Hawk's Prey (11 page)

“Wrap your thighs around me.”

His voice was tight but it made her even more inclined to obey him. There was a hint of uncontrolled fury lurking in his tone that made her crave a taste of his harsher nature. He had been tightly controlled in the forest and now, Tova admitted, she longed to discover exactly what kind of male he was beneath his controlled exterior. She clasped his hips with her thighs, lifting for his next thrust. He hissed as she clawed her fingers down his arms and she caught the flash of something primal in his eyes.

A second later Hawk captured her hands and pinned them to the surface of the bed. His body drove his cock deeply into her as pleasure speared into her belly. He chuckled at her gasp before leaning down to kiss her neck.

“You want to be treated like a woman, don’t you, Tova?”

He bucked between her thighs and pleasure spiked through her. Tova arched beneath him as she cried out with the pleasure. She wanted to hit him but he held her hands pinned with his greater strength. The entire bed shook as he pulled his cock free and thrust it back into her with a hard motion of his hips.

“Yes!”

Hawk bit her neck in response. It was a small nip of his teeth but the little pain mixed with the hard thrusts from his hips, made her desperate to move with him. She arched beneath him and cried out as his cock split her pussy with its hard length. The bed rocked again as he pulled free and surged back into her with a hard grunt. It was hard and yet still controlled. Climax taunted her because he didn’t increase his pace. Tova arched her hips higher but that did not allow her to climax.

“Hawk!”

“No.” He snarled the command as he thrust hard against her and the bed rocked. “Not so soon, Tova.” Hawk refused to allow his seed to flood her so quickly. He needed to fuck, needed to be inside her, needed to feel her lifting for his cock.

Tova lost track of time. They were caught in an endless moment of hard thrusts she willingly submitted to. All that mattered was the next hard penetration. There was nothing more important than straining towards him to ensure that his cock lodged as deeply as possible inside her body. His harsh breath hit her neck as he scraped his teeth against the delicate skin of her throat. The hair covering his chest moved against her breasts, delighting her with its harder maleness.

But Hawk snarled as his control began collapsing. His hands tightened around her wrists as he let more of his weight settle against her body. His hips flexed faster as he drove his cock in and out of her body, deeper and harder. Tova listened to her own cries as her body twisted under his hard possession. Pleasure shot into her womb as her pussy contracted around his cock. Her entire body drew into one taut, straining muscle that lifted towards her partner. The cry she let out echoed off the wall as Hawk snarled and pressed his cock harder into her body.

She felt the hot spurt of his seed and climaxed a second time. This time the pleasure was centered deeply in her belly as her pussy tried to milk every last drop of his seed from his cock. Tova gasped for air as she collapsed back onto the bed. Hawk caught his body on his elbows before crushing her. His chest heaved as he rolled onto his back and took her body with him. One arm hooked around her waist to secure her against his chest as she tried to catch her breath.

A firm hand pushed her head down onto his chest as his legs tangled with her ankles and clamped them in place. He didn’t order her to be still, only made small sounds like you might to a child as he smoothed his hands over her back. There was no question of submitting because her body was too tired to care about very much besides letting her eyelids close. Her hand rested on his chest and her fingers threaded through his crisp hair as her senses filled with his scent. She sighed as his heartbeat filled her ears, and she felt her own heart matching the tempo.

Hawk grunted when he heard her breathing change. Tova slipped into slumber while he remained awake. Sleep didn’t hold any attraction for him when remaining awake meant he could stroke her. His fingers played with her hair as a grin lifted his lips. He had never really noticed how delightful a female felt. Tova was soft in every place that he was hard. Their bodies designed to mesh together exactly as they were at that moment. The slight brush of her breath against his chest made him nod with approval as the scent of her wet pussy drifted up to tease his nose. His cock didn’t twitch, it lay satisfied against his belly as he spread his hand over the curve of her hip. Contentment was not something he had ever associated with sex before. Tonight it settled over him like a thick blanket and he enjoyed it as much as he would have on a freezing winter night.

