Battling Rapture (20 page)

“I wish we’d had it when we came to retrieve you. It would
have taken out those Gesturian fighters.”

He walked forward and ran a hand along the side of his
battleship.

“Why didn’t you have it?”

“I haven’t finished building it yet. My cousins help when
they have time. It shouldn’t be much longer now. The final parts came in while
I was away.”

He turned to watch her. She walked to the rear of the vessel
and back.

“It’s as big as a cruise ship. How will you get it out of
here?”

He went to the control panel, and punched in the code. He
watched her. When the two halves of the ceiling slid back slowly, she looked
up, and laughed. She spun around and he couldn’t keep his eyes from her.
Happiness showed on her face and the carefree way she moved her body made a
beautiful woman spectacular.

“Did you build the hangar too?”

“I put in the roof.”

She turned back to him and he recognized the look in her
eyes.

“Intelligence and talent are sexy as hell,” she said.

“Is that so?”

“Oh yeah. Come here, and I’ll prove it.”

She backed up until she was pressed against the smooth side
of the ship. He watched as she painstakingly pulled off each of her garments.
He reached for his jacket.

“No, leave all your clothes on. Just loosen your pants
enough to bring your cock out. I want you to fuck me up against the side of
your battleship with all your clothes on, like you couldn’t wait to have me.”

She smiled wickedly at him as she pulled her hair loose from
its braid. The woman he loved, naked against his battleship, telling him to
fuck her. It had to be one of the best moments of his life.

He moved forward until he crowded her. He kissed her as one
of his hands loosened the fastening of his pants and the other hand cupped her
cunt and explored. She was hot, wet and ready for him.

“No foreplay?” he asked.

“You already fucked my mind, baby, by building this
battleship. Give it to me.” She had her hand wrapped around his cock.

She let go and grabbed his shoulders as he lifted her. She
shivered and kissed him deeply. Her legs came up around his waist, and he
positioned himself to enter her pussy. He’d just had her that morning. He never
went a day without making love to her at least twice, but he was just as
excited as if he were touching her for the first time.

He eased into her slowly. She was tight, wet and perfect.
She moaned into his mouth. He concentrated on not embarrassing himself before
he could bring her to release.

Chapter Eleven

Niki felt every inch of him entering her pussy. His body was
hot even through his clothes. He scorched her even as the coolness of the metal
at her back caused her to shiver. She pulled him closer and the crispness of
his cotton-like shirt teased her sensitive nipples.

She propped her feet against his ass to give herself the leverage
to move. She met each of his thrusts forcefully. She pulled away from their
kiss and leaned her head back against the smooth surface of the battleship. She
sucked in gulps of air. Her heart raced and she knew her first orgasm was
approaching.

His hands were clutching her ass. He turned one cheek loose
and smoothed it up her slick skin until he was tugging her nipples. It felt
damn good. Everything about him felt right, his breath against her face, his
hands against her breast and ass and definitely the way he stroked her pussy.

“You can do it, love. Come for me,” he said.

She exploded. Her climax went on forever. He continued to
thrust faster and she couldn’t catch her breath. The hand at her breast moved
and he hooked her leg over his arm, lifting it, and began plunging into her at
a new angle. The new sensations were exquisite combined with the aftershocks
from her climax and she came again.

“I’m coming,” he whispered against her neck.

She kissed his ear as he jerked and spilled his seed deep
within her. She stroked every part of him she could reach as his breathing
calmed. He kissed her neck and her body shook.

One day she was going to have his gigantic, smart babies.

And that was how she knew she wouldn’t let anything rip him
from her. She’d never looked at any man before and pictured having anything to
do with his offspring.

Her entire world shifted, completing the change which had
begun when she realized she loved Rhine. He was hers. She was his. If she had
her way, they would be together forever.

He held her close for a while longer before pulling from her
body with a sharp inhalation. Slowly he lowered her legs back to the hangar
floor. His hands came up to rest on the ship at either side of her head. He
kissed her forehead, her temples, her cheeks, her nose and finally her lips.
Then he pulled away and helped her back into her clothes.

“I suppose everyone is going to know what we did out here,”
she said.

“If we don’t meet anyone before we get to our bedroom, we
can shower and change and no one will be the wiser.”

She loved the way he said everything was theirs as if she
had anything to do with what he already had before she came. She watched him
close the ceiling on his hangar before opening the door. He grabbed her hand
and they raced back toward the mansion. She couldn’t call a home that big a
house. He paused at the rear door and they flattened against the wall while he
listened for movement. They entered the mansion and sneaked up the stairs. She
was giggling by the time they closed the bedroom door.

