The Price of Pleasure (11 page)

“We’ve got a deal,” Seth said, setting down his spoon. “Devora, you help Sarai pack things up. Calvin and I will see to loading the Jansenite.”

Calvin grinned darkly at him in response.

Watch your back, Seth told himself, because this guy is going to be trouble.

Chapter 7

“Seth?” Calla called cautiously, looking up into the cockpit. She hadn’t had a chance to talk to him since that morning, when they’d said such hurtful things to each other. The enormity of the family’s situation had overwhelmed her; she’d been working non-stop to help Sarai and her children get clean and settled in.

Calvin had been more difficult. He refused to wash, although, fortunately, the ship’s air filters were powerful enough to counteract the worst of the odor. As long as she stayed away from him it wasn’t that bad.

“Seth, can I come up?” she asked.

After a moment’s hesitation, he replied. “Yes.”

Calla pulled herself up next to him, settling in the co-pilot’s seat. He was studying a star chart intensely, punching numbers into the navigation panel by hand. She widened her eyes in surprise. Usually the computer took care of that.

“I have to do this because where we’re going isn’t mapped,” he said in response to her quizzical look. “Calvin wants to go to Bethesda station. He’s worried about his people there. That’s where we’re going to sell the Jansenite and drop the family off.”

“Seth, do you think Sarai and the children will be safe with him?”

Seth glanced over at her briefly, eyes shuttered. She could tell he hadn’t forgotten their conversation that morning. He had cut himself off from her.

“What a man does with his family is his own business,” Seth said tightly. “I won’t let him hurt her on this ship, but I’m not going to stand between them.”

Calla stared at him, aghast. She’d thought he’d have more compassion than that.

“I can’t believe you don’t want to help them,” she finally whispered. “I really think we have to do something about their situation.”

Seth swiveled his chair to face her, his face dark.

“I think you need to be quiet and remember your place here,” he said finally. “You are here to take care of my needs. Calvin and I have a business arrangement. Don’t try to interfere in things you don’t understand. I need you to just have some faith that I know what I’m doing.”

“I think I understand perfectly,” Calla said in a small voice.

“Good,” Seth said, his voice harsh. He stared at his charts a little more. “Come here.”

“Why?” Calla asked cautiously. She didn’t like the look on his face.

“Why?” he replied in a smooth voice. “Because I said so. Because I hired you to serve me whenever I want, and I want you now.”

“But Calvin and Sarai are right downstairs,” she whispered. “Besides, I don’t want to right now.”

Seth glared at her.

“You work for me, remember?” he snarled. “You signed the contract, I’m paying you good money to be here. Come over here and service me.”

Miserably, Calla did as he said. He was correct, she signed the contract and had no right to complain. It hurt, though. She hadn’t thought Seth was the kind of man to force a woman.

“On your knees,” Seth said tightly. Resigned, Calla dropped before him. Seth leaned back in his chair, watching her coldly. She reached over to the front of his pants, which strained from his erection. It sprang free, and he sighed heavily as she wrapped one hand around him. She started moving it up and down, and his shivered under her touch.

After a several minutes he spoke.

“Use your mouth.”

It wasn’t anything she hadn’t done for him a hundred times, Calla told herself. This is no different. But it was. Those other times she’d wanted to pleasure him, and knew he would pleasure her in return. This wasn’t her Seth, the Seth who had been so kind and loving. Had she hurt him even more that morning than she realized, or had she simply built him up in her mind? Maybe her Seth had never existed, she thought sadly.

Closing her eyes, Calla wrapped her lips around his hard length. She would do as she was told; she would earn her money.

* * * * *

Seth stared down at Devora’s head, bobbing back and forth in his lap. The feeling of her lips on his cock was exquisite. Just the sight of her was enough to make him hard, ready to go any time, any place. Her touch was beyond description and he couldn’t imagine getting tired of her. But that was an illusion, he reminded himself coldly. He had to push down any sympathy and tenderness her felt for her.

She was a paid companion; she had no loyalty to him. He was a Saurellian, genetically incapable of forming a long-term bond with a woman outside his own race.

He’d started thinking of them as partners, imagining they were on a mission together.

