Cursed: Brides of the Kindred 13 (16 page)

“Oh, don’t worry about that, doll,” Kat said easily. “Apparently clothes are included.”

“What kind of clothes, though?” Charlie couldn’t help thinking of the one vice sting she’d been involved in when she was still a new officer with the Asheville PD. She’d had to go undercover as a prostitute wearing skin-tight, lime-green hot pants and a neon-pink halter top. Her too-large ass and more than ample hips had been on display in the ridiculous outfit, not to mention a lot more cleavage than she normally liked to show. She had done it because the job required it but since she was used to keeping her assets mostly covered, it had been extremely uncomfortable.

Kat frowned. “I believe you’re going to be wearing ‘the robes of the novice’ at least to start with.”

“Robes of the what?” Charlie asked, frowning.

“The novice—like a religious novice. See, it’s kind of like a monastery and you two are going to be pilgrims seeking spiritual guidance for your failing relationship. So you get to wear very humble and simple clothes—at least to start with.”

Charlie felt a rush of relief. “That doesn’t sound too bad.”

“It’ll be fine, doll,” Kat assured her. “Now come give me a hug for luck and go save the world.”

* * * * *

Charlotte hugged the red-haired Kat, being careful of silver-eyed baby she held. She then embraced all the other females in turn as Stavros waited silently by the door. Kat offered him a cupcake but he declined.

“No thank you, I have no taste for sweets.”

“Suit yourself, honey.” She smiled in a friendly way and pressed Charlotte to take one of the small confections with her. Charlotte, however had declined also.

“Thanks but if I eat another one I’ll never get rid of it. Anything with carbs just goes straight to my hips and butt and stays there, no matter how many spin classes I take.”

“Well I think Lock said there are
some
exercise classes offered at J’lorgon’s Mind,” Kat said thoughtfully. “But I doubt you’ll find a spin class. I guess you’d better pass on the cupcake.”

Charlotte laughed, a soft, feminine sound that Stav found immensely appealing.

“You’re right. Or they won’t be able to find a novice robe to fit me once I get there.”

At last she said her final goodbyes and walked out the door with Stavros. He was glad to have her to himself. Though he revered females as all Kindred did, a large gathering of them made him somewhat nervous. Besides, he liked having time alone with Charlotte. But he felt he had to say something to her.

“You didn’t need to turn down that second confection, you know,” he remarked as they strolled along the corridor to the docking bay. “Your full hips and behind are perfect for your body type.”

“Hey,” she snapped, looking irritated. “We said at the start of this we wouldn’t talk about each others’ bodies. So my hips and ass are
off
the table as far as you’re concerned.”

Stavros was a bit taken aback, though he supposed he shouldn’t be. For some reason she seemed to be very sensitive where these particular areas of her body were concerned. He had no idea why—they were deliciously ripe, making him wonder what those full hips and luscious ass would feel like filling his hands. But he knew better to speak
that
particular thought aloud.

“Forgive me,” he said neutrally. “If I overstepped the boundaries between us, I apologize. I just wanted to give you a male’s perspective and let you know I am certain you will look lovely in whatever clothing you are required to wear.”

Charlie shot him another irritated glance. “How I look shouldn’t be your concern—I’m your partner in this mission and that’s
all
. I’ll expect you to treat me the same way you would another man.”

Stavros nodded. Of course I will give you the respect I would any colleague, male
or
female.”

“Thank you. That’s all I ask.” Charlie crossed her arms over her chest.

“But…” Stavros raised one finger. “Please remember that we are going to be posing as a couple. So I will have to treat you as such.”

“An
estranged
couple,” she emphasized. “A couple on the brink of divorce—that’s how we’re going to play this.”

“Divorce?” Stav frowned. “Is that where a human male and female agree to dissolve their partnership and leave each other forever?”

“Exactly.” She nodded decisively. “Why—don’t Kindred have divorce?”

“We do not,” Stav said. “Once a male forms a soul-bond with a female, they are together forever. It is a lifelong commitment.”

“Ugh…” Charlotte shivered as though he had said something repugnant.

“What?” He looked at her curiously. “Such an idea bothers you?”

“Frankly, yes. I’ve seen too many unhappy marriages to believe in happily ever after, thank you very much. Some of the domestic calls we used to go out on when I was in uniform—people shouting and screaming and waking the neighbors, beating each other up over the littlest things. Once we had to go out when some lady had whacked her DH over the head with a cast iron skillet because he ate the last Slim Jim.” She shook her head. “Just a mess.”

Stav looked at her, fascinated.

“She hit who over the head with what because he ate
what?”

“Her dear hubby—DH for short.”

“Oh, her mate.”

“Yup.” She nodded. “And a skillet is a cooking utensil like a frying pan. A Slim Jim is a junk food type meat snack. They’re not very good but some people love them. This lady did, anyway.” She frowned up at him. “Hey, weren’t you stationed on Earth? Why don’t you know some of this stuff?”

Stav shrugged. “We were instructed to stay mostly in the HKR building. Kindred almost never mingle with a native species—we only go out to claim our brides.” He sighed. “Maybe if we had gone out to mingle your people would know us better and there wouldn’t be so many misconceptions about the Kindred and what we do.”

“What you
do
is make girls come up to the Mother Ship and do all kinds of sexual things whether they want to go or not,” she retorted, putting a hand on her ample hip.

“Have you thought about the fact that
we
might be required to do something of a sexual nature while we are pretending to be a couple in need of help at J’lorgon’s Mind?” he countered.

