Alcandian Soul (5 page)

“This is not over.”

“Yes, it is.”

Cassandra jumped, but was too late. Cole was a breath behind her and he captured her body once more. He turned her neatly so that she ended up with her nose pressed against his chest. Jerking her head up, she snarled as one of his hands caught the back of her head. That flicker of blue shot through his eyes again as her belly was pressed up against his hard cock. There was a shout of approval from her clit as it throbbed with sensation so intense, it was almost painful.

The flare of sexual interest was completely misplaced. Her temper rose but still couldn’t banish the way her nipples complained about their layers of clothing. “Let me go, Somerton.”

“Cole.” He growled the word an inch over her mouth before he licked her lower lip. She shivered as pleasure, sweet and thick, flowed down her spine. He controlled

the jerk she used to try and escape his hold before he lowered his mouth and kissed her. A muffled sound of denial got caught as Cole pressed his lips against hers. But it wasn’t a bruising kiss. He controlled it enough to keep their mouths together but stopped short of smashing her lips against her teeth. The hand on the back of her head released, and a second later he grasped her chin to pull her mouth open for his kiss.

She lost all track of thought after that. His kiss was forceful, yet controlled. He kissed her deeply, sending his tongue into her mouth to taste her and stroke her own. Pleasure radiated out from the kiss as she actually felt him filling her thoughts, sharing the sensation through more than connecting skin. Panic erupted as she felt every last private thing she valued placed on display. She jerked her knee up, out of reflex and eight years in the Army. She was no Ranger or Special Forces, but she was a damn fine enlisted woman.

Cole’s arms sprung open as her knee crushed the soft sacs hanging beneath his cock. But the man didn’t yell. He didn’t cuss. All that escaped his lips was a low growl. Cassandra moved away from him as she listened to the tone of that rumble. It wasn’t angry. It was promising.

“Don’t touch me.” She left off the “Somerton” because she just couldn’t take the chance that he’d call her bluff and kiss her again. Not right now. She had to get a grip on her raging sex drive before that happened. That wasn’t being cowardly, it was pure survival instinct.

Cole straightened up into a formal stance. He offered her a half bow before he grinned at her. “You enjoy my touch.” There was a flash of male arrogance across his eyes as he considered her flushed face.

He turned and left without another word. A sharp reply died on her lips as she forced her temper to recognize the wisdom of letting the man leave.

Warrior.

In a way, he really was a warrior. So was Dyne. The word was often misused on Earth, but Cassandra knew what its definition really was. She had witnessed firsthand what some men had deep inside them that made them different to a man just trained to use a gun. Some Rangers were warriors. Their dedication went beyond the “tabs” they got to sew onto their shoulders after completing Ranger training.

It was a mindset, something that was lodged in their spirit so that no matter what happened, they would choose honor over personal choice.

She turned away from the doorway as the curtain swung into place to offer her some privacy. There was a part of her that needed to curl up and savor the moment while she combed through her fluctuating emotions. Honestly, she hadn’t even known her damn body could be so demanding. Now was one hell of a time to deal with the discovery too.

And just why did Cole have to complicate the issue by kissing her?

* * * * *

“You should not have touched her.” Dyne was waiting for him at the bottom of the stairs. Cole felt the weight of his disapproval but he wasn’t sorry. He’d needed to taste her, the urge had been so strong, and it had demanded action.

Dyne shook his head. “I only meant that you should have given her more time before awakening a mating need. She has much to adjust to.”

Cole felt a tiny twist of guilt move through his enjoyment of that stolen kiss. Oh, he’d taken it from her, no doubt. “You are correct.”

Dyne slapped a hand onto his shoulder and offered him a grin. “Not that I have any experience with mates, only years of instruction.”

Dyne offered him a look of comradeship. It was something Cole realized he’d missed since his relocation to Alcandar. There were different levels of friendship. Every now and then, you managed to hook up with a team you forged strong ties with. The sort of bond that would support you in combat. It was the reason he was wearing a maroon coat and training to become a Judgment Official. Maybe he just didn’t know how to live without a team anymore. Hell, he really couldn’t remember life before his military career. There was no glow from that time in his life trying to lure him back. He liked Special Operations, in a way he craved it.

Slapping Dyne’s back, Cole offered him a guilty grin. “You’re right. But I’m not apologizing.”

A strange look took over Dyne’s face. A serious consideration of something that Cole wasn’t quite sure about, because the warrior snapped the link between their minds shut. “I wouldn’t be sorry either.”