But her slumber was not peaceful. Tova kicked at the bedding and wiggled away from his embrace. Hawk woke each and every time she moved. He pulled her back against his body before going back to sleep.

She did not bend easily to his will but even that pleased him. Their children would be forged from that iron will and he was going to enjoy the battle ahead.

Chapter Seven

Janus walked through her workstation first thing in the morning.

Her face flamed scarlet as she remembered what Janus had clearly viewed. Ye Gods! It was enough that she had woken up in Hawk’s bed. She had been grateful for the lateness of her awakening because they both had hurried through dressing and out the door before they were late reporting for duty. The frustrated look on Hawk’s face promised her a reckoning later.

But Janus was her current dilemma.

Hawk had been correct. The other Hunter was now intent on her. It was not something that would diminish given time. The only thing that would dissuade him was if she returned to her sire’s living space. He stared at her for too long. Her temper rose as her hands began to shake.

“Enough, Janus. It is too early in the day to be absorbed in what might happen when our duty is completed.”

“It will happen.” He flattened his hands on her table and leaned towards her. Tova leaned right back towards him as she snapped her fingers an inch from his nose.

“I am not a Trophy or a slut or your submissive. If you want my favor, you will learn to ask nicely.”

He chuckled and captured her hand before she pulled it away. “You might enjoy being my submissive mate.” He turned her hand over and bit the tender skin of her inner wrist before letting her loose.

“You’re right, it will be a very long day if I keep coming near you.” Janus turned and left.

Tova hissed and wrapped her arms around her body. Her nipples registered the touch and a tiny spark of enjoyment went through her. Her body ached from Hawk’s possession but that did not banish the craving for a repeat of last night. Hunger flowed through her as thick as her own blood. It never truly vanished. There would be no blaming her reckless behavior on festival madness. No, the attraction went far deeper.

Hawk didn’t appear to make her taste today either. Tova looked at the timekeeper and felt her pride swell. Trust. It was no simple matter to earn it from a male like him. She felt her heart warming in the face of it. Trust from Hawk meant something to her and that was a fact.

But as the day finished and he did not appear, despair invaded her thoughts. It might not have been festival madness for her but that did not mean Hawk was interested in any more of her company. She had spread for him without any promise of anything in return.

Tova shook her head and refused to place a price on her flesh. She felt the blood drain from her face as she considered how foolish she had been last night. She had not even considered the possibility of a child. She might be cradling a new life with no promise from the sire to help rear it.

Tova shook off her concern. Hawk was not the sort of male who would turn his back on his own blood. He might let her return to her sire’s living space because he had sampled what he desired from her, but if a child grew in her body, there would be compensation.

That knowledge did not brighten her mood. She looked at the time and left. Her work rotation was finished and there was no sign of Hawk. It was a simple way of dismissing her but maybe better than rejecting her publicly. She did not know and her heart was heavy as she moved towards her living space. But she had nowhere else to go. She was still confined to the penal sphere. Without Hawk giving her escort her only option was to return to her sire’s dwelling. Remaining in the processing station was even forbidden because it was a secure location.

“What brings you here, slut?”

Rishan’s voice dripped scorn and for some reason it amused her. Tova stared at the sneer on her sibling’s face before giving in to her emotions and laughing at his temper. Rishan blocked the entrance to his living space, keeping her standing in the street. A few of their neighbors frowned at her. Clearly, her sibling had spent last evening sharing family gossip.

“Hunter’s whore.” Her brother spat on the ground at her feet.

Tova propped her hands onto her hips. There were a few grumbles from those who watched and it rubbed her temper. Tova lifted her chin in the face of their judgment—she was the non-convict among them. She would not lower her head in shame to those who broke the law. Besides, her body belonged only to her.

“He was my lover, Rishan. There are many things you might say of me but I am no prostitute.” Tova shot a harsh glance at the men glaring at her. “I will share my body with whom I choose but never for payment.”

Rishan cussed at her and so did a few of her neighbors. Tova felt her pride swelling as the harsh words sunk in.

“You are not welcome here, Tova.”

