Close Encounters (20 page)

“Thank you, your high-and-mighty-ness. I’m glad you approve.” He looked so smug I couldn’t help laughing. “Especially since I couldn’t say your real name correctly under threat of torture.”

“Enough talk,” he said imperiously. “Time grows short and there are other things we must do.”

“Oh? Like what?”

“This.” He leaned over me, his dark hair forming a shield around us, and let his lips cover mine. Like the man who gave it, the kiss was demanding, heated by the flavor of passion too long withheld.

It’s about time, I thought as desire roared through my veins. His, mine, they tumbled together to form a rapturous whole that was greater than the sum of its parts. My fingers took on a life of their own, touching, exploring, as his hands slid down my body on a mission of their own.

My eyes drifted closed as the last vestiges of restraint fled and I savored the experience of letting someone else take control. This was Thor, the person I’d plotted to be alone with for what felt like ages. Finally, it was happening, and I didn’t care if it were a dream or not. I twisted in his arms until my breasts were against his chest, my arms coiled around his neck. My lips parted under his, offering myself to him in a way I’d never done with any male before.

A low growl sounded deep in his throat, and I trembled at the need expressed in the noise. He moved without warning and I found myself on my back again, the upper part of Thor’s body pinning me to the ground, his mouth demanding on mine. I felt his desire shimmering and dancing throughout my body, creating an answering echo that set my nerves tingling.

The enchantment began, hot and sweet, as his kiss gentled and I felt tenderness fill him. “I need you,” I murmured, giving him my complete surrender as well as my body.

Fire erupted through him at my words, at my touch, raging through him like a conflagration, out of control and devastating everything in its path. I was shaken to the core as he captured my mouth and I felt his lips move against mine, softly at first, until his tongue slipped between my lips. And with it, what little control I had left plunged into nonexistence. My hands buried themselves in the silken mass of his hair, holding his mouth captive.

“Kiera.” My name was forced from him in a shaky breath.

Instantly, my nipples hardened against him and he shifted to cover them with his hand, rolling them between his fingers as I arched to meet him. Pulling his mouth from mine, he trailed it down my neck, fighting desperately to control his need to simply take me.

For just a second, I hesitated, surprised at how clearly I picked up his feelings. But the thought was swamped by the tide of emotions flowing from him. Even Thor was stunned at the depth of his own desire. At his need to possess me, make me his so completely that we would be forever one. And when his lips closed over a nipple, his tongue lathing it taut, I stopped thinking and only felt. And he felt with me. Felt the sharp jab of need that shot through me from his mouth to the center of my legs. Felt the hunger that coiled in my belly, more than a match for his.

Seemingly with a will of its own, his hand slid down to cover that center, his touch soft and slow, tantalizing. I whimpered as his fingers caressed, stoked the flames until I was ready to scream with frustration. It wasn’t enough. He wanted more, wanted to taste.

He slid down, his mouth and tongue leaving a damp path down my stomach. With his eyes on my face he let his breath touch me.

“What—”

Before I could even form the question, his mouth covered me, caressing, tasting, and teasing. My head went back as my hands buried themselves in his hair once again.

“Oh, sweet Goddess!” My cry was choked, feverish, as my hips involuntarily thrust upward, begging for more. And he gave it to me until I was writhing beneath him, out of control. When I was on the edge of climax, he shifted.

On his knees, he pushed his erection against me and paused. “Kiera.” His voice was barely a whisper as I watched him through eyes heavy with desire. “Let the bond be complete.” With one hard thrust, he was inside, filling me in a way I’d never experienced before.

Abruptly, I was dizzy, the trees seeming to spin and swoop as a wave of shimmering light swept over us, and something inside me clicked into place. He froze, waiting for the shimmering to subside, and then sighed when it was gone.

Then my hands flexed on his back, my lips touched his chest, and Thor was lost. Teeth clamped together, he withdrew and drove into me again. At the same instant, I felt our minds touch, meld as firmly as our bodies were joined. Startled, I tried to pull away but he held on.

Stay.
The plea was wordless, impossible to tell if it came from him or me, so closely were we joined. Our bodies seemed to move of their own accord, withdrawing and plunging again as though they couldn’t bear to be apart.

