Their Rebel Mate [Helan Universe 2] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) (6 page)

Thantos looked at her sharply but didn’t say anything else.

Kerek, however, seemed to have lots to say. “We will leave for the ship immediately. Thantos, reschedule your lectures for tomorrow while I secure a shuttle for our transport.”

Oh, so Kerek was that kind of male. Well, he would quickly find out that she did not kowtow to anyone, let alone a stubborn man who felt he was in control of her life. She crossed her arms over her breasts, trying not to notice how hard her nipples really were.

Listen up
, she scolded her traitorous body.
Just because you love dominant men in bed doesn’t mean anything.

She shivered and rubbed her arms. Her body thought the idea of being a sex slave for Kerek and Thantos sounded pretty damn good, despite the fact that her mind was screaming at her to resist their Alpha male ways.

So she stood there, waiting to see if Kerek would even acknowledge that she might have a life that she couldn’t just abandon at a moment’s notice.

Kerek shut down the device he’d been talking on and turned to face her. “When is a good time for you to join us on the ship?”

Oh. That hadn’t exactly been what she been expecting. “Um, I guess any time is fine.”

Why, oh why had she just said that? She’d been determined to force them to wait for her for at least a week. Of course, that had been before Kerek had the decency to consider her schedule instead of just ordering her around.

Damn him for being considerate.

And damn her body for being thrilled with her answer. Her nipples were practically jumping off her breasts trying to get to him. And her clit, which was so swollen now that even the rub of the seam of her pants against it had her on the brink of orgasm, seemed to have a mind of its own.

Kerek, for his part, simply nodded and grinned knowingly. “Thantos and I will be leaving immediately for our ship. There is a shuttle already on the ground, and the pilot is willing to fly us to the ship and return for the passengers he’s waiting for. There is, of course, room for you to accompany us today.”

“I should go back to my apartment and pack,” she said, mentally running through the list of things she could easily fold into a suitcase that wouldn’t wrinkle too badly.

Kerek pulled on one of Thantos’s braids slightly, and she watched as the man leaned against Kerek without hesitation. “Everything you need will be provided on board. You are, of course, welcome to bring anything you like, but unfortunately, the pilot who is happy to fly us must leave immediately in order to be back in time to pick up his original passengers.”

Which would mean she either took the time to pack and joined them at a later date, or she took them at their word and left with them now.

In the end, it was not a hard decision. She had looked up at the stars and wondered what they looked like from above the Earth for years. “I’ll come with you now, if it’s no trouble.”

Kerek smirked and crooked an eyebrow at her. “I rarely say anything I don’t mean,
lira
.”

“Well,” she snapped, her arousal completely forgotten, “you’ll find that I make up my own mind.”

Shit. That made absolutely no sense, but at least Kerek stopped smirking at her. No, he wasn’t smirking at her at all. He wasn’t paying her any attention at all. He’d turned around and was leaning over Thantos’s shoulder, speaking quietly into the other man’s ear.

Thantos nodded and turned to face her. “As the Ambassador, we would usually have the best quarters on the ship. However, King Jaron and his consort are on board, so we are in regular crew quarters. Unfortunately, that means that your bed will have to be set up in the common area of the quarters. We can arrange for a privacy screen of some sort if you wish. Is this acceptable to you?”

She nodded quickly before she had a chance to change her mind. If she didn’t leave for the ship now, she would probably chicken out. How could she continue with her protest in good conscience if she turned down a chance to get to know the culture?

In short order, she found herself bundled into a car and driven to the landing site. The shuttle was a smaller craft than she’d expected. When she asked, Thantos had gone on a long dissertation about how a smaller craft breached most atmospheres easier than a large one, complete with a mathematical explanation on why that was.

Kerek laughed and wrapped his arm around Thantos’s waist. “My Thantos is an academic. He’ll talk your ear off about anything you want to know.”

Thantos blushed but seemed to beam with pride at Kerek’s pronouncement.

There was something so sweet about the relationship between the two men, something she found herself wishing she had.

