Victorious Star (10 page)

Ravnos turned and nodded at Victoria. “I thought we would welcome our newest senior officer with a private dinner.” He glanced at Seht.

“Of course.” Seht nodded, avoiding his gaze.

Victoria clicked her heels and delivered a short formal bow. “Thank you, sir. It looks wonderful.” Her gaze drifted to the door of the facility. She felt hollow with hunger, but she desperately wanted to clean herself before she sat down. She could feel cum sliding down her thighs. “May I be excused for a moment?”

Ravnos raised a brow.

Seht snorted and grabbed Victoria by the shoulders. “We’ll be right back.” He propelled her across the salon toward the bedchamber doors.

Victoria looked back over her shoulder to see Ravnos shaking his head.

Seht shoved the facility door open, pushing Victoria in ahead of him. “Do yourself a favor, never ever give our captain an excuse to say ‘no.’ He has a strong sense of the perverse. He’ll refuse just to watch you squirm.”

Victoria snorted. “Don’t you mean perverted?”

He chuckled and roughly turned her to face him. “That too.” He started unbuttoning her coat.

She brushed at his hands. “I can do that myself.”

He ignored her and continued unbuttoning. “I’m going to wash you. I might as well do it all.”

Victoria grabbed his wrists. “I can wash myself, thank you!”

He raised a silver brow. “Do you really want to fight over this? Dinner -- and our not particularly patient Captain -- is waiting.”

“Fine.” Victoria let out a breath and released his wrists. “Is this how you treat all the senior officers?”

“Oh hell no!” Seht barked out a laugh. “Everyone else is treated with strict professionalism. His preferred technique is ordinary bribery or blackmail.” He tugged the coat from her arms and tossed it over the counter, then swiftly unbuttoned his own. “Hold onto the counter and spread your legs.” He tossed his coat on top of hers, then pulled a cloth from the steamer.

Victoria bit her lip and marched over to the long counter. “How the hell did I get picked for all this?”

Seht faced her with the cloth in his hand. “That was entirely your own fault.”

“My fault?”

Seht knelt and tugged her skirt up to her waist. “Our captain may have a sadistic streak wide enough to jump a ship through, but he utterly refuses to go where he’s not invited.” He applied the cloth with firm slow strokes.

Victoria groaned. Seht’s cloth was hot, but it felt wonderful on her muscles. “I do not remember issuing any kind of invitation!”

“Oh please!” He rolled his eyes. “I could smell the lust as soon as I stepped through his door. Your mouth may have been saying one thing, but your soaking wet pussy clearly begged for it. He merely took you up on your offer.” He pressed intimately up into her inflamed flesh.

Victoria’s ringed clit throbbed with a vengeance. A gasp exploded out of her. “Bloody Fate! Can we get these things off of me?”

Seht gave her a grim look. “If you are wise, you will never, ever ask that question again.”

“But these things are driving me insane!”

Seht snorted. “They’re supposed to.” He lightened his touch, but remained thorough in his cleaning.

More domination shit.
She felt the cloth explore her violated backside and gasped again, then groaned in sheer painful embarrassment. “So what made him decide to fuck me up the ass?” She felt her cheeks heat violently. She couldn’t believe she’d just said that out loud.

“You responded to his dominance display. How could he resist?” He jerked her skirt down. “You’ll do until you take a shower.” He turned and tossed the soiled cloth in the laundry shoot then pulled a clean cloth from the steamer.

Victoria tucked in her shirt. “What dominance display?”

“When the captain put that sword to your throat, you nearly came in your pants.” He unfastened his trousers.

“So?” Victoria sharply averted her gaze. “What did that have to do with my ass?”

“Besides the fact that it’s traditional?” He tossed the soiled cloth into the laundry shoot. “You wanted to get fucked up the ass.” He walked around to face her while tucking in his shirt.

Victoria balled her fists. “Bullshit!”

