King of Clubs (3 page)

They dove into the gloom and Awai felt like she was tumbling through thick paste. Sticky and gooey, like the fat pots of glue she’d used in kindergarten all those years ago. The sensation clung to her face and hands, her bare belly and legs.

And then they were free of the goo—falling into bright sunshine and a brilliant green world. Ty caught her to him as he landed with a
whump
. He rolled onto his back in a bed of soft grass, Awai cradled close to his chest, on top of him. She found herself face to face, chest to chest…erect cock to mound.

Heat flushed her face as she stared down at her would-be kidnapper. The gooey feeling from the path or whatever it was had vanished, and she now felt only light wind caressing her cheeks and Ty between her legs. His leather pants felt soft as butter against the skin of her thighs and her thong pulled against her clit in a manner that made her crazy with need.

“Now this is the position I prefer,” she said with a little smile that came out of nowhere.

Ty laughed, and in a quick movement he turned so that Awai was on her side in the grass, her leg hooked over his thigh, and they were still face to face. Her eyes were wide, but this time he didn’t see anger or fear in their blue depths.

“For now let us start on equal footing.” Ty smiled at the surprise in her expression. “But know that I am your King, and soon you will desire to submit to me in every way.”

“I have no King.” She shook her head, grass brushing her cheek and her lips. “I’m a Domme. Men submit to me.”

He laughed again and ran a finger down her pert nose. “You will see, my little tigress.”

Awai pushed herself up on one elbow so that she was looking down at Ty. He was gorgeous and purely male. She didn’t even know him and she wanted him like no man she’d ever met before. A man who could fulfill her secret fantasies that she’d never shared with anyone…that she’d kept well hidden from everyone but herself. Even then she had tried to shove them away, to pretend they didn’t exist.

If she admitted how much she wanted to make them come true, could she forget her past and allow herself to be controlled by a man?

She spotted her whip lying on the grass beside Ty, grabbed it by the handle, and got to her feet. Awai was tempted to show the man how well she knew how to use it, but she only practiced safe, sane, and consensual BDSM. No doubt this man wouldn’t consent to being whipped. He was a Dom through and through.

In a slow demonstration of masculine ease, the golden god got to his feet. Lord, but his muscles rippled and flexed with power. Awai’s nipples tightened and her pussy grew wetter. He was bigger, buffer, and probably the most well-hung man she’d ever had the pleasure of meeting, if the size of his package behind his leather pants was any indication. Every sensible thought since meeting Ty had vanished and all she knew was she wanted him.

Damn.

With every muscular movement he made, she knew he could crush her if he wanted, could hurt her in so many ways. Why then did she feel safe with him? Just because he hadn’t hurt her in her home?

But when he moved toward her, she stiffened, suddenly remembering that she’d been kidnapped into this world, as no doubt Annie, Alexi, and Alice had been.

Well
, Awai thought,
actually I came willingly to find my nieces. They might have been kidnapped, but I wasn’t
.

Ty held out his hand to Awai and hoped she would trust him. After a moment of indecision in her blue eyes, she took it. Her fingers felt small and cool in his palm and he could sense the tenseness radiating through her body.

“Let me show you my realm,” he said as he led her away from where they’d landed in the grass. He was proud of his lands and his people, and he hoped that she would be pleased with what she saw.

Awai had been so intent on the man that she hadn’t even noticed her surroundings. She stared in wonder as sunlight shone down through blue-green clouds and spilled onto trees with feathery blue leaves, and others with lacey green leaves and yet others with colorful flowers. Ahead of them a waterfall of the white blooms flowed down the hillside. If she wasn’t mistaken, they were cherry blossoms.

Countless flowers in unusual shapes dotted the grassy hillside in bursts of orange, pink, red, blue, and purple. Their sweet perfume mingled with the earthy smell of the land and the warm scent of the man beside her. Their footsteps were silent as they walked down the grassy hill.

In the distance she could see a small town or a village with people and industry. Nearer to them she saw a sprawling building that reminded her of an Egyptian palace, even though the walls were a greeny-beige color. It was as if the building was camouflaged to blend in with the surrounding trees, flowers, and the grassy hillside.

