Devoured: Brides of the Kindred 11 (19 page)

Chapter
Eighteen

Garron slipped away into the fresher to
give Tess time to change into her night clothes. While he was there, he tried
to collect himself. He leaned back against the counter that surrounded the sink
and took a deep breath, his cock throbbing in the prison of his tight black
flight trousers. Gods, she was so beautiful…so perfect.

Shouldn’t
have done that,
whispered the voice
of his guilt.
What about your vow? What
about Nella and staying true to her memory?

He tried to summon the face of his lost
love but Tess kept popping up instead. Tess half naked with nothing but that
thin piece of fabric between them. The feel of her plump nipple between his
lips, her soft, helpless moan as he dragged his tongue across her tender
flesh…it made him wonder what kinds of sounds she would make if he licked her
pussy. If he spread her thighs and pressed his face to the source of that
sweet, feminine scent that was driving him crazy…

But though her desire had perfumed the air
between them when he told her how he wanted to bury his face between her thighs
and taste her sweet pussy, Garron had scented her fear as well. For some reason
she feared intimacy, even though she craved it. It was a mystery…one he ought
to ignore. After all, he wasn’t here to claim her as his own—he was only
supposed to be protecting her. And yet he couldn’t help wishing he knew the
reasons for her fear of desire. Did it have to do with her ex-mate? Had he…done
something to her?

Garron’s big hands curled into fists at
the thought. Gods, what he wouldn’t do for just five minutes alone with that
bastard! He would take the human male apart piece by piece but leave him alive
throughout the process, so that each piece could scream for mercy—mercy Garron
would never grant.

He
deserves nothing but pain for the way he hurt her…beat her. Nothing but a slow,
agonizing death.
Which Garron would be
more than happy to provide. In fact, he was tempted to go back to Tampa and deal with this
male head on. Challenge him to a
Y’grin—
a fight to the death. But apparently that wasn’t the way
things were done here on Earth.

We’re
only running for a little while,
he
consoled himself.
As soon as I get word
from Truth that Tess is welcome aboard the Mother Ship, I’ll take her back up
where I can keep her safe. She’ll never have to see that bastard who hurt her
again.

And then, once she was safely out of
harm’s way…

Then
I’ll come back down and kill him.

The
dr’gin
rose within him, agreeing with the violent impulse—begging to be included in
the fight. Garron took a deep breath, trying to calm it, to push it back below
the surface.

The beast within him had been rising more
and more often lately but that wasn’t so surprising. After all, he had called
on it twice just tonight—once to free Tess of her prison and once to heal her
wounds. Both times he had gotten the distinct impression that his
dr’gin
liked her—that it recognized her
in some way and wanted to be with her.

It was a strange sensation—one he had
never had before, even with Nella. But then, he’d been so frightened that the
dr’gin
would kill her during his first
turning, he had never dared to call it to the surface before. In fact, he had
actually doubted its existance for years.

He doubted no longer. As his name day drew
near once more, he could feel it stirring…waking.
I am not O’ahn—I have a dr’gin within me. A powerful, hungry one.

What would he do when it finally came out?

But maybe, he reasoned, it didn’t have to
come out after all. Not if Tess could tame it. Being close to her, touching
her, was like a miracle. She didn’t exactly lull the fierce beast inside him to
sleep…it was more like her very presence calmed it down. Made it willing to
stay submerged.

He sighed. The only problem was, her
calming influence
only
seemed to work
when she was touching him—when they were making skin-to-skin contact. During
the ride up from Tampa,
he had felt the pressure building, felt the
dr’gin
getting more and more restless. Healing her—kissing her back and shoulders,
the sweet rounded globes of her ass, and the tender flesh of her thighs—had
quieted it considerably. Sucking her nipple to heal it had had an even greater
effect—he could practically hear the
dr’gin
purring with lazy contentment after he finished healing her there.

But having such intimate contact with her
was breaking his vow—the promise he had made to himself to be true to Nella.

I need
to stop. Need to make this the first and last time such intimacy happens
between us,
he told himself
firmly. But…what of his
dr’gin?
Letting
the beast within him out was
not
an
option. If it came completely to the surface and overtook him, causing him to
change forms, it would devour the closest person around which would probably be
Tess.

He couldn’t let that happen—he
wouldn’t
let that happen. He would just
go on controlling it and keeping it buried within him as he had been for years.
He had never needed to touch Nella to keep it calm…and he wasn’t going to touch
Tess either. Not like he had tonight. He would leave her alone and everything
was going to be fine. Once they got back up to the Mother Ship, he was certain
he would find a solution to his problem. So he just had to hold on until then.

