SnaredbySaber (8 page)

“I…ah…”

“Shush, Eva. Your flesh is swollen and a
deep pink color. You’re so aroused.”

“Um…”

“No talking, kitten. Just feel.”

Saber lay between her legs and blew a
stream of warm air over flesh. Then he lifted her to his mouth and settled in
to feast. Her tart flavor burst over him while her throaty moans urged him to
greater liberties. He ran his tongue around her clit and pushed a finger into
her moist channel. Beneath his skin, his feline twisted, urging him to act.

Saber froze when his canines grew
longer—far more prominent than normal.

Fuck. That had never happened before.

“Is something wrong?”

He lowered his head again and gave her nub
a firm lick in response. Eva’s hands slid into his hair, holding him in place.
The firm tugs grounded him, helped him exert control over his feline and push
him back.

“More,” she gasped. “That feels so good.
Rough yet
so good
.”

His feline stirred again, making his tongue
raspy. Saber slid the tip around and over her clit. Eva gave throaty moans and
yanked his hair to a point just shy of pain. He smiled as he pushed a second
finger inside her and stroked while licking firmly. Her channel squeezed his fingers.
He gave her another firm lick and she cried out.

“Saber!” Her hips twitched and jerked
beneath his touch.

Saber stroked her through her climax and
removed his fingers once her spasms ceased.

He rose up her body and kissed her, slow
and deep. God, he couldn’t get enough of her. Her scent, her taste, the feel of
her hands running over his body. He rolled until she sprawled on top of him.

“Take me inside you,” he ordered, his hands
grasping her hips in silent demand. When she hesitated, he lifted her. He
guided his cock to her cunt and lifted his hips. “Take me inside you!”

She smiled—a siren’s smile as she pushed
down and took his cock inside her body. Saber gripped her hips and groaned at
the warm heat encircling him. “Damn, that feels so good. You’re so tight and
hot.”
Mine. All mine
. “Move. Don’t tease me. Ride me, kitten.”

Saber helped her set a blistering pace,
felt the wet heat around his sensitive tip. He spanned her hips with his hands,
allowing the feel of her to ground him even as he pounded upward over and over
and took his pleasure. He slipped one finger between her legs and rubbed her
clit.

She gasped, and when her sheath tightened
around him, he exploded into his climax. His gaze remained fastened on her as
he came, and he watched her fly apart, pleasure suffusing her cheeks and
tinting even her breasts with delicate color.

She collapsed against his chest and his
arms wrapped around her, holding her in place. His possessive manner wasn’t
lost on him, but she didn’t seem to notice. Her eyes fluttered closed and her
breathing became slow and regular.

“Kitten, have a wash then I’ll find a safe
place for us to sleep while I scout for food.”

She made a noncommittal murmur, and Saber
smiled. He parted their bodies and carried her back into the water. He bathed
her, washing between her legs while part of him wished neither of them had
taken health inoculations to prevent conception. The idea of her swelling with
his child was an attractive one and something he hoped would happen in the
future.

Hell, this time with Eva might not have
been planned, but it felt right on so many levels. Already the idea of parting
from her agitated his feline, and didn’t do much for his mood either.

Eva was his. They belonged together. And
soon, she’d come to understand the truth of it, just as he did.

Experience had Eva scanning her
surroundings to check for signs of danger before she found a comfortable spot
to dry off. She’d washed her shirt and socks and now they were drying in the
bright solar shine.

The blue bird followed, settling beside her
with a sound that hovered between a contented sigh and a honk.

Eva checked the area again before letting
her mind wander.
Flying Finnian bats
, she hated being out of contact
with her assistant. Missed the bustle of her restaurants. Though one thing she
didn’t yearn for was the constant specter of her in-laws, while she waited for
them to make yet another grabby move for her restaurants. If only she hadn’t
been so inexperienced at first. Pryce’s sudden death had left her floundering.
She’d made mistakes, and she was still paying for them.

As soon as they reached the resort, she’d
take a flight to Dalcon, check out the situation, see where her plans were at,
what she needed to do next.

The blue bird got tired of napping and
wandered off to gaze on a patch of grass. Eva watched it before her mind
wandered again to her plan. She’d saved enough to pay the next installment of
the loans taken out to purchase her third restaurant, the one that Pryce had
negotiated for before his death.

Wanting to honor her husband, she’d
attempted to borrow money herself to make the third restaurant a reality.
Pryce’s parents had blocked her attempts to get a loan from a reputable source,
and in her desperation, she’d borrowed from a nontraditional one.

Too late, she discovered she’d borrowed
money from her in-laws.

The moment she defaulted on a payment,
they’d be entitled to step in and take everything she and Pryce had worked so
hard for.

Her hands fisted as her mind dwelled on the
worst-case scenario.

Wasn’t going to happen. Not if she had her
way. She’d die first.

She owed it to Pryce.

A largish bird soared through the valley.
Eva tensed but when Bluebird continued to graze, she relaxed. He, or she,
seemed to know when danger was nearby, so perhaps Eva could sleep a little.

