Bonded (4 page)

Chapter Five

Neichon strode back and forth just outside the clearing they’d chosen for this evening’s rest, waiting for Inara to finish her bath. “We should get closer. In case danger presents itself.”

Valeron nodded, unable to mask the eager expression that lit his face.

Control yourself. Control your pod mate.
But Neichon had no clue how he’d be able to manage that. Something about Inara drove him crazy. Not just the way she looked, though he had to admit her lush curves were more than he could have asked for. But also her personality. He loved their mate’s brazenness.

They stopped in the forest just outside the pond, far enough away that Inara still had privacy, but close enough for them to hear the sound of splashing water. Valeron inhaled sharply beside him, and Neichon imagined they were both thinking the same thing. She was just a few hundred feet away, naked and wet, her hands on her body as she washed the dust away. It was unbearable agony to think on it.

“By severn, I cannot bear it,” Valeron whispered. “I must see her.”

“We cannot,” Neichon answered with a tortured groan. It was not right to spy on her. But he wanted to do so, desperately.

“Come,” Valeron insisted, creeping forward. “We can observe unnoticed from the trees. It is the least she owes us, after teasing us unbearably these past few days.”

Lords help him, he found it impossible to refute Valeron’s argument.

He and Valeron stalked through the trees, stepping carefully to avoid noisily cracking any twigs. They came to a stop and Neichon couldn’t help but suck in a breath as he took in the sight of the pond, illuminated by the pale moonlight. Their female kneeled a few feet inside the pond with her back to them, naked as she poured water over her body. The water reached only to her hips in her kneeling position.

Almost as if on cue, she turned her body so that her front faced them. “Lords above,” Valeron whispered on a choked sound as the round, firm globes of her breasts bounced with her movement.

Inara leisurely scrubbed her breasts, then lifted each arm to rub a hand along her body. Droplets of water beaded down her tawny skin, glimmering like molten gold in the moonlight.

She was exquisite.

Inara stood and ran her fingers through her wet hair, her front fully bared to their eager gazes. Suddenly Neichon remembered something his uncle had once told him. Chivean women did not have hair on any part of their body, other than their heads.

The view of her naked flesh was so unbearably arousing he had to bite back a loud groan.

Turning once more to face the water, she rubbed her hands along the luscious curves of her backside. Beside him, Valeron’s breath came out in harsh gasps.

Unable to help himself, Neichon reach down to touch his heavy erection through his loincloth. The urge to grip his cock in his fist almost overwhelmed him, but he fought it back. Out of the corner of his eye, he noted Valeron didn’t have quite the same restraint.

Inara spread her legs slightly and bent over, washing her legs in a leisurely manner. Her movement exposed her bare cunt to them, the soft, pink folds of her flesh glistening in the moonlight.

Lords, but she was breathtaking.

Inara spread her legs farther as her hands traveled back up her thighs, parting the sweet folds of her flesh and rubbing two fingers there. Then, as if she had all the time in the world, one delicate finger slowly disappeared between her soft folds.

Neichon could not mask his harsh groan as he watched her move her finger in and out of her wet heat, then slip yet another finger deep inside.

By severn, the woman was finger-fucking herself, right there in front of them. He might almost suspect she was aware of her clandestine audience by the way she thrust her curved backside in their direction as she pumped her fingers in and out.

She turned her head to the side and the light illuminated her face enough for Neichon to make out her lips parting on an inaudible moan. An expression of ecstasy crossed her face as her eyes fluttered closed. She brought her other hand up to finger her clit, spreading her legs farther. Her fingers plunged in and out of her moist heat, harder and faster, until finally her hips jerked and she let out a soft cry.

Neichon did not know by what miracle he managed to withhold his own release, but he did. He couldn’t, however, stop his hand from reaching under his loincloth and closing over his engorged arousal, pumping up and down.

After dipping herself to her neck in the water, Inara rose and sauntered out. She bypassed the clothing she had abandoned by the pond, her full, firm breasts bouncing up and down as she strode in their general direction with a sense of purpose.

