Scarred Read online

  Glancing down, he watched as she slid his length in and out of her mouth. He almost exploded into her at the sight of her lips stretched around his broad head. She pulled back and traced the tip of her tongue around the hard ridge and then down the thick vein that ran underneath. Wrapping her fingers tight around his girth, she pulled him into her mouth again.

  He tightened his grip on her hair. Madeleine had almost his entire length in her mouth. Watching her made it hard not to burst, but he also loved watching her take him deep. It was the sexiest thing he’d ever seen, and the soft hungry sounds she made were the best thing he’d ever heard. She pumped the base of his cock as she moved her mouth, and the combination made him ball his hands into her dark hair. Being inside her mouth made him think of being inside her, and his cock jerked.

  She gazed up at him without stopping, her eyes flaring dark. Then her pace became quicker and his breath jagged. When she moaned, it vibrated down the length of his shaft.

  Grek. The sight of the pretty female sucking him was so mesmerizing that he was barely aware of the laughter of the crowd beyond the curtain. Only when she jerked back, did he feel the thumping of the approaching footfall. Instinctively, he pressed the cloaking device and jerked her up, pulling her into him as they both vanished.

  Before he could even catch his breath, the curtain was ripped away, and a pair of guards stood flanking the Spartosian prince. Brok clutched Madeleine even tighter, grateful he’d been fast enough to activate the device on his waist and that it hadn’t glitched, but he heard her small gasp. The sound of the party was too loud for the prince or guards to hear, and they dropped the curtain after seeing nothing behind it.

  “The Drexian tribute was right here,” the prince said from the other side of the curtain. “I know she was. Where could she have gone?”

  “What did that little alien say?”

  “Nothing helpful.” The prince sighed loudly. “Some nonsense about her being ill, but I’m sure he was lying.”

  “Then we interrogate him properly this time,” The guard’s voice was menacing.

  Madeleine flinched, and Brok put a hand over her mouth to quiet her. He tried to keep his own breathing slow, even though his heart still raced.

  “He’s gone, too,” the Spartosian prince said. “Although he could be somewhere in the crowd and we just can’t see him. He’s incredibly small.”

  “What now, your grace?”

  “Now, we find her.” The prince’s voice rose. “I want her in my bed tonight. Dispatch every guard we have to hunt her down. It is imperative I claim her before the change.”

  “And the little one?”

  “Keep him in the tower. He could come in handy.”

  The guards and the prince dispersed and moved away from the curtain behind which Brok still held Madeleine. Both of them were breathing heavily, but now she also shook. He tugged his underwear up, shoving his still-hard cock inside as well as he could.

  “Don’t worry,” he murmured. “I will not let any of that happen.”

  She nodded, but her voice quivered when she spoke. “What did he mean when he said, ‘the change’?”

  “I do not know.” It was not the first time Brok wished they knew more about the xenophobic species. He didn’t have any idea what the change was, but he did not like the sound of it. He tried to think of something comforting to tell the female. “It might be the change of their seasons.”

  She gave a little laugh. “I just realized something else I really like about you.”

  “Yes?”

  “You’re a very bad liar.”

  He let out a long breath. “I will never lie to you, Madeleine. I do not know anything about the change they mentioned, but you are correct. I do not think it has to do with seasons, and I do not have a good feeling about it.”

  “That makes two of us.”

  His heart rate was returning to normal and the haze of desire was fading. As much as he hated not to feel her wet mouth on his cock, he knew he should be grateful the prince’s search party had interrupted them. Much longer and he would have come in her mouth or bent her over and fucked her against the wall—an action he was afraid they might both regret later.

  She started to pull away, but he grabbed her hand and tugged her back to him. “Where do you think you’re going? You can’t walk through the party with all these guards looking for you.”

  “Well, we can’t spend the rest of our lives hiding behind a curtain either.”

  He grinned, glad to hear that the edge had returned to her voice. “Agreed. We need to find a better place to hide for the night until we can find Serge and escape.”

