“So, I don’t mean anything to you?” Her chest was on fire. It was going to explode.
“It is not about me or about you. I cannot be so selfish as to only think of myself right now. I have a whole world to think of.”
He was right. She had been an easy lay and nothing more, fulfilling her duties as a slave and concubine. He had not promised her anything, so why was she demanding what he had not offered her? She sniffed and picked the rest of her clothes off the bed.
“I need to find a bag. I couldn’t find one. I don’t want to walk through the halls with my clothes hanging in my arms.”
How embarrassing. The tramp walk of shame.
“Where do you think you are going?”
“I asked Ship to help me. He found an empty apartment for me in the main palace.”
“What!” Startled by his sudden outburst, she jumped back. “You will not move out of here!” he said.
“Your mother said I shouldn’t stay here. Plus, I can’t be here with you while you are making plans to mate with someone else.”
“Eva, didn’t you hear me? I need to mate with someone who will bring prosperity to Sonis. The match will be in name only. You are mine. You cannot go.”
You mean you won’t let me go.
“You will stay here with me,” he said. “When I find a match, we will figure out the rest later.”
“No.”
“Eva, what would you have me do?”
Be my protector as you promised.
She lowered her head. “Take me home.”
He walked closer to her. “This is your home.”
“No, it’s not. I want to go home. To Earth.” Her chest constricted.
“There’s nothing left for you there.”
Her eyes met his. “There’s nothing for me here either.”
“No.” He shook his head. “You belong to me.”
“You don’t own me.”
“Yes I do.”
She held her clothes tight in her hands. She was leaving. It was no point in arguing with a thick-headed barbarian.
He growled low in his chest as she walked closer to the door, arms full of clothes.
“Taio.” She turned her head to look at him. “You may own me on paper, but I will never be your slave.”
She turned and left.
Chapter Sixteen
She had almost forgotten what it was like to have a place of her own. Since she’d spent the last few years in a communal living arrangement, the apartment was more than she could have ever dreamed of, one bedroom, a small kitchen and dinette area and a living room with a balcony overlooking a radiant green pond.
Although she enjoyed the privacy of having her own place again, the next few days were long and tiresome. Eva spent all her free time on the training field. With Coyl gone, training with the guards had been easier. Well, first off, there wasn’t anyone on the field trying to kill her. She stayed there from dusk to dawn, wearing herself out.
She left the training field only to eat and sleep. The guards even invited her to their private dining hall with them. They even went so far as to start to treat her as one of their own. She would rather eat with them than be forced to watch Taio and the “candidates” ogling each other through the evening meals. Since he was so busy with his guests that he didn’t have time to visit the training field, she didn’t have to see him at all, really.
During the day, he was out of sight, out of mind. It was during the evening hours that thoughts of Taio crept up. She never imagined the three weeks she had spent with Taio would have this big of an impact. Most of all, there was no one there to stop the nightmares.
While she fought as hard as a man during daylight hours, her nights were spent crying as though she was a girl. By the fourth day, she was kicking herself. She wanted the feel of Taio’s arms around her once more.
* * * * *
He couldn’t stand it! His mother planned everything from the parties to which females would make an acceptable mate. Their ideas of the qualifications of a mate were clearly off. While he wanted to interview every qualified candidate, his mother was pickier. The queen crossed candidates off the list indiscriminately. Ancients forbid if she didn’t like the candidate’s parents, that offense was an immediate dismissal from the list and the moon.
He had been more than relieved when a message came from the planet Laconia, from a Princess Sa’Mya, who requested an invitation to the festivities. Taio quickly responded with a yes. His mother would be extremely upset, but she needed to be reminded of who was in charge.
“How many females are here?” Rasha approached with Kiehle at his side. They were at one of the many “meet and greets” his mother had arranged.
“Seven, maybe,” he replied gruffly.
He spent most of his time “entertaining” his guests. If he wasn’t entertaining, he was with his mother, who monopolized the precious time he had left. Eva stayed away from him and when she did come around, she seemed disinterested and distant. She chose instead to spend all of her time training or anywhere else that would put her out of his sight. He came to the conclusion that he missed her.
