Captive (10 page)

* * * * *

Sidious headed back down the stairs to rejoin Agnus. Mikayla was certainly a stubborn little thing, he thought with a slight grin. He loved antagonizing her. She was adorable when angry. “Mikayla all right?” Agnus asked.

Sidious took the seat next to him facing the stairs. “She
'
s fine. It was just a headache that was easily taken care of. Have you heard anything from Stefan?”

“Earlier.” Agnus nodded. “His little venture was successful.”

“Good.” He watched Mikayla make her way downstairs. Her beautiful green eyes shot sparks in his direction, and he fought the urge to grin. Riling her temper was certainly enjoyable, but just once he would like to see her smile at him.

“Sidious.”

Agnus's voice caught his attention, and he looked at him, his eyebrow raised in question.

Shrewd blue eyes gazed at him, then Mikayla. “You better be careful. Don't let her become a distraction.” Agnus turned back to Sidious, a worried look on his face.

“Distractions will get you killed.”

“She's already a distraction. I can't seem to stop thinking about her.” Agnus shrugged. “Fuck her till you drop and get her out of your system.” He sighed as he studied the Korniga that had now grown cold. “This is different.”

“How is it different?”

Sidious slammed the cup down on the table. “I don
'
t know,” he snapped. He looked over and caught Mikayla frowning at them. With a sigh, he turned back to his friend. “I didn't mean to snap at you, Agnus.”

He waved a hand, dismissing it. “I'm used to your bark. I've heard it for the last thirty-two years; I'm sure today won't be the last I'll hear it either. You're just like your father when it comes to sudden passionate outbursts.” Agnus's lips twitched. “And women.”

Sidious began to play with his cup, spinning it in circles. “This particular woman is going to drive me insane. Both in and out of bed.” Celine's voice called from the storage room on the other side of the lounge.

“Agnus, could you help me a minute?”

Agnus pushed to his feet. “We'll talk about this when I get back.”

“Must we?”

The man he considered his second father threw a look over his shoulder he knew well. Yes, they would be talking about this again later. Sidious continued to watch Mikayla stock the bar shelves with glasses. Her hair fell down her back in loose curls, the soft lights from above caught the lighter shades of brown, giving them a golden hue. The pants hugged her firm behind, accentuating every dip and curve. Just thinking about sinking his fingers into that tight bit of flesh set his blood on fire.

Quietly, he walked up behind her and placed his hand along the side of her waist.

He loved her figure. All the right curves in all the right places. His hand moved lower along her hip, and she stiffened. With a gasp, she turned around, craning her neck to look up at him.

“What the hell are you doing?” she snapped.

She was so petite, barely reaching his shoulder. It made her seem fragile. But he knew fragile was the last thing this little spitfire was. He leaned forward, his hands resting against the bar on either side of her hips. Her breath fanned against his lips, and he inhaled the scent of mint. Her body tensed, but he ignored it and moved closer. So close their noses almost touched. Her pulse throbbed in her neck, and he fought the urge to touch his lips to that spot, to soothe her fear and make her heart pound for a different reason.

“Unless I
'
m mistaken, little one, you forgot something.”

“Forgot what?” Her voice sounded breathless, and he inwardly smiled.

His head dipped lower, and she shied away, bending backward over the bar. “You forgot to say thank you.”

She put her hand against his chest and pushed. He didn't budge. Well, parts of him south budged, or bulged was more like it. Her close proximity played havoc with his senses as well as his cock. Maybe this wasn't such a good idea after all. He could easily see himself fucking her again right here, and judging by the flare of heat in her eyes, she would be a willing victim.

With an exasperated sigh, she scowled. “Fine. Thank you.” He bit back a grin. “Surely you can do better than that. How about a kiss?”

“How about a knife in the chest?” she sneered.

“Hmmm, I think a kiss would be much more pleasurable.”

“Not if you value your tongue.”

He closed his lips tightly to keep from laughing. He loved her unexpected remarks.

“Would you please move?” Her voice squeaked with nervousness.

“Why?” He moved closer and rubbed the tip of his nose against hers. Her lips parted as she sucked in a quick breath. “Do I make you nervous?” She narrowed her eyes. “If you make me feel anything at all,
Sid
, it's disgust.” He grinned at the sound of the nickname she had given him on her lips. In the past he'd always hated that name, but he liked it coming from her. If he told her that, he

was sure she would stop using it. His finger trailed along the side of her throat. He felt a tremor run through her and lightly tapped her pulse point. “I think you and I both know I make you feel things other than disgust.”

Her eyes closed on a tired sigh. “Don't do this here. You know I can't tell you no and mean it.”