By severn, could she know we are here?

Neichon’s sense of alarm grew as she drew ever so closer to their hiding spot. He hastily lowered his loincloth, Valeron doing the same.

Inara finally stopped short just a few feet away. Her sultry voice called out, “Enjoy the view, boys?”

His face grew red as he exchanged uncomfortable glances with Valeron. Feeling like a boy caught sneaking treats, he stepped out of his hiding spot. “I—”

“Do you still contend you need a permanent arrangement, or will you two just fuck me already?” she interrupted, her tongue snaking out between her teeth in a gesture of impudence.

Neichon sucked in a breath at her bold words. Valeron stalked out beside him, and Neichon exchanged a tortured glance with him before turning his gaze back to Inara. “You are our mate. We must observe the ritual. If you do not agree to it, then we cannot.”

Even if he felt like he would die if forced to go another second without plunging his cock into her delicious heat.

“Too bad.” Her face fell, but then a wicked glimmer crept into her eyes and she lifted a brow. “Well, since you both behaved yourselves so nicely as you watched me bathe, I’ll just have to show my appreciation in another way.”

She unexpectedly dropped to her knees in front of them, giving them a mischievous grin.

Neichon choked on his breath.

Why, you little vixen…

* * * * *

Her body clenching from the aftermath of her climax, while at the same time pulsing with renewed desire, Inara bent on her knees in front of Neichon and Valeron. From the surprised looks on their faces, they hadn’t realized she’d known they watched her bathe. She’d immediately sensed their presence when they first crept to the pond, and when she’d turned she had spotted Valeron’s honey-toned skin shimmering in the moonlight.

The overpowering lust she felt for the men had prompted her into turning around, parting her legs and thrusting her bottom out to provide them an unfettered view of her body as she washed herself. But then she’d gotten so turned-on, thinking of them watching her from among the trees, that she’d been unable to resist thrusting her fingers inside her pussy.

For some reason she’d remembered back to the day when the Thespartan sheikh, after engaging in hours of drinking and cards with one of his visiting friends, had called her into the game room, drunkenly requesting that she suck the two of them off. She could have refused and he would have accepted her decision, but the thought had turned her on so much that she’d instantly dropped to her knees in front of him. The two men had taken turns fisting their hands in her hair and thrusting their cocks down her throat, each crying out as he reached his release. It had secretly been the best sexual experience of her life. But somehow she had a feeling these two Spygians would top it.

She wanted to find out.

So she’d turned around and walked out of the water, stalking toward them in the moonlight and dropping to her knees in front of them. Now she enjoyed the look of shock on their faces as they realized her intent.

Inara grinned at them impishly. Reaching up, she thrust their loincloths up over their jutting rods and grasped one in each hand. Heavens, they were massive. Her fists wouldn’t even close over their whole width.

She jerked her fists up and down on them, bringing her mouth to the swollen tip of Neichon’s engorged cock before licking and sucking it. Her tongue swirled around the head before she sucked it into her mouth once more. She moaned in satisfaction when Neichon cried out, grasping the back of her head and pulling her head down more insistently on him. She opened her throat, trying to take as much of him as possible, until she choked on his width and length.

What would it be like to be fucked by this large tool? She couldn’t imagine being able to fit the whole of him inside her. But it sure would be fun to try. It was too bad that they were looking for more than she could offer them. Too bad indeed.

After pulling back, Inara closed her fist over Neichon’s rod, now slick from her mouth, and stroked it. She turned and took Valeron into her mouth. His tool was just as large as Neichon’s, and he too cried out in pleasure, jerking his hips against her mouth in a clumsy rhythm.

Oh, this feels too good.

She returned to Neichon’s cock and took him in her mouth. He began to piston in and out, his legs trembling with the force of his arousal. He gave a hoarse cry as he came, his come spurting deep down her throat.

