Marked 2: Marked for Desire (17 page)

She rocked against his cock, a steady stream of moisture dripping on him from her pussy. He went insane and leaned forward, his hands thrust into her hair, his stomach jamming the dildo deep inside her pussy again. His lips pounded hers just as his cock pounded her ass. He tore his lips away, his dick throbbing, his cum demanding release. “Sera!” he shouted and exploded inside her.

Her answering scream rang in his ears, and he pumped her again and again until he collapse on top of her, exhausted. The dragon on his hip burned and throbbed while her hands stroked his hair. She murmured over and over, “Master. My Master.”

He’d release her wrists and tenderly wipe her ass with a cloth. She’d be sore, but he’d make sure he soothed her. In a minute. In just a minute.

* * *

The rattle of the cuffs at her wrists woke him a long time later. “Oh fuck. Princess, I’m sorry.”

She opened her sleepy eyes and smiled. “You called me ‘Sera.’ I liked it.” And she fell back asleep.

Leo stared at her. He
had
called her “Sera.” Always so careful to keep distance between them, he’d called her “Princess” to remind him, to admonish him. She was Princess Sera Placido. He took a deep breath and thrust a hand through his hair.

He unhooked the cuffs and retrieved a soft cloth. She slept while he cleaned her gently.

Leo was convinced the attempts on his princess were related to her ability to access the power on Placido. Many of their other targets were political figures—people who were powerful and morally compromised. All the targets had been murdered at BDSM clubs, their sexual secrets exposed to the rest of the galaxy.

Just the revelation that he’d been at the Star of Pleasure club had ended a Teran Five minister’s career. That information came out because of the Brotherhood. Yet when the vid streamers ran the story on Princess Sera Placido, it was salacious gossip and didn’t hurt her standing at all. In fact, Leo found her people liked her infamous—mostly unearned—reputation. So the Brotherhood wanted her disgraced, not killed. Or was there more to it?

She stirred beneath his gentle touch, her smile drowsy and beautiful. “Good morning.”

He kissed each wrist. “Good morning, my love. Did you get enough sleep?”

Her arms wrapped around him. “Sleep? Yes. Sex? No.”

He laughed. “My insatiable princess.”

Her lips brushed his neck, and she nibbled on his ear. “My gentle Master.”

It shook him. The word “Master” from her lips, like she meant it, like she wanted him to be her master, rocked him off-kilter as nothing ever had. Not even Shanie’s death had left him this off center, this fearful.

“I would love to indulge you, sweetheart,” he said softly. “But we have work to do.”

She sat up on one elbow. “And you have some explaining to do.”

He nodded. “About what happened on Placido.”

“You have to admit, it was pretty strange.”

She had no idea.

He took a deep breath. How could he explain it? There was so much to tell. He decided to hit the highlights. “Your people and mine are connected in the distant past.” It had been odd the way the information had flooded his mind. The planet’s power had flowed through him like an electrical current. “But where our people viewed power as a natural process, a human condition, your people fought to control it and wield it rather than allow it to just be.”

“I often felt like I was being devoured, not trying to force it,” she said with a frown. “It was like
it
wanted to control
me
.”

“Do you feel that way about me?”

She blinked. “I did.”

“And you don’t now? Why?”

A line appeared on her brow. “I know you only want to bring me pleasure, and my surrender turns us both on.”

He nodded. “My dominance also turns us both on. It’s give-and-take. That’s how the planet’s power works. But five hundred years ago, one of the council members forced the planet’s power into a violent mode.” Leo reached out and stroked her arm. “Like a dominant who has grasped power for power’s sake, the planet began to take and give nothing in return. It killed the council member who attempted to bend its will and then proceeded to drain its people. It knew no other way.” A wounded animal was just as dangerous. “Your people left, their psychic connection to the planet broken; the planet is alone and empty.”

Sera blinked. “Oh, I never realized—” She shook her head. “I only felt the pain, never its source.”

“No, none of your line did until it was too late. Your mother tried to control the power and ended up dying for it.”

“My mother?” She frowned. “How do you know that about my mother?”

He stroked her hair. “I spoke to her when I was at the temple. In fact, I saw several of Placido’s past leaders. I don’t know how, but their consciousness was preserved by the planet.” It was difficult for him to explain. “Somehow I was able to talk to your mother’s spirit. It’s their knowledge I have.” He kissed her forehead. “You were right to be afraid. The planet was operating on instinct alone. It would have killed you too.”

