Brida Pact (10 page)

“I will still be watching you closely. How was your talk
with your sister?” He knew how much she enjoyed her vid sessions with Pixie and
sometimes Val.

“Well, it went really well. I actually told her I was
staying,” she blurted out. Hoping he was on the same page as her with their
relationship, she held her breath, waiting for his reaction.

“Thank your god!” he yelled, hugging her tightly. “I have
been waiting for you to tell me your decision.”

“So, you’re happy? You want me to stay as much as I want to
stay?” Poppy hated that she sounded so unsure of herself but this was an
either-go-big-or-go-home moment.

Smiling at her, Wheaton cupped her cheeks. “I want you to
stay so much, Poppy! You have made me happier than I can ever remember being
these past cycles. I have a hard time imagining my mornings without our kisses
and cannot imagine what I would do without your presence in my life.”

She bit her lip in nervousness. “I was actually thinking we
could…maybe we could…you know since we’ve decided I’m staying.”

“Sex?” He said the one word on a whoosh of air and his
entire body stiffened at the possibility of actually extending their physical
relationship to the culmination.

“Sex.” Poppy felt her own nerves tighten at the thought.

Before Poppy knew what was happening, she’d been picked up
in a fireman’s carry, laughing as he practically jogged to the sleeping area.
Her stomach bounced on his shoulder until she was back on her feet beside the
bed they had reached.

“Finally!” he said, quickly stripping her of her T-shirt and
yoga pants. He had once told her he appreciated that she wore light clothing
that was easily removed.

“Hey, mister, I think I have been very generous in the
touchy-feely department, so knock it off.” By this time, her shirt, bra and
pants were off. The only thing left was her panties. “And why am
I
practically naked and you still have all that leather on?”

Poppy smiled at the look of triumph that Wheaton wore once
her clothes were removed. Propping her hands on her hips, she stared at him
with a stern face.

“Because you are beautiful,” he answered, hooking his
fingers in her underwear and pulling them down her legs. “And you have been
very generous. I appreciate the help with self-pleasuring you have been giving
me daily…although when I think about your help I feel the need to self-pleasure
again.” He moved his hands quickly, undoing the buckles and zippers on his own
outfit. Once he was completely nude, he tugged her to the bed.

Poppy took a minute to take in all the glory before her.
Wheaton was so beautiful. He didn’t seem to have an ounce of fat on his body
and his skin was tight over the perfect amount of muscles that graced his
frame. Right now she was focusing her attention on his cock though. The past
week she had felt it, stroked it, licked and sucked it but she was finally
going to be able to feel it fill her. She could almost feel her pussy clench on
the empty space she needed him to be in.

“Speaking of self-pleasuring…did you take the batteries out
of my vibrator?” She’d noticed them missing after the second night he’d helped
her use it. If he was going to masturbate then by god she was going to do it
also.

“Yes I did. I don’t like that tool. If anything is inside
you, I want it to be me. You may use your own fingers but if you want to be
filled then I will be the one filling you.”

Gripping her hips, he pulled her under his body while
parting her legs with a knee. So after realizing her toy did more than just
buzz, he’d decided to take action and get rid of the competition.

“Seriously? You seemed to like my vibrator when I let you use
it on me…” Parting her legs so he could nestle into the vee of her body, she
felt his cock settle against her mound.

Moving his head down her neck, he breathed in her scent. “I
am always serious. And yes, I did enjoy watching the tremors of that piece of
plastic drive you crazy. It was only when I realized that you could insert it
into a place I had not yet had the privilege to enter did I decide to disable
it. Granted, it is nothing compared to my body but it still made me angry at
the thought. Can we kiss now for sex? I have been wanting this since I first
scented your neck on Earth.” Licking her collarbone and nuzzling her skin, his
tongue left a path of warm fire that had her arching into his embrace.

“Hellz yes. Please continue.”

Shifting until his arms were under her back, he hooked his
hands on the top of her shoulders to hold her steady. Completely under his
control, she shivered. She was trapped in his embrace and loved it.

