Authors: Cyndi Friberg
“I was hoping to speak with Charlotte for a moment.” Tal paused beside her chair.
“No, little brother, you were hoping to find her alone so you could kiss her. But you’re not the only one with carnal aspirations. There are fourteen other men hoping for a moment alone with our guest.”
“You include yourself among that number?” Tal demanded.
“Why are there so few women on Ontariese?” Charlotte asked firmly, interrupting their budding argument.
“Because of Fro dar Joon,” Tal said impatiently.
“The man who started the war,” she murmured, not understanding the significance.
“Fro dar Joon tried to annihilate every female in the Traditionalist Sect,” Tal reminded her.
“She obviously doesn’t understand what that means, Tal,” his brother said. Trey looked at her and explained. “Charlotte, the great houses are like Earth’s ethnic races. Four stayed true to the old ways, but the House of Roumi joined the House of Joon. If all Earth cultures divided until there were only two, then you would have the Ontarian sects.”
“Every person on Ontariese belongs to one sect or the other? There are no other social or governmental divisions, only the two sects?” She felt like a schoolgirl failing to grasp what was obvious to the rest of the class.
“Yes,” Trey confirmed.
Charlotte grasped the back of the chair, dreading the conclusion looming before her. “Fro dar Joon tried to kill half of the females on the
entire planet?
”
“Fro dar Joon unleashed a virus that wiped out two thirds of all Ontarian females,” Tal explained. His hair coiled tightly, revealing his anger. “The vaccination with which he thought to protect Reformation females was only partially effective.”
“That is so irrational,” Charlotte whispered. Who would end a political conflict by— Flashing images of the Holocaust reminded Charlotte that genocide was not an alien strategy.
“It is ruthless and evil, but it is not without rationality,” Trey disagreed. “He originally targeted only the House of Aune, but he knew we were hiding our women so he expanded his target to the entire Traditionalist Sect.”
Charlotte stepped in front of the chair and sank onto its seat. Nervously tucking her hair behind her ear, she looked at Tal and said, “When you told me he murdered the descendants of the House of Aune, I thought you meant your family members, your sisters and cousins. I had no idea his evil was so far-reaching.”
“I should have made sure you understood the scope of his crime,” Tal said softly. “Our worlds are very different. It’s hard for me to remember you don’t know our ways.”
Trey leaned back in his chair, rocking subtly.
“That’s what we were discussing when you arrived.” She felt sick inside. Who was she to draw the attention of such evil? If The House of Joon had already sacrificed so many, why had they focused their attention on her? Held up against the backdrop of the massacre, her life seemed trivial, insignificant.
“Which particular Ontarian custom were you discussing?” Tal asked, drawing her away from her distressing thoughts.
“The claiming,” Trey supplied.
“Declaring a social alliance,” Tal suggested. “You make it sound like an uncivilized act.”
“It can be uncivilized or it can be—”
“Oh, stop it.” Charlotte cut in. “What exactly does declaring a social alliance entail? Trey said it could be dangerous for me to remain—”
“Unclaimed.” Trey put in dramatically.
Tal chuckled. “It simply means that you are unavailable to other men.”
Something in Tal’s expression and the knowing look that passed between the brothers made her ask,
“Is a female allowed more than one social alliance?” Trey grinned. He folded his hands behind his head, displaying his brawny arms to advantage. “You want to explain it or shall I?”
“You will make it sound licentious, regardless of the necessity driving the custom.”
“Then you explain it to me.” The easy banter between them fascinated her. They obviously cared for each other deeply, but their differing perspectives were just as obvious.
“There’s a difference between a life mate and a social alliance. Since the massacre, it has been counterproductive to encourage monogamy.”
“Women are encouraged to have more than one husband?” she asked, shocked and yet intrigued. Her mind filled with titillating images of the male version of a harem.
“No.
Husband
is the same as
life mate
and that denotes a permanent joining. A social alliance is temporary. Most last for several months and often result in children. In fact, children are encouraged but—”
“Children are out of the question right now. There is just no way.” Both men stared at her silently.