“What now?”

“Now, we take care of the Brotherhood.”

“Oh?” She bent down and pressed her lips to his cheek, then ran her fingers through his hair.

“We need to take them out, or they’ll continue to hunt you.” God, he didn’t know if he could resist her warm mouth on his skin, her sweet hands in his hair. He’d never thought he could be distracted by a woman, but Sera created new feelings, new sensations.

She sighed, her breasts pressed against his bare skin. “Oh, okay.” She stretched her arms over her head. “How are we going to do that?”

“By visiting a club and drawing them out.” He brushed his lips over hers.

When her gaze met his, he admired the determination, the strength in her. She nodded. “Whatever you say.”

Why did that frighten him so much?

* * *

“The best way to attract the Brotherhood is to make a public splash they won’t miss,” Conner stated.

Leo draped his arm behind his mate and squeezed her shoulder. The idea of Sera as a target didn’t sit easy with him, but he knew it was the only way to expose the ones who wanted to kill her. “Easy to do. The princess is big news.”

Rhea nodded. “We’ll have to reserve space at one of the clubs you usually visit, Princess.”

“Call me Sera, please,” his mate said with a warm smile. “I regularly visit four, mainly because they have very strict confidentiality rules. Those probably won’t work.”

“I don’t know, love,” Leo said. “They’ve been able to infiltrate all of them regardless of their rules.”

“You’re right. Well, since we’re all going undercover, which one is most comfortable for you?”

“I like Nova on Teran Five,” Conner said.

Leo shook his head. “Too far. How about Mina’s? On Elison?”

“That might work.” Rhea frowned, then raked her hand through her short blonde hair. “Isn’t Mina’s public fornication, though? Do we want to be in the open like that?”

“To draw the enemy out, it might be the perfect choice.” Leo tapped his fingers on the table. He didn’t like it at all, even though it was his idea. If it were just another target, he could handle it. But this was his mate, his heart. He didn’t want to expose her to any more danger. Did the Brotherhood know what Sera could do? Perhaps that’s why they were trying to kill her. Leo was well aware how potent that power could be.

“Mina’s has an arena,” Rhea commented. “It’s for group sex. That way all five of us could participate and provide protection.” Her blue gaze slid to Shaun, standing quietly by the door. “That is, if you’re willing to help.”

Shaun’s lips tightened. “I’m willing.”

“That’s good considering how much trust we’re putting in you,” Rhea said, her eyes narrowed.

“I don’t give a shit if you trust me,” Shaun snapped. “I only care if…Leo trusts me.”

What had happened on Placido had impacted Shaun more than Leo had intended. He hadn’t missed the hesitation when Shaun said his name. He had been going to say
Master
, not
Leo
. The punishment Leo had delivered had gone deeper than he had thought possible. “I trust you, Shaun.” He met Rhea’s skeptical glance. “I’m afraid you’ll have to take my word that Shaun is completely trustworthy.”

“Rhea and I haven’t had good luck trusting people,” Conner reminded him. Like he needed to know. They’d all been duped by General Halloway. The general had told Rhea that Conner had caused the death of her family, encouraged her to hunt Conner down to kill him. The general had betrayed Conner to the Brotherhood and almost killed him. And the general had ordered Leo murdered by the Primarians. A legacy of lies, betrayal, and death lay in their past.

Shaun’s gaze met his. He winced, a quick scrunch of his facial muscles. He nodded. “I know what they need.”

“No. I promised,” he told Shaun.

Shaun’s eyes widened. “But—”

“Absolutely,” Leo said firmly. “They can distrust you all they want. I don’t, and I won’t.”

“I
will
show them,” Shaun told him. His nostrils flared, and his face had lost color, but he stood straight and tall. His fingers wrenched his pants open; then he dropped them to his ankles. The belt thudded on the floor.

Leo shot to his feet. “Shaun, you do not have to do this.”

The man’s hazel eyes were sad, too old for his young face. “For them to trust me, I do. And we need them.”

“Shaun—” Sera protested.

“I can do this, Princess.” Shaun’s hands clenched into fists, and he turned so his ass was exposed to everyone in the room.

