Primal Elements (17 page)

“Get off him now!” She whipped the gun around and into Rick’s face. Her heart was pounding, but thankfully her hands weren’t shaking. “Ben, can you move?”

Rick started to move towards her, but Ben kicked his legs out from under him. Ben hopped to his feet and joined Jenna. “Let’s go.”

“Get in,” she ordered and motioned to Rick. “Take him too.”

The second guard pulled his wounded counterpart into the room as Rick leveled a dark stare at her. His face had grown red and he was breathing harshly.

“You won’t make it out of here alive,” he said through clenched teeth.

“Slide your guns out now,” Ben ordered and picked them up as the guard complied.

“You’re dead, Hawthorn.”

“Not yet.” Ben slammed the door in his face.

It took a second to secure the lock and make sure there weren’t any other guards in the area. Now that she knew they were safe for the moment, Jenna’s body began to shake. Tears welled up in her eyes and threatened to spill over.

“Do you think that man will be okay?” she whispered.

Ben looked around quickly before pulling Jenna close to him. She could feel the strong pounding of his heart and knew he was as affected by what was happening as she was. Somehow, knowing he was shaken too made her feel better.

“I’m sure he’ll be fine. You were amazing.”

His lips were warm against her forehead. She could feel his concern and his admiration in that single contact. Jenna tilted her head back and pressed a quick kiss to his lips.

“We need to get to the device.”

Ben shook his head and laced his arm around his waist. “Out of the question. We’re getting out of here. Matt and Kyle will be creating a distraction soon and we need to be ready to move.”

“We can’t go. Not until I have a final look at the device. I think I know what’s wrong with it, and if I’m right, we won’t have a lot of time to prevent it from exploding.”

Jenna refused to move, even as he tried to pull her along. When he growled in frustration, she wasn’t sure if she wanted to laugh or cry.

“Ben, trust me.”

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His eyes snapped to hers and she could see the internal battle he was fighting. She knew whatever his decision was, she was going to have to get to the device to see if she was right. She prayed she wouldn’t have to fight him to be able to do it. Jenna waited, her fists clenched at her sides. Instantly, her body relaxed when a small grin crossed his lips.

“I must be crazy.”

“I could have told you that years ago. Let’s go before the guards realize Rick’s missing.”

Silently, they made their way over to an empty room that was directly across from where the device was kept under guard. So far, no one had noticed their escape, but Jenna knew that wouldn’t last much longer.

“How the hell are we going to get to that thing?”

“I told you this was a bad idea,” he whispered next to her ear. “We need a distraction, and a big one at that, if we are even going to think about getting to that device.”

Jenna looked around the warehouse, trying to find something, anything that could help them. She was about to suggest they try sneaking around the back through the office when all hell broke loose.

All the windows that lined the top of the far back wall shattered, sending shards of glass cascading down onto the warehouse floor. Every guard in the warehouse came running, their guns pointed up, some firing blindly at the unseen invaders.

“Now, Jenna,” Ben said and shoved her out into the open.

Once her feet were moving, she didn’t stop. She could feel Ben behind her more than hear him and it gave her the courage she needed to dodge the chaos in the warehouse. Gun blasts echoed in the large room and assaulted her ears as black-clad figures began to pour in from the gaping holes where the windows used to be.

Thankfully, the door to the room that held the device was open. Jenna shoved it wide and ran quickly inside.

She stopped short of the device, making sure to keep a few feet between it and her.

“I think if we can’t find a way to shut this thing off now it’s going to explode.”

“Gareth said it needed the second half of the device if it was going to stabilize.”

“Of course. Makes sense.”

Help!

Where is she?

Memory of the voices came back to her and Jenna had to wonder if there was something more to them. Both sides were pulling together various elements around them in an attempt to find its other half.

“That must be how they made the dating service work too. Feed the profiles of each person into the computer, link it to the device and it will naturally pair the compatible profiles.” She turned to look at Ben. “Why would Rick bother?”

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“Money. The only thing other than power that really drives him. He’ll take it any way he can.” Ben shrugged. “He’s a greedy bastard.”

“Well, if we don’t figure this thing out now the entire colony is screwed. This thing is big enough to take out this entire building and half the colony environment shield.”

