Worlds Apart 2: Hunter's Revenge (11 page)

“You see,
moya
,
it can feel good. Let me show you how good, how much better it can be.” He kissed his way up her body at her nod. Stopping at her chest, he took the time to worship her breasts, before moving up to press his lips against hers and slipping his tongue into her mouth.

Nervously, she spread her legs again, for the first time in her
life,
she willingly let a naked man settle himself between her thighs. Fear swamped her for a moment as he positioned himself at her gate. What if it all changed from here? It was a bit late to worry about that now, wasn’t it?

“Ssh…
moya
.
What you felt before was only the beginning,” Hunter whispered into her ear as he eased the head of his cock into her. “I’ll go slowly, I promise. I’ll be sure to give you your pleasure.” He waited for her body to adjust to him then withdrew and eased forward again, moving his shaft deeper. Reaching down, he pulled her legs up around him.

Knowing what he wanted, she wrapped her legs around his waist.

“No,
moya
.
Let me show you.” He loosened her legs from around his waist and brought them to her chest. “Don’t be frightened,
moya
.” He eased back into her, burying himself deep into her channel and she screamed with ecstasy.

He stopped immediately. “Did I hurt you?” he asked, still holding himself deep inside her, unmoving.

She shook her head. “No.” She reached up and cupped his face. “For the first time in my life, I want this. I want…I want you, Hunter.”

“Then you shall have me,” he whispered. As though he had all the time in the world, he began to move again, slowly thrusting and retreating in long, smooth strokes. He filled her up. The fullness bordered on pain, but he wasn’t hurting her, wasn’t pounding into her as her rapists had. Never again would she feel the need to compare him with her attackers.

She could feel the difference between those acts and this. She could feel the care Hunter took with her, but it wasn’t enough. “Please Hunter, I need more.”

“I know exactly what you need and before this night ends you will know it too.”

And with those cryptic remarks, Amy stopped thinking all together, allowing herself to feel the pleasure her mate was doing his best to give her.

Before long, an unfamiliar fire began to burn in her womb. Pleasure pain ripped through her as her body clenched and released, preparing for something, something powerful and all encompassing.

“Hunter, I…I…”

“I
know,
moya
.
Feel.
Just let yourself go and feel.”

She could feel his shaft growing thicker and longer inside
her
as his thrusts grew more urgent, more demanding. The pleasure grew so intense she was sure her heart would beat right out of her chest. Her lungs labored as she gasped for air and gifted him with a long groan of sensual gratification.

She clutched his hair, tightened her legs against her chest so he could get that much deeper. She arched her back, doing her best to raise her hips to meet his every thrust. That’s when it happened. Every muscle in her body tightened, clenched. Her clit pulsed, throbbed every time his pelvis bumped against it. The muscles of her thighs clenched and the world was forgotten as she tumbled over the edge into oblivion.

As though he had only waited for her to reach her release, Hunter let go. Sweat dripped from his brow as he labored over her, his hips
pistoning
in and out in an ever-increasing pace. She came again, screaming his name, her nails scoring his back as he pounded into her once, twice, thrice. Then he too was coming. His cock pulsed inside her as his hot seed splashed against her womb. Her entire body quaked as he rested atop her. His arms were braced above her, even now protecting her from harm as he rested above her trying to catch his breath.

But even as her body felt deliciously replete she still sensed that something was missing, something had been left undone. Did Hunter feel the same? Was she somehow lacking? Was he disgusted with her?

You must drink of the Goddess’ Tears, Amy, and have Hunter do the same. Find the chalice and complete the binding ritual, only then will you understand just what you are to each other. Only once you drink of my tears and share your worries and concerns will your healing
be
complete.

And to heal I must find the chalice and drink?

Yes, my child. I would not steer you wrong in this.

Above her, Hunter grunted. “I must be crushing you, love,” he whispered against her temple. His warm breath against her skin sent another tremor of need racing through her.

“Hunter, there is still something I must do. Will you show me where the chalice is?”

Hunter lifted his head, searched her gaze. “Are you sure,
moya
? Once you drink from the chalice we will truly be one in heart, mind, body and soul. Even in death we will be tied together. If one of us should die, the other will follow.”

She licked her lips, nervous at taking such a monumental step, even though it felt right to do so. After only a moments more hesitation, she nodded. “Yes, I’m sure.”

“Then so be it.”

Hunter eased himself out of her channel and stood, holding out his hand to her. “The Goddess’ chalice is in the statuary. I shall take you to it.’

When they reached the clustered statues, she scanned the clearing. Finally, she spotted the one. She knew exactly what she needed to do. With confidence in herself, she approached the statue where a woman held a golden chalice between her alabaster hands. The sculpture beckoned her to accept the offering as water flowed from the cup and pooled in a basin at the woman’s feet in a continuous stream. Yes… That’s what she needed.
Exactly what she needed.

Reverently, she approached the statue. She moved silently, almost as though she was approaching the Goddess Alana herself. Once again, the Goddess whispered in her mind.
Drink my tears and purify your hearts. Share my tears and purify your souls
.

Reaching up, she pulled the chalice from the Goddess’ hands and backed up a pace, before turning her back and carrying the golden cup to Hunter who sat patiently on one of the marble benches inside the clearing.

When Amy reached her mate’s side, she knelt between his outstretched legs and slowly lifted the cup to his lips. “I beseech you to drink of the Goddess’ golden chalice. Let her tears cleanse your heart and heal all your inner wounds.”