And I surrendered, let him sink into me mentally and physically, be enfolded until we became one entity, our desire burning together. I could hardly breathe.

Yes.

You’re mine.
The thought was fiercely protective.

Yes,
came the soft reply.
We are one
.

Thought came to a stop as emotions exploded. Hips moved, tongues brushed, fingers twined together, every feeling sending an echo through the other. The climax was a whirlwind of sensation that turned us into a supernova, the heat of our passion burning us clean of everything but each other.

Sanity was slow to return, and when it did I was lethargic and replete in a way I’d never been before. For that matter, so was Thor. I could feel him, all smug and satisfied as he rolled to the side, taking me with him and curling his warm body around mine. My hair had come loose, covering half my face, and he brushed it back, his lips stroking my temple. “Sleep now,” he murmured. “All is well accomplished.”

I smiled as my eyes drifted closed. What a funny way to put the most earth-shattering experience of my life. Well accomplished. Yes, I suppose you could say that. Except after what had just occurred, it felt as though he were part of me.

That should worry me, I realized, just before sleep pulled me away. It should worry me a lot.

“Kiera!”

I bolted upright on the sleeping platform, hands gripping my head to keep my skull bones from vibrating loose with the force of Max’s yell. “What!”

“You’re awake.” His voice quivered with relief.

“I am now. Why the hell are you yelling?”

“It’s the middle of the morning and I’ve been trying to rouse you all night. You wouldn’t respond, and it scared me. I’m sorry, Kiera, but after you drank the unknown liquid, I had to do something.”

Suspicion stole over me, but I forced myself to remain calm and collected. “What did you do, Max?”

“I sent an emergency call through to Dr. Daniels,” he said meekly. “After watching the vids of the Buri ceremony he agrees with me.”

“About what?”

“There is a ninety-eight point nine percent probability that you wed the Buri leader you call Thor.”

“What!”

Beside me, something warm and hard and muscled stirred, and I spun around like a dervish to meet Thor’s irate gaze. I was still gawking when he spoke.

“Tell this male who speaks in your mind that he must leave now. You belong to me.”

I lifted a shaky finger and pointed it at him. “I heard that. Your lips weren’t moving, but I heard it.”

“Kiera? Who are you talking to?”

“Thor. You can’t hear him?”

“No.”

Thor’s frown deepened. “Tell him to leave.” He spoke aloud now, in Buri. But what I
heard
was Galactic Standard.

My hand fell limply to my lap. “He’s not a him—sorry, Max. Not in the usual sense. He’s my ship, and I can’t tell him to leave.”

“He wants me to leave?” Max sounded shocked, and I felt like I’d been caught up in a holovid of the old “Who’s on First?” routine.

“Just be quiet for a second. He doesn’t understand who you are, and I’m trying to explain.”

Thor levered himself up on one elbow and stared at me through narrowed eyes. “Ships do not speak this way.”

“This one does. He’s an artificial intelligence. That means he thinks, feels and has the ability to learn, even though he’s a machine. His name is Max and he’s very smart.”

“Thank you.”

“Max, for Goddess’s sake, will you shut up?” I glared at Thor. “Besides, how do you know ships don’t speak this way?”

“I see the ships the others come in. And I see the images in your mind. None of them speaks.”

“Yeah, well, Max is special. Don’t say it,” I held up a hand in warning before Max could get another thank-you out.

“I would see this ship again.” Thor sat up and swung his long legs over the side of the sleeping platform.

“Hold it just a darn minute, there, big boy. I think there are a few other things we need to discuss first.”

“What are these things?”

As he spoke, he stood and turned to face me. I blinked. He wasn’t wearing a loincloth. He wasn’t wearing anything. Yeppers, he’d definitely requested they supersize that order at the old galactic burger drive-thru window.

Instantly I became aware of mild discomfort in the nether regions of my person, a place where there had only been pleasure before. Nervously, I licked my dry lips and forced my gaze upward. “Uh, I had this dream last night…” My voice tapered off as his lips curved in a satisfied smile.