  She lifted her hands to wrap around his neck and stepped onto the tops of his feet. “Lead the way.”

  He had no intention of walking with her perched on his feet like a child. Not when he knew there was an easier way to keep her close. Hoisting her up by the ass, Brok pulled her legs up to curve around his waist. “Now we can go.”

  Chapter Eighteen

  “Are you sure this is the best way?” As surreal as it was to walk through the crowd practically wrapped around the Drexian captain like a spider monkey, it was even stranger when they left the hall and continued out into the ivory-stone corridor where they weren’t surrounded by the raucous sounds of the devolving celebration. Lights flickered in sconces along the wall, making the long arched space look eerie.

  “Shhh,” he said, the buzz of his lips sending shivers of pleasure down her spine again, as he continued down the twisting hallway.

  “You can let me down now,” she whispered, once they were alone.

  “Why would I do that?”

  “Because I’m perfectly capable of walking on my own, and there’s no one around to see me.” She wiggled in his firm grasp.

  He let her slip down, but as soon as her feet touched on the floor, she froze. Heavy footsteps echoed around them along with loud voices. Brok tensed, his hold on her tightening as he jerked her out of the path of the Spartosian soldiers rounding the curve and flattened her to him against the wall. Neither of them spoke or even breathed, as the rows of soldiers marched in unison carrying shiny, metal tridents in one hand. Madeleine trembled beneath him, clearly as terrified as he was that his cloaking device might fail.

  “What was that?” she asked, once the armed warriors had passed, and the footfall was a distant thumping. She hadn’t seen such a display of fighters in the city since she’d arrived, and the militant, marching Spartosians seemed at odds with the overall mood of the planet.

  “The reason why we need to find a good hiding place.” Brok clasped her hand in his as he hurried down the corridor and away from the soldiers.

  “What about Serge?” Maddie peered back over her shoulder. “You don’t think those guys are looking for us, do you? And him?”

  “If they are, I suspect the Gatazoid will be able to stay hidden until we can find him.”

  Maddie didn’t like the thought of leaving Serge, or hiding without him, but she also really hated the idea of being caught by the creepy Spartosian prince. It was pretty clear what he intended to do with her, and no way in hell was that going to happen.

  As they rushed around a corner, Brok stopped suddenly, bracing her with one arm so she wouldn’t keep walking, then pulling her flush to his body so she was cloaked. A Spartosian couple was slipping out of a panel in the wall, the female touching up her disheveled hair and the man buttoning up his shockingly snug pants. They looked nervously down the hall, and let out sighs of relief when they saw no one.

  There was no knob or handle on the outside of the door, and Maddie knew that she would never have known it existed if they hadn’t stumbled across people sneaking out of it. Brok propelled her forward, slipping through the door moments before it closed. Then they both stood in the dark space breathing heavily.

  “Where are we?” she asked, groping the walls for a light panel, her fingers finally locating one and pressing it.

  A faint glow illuminated t
he cramped space, as Brok fumbled with the door, sliding a bolt into place with a snap. “A stairwell.”

  She didn’t ask where the stairs led as she followed him up the coiling steps. Why was every staircase on this planet a spiral one, she wondered, as she gripped the handrail for balance? The silence of the dark stairwell was soon replaced by the low hum of music and voices, and when Brok opened the door at the top, Maddie wasn’t totally shocked to find that they were on a high balcony, overlooking the main palace hall.

  She glanced around the small, carpeted space that extended over the hall in a semicircle. There were cushions scattered on the floor, and an unopened bottle of Spartosian wine bobbing in an ice bucket. It was clearly a place for secret trysts—although it was baffling to her why any Spartosian bothered to keep it secret, when everyone seemed perfectly happy to do it out in the open—and it was also clear that the last couple had been in too much of a rush to even open the wine. “We’re going to hide up here?”

