The Unveiling (9 page)

"Looks like we all have secrets," Bastien mumbled. Kade raised an eyebrow.

"Does that cryptic statement have anything to do with why you’re here?”

"Yes. I didn't want to say anything, but I found my mate.”

"
What
!" Kade shut the door with his powers. "Who? When?"

"Rivka."

Kade's jaw dropped. "Whoa."

"Yeah, well, you think you're shocked."

"How though? You've been around her before—you took The Purge."

Bastien nodded.

"Damn. I wonder how long it's been disintegrating." A thoughtful look appeared on Kade's face.

“Hey, stick to one project at a time, scientist," Bastien said.

"Sorry, you know how my mind works."

"I do."

"I should've guessed. We all figured you were loosening up because you were around family and away from the solitary life that comes with being in the military." Kade shook his head. "Why are you telling me now?"

"So you don't think I'm a stalker when I ask you to look up information on Rivka," Bastien said.

"Yeah, that would've been awkward without knowing why. Does anyone else know?"

"Mars, but he guessed. He's going to meet us in the kitchen with his laptop. Phelan's got some meetings so we won't have to worry about him interrupting us."

"I'm not surprised. Mars is a lot more observant than most people give him credit for."

"It's true," Bastien said.

"Let me duck into the bathroom to get changed and we can head out." 

Thirty minutes later, Bastien was no closer to learning who Rivka was or what she wanted. Short of hacking into her personal computer, there wasn't much available about who she was as a person. Frustrated and stuck where he’d started, they decided to pack in the computers for the day.

"Looks like you're going to have to start from scratch," Kade said.

"How do I do that? When most people meet it's at least a clean slate," Bastien said.

"Which is why you have to convince her the person you are now is worth forgiving for what you did when you had no emotions."

"How do I do that?" Bastien asked.

"That's what we're working on figuring out. I can only imagine as a Star Maiden, material items don’t mean much."

"Then what does she want? ‘Cause I'm pretty sure everything I read said, flowers, jewelry, and nice restaurants. I got that much."

"Good to know you've been reading up, but you have a different kind of mate," Mars said.  Failure loomed overhead like a massive storm barreling in toward him with one hundred mile an hour winds. Never one to go down without one hell of a fight he gritted his teeth.

"So where do I start?"

"A date?" Kade suggested.

"It's too early for labels. How about a meeting? Keep it neutral and be honest," Mars suggested.

"Like two friends headed out," Kade added.

"Exactly!" Mars said.

He looked from one to the other, wondering who had taught Kade anything about dating. He seemed so wrapped up in his work it was hard to imagine him out with a woman. Kade smirked.

"Just because I'm quiet about my personal life doesn't mean I don't have one," Kade said.

"Oh really?" Mars said.

"A gentleman doesn’t gossip," Kade said, shrugging.

"Right now I can't even call her up," Bastien said.

"Might be a good thing," Mars mumbled.

"Helping, not antagonizing," Bastien said through gritted teeth. He growled low in his throat. 

"Look, it's going to be a painful process either way you look at it," Kade said. "Going from not feeling much to this is like jumping into freezing cold water, a shock to your system and uncomfortable as hell."

"Thanks, Billy Nye," Mars said.

"Who?" Bastien and Kade asked at the same time.

"The science guy—no, doesn’t ring a bell? Jeez." Mars shook his head.

Bastien snorted. "I'm starting to feel like we need to limit your television watching, Marsden."

At the end of the day Bastien knew he was still waiting, but now at least he wasn't alone.

Chapter Twelve

Rivka rolled on to her side, desperate to find relief from the heat emanating from her body. She'd stripped down to nothing and still suffered. Her thighs rubbed together, and she brought her hands up to cup her breast. She squeezed them and moved her hand down to pinch the beaded nipples. A lusty moan slid past her lips. Her body came off the bed. A wave of pleasure swept over her. Warm liquid flowed onto her thighs, soaked the sheets beneath her. Rivka slid one hand between her legs in an attempt to ease the ache of her swollen clit. One rub of her thumb and she was crying out, rocking her hips in search of more stimulation. She abandoned the nipple play and moved her hand down to join its twin, teasing her entrance with her middle finger as she continued to rub her stiff nub. With one glorious thrust she was knuckle deep inside her slick channel, pumping hard.
I need more
. She added another finger, and another, placing her feet on the bed to gain leverage. She worked her hand, wishing it was Bastien's hard length. Her mind might loathe him, but her body craved his like an addict who needed a fix.