“Really? When I mentioned your possibly virgin ass, you perfumed the whole cabin with hungry pussy.” He turned to face the mirror, lifted his chin and set his cravat to rights. “I’d say that was a pretty damned positive reaction.”

“It hurt like bloody fucking hell.”

Seht shrugged into his waistcoat. “Of course it did. It usually does.” He turned a hot blue eye on her. “However, that did not stop you from screaming out your climax as he reamed you.” A smile curved his lips. “And you didn’t seem to mind me there at all.”

Bastard.
She nearly strangled herself tying her cravat. “So how
did
you get tossed into this?”

Seht paused in the act of buttoning his waistcoat and abruptly blushed. “He saw your reaction to me, and mine to you. I must admit that I was surprised when he suggested it.” He made a sour face. “He likes to keep me frustrated.”

“What reaction?”

He came to her in two strides and caught a fistful of her hair at the back of her neck. “What reaction?” He leaned forward tilting her head back with deliberate slowness, and watched her with hooded eyes. “This one.”

She stilled in surprise and watched his approach with growing alarm but didn’t even try to pull away. His rich scent rolled over her and she felt an alarming shiver. Dark, unidentified, fearful longings moved in the hidden corner of her soul.

His lips brushed hers. The kiss was light and gentle, a caress.

A soft sound escaped her throat, part fear but mostly hunger.

He pressed against her lips a bit harder and moaned in encouragement.

She opened her mouth for him. His tongue surged in to stroke against hers. He tasted of recent lust. He tasted of her. She leaned into his kiss and returned the caress.

He released her and licked his lips.

Victoria blinked and rocked back on her heels, slightly dazed and shaken.

He tilted his head and a brow rose.

She snapped alert and crossed her arms. “What?” She clenched her hands to stop their trembling.

“No comment?”

Victoria looked away. “What do you want? A critique?”

“You are drawn to me the same way you’re drawn to Ravnos. Admit it.”

Victoria lifted a shoulder with a nonchalance she didn’t feel. She was shaking in her boots from the confusion beating in her heart, but there was no way in hell she would admit it. “You’re both handsome men. Of course I’m drawn to you.”

Seht grinned. “You are in for it now.”

“What?”

He walked over to the counter, tossed her coat to her then slid his arms into his own. “That little display of denial is going to cost you.”

“What are you talking about?” Victoria shrugged into her coat.

He caught her by the shoulders and turned her around, shoving her toward the exit. “We’ve dallied long enough.”

“Commander?”

“Not now.” He opened the door and pressed her out into the main chamber. “It’s dinnertime.”

Ravnos stood at the far end of side table with his hands folded behind his back. He turned to face them. “Enjoy yourselves?”

Victoria felt her cheeks warm.

“Oh absolutely.” Seht pushed Victoria toward the chair between them, by the wall. “She didn’t even fight when I, ah…” He looked sharply at the attendant yeomen. “Showed her the facility.”

“I see.” He pulled out his chair. “Shall we begin?”

Victoria started violently. Those were close to the same words he’d used earlier, when she was lying on his desk.

“Nav-Pilot, you may be seated,” Ravnos said with quiet amusement.

Victoria looked over at the head of the table and saw that Ravnos was seated. So was Seht. She felt her cheeks warm as she pulled her chair out. A practiced flip moved the split skirts of her coat out of the way and she sat.

A yeoman poured golden wine into her crystal glass.

Ravnos raised his glass. “A toast.”

Seht raised his glass.

Victoria followed suit.

Ravnos’s chilling smile suddenly appeared. “To a victorious start.”

Victoria nearly dropped her glass. She kept hold of it through sheer will alone and delivered a cool look to her captain.

“And a glorious climax,” Seht added with a malicious grin.

Is that how they want to play?
Victoria smiled grimly. “May our business be concluded swiftly.”

Seht’s brows shot up. “Score,” he smiled.

“Score indeed.” Ravnos pinned Victoria with a cool stare. “For now.” He lowered his glass to his lips and sipped.

The yeomen stepped forward and served.