“Thank you, Poppy. I do not believe you understand how happy
this has made me,” he said in a voice that sounded like he would rumble at any
moment.

“I want you, Wheaton. Kiss me already,” she whimpered
against his lips.

All of a sudden his mouth was on hers and she seemed to have
no air but was somehow still breathing. There was no way she could keep her
eyes open against the onslaught of his mouth. Raising one leg up to rub against
the outside of his muscled thigh, she sighed into his kiss.

Taking the sigh as permission to enter deeper, he tangled
his tongue with hers. Plucking at her nipple, he rumbled deep in his chest. “I
cannot wait until these are full of milk for our young,” he said against her
mouth. The visual apparently excited him so much he started rubbing his hips
harder against her. The tip of his cock left a damp trail on Poppy’s stomach as
she rubbed back. His skin felt so hot against hers.

Holy shit, this was amazing. His fingers, his mouth, his
everything. Poppy raked her nails lightly down to his muscled ass. Doing some
gripping and kneading of her own, she took the moment when he moved his mouth
to her breast to gasp for air. Nipping and suckling at her nipples, he took
turns going back and forth…apparently not wanting one to get jealous of the
other. Poppy glanced down to see him staring at her. He let go of one nipple
with a
pop
and gently blew air over it, which caused it to get so hard
she felt a slight pain prickle the tip. He brought two fingers to his mouth and
licked them while still holding her gaze.

She reached for his hair to drag his mouth back to hers just
as his fingers made it to their destination. Parting her sleek folds deftly and
circling around her clit, he made a couple steady circles before sliding one
finger into her.

“You are so tight…and hot,” he murmured against her lips,
seemingly anxious to finally be able to delve into her depths.

“May I lick you?” he asked.

“Fuck yeah.” Poppy groaned, adjusting her body. Her legs
opened wider to accommodate his shoulders as he moved down, kissing and licking
his way past her stomach and hips.

Wheaton smiled against her skin. He loved the way Poppy
talked. Sometimes she would make up words or say, “Pardon my French” after a
tangent, and he thought it was adorable. He had started learning within a few
days that “fuck” had many meanings. She used the word almost constantly when
she was talking, from times when she stubbed her toe, to when she caught
glimpses of him naked.

Once his mouth reached her pussy, he checked to make sure
she was watching him. Wheaton gave her a sexy grin before spreading her lips
open with his strong fingers. Nuzzling her clit for a moment before using the
tip of his tongue, he pulsed with steady pressure off and on against her nub.
He took breaks from the pressure to suckle at it. She leaned her head back and
moaned loudly. The taste of her was addictive, making his taste buds crave
more. The thought of being able to suckle at her whenever he desired was heady.
A vision that pushed him to the edges of his already strained control.

She gripped the sheets in her sweating fists. Poppy heard
herself moaning like a porn star. Wheaton had turned her into a porn star!

A nip at her outer lips made her jump and she looked down
her body at him. His green eyes were watching her closely, almost glowing.

“Pay attention,” Wheaton said against her flesh, wanting her
full focus on him and what he was doing.

Gripping Wheaton’s hair, she pushed him back down. “Oh,
sweetie, you have
all
my attention. I promise,” she moaned as he
continued his assault.

His tongue and lips were driving her crazy. When he added
his finger to her sheathe, she felt her toes clench. Holy fuck, his fingers
were starting to go lower. Continuing to lick and nip, he had one finger in her
pussy and rubbed another digit against her ass. That pushed her completely over
the edge. It felt so dirty and oh so good.

“Ahhhhhhhh!” She exploded against his mouth and everything
went to white noise in her head. Her legs began to twitch and her stomach
clenched and unclenched as her orgasm flowed through her. Trying to catch her
breath, she could feel her heart practically beat out of her chest and had a
fleeting thought of a heart attack before she came back to the present.

Moving up her body, Wheaton placed the tip of his cock at
her opening. “Ready?” he asked, his lips glistening from her pussy. He licked
his lips, staring down at her hungrily.

“God yes,” Poppy said in between panting for air.