Hunter smiled sweetly at her, love and heat lighting his eyes, then wrapped his hands around hers and tilted his head back. Once he quenched his thirst, he held the cup against her lips.

With gentleness in his voice and love in his eyes, Hunter repeated her request. “I beseech you to drink of the Goddess’ golden chalice. Let her tears cleanse your heart and heal all your inner wounds,” he whispered. And like he, she tilted her head back and let the cool, clear liquid pour down her throat.

At once, a rush of emotions overwhelmed her.
Joy, excitement, loneliness, sadness, worry, angst, anger.
So many emotions and not all of them hers.
Tears ran down her face unchecked. Hunter scooted off the bench and knelt in front of her. His strong arms wrapped around her waist before quickly tucking her head beneath his chin.
Sshh
,
moya
.
Let your tears flow, let your heart open and your wounds heal. I shall be here, holding you when the storm of emotion passes. Never fear, I will always be here for you.

Amy closed her eyes, enjoying the sound of Hunter’s voice in her mind. She let the pounding of his heart against her cheek soothe her. For the first time in a long, long time, she actually believed in something, in someone. It was a nice feeling to have.

It is nice, isn’t it? This is how we can communicate if we are separated by choice or design. We will always know where the other is. What the other is feeling, fear, pain, joy.

She knew what he meant. She could feel his overwhelming joy at their binding. She heard the steady beat of his heart, knew that somehow her heartbeat matched his as well.

She reached out, put her hand on her chest and managed to look into his eyes. “I don’t know what I feel here,” she put her hand over her heart. “Other than somehow it’s taken on the same steady beat of yours.”

The high-pitched chime of the ship’s intercom interrupted their conversation. “I apologize for interrupting, Your Highness, but you wanted to be informed if we found a planet matching the description given by our prisoner.”

“Thank you,
Mikel
. Do a long-range scan and we’ll take a rendering to our prisoner to identify. If it’s the correct planet, how long will it take to reach it?”

“About two days at interstellar light speed, Hunter. Not too long, but still…long enough.”

Chapter Eight

As the pair dressed, Amy reached out for Hunter’s hand. “Is there a way we can get a picture of this planet? I’d like to show it to both Chrissie and Maryann.”

Hunter grinned, pleased beyond words she now felt comfortable enough with him to reach out and touch him. “That’s a great idea. Besides, I know you’ve worried about Maryann since you woke from your healing sleep.”

She blushed and turned away, obviously uncomfortable with his praise.
He liked the way her skin pinked when he complimented her. He needed to remember to do it more often.

After clasping her hand in his, Hunter led Amy back through the lush garden and headed toward the exit. By the time they reached the door controls, she’d laced her fingers with his.

“I want to pick up a
compu
-pad
. We can download planet images on it and take it to the women.”

Amy licked her lips, and gave him a tiny smile. “And where would they hide a computer here in this room?”

Smiling, Hunter approached the control pad. After keying in his access code, a recessed cabinet opened in the wall to the left of the door and out slid a slim tray with a handheld instrument. The matte silver instrument had a glowing green touch screen. He then lifted the thin electronic pad upright, fastening it into the ridges in the tray. “Computer, download planetary images onto the
compu
-pad
please.”

“Working.
Transfer complete.”

 
Amy sidled closer to Hunter. He could feel her desperate desire to see the planet where her family and the others were held captive. He could even feel her confusion over what happened between them, when she’d been certain she would never willingly bear another male’s touch again.

He shook his head. With Amy so close, his body couldn’t help but respond. His cock, sated minutes before, began to grow hard and ready as her scent enveloped him.

“Wow. Chrissie is right. Is does seem to have some sort of mystical veil covering it. And the sea-foam green color is shot with swirls of silver and pink. Definitely a good focal point when you need one. I wish…”

As Amy’s voice drifted off and she looked away. He knew exactly what she wished. She wished she’d had this planet to focus on while her captors raped and tormented her. Hunter could feel her pain twisting through her body, and all he wanted to do was take it into
himself
, where it could never torture her again.

Looking down, he noticed he held the device so tightly, only a miracle kept it from shattering in his hands. “Shall we go visit our prisoner and see if this is the planet she’d focused on so many times?” He needed to get her mind off what happened to her. He knew she would never forget her ordeal but he needed to know that she would eventually be able to overcome most of her fears.

Hunter couldn’t shake the idea that what happened to her was
all his
fault. If he hadn’t sent Taliff out looking for more women, if he hadn’t ordered him to bring women home—especially
Lionese
women—the Black Rose wouldn’t have had a ship-full of females to steal. She would never have gotten a hold of
Myra
and subsequently the coordinates of Amy’s home planet and returned to steal even more women, either.

His greatest fear was that when his mate finally decided to probe his mind, his memories, she would see what part he’d played in her abduction—what part he’d had in the endless abuse she’d suffered while in the clutches of the beasts who called
themselves
, ‘The New Hope’.

Beside him, Amy tensed. Maybe she sensed his inner turmoil, or maybe the prospect of seeing her former friend made her edgy, either way, he wanted her at ease. “Yes, let’s take this to Chrissie, but I’d like to check on Maryann first.”

“The woman you helped rescue?”

“Yes, she’s human. Her mother was human, a widow when a male from our pack met Maryann’s mother and mated her. So, she couldn’t shift on the mountain even if she wanted to. She knows our ways, our customs, and I treat her as I would my own sister, but others in the pack tormented her as she grew and didn’t develop the same skills and abilities as her peers.”