Victoria started and jerked upright in her chair.
Was I asleep?
She blinked at her captain. “My apologies.” She bit her lip to keep a yawn from escaping and looked around. The dishes were gone and so were the yeomen. She didn’t even remember eating. She frowned. Actually she did, but for the life of her she could not recall a single thing on her plate.

Seht lounged back in his chair. “I think we’ve kept our nav-pilot past her bedtime, Captain.”

Ravnos raised a brow. “I think you may be right.”

Victoria checked her internal chrono.
Bloody Fate! She was four hours past her normal sleep schedule! No wonder she was face down on the table.
She jerked out of her chair. “May I be excused, I have…”

“No.”

Victoria nearly swallowed her tongue.
No?

Seht rolled his eyes and gave her a look that clearly said
I told you so.

Ravnos leaned back in his chair. “Sit down before you fall down.”

Victoria sat and set her hands on the table to keep from tipping over. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d been this tired.

Seht snorted. “She’s only going to fall asleep at the table again.”

“I see.” Ravnos sighed and waved. “Put her to bed. We’ll discuss it in the morning.”

Seht rose from his chair. “With pleasure.”

Thank Fate.
Victoria pushed herself up onto her feet again and suddenly dreaded the long walk to her quarters. She bit back another yawn. “Good night.”

Ravnos’s brows shot up.

Victoria headed for the doors.

Seht took her elbow. “This way.”

“Huh?”

He swung her around and shoved her through the bedchamber doors.

Victoria looked back in confusion. She didn’t remember an exit from here.

Seht tugged her to face him. “Hold still.” He had her coat and waistcoat buttons undone before she knew what had happened.

She frowned at her open coat. “Commander?”

“Yes, Nav-Pilot?” He took her shoulders and turned her around to face the broad expanse of Ravnos’s bed.

Victoria reeled for a moment, disoriented. Her coat and waistcoat slid from her shoulders. “Hey!” She felt her shoulders grabbed and she was turned back around to face him.

“Lift your chin.”

She lifted her chin to look at him and felt her cravat slide from her throat. “What are you doing?”

He smiled and gave her a push back.

“Hey!” Victoria teetered a few steps backwards and her heels hit something solid. She suddenly sat -- on the foot of Ravnos’s huge bed. “What?”

He tossed her coat and waistcoat on the bed beside her and knelt. “Foot.”

She automatically lifted her foot.

He tugged her boot off, dropped it on the deck, then reached for her other boot.

She lifted her other foot and frowned. How the hell was she supposed to walk down the hall without her boots?

He tugged at the buttons at her throat.

Victoria felt her shirt buttons released to her belly, baring her breasts, and finally realized what was happening. She grabbed his wrists. “Stop!”

“Don’t you want to go to sleep?” he asked in amusement.

She looked at him in alarm. “I can’t sleep here!”

“Victoria, release me.” His voice was calm but firm.

“But--”

“Is there a problem?” Ravnos called from the salon.

Seht raised a brow at Victoria. “Is there?” His voice was barely a whisper.

Victoria released his wrists. “No, sir,” she called out.

“Good.” Something that sounded suspiciously like a chuckle came from the salon.

Seht pulled her up onto her feet and stripped her naked in two breaths.

She crossed her arms over her breasts. “Bloody Fate, don’t you ever give it a rest?” she grumbled.

“Relax, you are going to sleep.” Seht walked her around to the far side of the bed.

“Sleep, sure.” The bed was too damned inviting, and she was just too damned tired to argue anymore.

“Yes, sleep.” He pulled back the covers and helped Victoria climb onto the massive bed.

Her knees sank into the soft mattress and a small groan escaped her. Fate, she hadn’t slept in a bed this soft since she left the academy! She tugged her long hair out from behind her then fell back onto the pillows with another yawn. Her eyelids proved too heavy to hold up any longer. “Good night,” she mumbled, and rolled over to snuggle into the pillows.

“Pleasant dreams.” Seht pulled the blankets up over her. “For now.”