Claimed (4 page)

He’d worried during the early hours of his transformation that he would become smaller, like his little mate. That was before the change hit him so fast and hard he’d screamed as his knees buckled. Then there had been no thinking or worrying. He’d just endured the agony of change.

He needn’t have worried at all. He was still as tall as his brothers and thick with muscle, but his new soft smooth skin was a liability in a fight, and other changes made him easier to hurt and less dangerous as well.

One of those changes throbbed in his pants, a tight pressure building in his lower gut that was both pleasurable and painful at the same time. He’d lost his claws, but he’d retained his teeth, something he was extremely grateful for.

He’d need those teeth to finish his claim and give his mate the second bite, something he couldn’t wait for. His body almost hummed with anticipation. Finding such a feisty female delighted him. She might have been small, but she had a mouth on her. He may come from a race who valued submissive, gentle females, but he had never thought a female like that would suit him. She was perfect. So fucking perfect.

He couldn’t wait to sink his cock into her heat and claim her. He’d had to do some research on the way to Deranti, and everything he’d read and seen made him more impatient to get his hands on her.

His mate’s attempt to get away had not only amused him but started a burn inside him that was still raging. It had pleased him to find that her scent represented her personality, and the taste of her luscious skin had sealed the deal.

His father was furious with his choice of mate and the fact that he had mated at all, but he couldn’t go back now. He had to complete the mating, or he would die, and his little mate was going to surprise his father. Sorvar had a feeling he was going to be in for an adventure with the feisty little human. Just thinking about it made him rub his hands together in anticipation. His father couldn’t say anything that would make him regret choosing her as his mate.

If it became necessary, he would fight his father to keep her. In fact, he could do one thing to ensure they were never parted. If he soul bonded with her, his father would have no choice but to accept her. Sorvar pressed his new lips together. That was exactly what he would do. He wouldn’t give his mate a chance to refuse. He might have some explaining to do later, but it would be too late.

Sorvar looked up and down the corridor, more determined than he had been moments earlier to get to his mate and claim her. This part of Deranti looked much like a dozen other stations he’d been on over the years. Serviceable plate floors, bland nondescript walls, and ceilings with containment field arches spaced at regular intervals along the length of the corridor for security. Signage on the walls in Coalition Standard directed him towards the centre of the station and the retail district.

The tug in his gut pulled him in that direction. What his little mate would look like now that she’d completed her change had filled Sorvar’s dreams. And what lovely, vivid, hot dreams they were. He’d felt it the minute she completed her change. They
all
felt it when their mates completed the change. It was a genetic trait, a warning that they only had so much time to claim their mates after they were complete, or the need would drive them mad and eventually they would die.

The plain corridor turned into a nicer corridor with clean shiny floors and walls. He was getting closer now. The tug in his gut became insistent, pulling him along as he followed the signs towards the retail centre of the station. His guard strode along behind him, the click of their clawed feet loud on the polished metal floor.

Deranti was a large trading station with a mostly transient population. They’d done their research before they’d stopped there and knew there would be many species to choose from, but Sorvar was the only one who’d found a female worthy of mating.

People stared and scurried out of his way as he entered a part of the station with heavier traffic. His lip curled, a low growl rumbling in his chest. They were all weak, so very weak. Doors lined the corridor, quarters that were available to rent for a short or long period of time. Staff quarters were in another section of the station, and Medical, where he assumed his mate would be, was two floors below the retail centre.

But his gut didn’t lead him to the large public lift that would take him down to Medical. It led him into the centre of the busy retail district, with its brightly coloured vendors, fragrant restaurants and cafes, and peaceful garden surroundings, and towards a small shop with a window that took up the entire front wall.

People filled the shop, but the female sitting in the first seat drew his keen gaze. God, look at her hair. Glorious was a perfect description for it. It was a deep red, and the end of the sealed braid hung halfway to the floor. A perfect indication of a successful change. Hair that long and of such a deep colour would only confirm her status when he took her home.

