Undaunted (Battle Born Book 6) (20 page)

“I understand.” Quinton uncrossed his legs and scooted to the edge of his seat. “How will you catch Garin? He’s eluded all my efforts so far.”

“Xorran and your head of security coordinated everything so that no one else knows you’ve departed.”

“Even my bodyguards don’t know?”

Paytor nodded. “Just your head of security. Edron, is that his name?”

“Yes.”

“He’s arranging for a double to take your place until Garin makes his move. And when he does, my best soldiers will be waiting for him. Without their precious leader, the battle born rebels will be lost. This nonsense has gone on long enough.”

Berlynn stood still while Garin undressed her. She’d just shattered his control, so she supposed this was fair. Still, the ravenous look in his eyes made her heart pound and her core ache. “You already explored my body. I’d rather just make love.”

He chuckled as he slipped the dress off her shoulders then guided it past the flare of her hips. “Kissing and touching and tasting you isn’t making love?”

“It is, but we’ve waited so long already.” He unfastened her bra and drew the straps down her arms, then tossed it aside. “I want you inside me.”

Her feet were bare, so all that was left was her panties. “Soon.” He pulled the covers down then picked her up and placed her on the bed. He crawled onto the mattress and spread out on his side. “If my body is sinful, yours is intoxicating and I’m already addicted to it.”

He slipped one arm beneath her neck and caressed her breasts with his other hand. She drew his head down, needing the assurance of his kiss. His mouth slanted over hers, his tongue warmly teasing. She opened for him, eager for the slide of his tongue against hers. He indulged her for a time, then moved on down her neck.

They’d done all this before, so why was her heart pounding? His lips slid along her collarbone and into the valley between her breasts. He teased her nipples with his fingers while his mouth explored the fullness surrounding them.

“So soft,” he whispered against her tingling flesh. “But I know something even softer.” His hand skated over her belly and eased beneath her panties. He just covered her mound, absorbing the heat and illustrating his intentions. “Take them off.”

Her thoughts were so muddled, she barely comprehended the command. But she lifted her hips and pulled the underwear off.

His mouth latched on to one of her breasts while his fingers slipped between her folds. Her body’s slick welcome eased the way. He traced her crease, teasing the entrance to her passage and barely touching her clit. She lifted her hips, trying to bring his fingers where they’d do more than titillate her.

He released her nipple and gazed into her eyes. “Tell me what you want and I’ll consider it.”

“I want you inside me,” she cried. “I’ve wanted that for weeks.”

With a wicked grin, he pushed two fingers into her slick core. “Better?”

“No. I want—” His hand slid back then thrust into her again and a needful moan interrupted her plea.

“Come for me and then I’ll give you what you really want.”

She had no intention of arguing, but he bent over her sex and tongued her clit, ensuring her surrender. He slid his fingers in and out while his tongue circled her clit. Sensations gathered beneath his mouth and rippled along her inner walls.

Pleasure wrapped around her and cascaded through her, pooling between her thighs. His need to please her drove into her mind just as forcefully as his fingers thrust into her core. She rubbed his head, using the bristly feel of his ultra-short hair to distract her from the pleasure. She wanted to move on to the main event, yet she wanted this part to continue as well. It was irrational and greedy, but she couldn’t think clearly enough to make a choice.

He pushed his fingers deep and stopped the rhythmic shuttle of his hand. Then his lips closed around her clit and he took the choice out of her hands. The soft suction of his lips soon had her crying out and rocking against his mouth.

Carnal hunger pulsed across the transfer link, driving all thought aside.
Come.
She heard the command clearly in her mind.
Come now
. And she did. Pleasure detonated beneath his lips, radiating outward in distinct spasms. She cried out and shook as reality exploded around her. He kept the pulses going as he quickly repositioned. Kneeling between her thighs, he brought himself to her entrance then waited for her gaze to clear. “Look at me, love.”

She blinked, clearing her head of the lingering haze. He was there at her entrance, but not yet inside her. “Please.”