“Shit!” Conner said under his breath.

They’d seen enough. Rhea and Conner glanced at each other. Leo stepped in front of Shaun, shielding him. It hadn’t been easy for Shaun to admit he’d been dominated by another man. In most circumstances, the mark would never be shown. “Pull your pants up, ” Leo said gently. The man’s face was tight, and a blush washed over his cheeks. “I thank you, Shaun.”

His startled gaze jerked to Leo’s face. “For what?”

“For wearing my mark. For being brave enough to show it.” Leo touched the man’s shoulder. “I swear, they will say nothing.”

He nodded, took a deep breath, and turned to face the others. Leo noted Rhea and Conner regarded Shaun with a little bit of awe. “I was wrong, Shaun Fenway,” Rhea said. “I’m sorry I distrusted you.”

Conner glanced at Leo. “You meted out punishment so he wouldn’t have to face the Mistresses.”

“I did. What he did was to protect his sister. Any dominant in his position would have done the same,” Leo stated. Shaun straightened his back. “I gave the council justice without breaking his dominance.”

Conner nodded. “We swear, Shaun, to say nothing. Ever.”

Shaun gave a curt nod, and Leo sat down. Now they could plan their trap to catch the Brotherhood.

Chapter Twelve

Mina’s, on the planet Elison, was a club that skirted the boundaries of even the most deviant in the galaxy. They offered it all, whatever the market demanded, regardless of moral right and wrong. Leo had been there, undercover as a Primarian soldier, partaking in some of the more questionable orgies. It hadn’t left him with a positive impression, but it did give him a good idea of the layout.

The arena offered group sex for an enthralled audience, like live porn. It sure as hell was more potent to smell the arousal of the participants. But getting to Mina’s was challenging. The minute they hit the Elison spaceport, vid streamers were all over them. Sera’s assistant, Riordan, was on his way, but until then Leo was in charge of Princess Sera Placido.

Leo’s hand clamped around Sera’s arm in an attempt to keep her close, afraid she’d get swallowed by the sharks swarming around them.

There had to be hundreds of them. How the hell did she put up with this shit? And the questions? Fuck. He wanted to deck them all. Hell, he always had, but now that she was mated to him, it was unbearable.

“Princess, your advisers declared you were on the planet Sethos Five on vacation.” The reporter drawled the last word. “Can you tell us where you were?” He shot a curious glance at Leo.

Sera smiled, a sweet expression that boded no good for the streamer. “I had an appearance on Sethos Five, but the attempt on my life delayed that. Instead, I took an unexpected detour to my home planet, Placido.”

A stunned silence filled the bay. Then a frenzy. “Do you plan to force your people to live on the planet?

“Did you sell more of the artifacts?”

“Did you record your visit?” Again, the last word seemed to have a double meaning.

Leo shoved his hands into his pockets. He was close to putting a fist in someone’s face. His princess linked her arm through his. “No, but I became mated. This is Leo Eyler, a Nyral dominant, and he’s my mate.”

Like bullets, the questions came at her rapid-fire. “Will he be your consort?”

“Did you perform a ceremony?”

“Will you have children?”

“Does your father know?”

Her father was alive?
Shit
! Leo realized he wasn’t ready for this. He loved her and yet knew very little about her. What did she want? Other than her sexual needs, he didn’t have a clue. And these assholes would smell blood in the water.

“My father and I haven’t spoken in years,” Sera stated. “He’ll know now, won’t he?” Her fingers clutched his arm. “And Leo is my mate.” She held up her arm, and cameras zoomed in on her forearm. “Is that ceremony enough?”

“What are your plans while you’re here? A honeymoon?” This reporter was getting on Leo’s nerves. Everything he said sounded like an accusation. Leo’s gaze narrowed on his face. Brown hair, handsome in a pretty-boy way, eyes too close together. Memorable. And Leo did remember him. Sera had called him Nigel.

Sera answered his question coolly. “We plan to visit Mina’s.”

Questions flew at that announcement, jumbled and incomprehensible. Sera held up her hand. “We’re going to use the arena, a first for me. And as you know, Mina’s allows no outside cameras, so I’m afraid you’ll have to use your imaginations to write about what happens.”

They surged forward, closing in, and suddenly, Nigel, the man who’d asked the most obnoxious questions, put his hands on her.