Tempting Rever (11 page)

She shook her head. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

Volder gasped. “It was her on the vid. She is the one I spoke to.”

Rever’s entire body shivered a little as he glared at Tina. “Tell me the truth.”

“I have no idea what he’s talking about.” Tina stuck her chin up, glaring at Rever.

“She did contact me on the vid,” Volder growled. “Check your logs. Those vids came from your home and she contacted me twice to tell me that the human was being mounted by many males and that my human was causing shame to both of us since she was behaving badly in the home of an Argis.”

Ral cleared his throat. “It seems someone is lying.”

Rever growled, glaring at Tina. “Not someone. Explain yourself now, Tina. This is not a game. This is serious.”

“Well, when you wouldn’t get her the hell out of here, I contacted that guy.” She pointed at Volder. “And he was in no damn hurry to come get her so I figured if I told him she was fucking anything that moved he’d hurry his ass up. That bitch is rude to me, Rever. This is my damn house and you wouldn’t get her the hell out so this is really your fault for making me do something that drastic.”

Rever spun away. He was breathing hard as he walked to a wall, facing it, and took more deep breaths. Rage almost poured off him.

“So the human lied to me?” Volder growled. “My future bound did not shame me?”

Ral looked pissed. “It appears she did not. It appears that my brother has bound to an
ovolion
.”

“What in the hell did you just call me?” Tina glared at Ral. “And who the fuck do you think you are to look at me like that?”

“An
ovolion
,” Rever growled, turning back around, “is a person without honor who tells lies to make trouble for all around them. They are the worst of society.” He snarled.

“Go to our room now.”

“Fuck yourself.” Tina glared at him. “Don’t tell me what to do and don’t talk to me in that tone ever again.”

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Rever roared, taking two steps at Tina, looking enraged. She screamed, spun around, and ran down the hallway toward the bedroom. He was shaking and he took heavy breaths as he stopped. Ral hesitated a second before walking up to Rever’s side to place a large hand on his brother’s shoulder.

“Calm.”

“She lied.”

“I know.” Ral sighed. “I can’t imagine what you are going through right now but you need to calm. She is a woman and she is your bound.”

Rever’s head fell forward and his shoulders sagged, not moving or speaking. He looked broken to Brenda and it tore at her heart. He was such a good man and Tina had betrayed him in just one more way. Zorn males were proud and honest so Rever had to be feeling ashamed of Tina and her actions. It had to be extra humiliating that this had happened in front of other men on top of it all.

“I will take the human now,” Volder said softly. “Obviously I was misinformed.”

Rever’s head snapped up as terror hit Brenda. She didn’t want to go with Volder.

The guy was an asshole who hadn’t even given her a chance to defend the accusations against her, just assumed instant guilt on her part. He’d attacked her, had his men hold her down, bruise her up probably from the hard slam on the table, and had torn off her pants. He’d threatened to punish her by sharing her with his men and to add insult to injury, he’d called her an ‘it’. She didn’t want to go anywhere with the creep.

Rage burned in his bright blue eyes as Rever slowly turned. “You won’t take her from my home.”

Brenda felt gratitude flood her. “Thank God.”

Volder frowned. “You can’t stop me from taking what is mine already. She has been cleared of the crimes and is in no need of your protection any longer now that she won’t be punished.”

Rever’s attention turned to Brenda, rage still showing in his eyes as their gazes locked together. “Do you wish to bound with him?”

“No,” she shook her head. “Please don’t let Volder take me. I don’t want anything to do with him.”

He gave her a sharp nod, shifting his focus off her, his expression hardening as he glared at Volder. “She stays with me.”

“Rever,” Ral said softly. “She is promised to him.”

“Scent her terror,” Rever growled. “He was going to share her with his men and he attacked her without giving her a chance to defend herself against the charges. He walked in here assuming she was guilty, he let her be touched by his men, and forced her stripped bare in front of other males. She won’t leave my house. I extend my protection to her.” Rever glared at his brother.

