Raashh Decisions (Xxan War Book 3) (10 page)

Arren rushed into the room, looking all limbs in his
S’suumea
. Daveed shot him an irritated look.

“Sorry. Sorry,” Arren apologized.

“It’s okay,” Joy assured him.

“If you don’t mind, Arren,” Daveed hinted.

“It’s sort of important.”

“Whatever game—”

“It’s not a game. You cannot take Joy back to Spice. Not yet. Give me three days.”

They both turned to look at him; Joy folded her legs beneath her.

“Go on,” Daveed invited.

“I’ve been looking into the attack. The code the guerillas used to get through the outer shell of security is the same one Spice gives to access executive areas on your floor. I
told
the security team everyone should have a separate access code.” He visibly fumed at that.

Daveed scrubbed his hand across his mouth. “How many people have that code?”

“Counting the assistants who use it, seven. I can positively clear four of them. I did the security clearances on Joy and Andre myself. We know the two of us aren’t guilty. That leaves the three executive assistants on the floor. Give me three days to run new clearances on them.” He shifted from foot to foot nervously.

“Do it,” Daveed ordered. His ridge plates were extended.

Arren nodded and started to turn away.

“Thank you, Arren,” Joy yelled after him.

He stopped at the entryway to the room, seemingly uncertain. “Anything to keep you safe, Joy.”

He was gone before Daveed could protest the comment.

Chapter Seven

Five days later

Joy and Daveed stepped off elevator three…directly into a plush bedroom decorated in dark colors.

She laughed heartily. “You weren’t joking.”

He pressed to her back, wrapping his arms around her, his primary hard against her lower back. “Not at all. Do your fantasies do it justice?”

“Not even close.”

“Good. Should we…?”

“Later. We really do have to do some work, Daveed.”

He groaned. “The horrors of owning a company.”

Joy turned toward him. “It’s not all bad. Who else has a bedroom to take lunches together in?”

Daveed’s brow rose. “I will take that as a promise.”

She strode toward the door opposite the elevator. “You better.”

Daveed rushed to catch up to her, showed her how to check for someone in the office, and how to let herself out of the bedroom and into the office. In moments, they were head-to-head, checking the progress reports on the new line.

A light knock at the doorframe brought both their heads up. The woman in the doorway was matronly, not quite old enough to be Joy’s mother but nearly so, if she got an early start to child-bearing.

“Yes?” Daveed inquired.

She smiled. “I just wanted to introduce myself. My name is Mallory, and I will be your new assistant.”

He rose, towering over Joy. “Yes. Arren told me he hired you. My mate…Joy.” There was a warning in his tone.

Joy winced. Yes, Arren had hired Mallory, and he’d proven Celeste had been the one who’d helped the guerrillas gain entrance. In fact, she’d had them target Joy, in specific. Shooting Arren had been a coup they hadn’t expected.

Beyond that, Arren had determined Joy’s former assistant—Lauren—was compromised and open to blackmail of some sort. He’d reassigned her to another department.

Arren had asked them for two more days to fully check on the candidates for a replacement assistant before they returned to work. Not that Joy and Daveed had complained about the delay. Once Daveed and Raashh had determined Joy was fertile, it had been hard to keep Joy and Daveed apart. The last two days had been comparable to their binding.

Raashh was pleased they were staying at the nest, not only because they were busy trying to conceive his grandchild, but also because they were both safe in the nest, and Daveed was getting more rest than he would have at work. With his wound still healing, that was just what the doctor ordered. Literally.

Mallory continued. “I understand the two of you enjoy quiet to work and dislike interruptions. Is there anything at all I should interrupt you for or should I handle everything that comes in? I find it best to set the expectations right away. That way, you can do what you need to, I can do what I need to, and everyone can be most productive.”

Joy smiled. “If there’s a family emergency, something with Arren or Raashh, disturb us.”

“No business concerns?”