The human female had crept into his heart. He missed her snoring. He missed the way she slept with her eyes half open. He missed her smart mouth. He missed the way she burrowed beneath the covers when she slept. He missed her body pressed against his at night. He missed her picky food choices. He just plain…missed her.
More times than he would admit publicly, he used the palace’s signature heat tracking system to find her whereabouts. His intentions were always to go to her, talk with her or hold her in his arms. He always stopped short, feeling immersed in guilt. He wasn’t sure why he should even feel guilty. He needed to figure out what his true feelings for her were before he revealed them to her.
“Is that all? This place is filled with females,” Rasha said.
“Not all of them are a suitable match for me. According to my mother, there are only seven females here who will do,” Taio said.
Kiehle’s eyes scanned the room. “Soooo, you are saying that out of the fifty or so females here, I can have all but seven,” he said.
“Eight, you can have all but eight,” he quickly added. Both Kiehle and Rasha looked at each other. “What?” Taio asked.
“Nothing,” they replied in unison.
“Any prospects so far?” Rasha asked.
“None, they are all incredibly boring. The upside is there will be two more females coming for the party tonight.”
Rasha smirked at his friend. “And Eva, what about her? Have you made up with her yet?”
“No. But we will. She is mine. What choice does she have?”
“She could choose to leave and do something else with her time instead of shooting daggers at you from across the room.” Rasha nodded his head toward the door.
They all looked across the room to see Eva staring at him with her arms folded across her chest. This was the first time she’d looked at him in two rotations. She clearly was not happy, but she came to see him. At least they were making some headway.
Chapter Seventeen
When she watched him, Rasha and Kiehle checking out all those other women, she couldn’t help but boil over in anger. It took all of her strength to stay rooted in her spot. Her face burned. She tried to guess what they were talking about. She’d avoided him at all costs and the first time she went to him in days, she caught him ogling other women.
Seething in anger, she turned away. He wasn’t going to make a fool out of her twice. How stupid was she to seek him out, missing him. Before she reached the hall outside, Taio’s strong arms were around her waist, pulling her against him. He leaned down, planting a soft kiss on the nape of her neck, sending shudders down her spine.
“I missed you,” Taio said. “Don’t go, come with me while I work.”
Eva reluctantly let him pull her by the hand to his office. His lavender eyes watched her every move as he settled into his overstuffed office chair.
“Do you need to put yourself on display for those women?” She trailed a hand over one of the elaborate glass statues on the shelf in his office.
“I need to find a good match.”
“What will happen to me when you find your mate?”
She couldn’t live with this kind of uncertainty any longer. She just recently found some type of normalcy after spending the last three years in hell, it was something she thought about all the time.
Could he easily discard her, even when she still craved to be near him?
“You’ll stay with me, of course.”
“Stay with you? I don’t think your new mate would appreciate me hanging around,” she snorted.
“I have told you whatever match I make will be for business purposes only. You are mine, all mine. You will never have to worry about anyone else.”
She cocked her head. “You never know. Your new mate might come along and start bossing me around.”
“Never. The only bossing would come from me.”
“Oh?” She raised her brow. “And what would you tell me to do?”
“For starters, I would have you take my cock in your mouth.”
“I think your mate might have some objections to that.”
“Not if you shared,” he said. “Or she might like watching. You are very good at it.”
His dark lashes were framing his smoldering eyes as he watched her move to settle between his legs. He inhaled sharply as she leaned over and ran her tongue over the tattooed claw around his eye. His breathing became ragged as her tongue followed the path down the side of his face and neck, swirling and kissing the entire way. With a soft moan, he closed his beautiful eyes.
She tugged at his shirt, pulling it over his head. His beautiful chest was displayed before her, rising and falling in tight rhythmic movements. His brown nipples were erect, enticing her. Leaning in, she sucked one between her lips. He moaned lightly and clasped her hips, holding her in place as if he were afraid she might leave. She released his nipple and ran her tongue across the intricate pattern on his chiseled chest, feeling every groove in his skin that it made.
Her hand found its way to his powerful cock. She caressed it through his pants. His breaths came out in hard pants as her fingernails scraped the length of it, caressing every thick vein and hard ridge. She slowly dropped to her knees. Her mouth salivated in anticipation.
Tugging on his pants, she finally freed it. She held his gaze as his fingers began to massage the back of her head, urging her forward. She first thought to tease it with her tongue and lips. But Taio had other intentions. He applied slight pressure to the back of her head. There would be no teasing today.