* * * * *

Niki’s breath caught in her throat and she gripped the
sheets under her hands. She pressed her forehead to the bed and arched her
back. Rhine slammed into her with each thrust, the action punctuated by the
sound of his pelvis slapping against her ass. She didn’t know what had gotten
into him, she just hoped she survived it.

Pleasure and pain mixed deliciously. She was building to her
fifth orgasm and they’d each seemed forced from her body and unnaturally
intense. Tears mingled with the sweat pouring over her face. She’d passed
moaning and was actually screaming. He never let up and didn’t seem as if he
would stop any time soon.

She loved it, but she was afraid she was going to have to
tap out soon. She was tiring and the man apparently meant business. Yeah, there
might have been some loving even the super-supreme bitch of the galaxy couldn’t
handle, no matter how much she wanted to continue.

He pulled from her abruptly and she groaned as her achy, but
apparently stupid pussy protested and tried to clutch around air. He rolled her
to her side, lifted her leg and filled her completely in one long stroke. She
whimpered. He pushed her leg closer to her chest and held it there. She twisted
her torso so she could peer up at him. Sweat darkened his hair and coated his
chest. He reached a hand up and laid it at her neck.

She stared into his eyes and he gazed back. His eyes bore
into her and she couldn’t look away. There wasn’t a damn thing sweet about the
way he was fucking her and she wasn’t sure what was happening. His palm against
her throat was heavy, but not painful.

“This is my pussy,” he whispered.

Electricity raced up her spine and the pussy in question
tried to clamp down on his cock, creating friction which dragged a hoarse grown
from her lips. She tried to speak. She didn’t know whether she wanted to deny
him or affirm his statement, but she couldn’t. His thrusts stole the air needed
for her to form coherent words.

“When we’re done here, you’ll know exactly who you belong
to.”

His hand moved from her neck and slid heavily down her
breastbone and across each of her jiggling breasts. His calluses teased her
nipples even though she wasn’t sure that was his intent. She wasn’t sure of
anything at the moment. He’d been aggressive before, but there was definitely a
message he was trying to send her.

His hand traveled down her sweat-soaked belly and he rubbed
her mound before beginning to rub and finger her clit. It felt as if each
muscle in her body stiffened in anticipation of her next release.

“You won’t try to hide yourself from me.”

His words sounded important, but she didn’t care as her body
leaped into another climax. For a moment she heard nothing. The only things
real were his eyes. She’d never stopped staring in them. He wanted something
from her, and as his face blurred behind the tears she was unable to keep from
her eyes, she gave in.

He could have whatever he wanted. He just needed to tell
her.

“What…is…it?”

Hell, had she managed to get the words out? He smiled and
pulled from her quickly.

“No,” she gasped.

Was she crazy? He pushed her tired body onto her back and
her legs up and out. Rhine intertwined his fingers with hers over her head and
slipped back into her body. He long-stroked her now and she held on to his
hands as every press of his groin rubbed her sensitive clit. He kissed the
corners of her eyes, licking the tears away. His torso was pressed against her,
heavy even as he held the bulk of his weight away with his forearms.

She was dying for him to come inside her. She wanted to see
the fierce look on his face as he found completion. She wanted to feel him
stiffen over her and hear his shout as his warm seed bathed her insides.

And then he was coming and she watched in tired wonder as he
stiffened and jerked over her. He shouted her name and she listened for the
slight emphasis he always put on the last syllable.

They lay there for long moments. He remained within her. His
breath tickled her neck as it evened out. Their hands were still joined on the
bed above her head.

“What just happened?” she whispered.

He pulled his hands from hers and cupped her face. They
stared at each other.

“It has been weeks and you still hide something from me.”

“I’m not hiding anything,” she said carefully.

“What worries you, Niki?”

She was a coward. That was her problem. She didn’t have the
stones to ask him how he felt about her and how he felt about her sister. She
was scared to know, and if she asked about his feelings, she might have to
share her own. Not good.

“This is what I mean. What is going through your head?”

“Can I sit up?”

She definitely wasn’t having this conversation lying flat on
her back with his dick in her. She wanted to have as rational a discussion as
possible and she couldn’t achieve that under these conditions. He slowly slid
from her pussy and she closed her eyes. Her flesh was a little sore and she
marveled that the little bit of pain was also pleasurable.

She carefully rolled onto her hands and knees and eased
herself from the bed. She headed for the bathroom. She wasn’t asking him if he
was in love with another woman with his cum dripping from between her legs. She
would wash, put on clothes and then have the awful conversation.

“Where are you going?” He grabbed her arm.

“I’m going to wash and put on clothes.”

“Why do you need to wash my seed from your body to tell me
of your worry?”

His brows drew together over confused eyes. Boy, he was
going to derail her attempts to get the truth out if he kept stopping her.

“It’s the same as the bathroom door thing. It will make this
easier.” She hoped.