He braced himself with one hand and stroked her face with the other. “I love you. You understand that, don’t you?”

It was the first time he’d spoken the words, but she’d felt it in her mind. His need to please and protect her, his willingness to give her whatever she wanted. She was flattered and thrilled, but did she love him too?

He didn’t wait for her response. His hands moved to her hips and he filled her with one deep thrust. The blessed fullness scattered her thoughts and she drew her knees up along his thighs. He closed his eyes and found a steady rhythm that pleased them both.

She watched his tense features, wishing he’d open his eyes. His chest skimmed over hers, the hair on his chest teasing her nipples. She ran her hands up and down his arms, squeezing the corded muscles. Then she grew bolder, stroking his back and squeezing his flexing ass. It felt wonderful and yet something was missing. Even with him moving deep inside her, it felt incomplete.

Opening her mind to him, she maximized the transfer link. He was beyond rational thoughts, consumed by the intensity of their joining. She tried to let go of her inhibitions and soar at his side, but uncertainly held her back.

“Stop thinking.” He shifted more of his weight onto his knees and slipped one of his hands between their bodies. His thumb found her clit and her inner muscles responded with a spontaneous clench. “Again.” He rubbed her clit and her core echoed the caress by squeezing his cock. Over and over he drove the pleasure higher with his insistent caress.

She came suddenly, crying out sharply as pleasure assailed her in sharp little bursts.

“Again.”

“I don’t know if I can,” she objected.

“You will.” He rotated his hand, framing her clit with two of his fingers. The contact was indirect now, but no less effective.

She rocked into each thrust and surrendered to his touch. His eyes finally opened and she whimpered. His phitons blazed, making her face tingle. Then he dipped his head and covered her mouth with his. His cock filled her core as his tongue filled her mouth, and his emotions inundated her mind. She clutched his shoulders and responded to his kiss, holding nothing back.

His pace sped, each stroke turning sharp and shallow. She dug her heels into the mattress and arched wildly, forcing him to go deeper.

Suddenly his mouth tore away from hers and his back arched. She felt the distinct twitch of his shaft deep inside her. Was he— He jerked back and fisted his cock as his seed spilled onto her belly.

She turned her face away, disappointed yet relieved. Even in the throes of passion, he’d kept his promise. Then his fingers gently squeezed her clit and her conflict was forgotten. With a few skillful touches, he detonated her final release. She arched and shook, the orgasm longer and stronger than the others.

“Better?”

Though emotion thickened, his tone was also playful, so she smiled. “For now.”

He laughed. “Is that an invitation for more?”

“Yes, but let me catch my breath first.”

He carefully rolled to her side then swung his legs off the bed. Without explaining his actions, he walked into the bathroom and returned with a wet cloth. “Are you all right?” He wiped up the mess he’d made then tossed the cloth aside.

“Why wouldn’t I be?” She scooted back and rested against the pillows. “That was wonderful.”

He sat on the edge of the bed, one leg bent in front of him. “The transfer link is just a preview of what being bonded will be like, but I could still feel your emotions. This upset you as much as it pleased you, and the conflict started when I told you that I love you. Why did what I said upset you?”

She lowered her gaze as hints of her uncertainty echoed through her being. “I don’t want to disappoint you.”

He reached over and took her hand. “I’m not disappointed. As you said before, all of this is new to you. It’s natural that you’d want to progress slowly.”

She chuckled and glanced at his face. “Is this ‘slowly’ in your book? We met a couple of weeks ago and I’ve already agreed to bond with you.”

He shrugged. “Rodytes are more instinctual. I was ready to bond with you as soon as I caught your scent.”

They’d talked around the issue, but the question was still there in his eyes. He wanted to know if she loved him too. “I’ve never felt what I’m feeling for you, so I don’t know what to call it. It could be love or it could easily grow into love. I just don’t want to say the words until I’m sure that’s what I’m feeling.”