Apparently her adamancy was either unusual or insulting. “Can’t your planet import females to balance out the ratio? In Earth’s history, there were times when the male-to-female ratio in certain regions became out of balance. We found ways of encouraging females from other regions to relocate to the affected areas.” Interplanetary mail-order brides?
She had to pinch herself to keep from laughing.
“Such programs have been discussed, but the war between the sects must be our first priority,” Tal said.
They dodged the question before so she tried again. “Can a woman have a social alliance with more than one man at the same time?”
The brothers glared at each other and even the pinching couldn’t keep her from laughing. “I was not contemplating…
that
,”
she
assured
them.
Imagining…but not seriously contemplating.
“If all the parties involved are agreeable to the arrangement, such things are allowed,” Tal admitted.
“But generally a woman will end her alliance with one man when she becomes interested in another. For this reason, some alliances last only a matter of days.”
“Or as long as it takes this ship to arrive on Ontariese,” Trey suggested with a cheeky grin.
Talking about the concept was one thing but she felt uncomfortable with the obvious expectation.
“You want me to agree to have sex with one of the men on this ship until we arrive on Ontariese?” Trey rocked farther back in the chair, balancing on the two back legs. “The men have kept their distance because they thought you’d been claimed by Tal. You haven’t gone near him in several days so the crew wants to know if your social alliance with Tal has ended. It has been noted that no man shares your cabin. They want to court you. I have considered the possibility myself.”
“Why must I choose anyone? I don’t want a lover right now.”
“Declaring a social alliance is not the same as agreeing to be a lover,” Trey said. “The social alliance only gives the man exclusive right to…persuade you to become his lover.”
“I would be inviting him to seduce me.”
“Basically,” he agreed.
“Just tell them our social alliance has not ended,” Tal told his brother.
“This is not your decision to make.” Trey looked at her and offered her a teasing smile. “Do you declare a social alliance with Tal Aune?”
“What exactly does it mean if I do?”
“You will have to stop avoiding me,” Tal said with a smile nearly as compelling as his brother’s.
These Ontarian men knew how to use their charm.
Charlotte had never seen Tal flirt before. Her stomach fluttered and her lips tingled.
“Or you could accept my protection.” Trey drew her attention to him. “I am infinitely more amusing than my little brother.”
This was too much. It had been years since she thought of herself as anything but a safely married woman. Now she was headed for a planet where men outnumbered women two hundred to one. What had she gotten herself into?
She looked at Tal and felt her heart leap at his determined expression. He didn’t want Trey near her.
He wanted her for himself.
Trey said a social alliance didn’t guarantee the man sex, just allowed him to
persuade
her. She could choose whomever she wanted and just make sure they were never alone. Charlotte swallowed hard and anxiously crossed her legs.
“I declare a social alliance with Tal Aune,” she said finally.
Trey’s chair hit the floor with a sharp snap. “I’ll spread the word.”
Charlotte waited for Trey to leave before she spoke again. “What happens now?” She felt foolish asking but she could no longer read Tal’s expression.
He pulled her to her feet and wrapped her in his arms. His mouth claimed hers. There was no other word for the possessive demand in his kiss. She clung to his back, shocked by the ardor her decision had unleashed.
Panting harshly, he pushed her to arm’s length and caressed her face with his smoky gaze. “Tonight, I will show you,” he promised. He kissed her forehead and turned toward the door.
“Wait. Where are you going?” she asked in a breathless rush.
“To move my things to your cabin.”
Amused by his anxiety, Tal paced the small cabin, waiting for Charlotte to appear. Tal reached out, keeping his presence light to avoid detection, and found her. His gentle probe slammed into a barrier so solid he staggered back a step and shook his head.
The cabin door slid open and she entered, her face twisted with anger.
“Stay the hell out of my mind!” She marched across the cabin and sat on the bed. “We’ve got to get some things straight before this goes any further.”