Jenna took a step closer to the device. Despite knowing what was coming, the sensation was overwhelming. As she got within a foot of it, a blinding lust raced through her body. Her breasts ached and grew wet with need. One touch and she would have come on the spot.

“Fuck,” Ben groaned behind her.

“It wasn’t this bad the last time I was close to it. It must be because you’re here too.”

“I felt it last time, I think. I was in the car and my dick nearly exploded, it was so hard.”

Jenna turned to look at him. His face was screwed up tight in concentration. His breathing was coming in short, controlled gasps. When he looked up and met her gaze, she was floored. Barely restrained lust flared in his eyes, his body held tight as if he were fighting for his control. For a second, she thought he was going to turn around and leave, but instead he took several long strides to stand beside her.

“Let’s do this and get the hell out of here.”

Jenna couldn’t tell if the look on his face was one of pain or extreme lust.

Considering how she was feeling right now, it could be either.

“Okay, I need to think,” she managed to say once she’d regained control of her tongue.

Ben inched closer to her, his arm brushing hers. Jenna gasped and blindly reached out to steady against the sudden rush of desire. Her emotions were all over the place, her stomach clenching from fear of rejection to the rush of desire she had for Ben. Shit, she wasn’t even sure the emotions were all hers. When her fingers came down, they landed in the middle of the device.

Everything in the room suddenly stilled. The shouts of the guards under attack, the noise of their bullets exploding in the warehouse behind them all gone. The only sound she could hear was the beating of a heart. She prayed to the gods it was hers.

“Hello?” Her voice sounded muted in her ears.

“Hello.”

Jenna was suddenly all alone in a dark room. Before her stood a man, but not a human. His tall, lean body looked to shimmer in front of her. His skin was almost transparent, his white hair radiating in the darkness.

“Who are you? Where have you taken me?”

Amazingly, she wasn’t afraid. She could still feel Ben close by. Knowing he was there gave her strength.

“Your mate is worried about you,” the alien said.

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The sadness in his voice struck a chord with Jenna. Like he understood the fear and loneliness of finding that one person who despite all the differences, all the reasons in the world why they shouldn’t be the one, they are. Her perfect match. That’s when it hit her.

“You’re worried about your mate too, aren’t you?” As she said the words, she knew they were right.

“They’ve hurt her. I need to find her.” There was an edge to his voice now. An anger she understood. “This planet is ill. We must leave. I need to find her so we can go.”

“She’s fine. Safe. I know where she is and can—”

In a blink, the alien was beside her, his hand wrapped around her throat. Jenna’s heart began to pound, but she managed to keep calm.

“You took her!” he hissed in her ear.

“No, but I know who did. We found her and have kept her safe. She’s very lonely and misses you. I can bring her to you if you give me a chance.”

His fingers squeezed ever-so-slightly tighter before he relaxed his grasp. Jenna was now able to take a deep breath. If she didn’t get him calmed down soon, it would be too late to prevent the explosion.

“I know you want her back, but you need to calm down. You can’t help her if you hurt yourself. The device that’s holding you is overloading.”

He released her and took a step back. Jenna turned a slow circle to face him, her fingers massaging her neck. The alien tipped his head to the side and looked at her curiously.

“Our ship was badly damaged. We were forced to flee to the escape pods. We landed here, but something went wrong.”

Jenna couldn’t believe it. They must have crashed on Mars before the colony was built.

“You said the planet was ill. What do you mean? Can we fix it?” A million thoughts raced through her mind. They may have been here long enough to be able to help her.

Help rebuild.

“I need her back,” the alien said again, the anger in his voice replaced with a heart-wrenching pain.

“You’ve crashed on a planet. You’ve been here a very long time. Over three hundred years. Maybe longer. Why do you need to leave now? What is wrong with the planet?”

“The soil was healing. But something changed it. Hurt it again,” he said and looked at her, desperation in his eyes. “Where is she?”

“Some people took your mate. They didn’t know she was there. But she’s fine. I felt her back at the site. She misses you so much.”

“She’s all I’ve had for so long.”

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Jenna smiled. “You must have been together for many years now.”

“Years?”

“It’s how we measure time.”

“Time?”

Something they were running out of. “I can’t explain right now. But I will bring your mate here. Promise me you won’t be angry any longer.”