Ty squeezed her hand, bringing her back to the present. She looked up at him and he smiled, a cute boyish smile that made her heart melt. Damn, she was supposed to be kicking ass and taking names. Instead she was lusting over this man like a besotted schoolgirl with a crush on the captain of the football team.

“Ah…” Awai cleared her throat and brought them to a stop. She attempted to return to her “I am queen of the universe” presence that she maintained in the corporate world. “Where the hell are Annie, Alexi, and Alice?”

He looked thoughtful for a moment, as if trying to determine how much to tell her. When he spoke, it was in a clear, concise tone. “Alice is joined with my brother Jarronn and she is now the High Queen of Tarok and Queen of Hearts.” Awai’s jaw dropped, but Ty continued, “Alexi is my brother Darronn’s bride, and she is Queen of Spades.”

At this point Awai was ready to use the whip she still carried. He had to be lying. But Ty was saying, “Annie has mated with my brother Karn, and she is Queen of Diamonds.” He grinned. “Although her cat Abra thinks
she
rules Diamond Hall.”

Awai jerked her hand from Ty’s and backed away from him like his derangement was contagious. “You’re freaking nuts, aren’t you.” It wasn’t a question—she was positive he was crazy. Well, almost positive. “What are you guys? A deck of cards?”

Ty gave her that boyish grin that gave her stomach schoolgirl quivers. “My parents divided the Kingdom of Tarok into four separate Kingdoms before they died.” He gestured to the lands as though encompassing everything around him. “My mother was a Seer. She loved to play card games, and she chose to name the Kingdoms after each of the suites in a deck of playing cards. The Kingdom of Tarok was named after another game she enjoyed.”

Awai gestured to his abdomen. “And the tattoo on your stomach?”

He shrugged. “Once the Kingdoms were divided, our mother insisted on tattooing each of us. She was an artist, much like your Annie.”

Without consciously realizing it, Awai moved closer to Ty, concern clenching her heart. “She’s all right, isn’t she? Annie was always so much gentler than Alice, and especially Alexi, and she could be hurt so easily. Please tell me she’s happy here.”

This time Ty’s look was serious as he nodded and took Awai by the shoulders. “Annie is truly a blessing to Tarok, and especially the Kingdom of Diamonds. She is dearly loved by all, as are Alexi and Alice.”

Awai wanted to cry with relief, yet how could she know if Ty was telling the truth?

“I want to kiss you,” Ty said in a deep, husky voice that made her shiver. “May I?”

The fact that he asked her, that he recognized her fear of being taken against her will, melted Awai’s heart even further. She placed her palms on his smooth yet rock-hard chest and pressed close to him as she whispered, “Yes.”

Ty gave her his rogue’s smile that made her want to swoon like a romance novel heroine. She closed her eyes when he lowered his face and lightly brushed his lips over hers. Awai waited for more, but he took the kiss no further.

She opened her eyes and saw only tenderness in his expression. Awai Steele always took what she wanted in life, and right now she wanted a real kiss from this man. She slid her arms up around his neck and pulled his face down to meet hers.

Awai moved her lips over his and he gently returned her kiss. But as she demanded more of him, his kiss matched hers in intensity. He groaned and slid his hands from her shoulders, down her arms to her hips and pressed her tight to his erection. He was so tall and his cock obviously so big that she felt him at her bellybutton, his hard-on smashing her star charm into her flesh, causing her to feel a sensation of both pain and pleasure.

Ty’s tongue thrust into her mouth, demanding, insistent, as if he could no longer rein in his desire for her. Awai gave herself up to the taste of him, to his smell, the feel of his hard body against hers, the heat of his flesh burning through her clothing. This man would be the kind of lover she had dreamed about in her secret fantasies. The man who could tie her up and do the things to her she had only imagined, or the things she had done to her subs.

With this man, she could be submissive. And she’d be safe.

But how can I know that for certain?

Awai broke the kiss and pulled away from Ty. As his blue eyes looked into hers, that old fear and anger returned to her that had been in her heart and soul too long, thanks to that bastard of an ex-husband.

