Prince of Dragons (8 page)

She sank gracefully onto a cushion and gave Prince Azuran a look over her glass.

“Lovely wine, Your Highness.”

“It is a good vintage—very old. You must eat.” He beckoned slightly, and another servant appeared, kneeling beside her with a large tray of delicate hors d’oeuvres. Sirena selected several. She could eat what she liked, as many hours as she spent training with the guard. With a deft twist, the servant activated a hover mechanism on the underside of the plate and it floated at her side, ready for use.

Slyde sat nearby, an Azurian lady at each elbow. He didn’t appear to be working very hard to fend them off. With laughter like soft chimes, they helped him select a huge plate of hors d’oeuvres. One of them laid a napkin across his lap. When he downed his drink, the other immediately signaled for more.

Sirena chose a stuffed lii blossom from her plate and bit down on it, hard. The crisp petals crunched between her teeth and the creamy stuffing spurted into her mouth.

“Umm, delicious.” She licked her fingers slowly as the prince watched.

“Yes,” he agreed. “I am sure it is.”

They smiled at each other. From the look in the prince’s eyes, he was perfectly willing to do more than flirt. This knowledge warmed her like healing balm.

One of the Aquarians leaned over and moved a playing piece on the game table.

“Do you play?” Azuran gestured at the ornately carved board. “Galacticus, a particular favorite of ours.”

Sirena shook her head. She didn’t often play games of chance, although she’d enjoyed a match on her last leave with a handsome club owner on Indigon. It had involved forfeiting items of clothing. She suspected he’d used his telepathic powers to cheat, but no matter—they’d both gotten what they wanted in the end.

“I won’t interrupt your current game, but I would return at another time for a match,” Slyde’s deep voice cut through the hum of conversation, the background of music.

The prince bowed slightly. “I will await the opportunity,” he replied. The two men raised their glasses to each other and Sirena smirked into her drink. A pair of alpha males, metaphorically pawing at the ground and snorting.

“But, come,” the prince said, holding up his glass high. “Tonight, we celebrate.”

At his cue, the party sprang to life. A horn called out a long, triumphant note. The music swung into a swift, lilting beat that thrummed through the very fabric of the room. A burst of laughter drew all eyes to a flurry of movement as several young women whirled into the center of the room. Clad in nothing more than light, shifting veils, they were lithe beauties of every hue from dusky to pale. They shimmied, twisted and twirled to the beat of the music, smiling flirtatiously at their audience as they danced.

Their audience called out in delight and, as servants circulated again with drinks, the party came to life. More passengers streamed in. Sirena saw the other crew commanders in the crowd, as well as several of the guard. Serpentians were always up for a party, particularly a wild one. Navos and Craig appeared, the only ones in uniform.

The dancing girls beckoned others to join them, and soon the room was traced with syncopated lines moving to the beat of the music. Guests began to toss items of clothing away, imitating the girls who were now shedding their veils. Cries of approval and laughter echoed.

Sirena danced with the prince, another Aquarian and a few of the passengers, including one whose mate appeared in the middle of their dance, scowling at Sirena, to drag her partner away. Sirena shrugged at him with a moue of amused regret and snagged another drink off of a passing servant’s tray.

She sipped it, surveying the room over her glass. Strangely, she was not in the mood for further flirting, even with the gorgeous Azuran. It was more entertaining to spar with her maddening co-commander.

Ah, well. Perhaps this would be a good time to check out the prince’s menagerie. She sauntered slowly around the perimeter of the room, inhaling delicately. Through the scents of food, drink, perfumes and the assorted fumes of aroused and overheated dancers, she could still make out the faint scent of creatures.

Slyde stood in a group on the far side of the room, his princesses hanging on him like icicles. Well, she could call him on her com-link if she needed help. As if anything was likely to arise that she couldn’t handle.

Still carrying her flute of wine, she glided out of the ballroom.

Chapter Eleven

Slyde watched her go. Damn the female, where was she going? She wasn’t slipping off to meet Azuran—he was talking with Craig. If she’d found another lover, Slyde would have noticed—he’d been watching her like a cobra.