Ral took a deep breath, staring at his brother, and then gave his full attention to Volder. “Perhaps you should leave to let things settle down. The human does scent 56

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terror and Rever is protective of her since she has been under his roof in his care. Go for a few hours, let the tension subside and then you can collect her.”

“My ship is waiting and I want her now.” Volder was angry.

Ral moved toward the man. “Let us go have a drink and eat a meal together. You have Rever on edge and need to let things calm before you collect her. As Argis I insist.”

Looking anything but happy, Volder nodded, turning to Brenda. “Prepare yourself to leave this house in a few hours. You are mine and I am taking you back to my ship with me.”

Brenda stared at Volder in horror, frozen. Ral took all the guards, Volder, and Volder’s men with him when he exited the room. When the front door shut loudly Ali moved first, closing the distance between herself and Brenda to rub her in a comforting gesture when she went to her knees again.

“Are you well? Did they hurt you? I scent blood on you.”

“Blood?” Brenda was surprised. Her back hurt a little and her elbow and she knew she was in shock but she didn’t know she was bleeding. “Are you sure?”

A soft growl sounded. “Move, Ali. You go secure Tina in my room and keep her in place even if you have to physically restrain her. She is to not leave, understood? I will tend to Brenda. Go guard that
ovolion,
” he snarled.

Brenda looked up at Rever as Ali got to her feet to run out of the room toward the back of the house. Rever looked pale as he crouched down. His nostrils flared as he sniffed at her, their gazes locking together, and she couldn’t miss the anger she saw in his beautiful eyes. He held out his arms to her.

“Come to me.”

He didn’t have to say it twice. Hot tears filled Brenda’s eyes as she almost threw herself at him. Two strong arms wrapped around her body, blanket and all, and then Rever was lifting her, to gently cradle her in his hold while he walked to her side of the house. She turned, burying her head in his shirt and let the tears fall, knowing she’d never been so terrified in her life and Volder was coming back for her.

“I have you, Brenda.” Rever’s voice was husky.

“Please don’t make me leave with him.”

His arms tightened. “I smell blood on you. Where did they hurt you?”

“I don’t know. My back hurts. They slammed me pretty hard on the table.”

Rever walked them into the bathroom where he gently shifted her in his arms and placed her on the edge of the counter. She looked up at him, meeting his concerned look. He reached for the blanket to tug it away from her body.

Her thighs were exposed and the shirt she had on barely covered her lap. Rever pushed the blanket completely away from her, letting it fall to the floor. He turned his attention from Brenda’s face as he reached for her waist, his hands gently gripping her hips.

“I would never hurt you. You scent so strongly of fear.”

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Tempting Rever

“I’m not afraid of you.” She meant it.

As their gazes locked together his mouth parted as his tongue slid out, running over his lower lip, and the urge to kiss him hit Brenda hard. She wanted desperately to experience those lips against hers and longed to know if his mouth was as inviting as it appeared. A soft growl came from Rever.

“Don’t look at me like that.”

She stared into his beautiful eyes. “I can’t help it. When I look at you, I want to touch you and I want you to touch me back.”

He broke eye contact. “I am bound to her and I’m trapped, Brenda. I wish it were not so but I can’t be unbound to a human. It is for their protection and it was part of the agreement I made when I took one from Earth.”

Pain lanced through Brenda. “I really don’t give a damn about her protection after what she did to all of us. If you hadn’t arrived when you did, Volder would have taken me out of here and I have a real good idea what kind of future I would have had if he thought all those lies had been true. She put Ali in danger because she tried to protect me and one of those jerks had Ali by her throat. Tina lied and I know it made you feel really bad to have her behave that way in front of those men.”

“I know.” His fingers gripped her shirt, his hands brushing her waist through the thin material. “Let me take this off you to find where you are injured.”

She lifted her arms as Rever tugged her shirt up her body, leaving her naked, sitting on the counter. She couldn’t look away from Rever’s eyes as the man slowly caressed her body with his gaze. She saw longing in his face, desire, and she had no doubt what he was thinking because she was thinking the same thing. He wanted her as much as she wanted him and he couldn’t hide that from her, not that he tried to mask it. Another soft growl rumbled from his throat as their eyes met.