His fingers slid up her arm then back down to her hand. “I appreciate your honesty and, as I said, I’m not disappointed.” He crawled back onto the bed and pulled her into his arms. “Now, it seems to me that you’re breathing has returned to normal.”

She laughed until his mouth covered hers and disrupted her breathing all over again.

* * * * *

Garin squared his shoulders and straightened his jacket, then looked into the camera inset in the viewscreen on his desk. “People of Earth, we come in peace. Take me to your leader.”

Laughter rippled through Garin’s office, despite Raylon’s fierce scowl. “That’s not funny.”

“No, it was definitely funny.” Zilor wrapped his arm around Indigo’s waist. She was still snickering. They stood behind the two chairs in front of Garin’s desk. The chairs were occupied by Raylon and Kaden. Garin had asked for input from Raylon and Kaden as their early morning briefing concluded. Zilor and Indigo happened to be passing by as Zilor showed her around the
Undaunted
, so the lively couple joined in.

With a wry smile curving his lips, Garin looked at Raylon. “You’ll be running the transformation project. Shouldn’t the message come from you?”

Raylon shook his head. “Remember what your mate said. This message is for our men as much as the humans. The battle born need to be reminded what they’re fighting for and they need to hear it from General Nox.”

“He’s right,” Kaden reinforced. “Like it or not, you’re the face of this rebellion.”

Clearly he was outnumbered, so Garin turned back to the camera. He was many things. Diplomatic was not one of them. “My name is Garin Nox and I represent a subset of the Rodyte people known as the battle born. We’ve attempted to negotiate an alliance with the United Nations, but they insist on secrecy. They claim that the people of Earth are easily frightened and easily misled. I think they’re wrong. We are not hostile, so we set up an outpost on the moon rather than forcing our way onto your planet.” He paused the recording and looked at his audience. “How detailed should I make this?”

“You should probably do a series of messages,” Indigo suggested, “each one more detailed than the last. So keep this one generic and brief.”

Garin nodded and reactivated the camera. “Our primary purpose for visiting your planet is obtaining test subjects for an experimental medical procedure involving—”

“Whoa.” Indigo shook her head, her multi-colored hair swishing around her shoulders. “You
cannot
say that.”

“Even if it’s true?” Raylon challenged.

“This is public relations 101,” she argued. “You have to establish trust, or at least find a common ground. Without it, the details are irrelevant. You were on the right track with those ‘government sucks’ lines. Faith in government is at an all-time low right now. Use that as your starting point.”

After a tense silence, Garin said, “Indigo’s right. We have to ease into this.” He rubbed his jaw for a moment as he gathered his thoughts, then he cleared his throat and reactivated the camera. “We’re interested in interacting with select members of the human race, but your governments are making that impossible. For this reason, I’m bringing my case directly to the people. We will negotiate with each volunteer individually, and we will no longer tolerate governmental interference of any kind.”

He paused again and Indigo applauded. “So much better. Now add a strong closing and call it good.”

“Should I explain that we only need female volunteers?”

She thought for a moment then shook her head. “Not yet. Let humans absorb the fact that aliens are real before you get into any of the specifics.”

He was suddenly glad Indigo was here. Not only had she been raised on Earth, she made her living helping people deal with emotional issues. She understood how humans thought and were likely to react. He turned back to the camera and said, “I’ll reveal the details of our program over the next few days. For now, I just wanted to step out of the shadows and say hello to the people of Earth. Until next time.” He ended the recording before he released his pent-up breath.

The men joined Indigo as she applauded this time. “That was perfect,” she assured him.

“I’ll send the
Crusader
out to deliver the message. She’s midsized and relatively nonthreatening.”

“Are we still concentrating our efforts on North America or do we want to go worldwide?” Raylon asked.

“Let’s start with North America. In fact, stay within the USA. If we don’t end up with enough volunteers, we can always set up processing centers in other countries.”

“Processing centers?” Indigo cringed. “That makes it sound like a meat-packing plant. You need serious help with your messaging.”