A Touch of Lilly (11 page)

“
There’s
nothing there.” Thaegan cleared his throat and pointed. “Now
the skirt.”

Dallas
didn’t think he could stand having the woman laid bare in front
of him. He would do anything to keep that from happening. “It
could be on her back,” he said hopefully.

Dallas
parted the yellow silk of Lilly’s hair, brushing it over her
shoulders and covering her breasts. He thought it would be easier,
but when his hands swept over the milky curve of her back, he heard
Lilly’s sharp intake of breath and his cock jumped. “Lilly,
lean forward so I can pull the shirt and coat away.”

With
her arms bound behind her, she couldn’t do more than arch her
back, which of course thrust her chest forward and he nearly groaned
at the sight of her dusky nipples poking through the golden curtain
of hair. He pulled the fabric free, adding it to the growing pile on
the floor.

Thaegan
came around her back and bent for a closer look. “Pull her hair
away from her neck.”

Dallas
ran his fingers along the back of Lilly’s skull, lifting the
hair and exposing the delicate arch of her neck, taunting him to lean
over and kiss the tender skin until she sighed his name. Not finding
anything, he dropped her hair and reminded his dick once again that
this was about identification and not seduction.

The
Ka’al checked through the rungs of the wooden chair. “I’m
not seeing anything. Skirt next and then the boots if we don’t
find anything.”

Dallas
picked up the dagger and shifted positions so he was kneeling in
front of the woman. The misery in her eyes tracked his every move.
With the heat of her body radiating through his clothes, Dallas had
all he could do to focus on their objective.
Jesus
. Under
normal circumstances, he’d love to have Lilly naked, bound and
at his mercy. But this situation was quickly deteriorating from
craptastic to
completely
shitty.

“
Lilly,
I don’t want to do this,” he said. “Just tell us
everything and this will all be over.” And Christ, Dallas
wanted it to be over. If he cut that skirt off, leaving her bound in
the chair with nothing but the tiniest slip of a thong covering her
body, he was sure he wouldn’t be able to control the lust he
felt for this human. She had touched a part of him tonight that he
thought had died months ago on Canus Delta. But maybe Thaegan was
right and even the synthetic blood wasn’t making him immune to
whatever power she held over males.

“
Why
did you pick that particular Znedu tonight at the tavern?”
Dallas asked nonchalantly as he brought the knife to the bottom edge
of her skirt.

“
He
looked wealthy.” Her gaze trailed over his face, but neither of
them were giving away any hint of what they were feeling. “Besides,
Znedus are amazing lovers. And business was less than stellar earlier
so I thought I deserved to treat myself to hot round of sex tonight.”

Thaegan
growled at her words, but the insult didn’t bother Dallas.
Regardless of what they found, the woman before him had been just as
turned on in the alley as him. No female body could fake that kind of
arousal. There had been nothing about their sexual romp that had left
either of them dissatisfied.

“
So,
you didn’t cull that Znedu from the crowd for any other
reason?” Dallas asked.

She
leaned forward, the heat of her breasts pressing against the back of
his hands, her face a breath from his. “Why don’t you
tell me why you care?”

“
Let
me remind you, human,” Thaegan’s voice, low and menacing,
came from behind Dallas, “you are not in a position to
ask
the questions.”

She
sat back in a huff, the motion bouncing her breasts in front of him.

“
I
thought you realized I’m just another working woman. What more
reason do I need?”

Ignoring
the pull of her body, Dallas lifted a brow and shot a look at the
knife, offering another chance to stop this craziness.

“
Do
what you have to do, human. You’re not going to find anything.”
Lilly smiled, but it didn’t reach the dark depths of her eyes.
“In the end, you’re just going to have a mouth full of
crow as you shovel out thousands of credits to replace my wardrobe.”

