Vani cocked an eyebrow. “He didn’t teach you how to satisfy yourself?”
Sheala flicked some water into her friend’s face. “Of course. That was the first thing he taught me. But it’s not enough, not anymore. I want more. I need to feel a man inside of me.”
Vani splashed her again. “Quit complaining. You’re the one who had to be dramatic and announce you were going to remain a virgin.”
Sheala splashed back. “And look at the prestige it’s brought to the clan. It’s been three generations since an Alalakan retained his or her virginity until reaching majority. And I get to wear this cool nose stud.”
Vani stopped splashing. “Cool?”
Sheala slapped a sheet of water towards her friend. “One of Brianna’s Earth words. It means really wonderful or something like that.” Sheala shivered and rubbed her arms.
Water dripped from her pebbled nipples.
“I want a man.”
Vani shook her head. “You can’t have it both ways, Shea. Either you stay a virgin three more weeks or you find a man and satisfy your cravings.” With those words, Vani dove beneath the water, grabbed her friend’s ankles, and pulled her under.
When she let go, Sheala exploded to the surface.
Vani sank to the bottom in the deepest part of the pool.
“Not fair!” Sheala yelled as she slapped the water. “I don’t have gills!”
Vani’s sister Jami exploded through the hedges and skidded to a stop next to the pool. “Shea! Vani!
Come quick. A Gattan warbird has landed on the estate!”
Sheala gaped at Jami then snapped her mouth shut. “A Gattan warbird? Are you sure? Gattans never stay anywhere but at their embassy. Why would they come here?”
“What if they came for Ban?” Vani asked as she surged upward out of the pool. “I heard the Gattan ambassador tell Mother and Father that a girl Ban had been with on Gattan had disappeared, and her family thinks she left Gattan with him.”
Jami grabbed Sheala’s hand and pulled her out of the pool. “I don’t know. Gattans never do anything without a reason, and coming here to your estate is unprecedented. But it must be safe. Char took Brianna with him to greet them, and you know your brother would never put his wife in any danger.”
Shrugging into their robes, Sheala and Vani followed Jami back to the house at a dead run.
* * * * *
Once inside, a cacophony of voices surrounded them. She’d been right. Everybody was there. As a matter of fact, there were so many people in the room, she couldn’t see any strangers.
Her gaze swept the room once, twice…
…and jerked to a halt on an especially tall, golden-haired, half-naked Gattan whose back was turned to her. The noisy conversation faded to a dull murmur as Sheala stared at him.
She swallowed, then swallowed again as her gaze slid up and down his muscular body. His shoulders were broad, his waist was trim. Thick, golden hair, combed behind his tufted, pointed ears, cascaded in thick waves down to the middle of his back. The soft leather pants he wore clung to his behind…
Sheala shivered. Damn but he had a great backside.
She stared closer. Like her, he had a tail, though his didn’t look nearly as supple and had a tuft of golden hair at the end.
It jerked once, twice, then stilled.
Why? Was he annoyed?
The redheaded Gattan woman standing next to him nudged his arm, and he turned around.
Sheala’s stomach tightened then rolled.
He was the most compelling man she’d ever seen.
Though he was clean-shaven, she was sure he would sport a full golden beard if he so chose. His nose was somewhat flatter and wider than she was used to but was by no means unattractive. Thick honey-colored eyebrows rode over piercing golden eyes that moved constantly about the room as if he were searching for—what?
Sheala mentally shrugged. He was probably nervous considering he was surrounded by strangers. She let her gaze drifted down over his strong chin and wide shoulders to his bare chest. Besides the three obviously fresh cuts visible above his right pectoral, numerous other white scars shone against the dark golden-brown skin of his muscular chest. Her stomach rolled again. No Drakian or Medirian had a chest so broad! Only the Aradab were more muscular. She turned her attention to his muscular arms. His upper arms were bare, except for more white scars, but he wore sheaths with red-diamond-tipped daggers on both wrists.
So many scars! How did he get them all? Fighting?
Sheala shivered.
Upon his return from a journey to Gattan, her brother Char had told them about Gattan bloodfeuds, but she’d thought he’d been exaggerating to make his stories more exciting. She stared at the scars. Maybe he’d been telling the truth.