Hell, she didn’t even know they were on a mission. He wanted to tell her that he was only using Calvin, that he’d protect Sarai and the children, but the stakes were too high for such revelations. Unless he could trust her absolutely, he couldn’t risk the security of the Saurellian occupation by telling her everything. It would be criminally irresponsible, and despite their closeness he had only known her a few months. There were lives at stake, for love of the Goddess!

She continued to work on him, lips and hands moving smoothly together. The sensations were building through his body, but he could tell that when he came it would be no more than physical release. He’d come to expect more from their love-making, he thought sadly.

A snuffling sound caught his attention, and with shock he realized she was crying.

Remorse hit him like a punch to the stomach.

“Devora, you can stop,” he said quietly. Her head stopped moving, then she slowly pulled away from him. Her hair covered her face, hiding her expression, but the quivering of her shoulders and the sound of her sniffing back tears touched him more than anything she could have said. She looked defeated. Hating himself for what he had made her do, Seth pulled her gently onto his lap, cradling her against his chest. She turned to him like a lost child, wrapping her arms around his neck and sobbing quietly into his shoulder.

“Shhhhhhh,” he said, trying to comfort her. “I’m so sorry, Devora. I don’t know why I did that to you. I’m so sorry.” His words, far from comforting her, seemed to open the floodgate. She started sobbing against him, crying as if her heart was breaking. Her pain stabbed through him. He couldn’t stand it. “Please stop. I’m so sorry,” he whispered again.

She cried for almost five minutes, then fell silent except for the occasional hiccup.

Seth turned her to face him, gently tilting her face up toward his. He brushed her hair out of his eyes, gazing at her steadily.

“Devora, sweet, I can’t explain to you what’s going on here,” he said. “There’s more than meets the eye, but you’re just going to have to trust me.”

“Like you trust me?” she said darkly. Seth didn’t respond, unable to meet her gaze.

Finally she spoke again.

“Well, I guess that settles things,” she said softly. “You don’t trust me, but I’m supposed to trust you.”

“Devora, it’s not like that,” Seth said. “I have responsibilities. This is about more than just you and me… Please try to understand.”

“Oh, I understand,” she whispered. She dropped her head back down against his chest, cuddling against his warmth. He held her, brushing her hair occasionally with his hand. Eventually she fell asleep. Seth continued to cuddle her body against his, staring out at the stars and realizing that while he had had sex with countless women, Devora was the first he’d ever made love to.

Things weren’t going as he’d planned at all.

* * * * *

Calla awoke slowly. Something was tickling her face. Something soft flitted from her forehead and across her cheeks before settling against her mouth. Seth was kissing her, she realized. She was still tucked in his arms, up in the cockpit.

His lips moved against hers, nipping lightly at her mouth. She stirred a little, eyes closed, then tilted her head up to give him better access. His mouth touched her more firmly, enticing her to open her lips. When she did, his tongue tentatively touched hers.

“Mmmmmmm,” she moaned, encouraging him. It felt so good to be held in his arms tenderly. So different from what had happened earlier. She reached her hands up behind his head and neck, pulling his head down against hers more firmly. His cock, pressed against her hip, twitched in response.

Seth responded to her encouragement eagerly, arms pulling her tightly to him. His mouth slanted open against her, and his tongue thrust harder into her mouth. Calla clung to his large frame, her legs moving against each other restlessly. She could feel her cunt growing hot and moist.

Sensing her need, Seth reached one hand down to the sensitive area between her legs, rubbing her clit through her clothing. Calla squirmed against him, rubbing his cock and thrusting her own tongue back at his. She gave another little moan, and Seth stopped kissing her, resting his forehead against hers.

“We’ll need to be quiet if we don’t want Calvin and Sarai to hear us,” he whispered.

Calla stilled instantly. She’d completely forgotten their Pilgrim guests.

“Maybe we shouldn’t-“ she tried to say, but Seth silenced her by taking her mouth again. This time he was rougher, his tongue claiming her mouth and thrusting purposefully. Sliding lower in his chair, he shifted her weight so that she was fully facing him, and thrust one knee up between her legs to steady her. Calla, unable to control her movements, ground her clit against his thigh. One of his hands rested on her butt, pulling her hard against his leg. The other was glued to the back of her head, holding her tightly to his mouth. It took both of her hands to steady herself, using his shoulders for support.

