Pirate's Price (3 page)

He sure as hell better not put that opinion
to the test! She glanced toward the door. Was Kashi still
listening?

“Finger her ass. I want to see that tight
little hole spread around your finger.”

Fear poked through her uncertainty. Jaque
had played with her bottom from time to time, but he’d never taken
her there. She licked her lips, desperate to ask questions and
needing reassurance.

Pushing his middle finger into her pussy,
Umar rubbed her clit with his thumb. He studied her expression,
waiting for her to relax. “Tilt your hips and I’ll make you like
it,” he coaxed. Before Vega could object to his tone, she planted
her feet more firmly and canted her hips. Umar painted her anus
with her own juices, preparing and teasing her with his slick
fingertips.

His entry was surprisingly gentle. He
gathered cream again and eased inside with steady pressure. She
held perfectly still, relaxing her internal muscles as he gradually
filled her.

“Is she tight?”

“Very.”

“Has anyone ever fucked you up the ass?”

She shook her head, afraid to breathe as
that long finger began to slide.

“Then I will take your virginity on our
wedding night,” he muttered, his gaze glued to the steady
penetration of Umar’s finger. “Then Umar will fuck your pussy,
while I’m still in your ass. You will come so hard you’ll see
stars.” He reached down and pinched her clit. She yelped but bit
back a scream, unwilling to give him the satisfaction. “Do you need
to come, my lovely whore?”

“Yes.” Her whimper was real. Her entire
abdomen ached with the need to climax.

“Too bad.” He unfastened his pants and freed
his erection. “I will feel the silken heat of that traitorous mouth
first. Perhaps if you please me well enough, I’ll allow your lover
to reward you at the very end.” Umar moved to the side of the
divan, maintaining the firm slide of his finger in her ass. “Use
your tongue on her clit, but don’t let her come until I release my
seed.”

“Yes, sire.”

She caught a glimpse of Vega’s cock as he
pushed it into her mouth. It felt about the same as Jaque’s,
perhaps a bit longer. Swirling her tongue around the flared head,
she kept her lips snug as he rocked in and out. Two men were
touching her, arousing and teasing her, just as she’d always
imagined, yet she felt -- used.

Would he come in her mouth? Jaque always
timed his release so his come slid immediately down her throat.
Somehow she didn’t think Vega would consider anything but his
pleasure.

Vega groaned and hesitated in mid-stroke.
“You wicked, wicked man.”

Umar had thrust his finger into Vega’s ass.
Rana watched his hand move, but couldn’t actually see his fingers.
He was fucking them both, expertly controlling the pleasure. She
sucked Vega deeper into her mouth and Umar circled her clit with
his tongue. Their movements synchronized, driven on by Umar’s
clever skill. Tension gathered again, her senses focused as an
orgasm built within her.

“Now, for fuck’s sake, now!” Vega thrust to
the back of her mouth and jetted his seed into her throat. She
gagged then forced herself to swallow. “Yes, sweet slut. Swallow
again and again. Take all of it. Lick me clean.”

Like an obedient “whore” she swallowed every
drop then bathed his shaft with gentle licks and tender kisses. All
the while her fury grew. Nothing in the galaxy would be worth
spending the rest of her life playing the unfaithful wife for a
disinterested husband.

Panting harshly, Vega staggered back from
the divan and casually righted his clothing. “That was…remarkable.
I dare say we are more than compatible.” He laughed, obviously
proud of his performance. “If you two want to play a while longer,
I have no objection. I’ll see you in the morning and we’ll set a
date for our wedding.” He strutted from the room and discreetly
closed the doors.

Was the man daft or just oblivious? What
little interest they’d managed to ignite had been snuffed out by
their cruelty.

Umar slowly withdrew his finger. Rana
shuddered. She’d forgotten he was still inside her.

“Not quite what you were expecting?” Any
hint of warmth in his gaze iced over. She tried to close her legs
and he grasped her thighs, his fingers biting painfully into her
flesh. “Don’t ever try and control me again!”

She reared up and swung her fist at his
angry face. This farce had gone on long enough! He caught her wrist
and crawled onto the divan, kneeling between her thighs. “Let go of
me.” She mimicked her mother’s imperious tone, thanking god he was
still wearing pants.