Daveed shook his head. “Contracts go in a pile for me to take home to Arren. Suppliers submit samples, which we will go over at our leisure. Distribution hubs go through Leon George in sales. Requests for interviews and similar items go through Lyle Nelson in PR. You can schedule appointments they request of you, but no one comes to us unless they have gone through the other department heads first. We prefer morning appointments when possible. That gives us the rest of the day to design, with no interruptions.”

“Each of you prefer—”

“No. Joy is my mate. She takes no appointments without me.”

There was a moment of tense silence. Mallory nodded. “Understood. Anything else I should keep in mind?”

Daveed crossed his arms over his chest. “Whatever Joy requests, she gets. Whatever she orders is done immediately. There is no higher consideration than her safety and comfort.”

Joy had decided days earlier that hearing Daveed say things like that was one of the greatest aphrodisiacs she’d found. She crossed one leg over the other, more than aware of her arousal.

Mallory glanced from him to Joy. She smiled. “I can handle that. I have already changed the contacts in your desk phones. Number one still reaches security. Number two now reaches me.”

Joy offered a smile that felt strained. “That’s wonderful. Mallory, would you mind locking the door on the way out? We have a lot of work to do. Lunch at noon, please?”

“Yes, ma’am. Right away.” She turned and made her way out without question. The lock clicked behind her.

Daveed sat on the desk, blocking her view of the computer screen. “Do you want to start making those fantasies come true now or later?” he asked.

Joy pulled the fabric off her shoulders, baring her breasts.

For a moment, Daveed was still and silent. “I believe this is one of
my
fantasies,” he breathed.

“Then we should definitely get to work on it.”

Section Three

Subdominant Son

Arren: Subdominant

Chapter Eight

Eighteen years later

“Is that one of the Xxanian males?”

Zondra looked around at Sandy’s purr, picking out Arren Raashh across the restaurant. “Yes. That’s Arren.” It shouldn’t have surprised her that Raashh’s younger son was in the posh little restaurant. It was only three blocks from the Spice Industries’ main offices and served food fit for both Xxanians and humans. It was probably an ideal place to host business lunches.

By Sandy’s rising scent and the slow, sensual lick of her red-tinted lips, Zondra could guess that her college friend was highly interested in Arren. Of course, like most Xxanian crossbreeds, he was tall and muscular. Those were appealing qualities in both Xxan and human. Being human, the fact that Arren was a Subdominant wouldn’t be off-putting to Sandy.

“Would you like an introduction?” she rushed to offer.

Zondra knew what she was doing, of course. In Sandy’s heightened state of arousal, introducing Sandy to Arren was practically arranging the pair a hot one-night stand. Fresh from a breakup with her boyfriend, maybe this was just what Sandy needed to feel appealing again.

“Would you?” Her pleading eyes were all it took to convince Zondra she was doing the right thing.

“If that’s what you want. Of course.”

And she did. There was no question that Sandy wanted Arren between her legs as soon as he could get himself there.

If he has his usual car with him, that won’t take long at all.

****

Arren tipped his head in respect at Zondra Duncan’s approach, swallowing down longing at the sight of her rounded womb. If the rumors were correct, her latest pregnancy was a young female.

Of course, it wouldn’t do to touch her or to sample her musk to test it for himself. She was a mated female. Evan Duncan had risen to head of the technical department of Spice Industries’ assorted companies. Zondra had been attacked by a male before. And if Evan and the Xxanian males of Daahn’s nest didn’t kill Arren for such an unseemly move, Arren’s
seir
—Raashh himself—would.

With good reason to. It’s not as if I will ever be worthy of a Xxanian crossbred female of a nest as important as Daahn’s. Probably not of a Xxanian crossbred female of any nest.

“Zondra… So nice to see you.”

He didn’t offer his hand. One did not touch another male’s mate. One did not handle a mated female, unless her safety depended on it and her mate was not around to protect her personally. In such a case, he offered apologies to the mated male for the offense…and typically a gift of spice to help wash the scent of a rival male away.

Not that I am much of a rival. Daveed is fond enough of pointing that out.

“And you, Arren. Arren Raashh, may I present an old friend of mine, Sandy Butler. Sandy, this is Arren Raashh.”