The pilot cracked open the door and jumped out, grinning like a loon at Kerek and Thantos. He spoke in that beautiful language the Helans had, and Kerek answered him. The pilot shot her an incredulous look and gestured to the open door. “Please, Miss McManus. After you.”

She looked doubtfully at the shuttle. She was only five foot two. There was no way she’d be able to haul herself up there gracefully.

Thantos seemed to understand her problem. Maybe it was because he was the smallest of the three men and had had to contend with the very same problem himself at times. Thantos was the smallest Helan she’d ever seen, which was saying something since the man towered over her by a good eight inches or so.

Instead of giving her a boost from the ground and making her climb into the shuttle, he placed one hand on the bottom of the doorjamb and vaulted neatly through the opening. He reached out a hand for her to grab, and with his help she managed to get into the craft with a minimum of embarrassment.

The interior of the craft was even smaller than it seemed from the outside and completely windowless except for where the cockpit must be. It had six seats with small compartments between each of them. She opened one of the compartments and blanched when she saw the syringe and needle. “What are these for?”

Thantos glanced up from where he was leaning over the edge of the door, speaking coaxingly to his mate. “That’s medication for motion sickness. Many people find the ride in the shuttle hard on their stomachs.”

Great. She’d never been motion sick before, but she really did not want to be heaving and puking her guts out in front of these three men.

The pilot got in and started fiddling with his instruments, leaving Kerek the only one outside. She was just about to ask what the holdup was when Kerek hauled himself into the shuttle, looking distinctly ill at ease.

Was the idea of spending time with her in such close quarters really that hard to stomach?

Thantos patted his mate on the arm, speaking low and sweet to the man before turning to her. “Ms. McManus, please have a seat in the chair closest to the pilot. Should you feel ill, just open the compartment, get the syringe out, and press it against your upper arm. The machine will take care of the rest.”

She sat down where Thantos indicated and let him fuss over the harness that strapped her in.

Kerek sat down in the farthest seat, that nervous look still plastered on his face. Clearly, something else was going on. Was this trip in the shuttle that dangerous? Were they going to burn up in a fiery ball when they tried to punch a hole in the atmosphere?

Suddenly, this didn’t seem like such a great idea after all.

Thantos checked Kerek’s harness and sat down between her and Kerek, securing his own harness. He looked remarkably calm, although there was just a hint of concern glittering in his emerald eyes.

The craft roared to life and began to lift straight off the ground. It zipped forward so fast, it left her stomach somewhere in the back of the shuttle. She’d had this sensation before, on roller coasters, and she relaxed, breathing in deeply through her nose, knowing that in just a quick second, the sick feeling would leave, and she would be left only with the exhilaration of a good ride.

What would it be like to sit in the front with the pilot and see all the stars? Would they get bigger and brighter as they flew farther into space, or would they still seem as far away as they had from Earth? Would the blue sky of day fade gradually, or would it be a sudden change from blue sky to black space?

She turned to ask Kerek if she could sit up front, but the words died in her mouth. Kerek was a sickly shade of green. He was sweating, beads of perspiration running down his temple, and he was swallowing convulsively. Kerek the Mighty was space sick.

Thantos was leaning toward Kerek as much as he could in the harness, crooning in his mate’s ear and rubbing his back. “Why doesn’t he use the medication?”

Thantos spared her only a quick glance before he turned his attention back to Kerek. “Kerek is one of the few people it doesn’t work on.”

Her heart went out the strong, proud male hunched over. It probably ground on his ego to be laid out by a little bit of motion sickness. Thantos, on the other hand, looked right as rain. “You don’t get sick?”

“Thantos has the constitution of one of Earth’s oxen,” Kerek said on an agonized moan.

The shuttle lurched, throwing her against the restraints and then pressing her back into the cushion of the seat before finally settling into a somewhat smoother ride. It didn’t seem to help Kerek at all.

Thantos angled his chin toward the front of the shuttle as he unstrapped his harness. “You can sit up front with the pilot if you want. It’s only a few minutes to the ship, but the docking process is even harder on Kerek.”

She was torn. The views from the front beckoned her, but she was desperate to do something for Kerek. “Maybe I can help.”

