Saving Sara: Warriors Of Kelon Book 5 (5 page)

He ran his hand down her arm.
The softness of her skin enthralled him. He placed a hand on her waist and
pulled her back into his embrace, keeping her in the circle of his arms. Not
too tall or too short, the fit of her against him—perfect.

She stiffened and inhaled
sharply, but when it was clear he intended to do nothing but hold her, she let
out a slow breath and he felt her body start to relax.

“Why?”

Her voice so soft, he almost
missed her question.

“Because
you need me.”

She did not reply, her body
slowly relaxing. Her breathing evened out and he knew she had fallen asleep.

Solron
placed a soft kiss on the top of her head. Why did
holding her like this feel so right? Possessiveness raged through him like the
Fires of
Elron
. He wanted more than to simply hold
her. Every primal instinct was screaming for him to claim her, make her his.
The next few weeks would be agony, having her in his arms and knowing it was
not possible to claim her.

Chapter 4

Day after day,
Solron
didn’t allow Sara to wallow in self-pity or sink
into a depression. There was no day or night on a starship, only cycles. Still,
he made her get up every daytime cycle and shower. She refused to go to the
mess room with so many other large overwhelming
Kelon
men.

He dressed her in a long
black shirt, which she wore more like a dress. It dropped to below her knees,
even belted with a sandy-colored strip of material. On top of that he made her
wear a shortened beige cloak.

He never forced her, but
strongly encouraged her to walk with him to his healer’s bay, where her meals
were delivered. He’d sit and watch her eat every last crumb and drink his
nutri
drinks, before checking her weight and health
with his funny little scanners.

The smile and praise from his
lips warmed her from the inside out. She found herself wanting to please him.

Every time he touched her, or
looked at her, heat curled through her belly. Try as she might, she couldn’t
bring her mind or body under control. She desired him, yes, and wanted to touch
him. Thoughts of kissing his full sensual lips began to replace the nightmares
of her captivity.

Solron
was her healer. Having forbidden carnal thoughts of
him doing more than simply playing doctor left her wracked with guilt. If only
he wasn’t so sexy. But mixed with his good looks was a kind and compassionate
nature which shone through. It was a lethal mix on her senses.

She wasn’t sure, but there
were times when she caught him looking at her and his expression darkened with
desire. It gave her a small thrill at the prospect that he, just maybe, might
like her beyond a simple doctor-and-patient relationship.

No, it was foolish to think
in those terms. She wanted to go home, see her parents, family, and resume a normal
human life.

Only time would tell if it
was possible.

* * * *

“Oh please, I can’t eat any
more. Look how fat you’ve already made me.”

Beauty radiated out her every
pore. The more he made her eat, the more weight she gained. It filled out her
body, showing more and more dangerous curves, which had more than a few
warriors
taking
notice every time she walked through
the corridors or sat in the meal room.

Three weeks into his
specially designed diet of highly rich foods and
Nutri
packs three times a day, gave
her skin a healthy glow. Her eyes were brighter and she no longer cowered in
fear when around the other warriors.

She was attracting more
attention than
Solron
liked. Every time a warrior
complimented her, he watched her cheeks flood with a crimson, pinkish color. He
struggled to stamp down the anger which made him
want
to attack and rip out each warrior’s throat.

Protect what is mine. Damn
the fire demons, why can I not stop thinking like this?

Try as he might, he was
unable to rein in his thoughts and emotions. The desire to claim and posses
her
grew stronger. Damn the consequences.

“You are beautiful.”
Simple fact.
“In no way fat, you are still underweight in my
estimation.” He hid his smile at her indignant glare.

“I am not.”

He cocked his head to the
side, pinning her with an authoritative gaze. “Who is the healer here?”

Her eyelashes fluttered down,
long and thick and curled up slightly at the ends. She returned her attention
to her food. Her long, elegant fingers picked up the spoon, scooping up the
yellow
Polon
pudding. He watched, unable to
tear his gaze away as she slid the spoon between her pink lips. It was a highly
erotic sight to behold when she slid her tongue out and ran it over her bottom
lip. His cock, already hard, throbbed painfully with her little moans of
pleasure.

How he wanted to be the one
to make her moan like that, have his tongue replace the spoon, and taste her
sweetness. How desperately he wanted to show her that the world was not dark
and filled with pain, but soft, tender passion.

The fact she had been
tortured and tormented helped him keep a tight rein on his desire. He never
wanted to see fear or pain in her eyes again. But now, he was the one in
constant pain and torment with his body needing hers.

Soon, it would end, or would it?
Would the commander demand she be passed onto another
to care for until they arrived on Earth? Back where she belonged.

He would go on with his
duties and do what was required of him.

“
Solron
?
I’ve
lost you.”

Sara’s soft voice penetrated
his thoughts. He refocused on her face, noticing her stare at him, as if trying
to figure him out.

You do not want to know
what I am thinking, star shine.
Or
did she?

“Forgive me, much is on my
mind.”
Like you.

“How long
until you’ve searched all the abandoned stations?”
Her question hung like a heavy weight around them.