She woke abruptly, every part of her body
tense. Her heart smacked against the wall of her chest, her muscles locked in
terror when the weird crunching sound came again, along with a sharp honk.

Eva turned her head, took in the situation
swiftly—and fury replaced her fear. “A pox on it! A pox on bloody Saber
Mitchell, may his dangle rot and fall off!” She sprang to her feet and advanced
on Bluebird, flapping her hands. “Shoo! Shoo!”

Bluebird squawked and backed away, the
remains of a com-circle in his beak. She made a grab for it, but he crunched
down and it broke into two parts. One dropped to the ground. She swooped on it
and glared at the electronic innards.

He’d had a com-circle the entire time. And
now it was broken.

That was it.

She’d known trusting him was foolish.
Males… She should have learned her lesson by now. If she wanted a job done it
was best to do it herself.

Eva stomped to her shirt and pulled it on.
She sat, scowling, her hands trembling as she pulled on the socks. Eva jumped
to her feet, frowned left and glared right. She glowered up at the sky, doing a
slow three-sixty to check for big-ass birds.

All clear.

Eva chose a direction and set off to rescue
herself. To hell with Saber. She didn’t intend to sit around and wait to
discover his sneaky plan.

* * * * *

Saber arrived back at the waterhole much
later than he’d expected. He’d found several fruit trees and cursed himself for
not bringing his trousers. Difficult to carry stuff in feline form without a
receptacle of some sort.

The solar light had almost faded when he
prowled up to the waterhole, a hastily woven bag tied around his neck.

Eva wasn’t there.

He dumped his bag of fruit and shifted.
“Eva? Eva?”

When she didn’t come out of hiding, concern
gave way to fear. When he’d left her, she’d been lying in the dappled sunshine.
He thought she’d be safe enough since the few trees at the edge of the water
could hide her from predators circling overhead.

He went to grab his trousers and something
sharp dug into the sole of his foot. He bent to pull it out. “Fuck!”

Eva had discovered he was in possession of
a communicator. That put her absence in a different light.

Damn, why did women have to make a
situation so difficult? Things had been going well between them. Maybe she
wouldn’t hold a grudge.

He considered grudges and women for a few
seconds then his mouth twist into a snarl.
Yeah, right
.

He tied his trousers and his boots around
his neck with practiced skill. Seconds later, he was circling the area in
feline form, searching for her scent. He found it soon enough and realized the
blue bird had followed her.

Nose to the ground, he increased his speed
to a lope and followed Eva’s trail.

* * * * *

Once the solar light disappeared, the
temperature dropped. At least it wasn’t raining. Eva trudged through the
darkness, her nerves jumping at each new sound. Bluebird practically hugged her
leg, never more than a beak-length away, which told her that he was scared too.
She needed to find a safe place to spend the night. Not a cave. But maybe at
the base of a tree. Some of the bigger trees were hollowed out. She started
scanning each one she passed, saw a possible and approached with quiet,
cautious steps.

Bluebird honked, and she paused. “One honk
for yes and two honks for no,” she said.

Bluebird obediently honked. Three times.

“What does that mean?”

The bird remained silent.

“An unreliable warning system,” she
muttered. Already she’d learned to expect the unexpected in the cursed jungle.
“Here goes,” she said, and approached the hollow sanctuary with trepidation.
“Why does it have to be so dark?” She peered inside.

Two golden eyes stared back.

Eva froze. “Uh, sorry to disturb you.”
Holding her breath, she backed away. “Please don’t attack. Please don’t. Please
don’t.”

Bluebird let out three low honks.

“Okay, I get it. Three honks means already
occupied.”

Wearily, she trudged along the narrow trail
and searched for another haven. Despite the lower temps, sweat ran down her
forehead, beaded between her breasts. Her heavy feet found every sharp rock on
the path. What felt like hours later, she discovered a tree with exposed roots.
It offered both concealment and shelter from the worst of the wind that tugged
her hair, swirled leaves and ruffled treetops to create creepy noises.

Bluebird ran straight into the shelter, so
she figured it was safe enough. She scooped up some leaf litter to make a sort
of a bed and settled in. Bluebird honked, a sound of contentment, she decided,
and cuddled against her chest.

It was so cold, but at least the wind
wasn’t cutting through her shirt and nipping at her bare flesh any longer. Eva
listened to the rustle of the leaves, the moan of the wind as it wended its way
through the trees. Occasionally a growl or a squawk jerked her to full terror
instead of her current low-level fear.

When she settled everything in Dalcon, she
was going to take a long break. She’d buy herself the biggest, most lethal
weapon money could buy and she’d return to Middlemarch Resort and shoot Saber’s
sexy ass full of holes. And she’d enjoy doing it because this was all his
fault. Every last bit of her precarious position.

* * * * *

She’d walked farther than he’d expected.
Saber lost her trail once but managed to pick it up again. At least she was
still in one piece and moving, but he worried about her alone in the dark.
There were some big predators out here, and they were lucky they hadn’t crossed
paths with many of them. Yet. The last thing he needed was for Eva to face
danger on her own.

Her trail stopped then started again, and
Saber’s opinion of her grew. She was looking for a place to hole up and wait
out the night.

