SurrendersMischief (13 page)

His eyes darkened. “Last night is better off not mentioned.”

Zethra, but the man could be contrary. Even now, after
swearing on his honor to obey her in all things, he balked at answering a tiny
question. “I am your Mistress, Darias, and I command that you answer me
truthfully.”

Pure resentment edged his expression. She could tell he was
thinking about defying her. She pinched his nipple. Behind her, she felt his
cock twitch in response. A small breath huffed from between his lips.

His lips tightened. “Yes.”

The man could give an Antarian cargo leech lessons in
tenacity. Well, he would learn why there were no Antarian cargo leeches on her
vessel. She could be every bit as tenacious as the vicious little creatures
when she was set on something.

“Yes, what? You enjoyed it a little? Or you enjoyed it a
lot?” She drew the tip of one fingernail down the middle of his chest to his
navel. He gasped. She dipped her finger inside.

“I enjoyed it a lot,” he grated out, his hands tightening on
the spindles.

Riana was intrigued by the dusky color that surged into his
cheeks at the admission. Why, the man was embarrassed! She thought about
pushing him further, but then decided against it. Her aim wasn’t to infuriate
or humiliate Darias. She let her satisfaction sound in her voice. “Good.”

“Why good? Ah, Krel,” he groaned as she licked her way down
to his navel, only to tease him with the thrust of her tongue there. “Ah,” he
groaned again. “Don’t.”

“Don’t what?” she murmured, letting her breath send chill
bumps across his flesh as she spoke. She tasted him again. “Don’t continue?”
She thrust a little harder. “Don’t stop?” She loved the way he was so
responsive to her. Why had it taken her so long to figure out why he didn’t
caress her when making love to her? So much time wasted. So much needless
frustration.

“Don’t stop,” he grated, arching his hips.

“I have no intention of stopping.” His skin was slightly
salty and all male. His taste could be addictive.

Reaching his groin, she kissed the base of his cock.

It swelled further. He moaned and tightened his grip even
more on the sturdy spindles.

They creaked.

Riana wondered vaguely if the beautiful wood headboard would
survive. Ah, well. As the new Supreme Chief, she could always commission a new
bed if it didn’t.

One that was much stronger.

Settling herself between his splayed legs, she studied the
thick member she held in her hand. Talk about a work of art. It was beautiful.
Long, thick, the skin as smooth as spidersilk over hot titanium, its head dark
and flared. A drop of moisture formed at the tiny eye bisecting the head.
Unable to resist, Riana collected the pre-come on the tip of her tongue.

Darias shuddered.

A matching shudder of pure longing arced through Riana. She
forgot she was teaching Darias about foreplay.

She engulfed the head of his cock between her lips, letting
her teeth rake him lightly. She sucked on him before running her tongue around
the cap. His strangled moans of encouragement went straight between her legs.
She wanted to keep tasting him but her need was too strong. In one move, she
sat up and sheathed him inside her.

Zethra, he was so large. He stretched her almost to the
point of overfull. Unable to help herself, Riana began sliding up and down his
cock. Need spiraled tighter inside her. Because of the aftereffects of the
suppressant, her climax started almost immediately. She screamed as the orgasm
tore through her in wave after wave. Collapsing upon Darias’ chest, aware that
he hadn’t come but already half asleep, she mumbled, “I’m sorry. I’ll do better
next time.”

* * * * *

“I’ve contacted Saria’s government,” she said.

“You what?”

Riana stared at the canopy above her, her arms behind her
head. Her body was tired, no, more than that. Even after her nap, she was
exhausted. It was more than another, longer bout of sex. A vague sense of
dissatisfaction gnawed at the edge of her consciousness. Riana shook off the
strange mood, putting it down to another aftereffect of the suppressant.

“I’ve contacted a representative of the Far Islands. They’ve
agreed to set a date to meet with our trade representative.”

The sheet pooled around Darias’ waist as he surged upright.
Riana was momentarily distracted by the sight of his hard body.

On the other hand, maybe her problem was she wasn’t tired
enough.

