Chapter Nine
Temptation
Enrue clenched his jaw as he watched Melia’s recorded vid-com for the seventh time. Five hours had passed since she sent it, and he felt ridiculous for being angry that she hadn’t commed again. She said she would, and so far, she’d been persistent, if annoying. The fact that she claimed to have met with General Wyther did not disturb him so much as the fact that Wyther hadn’t been heard from in several days. He was part of the alliance, and Enrue felt certain, Jeremy was dead.
He punched the com button from his bedroom desk for Nema, his secretary.
“Any word from the Cossia?”
She shook her head. “Maybe she got what she deserved.”
“Perhaps.”
He clicked out and strode to his bathing room to ready for sleep. As he stripped off his clothes, he wondered where she’d disappeared to, and strangely, her absence worried him. He brushed his teeth and flicked off the light, feeling exhausted. His back ached from sitting in the com meeting for hours, and his feet hurt from pacing in the boardroom later that day. Plus, he’d not slept well the night before. He tugged back the ornate covers and slipped between the sheets, thinking his bed felt better than he’d ever remembered. He turned on his side, closed his eyes, and thought of Melia’s lips.
The com toned. “What is it?” he muttered.
“It’s
her
.”
Enrue rolled over to face the screen. “Patch it through.”
“You don’t look imposing enough, if you want my opinion,” Nema warned.
“Shut up. Send through the com. I’m tired and I want to rest.”
The screen flickered. His secretary’s visage vanished, replaced by the now familiar narrow face that tormented his mind. “Ah, Melia,” he began. “I was beginning to think the Empire had sent you on a more important assignment. You’re late.”
In the background, low dance music played. Behind her, he noticed a metal wall. She smirked at him. “Did you miss me, Enrue?”
He closed his eyes and spoke just above a whisper, “Actually, yes. I was worried the Tarafian police caught you, and I wouldn’t be receiving any more of your delightful coms. How soon can you be here? I’m tired…tired of these games.”
“I’m already here. Thought I’d do a little sightseeing before our grand meeting. Taraf is a beautiful city. You must be proud.” She tapped at her sharer, entering in commands as if their conversation was not the only matter she had to attend to.
Enrue slid his hand down beneath the sheets and grasped his cock, watching her lips while she rambled on with her insults and empty threats. He slid his large fingers along its length and imagined they were small, feminine fingers, that her mouth sought out his growing hardness—
“Enrue?”
She narrowed her eyes. “Are you even listening to me?”
“Mm.”
He chuckled. “Not really. You keep saying the same things over and over. Tell me where we can meet and be done with the Empire’s ridiculous treaty. That’s all you have to present me with, isn’t it?”
Her mouth gaped, her eyes wandering as she stared. “Are you naked?”
“I’m in bed.” He glanced down and groaned. The cover had dragged down when he took hold of himself, exposing his bare chest. “Does it surprise you that I sleep without my uniform?”
Her lips pursed. He wanted to touch those lips with his fingers, his tongue—
Ignoring his comment, she went on with her rant. “You surprise me, Enrue. A hostile takeover of Irnia, the destruction of Hicklan cruisers, brothels and slaver houses shut down. You kill without due judgment when you find injustice. I must say, I admire you for it, but it’s not the way things should be done.”
He let go of his cock. It was too tempting to bring himself to orgasm with her voice and face only inches away.
I’ll wait until after she disconnects.
He hadn’t had such uncontrollable urges in a long while. It angered him, but he was slowly getting over that emotion. The
desire to have her, to corner her, to press her naked body against a wall and fuck her, made him feel
young and virile.
“Am I keeping you up?” she said, obviously ticked off by his silence.
“Yes, Melia.
You’re keeping me up.”
In more ways than one.
He reached across the small distance and touched the screen where her mouth was. “But I don’t mind tonight.”
She glared.
He liked the look of angry confusion she flashed. “Why don’t you contact the local officials, give them your name and tell them I need to speak with you? They’ll escort you here. Then, once I get my clothes back on, you can either side with me or be executed. Sound fair?”
“Have you been drinking?” She frowned. “This is not the same man I spoke to earlier.”
“As a matter of fact, I have.” He sat up, stretched his arms above his head, and the blanket fell across his lap. “Do you drink?”
That did it. The insult was visible on her face. “What the hell has gotten into you?”
He rolled his neck, cracking it and then his shoulders. “I’m old, Melia. I’m tired right now, and I’ve had too many glasses of Fury. You don’t know me or why I’ve done all I have. I doubt you want to know. And honestly, I don’t care.” Swiping a hand through his hair, he sighed. “The Empire is corrupt. It will fall…by my hand or someone else’s. You can’t tell me you love your job, that you see anything justifiable in doing it. I’m sure you understand what’s going on here.”
Melia’s eyes lowered.
Suddenly Enrue felt self-conscious.
Is she looking at my body?
Impossible.
She’s way too young for me. What am I thinking?
She swallowed, her slight throat moving in a delicate way. Her eyes returned to his face. “We meet tomorrow. I’ll com you and give you the locale. Agreed?”
He nodded.
“The sooner the better.”
He reached across the distance to disconnect and paused. “Good night.”