He laughed. “Save your queenly airs for
someone who gives a shit. The only pleasure you will ever know,
from this day forth, will be given to you by me.”

Rather than argue, she glared into his eyes.
As soon as she got out of this room, she intended to pack her bags
and return to Devaunt. His threats held no power over her.

“How did you like being the king’s whore?”
He tweaked one of her nipples. “I know you didn’t come, because I
made damn sure you didn’t. But it doesn’t have to be like
that.”

“What do you want?” She ignored his touch as
he turned his attention to her other breast.

“I want you to understand the reality of
your position.” He pinched her viciously and she cried out despite
her clenched jaw. “Look at me when I’m speaking to you. In a few
weeks you will be queen, but you will also be a whore. You will
suck my cock whenever I crook my finger and raise your skirts
whenever I feel the need for your pussy or your ass.”

“And the king will have nothing to say about
it?”

“The king is a sniveling fool. I can make
him whimper like a baby with the swirl of my little finger. Imagine
what I can do with my cock.” He paused for a cruel smile. “Vega
will allow me to do whatever I want with you as long as we play his
ridiculous game.”

Pride blasted through her caution. She
despised bullies. “What’s to keep me from telling the king you’re
threatening me?”

“The well-being of your precious people.” He
arched his brow in challenge. “Unlike Vega, I take time to learn
everything there is to know about my adversaries. If you seem
hesitant at all, I’ll convince him to abolish the treaty. And we
both know how badly the people of Devaunt need the promised
reforms.” He leaned in, his lips brushing her cheek as he added,
“That’s the beauty of this arrangement. I will have both king and
queen at my beck and call.” He crawled off her and snatched his
discarded shirt off the floor. “I won’t make you suck me tonight.
Consider it your wedding gift,” Umar said as he left the room.

She scrambled off the divan and donned her
chemise as Kashi rushed into the room.

“Are you all right?” her handmaiden
cried.

“I’m fine.” She was fighting back tears and
her hands were shaking so badly she couldn’t fasten a button, but
she would not let Umar get the upper hand.

“You don’t mean to go through with this do
you?”

“Of course not.” She shuddered, drawing calm
from her renewed purpose. Her people must be protected, but never
again would she consider sacrificing herself in the process. “I
need time to figure out what to do about Mother.”

“Say the word and I’ll arrange --”

“I’m not going to murder my mother.” She
finger combed her hair away from her face. “Not even if she
deserves it.”

“She doesn’t have to die. We can just make
her disappear.”

Rana rubbed her temples and shook her head.
“If there is any doubt about her fate, the cabinet will appoint a
regent. After her dreadful rule, they are not anxious to empower
another empress.”

“They want a man on the throne?”

With a stiff nod, Rana focused on strategy.
“Her cabinet is even more corrupt than she is. I need the backing
of four of the six great houses before I make my move. I can’t do
this alone. I’m not sure I can do it at all, but
this
is not
an option.” They said nothing as Kashi helped her dress. Rana
slipped her feet back into her shoes and washed her mouth out with
the rest of her wine. “I can use this wedding as a stall tactic
while I set things in motion, but how do I avoid the actual
marriage? No one can suspect anything is amiss until it’s too
late.”

Kashi’s hazel eyes gleamed with mischief and
she offered Rana a reassuring smile. “You leave that to me. I know
a man who would be perfect to swoop in and ‘rescue’ you right
before your wedding can be consummated.”

Leaning his chair back against the wall,
Vihlok Torral rested his boot on the cross-rung of the chair beside
him and studied the two men standing at the bar. One was his best
friend, Fibros Jivan; the other represented a prospective
client.

Laughter and music mixed in a boisterous
cacophony. Gaming tables lined one end of the crowded nightclub and
the bar dominated another. Images flashed in time to the driving
beat, scrolling from one vidscreen to the next in a mesmerizing
ripple of color and light. Despite the numerous distractions,
Vihlok’s attention focused entirely on the stranger talking to
Fibros.