“How did you get past the triple safeguards I put on that
file?” He didn’t give her the chance to answer. “And how stupid can you be?” he
bit out. A shaft of sunlight burnished his skin, highlighting muscles sculpted
by work and warfare.

Her sex heated and swelled in response, distracting her.
Damn, why did everything about the man make her want to jump his bones? She was
worse than a Belzidian hissing cat, which stayed in perpetual heat unless
pregnant.

His words sank in. Her gaze jerked up to meet his furious
one. “Stupid? You want to talk about stupid. Stupid is refusing to trade with a
country-state because it is governed by a woman. Oh yes, I know that Saria is a
woman,” she said as his eyes abruptly shuttered. “It took me less than,” she
snapped her fingers under his nose, “that once I hooked up to my ship’s
computer. And stupid is not putting the needs of your country before prejudice.

“The Far Islands has goods and resources that Nexar needs.”
Riana continued her litany, ticking them off on her fingers as she spoke. “It
also is a large, ready-made market for Nexar’s products. Did that make a
difference to you? No,” she answered her own question. “Instead you decided to
trade exclusively with Trinearia, a country poorer in goods, resources and
population.”

“I couldn’t.”

The quiet admission halted her tirade. Riana sat up and
hugged her knees. Not looking at him, she asked, “Why?”

Darias glanced out the window, seemingly finding the
cloudless sky fascinating. “You know why.”

“I want to hear you say it.”

He looked at her then, his amber gaze bitter. “Because it’d
become common knowledge that not only did my father know a woman ruled Far
Islands, but he kept his wife confined so word could never slip out. Once Saria
learns how my father treated my mother, war is inevitable. It is only a matter
of time.”

“I considered that.”

“Yet you went ahead and contacted them.” Emotion throbbed
beneath the cool, almost unemotional statement. Was it fury? Resignation? She
couldn’t tell.

“Yes, I contacted them. Nexar needs them.” She held up a
hand when he went to speak. “Yes, it will complicate negotiations, but as Nexar
is now ruled by a woman there is a very good chance I can convince her things
have changed.” Riana chewed her lip a moment. “Is that the only reason you
didn’t contact them?”

He shot her mocking glance that threatened to scorch her in
his anger. “You know it isn’t. You know very well that once our two
country-states opened trade—if, and that’s a very big if, there wasn’t war,
that is—it would mean the eventual downfall of our society. Once the women
learned there was another way of life, they wouldn’t be satisfied until they
had it for themselves. And because my warriors would never tolerate dealing
with a woman as an equal, at the very least it would have meant war with the
Far Islands. The warriors would have seen it as their duty to return the women
there to their proper place.”

“And you. Do you also see it as your duty?” She held her
breath. She was asking about more than the Far Islands, and they both knew it.

His gaze didn’t waver. A pulse in his throat throbbed
strongly. “The matter is out of my hands now.”

He had evaded answering her question. Which, in and of
itself, was an answer. Disappointment cut like a knife. “So nothing has
changed?”

“No.”

Riana wasn’t sure, but she thought she detected a note of
regret in his dark voice. Probably her imagination. Darias, like her, would
never accept his place as slave. If she ever forgot that, she would be right
back to where she started—his possession. Her work was cut out for her to get
him to change his mind, to agree that women were not only capable of running
their own lives but deserved the chance to do so. Riana lifted her chin.

“So be it.”

Chapter Eight

It started out as a simple request.

“Please get me a copy of the contract you were drawing up
between you and Trinearia.”

“Do you not know how to craft a trade contract?”

Riana’s head snapped up from perusing the document on the
table in front of her. She was sitting at the huge table in the Great Hall,
surrounded by the new heads-of-household of the local guilds. The entire
cavernous Hall went quiet at Darias’ question.

Though he had not shouted, his voice carried easily to the
far corners of the Great Hall.

Riana was excruciatingly aware that the busy hive of men
seeing to their needs stopped their work. A hush of anticipation fell on the
room.

“What did you say?” Surely he would not take their battle
for dominance public again?

“I asked if you knew how to craft a trade contract.”

He would.

His tone reasonable, Darias glanced about at the other women
at the table. “As Supreme Chief, surely you understand such a basic day-to-day
necessity?”