With a thrust of his hips, he plunged all his inches at once
into her swollen folds.

“Fuuuuuuuck,” Poppy groaned, feeling the stretch of her body
adjusting to being stuffed as it had never been before.

Wheaton’s entire body was covered in a light layer of sweat
and his chest was rumbling as he started thrusting into her welcoming body.
Obviously unable to help himself, he tucked his head into her neck as he
whispered into her skin.

Unable to focus on what he was saying, Poppy concentrated on
the cadence of his rhythm. Moving her legs up around his waist made him go
deeper and start to rub a sweet spot. On every down thrust, his pelvic bone hit
her clit and made her tighten around him to the beat of his thrusting. Her
hands had been clutching his back at first and now moved down to his ass as if
she could keep him thrusting in the delicious rhythm he had begun.

“Ohhhhh god. Wheaton!” she yelled as she started to come.
Her pussy fluttered as it tried to clench and hold on to the cock now pistoning
in and out of her. Moving her face toward his shoulder, Poppy nipped and bit
hungrily at Wheaton’s sweaty skin until she felt her tremors slow.

Wheaton had been waiting for her to come again before
letting loose. He increased the power of his thrusts and gripped her tighter as
he moved faster. Her entire body shook as he growled out loudly and flooded her
with his warm fluid.

“Poppy… Poppy…that was perfect,” he said, his arms
threatening to collapse. Catching himself, he lowered his body to the side.

As he pulled out, Poppy felt a warm trail dampen her leg.

“I think we need a towel,” Poppy said huskily without
raising her head.

“I think we need a bath,” he replied with a deep chuckle.

“Wheaton?”

“Yes?” Settling his head on the pillow next to hers, he
moved his hand to link their fingers.

“Best. Afternoon. Ever,” she deadpanned.

“I agree,” he said back in the same voice.

Poppy and Wheaton started laughing at the same time.

Poppy’s morning started out with a bang when she awoke to a
very aroused Wheaton cuddled against her back. Stretching with her arms over
her head made her let out a groan. Maybe she should hit the rec room and work
out. If her muscles felt this sore after a night with Wheaton, she must be
really out of shape. Even though he was stiff against her backside, he was
actually sleeping. One little wiggle out from under his arm and she was rolling
off the bed, in the smoothest motion possible, to not wake him.

After taking care of her morning bathroom ritual, she walked
into the living area to make some tea. Waiting for her cup to cool, she noticed
a blinking light at the doorway. She had learned earlier during her stay that
the light indicated there was a message waiting. Poppy decided to listen to it.
She would feel guilty letting him sleep in if he was needed by the Council.

“Wheaton, we must speak immediately.” Poppy recognized
Thorne’s voice. Her entire body froze when she heard the next part of the
message. “You were correct earlier regarding the current bridal matches being
wrong. We have found there is a glitch in the programming system on Earth’s end
and it is skewing the matches. Thankfully, the concern you have regarding your
own match alerted us to the discrepancies before more of our warriors were
matched. The brides that are currently on the squadron ships will be
transported back to Earth immediately. The Council has decided to have bridal
contracts dissolved as soon as possible.”

Poppy couldn’t breathe. Feeling what was in her hand slip
from her numb fingers, she had barely enough time to move her toes before the
cup and hot liquid hit the floor with a shatter.

“Poppy?” Glancing over her shoulder, she saw Wheaton standing
bare-chested, leaning against the door frame. Concern was evident on his
handsome face.

“What are you doing up so early? I was hoping to share our
morning kisses.”

Tears filling her eyes, and a tightening in her chest, Poppy
cleared her throat. “You have a message,” she said as calmly as she could
considering her world was crashing around her.

“Thank you. I will listen in a moment. Come and give me my
morning kiss.” He reached out a hand as if to draw her into his embrace.

Poppy held out her hand to stop him from moving closer. “No,
you should really listen to it now.” Scooting past him, Poppy walked back into
the bedroom. As soon as the door swished shut, she began to frantically gather
her possessions into her duffel. She was pretty sure she was a mess by now but
didn’t want to take the time to wipe her face.