  Brok stole a glance at the party raging below. “They’ll never think that we’d hide right under their noses.” He threw the dead bolt on the door they’d just exited. “Besides, I have a feeling that not many know about this space.”

  Her pulse fluttered nervously in her chest, as shrieks of laughter and groans of ecstasy floated up from below. It sounded like the party was heating up, and she was grateful that they weren’t still down there, although she would have been even happier if they were far away from Spartos.

  Brok suddenly appeared before her, and she almost jumped. She’d gotten so used to both of them being invisible, the sight of the big Drexian was startling. But she was also happy to see him—and happy to see herself again. She glanced down at her own arms and wiggled her fingers.

  He tilted his head at her. “Did I scare you?”

  “No, I was just used to you being the invisible man.” She noticed him flinch ever so slightly, and she reached for his hand. “But I like you better this way. I like being able to see you.”

  His bronze cheeks colored, and he motioned to the floor. “I doubt anyone from below can see us, but we should probably get down, just in case.”

  Maddie sat down, leaning against one of the pillows, and reached for the wine. “The couple who ran out of here didn’t even bother to open this.”

  “They did seem to be in a hurry.”

  Maddie pulled out the bottle and some of the ice water from the bucket dripped onto the floor. “He looked like a Two Pump Chump, if you ask me.”

  Brok cocked an eyebrow. “Two Pump Chump?”

  Oh, shit. Had she just said that out loud? Her face warmed as she studied the wine bottle intently. “Earth expression.”

  “I’ll have to remember to tell Serge that one.”

  “God, no,” Maddie said. “I do not want to hear that phrase come out of his mouth.”

  “Okay.” Brok grinned at her. “Are there a lot of these Two Pump Chumps on Earth?”

  She twisted the top off the bottle, keeping her eyes down. “If you ask me, any number is too many.” She scanned the space and saw two glass flutes tucked against the wall.

  “Are you sure you should drink that?” Brok asked as she filled each glass almost to the top.

  She handed him a glass. “First of all, I’m not the only one who’s going to drink it.”

  He eyed the claret-colored liquid with suspicion.

  “Come on,” she teased. “Live a little. It’s not like we’re in danger of anything up here. We’re all alone in a secret room, and the doors are locked. Besides, I don’t know about you, but I’m parched, and I need something to take the edge off my frayed nerves. You’re not the one the prince is hunting for.”

  His expression darkened at this, and she regretted saying it.

  “All I’m saying is that us having a tiny drink is not a big deal.”

  “Are you ever cautious?” he asked, as she took a swig of her drink.

  Maddie leaned back on her elbows. “I’m always safe but rarely cautious.”

  He narrowed his eyes at her. “Explain.”

  “Okay.” She took another gulp. “My job is to help people who’ve gotten hurt. That means I know a lot about how to save lives. It also means I know just how far I can push myself, and what risks are too much.”

  He looked at her like he didn’t believe her. “So, you never take dangerous risks?”

  She winked at him and tipped her glass back to finish it off. “I never said that. I don’t believe in playing it safe, but I do believe in safety.”

  He shook his head and took a tentative sip of the Spartosian wine. “You sound like many Inferno Force warriors I know.”

  “You keep saying that.” She poured herself more wine. “Maybe I should consider joining Inferno Force instead of becoming a tribute bride.”

  Brok frowned and slammed back the rest of his drink. “Impossible.”

  Even though her fingers seemed to vibrate, and her lips felt a little numb, irritation still made her sit up. “Why? You don’t think I can be as much of a badass warrior as you? I’ll have you know I’m a champion kickboxer, and I’ve subdued drunk assholes twice my size.”

  “I did not say you would not be as fierce as any Inferno Force warrior.” A muscle in his jaw ticked. “I am sure you would be.”

  She leaned into him until their faces were inches apart. “Then what is it?”

  His gaze dropped to her lips, and he cupped her jaw in one hand. “There are no females on Inferno Force ships. If you were one of my warriors, the other Drexians would be looking at you constantly. I could not stand the thought of any other male thinking of you like I do.”