Mouth tight, he nodded. He let her go and she felt
reluctance in the way his fingers lingered against her skin. She walked into
the bathroom and braced her palms against the sink. She leaned her head forward
and tried to breathe.

She had to talk to him. She needed to face the issue
head-on. She didn’t want to. She hated that being second best to her sister, an
issue which had marred her entire life, touched her relationship with Rhine.
She shouldn’t have to deal with it with the man she loved. Tears gathered in
her eyes and pressure tightened her throat. But more than sadness filled her.
Rage and bitterness coursed through her, making her limbs tingle with the
desire to act. Yet circumstances would force her to leave the bathroom and
begin an extremely painful conversation.

There was no way she would get the smell of him off her
without a shower and she knew she didn’t have time for one. He wasn’t going to
let her hang out in the bathroom for long. Just the thought of him
matter-of-factly confirming she wasn’t what he wanted while she wore his scent
in her pores as if it was a perfume was too much. She swept everything off the
sink and onto the floor. Glass and plastic containers clattered and shattered
to the floor. She spun around, picked up anything she could find and flung
everything against the shower stall wall.

She heard the door slide open behind her. She didn’t turn.
Anger was better than shame. Unfortunately, there wasn’t anything left to hurl
and she was too tired to fight him.

“I’ll be out in a minute.” She said the words calmly, as
though she hadn’t just destroyed his bathroom.

“You’ll cut your feet in here.” He replied just as calmly.

“I’m not finished.”

“There isn’t anything left to destroy.”

She was left.

“Come out, Niki, and use the bathroom next door.”

She turned, avoided eye contact and stepped around him to
leave the room. He followed and she headed for the door.

“Here.” He placed a plush robe around her shoulders.

“Thanks.”

She pushed her arms in and tied the belt before leaving the
room. She went to the bedroom on the right. She entered the bathroom and washed
her face and the evidence of their lovemaking from between her legs. She should
have been gentle with the flesh there, but she wasn’t.

She’d expected him to be right outside the door when she
exited the bathroom. The room was empty. She wanted to fight her way out of the
situation. Battling through problems or leaving and ignoring them were how she
normally dealt with the churning in her gut. Fighting wouldn’t work here. Her
love for him wouldn’t let her leave. Not without knowing the truth. Was she
screwed again? Yeah, she knocked over a few things on her way back to their
bedroom. She’d pick them up later.

He sprawled on the sofa, arms across the back and legs
spread wide. His chest was bare. He wore pants, but no shoes. She walked over
to the armchair across from him and squeezed the back under her hands.

“Do you feel better?” he asked.

“No.”

He leaned forward with his elbows braced on his thighs.
“Before you say anything, I want to reassure you that you are the most
important person in my life. Nothing you could say to me will change my mind.”

Her already thudding heart raced. She licked her lips.

“What about Camryn?”

His face contorted, showing his confusion. “What about her?”

The tears at the corners of her eyes were unacceptable. She
dug her nails into the chair’s upholstery until she heard a satisfying rip.

“When I first met you, I was under the impression you had
feelings for my sister.” She’d said it. Her stomach was queasy.

His eyes pleaded with her. “If I explain, will you listen
completely before making any judgments or decisions?”

She might as well. It wasn’t as if the problem was going
away. “I’ll do my best.”

“Sit down, please.”

She preferred to stand, but sat anyway. She perched on the
end of the chair.

“When your sister dropped into our lives, I’d never been
around a woman like her before. She was strong without being harsh, gentle
without being meek. Up until then, all I’d known was my mother, who couldn’t
defend herself or me from my father. Lady Helsa ignored me or referred to me as
the exile when my uncle wasn’t around. Any woman I met wanted the prestige of
sleeping with the second or carried the hope I would marry her, cementing her
place in the tribe or elevating her to an edela. Even Bronwyn was not as you
see her now. Before your sister came, she was Lady Helsa’s clone.”

He ran his hands harshly through his hair before they fell
back between his knees. She was beginning to get a picture of what had happened
when her sister burst on the scene. She had questions, but remained quiet. She
could tell that saying these things was hard for him. It sounded as if he’d
never felt any woman had ever loved him.

She sat back in her seat. He’d been abused as a boy and then
denied a tender word or sincere touch from the women around him. It was amazing
he wasn’t cruel.

“I had carried out my duty to women before. Uncle Ivan made
sure we understood responsibility to those weaker than we were. He said it was
easy to abuse the weak. He said a man would be shaped by how he treated those
in his care. I’d seen and felt what my father had done and I’d watched my
uncle. I knew who I wanted to be as a man. I had it all figured out. Then your
sister demanded I respect her by being different than the mold of women I knew.
I loved her, but I knew it was different than the way Venn loved her or the way
she loved him.”