Dyne’s voice was hard and almost cryptic. Something burned across Cole’s brain and it felt a lot like he was being crowded away from Cassandra. He shot a hard glance at Dyne and found it being returned. It was a tense moment, one that drew his muscles tight before Dyne broke their eye contact and proceeded down to the eating hall. Cole turned to look back at the piece of fabric hanging between him and Cassandra. Her taste clung to his lips as his appetite began to clamor for another sample.

“Cole.”

Dyne’s voice was quiet and gruff now. That was a simple reprimand from one warrior to another to respect the Alcandian way of ensuring females were given time to adjust. In this case, to abduction, so Cassandra did not have to deal with his passion.

At least not tonight.

That thought surprised him and Cole turned to join Dyne. His guilt was making more of the flare of lust than he should be. He was the last male on the planet Cassandra might be interested in, but that fact didn’t keep his thoughts away from her. He forced his feet to move away from her as he fell into step with Dyne.

Chapter Four

“I’m Jessica Somerton.”

Cassandra swallowed her snarl because it was really impossible to be steaming mad at a woman who looked like she was due to give birth any second. Jessica offered her a wide smile that betrayed the fact that she knew exactly what Cassandra was thinking. The mother-to-be even placed her hand on her rounded belly to give it a loving pat.

“Yes, I’m ready to pop. The last month is the longest.” Jessica moved towards one of the chairs and sat down. She opened her hand and indicated the one across from her.

“I really don’t know where to begin, but I think Cole has the right idea of sending me in to greet you instead of Dyne’s mother.”

There was a note in the woman’s voice that pricked her curiosity. Cassandra sat on the edge of the seat and glared at her. “Why would Dyne send his mother to deal with me?”

“Oh, tradition, and the rather hard fact that the mothers around here love making sure their sons get mates.”

“I am not anyone’s mate!” Cassandra clamped her jaw shut as her voice rose. A little heat crossed her cheeks for yelling at the pregnant woman. Jessica only chuckled and held up her hands in surrender.

“Like I said, Cole had the right idea getting me over here. It wasn’t too long ago I was in your place. Well, mostly in your place.”

“What part of my position were you in?” Cassandra’s gaze dropped to Jessica’s distended tummy as she frowned. The word “mate” was bouncing around inside her head, making her mad enough to take another swing at Cole Somerton for getting her into this mess.

“The kidnapped part. Only the Army assisted with my abduction. I think I looked about as angry as you do right now.”

Cassandra offered Jessica a wide smile. “Good. That will save me the trouble of telling you how sorry I am about your brother’s imminent death. I hope you don’t miss him too much. But I’m going to break his neck.”

Jessica laughed, low and husky, then shook her head and rubbed her belly once more. “Just be warned that warriors will enjoy you making any attempt on them. See, they will not touch you first. Honor forbids it right now, but if you take a swing at them, they can…restrain you.”

And gentle her. Cassandra bit into her lip as her memory offered up the moment Cole had smoothed his hand over her belly. A little shiver moved over her skin as she recalled how much pleasure that single stroke had given her. If she were a cat, she’d have purred. It had felt that good.

“What do you mean, honor prevents them from touching me?” Forewarned was forearmed. At least if she was stuck on Alcandar, she could turn the culture against Cole. It was the first idea she liked about staying on the planet.

“Everything on Alcandar revolves around honor.” Jessica pushed her body up out of the chair and moved towards the velvet curtain covering the half of the wall that overlooked the tables below. She reached for a button on a small control panel set into the stone wall and pushed it. The blue fabric swished aside to let them look across the building and down into the hall below.

“This balcony room is designed to protect first your honor, and secondly give you peace of mind. Warriors are far stronger than females, even Alcandian females. The blue curtain denotes that you are a maiden.”

Cassandra offered Jessica a sour look. “I may not get around too often but I’m no vestal virgin. Will they send me home now?” If it was that simple, she was going to find her last asshole of a boyfriend and give him a blowjob out of sincere gratitude.

“No, you’re not out of here that simply.” Jessica sighed. “The rules were different when I was claimed, but it’s not about the sex. What matters is the mind bridge. Cole was so angry when he found out I was here. I’m sorry, but he brought you here. But there has to be some kind of major reason why he and Dyne were sent after you. I doubt there’s any loophole around it. My brother hated the fact that my mates deceived me in order to get me here. It’s just not the Alcandian way to abduct women a warrior hasn’t mind-bridged with.”