Thantos shot her a grateful smile and knelt in front of Kerek. “Why don’t you sit next to him and rub his back? I’m just going to let him out of his harness and get him to lean forward just a little.”

Kerek slumped into Thantos’s waiting arms the second his harness was released. Kerek muttered something in Helan and remained limp, clearly trusting his mate to keep him from falling on his face. Thantos replied in their own language, whispering directly into Kerek’s ear.

Kim ached for him. The last time she’d suffered like Kerek was a couple of years ago. She’d had the stomach flu and had spent the better part of twenty-four hours paying homage to the porcelain gods. Brushing Kerek’s hair to one side, Kim laid her palm on the back of his neck. It was cold and clammy, and she could feel the small bumps rising on his skin. She knew that he was close to losing control of his body, and the rising tension in his muscles and the increase in his respiration rate told her that she’d better grab some kind of bucket soon.

Thantos beat her to it, neatly slipping one under Kerek’s bent head. She traced designs on his clammy skin and began whispering instructions in his ear. “Deep breaths, Kerek. Just concentrate on Thantos’s voice and breathe deeply.”

The craft began shuddering again, and Kerek groaned. “Docking sucks,” he said in clear English through gritted teeth.

“I know,” she said sympathetically. “We’re almost done though. Right?”

“Yes,” Thantos agreed, forcing Kerek’s head down to his shoulder as if he could shield Kerek from the worst of the shaking. “Maybe another thirty seconds or so,
talan
.”

Sure enough, the shuttle landed with a clang, and the pilot jumped out of his seat and jogged to the door. He didn’t tell them to rush Kerek off, but his impatience was clear. She wasn’t sure if he was just eager to return to the surface to wait for his other passengers or if he just wanted Kerek off the shuttle in case he tossed his cookies.

Whatever the case, Kim took the cue, and she and Thantos ushered Kerek off the shuttle. Kerek was hardly able to hold his own weight and was leaning heavily on both her and Thantos. Instead of looking better, Kerek looked even sicker. He mumbled something in Helan, and Thantos nodded sharply.

The ambassador dragged them to a little room and sent Kerek in with a little shove, sealing the door behind him. The sounds of Kerek retching were mostly muffled by the walls. “Please tell me that was a bathroom,” she said to Thantos.

Thantos leaned against the wall, crossing his arms over his chest. “Yes.”

It was clear that Thantos wanted to be in there, taking care of his mate. “You don’t have to wait out here with me,” she offered. “If you want to go in and help him, I’ll be fine here.”

The man sighed and let his head fall back against the wall. “He doesn’t like anyone to see him like this. It just makes him irritable if I try to help.”

She could understand that. She hated being helpless, too. Poor Kerek didn’t sound like he’d be slowing down anytime soon. “He’s really having a tough time with this, isn’t he?”

Thantos nodded. “That’s why we’ve been living on Earth instead of commuting by shuttle. He didn’t want me going down alone but can’t stomach the idea of traveling like that twice a day.”

“How does he do with regular space travel?”

Thantos looked at the door when Kerek stopped for a moment. His finger hovered over the button to open the door, but Kerek started up again. He pulled his hand away and faced her fully. “He’s fine. The motion of the star ship is quite smooth, almost as if we’re on solid ground. He’ll need a shower and a couple hours of sleep, and he’ll be back to himself.”

The doors slid open, and a pale, grim Kerek emerged. He looked exhausted and disgusted, but at least he didn’t look like he was going to be sick again.

The trio walked in silence to what looked like an elevator. She looked at it skeptically. Would it make Kerek feel worse?

She didn’t ask the question. She knew what it felt like to be furious with a body she couldn’t control. Once the doors closed, enveloping them in silence and blissful privacy, Kerek relaxed and slumped against the wall.

No one said a word until they exited the elevator, Kerek once again walking tall and straight. He glared at anyone who walked by, even going so far as to bare his teeth at someone who dared to look too long at Thantos.

Thantos seemed to take it all in stride and simply led the way to yet another set of doors. This time he pressed his thumb against a screen mounted to the wall, and the doors slid open to reveal a tiny living room. “These will be our quarters for the rest of our stay on board.”