“No,” he said simply.

Jenna couldn’t stop the groan of frustration. Shit, she wasn’t a diplomat and they didn’t have time for her to learn. A thought suddenly came to her.

“What if I promised to give you the man who
was
responsible for harming your mate?”

His face twisted into a sneer and Jenna was very thankful she wouldn’t be on the receiving end of that anger.

“If you can, then I will calm. I will wait.”

She released the breath she was holding. “I promise. Thank you.”

“Bring her back and I will help you.”

“What do you mean?”

The room seemed to tip on its side and Jenna stumbled backward and found herself in Ben’s arms.

“Jenna!”

He spun her around and before her brain had time to register what was happening he crushed her against him and claimed her mouth in a savage kiss. She could feel his fear, desire and complete relief.

“I thought I’d lost you. You went so pale and didn’t respond to me,” he murmured against her head, kissing her hair.

When she looked into his eyes, she could see it. He loved her. Despite their differences, he’d fallen in love. Jenna felt the tears begin to well up in her eyes, but she blinked them away.

“I love you,” she whispered.

“Well, isn’t that touching.”

They both turned their heads in time to see Rick standing in the doorway. A laser pistol pointed directly at them.

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Ben instinctively pushed Jenna behind him. He knew Rick wouldn’t hesitate to shoot either of them. But he also knew he enjoyed the games, the taunting. They had a minute for him to figure out how the fuck to get out of this.

“How the hell did you get out?” Ben said, using his anger and fear at almost losing Jenna to good use. He needed to keep Rick talking.

Rick sneered and took a step into the room. “When all hell broke loose out there, my men came looking for me. I figured you would have run away by now, Ben.

Heroism isn’t your style. No profit in it.”

The comment stung. He suddenly felt Jenna’s hand squeeze his and realized Rick didn’t have any power over him any longer.

“I’m not going to let you destroy this colony.” Ben kept his eyes on Rick and his gun. Jenna moved again. She’d taken hold of his shirt and began to tug him backward.

Back towards the device. Not needing to know what she had in mind, he followed her lead.

“Had the government given me what I wanted, it all would have worked out fine.

But you went and fucked that up on me now. And that wasn’t very nice of you.”

Ben took another step back and watched as Rick moved even closer to him. The rush of desire he’d felt earlier began to build in his again. His cock sprang to life, making it hard to focus on anything other than stripping Jenna and taking her right there and then. She bunched her fingers, squeezing his shirt into a tight ball. Sighing, she pulled him back even closer against her.

“So you were the one who took the devices away from each other?” Jenna asked in a loud voice, almost too loud.

What the hell was she up to?

“Are you fucking stupid?” Rick laughed. “Of course it wasn’t me. I pay people for that shit.”

Jenna didn’t seem fazed by the insult. “But you were responsible. You moved them, separated the devices?”

Rick’s laughter died down instantly. “I think I’m going to kill you now.”

Ben watched in horror as Rick raised the pistol up and prepared to fire. He didn’t think. Ben launched himself at Rick, letting out a primal scream. It was enough of a shock to make Rick pause. By the time he realized what was going on, Ben was on top of him.

The last time they’d fought, Rick had the upper hand. Ben was wiser now. He knew Rick was weak. Jenna had shown him that and he’d be damned if he’d let anything 132

happen to her now.

Ben threw a punch, connecting with Rick’s jaw. Pain shot up his arm and his hand went numb, but he wasn’t about to stop. Again he took a swing, but this time Rick ducked and landed a blow of his own on Ben’s stomach.

He doubled over in agony, the air rushing from his lungs. Ben dropped to his knees as Rick turned to face Jenna.

“Now it’s your turn, bitch.”

Ben felt a sudden injection of rage and he threw himself once more at Rick. His shoulder connected with Rick’s back with enough force to push them both forward, landing squarely on the device.

Unlike his earlier approach, Ben didn’t feel the effects this time. He was able to back up enough to put a small distance between them. He was about to grab Rick and pull him off the device when Jenna’s hand gripped his shoulder.

“Don’t,” she simply said.

But he couldn’t stop. Ben stepped forward and rolled Rick around. What he saw drained the anger from his body.

