Read All For One [Nuworld 3] Online
Authors: Lorie O'Claire
glass doors and then stood there, hoping her niece wouldn’t once again push Darius too
far. Torgo followed Syra and stood next to her, glowering down at her. She ignored him
and focused her wrath on the man in front of her.
“What do you think you were doing coming into my trailer like that? You had no
right.” She put her hands on her hips and demanded an answer.
Darius leaned back and met her gaze with ferocity. “Where were you today?”
“I don’t have to tell you that,” she snapped as she wrinkled her brow.
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Tara came up from behind her and put her hands on her shoulders. “Go ahead and
tell him where you were today,” she whispered into her ear although it was loud
enough for Torgo and Darius to hear.
Syra turned and frowned at Tara, both of them knowing she wouldn’t disobey the
leader of the Runners.
Darius raised an eyebrow and cocked his head at her waiting for an answer. She
turned and saw Torgo cross his arms and study her, looking for an answer to something
but she didn’t know the question.
“I was in Taratown,” she said waving her hand as if to dismiss further discussion.
“But, my Lord,” she said sardonically. “What I do with my time is none of your damn
business.” Torgo snorted and Darius shot him a dirty look. “And why did you go into
my trailer with two guards? Don’t you think you could detain me on your own?”
“That’s enough,” Tara said quietly and moved to the chair next to Darius resting
her hand on his as it gripped the arm to prevent from slapping the woman in front of
him.
“Rayla was killed this morning, she was,” Torgo spoke and Syra whirled to face
him.
“And you think I killed her?” she asked incredulously.
“Did you?” Darius asked.
“No, I didn’t.”
“They think you did.” Torgo’s voice was softer.
“Who’re they?”
“Her parents,” Darius answered. “They’ve demanded an investigation and are
looking for you. You need protection, you do.”
“I don’t need your protection.” She crossed her arms and then her mouth fell when
Darius laughed out loud. She then scowled when Torgo snorted and reached for her.
She slapped his hand away and Darius let out a hoot, which caused Tara to slap him on
the arm.
“I didn’t kill anybody. I don’t have anything to fear,” she continued. “Damnit,
Darius, if I killed someone, trust me, I’d fess up to it. I’m not a coward.”
“Now that much we can agree on.” He smiled up at Torgo. “You’re unruly though
to the bone, girl, and you’ve a tendency to display your temper at will. We’ve decided it
would be in your best interest for you to stay here. There’s a mark on your head, there
is. If one of Rayla’s family members finds you, they’ll shoot you on sight. They won’t let
you be arrested to be tried before me, no.” He leaned forward and then whispered with
a smile. “They don’t know how much we hate each other.”
She reached out to slap Darius on impulse but he grabbed her hand and then
pushed her back into Torgo who caught her willingly. He held her by the arms when
she tried to move.
“I’m not staying here. You won’t let me leave the house.”
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“That’s the point,” Torgo spoke close to her ear.
“No,” she said flatly.
“Darius, is there a law against taking another claim on the same day as your claim
is murdered?” Torgo knew damn well there wasn’t. Syra twisted in his arms but he
simply held her tighter.
Tara slapped her hand to her forehead and moaned, “Torgo.”
“No, I don’t think there is.” Darius had a triumphant smile on his face.
“Well, then, I’m taking this woman as my claim.”
“Torgo, you know how I feel about this.” Syra managed to free herself from his
arms to look up at him. “I don’t want to be your claim.”
“Too late,” he smiled and simply pulled her back into his arms.
“Are you saying you dispute the laws of the land you live in?” Darius still grinned.
“That’s exactly what he said to me.” Tara stood up and took Syra’s hand. “You
better watch out, look what happened to me.” She laughed, but then grew serious. “I
want you to stay here, Syra. You can leave, just don’t go out alone for a couple of days.
There’s a mark on your head, as Darius said, and we just need to give it some time.”
“Why don’t you find out who did kill her?” Syra turned and walked quickly
toward the door, knowing this might be her only chance for escape. “Better yet, I’ll find
out. The first place I’d check into is Mik’s family.”
She almost made it to the doors when Torgo grabbed her with an iron grip around
her arm. “You’re staying here, you are.”
Darius laughed again. “She might be as much work as this one is.” He pointed to
Tara.