Seth’s tongue ravaged her mouth, his fingers digging tightly into her ass. Calla rubbed herself against him wantonly, pressing harder against his leg. It was almost enough, but not quite. She wanted his cock thrust into her.

Seth had other ideas. Reaching both hands down around her butt, he suddenly rose out of the seat, carrying her with him. Calla gasped as the movement pressed his erection between her legs, rubbing deliciously. She squirmed against him, anxious to feel more. Still holding her, he swiveled toward the main control panel, balancing her against the edge. He reached around her to press a button, and a flat security panel slid over the controls, locking them out of reach and protecting them from their activity.

Seth pressed Calla down against the panel, bracing her with his body. The position kept their sexes in close contact. Standing tall above her, Seth started slowly to grind his body against her.

She gasped with pleasure as his hard cock slid slowly back and forth against her clit.

The friction was exquisite, almost painful in its intensity.

Leaning down over her, Seth took first one and then both of her arms and pinned them gently over her head with one strong hand. He kissed her softly on the lips, and then started unzipping the front of the light jumpsuit she wore. His lips followed the motion of the zipper, kissing her bare flesh until he was just below her breasts. Then, nosing aside the fabric of the suit, his lips found her nipple. He licked around the small, pink nub in a circle, and Calla strained toward him. In answer, his mouth closed around her peak, sucking gently.

The pull of his mouth sent a quiver through Calla’s body that ran from her breast down between her legs, and she pressed herself against him urgently. His rock-hard cock responded, pressing up against the fabric of her suit. She whimpered, begging him to give her relief, but Seth just continued to suck slowly.

After a minute, he moved to the other breast, sucking, kissing, and running his tongue around the sensitive center.

Calla wanted more, and she tried to free her hands to pull him to her. His grasp was like a band of iron around her wrists, though, and she couldn’t move. In desperation, she thrust her hips against his violently and for one second the hard length of his manhood was poised at the entrance to her cunt. Only the thin fabric separated them.

It was too much for Seth, and his hips plunged against hers involuntarily, driving a small bit of the suit fabric that held them apart up into her moist opening before he regained control. Seth paused, gasping for air. She had taken him off guard with that thrust, and he’d almost been lost. He wanted to stay in control

“For that,” he whispered seductively, “I’m going to have to punish you.”

She quivered at his words. She had no idea what he meant, but she didn’t doubt her punishment would be delicious.

Standing up straight, he abruptly released her hands. She grasped as his shoulders for support as he pulled her off the panel. Using quick, efficient movements, he stripped off her jumpsuit, gesturing for her to step out of the pant-legs. She did so, anticipation at his next move filled the air.

He had her hop back up on the flat surface, and then–using her own soft fabric belt–tied her by the wrists to a loop at the top, normally used to secured things in zero gravity. He paused to survey her, running his eyes over her exposed body.

Calla realized she was utterly helpless against whatever he might choose to do to her. It scared her, but it was also exciting to lie before him naked and open to his touch.

What if the others heard them? A thrill raced through her–it seemed so wrong to be doing this within hearing of Sarai and Calvin. But it was thrilling, too...

Seth smiled at her darkly, then knelt between her legs. Gently lifting them over his shoulders, he blew softly on her exposed clit.

Calla shuddered, and bit her lip to keep from making any noise. A hysterical giggle almost burst out at the thought of Calvin and Sarai would think if they came to investigate any noises.

Seth gently pulled apart the lips on either side of her sensitive nub, then slowly and deliberately touched the very tip with his tongue. He felt Calla jump slightly in response. Flicking his tongue back and forth against her a few times, he then sucked her clit into his mouth. When Calla’s hips heaved in response, he pulled back from her with a chuckle.

“You’re not going to get it that easy,” he whispered.

Taking one large finger, he gently thrust into her, massaging her from within. After a second, he thrust in a second finger and lowered his head to her clit again. Moving with excruciating slowness, he started building her into a frenzy of pleasure, only to back off each time before she came.