Rick’s eyes were rolled back into his head, as Jenna’s had been the last time she’d touched the device. Like Jenna, Rick’s face had lost its color. He looked to be in agony, his mouth open in a silent scream. Rick didn’t, or couldn’t, move.

“What the hell?” Ben whispered.

“It’s not a probe like we thought. It’s an escape pod. Two, actually.”

Ben turned to look at her. She was shaking, but managed to hold her emotions in check.

“What do you mean, escape pod? It’s not big enough.”

“The last time I touched it, he talked to me. The alien trapped inside. He was looking for the other half. The part with his mate.”

“But it was set to explode.”

“He was angry. Somehow, they’ve been in that thing so long it’s become a part of who they are. I told him I’d give him the one who was responsible. And that I’d get his mate back to him.”

“Ben!”

He turned at the sound of Matt’s voice. “In here!”

Matt and Kyle came barreling into the room, blasters drawn.

“Are you two okay? When you didn’t come out, we got worried,” Matt said, his eyes moving quickly over both of them. When he spotted Rick, he raised his gun. “Ben, move.”

“It’s okay, Matt.” Ben looked over his shoulder. “He’s not going anywhere.”

“What the fuck?” Kyle shook his head and made his way over to where Rick stood.

“Don’t touch him,” Jenna warned. “He’s been given a taste of his own medicine.”

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“What the fuck does that mean?” Kyle snapped.

“There is an alien inside. Rick hurt his mate.”

“Payback’s a bitch. Go, alien guy.”

“Matt, we need Gareth to get the second half of the device and bring it here. Is it safe to do that yet?”

Matt peeked out into the warehouse. “Kyle brought in the troops. They’re still cleaning up out there. I’d give it a bit yet.”

“Apparently, the chief of police didn’t want to be responsible for your death, Mr.

Hawthorn,” Kyle chuckled.

Ben would have to remember to buy the chief a drink next time he saw him.

“It will take Gareth and my people some time to get the other half of the device here. We should tell them to get moving,” Jenna said and slipped her arm through his.

Everything felt right about the contact. He smiled and moved her hand down so he could wrap her fingers in his.

“You mind looking after that, Matt?”

Matt looked at Kyle and chuckled, “Pay up.”

“Damn,” Kyle groaned and handed over a currency chip.

“I don’t want to know what that bet was about, do I?” Jenna sighed and shook her head.

“Nope. And I’ll get Gareth moving.” Matt winked at Jenna.

From out of nowhere, Rick moaned and dropped in a heap to the floor. Both Matt and Kyle had their pistols on him in a flash, but Ben knew it wouldn’t be necessary. He could feel the alien’s satisfaction and he knew it had exacted its revenge. Did what he would have done in his place—hurt the man who hurt his mate. Hurt the woman he loved.

“I don’t think he’s going to cause you any problems,” Ben said softly.

As if to further add to Ben’s point, Rick curled up into a ball on the floor, moaning.

“How about I take this garbage out for you?” Kyle said in an extremely cheery tone and radioed for some help. Within a few minutes, three armed police officers came and dragged Rick away.

Matt and Kyle drifted out of the room as well, leaving Ben finally alone with Jenna.

He turned and pulled her into his arms.

“Gods, I was so scared. I thought he was going to kill you,” he said and placed a single kiss on her temple.

She turned her face into his, her mouth igniting his body until he was shaking with need. He held his passion in check instead, wanting to show her how much he cared.

How much he loved her.

Unrelenting, he drove his tongue into her mouth. Every repressed, pent-up scrap of love he’d ever felt for her, he poured into that kiss. He needed her. Now, next week, 134

forever. Jenna pulled back, her eyes wide and questioning. She ran a finger down the scar on his cheek.

“He can’t hurt you anymore.” She smiled and leaned in to kiss his scar.

“I know. You saved me.”

Jenna chuckled. “I think we saved each other.”

“Look, I know I’m not perfect. I can be an arrogant ass most of the time, but I swear I’ll love you until you can’t take any more.”

He could tell from the shocked expression on her face he’d actually said it. It felt like a weight, a heavy burden was suddenly gone. Everything was okay for the first time in a long while.

“You love me?” she asked, her voice catching.

“I do,” he said and brushed a strand of hair from her face.

