Caught by Menace (3 page)

was bad enough, but up there? Oh, hel no. They put

colars and leashes on their women and forced them to

do al sorts of perverted things. They were abusive and

cruel to their wives.

And huge. She’d never seen such big men. The

massive giants of the Harcos race stood seven feet tal on

average and weighed hundreds of pounds. They were

solidly built men, al lean muscle and brutal strength.

Most had pale hair and eyes, but she’d seen the

occasional dark-haired man among them.

The face of one of the men, the only one she’d ever

spoken to, flashed in her mind. His pale-green eyes and

white-blond hair left her shivering—but not with fear.

With need. With desire.

She stil didn’t understand it. Their chance meeting

nearly three months earlier had shaken her. Apparently

he’d been on a mission to find flowers. For a friend? For

a woman he loved? She didn’t know. Somehow he’d

ended up at Jennie’s flower stal in the open market. By

chance, Naya had stopped by and the giant Harcos

warrior hadn’t seen her approaching. He’d turned so

quickly he’d knocked her off balance and into the street,

where she’d almost been crushed by a roling cart.

To say they’d exchanged some furious words was an

To say they’d exchanged some furious words was an

understatement. The look on his face when she’d told

him to fuck off had been priceless. No doubt he’d never

had any woman speak to him in such a way. For the

briefest of moments, she’d been sure he was going to

snatch her right up, toss her across his lap and spank her

backside. Instead he’d tossed a handful of coins at

Jennie, grabbed his bouquet and stormed off in a huff.

Naya had laughed so hard at the sight of the massive

warrior flouncing off and clutching his bouquet of fragile

flowers to his chest.

He’d started plaguing her dreams that night. Of al the

men who crossed her path day after day, why did it have

to be him? He was everything she loathed and nothing

she wanted. Yet so many nights she’d bolted upright in

bed, ripped from the wildest dreams and hovering on the

verge of climax. It stunned her that a few moments with

an intimidating stranger could have such an astounding

effect on her. In real life, she rarely came close to having

an orgasm.

But she couldn’t think about that now. She had to

focus. She couldn’t risk overlooking even the simplest

step in the plan.

Finaly reaching her shop, Naya took the aley stairs

Finaly reaching her shop, Naya took the aley stairs

up to the second-floor apartment she shared with Jennie.

She let herself inside the smal place and found Jennie

sitting on their lumpy couch. Hugging her knees, she

glanced up, her eyes red from crying. “Wel?”

Naya locked the door and smiled. “It’s done, Jennie.

We’re getting out of here.”

Menace stepped off the elevator into the med bay of

the
Valiant
. He checked his watch again to make sure

he stil had time. The last week he’d been swamped with

weapons shipments and inventory. Twice he had

rescheduled his medical clearance for today’s Grab.

Even now, he was cutting it close. Only his rank and his

reputation as a man who shouldn’t be crossed were

going to save him from being struck off the list.

He caught sight of Vicious, his close friend and the

Valiant
’s highest-ranking land corps officer, leaving a

private exam room with his wife Halie at his side.

Vicious held her hand and tenderly swept his fingertips

down her cheek. Not wanting to intrude on a private

moment, Menace dropped his gaze. He had a feeling

their visit to the med bay had to do with her inability to

conceive but Menace didn’t dare ask. He and Vicious

had been friends since childhood but there were some

things that even friends didn’t discuss. This was one of

them.

“Menace,” Vicious caled to him as he walked Halie

“Menace,” Vicious caled to him as he walked Halie

to the elevator. He smiled knowingly. “Sneaking in at the

last moment for your med check?”

“Of course.” Menace nodded in Halie’s direction.

“Ma’am.”

She grinned up at him, her smile warm and friendly. “I

hear you’re running today. Good luck, Menace.”

Vicious chuckled. “If the women running today are

anything like Halie, you’re going to need it.”

She smacked her husband’s chest. “Be nice.”

He feigned injury and rubbed the spot his wife had

whacked. “Yes, Kitten.”

Menace stil couldn’t believe how gentle and sweet

Vicious was with her. Vicious was one of the most

feared of their kind, a true warrior who had proven

himself in some of the worst battles of the war and their

constant skirmishes with alien life forms. Somehow Halie

had wrapped him around her little finger. As far as

Menace could tel, Vicious had never been happier.

Halie stepped into the waiting elevator. “I’l see you at

dinner.”

Vicious nodded. “I’l cal if I’m running late.”

Menace wondered at the domestic scene before him.

Menace wondered at the domestic scene before him.

As little as six months ago, he would have been repulsed

by such a sight. Now he yearned for these little moments

of sweetness Vicious shared with his wife. Al the long,

hard years of unending war had taken their tol. He was

tired of the loneliness and the bachelor quarters. He

wanted a real home. He wanted someone to protect and

love. He wanted a woman to support and love him back.

Alone now, Vicious turned his ful attention to him.

“You’re going to Connor’s Run?”

Menace nodded. “It’s a midsized Grab today. Less

than twenty girls, apparently.”

“Good odds,” Vicious commented. “You want my

advice?”

Menace laughed. “Not realy, but you’re going to give

it anyway.”

“That’s what superior officers do, Menace. But

seriously, pick a woman and stick with her. Don’t change

your tactic halfway through the Grab. Listen to your gut.