“Good night, Enrue.” A smile pulled up the corners of her full lips. When he rolled over and closed his eyes, he saw those lips in his mind’s eye and dwelled on their shape. He resisted temptation for nearly an hour, but needed sleep and he’d not get it until he relieved himself. Reaching down once more, he cradled his erection, this time savoring a slow, intense pace.
Melia will submit to me.
He would manage to get her alone, to seduce her with words, to argue. She liked a battle of wit, but he wanted a battle of another sort. His fantasy became intense, a barbaric teasing off of clothes. Kisses, hard and passionate, crushed into his neck, his chest, lower. Her warm skin ran along his body. She touched him, tasted him, clutched his buttocks and groaned when he filled her weeping pussy.
He came in a gush of heat. His body shook. Clenching his teeth, he stifled a strained cry.
* * * *
“Cancel my meetings.” Enrue strode into his secretary’s office dressed in his finest shirt and pants, a pressed silver and gold sash tied at his waist. He glanced at Nema and looked away, wondering how long he would have to wait for Melia’s com.
“Of course, my Shiemir.”
She pushed aside the data cards she’d been filing and shot him a knowing look. “Do I need to know your plans for the day?”
“I’ll relay them to you once I know what they are.” One of the security coms flashed images just above his secretary’s desk of varying sections in the palace. The library, the kitchens, the lower quarters…it blinked and Enrue stared at the Unangi statues side by side. Love and Desire, both ebon works of erotic art, both set in the center of the entry with tourists snaking around them in awe. Tarafian custom dictated a show of strength and power, but also a show of culture.
“Any word from the Unangi shamans about those?”
He nodded at the vid.
“Not yet.”
“I’d like to be rid of them before the takeover of Sentre’ and Omerian.” He paced once and eyed the exit, wondering what he should do with himself for the rest of the day. Melia might not com until evening again, and he certainly didn’t want to be drunk when she did.
“I thought maybe you’d grow fond of them in time.” Nema pulled up his schedule for the day, a sharp-eyed gaze taking stock of her work.
“Especially the female one.
It’s quite realistic.”
“I have no need for such things. Hemec better suits my requirements at the moment. Stone statuary will hardly fly spaceships. I suppose I could launch them at the Kyleena mothership and hope they all go mad with desire when it hits.”
Nema burst out laughing. “Sometimes you surprise me, my Shiemir. Just when I think you’re all pomp and business, you say something odd like that. I could almost believe you have a sense of humor.”
He humphed and stalked out.
Chapter Ten
Habiri Underground
“The Habiri Underground needs a leader,” Sister Lensi said, her tone serious, her green eyes intense. She pulled the veil down from her mouth and tossed it on the small dining table they sat at. “You can do this, Raz. You know about Hicklan, about the wards, the whole corrupt human trade market. I know you said you didn’t want out, but you’re out of that now. You can’t tell me this isn’t better than the life you had before.”
Razi raised a hand at her and shook his head. “No. I won’t do this for you. Helping people start a new life here is one thing, but I’m not going back, not anywhere near Hicklan or what I was in before. Yes. This life suits me fine, but I won’t give it up to help someone else.” He leaned back in the chair, unwilling to be coerced.
“Talk to Sima about it.” Lensi pointed at him.
“I will not. We’re staying here. There’s too much risk involved if we do what you want us to do.” He crossed his arms. “Would you put Leuj on the news if it would help the cause? Would you ship him to the Shiemir for promises of Unangi freedom?”
Lensi sighed. She bowed her head. “You’re so damn selfish.
Fine.”
“That’s right, it’s fine! I’ve had my life turned upside down once. I don’t want to go through it again.”
“But you got Sima.”
“I could have been killed—” He waved his hand in the air. “She could have been killed! You want me to spy on the underground network, the black market, places worse than Hicklan, the filthy offshoots of organized corruption. I’m not crazy. I like it here in this quiet, safe, organic community.” His hand dropped in his lap, slapping his leg.
“So, no.
The answer is no.”
The front door of Lensi’s cottage opened. A shrouded refugee leaning on a cane stepped inside. Lensi turned. “Where were you?”
The refugee pulled away his face covering, revealing blond hair and sharp, cold eyes. He smiled, wiped his brow, and set his cane against the wall. “I was at the office.”
“You just stay away from Sima.” Razi stood, ready to leave. As much as he liked Lensi, he didn’t care for Leuj.
Leuj smirked and edged behind the Habiri nun, planting his hands on her ample shoulders. “Relax. I warned her.” He bent around, and Lensi met his lips with a long, soft kiss. Breaking away, he narrowed his gaze on Razi. “She needs to stop using her real name. She ought to cover her face too. If someone realizes who she is, she’ll become a fine tool for political ransom.”
Razi pushed his chair in, worried now. “I suppose she wasn’t happy to see you again.”
“No, not really.”
He massaged Lensi’s back. “But I thanked her for letting me live. I want to thank you too.”
“Save your thanks.” He strode across the room and gripped the door handle. “I don’t want either one of you asking Sima to join this rebellion of yours, understand?” He shot a glare over his shoulder. When neither responded, he left, slamming the door behind him. He had to get back to work.