“I love you too,” she whispered and wrapped her arms around his waist, resting her head on his chest.

“As soon as Gareth gets the second half of the device here, I’m taking you home.”

“He’ll need help.”

“And you’ll be here. But after that, we’re going into hiding. For at least a week.”

Jenna shifted her body so her hip was pressed up hard against his stiff cock.

“Maybe two weeks,” he muttered.

“Who am I to argue?” She raked her nails down his chest.

“I was hoping you would. That way I’d be able to tie you up to convince you.”

Jenna chuckled. “Who am I to ruin your plans?”

* * * * *

Jenna frantically combed her fingers through her hair, trying to make it look half decent. Ben would be back any second and she wanted her surprise to be ready. Her mind raced, unable or unwilling to settle. So much had happened in such a short time—

gods had it only been a month since her life had changed completely?

She’d slept most of the day after she and Gareth managed to reunite the two sides of the device. Thankfully, the self-destruct deactivated. She’d actually felt the relief and satisfaction as the alien and his mate were reunited.

She shook her head as she looked at her image in the mirror. That had been two weeks ago now. At the time she’d talked to the alien, she didn’t know what he’d meant by his offer to help. But with all of the changes, his intervention was the only explanation.

The soil around the escape pods was fertile.

Not just filled with tiny microbes, but rich with minerals that hadn’t existed before.

And it was spreading. The atmosphere inside the dome was changing too. As the soil 135

changed, more and more natural oxygen was being produced. She didn’t know how he done it, but the alien had healed the planet. It was beginning to live again. They predicted at the current rate of transformation, there would be a breathable atmosphere outside the dome within twenty years.

Ben and Gareth then carefully took the device back to CalCorp. Until they could figure out a way to free the aliens, Ben wanted to make sure they were someplace safe.

He would be back from his last meeting with Gareth, which marked the end of their project.

And the beginning of their future.

Jenna adjusted the tight leather bra and smoothed out the black silk skirt she had on. The bright red lipstick she had on seemed to stand out against her blonde hair. She hoped Ben would like it.

Not that she was going to give him any time to pay attention to her lips. Not for long at least.

The beeping of the security pad announced Ben’s arrival home. Jenna ran from the bathroom, the clicking of her black thigh-high boots loud in their condo. She made it to the chair and placed her boot on it as Ben walked into the room.

“Jen, hon, I’m…”

She tried not to smile at the look of surprise on his face. “Welcome home.”

“My, my, my.” He whistled as he dropped his black leather jacket to the floor.

“Who are you and what have you done with my wife?”

She still got a small chill every time he called her his wife. Even though they’d only been married a few days, she didn’t think hearing those words would ever grow old.

“Your wife thinks you’ve been naughty and need to be punished.”

Ben simply raised an eyebrow. Jenna knew he’d be more than happy to play along.

Without wanting to give anything away, she sat down on the chair, leaning back and making sure to keep her legs open enough so he could see she wasn’t wearing anything underneath.

“You’re overdressed, Mr. Hawthorn. Take your shirt off.”

She could see he was trying to play along and be serious, but his lips betrayed a smile. “Yes, ma’am.”

Ben slowly, one by one, undid his buttons. Jenna wanted him to hurry up so she could see his gorgeous chest, but she resisted. Patience was important in their little game. When he reached the last button, he did smile at her, knowing she loved watching him strip. He shrugged the shirt from his well-defined arms and she watched it fall into a heap at his feet.

She looked her fill, drinking up every detail of his perfect body. He stood still for the most part, flexing the occasional muscle as her gaze landed on his body. His pecs were inviting and she wanted nothing more than to trail kisses over his body, down his tight abs until she could wrap her mouth around his cock.

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“Now your pants,” she somehow managed to say with a steady voice.

“As you wish.”

It only took a second for him to push his pants to the floor, taking his underwear with them. His cock stood erect, thrusting straight up. Jenna felt her body react to his obvious arousal. She would have come on the spot with the slightest touch. But she wasn’t done with her game quite yet.

“You bad boy. I didn’t tell you to take your underwear off. Now you’re going to be punished.”

Ben looked rather serious as he stood with his hands clasped behind his back, his legs slightly apart. If he wasn’t standing there naked, she could have believed he was running a board meeting.