placed my cuffs on her wrists, I had no choice but to go with her to find her brother, for not only had I given her my word, but once she put the cuffs about her wrists, we could not be apart, not until we were truly bonded.
Worse, if I betrayed her trust, she would never allow me to fuck her, let alone bond with her. Without it, I’d die.
She then, held all the power. We were both in a dilemma. We both needed the other. Each of us had a price that we were willing to pay. I would subject my mate to danger to find her brother. She would become my mate. Permanently. Based on the kiss, it would not be a hardship.
“Very well. I accept.”
I groaned then, low and deep. Hearing those words from her lips soothed the beast in a way not even the kiss had. It paced and nudged to escape, but hearing her agree to be my mate soothed it. Me. All of me.
I went to the door and opened it for the commander. I knew he hadn’t gone far. Not only was I a rogue ex-warrior who’d transported into a battle and ripped the Hive to pieces, but I was also the Atlan who wished to mate one of his top officers.
He entered and looked between the two of us.
“You can’t accept the warlord’s plan,” he said. He was a shrewd man, knowing exactly what I’d offered her and what it would cost him.
“I already have.”
“Captain, I have to question the wisdom of your decision,” the commander replied. “Be logical. Use that analytical mind of yours, Sarah. Your brother is gone. Don’t make this sacrifice when there is no hope of getting Seth back alive.”
“Seth’s still alive. I can feel it. I gave my word to my father. I can’t lose him, too. He’s all I have left. I’m sorry, Commander Karter, but I have to find him.” The last line was like a mantra falling from her lips. She tugged the bracers from her forearms and dropped them at her feet. Grabbing the cuffs, she pushed her shirt up to expose her forearms. Opening one then the other, she slipped the cuffs about her wrists. They sealed automatically and cinched securely about her delicate skin.
Flicking a gaze up at me, she tilted her chin then turned to the commander. “Now what?”
The commander sighed. “Captain Mills, you have donned the mating cuffs of an Atlan male, therefore effective immediately, you will be transferred to the Interstellar Bride Program. Your command position is relieved. You are no longer a member of the coalition fleet. You will hand over your ion pistol.”
With precision, she pulled the weapon from her hip and gave it to the Prillon. She did not seem to doubt her decision. In fact, the finality of it seemed to harden her resolve.
Commander Karter turned to me. “Well, I guess you got what you came for.” He ran a hand through his hair with a loud sigh. “Check in with Silva on the civilian deck. She’ll assign you temporary quarters.”
Sarah placed her hands on her hips. “We won’t be staying. We’ll transport immediately.”
The commander shook his head. “I’m afraid that’s impossible.”
“What? I promise you, once we transport to where the Hive took Seth, we’ll be out of your way.”
“There’s no more transport until thirteen hundred tomorrow, at the earliest.” When her mouth fell open in shock, he added, “Magnetic debris field is moving through. It’s too dangerous. The entire sector is shut down. No transport, no flights.”
“No!” There would be no transport, no battle, no movement for almost sixteen hours. Normally, everyone in the battle group celebrated these freak magnetic storms, allowing for rest and forced relaxation. Sarah’s gaze flew to mine and I could read her easily. She was worried about her brother, about the extra time the Hive would have to torture and modify him. But she was also wondering exactly what I was going to demand of her over the next sixteen hours while we waited.
If I couldn’t take her to her brother, I could provide a worthy distraction. Perhaps a good, hard night of fucking would clear both our heads.
Chapter Seven
Sarah
I grabbed my bracers off the floor, turned on my heel, and left the commander’s war room and my new mate behind.
So, I was mated to an Atlan warlord who kissed like a god? Whatever. Once I was out of the commander’s office, I tugged at the cuffs, trying to work them off. I might be Dax’s mate, I might have all but humped his hard thigh, but I didn’t need to wear these darn things. I had put them on as part of the show for Commander Karter, not that I was going to go back on my word. I wasn’t. Once Dax helped me get my brother back, I would try to be a good little wife. Based on the way he kissed, a one-night stand would be pretty darn hot. Until then? I didn’t need these… I tugged and tugged… visible signs that I was connected to the warlord. Owned by him. Belonged to him. My word was more than enough.
I tried to pry them open. Nothing. Shit. They were snug, but at least I could get my fingers beneath the gold bands. Regardless, there was no give. Where the hell was the clasp?
I nodded at two warriors who saluted me as they passed me in the corridor. They were probably the last two salutes I’d get, for I wasn’t in the coalition fleet any longer. I’d made it two months, not two years. At least I wasn’t dead. Although it’s possible that being mated to… him might be worse.
He was brash and bold and that wicked grin only indicated a cockiness that drove me crazy. Somehow he could just breathe and I’d be angry. And horny. What was it about him? What was it about his kiss that made me insane? And horny. God, he was sex on a stick. Somehow he’d gotten me to want him to touch me. He’d told me what he wanted to do to me, cavemen level, carnal things—and I was thankful he’d done it in private—as I’d all but melted at his feet.
Not only that, I’d kissed him like a woman eager for his advances. At first, I’d kissed him back because, what the hell? Why not sample what he was offering? When his lips met mine, however, it was more like, more. Give me more. His rock-hard thigh had nudged between my legs and lifted me up so that he pressed perfectly against me. My pussy ached to be filled and my swollen clit had rubbed and awakened. Between his tongue in my mouth and the way I’d humped his leg, I’d been on my way to orgasm central. Shameless. He’d even growled as I’d gotten wet, like he could smell me or something.
No man had ever made me feel like that before. He’d had me pinned against the wall and completely at his mercy. I never liked being at anyone’s mercy, but with Dax, with his kiss and his touch and his whispered words and his… God, the hard feel of his cock against my lower belly where the body armor didn’t cover… I wanted it all.