“I think you mean it,” he said, a soft smile tugging at his lips. “But wouldn't you enjoy a little exhibitionism? It would make Agnus's day.” Her eyes shot open, and she stared at him, then scowled. “You're teasing me.

Right?”

“Am I?” he asked with a grin. “You and I both know I could fuck you right here in front of a full bar. But I wouldn't do that to you.”

“Aren't you kind?” she sneered, and his grin widened.

“I don't know that kind is exactly the right word. More like selfish. I don't want anyone else seeing that pretty face when you come.” He smiled down at her startled expression, her green eyes ablaze with a mix of desire and uncertainty. With his fingers, he tried to smooth away the wrinkles in her forehead caused by the frown.

He skimmed them down along her cheek. Her skin was smooth and soft beneath his fingertips. His gaze moved to her impressive cleavage, and he noticed the quick rise and fall of her breasts. She was so beautiful, even now, his cock twitched in his pants to have her -- to feel her wet heat wrapping around him again.

He placed a kiss on her forehead and then walked away before he changed his mind about fucking her. He had a lot of work to get caught up on. Over his shoulder, he said, “Tell Agnus I'll be back later.”

Watching him walk out the door, Mikayla sagged against the edge of the bar. The light next to the control panel blinked red, and she knew it had locked the second it closed.

She lifted a shaking hand and rubbed the spot on her cheek that still burned from his touch. No doubt about it, the man was going to drive her to drink. The passion that had sparked from his near-black eyes still made her knees weak. Slithering to the floor would have been a definite possibility if the bar hadn
'
t held her upright.

“Oh God,” she whispered to herself, closing her eyes against the tears that threatened. “I am in such deep shit.”

* * * * *

“Sidious.”

Recognizing his brother's voice, Sidious turned and watched as Stefan and Agnus walked toward him.

As he got closer, Stefan frowned, his gaze studying Sidious intently. “You look like death warmed over. What the hell have you been into?” Rubbing his hand down his face, Sidious let out a deep sigh. He didn't need this right now. “I feel like death warmed over, so if the two of you don't mind, I would like to get some Korniga and try to wake up.” He turned and made his way toward the bar.

It had taken him most of the night to find the coaxial line that led into the compound. Then he had to attach the transmitter device and fix up a link between it and the computer onboard the
Triton
. A slow process, to say the least, and he had finished just in time to come back to the Destroyer and begin his regular duties for the next day. Only four hours of sleep over the last forty-eight. If he didn
'
t get some sleep tonight, he would be useless tomorrow. He was pretty darn close to being useless already.

Sidious gazed at his brother with a frown. “I thought you were on your way back to Tilarus.”

“I was, but I had ship problems,” Stefan replied with a shrug. “They temporarily fixed it on Veena so I could make it back here. The Destroyer was closer than home. So I have a few hours to kill while the ship is in maintenance.” Entering the code to unlock the door, Agnus stepped aside to allow Stefan and Sidious to walk in ahead of him. Even as tired and cranky as Sidious was, he wanted to see Mikayla. The minute he spotted her behind the bar, he felt more at peace.

Damn, I really needed to get a handle on this.

The last thing he needed to do was fall in love with her, but damned if he wasn't already close. She was all he could think about. All he wanted to think about. But how in the hell was he going to get past that wall and turn this into more than just sex?

“Good morning, beautiful,” Stefan greeted her with a smile.

“Good morning, handsome.” She returned his smile, and Sidious scowled.

He wanted her to smile at him, not his damn brother.

“I love a woman who knows when she has seen a good thing.” Stefan leaned his elbows on the bar. “How about you leave this bar and head to Tilarus with me? I could keep you in a lifestyle befitting a queen.”

“Until you tire of me?”

“I would never tire of you.” Stefan flashed his famous boyish grin, and Sidious ground his teeth.

“But what if I tire of you?”

“Never happen,” Stefan replied confidently.

“Stefan,” Sidious snapped, trying to get his brother's attention. He knew Stefan wasn't really interested in Mikayla, but for some reason he didn't like seeing her flirt

with him. Jealousy was something he had never had to deal with, and quite frankly he didn't like it, which only served to worsen his already foul mood.

“Do you mind?” Stefan turned to look at him. “I'm busy here.”

“Forget it; she's not going anywhere. Especially with you.” Sidious saw Stefan raise an eyebrow at him and knew his brother was probably thinking the same thing he was. When did he become so possessive?

Mikayla scowled. “I don't recall anyone pulling your chain.” Stefan chuckled and leaned his elbow on the counter. A teasing smile crossed his lips, and Sidious fought down the urge to clobber him.

“Yeah, brother, now that I think about it, I don't recall that either.” Stefan's voice was full of laughter as he teased him.