Oh, shit. “It wasn’t a dream, was it?” I asked weakly.

“No.”

“I had a feeling you were going to say that. Just tell me this. Are we married?”

“Married?” He rolled the word over while he reached for his loincloth.

“Mated. As in bound together for life.” I scrambled off the sleeping platform, grabbed a jumpsuit, and pulled it on. For some reason, it felt safer to be dressed in my own clothes.

“The bond was sealed. We are mated.”

“That’s impossible! GEPs don’t marry.” My legs were wobbling so hard I sank down on the edge of the sleeping platform to keep from falling. For someone who was supposed to be smarter than the average GEP, I sure had screwed up big this time.

“You are GEP. We are mated. Therefore, it is possible. Yelling will not change this truth.”

“Kiera.”

“Not now, Max. And I wasn’t yelling.” Much. I shot a glare at Thor as he walked to a shelf and picked up a piece of fruit. “How did this happen?”

He took a bite from the pale yellow globe and chewed thoughtfully for a second. “I felt the connection the first night you were here, as did you. Then, when you came to my village, you groomed me and gave me a gift. I accepted. As you accepted my offering gift in return. The Rellantiim Ceremony is completed. We are bonded.” He finished off the fruit in another bite, and then looked around for more.

Come to think about it, I was damn near starved myself. I went to rummage through a knapsack stacked in the corner, and pulled out two Zip Bars. I tossed one to Thor and tore into the other one, speaking with my mouth full. “Are you telling me
I
proposed to
you
?”

“Kiera.”

“Later, Max.”

Thor sniffed the bar, then took a bite that consumed half of it in one fell swoop. “Proposed?”

“Asked you to be my mate.” I swallowed, and reached for my boots with my free hand.

“Yes.” He popped the last half of the bar into his mouth and headed for my knapsack. “But even if you hadn’t, I would not have let you go.”

“Kiera.”

“What!” I threw my hands up in exasperation at Max’s continued interruptions.

“Dr. Daniels would like to speak with you.”

I closed my eyes and swore steadily for three minutes, even calling into question the paternity of the man who’d created faster-than-light communication. It took three days for a ship like Max to warp here from ZT Twelve, but I could talk to the boss as if he were in the next room. Occasionally, technology has its drawbacks.

“When?” I opened my eyes to see Thor staring at me with a great deal of interest, another Zip Bar suspended halfway to his mouth.

“In one hour. The transmission will be beamed into my control room. He doesn’t want to disturb the Buri by suddenly appearing in their village.”

“Fine, I’ll be there.”

“As will I,” Thor said. “Who is this person that you do not wish to speak with?”

“The man I work for. My leader,” I clarified. “Just out of curiosity, did you understand everything I told you last night?”

“Yes.” Even white teeth flashed as he grinned at me. Damn, but he was gorgeous.

“As are you.”

“Whoa. Do you hear everything I think?”

He finished off the second Zip Bar, then stretched out on the sleeping platform, back propped against the wall.

“Yes. You broadcast very strongly and have not yet learned to shield.”

“How?” I shifted to face him, and he lifted a hand and set my new earring swinging. The touch of his finger on the stone was oddly erotic, and I shivered.

“Through the mind bond formed by the rellanti.”

I remembered the word from last night, but now I was thinking more clearly. The rellanti was obviously the black stone in the earring. “Why can’t I hear your thoughts?”

“You can
.” His lips weren’t moving. “
In time, you will stop fighting the connection and learn to control the bond with more accuracy
.”

I ignored the fighting comment and concentrated on the earring. The stone had to have some kind of psychic properties. Hell, maybe all the colored ones had psychic properties. While I’d always been able to detect emotions, I’d never picked up actual words before. Would I be able to hear everyone’s thoughts now?

“No. Only mine. When a young male becomes an adult, he is given two rellanti. If he has been prepared correctly, the rellanti gradually attune themselves to his mind. He wears both until he finds the female who is destined to form the mind bond with him.”

“What happens if he hasn’t been prepared correctly?”

“He dies.”

A chill ran over me as I remembered Junior receiving his rellanti last night. And what about me? Could I have died, too?