Mercenary's Reward (8 page)

There was no way to remove his clothes without his cooperation, and she didn't want to break the spell of the moment. He watched her as if he were hungry, his gaze coasting over her body from breast to hip. Emboldened by his avid attention, she ran her hands lightly over her chest. Her fingertips grazed the soft peaks of her nipples, and he sucked in a breath. Mieli watched his responses as she teased herself until the tips of her breasts were pebbled and tight.

While he watched her, Jai's breathing had deepened, and the tension in his body was palpable. The erection she had touched only briefly was thrust high, almost flush to his body, and the visible throb of blood beneath his skin was a testament to the urgency of his desire.

She half expected him to ravage her at any moment, but he only watched, as if he'd never seen a woman touch herself. Certain now that he was caught up in her display, Mieli turned and retrieved the blanket that lay forgotten on the ground. With a hard shake, she spread it out and settled down on her back, facing Jai.

He was still watching her, his hands fisted at his sides and his cock pulsing hotly. An answering throb had begun deep in Mieli's body, and she eagerly started touching herself. Both hands smoothed a path over breast and belly to the damp flesh below. No stranger to self-pleasuring, Mieli parted the silken lips of her sex and probed the slick entrance. She could feel the wetness there, accompanied by a strong ache to feel him inside.

Aside from Jai's possession the night before, she had been many long months without the feel of a man. The frustrated needs of her body, long sublimated by stress and anxiety, suddenly burst forth. Lost in the fierce ache of unfulfilled lust, Mieli closed her eyes and sank two fingers deep into her slippery channel to rub and stroke her sensitive inner walls. With her other hand, she slid a finger around the hardened nub at the top of her sex.

She'd been lucky he'd pleased her so well the night before. Now she showed him what she liked. Mieli let her hands demonstrate what made her body shudder and pulse and hoped he was paying attention to the subtle instructions she was giving him.

The climax she craved was perilously close as her fingers moved in tandem against her overheated flesh. When the moment came, she let out a high, keening wail and collapsed, her limbs heavy with satisfaction.

HER BODY WAS a miracle. Jai had been pleased when Mieli accepted his hand, but the sultry look and her bold caresses froze him in place. The sight of her delicate body, bared when she stripped her shift, was almost enough to snap him out of it. Then she'd begun to touch herself, to use her elegant little hands on the intimate flesh he so desperately craved. He'd never seen anything like her, and he'd held still for fear of ending the erotic display.

When the tempo of her strokes increased, her legs flexed, and her spine arched, his cock had quivered in near orgasm at the sight of her climax. As the tension ebbed visibly from her body, her eyes fluttered open, and that brilliant blue-black gaze locked onto his. Slowly Mieli curled forward and onto all fours, coming toward him like a dangerous
sil
cat. The look on her face was hungry and predatory, well suited to her actions.

She reached his legs and tilted her head back, looking up the long line of his body. With a sound like an animal growl, Mieli sat up on her knees and wrapped both hands around the painfully hard flesh of his erection. Jai groaned and clenched his fists tight against his hips, so sensitive was he to her soft palms. The thick head of his cock had become slick from his precum, and she used her thumbs to spread the hot fluid down the shaft.

The wet strokes were intensely pleasurable, but then she put her lips close and blew gently across the damp tracks.

Suddenly driven past the edge of his restraint, Jai gave a growl of his own and pulled her hands away. He'd underestimated her though, and as soon as her arms were spread wide, she simply leaned forward and wrapped her lips around the tight spheres beneath his upthrust cock. Her tongue flicked restlessly over the taut globes, and her mouth held a gentle suction.

Jai was lost. His knees shook, and his vision blurred. He'd had no idea how good that could feel, and he rocked his hips forward to encourage her attentions. After several moments, Mieli gave a final lick and moved her lips up the base of his shaft. Impatient to feel her mouth on the most sensitive part of him, Jai spread his legs wide to bring the head low enough for her to reach.

