Runaway Heart (8 page)

Karinna had always been willful, never truly submitting to anyone, even her father. But with each forceful thrust, she felt her will falling away. She knew she had finally met the one man she would submit to. She was powerless to do anything else.

“You are mine, Karinna. You will never leave me,” he growled. “Say it,
sha-lia
.”

She couldn’t help herself. She knew what he said was true. “Yes, Jaren! Yes, I’m yours!”

He thrust again. “And you will never leave me. Say it!”

“No! I won’t leave you!” Her need rose until she couldn’t stand anymore, and she arched against him to get more contact.

With one last powerful thrust, he seated himself completely and rocked his pelvis, pressing into her clit. She cried out as her climax hit her with the force of an exploding star. Jaren followed with his own shout as Kari’s hot walls clamped down and milked his seed from him.

Releasing her wrists, Jaren rubbed her hands between his own to restore the blood flow. She lowered her legs from around his hips, but her legs felt like they had turned to mush. Jaren wrapped his arms around her waist to support her and leaned down to rest his forehead on hers. His eyes still glowed from the intensity of their joining.

“Whatever comes,
sha-lia
, we will face it together.”

“Have you ever been off your home planet, Kari?”

“No. I wanted to go with my brothers when they went on ambassador trips, but Father would never allow it. He said I was worthless and would only get in the way of the mission.” Kari tightened her jaw in a sign of defiance. Anger flashed in Jaren’s eyes at her words, but it was quickly replaced with a gleam of secrecy and mischievousness.

“Come. I want to show you something.” Jaren took her hand in his and led her from his quarters. The corridor was more brightly lit than his room, and Kari’s eyes had to adjust to the light. They had spent most of the last few days secluded in his room, enjoying each other. The crew had left them alone, apparently not wanting to take the chance that Jaren might take someone’s head off if they were interrupted again.

The corridor was long and curving as it followed the outline of the ship’s bulkhead. They passed the dining facilities, where two crewmen were having their meal. The men nodded respectfully as they passed the room. At the end of the corridor was a door, much like the one at Jaren’s quarters. It slid open at their approach and Jaren led Kari onto the bridge, where Jaxson and two other crewmen were working.

Jaxson turned in his chair as they entered. “We are approaching the jump site.” He smiled at Kari. “Come to watch the show?”

Kari was puzzled by the query. She glanced at Jaren questioningly and then looked back to Jaxson again.

Jaren chuckled. “She has never been off world, Jaxson. She has no idea what you are talking about. I thought it might be a pleasant surprise for her.” Jaxson smiled, nodding his understanding as he swiveled his seat back around to face the front-view screen.

Jaren directed Kari to an empty seat and strapped her in. “It shouldn’t get bumpy, but there is always a chance.”

Jaren did not settle into a seat, since there were only four on the bridge and they were all occupied. Instead, he stood by her side and held on to an overhead rail.

“Shouldn’t you be strapped in, too?”

Jaxson laughed at Kari’s question. “Jaren could stand upright in the middle of a cyclone.”

Kari looked up at the big warrior standing next to her. Jaxson was probably right. She could almost imagine his hard body braced defiantly against a raging wind, his long hair flying around his head. She felt a shiver race across her skin, and her core muscles contracted in arousal. Several days of almost-constant lovemaking and she still couldn’t get enough of him.

Feeling like she was being watched, she tore her hungry eyes away from Jaren’s body, only to realize that every male on the bridge, including Jaren, was looking at her intently. She blushed bright pink, and Jaren turned his attention to the other males, a warning growl coming from deep in his chest. The other warriors immediately turned back to their tasks, shaking themselves and clearing their throats at having been caught staring at, and sniffing, their High Prince’s
sha-lia
.

Jaren lightly brushed Kari’s cheek with his fingertips, shaking his head and grinning. “I have a feeling I will be spending an extraordinary amount of time keeping you out of trouble, my Karinna.”