  Her breath hitched in her chest. “How do you think of me?”

  Brok dragged the callused pad of his thumb across her lower lip and groaned. “With your pretty mouth wrapped around my cock.”

  “That’s just because you watched me suck you.” She teased him. “How else do you want me?”

  “Spread out naked beneath me with your legs open wide so you can take all of me,” he said quickly, then looked shocked at his own words.

  Her heart hammered in her chest as she met his molten gaze, feeling startled and thrilled that he’d actually said that. “Then do it.”

  He squeezed his eyes shut and shook his head even as his grip on her face tightened. “I cannot. You are not meant to be mine.”

  “I thought we’d gotten past that when I deep-throated you,” she said, pleased when his cheeks reddened. “I don’t give a flying fuck about what I’m meant to be, or about what your precious Drexian empire thinks I should do or who I should be matched with. I get to say who, and I get to say when, and I want you right now.”

  His eyes flew open, locking with hers and blazing. “But your Drexian mate—“

  She grabbed his face in both her hands. “As far as I’m concerned, you’re the only Drexian I want. And before you say it’s the weird-ass wine talking, I promise you, it’s not. I want you because you’re brave and kind and gorgeous, and I’ve thought you’re all these things from the moment I met you.” She leaned her head so that her lips buzzed his ear. “Oh, and after getting a taste of your delicious cock, I think it’s only fair that I finally get to feel it inside me.”

  He moaned. “Finally?”

  “You have been prancing around in tiny boxer briefs that barely contain you.”

  Brok wrapped his arms around her and tugged her into his lap. “I do not prance.”

  She laughed. “Maybe strut would be a better word. Not that I blame you. Any guy would want to show off a package as big as yours.”

  His laugh was a low rumble as he lowered her onto her back. “I am pleased you like what you have seen.”

  “And tasted,” she reminded him.

  Heat radiated off his large body as he hovered over her, bracing himself on his muscular arms. Maddie slid her hands from his shoulders down the hard curves of his chest to the ridges of his stomach until she reached the hard bar of his cock straining again
st the fabric of his underwear. Her small hand closed around his thickness, and heat rushed between her legs. “I’m ready to do more than just look, Captain. I’m ready for you to fuck me.”

  Chapter Nineteen

  He bit down hard on his lower lip as she squeezed his cock. Even though Brok had only finished one glass of the Spartosian wine, he felt the warmth spread through his body as his usual barriers seemed to melt away.

  “You want me to fuck you, Madeleine?” he asked, his voice husky.

  Her nod was furtive, and her eyes were wide.

  He knew he shouldn’t be doing this. She was a beautiful tribute bride he was rescuing. He was the scarred captain of an Inferno Force ship tasked to find her and bring her back to the Boat. He needed to focus on his mission, but right now the only thing flooding his brain was the feel of her beneath him, her chest heaving. All he knew was that he hadn’t felt this way about a female before, and he couldn’t give her up. Not yet. Not when there was so much desire in her eyes. He hadn’t known how much he missed seeing need in a female’s gaze.

  She moaned as he captured her mouth, pressing her body to his. He parted her lips and swirled his tongue with hers, savoring the sweetness of the wine along with the taste of her. He didn’t think he could ever get enough of tasting her, but he knew he wanted to taste more. He wanted to taste all of her.

  Grinding against him, she intensified her kiss and raked her hands across his back, her fingers bumping on his hard nodes. The brush of her fingertips sent desire pounding through him. He didn’t care about anything but claiming her.

  He moved one hand down to her body, his fingers moving over her beaded top and down her waist until he reached her ass and then her thigh, parting the gossamer fabric and lifting her leg so it hooked around his waist. She arched into him, her heat rocking against his hard cock. Her body was lean, but her skin was soft. Nothing like the firm, unforgiving muscle of his own that he’d worked so hard for. He slid his hand back to her ass, loving the soft swell of it.