The thought of the muscular General with the earthy scent and large calloused hands set her off like a grenade. She cried out, moving faster, trying to stretch out the tidal wave of sensations. She rode out the orgasm to the end, collapsing on the bed. She went to leave and cried out when the pulse between her legs began again.
I can’t continue on like this.
She'd been away from Bastien for a week. No amount of meditation or mixture of calming herbs was going to save her. It was time to face him. After the way she left things she'd wanted to draw it out as much possible. Make him suffer. It wasn't like her. It was petty and mean, but she'd be damned if he didn’t deserve a little taste of his own medicine. A whimper left her lips as the intensity began to build again in her pussy. Rivka reached over to the drawer beside her bed and pulled out the black box that held one of her most prized toys, a pink and white INA 2, LELO vibrator. She removed the lid and pulled out the five-inch piece of heaven. The two-in-one piece stimulated from the inside and outside. She slid the piece home, hit the high speed button and clamped her teeth down on her lower lip to keep from screaming.

Her body arched off the bed, and nectar flowed like a fountain. Her eyes rolled into the back of her head, and her body convulsed like she was having a seizure. Overly sensitive, she was forced to remove the toy.
Tonight, this insanity ends. I'll arrange a meeting and tell him this is strictly physical. I won't allow myself to suffer, but I could never respect myself if I folded like a stack of cards because The Purge finally wore off.  I was lonely, but I was never desperate.
Rivka caught her breath and moved her sluggish body up from the bed. After cleaning her toy with a special solution and placing it back in its home, she showered, dressed, and placed the call to the house she'd been dreading.

"Hello," a deep masculine voice said.

"Hi, can I speak with Bastien?"

"Sure, give me a minute to locate him."

I should hang up.
The memory of writhing in the bed, unable to fulfill the needy ache that had made its home inside her flashed in her head.
Or not.
A click sounded in her left ear.

"Hello?"

"Bastien—"

"Rivka," he whispered. The breathy sound sent a chill up her spine.

"Yes, we need to talk, tonight."

"You're feeling The Wanting symptoms too?"

"Yes." The word tasted like ash in her mouth. She'd never felt so conflicted in her life.
Just keep it physical.
"I have some things I'd like to say, but I'd like to do it in person."

"When and where do you want to meet up?" he asked.

"Tonight, the Martini Bar on First Street and Main."

"I know it. Is seven okay?"

"Can we make it sooner?" she asked.

"Six?" Bastien asked. 

"Perfect."

"I'll see you in an hour."

"See you then," she said.

The sound of his voice had chased away some of the anxiety. The tightness in her chest eased. A part of her was excited to see the man chosen by fate to be her perfect match. There was so much she didn’t know and wanted to ask, like why the hell he took The Purge in the first place. Rivka rose from her position on the bed and swayed and stumbled. She sat back down on the bed heavily and inhaled and exhaled as the vision descended upon her.

The world around her had a hazy quality, as if fog had settled over the area. She turned to examine her surroundings. She was in an ornate palace. The large dome-shaped ceiling above her head was painted a deep blue with constellations and stars painted in bright splotches and swirls of white and yellow. Three black, sphere-shaped metal lighting fixtures hung in a row. Rivka peered down at her clothing and gasped. She was glad in white gown that hugged the curves of her body and belled out, brushing against the floor. On her arms she wore gold bands that symbolized royalty.
Was this a vision, a prophecy, or a coded message?