Cassandra didn’t like the little twinge of compassion Jessica’s words bred inside her for Cole. The man was her abductor, twice over. He was the enemy. The word “mindbridge” only pushed her closer to becoming desperate because she’d already dealt with one form of mind messing and wasn’t eager for another round of anyone on the planet getting inside her head.

No ripples in the pond
…
The fish escapes without disturbing the surface of the water
.

“But there was a way out? What was it?”

Jessica rolled her eyes. “You go below into the warriors’ eating hall and offer your body to any and all takers on those tables below.”

“You just fuck them in the dining room?” Cassandra slapped a hand over her mouth as the word “fuck” just sailed out. Well, it was the correct word, but it was still a little too harsh for the swollen belly of her company. There were bad things about being an enlisted Army woman. Your mouth resembled a toilet from time to time. You just became immune to it because the predominately male ranks you lived and worked among couldn’t make it through a single hour without cussing. It was an impossibility as far as she could see. If they weren’t actually screwing someone, they were thinking about it. So “fuck” crossed their lips constantly.

“That’s right. Alcandian warriors pride themselves on control and honor. A woman who just spreads her body without emotional attachment is unacceptable to them.” Jessica gave her a hard look. “Not that that would help you.”

“I wasn’t planning on trying it.” Cassandra snapped her mouth shut. Giving out a detail like that was counterproductive to her cause. Jessica was Cole’s blood after all. She needed to watch what she said to the woman. She might have been kidnapped, but she looked pretty darn happy right now. Living too long in captivity could do that to even the strongest-willed woman. Cassandra looked at her with a sense of pity. Jessica was exactly what she intended to avoid becoming. A broken and saddled mare.

“Good. That’s a relief.” Jessica shrugged and pointed down at the few men eating at the tables. “See, the half wall means the warriors below will hear any cries you make. That’s Alcandian honor ensuring that stronger males don’t abuse females. The gold curtains show you where bonded units live. Only the elite live in the main hall though. All the warriors eat together. This is the Judgment Hall, they’re the law-keeping force here on Alcandar. Those maroon coats tell you they’re law-keepers. The black-edged ones have the right to kill in the line of duty.”

Jessica’s voice trailed off as she kept her eyes on the tables below. Cassandra felt her words like a punch in her gut. If Cole was a law enforcer on this planet, her imprisonment must be legal as far as they saw it. That left her with sagging hope as she tried to figure another avenue to take towards escape.

“Let’s go to the women’s hall and eat. I bet you’re hungry. Warriors and females are separated here, at least until you bind. There will only be other women there and maybe children.”

“All right.” Any move that helped her learn the lay of the house would be a good one. She wasn’t hungry, in fact, the idea of eating made her nauseous. But getting out of the room and possibly away from the Judgment warriors sounded good.

Really good.

* * * * *

It wasn’t hard to give Jessica the slip. Cassandra refused to feel guilty for ditching the pregnant woman. Even being human didn’t cut any slack as Cassandra focused her energy into escaping her guards. She needed information, facts, and she very much doubted that Jessica would be helping her discover the things she needed to get off Alcandar. The poor woman had accepted it as her home now, so there was no point in even trying to talk sense into her.

Living as a long-term captive did that to a person. Cassandra kept her mind focused on that hard scientific fact. But her eyes wandered over the pristine beauty of Alcandar. The air was so clear, like it was when you went backpacking in a national park. No dingy haze from urban smog, just bright sunlight sparkling through the trees.

And there were a lot of trees. Everywhere you looked something green was growing. All the columns in the courtyard hosted plants on top and the vines wrapped down their length towards the ground. Every available space was used as a planter and someone was taking really good care of the watering chore, because large, healthy green leaves opened up to the sunlight like you saw in Hawaii. The abundance of plant life just might explain the quality of the air.

Cassandra climbed the steps that led away from the building she’d woken up in, and looked over the surrounding area. There were other buildings and more maroonclad warriors moving along the pathways. A few of them noticed her but no one sounded any alarm. That only increased her need to explore. These Alcandians were just too confident in the fact that they had her caged.

There were streets with some kind of vehicles too. Cassandra studied them as best she could while she kept walking. She didn’t know where she was going, but more than one prisoner had made their way out of places where they had limited knowledge. She would just have to figure Alcandar out enough to find the wormhole.

* * * * *

“Would you two stop?” Jessica tried to step between Cole and her mate Jett but her second mate Dylan hooked an arm neatly under her swollen belly and picked her up.