Everything
is all right,
he told himself.
We’ll be back to the Mother Ship soon…

* * * * *

“I am sorry but my answer is no.”

“What?” Truth stared at Chancellor Terex
in surprise and disbelief. “I am sorry, Chancellor—I don’t understand.”

“I don’t see how I can be any clearer,
Warrior. The Earth female is
not
welcome back aboard the Mother Ship.”

“But…” Truth shook his head, unable to
believe it. He had come to this early session of the Council, certain he would
have his request granted in no time. “But she is dream sharing with my brother,
Garron. She is most probably his mate which means they belong together.”

“Let him stay on Earth with her then.”

“Excuse me, Chancellor.” Sylvan, who had
been silent while Truth presented his cast to the Council, cleared his throat.
“I believe the female may be in some kind of danger or trouble which is why
Garron wishes to bring her back up—that he may better protect her.”

“That is
not
our problem.” Chancellor Terex frowned and adjusted the
flowing, ceremonial robes that were traditionally worn by the head of the High
Council. “The female was banned for a reason—she came aboard the Mother Ship
illegally and remained here hiding in the Pairing House for over one solar week
for who knows what nefarious purposes. She is
not
welcome back.”

“But—” Truth tried once more.

“The ban stays!” Terex banged the Speaking
Rock—the traditional instrument of the Chancellor—down against the steelwood
table, making a final
cracking
sound.
For just an instant Truth thought his pale blue eyes seemed to glint a wicked
red but it must have been a trick of the light. The next moment his face was
back to its stern, stoic expression.

Truth cast a glance at Sylvan who looked
back unhappily and shrugged. Clearly there was nothing more he could do. As
head of the High Council, Terex had the final say in every decision and
obviously he was not going to change his mind.

“Thank you, Chancellor,” Truth said
stiffly, backing away

Terex acknowledged him with only the
barest nod.

“And now,” he said, addressing the other
Council members. “I understand we have some very pressing business to attend
to. What have the governments of Earth been saying about our rights to call
brides…?”

Chapter
Nineteen

Tess woke to the sound of muted voices in
the bathroom. Or, no—when she listened more closely, she realized it was just
one voice—Garron’s. But he sounded like he was talking to someone. Was he on
phone call? Maybe, from the sound of it.

She normally wouldn’t have listened to
anyone else’s call but she had to pee—really badly as a matter of fact. And the
longer she laid there in the cheap motel bed, the worse the impulse got until
she felt like her bladder was just about to burst.

Well, maybe she could just knock on the
door and ask if she could get in. He didn’t sound like he was doing anything
else in there like showering or shaving. Probably he had just taken the call in
the bathroom to avoid waking her. That sounded like the kind of considerate
thing he would do.

You
know what else is considerate? The way he licked you all over last night to
heal you. The way he sucked your nipple into his mouth until you were moaning
and squirming all over the bed. That was
damn
considerate,
whispered a naughty
little voice in her brain.
Not to mention
sexy and hot and incredibly arousing…

Tess tried to push the voice away as she
got out of bed, but not too hard. It was one she hadn’t heard for a long time
but it was familiar. She remembered having those happy, sexy thoughts during
college, before she’d met her ex. Maybe she should name the little voice Tess
BP—Before Pierce.

She’d felt like a liberated woman in those
days—living on campus, making her own way, dating whoever she wanted… Although
she’d only had two serious relationships before Pierce, she had loved going out
and getting to know new people.

Tess thought wistfully of how happy she
was then—of the different person that girl working her way through the LPN
program had been. Where had that girl gone to? Had she disappeared the first
time Pierce had roughed her up because the waiter was too flirty and he’d
thought she was flirting back? Had she gone into hiding the first time he
blacked her eye for staying ten minutes longer than she’d promised at the
grocery store? Or had Tess BP run away completely after Pierce had dragged her
away from her mother’s funeral and broken her wrist for daring to leave town
without letting him know?

She shivered.
I don’t want to think about that—about all the bad times,
whispered
the little voice in her head.
How about
thinking of Garron instead? What about remembering the gentle way he touched
you? The feel of his hot tongue tracing your nipple…?

Shut
up!
Tess felt a tingle of desire mixed with
fear.
I shouldn’t be thinking about
that…remembering it…wanting it…
But it was hard to push the steamy memory
away all the same.

