Challenging Saber (22 page)

His gaze followed her slender fingers as she ran the soapy solution over his skin. She paused and traced a light scar that he hadn’t bothered having removed. Her hand moved down to his and she leaned in to briefly kiss the mark she had traced before she lifted his hand and ran her hand over his palm.

Soft skin against rough, just like Taylor and I,
he thought as a sensual haze clouded his mind.

Her fingers tangled with his for a moment before she trailed her fingers up the back of his hand and around to the sensitive flesh of his inner wrist. His breath caught as she stepped closer to him and ran her hand along the underside of his arm.

“I love touching you,” she whispered as she caressed his chest. He had a light coating of hair across it. There was just enough that she could tangle her fingers in it. She had seen Hunter and Dagger. Both of them were devoid of hair on their chests. “For the last five years, I’ve touched you, but not in the way I wanted to. Not until….”

Saber silenced her with his lips. He kissed her with a gentleness that brought tears to her eyes. He brushed them away with his lips before running his nose along her cheek up to the corner of her eye. With each stroke, he made sure that she could feel the love he had for her.

“I was wrong,” he whispered. “You are such an incredible woman, Taylor. You capture the light and brighten the world with it. I was in a dark place, afraid to see that light vanish when you realized that I was not the warrior that I had been.”

“But, you are,” she said, looking up at him with a tender smile. “You are my warrior. You caught me, Saber, and captured my heart that first day in the cafeteria.”

“Goddess, Taylor, I don’t deserve you, but I swear I will never let you go,” Saber said in a voice hoarse with emotion.

Taylor didn’t say anything; she showed him. Palming more soap, she ran her hands over his other arm and down his chest, reaching lower. Saber’s shuddering breath echoed throughout the bathroom when she wrapped her hands around his throbbing cock. His hands shot out and he plastered them against the walls of the shower.

His eyelids drooped as he watched her caress him. His fingers curled when her hand slipped down to cup his heavy sack. He would give her time now, but by the Goddess, his turn would come next. He would take her with a passion that would leave her in no doubt that he was claiming her.

“Ahhhh,” Saber moaned, his head falling back as she continued to stroke him.

A soft chuckle mixed with his agonized cry. Taylor was well aware of what she was doing to him. If she were trying to torture him, she was doing an excellent job of it.

He knew he could last no longer when she started working her way back up him. Bending, he helped her stand, holding her away from his over-sensitive flesh. With a trembling hand, he brushed her wet hair back from her face.

“Touch me no more, Taylor. I have little control left and I swear that your pleasure will come before my own this night,” he warned her in a rough voice. “Wait… Wait for me in our bed.”

“Saber,” she whispered.

“I want you, Taylor,” he whispered. “Give me this, please. I have been selfish long enough.”

“I want another all-nighter when we get out of here,” she said. “For now, I’ll take an all-afternoon.”

“Goddess, you don’t fight fair,” he accused hoarsely when she stepped out of the shower.

“Just wait until you get in the bed,” she retorted with a sultry gaze that ran up and down his body. “Don’t make me wait, Saber.”

*.*.*

Saber closed his eyes and drew in a dozen deep, calming breaths. He looked up and caught his reflection in the mirror. Straightening up, he quickly finished washing and rinsed off. He grabbed one of the towels lying next to the sink.

He quickly dried his body, pausing briefly on his right leg. It was a little stiff and sore, but it felt stronger than it had since he woke after the mission. He stepped out of the bathroom. The towel in his hand paused as he dried his hair.

His gaze froze on Taylor lying on their bed. She was watching him with a small smile on her lips. The dim lighting along the upper wall cast a soft glow around her. She had dried her hair as best she could with the towel and combed it out. A length of golden brown hung over her shoulder, barely covering her breast. Her left breast was bare.

His hand fell to his side as he slowly walked across the room. Tossing the towel on the end of the bed, he sank down beside her. He reached out, touching the end of her hair.

“So beautiful,” he whispered, sliding his hand up under her hair and along her breast. “And, so perfect for me.”