Sidious looked at him and realized his brother was enjoying himself entirely too much. Turning his eyes to Mikayla, he said, “For your information, I don't require a chain; I'm voice activated. And as far as my brother goes…” He pinned Stefan with a glare. “You don't want to go anywhere with him. He wouldn't have a clue what to do with a woman even if he were lucky enough to get one.”

“Apparently I know how to handle a woman better than you do. She's willing to leave with me, after all. You she wants to throttle.” Normally they could go at each other like this all day and neither one would get angry. They had been doing it for years, but for some reason Stefan's comment about Mikayla bothered him, and he sent his brother a scowl of warning.

“Unless the two of you have forgotten, the girl belongs to me and she stays with me.” Agnus's remark pulled Sidious from his thoughts of murder.

“Hello.” Mikayla waved her hand and frowned. “Don't I get a say in this?”

“No,” Agnus and Sidious replied in unison.

“Of course not.” She raised her hands and then dropped them to slap her thighs.

“I don't know why I would have thought otherwise.” Mikayla turned her back and began to pull cups from a shelf above her, then set them on a tray. Grabbing the pot, she filled each of them full of Korniga, then set the now-empty pot aside. Sidious walked up behind her and gently laid his hands on her shoulders. He felt her immediately stiffen beneath his touch, and he sighed. Would she ever see him as anything but a monster? Would she ever trust him?

He could understand why she didn
'
t. In her eyes, he was her captor. He seduced her, dominated her, made her feel out of control. He placed a kiss on the top of her head, inhaling the flowery scent of her hair. She shifted and stared up at him warily, her eyes full of doubts and questions. He smiled tenderly at her and touched her cheek with the backs of his fingers.

Even now, as tired as he was, he wanted her. He needed her.

“I'll get this if you'll make another pot of Korniga,” he said quietly as he took the tray from her.

“You look terrible. How long has it been since you've slept?” she asked as she continued to stare at him.

He set the tray down and turned to look at her. “Is that concern I hear, little one?” She sighed and pushed past him. “You can't just answer my question. You have to try and make it sound like I care about you.”

One corner of his mouth lifted in a grin. He couldn't resist teasing her. “It sounded like a question full of concern to me.”

“You definitely need to get some sleep. You're so tired, it's affecting your hearing.” She stormed off to the other side of the island to make the Korniga.

Sidious chuckled as he took the tray to the table and handed out the cups. His bones ached with exhaustion as he sat down and took a large sip. The hot drink burned his tongue, causing him to wince.

“Sidious,” Agnus began, his brow creased in worry. “Why don't you take the rest of the day off and get caught up on your sleep?”

“I can't.” He shook his head. “I have briefings this afternoon as well as the stuff Stefan needs.”

Stefan leaned forward, placing his elbows on the table. “Don't worry about my stuff. Take care of yourself.”

Sidious sat back in the chair, a tired puff of air whooshing from his lungs. He glanced at Agnus and asked. “Have you checked the bar?” Agnus nodded. “Every day. Since you found those two listening bugs in your own quarters, I'm a fanatic about it.”

Stefan frowned. “You found what?”

“It's Woods. He's determined to catch me doing something I shouldn't.”

“Did you take them out?”

“And tip him off?” Sidious asked with a grin. “Nah. He's not going to hear anything from there, except for maybe…” He nodded toward Mikayla. Stefan turned to look with a frown, then grinned.

“Does she know?”

“That someone was probably listening to us having sex? What do you think I am?

Stupid?”

Stefan nodded in agreement and chuckled. “Point taken.”

“How are you doing with currency?” Sidious asked, trying to change the subject.

Stefan spoke in a low voice, since Mikayla was still close by. “We received another contribution from our anonymous benefactor.”

He raised an eyebrow. “How much?”

“Eighty-five
kilnotics
.”

Agnus choked on his Korniga, and Sidious slapped him on the back. “You all right, old man?”

Agnus nodded and then looked at Stefan wide-eyed. “Do you have any idea who this man is?”

Stefan shook his head. “And I don't like it. It's a lot of currency, and the rebellion could certainly use it, but I'm uncomfortable with not knowing who this person is.” Sidious lifted his cup and took a sip. He wasn't all that comfortable with the anonymity either, but they couldn't force the man to identify himself. Whoever it was had been sending currency for the last five years. And not small sums either -- huge amounts. His contributions alone had almost built the
Vultair
. “Personally, I don't think you should look a gift horse in the mouth.”

“What?” Stefan eyed him as though he'd lost his mind.

He grinned. “Sorry, it's an Earth expression I heard the other day. It means just take the gift and try not to look too closely at where it came from.”

“Easier said than done,” Stefan replied dryly.