She finally managed by concentrating on
her intense need to pee. God, she didn’t remember drinking that much water last
night but she felt like she was about to burst! She tiptoed a little closer to
the bathroom door and raised her hand to knock.

“What do you mean, she’s not welcome back
aboard the Mother Ship?” Garron demanded from inside the closed door.

Tess froze. Was he talking about her?
Well who else do you know that was banned
from the Mother Ship recently?
snapped a sarcastic little voice that
sounded a lot more like her normal internal monologue. Garron
had
to be talking about her. But if she
wasn’t welcome aboard the Mother Ship then what was he going to do?
Probably go back up without you,
whispered
the voice.
After all, you can’t expect
him to hang around here forever.

“No…no, that’s not an option,” she heard
him growl, continuing his conversation. “No, absolutely not!”

What
isn’t an option? Going back? Staying here? What?
Hardly knowing what she was doing, Tess leaned closer to
the door, listening hard.

“No, I don’t blame you, Brother. You tried
for which I am grateful.” Garron sighed and she could almost see him running a
hand through his thick black hair. “Yes, she is well although I did not get to
her in as timely a fashion as I could have wished. He…marked her.” His deep
voice sounded strangled. “I can say no more about it for now but I have her
with me and she is safe.”

He paused a moment as though listening to
remarks made by the person on the other end.
Probably the Kindred called Truth since he had called him “Brother,”
Tess thought.

“Yes, I know that giving in to emotion
brings the
dr’gin
closer to the surface.
Though you are my older brother, you are
O’ahn.
Do not think to lecture me about such things. You have no ravenous beast
coiled within you, waiting to spring out on your naming day.”

His
other—he’s talking about the thing that lives inside him. The thing he called
on to help break me out of Pierce’s house and also to heal me. But what is his
naming day? And how close is it?
Tess
listened even more intently, straining her ears for every detail.

Another listening pause and Garron spoke
again.

“Of course I would if I thought she was in
danger! What kind of male do you think I am? I would not put a female I care
for in harm’s way—you know this of me, Brother.”

A
female he cares for,
Tess BP whispered in
her head and she felt a little thrill run through her.

“No, listen,” Garron continued. “She tames
it. I don’t know how she does it but every time she touches me or I touch
her—every time her skin comes into contact with mine—I can feel my
dr’gin
quieting within me. It’s hard to
explain but it’s almost as if it
likes
her.”

Wow,
so his other likes you too. You go girl—just change your name to Tess
Beastmaster…or Beastmistress or whatever…
Tess BP cheered.

Tess frowned—the perky college-aged
cheerleader version of herself aside, this might be serious. Garron had talked
about his other being dangerous but what exactly was it—what did he turn into?
Was he some kind of alien werewolf, doomed to change at a certain time every
year or every month? Was he—

“No, I am
not
worried, no matter how I sound. I tell you, her touch quiets
the burning in my blood.”

Tess remembered his glowing eyes and the
way he had begged her to put her arms around him after pulling the metal cage
out of Pierce’s window. He had seemed almost frantic until she’d hugged him.
And then, almost immediately, he had relaxed and murmured something about how
she calmed his blood.

“No, of course I cannot tell her what
might happen!” Garron sounded offended now. “You have no idea what she’s been
through. I don’t want her to fear me. My size and strength are already
frightening enough without making physical demands on her.”

Physical
demands…
Tess bit her lip.
What kind of physical demands? How much contact does he need to keep
this…other happy?

“Besides, I need to remember the vow I
made to myself—the vow to remember Nella. I need to control it—even if I must
do so without her touch. Yes, I know it’s dangerous. But I promise if—”

Suddenly Tess felt a tickle in her nose
and knew she was going to sneeze. She clapped a hand over her mouth but all she
could do was muffle the short, sharp sneeze that burst out.

Garron was suddenly silent for a moment.

“Wait,” he said. “I think we had better
break the connection. I hear her stirring.”

Panicked, Tess turned and ran on her
tip-toes all the way back to the bed. She dived under the covers and buried her
face in the pillows just as the bathroom door opened.

“Tess?” Garron’s deep voice sounded
uncertain. “Are you awake?”

“Huh?” Tess peeked groggily over the cheap
polyester coverlet and blinked at him. “What did you say?” she asked and
manufactured a yawn.

This
isn’t right—I should tell him I heard everything. Tell him I know what’s going
on. Well, in a
limited
kind of way.

Right, but how would the big Kindred feel if
he knew she’d been eavesdropping on his private conversation? Tess doubted it
would endear her to him and he might get really mad. The old Tess—Tess BP—would
have said something. But she’d become a different person in the last few years.
A person who cared about self-preservation more than honesty, apparently. So
she tried to look sleepy and faked another yawn.