“I do not want to be!” And it was the truth! Tova looked at each face surrounding her brother and held her chin firmly in the air. “You shame our mother with your greed. You are only angry because I refused to let you sell my body for your own profit. That is the truth. You know it in your heart. I have come for my things. Gladly will I find some place else to live.”

A small bag was flung towards her. Tova caught it and made sure to look into Rishan’s face as he sneered at her. She wanted to remember him exactly like this and never forget why she owed him nothing. Her sire was sitting at the table watching silently as he always did. “Hunter’s slut” drifted on the night breeze before she turned and froze as she faced Hawk.

He stood ten paces behind her, with Janus looking over his shoulder. Her heart twisted with delight even though his face was an emotionless mask. He was every inch a Hunter, their prison guard with black uniform and weapon belt. Today she saw so much more though. There was honor and commitment to his beliefs. His life was dedicated to something more than his own greed. Aye, she was not ashamed of her choice.

“Come with us, Tova. Now.” Hawk moved his eyes over the crowd as Janus stood in front of Rishan.

He lifted one hand and held it out to her. She heard the cussing around her and shook her head. She placed her hand into his as those watching grumbled. The only shame that crossed her mind was for the fact that she had once cared what any of these convicts thought about her sharing her body with a Hunter.

There wasn’t a single male present she would spread for, not one who was worthy of her attention except Hawk. Janus moved and she caught his stare. A shiver shook her body as she realized they had both come for her. Right or wrong, she did not know but she understood that she could not run from her own heart.

Hawk closed his fingers around hers and pulled her towards his body. “You will never come back here.” Fury lit his eyes as he began to pull her away from the grumbling group. His body was tense and Janus looked ready to spring into action if any of Rishan’s friends gave him even the slightest resistance.

“Move faster, Tova.”

Tova turned and never looked back. She did not know where she was bound for but she knew without doubt that she would never return.

Hawk felt his temper surge up as he hooked the bundle out of Tova’s arms and clamped it under his free arm. The snarls of the convicts they passed grated on his nerves for the first time in years.

But the true cause of his anger was Tova’s reckless journey back to her sire’s living space. She hurried to keep pace with his longer strides but he didn’t slow down. Removing Tova from the lawless element of the penal sphere was a critical priority. Their conversation on her rash behavior could wait until he was satisfied that she was no longer in any danger.

Hawk pulled her through the doorway to his living area with a little too much force. Tova stumbled into the room and turned as Janus followed her. She frowned at the show of force they made together. Both males glared at her with tight lips as Hawk moved to the doorway leading to the bedroom they had shared last night. He tossed her bundle into the room and turned back to glare at her. He pulled his black gloves off and dropped them on the center room table. As neat as the living area was, the careless dropping of his uniform gloves hit her as an outburst of emotion.

“You will never enter that penal sphere again. Is that clear, Tova?” His voice was hard as stone. Janus nodded in approval as the second Hunter crossed his arms over his chest.

Hawk suddenly moved and she gasped as he caught her right wrist. He pressed his bare fingers onto her wristband and it let out a small chirp. He pulled some kind of tool off his belt and a moment later the band opened. Tova stared in wonder at the ease with which he removed the thing that had been clamped onto her arm for so long. Her shock broke as Hawk captured her left arm and removed the twin band sitting there. She jerked her eyes up to Hawk.

“Wait—”

“No, I should have removed them this morning.” Hawk handed the bands to Janus. He placed his body in front of her as an immovable wall. “You will never place yourself at risk again.”

“What risk? A little cursing is not such a horrible thing. Besides, where was I to go?” Tova shook off his hold and then hissed as she recognized that Hawk let her go. She didn’t have the strength to break free. Knowing that truth made her furious.

“You know I must leave the processing building within fifteen minutes of the end of my shift. Besides, that is not the first time I have fought with Rishan.” But it would be the last and that sobered her. Like a book closing, that portion of her life was past now.

Hawk caught her chin and raised it up to meet his eyes. “Females who choose Hunters over their own kind sometimes end up murdered.”