The exquisite force of his release, the sweet, tangy taste of him, prompted Inara into another climax. She moaned and pressed her legs together to calm the aftershocks. When she moved over to Valeron, he eagerly slid his tool between her lips. Setting a quick, furious rhythm, he fucked her mouth with abandon. Moments later he cried out and stiffened against her. The sharp flavor of his come coated her mouth, trickling down her throat and prompting another wave of tremors in her pussy.

Gods, that was amazing. Utterly amazing.

Never before had she experienced such pleasure. Even the way they both looked at her now, their faces radiating satisfaction, turned her on.

Wiping her mouth, Inara stood and gave the men a bold wink before whirling around and sashaying toward the spot where she’d discarded her clothes and dagger. But instead of the pure lightness she should feel after such a sensual experience, there was an undercurrent of dread that tightened her chest and made her stomach feel like it was full of bricks. If she wasn’t careful, if she didn’t do a better job of guarding her heart…

She feared she could get quite used to this.

To them.

Chapter Six

After another night of shockingly blissful sleep, Inara awoke to find herself sandwiched between Neichon and Valeron. Again.

Following their erotic interlude last night, she and the men had made their way back here. They hadn’t mentioned what had happened, but rather held her close and shared more stories about their planet. From their descriptions of the place, it seemed like somewhere she would like to visit.

A happy smile crept to her lips. The two men would have her spoiled by the time she left this planet.

Left
them
.

Reality intruded, dashing away her daydreams like a bucket of ice water to the face. There was no happily ever after here. Not for her. Not as long as Cindra was out there, alone.

She wiggled her way out of their arms. This time they both woke, and she got the sense they’d never fully given in to sleep, fearful she’d slip away like she did the last time. Forcing a smile to her face, she placed her hands on her hips.

“I’d like to get an early start. If we make haste, I believe we can reach my ship by midday.”

Agile as a cat, Neichon rose to his feet. The muscles of his chest and forearms rippled, and Inara had to look away to fight the irrational burst of lust that spiked within her. She was beginning to fear she’d always respond to them this way. Always want them.

“Have you ever worked on your spacejet before?” Neichon asked while Valeron stood and arched his back.

She nodded, keeping her gaze averted from the two men. Staring at them was like staring at the sun, awe-inspiring but ultimately bad for her.

“I learned early on that one can’t operate a spacejet without learning how to repair it.”

Though she’d never crashed it before. Part of her feared what the poor thing would look like. But even if it had landed in a million pieces, she would get it back together and running again.

What other option did she have?

“Never fear, Inara.” Neichon approached and tugged her into his arms. “We’ll get your jet working again. The three of us can accomplish it.”

The surprising weight of tears pressed against her eyelids. Furrowing her brow, she blinked furiously to dispel them. She never cried. Not anymore. And she wasn’t about to go soft just because two hunks wanted to take care of her.

“Thanks, but I could do it myself,” she said tartly, pulling out of Neichon’s grasp and striding from the clearing so he wouldn’t see the expression on her face. She stood out in the forest alone, fighting to regain her composure. By the time the two men joined her, she was back to her normal self. Tough, strong Inara. No one could take that away from her.

Valeron gave her a curious glance but she ignored it, nodding instead in the direction of her jet.

“Let’s go, boys.”

* * * * *

Morning gave away to afternoon, and their female had still barely spoken two words to them. Valeron observed her as they trod through the lush, green forest. Straight ahead, no more than a few hundred feet away, stood a range of mountains composed of brown and orange-colored rock. Inara’s jet had crashed at the edge of the forest, right next to that first mountain.

The fact they were so close to her ship had done nothing to alleviate the curiosity that had been building ever since he and Neichon had met Inara. Their mate was an intriguing blend of hot and cold. Just last night she’d shown them ecstasy such as they’d never known before, but now she acted as if they were nothing more than an annoyance to her.

What was she hiding?

One thing was certain. He was determined they would figure out what made her pull away from them. What made her decry what her spirit must know was true.