“I don’t want to leave you. Please let me stay here with you. Don’t let that man take me away.”

His eyes closed, his massive chest expanded as he took a deep breath but then his beautiful blue eyes opened. “I wish you were, Brenda, but you are not mine to keep.

You have no idea how much I wish I could claim you. When I saw those males touching you and scented your terror I wanted to kill every one of them.” His hand lifted to gently cup her cheek in his large, warm hand. “If I did not have a bound I would challenge Volder to the death for you.”

Shock tore through her. “To the death?”

“You belong to him according to the laws. You were bound to his brother so when Valho died it became Volder’s right to claim you and he did so by agreeing to come get you. The only way to take a female from a male who has claimed her is to challenge him to the death with her permission. Upon challenge a male will either release his claim or he will fight to keep her but I have no lawful right to challenge him since I’m bound already.” Rever looked tortured. “I have to let him take you but I don’t want to. The law is on his side in this matter and I have no way to fight his claim. The only reason you 58

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are still here is because I knew my brother would force Volder to state his accusations and I wanted Ral to witness the abuse so he’d have reason to prevent Volder from taking you. I know Ral is angry at your treatment but Volder has promised to not abuse you so Ral has to follow the law. Neither one of us can stop Volder now.”

Hot tears filled Brenda’s eyes, blinding her. She looked away from him to stare at his broad chest that looked tempting to snuggle into. She knew how it felt to be held by him and she wanted to always know that feeling. His hand left her face when he moved.

“Turn for me and let me see where you are hurt.”

She shifted on the counter, sitting sideways to give him access to her back. She blinked away her tears before looking at him again to see that he was staring at her lower back with a furious look on his face. He moved, his chest brushing against her shoulder and arm as he turned on the faucet. Water sounded in the bathroom.

His bare hand used the cool water to wipe at her hip. She twisted her head to try to see where he was touching her but couldn’t see it so she watched his face instead. His concentration was fixed on washing her with his hand.

“You were scratched but it is not deep.” His mouth pressed into a tight line for a second as he swallowed. “Volder got you with his fingernail when he attacked you.”

“He tore my pants off.”

Rever took a deep breath while his hand paused on her skin before resuming his light cleansing. The cool water felt good and took away the slight burning sensation the injury had caused her. Rever’s hand left her skin so he could shut off the water. He studied her back for a long minute before lifting his head until they stared at each other.

If Brenda could guess, she saw anguish in Rever’s eyes reflecting what she was feeling. He definitely looked sad and she could relate, knowing Volder was going to take her away and there wasn’t a damn thing either of them could do about it. Brenda knew Rever would keep her if he could but Rever was trapped with that bitch Tina as his bound, his hands tied by Zorn laws.

“Ral won’t be able to stall Volder for long and Volder’s job will make him return to his ship right away.” Rever looked away from her but pain was definitely in his eyes.

He took a shaky breath. “I have to let you go.”

Without thinking, without caring if it was right or wrong, Brenda reached for the large man. Her hands opened on his shirt over his chest. Rever turned his head to stare down at her. She only hesitated for a second before running her hands up to cup his face, turning her body to face him, aware that she was naked but she didn’t care.

Touching him was heaven and hell. Brenda had never been more drawn to a man in her life. Why couldn’t they have met under other circumstances? If he wasn’t bound already she’d beg him to keep her, to make her his.

Rever was such a wonderful man. If her husband on Earth had been a hundredth of the man that Rever was she never would have left him the first place. No matter what 59

Tempting Rever

Tina did Rever never lost his temper and hurt her. It broke Brenda’s heart that he was too damn good for the bitch he ended up with.

“Will you kiss me goodbye? I want the memory of what it’s like to kiss you at least once to get me through the hell I’m facing. I can survive anything if I can just have that from you, Rever. Please? For just one damn minute let’s forget we can’t be together and say to hell with the law for just that tiny moment.”