Sorvar had thought her original coppery-red hair beautiful, but his mate’s changed hair was thick, glossy and he wanted to wrap her braid around his fist as he held her head tilted so he could devour her with his mouth. His cock pulsed in agreement, startling him. He wasn’t accustomed to having human sexual organs yet. It made him vulnerable in a way he was uncomfortable with, and Bavric’s amusement when he’d discovered the change was more than a little humiliating.

His mate’s delicate profile hinted at her beauty. She’d been beautiful when he’d seen her the day he’d given her the first claiming bite. Even with tears streaking down her face and her features twisted in pain, he’d seen the soft, generous lips, the small pert nose and high sweeps of her cheeks. Her features were graceful, elegant and quite simply stunning.

His mate was in an intense conversation with the male standing behind her. She nodded her head, and a wide smile split her face.

A low growl rolled through his chest. He was almost there. Was she going to cut her hair? No! She couldn’t. He needed her to keep it. Her acceptance hinged on her having long hair.

Time seemed to slow down as he stalked faster and faster, the low growl rumbling up from his chest sending the people around him skittering back out of his way.

The male with the four arms, a Ramberl, picked up a shining laser cutter in one of his hands, holding Sorvar’s mate’s hair secure in another hand. The Ramberl raised the cutter, level with the top edge of the chair. Sorvar’s heart clenched, his hands balling into fists as he stalked the last few steps.

“Do not cut her hair,” he commanded as he stopped in the doorway.

* * * *

Paxar went still behind her, and his humming ceased with a gasp. Tina whipped her head around to see a male taking up the entire wide doorway of the shop with his body and wings.

Her breath caught in her throat as her stomach did flip flops. Not a single sound, no movement, no talking came from behind her. The tension level in the shop rose as Tina stared at the male.

Oh, my.
Wow, talk about stunning. She let her gaze travel over the male, taking in his wide shoulders and thick arms.
He could squeeze you to death with those.
A shiver shot down her spine. She’d never been with a man built like this male. He reminded her of her father, and she’d seen and had firsthand experience of what a man could do with that kind of strength. She swallowed down the lump forming in her throat.

He had the thickly muscled body of a warrior, even sported a breastplate, and had a variety of weapons strapped to his hips and thighs, cinching the garment he wore on his lower body tight. Who was he?

Tina let her gaze sweep back up the length of him to his corded neck and face. A face she could have found on any men’s fashion campaign on Earth, if it wasn’t for his yellow eyes with their slit pupils. A slight movement dragged her gaze from his, and she watched his deep green wings flare and snap back into position behind his back.

Oh. Oooh! So
this
was her male. This stunning combination of Morgathian and Human was hers. Boy, he was scrumptious enough to eat. Straight black brows sat low over his eyes and black hair spilled down the sides of his face. A long curl hung over his shoulder all the way to his waist. Tina had never liked long hair on a man, but on her mate, it was sexy as hell.

Heat blooming low in her belly and the slow throb starting in her sex made her gasp in a desperate breath and grip the arms of the chair. Her body wanted to go to him and wrap itself around him. It wanted to feel his heat pressed against her and his hard cock moving inside her. Tina squirmed in her seat as her body readied for his invasion.

Okay, okay, sure he was gorgeous, but... he could be a complete dick. No, she already knew he was an ass. He’d bitten her and claimed her as his mate without even asking her. Definitely an ass. Tina had no time for assholes, and only time would tell if he was like her father. The fire in her gut flared. How dare he be so sexy and make her want him regardless of her feelings. Tina gritted her teeth and clenched the arms of the chair so hard her knuckles went white.

She turned away from her mate and stared into the mirror. “Cut it, Paxar.”

A low growl preceded, “If you cut her hair, I will gut you.”

Tina whipped her head around, her teeth bared in a snarl, and glared at the imposing male. His seven feet of wicked, violent masculinity posed a considerable threat to her peace of mind. He threatened her resolve to be strong with his overpowering presence, and it pissed her off royally. Stupid, arrogant male.