He focused on the very human female at Zondra’s side, taking a deep breath to scent her. That quickly, his primary surged up. She was in the human version of quickening, a fierce arousal.

Aimed at me. Thank you, Zondra, for the introduction.

Sandy’s hair was a warm reddish brown, and her eyes were blue-gray. The entire package was appealing, from her high, tight breasts to her rounded hips and long legs. Visions of those legs wrapped around him while he sated them both were stark and searing.

He extended his hand, hinting for her to place hers in it. Touching a female socially was a joy he denied himself as seldom as possible. “A pleasure. Can I interest you in joining me?”

Sandy shot Zondra a look that said she was sorry for considering ditching her friend but torn because she really wanted to do so.

Zondra smiled. “I should be going. Evan and I have a shuttle to SLAL in an hour.”

Thank you, Zondra.
Arren owed her for this kindness. He would find a way to repay her somehow.

Sandy placed her hand in his. “Then I would love to join you.”

Arren raised her hand to his lips and kissed her knuckles tenderly, holding her gaze solidly with his own. Her pulse rate surged against his lips.

“Do you want to eat?” he offered. Arren wanted to eat her, but if she was hungry, he would rein in his arousal long enough to see to her physical needs.

Her expression said she wanted to eat him as much as he wanted to eat her. “Not particularly,” she lied.

Oh yes. You want to eat, but you want something other than base sustenance. Thank the
Seir-God
!
“Then perhaps I can drive you somewhere.”

“Sounds good.” She eased her hand from his and turned to hug Zondra. That accomplished, she focused on Arren and took his offered arm.

Walking with a woman on your arm was something far too many human men took for granted. Arren had decided that long ago, and so far, nothing had changed that opinion of them.

At his car, Arren played the gallant: he held her door, helped her into the bucket seat, then closed her in. He settled behind the wheel and set the engine purring. “Would my apartment be acceptable to you?”

Sandy darkened in a demure little blush. “Yes. That would be fine.”

Something in her reserve sounded alarm bells in Arren’s head. “Perhaps you should tell me what you hope will happen next.” If she wanted someone to dominate her, he could play the game, but it wasn’t in Arren’s base nature to do so.

Her eyes said she wasn’t entirely certain what she wanted.

“Is sex with two cocks what you want to experience?” Many human women were intrigued by the idea.

Her blush deepened. “Is that true?”

It’s not curiosity then.
Arren turned on his seat to face her more fully. “Why did you choose me, Sandy?” He kept his voice low and soothing.

Her eyes were wide and innocent. “I…”

“Go on,” he urged her.

She swallowed what appeared to be a lump in her throat.

“Is it my family’s money?” He’d met women that wanted to tap into that commodity before. If that’s what she wanted, he wasn’t sure it was worth the time to bed her at all.

“I guess you have money, based on this car, but no. It has nothing to do with that.”

Her scent said she wasn’t lying to him. Sandy intrigued him. “Then what?” When she didn’t offer an answer, he considered telling her that he wasn’t willing. Libido be damned.

“Xxanian men…”

He cocked an eyebrow up and waited for her explanation. Perhaps it was her hesitation that made him decide not to order her out.

Her face went a deep scarlet. “I want a man that is not a dog.”

It wasn’t remotely what he thought she’d say. “In what way?”

****

Sandy took a calming breath.
Well, I’ve come this far.
“Human men all seem to want to trade up. Anytime something shiny comes their way, they go sniffing and—”

She reached for the door handle at the muscles tensing beneath his fitted suit. She’d angered him. “Never mind.” This was crazy. Sandy wasn’t sure why she’d thought this was a good idea in the first place.

Arren wrapped a hand around her upper arm and slowly drew her back. She could just make out his eyes through the sunglasses Xxanians wore. There was no amusement in those eyes…and no anger. If anything, she’d say he was concerned. That was enough to relax her.

One smooth hand stroked down her cheek. “Are you saying you want to mate with a Xxanian male to find a man who won’t cheat on you as human men have?”