Laying
his palm on the inside curve of her thigh, Dallas worked his fingers
beneath the supple leather and lifted it away from her leg. Her skin
was flushed and warm under his fingers, and he worked to ignore the
sensation. The razor edge of the blade cut through the material like
soft butter. He curved it carefully around the side of her ass and
tugged a little harder to cut through the waistband. He repeated the
motion again along the side of the other leg, but it caught on the
elastic of her thong and she squirmed a little as it pulled taut a
second before snapping the lacey material under the sharp blade of
the dagger.

His
breath shook as he released a heavy sigh. Dallas really had no desire
to remove the leather and expose the velvet flesh that lay beneath.
But he had no choice. With trembling hands he slid his fingers down
the warm skin of her belly, hooked them under the leather fabric at
the waist and lifted it away.

With
all that naked flesh exposed to him, Dallas couldn’t help but
drink in her breathtaking beauty. The soft roundness of her breasts
and belly begged to be caressed. But it was the satin flesh at the
apex of her thighs where Dallas would really like to press his kisses
and his tongue, exploring lower into her satin folds.

“
See?
Nothing.” Lilly didn’t quite pull off the breezy
indifference. “So, why don’t you untie me, find me
something to wear and I’ll be out of your hair?”

“
Separate
her thighs.” Thaegan’s command caught them both by
surprise.

“
Really,
I think you two Neanderthals have taken this—”

Thaegan’s
impatience didn’t allow her to finish. “You can do it
gently, Dallas, or I can do it…” His last words hung in
the air with deadly intent.

Dallas
looked over his shoulder at his partner. The large Ka’al
trembled, his fists clenching and unclenching at his side, his thighs
bouncing with unspent energy.

“
But
I can’t guarantee her safety if I’m forced to move
closer,” Thaegan said evenly.

“
I’ll
do it.” Dallas turned back to Lilly. She shrugged and the
corner of her mouth trembled with the hint of a disinterested smile
that made her look more nervous than cavalier. But he noticed Lilly
didn’t shift to open her legs wider for them either.

Dallas
laid his palms on the alabaster skin of her inner thighs, her body
trembling beneath his palms. Having a woman quivering at his touch
usually thrilled him, but he suspected this had more to do with fear
than sexual arousal. Praying there would be nothing, suspecting there
was, he pushed her thighs apart until the chair hindered anything
more than a cursory inspection.

“
Scooch
forward,” Dallas said quietly as he curved his hands around
Lilly’s sexy ass and forced her butt to the edge of the chair.
Though she didn’t fight him, her reticence was obvious. With
one side of it cut, the thong slipped under her as she slid forward.
The heat of her body and her nakedness slammed into him, forcing the
air from his lungs.

“
Lilly,
I refuse to pry your legs open,” Dallas said quietly. “But
Thaegan will if you don’t.” Unable to bear being near her
without touching her more intimately, Dallas stood and stepped back.

Her
gaze flitted nervously to Thaegan but stayed only a moment before
skittering back to Dallas. She inhaled deeply and closed her eyes,
her legs parting in slow increments until she was completely open to
them. Her pink folds glistened enticingly, beckoning his cock to
slide into her slick channel. But her silky slit didn’t hold
his attention for long. A scarlet mark the size and shape of a ripe
summer strawberry drew his gaze to her left inner thigh.

The
heavy aroma of her arousal increased tenfold, the smell warm and
inviting. His mouth watered to bury his tongue in that heat and taste
her honeyed flesh. But Dallas had only seconds to enjoy the earthy
scent before Thaegan lunged for Lilly. For a second time the feral
cry of frustration accentuated his partner’s movement.

Dallas
reacted immediately. Slamming his body into the Ka’al, he
managed to do nothing more than send the alien off course and
crashing into the dining table.

Thaegan
turned back slowly, growling low, the primal look of sexual hunger
darkening his eyes.

“
You
will
not
touch her, Thaegan,” said Dallas.

“
Who
will stop me?” His partner roared the words as he ran at
Dallas.