Could she relinquish control? Could she allow Ty to put her in a position where she was helpless and at his mercy?

Chapter Three

Ty sensed the change in Awai and knew that she struggled against giving herself to him. She wanted him, of that he was certain. He could see it in her expressive blue eyes, could scent her arousal, could see her erect nipples pushing against her clothing.

It was in his nature to dominate and he was used to submissive women. But Awai was different. From the start, when he had first seen her wounded eyes in the magical playing card, he had known she had deep pain to overcome before she would or could fully trust him. The only way he could break through her barriers would be to dominate her completely, to have her turn her trust and faith and control over to him. Only then could she allow herself to have the love her heart desired…and the pleasure.

He had no doubt that whether or not Awai would admit it, within her very being she craved domination. He sensed it at the deepest level of his soul.

Before she had the chance to refuse his advances, or to regret her own, Ty took Awai’s hand and gently pulled her down the hill toward his palace. It lay far below, its soft-toned walls glowing in the late spring sunlight.

She allowed him to lead her, but as they walked she asked, “Are my nieces here? I want to see them now.”

“They are each in their respective Kingdoms.” He glanced down at her and saw the frustration and disappointment in her expression. “I will send word that you have arrived.”

Ty kept his tone even, hoping she would accept what he had to say next. “Your family members have been expecting you, but it will take them time to prepare for the trip. The Kings and Queens will need to handle matters in their Kingdoms and it will take time to journey here. I am quite certain they will want to bring their children.”

Awai came to an abrupt stop, jerking against Ty’s hand, bringing him to a stop, too. Her head swam with what he had just said. Shit, how could he just pop that one on her as if it was no big deal?

“Children?” Her voice squeaked as she spoke and she could only stare at him with incredulity.

He smiled, but this time she wanted to slug him. “Between the three Queens and Kings, they have many cubs,” he said.

She blinked. “Cubs?”

But Ty was still talking, “Alice and Jarronn have three sets of twins, Alexi and Darronn have triplet boys and a new daughter, and Annie also has an infant female cub.”

Awai released Ty’s hand and dropped to the ground beneath a flowery moss-covered tree. Grass prickled her butt as she buried her face in her hands, her elbows braced on her knees, as she tried to absorb the fact that the girls were now all mothers.

Mothers!

Unless Ty was lying through his teeth.

She raised her head to find that he was now sitting next to her, studying her with a calm expression on his handsome features.

“You’re serious, aren’t you?” She pushed her dark hair out of her face and glared at him. “My nieces are some kind of baby factories for your world.”

At that Ty frowned. “Annie, Alexi, and Alice each love their mates. They chose to join with my brothers and they each chose to bear children.”

Awai shook her head, a loose tendril of hair falling back across her face. “Maybe Annie and Alice, but Alexi is too much like me, too career-driven to want to have kids.”

Ty’s frown deepened. “You do not wish to have offspring?”

“Are you kidding?” Awai raised her hands. “Look at me. I’m in my thirties, I’m set in my ways, and I don’t want to have kids that will end up having an old mother when they grow up.”

The corner of Ty’s mouth quirked. “You are but a youngling compared to the people of my world. I am well over two hundred of your Earth years.”

It was all too much. Awai flung herself on her back in the grass, her arms above her. Her head was really spinning now. She stared up at the tree and at the aqua-colored clouds peeking through the lacey leaves. “I can’t take this,” she muttered.

Ty’s groin tightened as he studied his future Queen. When Awai lay back in the grass, her tunic rose up and exposed the plump undersides of her breasts and her skirt hiked to the top of her thighs, almost showing her quim. With her arms above her head, her position was one of complete submission.

She was closer to surrendering herself to him than she realized. Closer than even he had realized.

From the moment he had met Awai, Ty had sensed that her act of dominance over men was simply that—an act.

He reached out with one hand and stroked the undersides of her breasts. Awai audibly caught her breath and her blue gaze turned from the sky to him. Her lips parted, and the scent of her arousal grew stronger. While slowly caressing her, he continued to keep his eyes locked with hers. She visibly swallowed as she arched her back, and her expression told him she could not help her reaction to his touch.