Jett shot her a furious glace. “Being your brother does not grant him the right to place you in harm’s way.”

“Being my sister means I wouldn’t send her anywhere near something that might be dangerous.” Cole was angry and he really didn’t care if Jett didn’t like his tone of voice. Dyne stepped in front of him, surprising him into silence as he faced off with Jessica’s two mates. Both warriors were seething over the fact that Jessica had been left alone with Cassandra. To their way of thinking, Cassandra was discontented and unpredictable. That made it unsafe for their mate to be alone with her.

“There was no danger.” Dyne’s words were calm but hard. The Judgment Official wasn’t willing to listen to any charges of neglect. Jett folded his arms over his chest as he glared at Dyne.

“I like it not.”

“Well, too bad, Jett! I am not your pet.” Jessica wiggled and glared at her second mate. “Put me down, Dylan, and I mean right now! I’m quite capable of deciding if I want to talk to someone. You may think you know better, but it’s mighty damn hard to be a newly claimed female around here. No one talks to you straight.”

Dylan let his mate go as a slight look of sympathy crossed his face. Jett only hissed under his breath. Cole wanted to pull his collar away from his neck because it felt like his coat was shrinking and biting into his throat.

Shit
.

He hated the facts surrounding Cassandra’s arrival. Her opinion really shouldn’t have mattered too much considering what was at stake, but he still didn’t like the fact that she was unhappy.

It stank and it was his fault.

“Now, boys…” Jessica glared at all four of them. Her forehead was creased with tension as she drew in a deep breath. “I suggest you remember that Cassandra is active Army. Somehow, I don’t think she’s going to be so easy to contain. So, someone better keep at least one eye on her. But that’s as far as I am going in helping you with her. Being kidnapped stinks. If she makes your life a living hell, you’ve got it coming.”

Jessica lifted an eyebrow as her two mates turned disapproving looks at her. Her lips twisted into a devious grin before she pointed a finger at them. “It stinks like a startled skunk and just because I love you both still doesn’t mean it doesn’t stink!”

Jett and Dylan both grinned at her confession of love, and she threw her arms into the air as she huffed. Jessica rolled her eyes before she turned and left them. Jett and Dylan instantly lost their amused expressions as they turned to face Cole and Dyne once again. Dyne surprised him again by taking a step forward to stand shoulder to shoulder with him. It was a stance that proclaimed them a team. Dyne was clearly stating that if the other two warriors wanted to take issue with Cole, they had to deal with both of them.

Dylan grunted before he nodded reluctantly. “Best I let my mate have her way in this, but I still do not agree.”

“Nor do I.” Jett looked more angry than Dylan did. But the warrior stood with his comrade’s statement and simply continued to glare at them.

Dyne considered the two men for a moment. “A warrior thinks differently about a sibling than a mate. Agree that you do not consider your sister Zeva as delicate as you do your mate.”

“Zeva is not delicate, but I believe her mates will tell you otherwise. However, I concede the point to you.” Jett lost his glaring look, as a tiny smirk replaced his frown. “We shall see how well you handle your own mate. It is not a simple thing. There is a part of you that will always crave knowing she is buffeted from the ugliness around her. Pampering her becomes a pleasure.”

Cole frowned as Jett shot him an amused look before he nodded his head and left with Dylan. They moved swiftly in unison until they overtook Jessica in the lower courtyard. His sister tossed her head as her mates joined her but Cole couldn’t help but laugh at her temper. She did love them, he was sure of that, because if he wasn’t he would have made damn sure she didn’t have to stay on Alcandar if she didn’t want to.

That left him feeling like an asshole again.

“You must give it time, Cole. No one can predict what might come to pass.” Dyne turned to consider him with an odd look on his face. “We have not yet introduced Cassandra to the things that are pleasant about Alcandian life. I believe we should begin with a meal. Females find that relaxing.”

“Cassandra might throw it at you instead of eating it.”

Dyne looked startled for a moment but then his eyes glowed with the promise of challenge. Cole bristled as he watched the flame of interest. Dyne felt the surge of heat and frowned at him.

“I think there is another matter to attend to first, Cole Somerton. Our minds have linked.” Dyne considered him for a moment as Cole felt the other warrior drift through his thoughts. He honestly hadn’t realized just how strong the link was because he was accustomed to the feeling now. In fact, it would feel odd to have it removed. Dyne offered his nod of approval.