That she was their mate.

A break in the trees straight ahead of them displayed a tantalizing hint of silver. Spotting it, Inara broke into a trot. “My jet!”

He and Neichon exchanged wary glances, then scuttled after her. Pray that the ship could be repaired. If not…he didn’t know how long they would be stuck on this planet before Reyu or Petros figured out the transmitter had malfunctioned.

By the time they caught up with Inara, she had already squatted beside her jet. Valeron breathed a sigh of relief when he saw it was largely intact. A few small objects littered the field, and the side of the mountain was chipped where the jet had obviously come into contact with it, but the parts looked to be repairable.

“We can do this,” Inara sighed, a dreamy smile transforming her face. “I think it’ll only take a matter of hours!”

Thank the heavens.

As Valeron watched Inara’s fingers smooth over her jet, he heard a whisper of sound from deeper in the forest, back where they’d come from. A feeling of foreboding caused his body to tense. When Inara kept her gaze on her jet, Valeron realized she hadn’t heard it, but Neichon shot him a look.

“Go check the forest,” Neichon muttered to him.

Giving his pod leader a curt nod, he stalked back into the forest, finding the nearest tree with branches good enough for climbing and making his way up.

He’d only gone up about ten feet when he spotted them.

Malucons.

His heart clenched, tightening his chest.

The Malucon shuttle hovered several miles away, its rope ladder swinging down and disappearing into a copse of trees. Six Malucons, their burlap clothing grimy and tattered and their long hair knotted, spread out through the forest no more than a mile and a half away from him, their gazes on the forest floor. One of them squatted and touched the earth, then rose and gestured to the others. They pointed in his direction and began to trot that way.

No!

He didn’t bother climbing down, just dropped to the ground and raced after Neichon and Inara.

Neichon stood at attention, waiting for him. When he saw the expression on Valeron’s face, his eyes went wide.

“Malucons,” Valeron said when he’d gotten close enough that he didn’t have to yell. “No more than a mile and a half away.”

“What?” Inara jumped to her feet, and the fear and horror on her face made Valeron’s chest tighten in agony. “How’d they get so close?”

“Sheer luck,” he said grimly. “They are searching the forest and must have spotted our tracks.”

Neichon gave him a tense nod before grasping Inara’s hand and gesturing toward the forest in the opposite direction. “We must run.”

Inara snatched her hand away, shaking her head. “If we go that way, they’ll just chase us, and we’ll be going further away from my jet.”

“What other option do we have, female?” Neichon bit out, his jaw tense.

Heart racing, Valeron turned to survey the area. That was when he spotted it.

“Look.” He pointed to the small opening at the base of the mountain. Racing toward it, he dropped to his knees and crept inside. The hole opened up into a dark cave. In what little daylight made its way inside the space, he could see another opening up ahead. He scooted out and rose, turning to Neichon. “A cave. There’s another opening, too, so it goes further back, at least somewhat.”

Neichon shook his head. “No, it could be a death trap.”

But Inara bit her lip and dropped to her knees, scooting inside. She appeared again just a moment later. “I think this is a good place to hide.”

Again Neichon shook his head. “If they track us in here, there may be nowhere else to go.”

His breath hitching, Valeron looked back toward the forest, where even now the Malucons made their way toward them. An idea formed.

“What if you two go in and I form tracks leading to the opposite side of the forest? With any luck, they’ll think we went that way and bypass the cavern.”

Worry lines marred Neichon’s forehead. “And what of you?”

“I’ll backtrack, making sure to erase any evidence of it.”

It would be risky, but perhaps there was enough time to do it.

Neichon frowned. “I don’t—”

“There isn’t any more time, brother,” Valeron bit out.

It only took a moment for Neichon to recognize the veracity of his statement. He nodded. “Okay, but be careful.”

“I will.” Valeron took one quick look at their mate, wishing there was time to hold her. Comfort her. Tell her it was going to be okay.

But there wasn’t.