In the next moment, Kari’s embarrassment was forgotten as Jaxson announced they were at the jump coordinates. Kari watched anxiously as the black, star-filled space in front of them suddenly transformed into a tunnel of light, stars seemingly stretching and spinning. With brilliant flashes, every color imaginable flared across their field of vision like great whirls of mist and gasses. Kari’s mouth fell open in awe. It was remarkable. She was absolutely captivated by the movement and patterns.

Several minutes later, the stars became small points of light and space reverted back to normal. Except now, where there had been nothing but black space and the sparkling of distant stars, a beautiful green and blue planet filled the view screen. Jaren leaned over and kissed Kari on the top of her head.

“Welcome to Aldryss, love. We are home.”

Kari had mixed feelings about reaching Jaren’s homeworld. Part of her was excited at the prospect of seeing a different landscape than the one she had grown up with. She found it ironic that she had never even seen her own planet from space. But now here she was, several clusters away, looking at this alien world. She was also anxious about meeting Jaren’s family. Not because they were royalty—after all, she was royalty, too—but because she was worried that they wouldn’t think her worthy of their eldest son, much less worth starting an inter-planetary war over.

Her brothers would also be arriving soon. She loved her brothers and trusted them. Deep down, she did not believe that they would take her back to her father. After all, they had willingly taken beating after beating for defending her. But she knew there would be grave consequences if her brothers defied him and failed to take her home.

Her father would not go so far as to have her brothers killed. King Myrrn’s continued rule depended greatly upon his ability to maintain multiple male heirs to his throne. Without them, he would be seen as weak and would likely be overthrown by the other powerful, noble houses. It was the fear of what he would do to the people of this magnificent world before her, and the man standing beside her, that she was most concerned about.

Once they landed, Kari stepped off of the ship into a world unlike anything she had ever seen before. Her world was mostly forested with tall, thin-needled trees and very little surface water. Montore had vast grasslands, and most of the planet’s terrain was fairly level. Jaren’s world was such a contrast that Kari couldn’t help but stop and stare. It was warmer here than she was used to, but there was a pleasant breeze that made it comfortable. The landing platform the ship had come to rest on was high above the ground, giving Kari a panoramic view of the landscape. The massive castle stood before her, constructed of some type of beautiful white-colored stone Kari had never seen before. It rose high above them in fantastic arches and spires. She turned, trying to take in everything she saw. A vast city sprawled out in front of the castle, ranging over a hillside and into a valley beyond. It looked like most of the buildings had one to three floors and were constructed from the same white stone as the castle, with red roofs. Many of the buildings had flat rooftop areas where Kari could see tables and chairs. She imagined they would be pleasant spaces to spend leisure time. Plants and trees in every shade of green imaginable and flowers in a rainbow of colors were everywhere. Great mountains were visible in the background, green at the bottom but changing to white about halfway up.

Kari continued turning and then came to an abrupt halt, her mouth falling open at the sight. Stretched before her was a body of water so large that it disappeared over the horizon. The water was crystal clear in places, with colors ranging from deep blue to the palest of turquoise. Flocks of birds skimmed across the water in graceful formations, dipping and soaring on the breeze. Now she understood why so many of the houses had rooftop sitting areas perched high to take advantage of this stunning view.

“Do you like it,
sha-lia
?” Jaren’s voice was a whisper against her ear as he stood behind her and wrapped his arms around her.

“It’s beautiful. I’ve never seen so much water in one place before.”

“This is the Sea of Ameris. There are two others on Aldryss, but this is the largest. I will take you down to it soon. Come, love, my parents have come out to meet us.”

Kari reluctantly turned away from the magnificent view and allowed Jaren to pull her forward with his arm around her waist. Several people had emerged from the castle and were hurrying toward them. A man and woman were leading the way and Kari guessed they were Jaren’s parents, King Tibon and Queen Alynna. When she and Jaren reached them, Kari was taken by surprise when the queen immediately rushed forward, kissed her on both cheeks, and then threw her arms around her in a motherly hug.

“Oh, my dear, we are so happy Jaren found you at last!” The queen pulled back and Kari saw that she had tears in her eyes and a bright smile. There was such a genuine happiness in her face that Kari forgot about her anxiousness over meeting Jaren’s parents. The queen then launched herself at Jaren and kissed him as well.