He turned his face into her hand when she raised it to run her fingers along his jaw. Pressing a kiss to the center, he raised his other hand and pulled her toward him. Their lips met in the middle, opening and inhaling each other’s breath as if they were one.

His hand slid down her throat to her shoulder before moving down far enough for him to cup her breast. Pressing small kisses to the corner of her mouth, he continued along her jaw. A wave of warmth swept through him when Taylor arched toward him, offering him full access to her body.

He opened his mouth and scraped his sharp teeth along the distended nipple before he sucked on it. Her gasp and the scent of her arousal washed over him. A rumble of pleasure escaped him and his other hand moved down to slide between her legs. He could feel the slickness of her arousal coating the soft light brown curls that protected her womanhood.

“My
Amate
,” he whispered against her breast before he pulled away.

Turning, he knelt over her. His eyes glowed with his desire, turning them a deeper yellow-gold. His pupils were dilated and he was breathing in deep, slow, measured breaths as he gazed down at her.

“Saber,” Taylor moaned, reaching up to touch his lips. “Love me.”

“Forever, Taylor,” he replied in a thick voice. “I am Saber. I belong to Taylor as she belongs to me. Forever will I tie my life to hers. I will care for, protect, and give my seed only to her. She is my
Amate
. You are my life, Taylor.”

Taylor swallowed. “I am Taylor. I belong to Saber as he belongs to me. I give to him my love forever. Forever will I tie my life to his. I will care for, protect, and cherish him as he cherishes me. You are my
Amate
. I love you,” she whispered tearfully, rubbing her thumb along the corner of his mouth. “I love you so much, Saber, for so very, very long.”

“Not long enough,” Saber assured her. “It will never be long enough.”

He lowered himself down over her, running his lips over her breasts and down over her stomach. Each kiss, each touch, burned into his soul. His whole body was alive with feeling. Her moans and heated cries filled the air. It was music to his ears. Her pleas for more fired his blood. His hands slid under the curve of her buttocks and he lifted her so he could drink from her. His tongue played with the swollen nub when he parted her to his touch. He was rewarded when her body stiffened and a smothered scream escaped her.

He slid his hand upward, driving his fingers into her as she came. He could feel the walls of her vagina pulse with her release. Knowing he could not last long this first time, he wanted to draw out her pleasure. Now was the time to mark her as his.

His fingers slid from her slick warmth. His gaze locked on her as he pulled her legs up around his waist. He leaned forward, aligning his cock with her silky entrance. Her eyes opened and she looked at him with a dazed expression.

“Forever, Taylor,” he muttered as he slowly impaled her.

“Saber!” Taylor cried out, arching into him and holding on to his arms as he began to rock.

Saber clenched his teeth. He needed to wait until she was at the precipice. When she was, he would strike, marking her as his. The chemical in his teeth would numb the pain and increase her pleasure as it bound her to him.

He increased his thrust, driving deeper each time until he felt they were truly one. Each thrust of his hips pulled his throbbing cock along her swollen channel. He could feel every silky inch of it as it sucked greedily for his seed.

Saber threw his head back and roared when Taylor’s body stiffened around him, clamping down on him like a fist. His body trembled for a fraction of a second before he exploded inside her with a force that ripped a cry from his throat. Breathing heavily, he leaned forward and opened his mouth. Reciting his pledge to her, he bit down on the curve of her shoulder near her neck.

She writhed under him, her hands clawing at him for a brief moment before the heat of another orgasm locked her in its greedy grasp. Saber reluctantly released her neck and licked the wound. The puncture wounds would be healed by morning, but the mark of his teeth would never fade.

She is mine,
Saber thought as a wave of calm settled over his soul.

Saber ran his fingers down along Taylor’s flushed cheek. His eyebrow rose when she snorted in her sleep and rolled onto her side, hugging his pillow. He closed his eyes when she wiggled back against him and tucked the curve of her ass against him.

“You are a very, very dangerous woman, my
Amate
,” Saber whispered, leaning forward to press a kiss against her bare shoulder. “I am the luckiest warrior in the world to have you by my side.”