You won’t be led astray.”

“Did your gut tel you to Grab Halie?”

Vicious chuckled. “I had this crazy idea that I wanted

some tal, blonde, buxom beauty. My head told me that

some tal, blonde, buxom beauty. My head told me that

this imaginary woman was the perfect match for me. You

know, someone with similar genes to complement my

own.” He shook his head. “But the moment I spied Halie

with that dark hair and those dark eyes?” Vicious

touched his chest. “I felt it here. I knew she was the

one.”

Menace couldn’t help himself. He let the image of that

young woman from the flower stal in Connor’s Run

invade his thoughts. With her soft brown skin and black

hair, she was so unlike the typical Harcos woman. One

look at her and his heart had stuttered in his chest.

But that mouth of hers! He’d been wrong to knock

her over but she’d bitten his head off before he could

apologize for his accidental colision. The string of

expletives that had left those pouty lips had blitzed his

instant attraction, but her friend, the sweet brunette with

dark eyes who had sold him the flowers? Now that was

a woman he wouldn’t mind catching. Modest, quiet,

friendly, sweet. Maybe he’d look for someone just like

that.

“Are you taking the ful honeymoon period?”

Puled from his thoughts by his commander’s question,

Menace shook his head. “Raze and the SRU boys have

Menace shook his head. “Raze and the SRU boys have

some weapons recertification needs. I’l be doing those

during my days off just to get them out of the way. Terror

and his crew wil probably need rearming at some point.

You know how they are about running through weapons

and ammo.”

Vicious grunted at the mention of his best friend’s

name. Terror exceled in his work with the Shadow

Force the silent, secret arm of the military that carried out

al the covert operations required to keep their people

safe, but he was such a difficult man. The war hadn’t

been kind to him and he seemed to grow colder and

more withdrawn with each passing year.

“Try not to work too hard during your bonding

period,” Vicious instructed. “Halie and I weren’t able to

have any kind of honeymoon and it made things difficult

in the beginning. You should take the time to get to know

your new wife. You only get one chance to do things

right.”

“Understood.”

Vicious clapped him on the back. “Let me know how

it goes.”

“Wil do.” Menace headed toward the reception desk

“Wil do.” Menace headed toward the reception desk

and checked in for his physical. He was in and out in

twenty minutes and on his way to the departures deck for

the trip to the surface. He eyed the smal crowd of

waiting men and judged his competition. Only three were

felow officers and al of them lower ranking. As the

highest-ranking officer taking part, the younger, lower-

ranking soldiers would defer to him. He would have the

pick of the litter, so to speak.

An hour later, a quiver of excitement pierced his bely.

Menace leaned against the railing of the hastily erected

stage and gazed down into the group of women who had

been picked by the lottery to participate in the Grab. He

scanned the offerings and tried to find a woman who

piqued his interest.

A few of the women were much too young to tempt

him. He wanted someone equal to the task of being his

partner and someone with enough life experience to

relate to him. He instantly skipped over their faces in

search of just the right woman. He only had once chance

to find his life mate. He had to choose just right or risk

years of unhappiness.

A familiar face caught his eye. His gut clenched. It

couldn’t be—but it was.

couldn’t be—but it was.

Menace frowned at the sight of the young woman who

had cussed him out in the market that day. From the

stunned look on her face, she remembered him too. Her

dark eyes narrowed to a piercing glare that silently

warned him to back off and leave her be. She shouldn’t

have wasted the energy. He planned to avoid her at al

costs. One taste of that waspish tongue was quite enough

for him.

His searching gaze skipped to her right. He spotted

her friend, the one from the flower stal who had

enthraled him with her sweet smile and kind voice. She

was exactly the kind of woman he had in mind. There

was no doubt now. He was chasing that one.

Menace’s brow furrowed as the bratty one leaned

over and whispered in her friend’s ear. They glanced

furtively his way. From the way they talked behind their

hands, it was clear they were strategizing. Vicious had

told him al about Halie’s battle plan for the day she’d

run. She’d almost beaten him. What if the mouthy one

helped the woman he wanted evade him today?

Bold as brass, the young woman with the dark, impish

eyes flashed him a big smirk and gestured rudely in his

direction. The crude one-fingered salute was a silent

direction. The crude one-fingered salute was a silent

version of the nasty remark she’d tossed his way that day

in the market.

He couldn’t believe her audacity. She laughed and

glanced away from him. Her behavior grated on his

nerves. He planned to tel the man who Grabbed her to

spank her—and often. Clearly she needed a little

discipline in her life.

The mayor of Connor’s Run climbed onto the stage.

One of the Harcos liaisons, who monitored the Grabs

and ensured complete cooperation by the people of

Calyx, joined the mayor. While the mayor read from a

piece of paper, the Harcos bureaucrat held his

touchscreen tablet at the ready. The liaison would make

sure al the rules of the Grab were folowed to the letter.

No violence against the women. No underhanded or

devious means to catch them. No bribing or trading

money or gifts to entice them.

Menace noticed the two women inching their way

toward the starting line. They obviously planned to be the

first out of the pen. The moment the mayor whacked the

bel, the pair sprinted from the crowd and quickly left the