“You will not,” Tina said. “By
your
laws, I am free to do as I like until you claim me. Until you bite me a second time, I can do as I like. Now, I am going to have a haircut. Then I am going to my quarters to pack my belongings, and after, I will let you take me to your ship. You can wait outside for me, or you can wait on your ship, and I will come when I’m good and ready.”

They stared at each other for long minutes, the first of what Tina knew would be a series of battles. His bright yellow gaze bored into hers, the weight of his stare, the weight of his will trying to subdue her, but Tina refused to back down. A tiny grin lifted one corner of his lips as one sexy eyebrow rose, and humour filled his eyes, but that didn’t stop the flaring of his wings. He snapped them back in so fast they let off an audible crack. Sexy beast. Tina barely controlled her growl of frustration. No man had the right to be so arousing that she wanted to jump him the minute she met him. Damn him.

“Then I guess I’d better claim you,” he said.

Shocked gasps echoed around the beautician’s shop, and Paxar tugged on her hair. Was he shaking?

Tina turned back to the mirror, dismissing her mate and said, “Paxar, you may proceed.”

A low, deep chuckle spread like warm honey across her skin, teasing and taunting with the promise of sexual satisfaction. Tina swallowed and shivered as she ached deep inside and wetness seeped from her sex as it readied for him. Why did he have to be so sexy and intense? If only he’d ended up being plain and less... less overwhelming, less
him,
she would have had no problems resisting him, but it was more than just his good looks. She could see intelligence shining in his yellow eyes, and she’d always been a sucker for a smart man.

She shrieked when he pulled her out of the chair and pressed her against his hard breastplate with no warning. Paxar cursed in Ramberl behind her as her mate carried her out of the beautician’s. Oh, god! He
was
an asshole, a stupid sexy asshole. Tina wriggled and fought in her mate’s arms, determined to get down and get what she wanted.

“Put me down!” she demanded as her mate’s scent started to penetrate her annoyance. Oh, damn. He smelled like hot summer nights and something spicy.

“Be still, little mate. I will explain, and you will understand why I could not let you cut your hair. For now, you need to tell me where your quarters are so you can pack.” His chest vibrated against her as he spoke sending shockwaves of sensation through her.

Tina slumped exhausted in his arms and let out a frustrated huff. Why did he have to be so reasonable? She wouldn’t be able to stay angry with him if he didn’t act like a dick. And why was he built like a tank? She’d seen a picture of one during history lessons in high school, and he was just as hard and impenetrable as one of those ancient Earth war machines.

“I thought you were going to claim me?” she demanded.

A low chuckle rumbled in his chest. “Oh, I am, but we do not have time for it now. We have to be off the station in less than three hours. Now, which way to your quarters?”

Wait. Three hours wasn’t enough time to have sex? What kind of sex was he planning on having? She wiggled, trying to get him to put her down, but he just squeezed her tighter to his chest. With his breastplate pressing against her, it wasn’t the most comfortable position to be in.

“I can walk,” she told him. “Please, I’d like to walk.”

Tina started to relax when he slowly slid her down his body and settled her feet on the floor. She could feel every hard inch of him pressed against her, including the thick erection straining against his pants. She bit back the moan trying to slide up her throat as heat pooled in her already throbbing sex. How could one male affect her so much?

Tina turned away with a harrumph and stalked down the corridor, the muscles in her back tight with tension. It did not bode well for her that he could turn her on so much just standing there and looking sexy. The dratted male hadn’t even taken off his clothes yet.

Her quarters were among the other medical personnel quarters one floor down. Tina led the way, the three Morgath males following her without a word. She chose to use the stairs instead of the lift. The scent of her mate would drive her crazy in the confined space.

His heat beat into her back, he was so close, and Tina wanted to lean back and feel that hot body pressing against her. She wanted to feel his strong arms enclose her and hold her tight. God, what was he doing to her? Tina had never been this way with a man before. She’d always been ferociously independent and guarded her heart with a rock solid resolve to never let a man hurt her like her father had hurt her mother.