But
Dallas anticipated the move and used the alien’s own momentum
to roll him over his back. Thaegan crashed to the floor. “Thaegan.
You don’t need to touch her. We’ve proven she’s a
Seraphelium. Now—”

“
Now
she satisfies
my
needs.” Thaegan charged again. This
time when Dallas tried to dodge him, Thaegan anticipated the move and
slammed his shoulder into Dallas’ gut, knocking him into the
small couch under the front window. His partner stormed over to him
and hauled him up by his shirt. In quick succession he landed punches
to Dallas’ jaw and eye. The pain rang through his skull and the
metallic taste of blood filled his mouth. Whatever had taken hold of
his partner had doubled the Ka’al’s incredible strength.

With
all the power he could muster, Dallas brought his knee into Thaegan’s
groin. It was enough to loosen his grip and Dallas balled both hands
together and brought them down hard to the side of Thaegan’s
head. His partner released him and stumbled back but didn’t
fall. Thaegan’s dazed expression gave Dallas some hope. He
charged the Ka’al, hoping to knock him on his ass and maybe
knock some sense into his head. But Thaegan was quicker. He dodged at
the last second and rammed a heavy fist into Dallas’ side. He
heard the crack of bone and the piercing pain of broken ribs forced a
scream from Dallas’ lips. He went down hard, his head slamming
into the stone hearth of the fireplace, completely crumpling his
battered body.

The
thud of Thaegan’s heavy feet vibrated the floor. Dallas rolled
to see him moving toward Lilly. He wasn’t sure what his partner
intended, but had no doubt that whatever had taken hold of Thaegan
had robbed his partner of rational thought. As the world warbled in
front of him, Dallas forced his swollen lips to move. “
Schrak
nal tine kres. Rebk nesht bekin na’al.
”
Brother of
mine blood. Not of birth but of war.

Thaegan
stopped as if he’d hit a wall.

Despite
the slur, Dallas forced the words through his swollen lips. “
Riecks
lackt tral dein Ze’alkr.
”
I lay thee at the feet
of thou most Holy.
Dallas had never intended to utter the words
out loud—ever. Words he’d heard Thaegan repeat in a
nonsensical mantra for hours at his bedside on Canus Delta. The
musical notes had penetrated the haze of his coma and carried Dallas
from death’s door back to life. “
Esch nar lemrl
sesche.
”
And beg for your life’s soul.

But
when the Ka’al turned, Dallas could see the prayer cutting
through the madness that had engulfed his partner and dared to
continue. “
Riecks kre’ick tine lemrl barkt laewsherl
irk tine schrak qai’id.
”
I promise my life in
servitude for mine brother’s health.
It had taken him
months to translate the words from the Ka’al dictionary to
English. And when he realized the power of what Thaegan had offered
him, Dallas promised himself never to use it against the one man who
had given him everything. “
Unt tine nerst tane fa’ulk.
”
If mine prayer but be granted me this day.

But
desperation trumped all personal promises.

Dallas
felt his body healing, the pain ebbing from his face where Thaegan
had pummeled his flesh. Dallas forced himself to sit up.

“
You
heard?” Thaegan asked.

“
Every
word,” Dallas groaned as agony stabbed through him.

“
And
you invoke this promise I made?”

“
If
it means you’ll leave Lilly to me, then yes.”

“
You
know what you ask?” Thaegan’s gravelly voice was low and
even.

“
You
don’t want to force yourself on her, Thaegan.” With his
arm supporting the knitting ribs, Dallas forced himself to his feet,
his head swimming with the effort.

“
The
witch brings it upon herself with her powers.”

“
It’s
not right to take without permission. Despite whatever has taken hold
of you, you wouldn’t be happy if you did.”

Thaegan
shot a look of pure hatred over his shoulder. “But she begs for
it when she uses her magic.” He turned back to Dallas. “But
you don’t believe that.”

“
I
know you believe it.” Dallas inhaled a shaky breath, the throb
in his side already easing and his swollen lip returning to normal,
his words no longer slurred. “I’m asking you to leave her
alone. Regardless of what she’s done, the woman deserves to be
safe while she’s in our custody.”