Taylor mumbled in her sleep. It sounded suspiciously like ‘you bet your ass, old man’. Shaking his head, he pressed another kiss to her shoulder before releasing a sigh when he heard a chime at the outer door. Rising from the bed, he grabbed the towel and wrapped it around his waist before stepping over to the door and pressing his palm against the panel.

“What?” He asked in aggravation.

Hunter glanced up and down before his gaze moved to the dim room behind him. “I’m warning you now, Saber, you better not break Taylor’s heart again. If I don’t kill you first, you’ll wish I had after Jesse and Jordan get a hold of you,” he bit out in a quiet, menacing voice. “Get dressed. We have a meeting with Commander Atlas and Razor.”

Saber nodded and started to pull away. “She wears my mark on her,” Saber replied quietly. “Once we are back on Rathon, we will complete the ceremony. I will not turn her away again, Hunter. I understand the gift I have been given.”

“It’s about time,” Hunter muttered.

Saber palmed the door shut, but not before he caught Hunter’s muttered statement. A soft chuckle escaped him. Yes, it was about time. He glanced at where Taylor was peacefully sleeping. Drawing in a deep breath, he shook his head in exasperation. He didn’t want to leave her for fear that she would disappear.

“No one ever told me just how hard it was to have an
Amate
,” he muttered.

He quickly pulled on the set of clean clothes that Taylor had picked up when she heard that Maridi had gone to retrieve him and the others. He didn’t bother with his leg brace. The power was depleted on it. While it would still give him support, he figured he would not need it until later.

By then, he hoped he could find a way to recharge it. His gaze swept back to Taylor. She had rolled onto her back. Her right arm was now thrown up over her head in relaxed abandon. If anyone knew how to recharge it, Taylor would, he thought with a sense of pride. Refocusing on the task at hand, he turned toward the door once again.

Two minutes later, he was striding back to the lift from hell with Hunter. He turned and faced the front. A grin curved his lips when he saw Hunter grip the hand bar.

“Taylor loves this thing,” Saber shared with a sigh.

Hunter chuckled. “I can understand why. Do you remember when she learned how to ride the air bike?” He reminded Saber.

Saber’s face twisted at the memory. “She scared the hell out of me,” he murmured. “I love her, Hunter. I’ve known that since I first saw her, but I never realized how much until she walked out of the door the night after….” He paused and drew in a deep breath as the lift started to slow. “When I found out she had been captured, it was like someone had ripped out my heart.”

“I know what you were going through, Saber. It was not always easy for Jesse and I,” Hunter responded with a weary sigh.

Saber nodded to the other men as they entered what looked like the main control room. In the center was a huge holovid with troop movements. He noticed Hunter’s mouth tightening as he stared at the classified information. It was obvious that Razor hadn’t shared everything about the mission.

“What is going on, Razor?” Saber asked, looking around the command center. “This wasn’t built in the last six months. A command center this large must have been under construction for a number of years.”

“True,” Hunter growled with a glare at his older brother.

Razor sighed and nodded. He glanced at Commander Atlas. The commander gave him a sharp nod to continue.

“As you know, a new star system joined the Alliance a few years ago. There was concern voiced by many within the Alliance council of their acceptance due to their technological advancements,” Razor began.

“I hate to tell you this, Razor, but the Trivators are not without our own advances,” Trig interjected dryly.

Razor shot Trig a heated look. “I’m well aware of our advancements, Trig. The Kassisans and the Elpidiosians are slightly ahead of us in certain areas. Still, some of our more recent advances in weaponry, including the signal disrupter we are using, are because of their willingness to share. Before joining the Alliance, the former ruler of Kassis and their present ambassador, Ajaska Ja Kel Coradon, was suspicious of increased hostile activities that were taking place within the star systems, both under the Kassisan protection and ones that were considered off limits due to their lack of intergalactic space travel. Those hostilities have increased since their incorporation into the Alliance Council.”

“Define hostile,” Dagger demanded, leaning against a table near the center map.

“They tried to assassinate my sons and myself,” a deep voice said dryly. “I consider that hostile.”

“Lord Ja Kel Coradon,” Commander Atlas greeted.