Vihlok’s knack for interpreting body
language had served him well in the past. Tall and lithe, with the
vivid blue markings of an Elloni, the stranger moved with practiced
grace and intentional precision. His gestures gave nothing away. He
passed Fibros a datapad, waited silently as the stocky Devauntian
browsed through the information, then made a final comment. Fibros
nodded in response to whatever the Elloni said then the stranger
inclined his head and left the bar.

Fibros ambled across the room, shoulders
tense, gaze averted. A chill raced down Vihlok’s spine. Why had the
exchange seemed…rehearsed?

“One of the children of Bliss?” Vihlok asked
as Fibros slipped into the chair across from him.

“I didn’t recognize him, but he sure looked
like the real thing to me.”

Elloni pleasure givers had become so popular
on Spaceport Makar others emulated their appearance. With some hair
dye and a skillful tattoo artist, a back alley trickster could
improve their reputation and significantly raise their prices.
Bliss, a top tier Madame, genetically tested all of her “children,”
ensuring their authenticity before they interacted with her
exclusive clientele.

Shaking away the tangent, Vihlok asked,
“What does the job entail, and more importantly, what does it
pay?”

Contracts had been scarce lately. The
Sabrotine Federation had thrown up blockades all over the star
system. Arrogant bastards thought they owned the universe and few
were powerful enough to argue the point. With pressure mounting
from all sides, Vihlok had applied for a privateer’s license which
gave him access to blockaded spaceports. He had no real love for
the Sabrotine. It was just easier to work with them than against
them.

“This one could be interesting.” Fibros
rested his forearms on the round tabletop and leaned in close. “We
wouldn’t ordinarily touch this sort of thing, but this is a lot of
money.”

Vihlok stiffened. There were only two
services he wouldn’t provide, kidnapping and assassination. “Are we
talking disappearance or coerced negotiation?”

“Negotiation.”

They were thieves and smugglers.
Intimidation and bribery didn’t even raise Vihlok’s pulse, but
kidnapping? He scooted his chair closer to the table, and lowered
his voice. “What is the client hoping to accomplish with the
negotiation?”

“We’ve both been doing this long enough to
know which questions are relevant.
Why
seldom enters the
equation.”

It was a subtle reminder. Fibros had no
trouble acting on incomplete information, while Vihlok wanted to
understand every aspect of each situation. They needed to be able
to control the sequence of events, but they were often protected by
their ignorance.

“You confirmed the fee?” Vihlok suppressed
his curiosity and focused on the facts.

Pulling the compact datapad from the front
pocket of his nondescript work shirt, Fibros passed it to Vihlok. A
deposit had been logged with the Interplanetary Bank of Sephora. If
Vihlok accepted the job, he’d transmit a passcode and the funds
would be transferred into a holding account for the duration of the
contract. The client could no longer access the funds, but neither
could Vihlok. Once the job was completed, the client would transmit
their passcode, releasing the credits. The arrangement protected
both sides and Sephoran bankers had gotten rich brokering the
deals.

Vihlok whistled long and low when he saw the
amount. “That is a lot of money.”

“This will give us some much needed
stability. We’ve been dredging the bottom for too long. Wouldn’t it
be nice to be selective again?”

He couldn’t argue with that and still
tension gripped his abdomen. “Risk assessment?”

“Minimal.” Fibros motioned toward the
datapad. “The entire job is outlined, opportunity, escape route, we
will even be issued invitations to the event.”

“This is an inside job.” It wasn’t a
question. Only someone close to the victim could arrange all this.
Vihlok scrolled through the diagrams, his discomfort growing with
each detail. Fibros was right about not asking why, yet the
question screamed through Vihlok’s mind. “Is the mark in on
it?”

“Didn’t ask. Don’t care. We disrupt a
wedding and make off with the bride. It’s a pretty straightforward
gig.”

“Are you sure you didn’t recognize the
messenger?”

Fibros shook his head. “They all look the
same after a while.”

Bliss was one of their best customers. Her
clients expected luxuries that weren’t easy to find in this
secluded sector. Bliss paid well and without argument, so they did
their best to help keep her customers satisfied.

“Who submitted the contract?” Vihlok asked.
“Are there references?”