If she wasn’t trysting with a male, that meant she was going to look at the prince’s menagerie, searching for the source of the scent. Sirena cared fiercely about her job. He knew she would die to protect the
Orion
and its crew and passengers, just as he would. He considered it one of her most admirable traits. However, she was supposed to wait for him. If necessary, he could shift into his brother dragon and deal with any dangerous serpent.

One of the Aquarian princesses stroked her hand up his arm, swaying closer to him so that her fragrance wafted up around him. Her silver hair shimmered as she tilted her head to smile up at him, and her milky skin gleamed.

“More wine?”

“Thank you, but no,” he said. The two were a pleasant distraction and a useful screen between him and any other interested females, but he’d had enough of their clinging ways.

Extricating himself from them with an apologetic smile, he strolled behind a screen as if headed for the men’s room. Instead, he worked his way around the perimeter of the room, until he reached the door where Sirena had disappeared. He could still catch the faint scent of her alluring perfume, though here it competed with the scent of animals. He grinned to himself. His lovely co-commander would not appreciate the juxtaposition.

The scent of creatures was stronger in the passageway, the music fainter. Crossing the passageway, he used his com-link to unlock the door of the large storeroom, and the door hissed open.

The first thing he saw was her wine flute, sitting atop a large cage. Cages of varying sizes had been set in rows the length of the room. From behind the narrow bars, eyes watched him, some beady, some large and bright, some flat and shiny. The blue iguana flicked its tongue from a large cage to his right, and he tapped the bars in casual greeting as he passed.

Then Sirena’s auburn head popped up near the far end of the room.

“Ah, you’re here,” she said coolly. “I’m nearly done with this row.”

“It’ll be faster if we work together.”

“True. Come and help with this creature, then. I’m not at all certain what this is, much less if it has teeth.”

He strode the length of the room, past snakes, iguanas and lizards, which he knew she would’ve handled without a qualm, being a Serpentian. He bit back a smile as he saw the creature she was regarding warily. A dark, hairy hump in the center of its cage, it regarded them with two liquid eyes, but did not move until Sirena opened the latch of its cage. Lifting its head, it whined plaintively.

“C’mere, fella.” Slyde reached into the cage, lifting out the silky animal in one hand. A long pink tongue shot out and swiped his chin. Slyde grinned at Sirena. “It’s a juvenile canine—known as a puppy.”

“Oh. I’ve heard of them, of course, but I’ve never seen one. They sometimes bite, do they not?”

“When threatened. However, this one signaled no fear or hostility, did you, little one?” He stroked the puppy gently and it wriggled happily, tail flapping against his cradling arm. Sirena watched them with a fascinated gaze.

“Would you like to hold it?” he asked.

She stepped back, but Slyde thrust the puppy into her arms. Great serpents, the woman was prickly. She acted as if she’d never held a pet before. He dropped to one knee and examined the empty cage.

“Nothing else here,” he said. “I don’t discern the troubling scent in this area, either.”

He looked up. His imperious co-commander was eye-to-eye with the puppy as they gazed at each other, neither moving. The puppy’s back feet rested on the upper edge of the gold fabric hung so precariously across her magnificent breasts. Slyde’s jaw clenched as heat streaked through him at the sight. One push, the bodice of that thing would slip and he would see paradise.

The puppy’s tail wagged as it darted out a pink tongue to swipe her chin.

“That’s quite enough of that,” she said severely, but Slyde saw her stroke the little creature before she placed it carefully back in its cage. It whined and stood up with its paws on the bars, wagging hopefully. She smiled, wiggling a finger through the cage and laughing when it was licked.

“I know how you feel,” Slyde said to the puppy silently. “I’m damn near ready to do the same.”

“This cage is empty.” Sirena turned to the next row. “I don’t see how anything could have escaped, with motion sensors as well as iridium bars.”

Slyde read the label on the cage.

“Blue radix lizard. Probably loose in the Aquarian quarters,” he said. “They seem to like to have pets about them.”

“Oh, of course,” she said with relief. “I’ve seen them.”

They worked smoothly along the next row of cages. Open the cage, distract the inmate while the other searched quickly, sniffing as well as rifling through the bedding and under feeding receptacles.

Slyde worked in a state of near torture. The scent of her body accented with her perfume, spicy and tantalizing, overlay the scent of every other creature. This, combined with her lithe, silky body so close and so scantily clad, nearly drove him mad.