King Tibon began to chuckle. “You will have to excuse my wife. She gets a little excited when one of the boys comes home from a journey, and your arrival has just given her an excuse to go overboard.” His wife pushed his arm playfully and rolled her eyes at him. Kari had never seen a mated couple laugh and tease with each other. It was fascinating. She was only used to her own mother and father, who hadn’t even spoken to each other in several years.

“Mother, Father, I would like you to meet my
sha-lia
, Princess Karinna of Montore.” Jaren’s face was lit with a combination of pride, happiness, and love. Kari felt his emotions flow through their new bond, and her heart seemed to swell with her love for him.

“Princess Karinna, we are most happy to welcome you to our family.” Jaren’s father looked very much like Jaren, except for the white streaks in his hair and the lines in his face.

“It is my honor, Your Majesty.” Kari curtseyed as best she could while Jaren still had his arm around her waist. “And please, call me Kari.”

The king grinned at Kari, and she suddenly knew where Jaren got the grin she so loved. “I’ll make you a deal, my dear. I’ll call you Kari if you will call me ‘Father’ and cut out the curtseying.”

Kari grinned and blushed. “Deal.”

Jaren’s brothers came forward and she was introduced to Maxson, the third brother, and Macen, the youngest brother. The next introduction was Marinda, a beautiful young woman that Kari guessed was about her age, with silky black hair flowing down to her waist and sparkling blue eyes.

Marinda rushed forward and took both of Kari’s hands in hers. “I am so glad I finally have a sister! Do you have any idea how frustrating it is growing up with four overprotective older brothers?”

Kari laughed at her exasperated expression. “Actually, I do.”

Marinda beamed at her and turned her attention to her parents. “I like her. We’re definitely keeping her.”

Jaren sat in his father’s study after giving him all the details of their trip. The great stone fireplace had been lit to keep the evening chill at bay, and Jaren tossed another log into the flames. His father had agreed completely that Jaren had made the right decision in bringing his
sha-lia
home. There was simply no other alternative.

“Your coronation will be tomorrow night.” Jaren was momentarily stunned at his father’s announcement and tore his gaze away from the bright flames to stare at his father. He started to protest, but King Tibon interrupted him. “I will not be persuaded to change my mind, son. Now that you have found your
sha-lia
, you are ready. Besides, there may be a fight coming over your mate. The difference between you and Karinna being a prince and princess or being a king and queen could be crucial.”

“How can I be sure I am ready?” Jaren had been trained for this all his life, but he was still young. Traditionally, most princes were well into their second century before they assumed the throne.

“You were born ready, Jaren. Besides, you need to take the throne while I am still capable of supporting you.” Jaren understood the importance of his people’s tradition of a new king taking the throne prior to the death of the previous king. It eliminated challenges to the succession of the throne from other power-hungry houses following a king’s death, something that was common in ancient times. Jaren was certain that his Uncle Odair would be the first to make that challenge.

The weight of his father’s decision began to settle upon Jaren’s shoulders. Jaren bowed to his father. “I do understand, Father. I hope I will be able to make you proud. And,” Jaren hesitated, “I am sorry that I have brought a potential war to Aldryss, but I cannot let her go.”

“Of course not! Our people understand the importance of a
sha-lia
for the royal men. Without one, we tend to get incredibly hard to handle.”

Jaren knew his father was right. Great power, combined with madness, never boded well for the planet.

* * * *

Kari sat patiently while Marinda worked to pull Kari’s hair up into an intricate style. Marinda had insisted, and Kari liked her so much that she couldn’t refuse. The two had bonded immediately. The coincidence that they were both the only girls in families of four royal—and very domineering—older brothers provided them with an instant connection. Jaren had complained that he hadn’t gotten to spend any time with his mate since they arrived on Aldryss because his sister was monopolizing her. Marinda had just stuck her tongue out at him and told him to go away. Kari thought it was hilarious. Marinda was the sister she never knew she wanted.