“There are a few more
stations left to search, then we will make the
hyperjump
into Earth space and you will be home.” Just the thought of Sara being gone
from his life filled him with gut-wrenching dread. He would never see her smile
again, never feel the warmth of her body curled into
his,
or her soft, sweet breath against his chest and never inhale her scent of
sweet, feminine musk.

She would be gone and with
her, the painful ache and his constant state of hardness. Even the frequent
shower visits and sparring with the warriors could not bring it under control.

He was sure disappointment
flickered through her gaze before she dropped her eyes to her pudding, hastily
scooping more into her mouth.

She could not be as affected
by him as he was by her. No, he was simply imagining it. She wanted to return
to her home, to her people, where she belonged and he to his people, where he
belonged.

Yes, her leaving is best.

“We will coordinate with your
authorities and the commander will make sure you are safely delivered to your
family.”

She nodded before reaching
for her cup of
Julip
juice. She gulped it down
and again her pink tongue darted out, licking up the moisture left behind on
her lips.

Under the bench, he gripped
the table. He forced his breathing to remain calm, slow and steady with normal
breaths.

“Have you had enough?”

She gently set down the spoon
and pushed away her plate. He was satisfied that she ate the bulk of the sweet
treat.

“Thank you.” She shifted
nervously in her seat.

He knew she wanted to ask him
a personal question. Being so close to her over the past weeks, he learned many
of her expressions and movements. “Ask anything you wish, Sara. You should have
learned that much about me by now.”

A small smile lit her face,
highlighting the little dimples in her cheeks.

“I know. You’ve been so
wonderful to me and I hate to ask anything of you.” A pink shade crept into her
face.

“If it is within my power to
give you, it is yours.”

“I was just hoping, well, if
you could stay with me, until I reach home. I trust you more than any
other,
and I…”

There was something else, he
sensed it,
something
she was not saying.

“I’m not frightened with you.
I’m sure I’ll be okay once I’m home with my family again.”

More time with Sara. He would
not have to hand her over once they arrived on
Kelon
.
Hope flooded through him, but died an even quicker death. He could not keep her
knowing he would be unable to touch her. This was simply an arrangement for her
mental and physical health. The same could not be said for his.

“I will see you safely home
to your people.”

“I’m sorry to be such a—”

“Sara.” They had been through
this many times in the past few weeks.
Solron
finally
settled her self-loathing issues. If anyone was unworthy and deserved death, it
was the
Xersons
for abusing her mentally and
physically.

“Remember what you are.”

“I am not a burden.”

“And?”

“I am beautiful, smart and of
great worth.”

“Do you believe it?”

“I—”

He growled softly. “Am I a
liar?”

She shook her head, her dark
mane of blond hair tumbling around her shoulders.
“No,
never.”

“Good, let us keep it that
way.”

Her smile radiated as she
gazed at him. “Thank you.”

“You are always welcome, star
shine.”

* * * *

Sara stared at the tanned
ceiling of their quarters—or rather
Solron’s
.
Datapads
and other little instruments sat on the table at
the far end of the room. Sitting among them were the comb he gave her for her
hair and the small ties for when she plaited it back. Draped over the chair was
the cloak to wrap around her body whenever they left his quarters.

He was out for a short while
at least, doing his duty, searching another abandoned war base, the seventeenth
one so far. More in control of her fear now than a few weeks ago, she could
stand being alone for short periods of time. Sometimes she would sit with
Borlon
in the mess hall and play chess with her guard.

Solron
gave her so
much,
she needed
to give him something in return. She wanted to show appreciation for
everything, but didn’t know how.

Not only had he healed her on
the outside, but through his tender care, he was slowly healing her inner
wounds as well. She would never forget the agony of what she endured, but with
him, she felt she could face anything, do anything.

Lying curled in his arms, soothed
by the strong rhythm of his heart, she began to think she never wanted it to be
any other way. He kept away the darkness. Whenever she had a bad dream, he was
there to soothe her, kiss the top of her head, run his large hands over her
back and murmur words of comfort. As the days went on, it became clearer by his
state of arousal around her, that he was not as unaffected as she first
believed.

Her desire for him grew each
time he tenderly touched her. Her belly quivered when he pulled her into his arms
during the sleep cycle, holding her close. She would stare at his full,
masculine lips, wondering what they would feel like pressed against hers,
kissing her.

He was a big man compared to
human men, but not as tall or as broad as his warrior counterparts wandering
around the ship. She liked that. She was not exactly tall either.

The more she studied him, the
more she liked. His features youthful, his brow broad with the layer of what
looked like bone armor plating. It blended in with the sharp angle of his jaw
line and high cheekbones. His nose was like the other
Kelons
,
large and
hawklike
, but not overly so. He was
ruggedly handsome with a touch of boyishness about him.

Behind his midnight eyes,
shone the bright intelligence of his profession and a man who cared about
others.

It struck her then she had
only one thing to give—herself. The idea lodged into her brain and refused to
move. A flood of juices rushed between her thighs at the thought of
Solron
touching her intimately.

Clearly, from the signs of his
body, he wanted her, so why then hadn’t he made a move or touched her? Did she
not measure up?