Then he slid his cock between her teeth, and that rapacious tongue was darting erotically over his tense flesh. He still held her arms wide, and the view he had was stunning. Her head bobbed rhythmically, and her face was upturned just enough to give him a perfect view of his thickness, glistening wet and stunningly hard, as it sank over and over into her throat.

Jai released her hands to grip her shoulders, and her eyes shone up at him as she used her freedom to fondle his balls while she sucked. The combination of sensations snapped his control. The pulsing in his sac traveled swiftly, and his cum shot out in thick, long streams. He opened his eyes in time to see Mieli pull back slightly, her lips and chin covered in the creamy fluid. Her hands were busy, though, pulling and stroking his member while he continued to jettison his seed across her chest. At last the spasms eased, and Jai let himself come to rest beside Mieli on the blanket.

He was stunned and more grateful than he'd ever been in his life. There were no words, in her language or his, that could possibly articulate how he felt at this moment. Mieli had been his fantasy come to life, her hands on herself and his body in the tender ways he had so craved. Jai was certain there was nothing he wanted more in this life than to never let her go.

AFTER SHE CLEANED up, Mieli came back to the blanket and lay down next to Jai. He was still relaxed, but his eyes were open, and he watched her avidly.

She was feeling pretty optimistic, mainly because he'd been so willing to let her pleasure him. It told her that he wasn't averse to letting her take control, at least part of the time. A seep of slick warmth on her upper thighs reminded her that there was more she wanted from him tonight. Lust for Jai was sharp and hot in her blood, and she physically ached to get all that hard thickness into her body again.

Whatever hesitation still lurked in the recesses of her mind, she was not willing to sabotage her opportunity with Jai over it. Kyre was dead; she was going to leave him and the pain he'd caused her in that clearing where it belonged. She was ready to move on.

Determined to rouse Jai's interest, she boldly met his gaze and reached out to push at the edges of the uniform he still wore. Without any hesitation, he peeled it off and laid it aside. Between his legs she could see that he was thickening and lengthening. Curious about his body and drunk on carnal fantasies, Mieli urged him onto his back and settled next to him. She sat up on her heels and ran her fingertips over the broad expanse of his shoulders and chest.

She traced the lines of definition in his muscles and marveled at the complexity and strength implied there. His tiny, flat nipples received teasing flicks and a quick lap from her tongue. When she reached his abdomen, the rigid evidence of his renewed desire rose in a straight line to his navel.

More than ready, Mieli eagerly straddled his waist. The memory of the night before had lost its unhappy edge, and she only remembered now how exquisitely full she'd felt on his cock. Impatient, she struggled to align their bodies as she tried in vain to rise onto him.

Then Jai's hands settled on her hips and lifted her effortlessly over the thick head of his erection. There was a small smile on his face, and she could feel her own mouth open a little on a sharp breath. Against her opening, the bulbous crown pressed insistently. She was so wet and slippery that the only resistance was the tightness of her cunt, and it gave way quickly under the firm pressure.

Once she'd sunk down onto that hard knob, Jai released her hips, and Mieli knelt with her hands on his muscled waist. The first few inches inside her felt like heaven, tight and unbelievably thick. Below the head, the shaft narrowed a little toward the base but looked too long to fit fully.

Mieli, suddenly determined to get as much as she could, relaxed her thighs and took another couple of inches. Beneath her, Jai made noises of encouragement, so she took a little more, only to shudder in delight at the feel of him inside her. Unable to deny her body, she started a slow rhythm to rock him deeper and deeper.

Gradually her speed increased until she was riding him vigorously. Every downward stroke brought her almost flush against him, but she couldn't take his entire length. Jai's hands were on her hips now, and when her orgasm hit, he rolled her onto her back and started to thrust furiously.

Her head swam with satisfied delight, senses slow to return after the intensity of her release. Mieli gradually recovered just in time to wrap her legs around Jai's waist and feel the pulse of his cum deep in her satiated body.