Eva relaxed her jaw as his hand guided her head up and down, slightly pushing her farther down with each stroke. His cock throbbed in her mouth. Her tongue ran across each thick, distended vein. Her eyes fluttered close as she tightened her jaw around his shaft, making her cheeks squeeze him from both sides. Her tongue flattened against his underside and the ridges on the roof of her mouth creating the perfect amount of friction.
Moaning deeply, Taio massaged her head as his scent filled her nose, intoxicating her. Her pussy pulsated and dripped every time his head hit the back of her throat.
Sitting higher on her knees, she angled her head directly over him, wanting to take more. Saliva ran out of her mouth and dripped down his shaft. Using it as a lubricant, she squeezed around the base.
Their earlier conversation coming back to her, she thought of how much of him she couldn’t fit in her mouth.
So much to go around.
“Mmm.” She raised her head with a wicked grin. “Maybe you do need a mate. She could help me suck it. You were right, there’s enough here for two mouths to share.” She playfully licked the pre-cum from his massive head.
With a groan, Taio tangled his fingers in her hair, guiding her mouth back to his throbbing cock. He pressed the intercom with his free hand. “Send Yazmine in,” he said in a strained voice.
Eva’s body instantly stiffened. It had been a joke. She didn’t think he would follow through on her taunt. She stopped sucking and tried to lift her head. She had to stop him.
He held her head firmly in place. “Are you backing down from a challenge?”
Eva paused, unsure if this was a challenge she was willing to meet. She knew he had not been with any other females since she arrived and she didn’t think she should open that door.
Reading her uncertainty, Taio brought his hips up. His cock filled her mouth, gliding effortlessly to the back of her throat. Unable to resist the sensation his shaft created, she tightened her cheeks, forcing a groan from Taio.
Eva reached to cradle his big, heavy balls. They were hot and tight in her hand. She milked them down and away from his cock, encouraging them to loosen under her light massage. Taio gripped her head tighter. She smiled, a mere human female from Earth was bringing the warrior king to the edge with her mouth.
The door slid open and shut, followed by light footsteps.
“You called?” a female’s voice asked.
Eva recognized Yazmine, although she didn’t have many dealings with the tall, beautiful female.
Taio’s breaths came out in hard pants. “Eva would like help.”
Eager to comply, and without another word, Yazmine dropped to her knees next to her. The beauty watched intently as Eva sucked and licked Taio’s cock, eagerly waiting for her turn.
As she greedily worked on his cock, Taio grabbed Yazmine’s black- and gold-streaked head, guiding her open mouth to his balls. Yazmine engulfed his balls into her hungry mouth, pulling and tugging on his heavy sac, seemingly to be in a different world, oblivious that Eva worked above her on his cock. Eva’s pussy convulsed.
Moaning around his sac, Yazmine flicked her bronze-colored eyes up to Eva. Yazmine’s half-closed eyes told of her enjoyment. Letting his sac plop from her mouth, Yazmine turned her head to the side and wrapped her plump lips around the base of his cock. Eva released the suction of her mouth, letting a mouthful of saliva drip down Taio’s slippery shaft.
On a lustful moan, she descended down his length, taking as much as she could, meeting Yazmine’s mouth. Yazmine released her hold to trail her tongue around Eva’s, probing for entry. Eva lifted from Taio’s cock and covered Yazmine’s mouth with her own. Tasting and exploring her, their tongues entangled, lips pressed against luscious lips.
Eva slid her hand beneath Taio’s on Yazmine’s head, moving his out of the way. She guided Yazmine’s head over Taio’s cock. She was immediately impressed with Yazmine’s skills. While the girl couldn’t take it all, she could take more than Eva. Yazmine sucked and slurped, her plush lips squeezing and working his cock. She pulled his cock from her mouth long enough to fist it, fast and hard, working the pre-cum to the tip, where Eva leaned in and swiped the sweet-tasting liquid off with her tongue.
Taio leaned back in his chair, his face twisted in pleasure. He was only minutes from his breaking point.