The women seemed to shrink in on themselves. Around the
room, Riana heard a few uncomfortable mutters of agreement as he managed to sow
seeds of doubt with just a few words. She also saw satisfaction glint in more
than one male’s eyes.

And a certain spite.

She knew the cause. Then men had not been happy when all the
other women had followed her lead and had outfits fashioned after Darias’ made
for them.

Just as the women had aped her own utilitarian outfit.

“You were the one to declare to everyone that the women were
as capable as the men. If that is the case, why do you need the contract that
I, a mere male, created? Are you saying that you, the Supreme Chief, need the
help of a male slave?”

“Actually, I wanted to see the document to see how much
damage control I needed to worry about,” she drawled, inwardly furious at how
quickly Darias had managed to undermine the confidence she had taken such pains
to instill in the women.

She pushed back her chair and stood. She had to regain the
advantage. “Unless, of course, you are afraid to reveal just how inept a trade
negotiator you were?”

A slow smile curved his lips. Riana wanted to wipe it off
his face.

“Of course,” he murmured, skepticism in every line of his
powerful body. “I can see where that would be a concern. I will get it for you
immediately.”

Darias had won that encounter, Riana acknowledge ruefully.
All she could do now was regain lost ground. And make sure he never caught her
unaware again.

Riana watched as he sauntered away, arrogance in every
stride. Her hand began tapping against her leg rhythmically. His obstinateness
was endangering everything she was working to build and the blasted man knew
it. Oh, she was well within her rights to take him out into the garden tonight,
but…

“I’d rather spank his bare ass until he can’t sit down,” she
muttered.

“What?”

Bryta’s scandalized tone jerked Riana’s head up and she
realized she’d spoken aloud. Her cheeks heated. “He’s driving me crazy,” she
defended.

“You wouldn’t, would you?” Bryta’s gentle eyes were huge.

The damn man caused her trouble even when he wasn’t in the
room. Feeling pushed, she shot back, “Why shouldn’t I?” While half the time
convinced he was more barbarian than ruler, she also knew not to underestimate
him. Darias was nothing if not intelligent. He knew he’d earned punishment and
was undoubtedly prepared for it, but how would he react to an old-fashioned,
butt-burning spanking? The more she thought about it, the more appealing the
idea became. Besides, no law prevented her from enacting her own flavor of
punishment.

“Children are spanked, not warriors.” Distress created fine
lines on Bryta’s forehead.

“They are when they stop behaving like warriors and start
acting like unthinking children. Darias would rather endanger the entire
country-state’s future than concede dealing with a woman is a viable option.
He’s so intent on regaining power that he’d place Nexar in a position of
weakness.”

“But…but on his bare,” Bryta glanced around and lowered her
voice to a whisper, “ass?”

“Exactly.”

“Are we allowed to do such a thing?” Her friend wiped her
hand on her pants leg.

“Bryta,” Riana said patiently, “the men no longer rule us.
We rule them. We can punish them as we see fit. I don’t know about you, but I
find the Nexarian method of discipline limiting.”

She watched Darias cross over to Gaith. The two men spoke,
occasionally glancing her way. Gaith turned away, but not before Riana saw the
satisfied smile shaping his mouth.

Her anger ratcheted up another notch. Riana narrowed her eyes
before she smiled, a slow, evil lift of her lips.

“Darias.”

His shoulders tensed then he turned and faced her.

“You can retrieve the contract later. Wait for me in our
chamber.”

Without a word, he did as she asked. She knew what he was
thinking and had to admire his nerve. She wasn’t sure she could face punishment
in the garden as equitably. Not since he’d punished her that last time.

Too bad she wasn’t punishing him in the garden.

Mad as she was, Riana couldn’t help but admire his firm ass
as he walked up the stairs. The man did have one very fine gluteus maximus.

Riana gave him just enough time to contemplate what he
thought was coming then followed him up the stairs.

* * * * *

Darias paced the bedchamber restlessly. Stopping behind a
chair, he gripped the padded back and glanced over his shoulder at the peaceful
garden behind him. The flowers dipped and bowed under the sapping heat of late
afternoon. This damn drought showed no signs of breaking.