WHEN THE FOG of sexual gratification had cleared from Jai's mind, he roused enough to add fuel to the fire he'd started earlier. Back on the blanket with Mieli, he surveyed her nude form with nothing less than deep contentment. The curly gold mass of her hair obscured part of her face, but he could see her eyes were closed. A small curve to her soft, sensual mouth gave the impression that she was pleased about something. He was pleased as well.

There were no words to describe what he was feeling and how much he had enjoyed what had transpired between them. After today and what they had done together, he would never be able to return to a life as a soldier. That life of deprivation and sacrifice was transparent to him now, and no reward that path would lead to could equal what he had found in his little healer. No other woman would be able to rouse his passion as Mieli could. For the first time in his adult life, he felt a stirring of warmth, and a desire to make another person happy.

And he would make her happy.

Clearly, she needed someone to protect her from what the War Tribe had in store for the people on this planet. Left here, she would either become a laborer or, with her looks and bearing, a Native. Conquered races who were not worthy of being admitted to the War Tribe essentially became slaves under the command of the emissary given rule of this planet. They would work under Tribe officials to do everything from building roads to harvesting crops. It was not a dire fate necessarily, since laborers were treated fairly enough. But they were basically slaves, and one as beautiful as Mieli would suffer sexually, whether from his people, or her own.

Of course, if she were recognized for her beauty and manner, she could be a recruited. Some select individuals would be selected to serve in other positions, namely to manage and supervise the laborers. Known as Natives, they were taught Tribe Standard and filled many skilled positions across the planet. A few even earned the right to become citizens, usually through a fortuitous relationship with a civilian. Marrying in, so to speak.

That was a rosy outlook, though. It was far more likely that in the arduous and tumultuous process of colonizing this planet, Mieli would be like all the others. Lost in the mass of humanity, she would be traumatized and victimized a hundred times over.

Jai would not let that happen to her, no matter the cost. By all rights he should have died in these woods, and Mieli had saved him from that. Whatever had motivated her care and kindness, it was a real debt he must acknowledge. He looked down at her pale form, gripped by a sensation he couldn't name. His heart burned with need to protect her, and his body yearned to possess her. Mieli. His woman.

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Jai set a grueling pace across the forest floor. How he knew where he was going, she didn't know, but it was obvious he had a destination in mind. Clearly, he was making allowances for her much shorter legs, though she was still hard-pressed to keep up. Rather than let her stop at midday, he would simply pick her up when she couldn't go on.

As galling as it was to be carried like a child, the rest from their tireless march was more than welcome. Their first day was doubly difficult because Mieli was still uncomfortably sore from the night before. At the end of the day, although he had carried her for the last two hours, her body had throbbed and tingled with aches and pains. She gave a brief thought to how easily he could heal her and then realized that might well be a limited resource.

Not that she could ask, even if she wanted to. The language barrier was formidable indeed. The small pieces of her language he used seemed limited to what he had heard her say, the names for food, and the items in her pack.

Fear and exhaustion made her fall asleep before he'd even set up camp, and she only came to when he held her and made her eat. After that, there was just oblivion until he shook her awake in the morning.

They repeated that routine for five days, with each day's end seeing Mieli just one step closer to a complete breakdown. Dimly she was aware of her degrading physical condition, but she was afraid to protest their pace. Jai had not become impatient or short with her even though she was slowing him down. It was not a situation she wanted to worsen by becoming difficult.

Mieli was on the brink of collapse, but her sense of self-preservation would not let her jeopardize their budding relationship by giving up now. She was sure that the great effort Jai had put into keeping them together was not a whim. Whether he was repaying her rescue of him or prolonging their time together for a more base purpose, it was what she wanted desperately. It was so clear that he had a goal, that they were going
somewhere!
In all of her fervent hopes, this was the desired outcome; that her wild gamble would take her out of the miserable forest and into a new life. She was almost there.

On the morning of the sixth day, Mieli woke to bright sunlight. At first she simply lay curled in her blanket. It felt like heaven to be warm, her limbs weighted by slumber and lingering aches. After some time had passed she gingerly rose to a sitting position. There was little sign that they'd camped the night before. Jai had stored their meager gear, and it was resting not two feet away.