He burned to do two things—first, throw her over his lap, pull up that tiny excuse for a skirt and spank her ass until she cried mercy for teasing him so. Second, lay her down on the floor and thrust into her right here, while the creatures in the cages watched. His cock was hard and aching, his balls drawn up so tight he felt as if he would explode.

He clenched his teeth and forced himself to concentrate on their task.

They found nothing, but as they neared the corner of the room, Slyde flared his nostrils uneasily. There was something—but where? He could not hone in on it. Then they both sniffed and exchanged a look.

“Here,” said Sirena, reaching for the lock on a large, closely barred cage at the end of the row.

“Wait!” Slyde shot his hand protectively in front of hers, then slipped his weapon off his belt, and aimed it through the bars. A narrow, powerful beam of light shot out, lighting the interior of the cage. With a loud hiss, a hideous specter reared up in the beam of light, swaying from side to side. The mouth gaped open, and sharp-looking frills flared on either side.

They both flinched, and Slyde let out a curse. “It’s a kronos—a false dragon. They are foul, but harmless.”

“Ewww!” Sirena wrinkled her nose. “Why does Azuran want one of these? Not only are they ugly, they stink.”

“Ask him while the two of you are flirting.” Slyde peered down the beam of light he was playing under the squatty, bowed legs of the large lizard. “There’s the reason for her hostility. She’s sitting on a clutch of eggs.”

Sirena leaned over his shoulder to peer along the beam of light. “I count three, no—four eggs. They’re huge.”

He grunted in assent. He couldn’t formulate a coherent response with her silken hair brushing his cheek.

“I don’t suppose anything else would hide in there,” she said, rising to head for the dispenser of sanitizing fog on the wall by the hatchway. “Couldn’t stand it. So she must be the source of the smell we noticed. We’ve checked every other cage. I’m going back to the party.”

Busy training the small micro-scanner on the cage, Slyde grunted. Nothing, just the kronos and the eggs. He hadn’t realized reptilian eggs were so dense. He couldn’t see the young inside.

He looked up sharply as Sirena opened the hatchway, posing for a moment against the opening.

“Enjoy the rest of your evening, Commander Stone. I’m sure the princesses will take very good care of you—if you let them.”

She sauntered gracefully back to the ballroom. His fists clenched, and he felt his dragon self stir and growl. Was she daring him to go to another woman, or even women? It was all he could do not to shift and roar after her. He was aroused and enraged to the edge of his formidable control—with absolutely no outlet. How was it possible for the two of them to work so well together, yet be so at odds in this?

Chapter Twelve

“Commander Stone?”

He whirled at the sound of the soft voice.

It was the cadet, Tawnee, dressed in a tiny fitted evening sheath of plum lii leaf. Her dark blonde hair curled about her head, her slanted eyes gleamed under a coating of cosmetics.

She smiled with pretty shyness as she paused in the doorway. “I saw you leave the party, and I…I wondered if you needed help.”

She walked toward him, her lashes fluttering as she let her gaze drop down his body. Slyde saw her soft lips part, and form a soft “o”. His cheeks reddened. She was looking directly at his erection thrusting against his snug clothing. Her forked tongue flickered out and wet her lips as she stopped before him.

“Oh, Commander,” she crooned. “You do need my help.”

She sank gracefully to her knees, giving him a great view down the front of her little dress. Great serpents—did she mean to…?

Stunned, not sure what was about to happen, his usual iron will hammered to the breaking point by Sirena, Slyde stood frozen as Tawnee reached up, her clever hands unfastening his pants. His cock sprang out, so engorged it slapped his belly, the broad head swollen, even spangled with a drop of arousal. He bit back a groan as she looked at him with obvious delight. Her gaze, the very air, seemed to caress him, tease him.

“Tawnee—” he managed. “This is not right. You should not…”

She looked up at him and smiled, reaching around to cup his ass with her soft hands. And then she licked him into her mouth. Her hot, wet, silky mouth.

A helpless groan rumbled from his chest at the exquisite sensation. Ah, it was nothing like his own hand slicked with gel-soap. Her touch was so delicate and yet so firm. He flinched as she raked him lightly with her teeth.