Clever lady.

He’d already known she was smart and
determined, and now he could add resourceful and intelligent.

Saber lost the scent for a while and
circled back looking for it again. Then he saw Eva, and relief swept through
him, making his four legs tremble.

He did a quick shift, wrapped his trousers
in a tight ball and placed his boots within easy reach. She must have been
exhausted because she didn’t wake when he squeezed in beside her and drew her
into his arms.

The bird gave a sleepy honk and settled
back to doze.

Saber listened to the jungle sounds and
relaxed. Eva had chosen well. They were safe enough here for the rest of the
night.

* * * * *

Eva woke feeling warm. Bluebird still
cuddled into her chest, making breathy little sounds. A birdy type of snore.

But the warmth at her back, the hand at her
hip…

She stiffened and struck, raking the hand
with her clawed fingers.

“
Ow!
What did you do that for?”

Eva twisted, disturbing Bluebird and
wriggling free of Saber’s arms. She sprang to her feet, putting distance
between them. “You’re lucky I’m not a titled lady. Their fingernails are filed
to stabby points. You had a com-circle! You had one all the time. You could
have called for help. How much are the Dearbhorgaills paying you?
How much
?”

“No one is paying me anything,” Saber said.

He was smart to look wary. Her hands
bunched into fists as she imagined throttling him. “You bastard,” she spat. “You
knew I wanted to go home. I’ve made that very clear. How far are we from the
resort? Tell me.”

“We’re on the other side of the island,”
Saber said.

“Is anyone coming to get us?”

Saber hesitated.

“
Flying Finnian bats
!” she snarled.

“What’s a Finnian bat?”

“They’re dirty, rotten, cheating scumbags,”
she snapped. “Just like you.”

“Ouch,” he said.

“This isn’t a laughing matter.”

“I don’t believe I was laughing.”

“Ooh! I can’t look at you.” She whirled
away then turned back with a fierce scowl. “At least tell me if I’m going the
right way. Give me that much at least.”

“If you promise not to stab me in the back,
I’ll lead.”

Eva glared and folded her arms over her
chest. “Put your trews on. I’m tired of looking at your dangly thing.”

He smirked. “Not so much of the dangly.”

“I’m going to find a bush. When I come back
you will point me in the direction of the resort. That is all I require from
you.”

Eva stomped to a bush and took care of
business. This was the third day. She had a solar week before things would become
desperate. Her assistant would contact Casey if he couldn’t communicate with
her. She could count on her best friend to look after her interests. While
Casey might not know any details, she knew it was important for Eva to get back
to Dalcon before the start of the next solar month.

“Want some fruit?”

Eva snatched the glossy pink fruit from him
and bit down without a word of thanks. Bluebird honked, and Saber shrugged. He
gave her an insolent wink and stalked off along an overgrown path.

Eva forced her body to move and trudged
after him. She’d thought she was reasonably fit from cooking and working long
hours in the restaurants. Not so. Every part of her body ached and she couldn’t
wait to have a proper meal. This fruit stuff wasn’t very filling.

“How do you know where you’re going?”

“I don’t. We’re heading to the east, which
is toward the resort.”

“Tell me the truth. How many solar days
will it take us to reach the resort?”

Saber slowed and glanced at her over his
shoulder. “Four. Maybe five.”

He wasn’t lying. She read the truth in his
face. Her shoulders drooped momentarily before she gave herself a stern
lecture. She’d spent her childhood in the market. She’d clawed her way into a
successful business. She could handle a few more solar days with Saber Mitchell.

If she didn’t give in to impulse and murder
him first.

If she lost the restaurants because of him…

Eva forced her mind away from her problems,
the bloody ticking timepiece in her brain that was counting down the
nanoseconds to disaster.

She ground her teeth and concentrated on
Bluebird walking in front of her. The bird waggled its tail feathers with each
step—a sort of a cute twitch. Her gaze wandered and settled on Saber’s butt.

She jolted, scowled, looked away. She
didn’t need to see the firm flex of his muscles.

Bluebird released a shrill squawk, and
Saber cursed.

“We need to hide. It’s those damn birds
again.” Saber grasped her upper arm and propelled her toward the shelter of a
large tree. When she tripped, her scooped her into his arms and sprinted the
rest of the way.

“Thanks.” The word was clipped and held not
a shred of real sentiment.

“You’re welcome.”

He was laughing at her. “It’s your fault
I’m in this mess,” she snapped. “If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t be in the
middle of nowhere, half naked and starving with a big-ass bird wanting to snack
on me.”

The humor disappeared from his face as they
reached the tree. “I’m sorry.”

Above them the large bird screeched.
Bluebird honked, a low call of distress, and Eva stooped to pet him. “It’s okay,
fella. We’re not going to let anything happen to you.”

“He’d taste good roasted over a fire.”

“That’s not funny.”

“We need to find food. You can’t afford to
lose any more weight.”

“My weight needn’t concern you,” she said
in a frosty voice. “I think the bird has gone now. Can we get moving?”

Saber checked the skies. “Of course. There
are some fruit trees at the end of the valley.”