“
Go
.” With those words, Valeron turned from them and started back toward the ship, then began making the tracks he hoped would lead the Malucons away from his female.

* * * * *

The inside of the cavern was dark and moist, certainly not any place Inara would choose to spend time. But then, she’d been forced into many a spot like this during her time on the run.

Her hand clutched in Neichon’s, she made her way to the back of the cave, where an opening led further into the mountain. Her heart ached with the thought of what Valeron did for them. With the understanding that he might not make it back…

This was exactly what she hadn’t wanted. To get emotionally attached to people who would then be endangered. Who might lose their lives.

Because of
her.

Her heart heavy, she allowed Neichon to lead her through the opening. To her surprise, there was more light here. Some fissures in the rock over their heads allowed streams of daylight to ribbon through, casting an orange hue in the space. Enough for them to make out a long, winding corridor. They followed it for several minutes, until it opened up to a second cave, this one half the size of the first. A hole about a foot in diameter cut into the roof, giving this cave even more light than the corridor before it.

Inara let go of Neichon’s hand and strode to the far wall, turning and sliding down to the ground. She buried her head in her hands. “What are we going to do?”

Neichon strode to her and knelt, placing his arms around her. “The only thing we can do. Wait.”

The next several minutes crept by with agonizing slowness. Finally Inara heard a scraping sound from inside the corridor. She and Neichon jumped to their feet. Holding her breath, she slid her dagger out of its thigh holster. When Neichon stepped in front to block her, her eyes narrowed, but she didn’t protest out of fear she’d alert the person in the corridor they were here.

Another tense, horrifying moment passed before Neichon relaxed his body and let out a relieved sigh. “Valeron,” he whispered.

Yes.
Dropping her dagger to the ground, she stepped around Neichon and launched herself at Valeron. His arms closed around her and she dug her face into his chest, breathing in his comforting scent. “You made it.”

“Yes, my female.” He pressed a kiss to the top of her head.

“What happened?” Neichon muttered.

“I made the tracks and then hid at the mouth of the cave,” Valeron said. “It worked.”

“Thank the gods,” Inara breathed.

“But given the time, I couldn’t make the tracks extend that far,” Valeron continued grimly. “I’m afraid the ruse won’t work for long.”

Inara pulled back to glance at both men. “So what do we do now?”

Neichon and Valeron exchanged a meaningful glance before Neichon turned to her. “I’m afraid we’ll come face-to-face with them at some point.”

No.

Inara wrapped her arms around herself, as if that would dispel her sudden chill. She didn’t want to die. She didn’t want
them
to die.

“What can we do?” she whispered.

Valeron gave a sober shake of his head, his gaze locking with Neichon. “There are six of them. Big. Strong. If we had our full strength, we
might
stand a chance, but the way things are now…”

He trailed off, but Inara understood what he
hadn’t
said.

There was only one way for them to gain their full strength, and according to them, she held the key. If she truly was their mate, then mating with her would give them the strength that could mean the difference between life and death.

But first she had to agree to become their mate…to be with them forever.

Her stomach knotted into a ball, weighing down the center of her body. She couldn’t do that. She’d promised her uncle she would look after Cindra. Promised
herself
she would stop at nothing to find her cousin. Being mated was not in the cards for her. At the same time, given the choice of mating or dying…

Swallowing hard, she looked toward Neichon. “I’ll do it.”

His sharp gaze whirled over to her. “What?”

“I’ll do it. I’ll become your…
mate.
” She practically choked on the last word.

Stunned silence permeated the cave as the men gaped at her. Valeron finally broke it, his voice grim. “But, Neichon, the ritual…”

His body rigid, Neichon looked at his pod mate. “It is the only way we will escape here alive. The mating ritual can be dispensed with during times of mortal danger. This is clearly one of those times.”

Something dark and primal flashed in Valeron’s eyes, like a mixture of regret and pure lust. He nodded, his hungry gaze flicking to Inara, and her heart thudded in response.