“I thought I heard you stirring.” He
stepped further into the room and Tess suddenly registered that there was
something different about him.

“Hey,” she said, sitting up in bed.
“Where’s your uniform shirt? What’s that you’re wearing?”

“Do you like it? It was the only one that
fit but the man at the shop said it would help me blend in with the local
culture in this area.”

He had on a tight black t-shirt that clung
to his muscular chest. On it in bold red lettering was the slogan,
There’s room for all God’s creatures…on my
plate.

Tess tried not to laugh. “Uh…well, yes.
This being the South, I’m sure it’ll help. You couldn’t do much better unless
you got a shirt that said, ‘You can have my gun when you pry my cold, dead
fingers off it.’”

Garron frowned. “He did have one like that
but it wouldn’t fit me.”

“Okay, but where’s your actual shirt?”
Tess frowned. “You can’t tell me you just suddenly had a hankering to wear a
funny slogan on your chest.”

“No…” He cleared his throat and frowned.
“My other shirt is gone. I sold it at the shop we passed on the way here.”

“What—the pawn shop?” Tess frowned.

He nodded. “Apparently Kindred
memorabilia, as he called it, is in high demand. Especially authentic
clothing.” He reached into the pocket of his tight black leather trousers and
pulled out a wad of cash. “I believe he gave me a very fair price for it. He
wanted to buy my trousers as well but I had nothing else to wear and I didn’t
think going bare would be socially acceptable.”

“Well, you were right about that but oh
Garron, honey…” Tess shook her head, not sure what to say. “You didn’t have to
do that!”

“I wanted to.” He frowned stubbornly. “And
now I’m glad I did. I just got some news…bad news I’m afraid.”

“Oh?” Tess tried to look like she had no
idea what he was talking about. “What happened?”

“I just spoke to my brother Truth aboard
the Mother Ship.”

“And…?” Her heart was pounding but she
tried not to show it.

“And unfortunately, the Kindred High
Council has refused to lift the ban. So you cannot go back aboard.”

“Oh, well…” Tess shrugged, trying to seem
unconcerned. “That’s too bad. I’ll just go on to the cabin, then. But I guess…”
She looked away, unable to meet his eyes. “I guess you’ll want to be getting
back yourself, huh?”

“Are you suggesting that I should go back
without you? That I should leave you here?” Garron demanded.

“Well, sure, I guess…” Tess glanced up and
him and looked away quickly, plucking at the cheap coverlet.
I don’t care,
she told herself sternly.
I don’t care if he leaves. It’s no big
deal. It’s not like I even know him very well. I don’t care…

“No.” In two long strides, Garron was at
the side of the bed. He sat on the edge and took her hand in his much larger
one. “I’m not leaving you, Tess. If you can’t go back to the Mother Ship, I’m
not going either.”

“Oh, well…” She couldn’t ignore the rush
of pleasure his words gave her. She looked up at him, unable to hide her smile.
“That’s really very…that’s sweet of you to choose to stay.”

“There is no choice for me.” He looked at
her seriously. “Where you are is where I belong.” He captured her eyes with
his, looking at her so intently that Tess began to feel breathless.

“I…um…would you excuse me for a minute?”
she said. “I just need to use the restroom really quick.”

“Don’t be too long,” he said as she hopped
out of bed. “I am afraid the first fare comestibles I got you will get cold.”

“The what?” Tess really wanted to know
what the hell he had just said but her bladder was now telling her that she
needed to visit the bathroom or burst. “Hold that thought!” she exclaimed as he
opened his mouth to explain. “I’ll be right back.”

After washing her hands, she glanced in
the mirror and tried to smooth down her wild auburn hair. Her eyes were a bit
puffy from sleeping so hard—thank goodness she hadn’t had any bad dreams—but
other than that she didn’t look too bad. Pierce had slapped her across the face
several times but for once he hadn’t left any lasting damage—other than her
back which Garron had healed.
Thanks for
nothing, Pierce,
she thought, remembering his narrow green eyes, radiating
rage as he…

No,
don’t think about it. Think of something pleasant,
she told herself resolutely.
Make sure you look okay.

She was wearing another one of her big
t-shirts—a baby blue one this time—and it only came down to the tops of her
thighs. Still, she thought she was decent enough. She was wearing panties too,
which she normally didn’t sleep in. But last night after the way Garron had
“healed” her, she had thought it prudent to make an exception.