"Hello?" Her words echoed off the walls, with silence her only response. She lifted her dress up and walked across the white stone flooring that told her she was in space. The particular stone could only be harvested in the galaxy where Tagget had been located so she had to be there or in the home of someone wealthy enough to have it imported. As she made her way into the hall a sense of urgency hastened her footsteps. Her body seemed to know where she needed to be.  She ran down a narrow stairwell she guessed was for the servants and ended up outside once again on her way to the beloved garden that afforded her peace. This time it was day and she was headed for a different destination, the maze of tall, green shrubbery in the far right quadrant.  She weaved her way deeper inside the confusing pathways to the heart where he waited. His dark hair fell over his forehead and covered his eyes. He was clad in a pair of leather breeches and a cream-colored shirt he kept open at the collar.

Her heart filled with joy, and he looked up to meet her gaze. His pale yellow eyes pierced her soul and stood out against his light green skin. He opened his arms, and she ran to him. He lifted her up, and she wrapped her legs around his slender waist, hooking her feet together as he supported her, devouring her lips with a hunger that made her entire body catch fire.

"Are you sure no one saw you leave?"

"Everyone is at the celebration."

"Yes, the one I'm supposed to escort you to. We can't stay here too long."

Her happiness plummeted.

"I know. I wish we could come out in the open."

"They'd kill me."

"Why? It's my choice."

"Not with a man like me. You're too important to be the wife of a mercenary soldier with little to his name and no royal blood in his veins."

"You’ve protected our people a million times over. They say without you we would have lost the Great War."

He smiled at her and shook his head.

"If I were to falter and fall in battle, another would pick up where I left off. I'm expendable."

She covered his thin lips with her fingers.

"Not to me."

She blinked rapidly as she was brought back to the present. They'd spoken in an ancient dialogue not commonly used anymore, and the Great War had been eons ago.
Who
is this man, and why do I keep dreaming about him?
The only common link she could think of was Bastien. Was this a relative trying to sway her opinion on the military man? It wouldn't be the first time she'd seen interference from those beyond the grave.
It's going to take a lot more than some fuzzy moments with your true love to fix what's broken between Bastien and me, tall, dark, and handsome.

****

Bastien arrived at the coffee shop fifteen minutes early, nervous and unsure what to expect. He'd snagged a table at the back of the bar.
What will she say? How am I going to keep my hands off her?
The sound of her soft voice on the phone had him ready to take her into his arms and eat her whole. He'd been a beast to work with for the past week, driving his men like a slave master. Not that they complained, he gave one hundred and ten percent himself. He avoided Phelan as much as possible, not wanting to put more stress on his plate. The run through of the ceremony was set for next Friday, and with the grand event next Saturday the house had exploded into chaos. Decorators were in and out, along with seamstresses and bridesmaids.
I’ll be glad when all of this is over and I can focus on me.
He felt like a man trying to kick a habit. Every second of the day he thought of Rivka, wondered what she was doing, wearing, and talking about.

The stress was so bad he'd started having dreams that made no sense.  Bloody battlefields he knew he hadn't been on and images of a petite woman with skin the color of milk chocolate and green eyes. The love that poured from her was almost tangible. Yet, he didn’t know her name. He thought it might be a side effect from The Calling but seeing as how Rivka was the expert, he'd kept his questions to himself. The moment Rivka stepped into the room the atmosphere changed. His ever-present headache dissipated. The irritation eased. Her legs went on for miles in the black skirt and knee high, black lace up boots, and an off-the-shoulder white sweater. Her neck was long and graceful. The bare flesh made him think of caramel. She reached the table, and her scent hit him full force. Light, floral, and laced with ample amounts of pheromones. It was intoxicating. He curled his fingers around the edges of the chair as she sat in the seat across from him.

Her hair was a glossy mane of midnight colored curls he wanted to bury his hands in.

"Hi." His voice sounded subdued and shaky.

"Hi. Let's cut to the chase. I think we're both under enough strain now as it is."

"Agreed."

"Both of us are miserable. The Wanting symptoms will only continue to worsen, and neither of us can afford to be off our game. Especially not know. You have the hunt for Tavel, and I have my duties as Star Maiden, until a new one is appointed. We have to come to some sort of agreement."