Dragging her gaze away from his arms, she admired the thick belt of the red gold native to his planet.
Embedded in its elaborately carved buckle was a large red diamond.
She shook her head. She’d never seen a man wear so many jewels and precious metals that looked so deadly, but then, the man wearing them was far more interesting.
Her perusal dipped lower. The dark leather pants he wore hugged his body, revealing powerful thighs.
Boots of the same type of soft brown leather reached to his knees. A boot sheath held a dagger with another red diamond on its hilt.
Sheala trailed her gaze back up his calves and thighs, stopped at the bulge between his legs. A shiver danced up her spine.
Wow! I’d love to see him naked.
A picture of him nude and looming over her appeared in her mind. She closed her eyes as she imagined his big, strong hands cupping her breasts.
“What’s going on? I can’t see.”
Vani’s voice wrenched Sheala from her fantasy, and she forced herself back to the present.
“Brianna’s become a bloodsister or something like that to Marljas, the Gattan with his vest off. That’s how he got those fresh cuts on his chest. The others are Marljas’ brother Wendjas, Wendjas’ wife Denieen, and their twin sons. Now, be quiet. I’ll tell you everything later,” Vani’s oldest sister Meri hissed.
Sheala returned her stare to the bare-chested Gattan. Marljas, a strong, interesting name.
And that beautiful Gattan woman was his sister-in-law—not his wife…
Stomach rolling, sweat trickling down his back, Marljas fought the urge to unsheathe his claws. Things had already gotten out of control. He hadn’t even been on Drakan half an hour and already he’d acquired a new—alien—bloodsister. Why had Alalakan don al’ Chardadon’s wife dragged her hand across his claws like that? Had she known the consequences of her actions? She’d seemed shocked when Denieen had explained what she had done. Worse, Denieen had then further compounded the awkwardness of the situation by demanding he complete the blood rite and take this woman as a bloodsister.
What’s more, his sister-by-marriage had then confirmed that Gattan was ruled by the queen rather than the king, that their society was matriarchal. Why? The Varcians especially would view the Gattan as weak because their women had so much power.
And now, the two women, Deni and this Brianna, had decided he had to have an Alalakan clan tattoo.
He was Gattan, not Drakian! The only marks on him should be challenge and battle scars!
What was Deni doing? She was discarding traditions left and right!
Only half listening to the chatter going on around him, Marljas shifted his weight. The cuts he’d clawed on his chest to complete the blood ritual with Brianna burned but the pain was nothing. He’d experienced much worse in duels. Still, he couldn’t relax. His tail bumped against something or someone, and he forced himself to hold it still, except for the tip which continued to twitch. There were too many people here, too many strangers, too many people from other planets. This Brianna was from Earth, a planet no one else in their galaxy had known existed, and at least half a dozen Medirians were spaced around the room. He glanced at a dark green, muscular man standing with his arms crossed. A Medirian Aradab.
Everyone knew the Aradab race of Medirians were all assassins. Why had he ever agreed to bring his brother’s family here? He flexed his claws. He’d fight to the death to protect them if he had to.
He flared his nostrils at a burst of female laughter. Denieen was certainly making herself at home, chatting away as if she’d known the other women in the room for years. Why? How could she trust them so easily?
Unease slid through his body. There was danger here, he just knew it. He stiffened; he was being watched. Slowly, he turned and causally glanced at everyone in the room, not hesitating to frown when his gaze collided with Bandalardrac Hardan’s, one of the few people in the room he already knew.
Worthless Drakian–Medirian bastard! How the king of Mediria could tolerate his nephew’s womanizing Marljas couldn’t understand. And the Alalakans? Even if the half-breed was cousin to Chardadon, why have him here? All he’d do was cause trouble with the female servants. And no matter what anyone said, Marljas still believed the half-breed had kidnapped the Gattan girl who’d disappeared last year. Sosha was young. She had been out of her depth with a depraved rake like him. Even if she had gone with him willingly, she’d still been kidnapped as far as Marljas was concerned.
The other man crossed his arms over his chest and grinned at him.