“Crator forbid,” Torgo laughed and then before Syra could stop him, he picked her
up and threw her over his shoulder before heading for the door.
“We’ll plan the claiming party,” Darius called after them as Torgo headed up the
stairs with Syra pounding his back and the Gothman guards laughing in the entryway.
“Put me down, you son of a bitch!” Syra screamed and gyrated her body until
Torgo let her jump to the floor. He’d taken her upstairs to the guest bedroom that once
was the nursery. The room had adjoining doors that led to Darius and Tara’s room but
a large bureau was now in front of the closed door. Torgo shut the bedroom door with
his foot when he entered and now stood facing Syra as she paced in front of him.
“What just happened here?” She rubbed her hands through her braided hair and
stared at nothing in particular. “I came here to take out a piece of your brother and
ended up…” She couldn’t say the word.
“Claimed?” Torgo grinned proudly.
“You can’t claim me.”
“Why not? Are you already claimed?” There was an impish gleam in his eyes.
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“Of course not. But I don’t ever want to be and you know that. You can’t tie me
down here. I’ll suffocate. I won’t be happy.”
“I’m not tying you down, no.”
“You’re not?”
“No.”
“So when the new winter is over and I get the urge to travel?”
“I’ll go with you, I will.”
That was simple. Syra stared at Torgo for a minute, at his charcoal gray eyes, his
muscular chest, and that “very pleased with himself” smile. She walked over and sat at
the edge of the bed. He joined her and pulled her down next to him.
“I’m sorry your claim is dead,” she said as she turned to face him. His hands
roamed down the curves of her body. “You told me once you loved her.”
His hand stopped on her hip and his gaze met hers. “After we were together for a
winter or so, I made a sincere attempt to be good to her. I felt something…I think. She
was shy and evasive, she was. She acted like sex was her duty to me, and after having
only been with you…” He paused and she bit her lip to hide a smile so she could be
there for him if he needed to mourn. “But, Syra, when I found out about her affair, it all
made sense—her actions, her treatment of me. She wanted my name, and that was it, it
was. I always knew it. I just didn’t care. I felt nothing for her before she died and I never
felt for her what I feel for you, no. And those feelings came back with a vengeance the
moment you returned. I love you and I have for many winters.”
“I love you, too.” She barely got the words out when his mouth landed on hers.
It was a passionate, claiming kiss. He pushed her to her back and let his hand have
its way with her body. Their lovemaking was slow and passionate. The intimate
experiences they’d shared over the winters since they were teenagers had grown to
demanding, passionate needs. They knew each other’s bodies as well as they knew their
own. They took and gave each other the pleasures they’d dreamed of receiving over the
winters while they were apart. Each half of a perfect whole, neither complete without
the other.
Torgo wrapped his arms around Syra’s naked body and pulled the large comforter
over them when their cravings had been satisfied, at least for the moment. She lay
content, tracing invisible messages into the blond curly hairs that covered his broad
chest.
“Torgo?”
“Hmmm.”
“I have some unfinished business in Taratown and I need to go there tomorrow.”
She shifted her head on the pillow so she could see his eyes—they were fixed on her.
“No one will be looking for me there, at least not where I’ll be going. I’ll keep my comm
so you can call me if you like.”
“Unfinished business?”
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“Uh-huh.”
“And you’re not going to tell me what it is?”
“No.”
Torgo sighed but didn’t look away from her luscious green eyes. His thoughts
jumped back to his teenage winters when Darius first met Tara. He’d fallen for his
woman as hard as Torgo fell for this woman. But Torgo had many winters to learn how
Syra ticked. She was defiant, manipulative, and way too headstrong. Darius often
argued it was because they didn’t have a true mama figure in their life and were
allowed to run wild like little boys that they grew up trying to act like men.
Whatever. Torgo didn’t want one little thing changed in this woman. She wouldn’t
be owned and he didn’t want to own her, simply coexist by her side…always by her
side. He didn’t want to be shut out or left behind ever again.
“You can’t leave the house by yourself,” he tried.
“I’ll sneak out before sunrise,” she answered simply.
“I’ll go with you, I will.”
She thought for a minute. “No, Torgo. If I leave before sunrise I could be back by
midmorning. Just tell everyone I’m sleeping in.”
He sighed heavily and traced her hairline with his finger. “How long will it take
you to take care of your business?” He didn’t like this, didn’t like it at all. If Syra kept