go home alone and defeated. Lost. All my family gone.

I felt the first tear burn a trail down my cheek and shook my head in denial, turning away from Dax so he wouldn’t witness my weakness, so he wouldn’t know that he was right. I
did
need him to take control. The pressure was crushing me, suffocating me, and the idea of letting go, of surrendering… everything to someone else was like a seductive drug in my system. My mind screamed that it was wrong, but my heart pounded with both fear and longing, the war within threatened to tear me in two.

“Put your hands on the wall, Sarah.”

I only shook my head. While I craved it, it didn’t mean I’d let him know it. I must stay strong. I could hear my father’s voice in my head, demanding I never cry, never show fear or pain.
You have to be tough, Sarah, the world won’t tolerate weakness.

Dax took a step closer, easily hooked a hand about my waist and spun me about. I had no choice but to place my hands on the wall, afraid I was going to fall. He tugged on my hips and pulled them out so I was bent at the waist. I started to rise, but a big hand came down on my pants-covered bottom.