“I know it’s not your intention to allow me a full-body joining. My presence here is for the benefit of the crew. Is that why you’re upset?”
“My upset goes far beyond whether or not I will
ever
have sex with you,” she said, but the shrill urgency had left her voice. “First and foremost, I don’t believe it was impossible for you to include me in the decision to stage my death. You
chose
not to.” He started to object but she rushed on. “I don’t want to argue the point. I know you feel you were justified, but what it cost you is my trust. You had precious little of it to begin with but you’re back to square one.”
“‘First and foremost’ indicates a list of contentions.
Is it your intention to present them all tonight?” She laughed and Tal’s hair uncoiled, spinning around his arms in a telling flurry.
“Could be a long night. I want your promise that you won’t make a decision directly affecting me without asking for my input first.”
He hesitated for only a moment. Input did not necessarily sway a decision. He could allow her that much. “Agreed.”
She paused. “I never thanked you for the necklace.
It’s amazing and I appreciate it.”
He inclined his head.
“The mind-scan thing works both ways, right? Like when you showed me Pyramid Peak?”
Tal studied her face. Her wide eyes stared back at him expectantly and her chin tilted, hinting at her stubbornness. “Why do you ask?”
“I want to know everything you know about Dez dar Joon.”
She had no idea what she suggested. “You know all you need to know. He believes you’re a threat and wants you dead. Why would you want to know more?”
“I want to understand my enemy.”
He summoned a chair from the floor and tried not to reveal his anxiety. If he were to guide her through his memories, show her what she wanted to see, he would expose far more of himself than he was ready to share. “Your mind is untrained. I don’t know if I could control the—”
“I don’t believe you. You’re a
Master-level Mage
.
You can control whatever you choose to control.”
“I will tell you anything you wish to know. What do you not understand?”
“You’ve been in my mind. Don’t you trust me to wander through yours?”
He couldn’t mistake the challenge flashing in her bright blue eyes. If he hoped to earn her trust, this was where he must start. “It will not be a pleasant journey,” he warned.
She scooted to the edge of the bed, bringing her knees almost even with his. “I can handle it.”
“Let’s hope that’s not an idle boast.”
Charlotte swallowed hard and tried not to fidget.
“I must enter your mind to establish the link. Then I will guide you into mine.”
She folded her hands in her lap and pressed her lips together. This was supposed to be about him opening himself to her. “Can’t I just come to you?” He smiled and she felt her stomach flutter. If he smiled more often, she’d be in serious trouble.
“Do you know how?” he challenged.
“All right, but just establish the link and then—”
“Why are you so afraid of mental connections?” The question made her pause. “I don’t know.”
“Another mystery for Vee to investigate. I’ll remain in your mind only as long as I must. If you relax and accept my presence, the link can be established more easily.”
He reached for her face and she closed her eyes.
“No, look at me. Look into my eyes.”
The warmth of his palms framed her face. She met his smoky gaze. The motion sped and she felt the gentle penetration of his mind into hers. She tried to relax, to allow him in, but some instinctual warning made her resist.
“Charlotte,” he whispered. “I cannot show you my memories without this link.”
She took several deep breaths, but the harder she concentrated, the more her mind rebelled.
A smile tugged at the corners of his mouth. “Shall I kiss you? That seemed to work before.”
The hint of smugness in his tone made her stiffen.
“That is not why I asked you to do this.”
“I didn’t say it was.”
Before she could protest, he eased her legs apart and knelt on the floor between her thighs. They were fully dressed but she trembled at the intimacy. His arms circled her, drawing her close against him.
“You started this.” His warm breath fanned her lips. “If you want more, take it.”
His spicy scent filled her nose and his mouth was less than a handsbreadth away. Her tongue darted out to wet her lower lip. Why was she afraid? It wasn’t as if this were the first time they’d ever kissed.
You care for him already
. She didn’t want to accept the thought but she couldn’t deny it.
You’re attracted to
him. You want the kiss to be more than a distraction
.