Yazmine’s mouth clamped down on him again, working at a pace much faster than her own. Yazmine’s deep groan vibrated in the back of her throat. Eva watched as the other female sucked her male’s cock and, shockingly, enjoyed it. Her pussy was now painfully engorged and wet. She applied more pressure on the back of Yazmine’s head, encouraging her to go down farther.
Taio’s hands gripped both arm rests, his fingertips digging into the fabric. When she had sucked his cock, did he enjoy it this much? Or was Yazmine just doing a better job? Feeling slightly jealous, Eva plucked Yazmine’s mouth off him.
Eva replaced her mouth over his wet cock and mimicked what Yazmine had done. Yazmine moved behind her and began to disrobe. Her prickly pubic hairs were soon pressed against Eva’s ass and Yazmine’s breasts laid against Eva’s back. Eva shuddered.
Kissing her neck, Yazmine reached around and palmed Eva’s breasts, massaging them, grinding her hips on Eva’s ass. Eva had never thought about being with another female, but she gave in to the moment, pushing her ass back against Yazmine. Yazmine’s hand trailed down her stomach, her fingers expertly parting Eva’s folds.
Yazmine hesitated, hovering over her clit. “Taio?”
“Human females have clits, Yazmine.” His breathing was heavy and hard. “Think of it as a sex bud.”
Sex bud.
That kind of summed it up. Eva pressed her mouth down as far as she could go and moaned onto Taio’s cock. Her rhythm increased as her juices dripped down her leg. Yazmine’s slender fingers alternated between rubbing her clit and diving into her pussy. Rocking back, she began riding the slender digits.
“May I?” Yazmine asked Taio.
“With my blessing.”
Eva didn’t have time to wonder what the exchange meant before Yazmine’s wet tongue trailed down the curvature of her ass. Shuddering, Eva’s fingernails pierced the flesh on Taio’s thighs. Yazmine positioned herself under Eva and trailed her tongue up her legs, following the path her dripping juices made. Finally reaching her destination, Yazmine latched on to her swollen clit.
Eva moaned down the length of Taio, his cock tickling the back of her throat. Yazmine wrapped her slender arms around Eva’s hips, pulling her deeper onto her face. Eva groaned, the feel of a thick cock in her mouth and a tongue on her clit was more than she could take. Eva lowered her pussy over Yazmine’s face, giving Yazmine what she demanded.
Yazmine held Eva’s hips firmly to her face, pumping and probing her tongue into her pussy. Taio leaned forward, pushing her head deeper down his cock, pumping his hips, fucking her mouth.
Eva used Yazmine’s mouth just as Taio was using hers, her pussy riding Yazmine’s strong tongue. Yazmine’s grip tightened around her thighs, encouraging her to ride even harder.
Groaning deep, Taio grabbed Eva underneath her shoulders, lifted her up and positioned her over his rock-hard cock. Eva screamed out as Taio impaled her on it without letting her first adjust to his size.
Her pussy suctioned and gripped his cock. The sounds of her slickness filled the room.
Before long, Eva’s ass began hitting the top of Yazmine’s head every time Taio lowered her down. Reaching back, she felt her helper working his sac, licking and pulling it. Taio grabbed Eva’s hips and pounded ferociously into her, spreading her so far apart.
“That’s it, I feel it. Come for me,” Taio said.
The directive was all Eva needed, her pussy erupting. Roaring, Taio’s release followed hers, pumping harder, her tight pussy milking him every inch of the way.
With strong hands, Taio lifted Eva up and around, spreading her legs to straddle his, giving Yazmine easy access to her dripping sheath. Eva yelled out again as Yazmine covered her mouth over her spent pussy, sucking their combined juices from the sweet sheath. Yazmine’s hand pumped furiously in her own pussy.
Taio’s rough hands palmed and tweaked her nipples. Eva came again as Yazmine sucked and licked, grinding her nose against her clit. Finally, Yazmine let out her own cry as she came, swallowing Eva and Taio’s cum.
Eva fell back on Taio as sweat dripped from her body. After a few moments, Yazmine stood up, wiping come off her face with a finger, scooping it into her mouth. Not wasting a drop.
“That will be all,” Taio said.
“The pleasure was all mine.” Yazmine turned to leave.
Without a doubt, Eva thought.
Her eyes began to droop as she watched Yazmine walk out of the room, surrendering herself to sleep.