Tova gasped because she saw the truth of his statement on his face. Horror flooded her as Hawk glared at her. But he shook his head as he shot a hard look at Janus.

“But it is our failing that allowed you to end up making the choice to return. One of us should have been there when your shift ended.”

Tova wasn’t sure what to think of his comment. Her heart wanted to grasp his words and hold onto them like a promise but she was too uncertain to question him because false hope was better then none. She looked past Hawk to her little bag that was lying on the bed she had shared with him last night. Right there was everything she had in the world. It was a harsh reality but not really a frightening one. Life did not scare her and she certainly wasn’t going to let it begin doing so today.

“I would like to bathe.” Tova didn’t wait for approval. She moved towards the shower and rubbed her wrist as she went. She studied her bare skin as she went and a smile covered her face as she entered the bathroom. Yes, it would be the last time she listened to Rishan’s filthy mouth.

“I’m an ass.” Hawk wasn’t looking for Janus to agree with him. He ground his teeth together as he picked up Tova’s discarded bands. He lived his life with details and he’d overlooked a really big one today.

“I never thought she’d try to return to the sphere.” Janus spoke with his years as a Hunter backing up his words.

“Except Tova isn’t a Hunter. She had no way of knowing what might have happened.”

It was a harsh world and one in which Hawk would never have believed to find a female like Tova. But it made sense too. Her strength had allowed her to remain inside the penal sphere and resist being warped by those around her. But her heart was the real treasure, untarnished by evil. She never thought that others might hurt her for taking him as a lover. That was the thing that endeared her to him. Her undying belief in the good in everyone. She was an example of why he served the law. In the outer, civilian spheres, there was no fear. Tova still clung to that innocence despite her years among the unlawful. Hawk placed the bands next to his weapons belt to be returned to the command office. He was going to have to protect her from that ugly side of life.

In fact, he was looking forward to the duty.

Janus stayed for dinner.

Tova lingered in her bath but habits died hard and she was finished in less than ten minutes. She prolonged her dressing but even that could not last very long. She tossed her head and turned to face the beginning of her new life. Somehow, she had to start without really knowing what she wanted.

There was only Hawk, but that was a good place to begin. He turned his head the second she moved across the doorway. She stared at him and a giggle escaped her mouth. One of his dark eyebrows rose.

“What? My cooking amuses you?”

Tova fluttered her eyelids but the sight of Hawk tending to food remained. The common chore was so mismatched with his black uniform that she laughed again. Rishan would rather starve before performing any work that he considered female duty.

“I think she’s laughing at you.” Janus enjoyed it too. His lips rose into a smirk as he popped a piece of food into his mouth. His eyes dropped down her length, capturing her attention.

Excitement rippled through her as she recognized the flicker of hunger in his eyes. Promise shone brightly as he stared at her breasts. Tova turned her head and found Hawk watching them. More heat filled his eyes as her body began to clamor for something other than food. Tova refused to allow her mind to spin her into nervousness. She moved across the floor and reached for Hawk.

“You are my lover.”

Hawk groaned as her words echoed in his head. He crushed her in a powerful embrace that betrayed his emotion. His mouth caught hers a second later and his kiss was full of harsh demand.

All Tova felt was the need to let her tongue tangle with his. Her fingers hated his uniform, so she slid her hands up his chest to his neck, where she found warm male skin. Hawk left her mouth and trailed his lips over her neck as he gently licked the bite he’d marked her throat with last night. A small bruise clearly showed on her fair skin and he lingered over the spot as she let her head tip back to offer her neck to his teeth. It was a submissive pose but one that declared how much trust she harbored for him. Tova yielded her delicate skin to his mouth, craving the pleasure she knew his touch would deliver. Hawk found her buttons and swiftly undid them. His hands dipped into the front of her open robe to part the fabric. The night air was cool against her skin as he pushed the robe across her shoulders and over them.

Her nipples were twin points of aching need but she suddenly recalled they were not alone this time. Gravity did not care and her robe slumped to the floor around her ankles. A gasp caught on her lips as she shivered.