Fop!Marljas snarled to himself as Ban turned his attention to the man at his side. The half-breed would pay for Sosha’s disappearance.
Snarling silently, Marljas jerked his attention away from Ban. Someone else was watching him—closely.
Sliding his gaze left, Marljas continued to peruse the room—and stopped on a young woman wrapped in a silky green robe standing against the far wall. His senses tingled. It was her. She was the one who was staring at him with such intensity that he’d sensed it, and now her stare was concentrated below his waist.
Marljas stared at her face. She was pretty, for a woman who wasn’t Gattan. She was also, judging by the resemblance to Alalakan dem al’ Xdana, his hostess, a close relative, probably a daughter.
He shook his head mentally. Even if she was interested in him, a smart Gattan didn’t become involved in any way with his hostess’s daughter. His mother would never forgive him such an appalling breach of etiquette! Besides, the last thing he needed was a Drakian female chasing after him.
One of her friends whispered something into the girl’s ear, and she pulled her gaze from his crotch to glance back over her shoulder. She nodded and looked back. This time he caught her gaze with his.
Extending the claw on his index finger, he crossed his arms, purposely scratching himself on his left biceps. A small drop of blood trickled down over his arm.
Momentarily, her eyes widened. Then she jerked her gaze away.
Placing his finger over the scrape, Marljas applied pressure to stop the bleeding and looked away.
Smiling to himself, he returned his attention to the conversation at hand. Claws and blood. It worked every time to scare away unwanted attention from non-Gattan females.
“Sheala,” his hostess said, “you, Jami and Vani should go get ready for dinner.”
Marljas glanced back towards the girls as they turned and left the room. Sheala. An interesting name.
Bandalardrac leaned against the wall and unobtrusively watched Marljas. The young Gattan’s gaze had drifted more than once to the door where Sheala had disappeared. Nor had he missed that little display of claws and blood, and he was going to find out exactly what it meant, especially if it was some kind of weird Gattan mating signal.
Ban glanced around the room again. The others may not have realized exactly where Sheala’s gaze had been centered before she left, but he had—Marljas’ cock.
The mask of a smile on his face, Ban leaned back against the wall. Why were these Gattan really here?
Gattans had never shown much interest in trade. They were far more interested in war. Yet, Wendjas Drefeson had brought his wife and children to Drakan. No honorable Gattan would put his family in such a position if he had treachery planned. Maybe what he said was true, and they were here to negotiate a trade contract.
Ban locked his gaze with Marljas’.
The other man was glaring at him.
Grinning, Ban nodded his head then shifted his weight. Gattans were here. That didn’t mean he had to trust them.
Everyone else laughed, and Ban joined in though he had no idea what they were laughing about. He smiled at one comment and nodded in agreement with another. And even though he never again looked directly at Marljas, he noted exactly how many times the Gattan shifted his weight or glanced at the door.
In a few weeks, Sheala would reach her majority and be free to take as many lovers as she wanted, when she wanted. That didn’t mean, however, that the family would let just anybody jump into her bed.
He’d make sure of it.
Vani slipped her arm through Sheala’s as they hurried to their rooms. “Gattans here! Can you believe it?
And Brianna actually cut herself!”
Sheala gaped, stared at her friend, then snapped her mouth shut only to open it again to ask, “Cut?
What cut?”
Vani stopped, wrenching Sheala to a halt. “On Brianna’s hand. Weren’t you listening in there?”
From behind them, Jami giggled. “Sheala was too busy staring at the one named Marljas to pay attention to what anybody was saying. Did you see all the muscles he had? And when he took his vest off! I swear the temperature in the room went up twenty degrees! And he’s going to get an Alalakan tattoo!”
Sheala blinked and swallowed the exclamation that almost burst free.
A dragon tattoo? How had she
missed that comment?
A quick picture of the Gattan shirtless appeared in her mind.
Oh yeah, that was
how.
She’d been paying more attention to his ass and chest than she had to the conversation.Sniffing, Sheala yanked her arm free and glared over her shoulder at Jami. “I was
not
staring at anybody. It was just too crowded in there, and so many people were talking that I didn’t hear everything that was said.”