He had the pleasure of seeing her cheeks turn rosy pink but she shook her head firmly.

“I told you, we’re playing a couple on the brink of divorce. That means no canoodling.”

“No
what?”
Stav shook his head.

“No fooling around. This may be an undercover operation but there
are
limits. I mean, I had to dress up as a prostitute once for a vice sting but—”

“You dressed up as a female who sells her body for credits?” Stav raised an eyebrow at her, his imagination going into overdrive. “What exactly did you wear?”

Her cheeks got pink again.

“Never you mind. The point is just because I looked the part doesn’t mean I acted it. In fact, I think we need to set some boundaries right here and now.”

“All right.” Stavros was beginning to be a bit irritated but he held on to his temper. “You’ve already kissed me, sat in my lap and put your hand down my trousers—what further boundaries do you wish to set that you are not willing to cross?”

She rounded on him suddenly, hands on her hips, eyes blazing.

“I was under the influence of drugs when I did all that. Well except for putting my hand in your britches but I couldn’t help that because I didn’t want a mess on my granny’s quilt.”

“True.” He nodded. “But you cannot deny that you enjoyed the healing kiss that we shared and you were completely lucid then.”

“I most certainly did
not,”
she protested, a bit too quickly.

Stavros stopped in the hallway just outside the entrance to the vast docking bay.

“I scented your heat, Charlie,” he said softly, searching her eyes with his own. “Kindred have an incredibly sensitive sense of smell. You cannot lie to me about what you were feeling when I healed you.”

“You scented my
what?
Never mind,” she said quickly before he could explain. “Look, whether I enjoyed it when you, uh, healed me is not the point.”

“And what
is
you point?” Stav demanded.

“To save my planet! And I want it understood right here and now that is the
only
reason I volunteered to come with you on this mission. Not because I think you’re cute or because you have an amazing ass—”

“I do?” Stavros looked over his shoulder to examine the area in question. “What’s amazing about it?”

“Look, I’m trying to say I’m here in a
professional
capacity
only,”
she said, clearly exasperated. “So listen up, buddy—here are the limits: no kissing, no touching—at least not
intimate
touching—you know what I’m talking about, and no sex. Oh, and no more biting.” She eyed his fangs warily. “I’m your partner, not your personal pin cushion. Got it?”

“You seem to have a lot of boundaries for someone who wants so badly to save their planet,” Stavros said coldly. Though he tried not to let it, her personal rejection of him hurt. Why did she have to be so angry and mistrustful of him?

“Look, if it comes down to it, I’ll do what I have to do,” she said evenly. “But I really doubt that’s going to be the case. We’re probably just going to be sitting around talking about our feelings all day. That I can handle.”

“
Can
you?” Stav growled. “It might be difficult as it would require you to admit that you
have
feelings in the first place.”

“Hey, just because I don’t want to do that horizontal hokey-pokey with you is no reason to get nasty,” she snapped.

“I refuse to argue with you anymore,” he growled, at the end of his patience. “If you do not wish to be touched then fine, I will not touch you. As for biting, please don’t concern yourself about that. Blood Kindred bite only to heal their mates or during bonding sex—neither of which I intend to do with you. Now come,” He jerked his head in the direction of their ship. “The control room has already folded space for us to the crab nebula. It is a massive waste of energy to keep them waiting.”

Charlotte looked as though she wanted to say something but in the end, she kept her mouth shut and followed him silently through the cavernous, echoing docking bay to the waiting shuttle. They were both fuming silently as they climbed into the cockpit and Stav started it up.

It doesn’t matter,
he told himself as he manipulated the controls and pulled back on the steering yoke.
It’s not as if you could have any kind of lasting relationship with her. You’re Cursed, remember? She’s right—you’re just going to work together, nothing else.

Still, she could be a
little
less abrasive about it. He wondered what had happened to make her so distrustful and wary. The way she’d been staring at Commander Lock—could that have anything to do with it? She’d seemed to know him in some way—but how? Stav cut off the line of thought.
Best put it out of your mind—you’re never going to find out. Just as you’re never going to have anything but a professional relationship with this female.

He cast a glance at Charlotte but she was sitting very straight and still, wrapped in a layer of silence so deep it was deafening. Her eyes were directed away from him and her pink lips had become a thin, white line. The tension in every line and curve of her luscious body told him she was still angry and probably would be for some time.

Stav gave a silent sigh. As the shuttle lifted up and out of the invisible atmosphere bubble that protected the Mother Ship and into the blackness of space, he reflected that this looked to be a long and irritating mission.

Chapter Twelve

The demon inside Two buzzed like an angry insect trapped in a bottle.

“
Why do you not shoot them down? Look—they are entering the fold! Do not let them escape!”

“Patience my friend.” Two smiled, baring his metal teeth as he watched the small shuttle fly free of the Kindred Mother Ship and slip into the vast red gash which had opened in space.

“
You keep calling for patience but I am tried of waiting,”
Ur snarled angrily from within him.
“I want to see the Kindred of the Mother Ship suffer and burn! But instead of assaulting them or their pet planet, you’re allowing them to fold space and go in whatever direction they want while you just sit here and watch.”

“I’m not just watching my friend—I am waiting to see what they’re doing. And I am not just ‘letting them go’—there is a tracking device in place on that shuttle. The moment it arrives at its destination, we will have a much better idea of what they have planned.”