“Noooooo!”

Poppy jumped, hearing Wheaton yell the tortured sound from
the living room. Hearing his bare feet run back to the bedroom had her pausing
in her packing. She took in the vision of him blocking the opening she was
prepared to walk through.

Wheaton felt as if his heart was being ripped out. He could
not believe how foolish he had once been. Thinking that the mess with the
bridal matching was over, he had brushed off some of the other Council members
when they’d approached him about it recently during their meetings. He had not
considered that they would try to take Poppy away after he had let his own
concerns go. As she gathered her belongings, dread filled him to the bones and
his mind raced. There had to be a way to fix this.

Wheaton folded his arms across his chest. “You will
not
leave me! I forbid it!” he said loudly, widening his stance as if to physically
trap her in the room.

“Wheaton, I can’t talk to you right now. I need to pack.” Poppy
gritted her teeth so she wouldn’t start sobbing.

“You are not packing. You are going to listen to me.” He
moved into the room.

“Stop right there, asshole.” Holding up her hand to stop him
in his tracks, she said, “I heard that entire fucking message, and from what I
heard it sounded like you doubted our match. Since when, Wheaton? Since the
first time you met me? When I decided to not have sex with you immediately? How
about last night, when you finally got to fuck me? Huh? When, Wheaton? When?!”
By this time, Poppy was screaming at him. Her voice sounded hoarse to her own
ears. She felt the harsh strain from trying to hold back tears.

As she zipped her duffel closed, she saw another pair of her
pants on the floor. Bending down to pick them up, she didn’t notice Wheaton
come up behind her until the last moment. He grabbed her from behind and trapped
her arms at her side to whisper into her ear, “Calm down, Poppy. Calm down and
listen to me. Please.”

“I will not fucking calm down, Wheaton. This is one gigantic
clusterfuck. When will they come to get me? I still need to gather up my stuff
from the living room,” she said, standing stiffly in his arms.

“Poppy, you are not going anywhere. Please, you cannot. Let
me explain what that message meant. Just listen,” he pleaded, rocking back and
forth in an effort to soothe her.

“Fine, you can talk, but don’t expect me to stay once you’re
done with your little speech,” she bit out.

Moving slowly as if to not startle her, he bent and slid his
arm under her knees to pick her up. Carrying her into the living room, he sat
her on the couch and stood beside her with his palm out.

“Please touch me, Poppy. I am addicted to your contact.”
Searching her face with sad eyes, he held his hand out.

“Wheaton, just talk. I woke up so happy and then heard that
message. I’m trying really hard not to lose my shit right now.” She ran her
palms down her face to wipe away the now cool tears.

“Let me start at the beginning then.” Rubbing his face as if
to prepare to say something she didn’t want to hear, Wheaton took in a deep
breath.

“Please do,” she prompted sarcastically.

“When I first found out that I was matched, I did not react
very well. I only entered the pool to be an example for my men. My life was
organized. I had my work with the Council I needed to focus on, anything else
was a distraction in my opinion. I felt that I could better serve my warrior
brothers from my Council seat, not by becoming one of the first husbands. I was
perfectly content with my life but understood my duty to my brothers when my
profile was pulled. We were all surprised in truth at the initial speed of the
matches.” He watched her closely, seemingly trying to make her understand.
Pausing to swallow hard, he sat down on the couch.

“The time frame was suspicious to a majority of us. Our
profiles were extremely detailed and although our matching system was built by
our best engineers it did not seem plausible for it to find us life mates
within such a short time frame. I questioned it at that time, before I ever left
the ship to go to Earth. It had nothing to do with you personally. When I
scanned over your sheet, it did prompt me to further question our
compatibility. With you having no political experience, I was unsure how you
would adjust to life with someone of my standing. When I viewed your picture I
saw a soft and smiling woman. A woman who had an honest face that showed her
emotions. A woman who, on paper, did not seem like someone I wanted in my
life.”

“You’re absolutely right, Wheaton, we have nothing in common.
This is a waste of time.” Slapping her hands on her legs to stand up, she then
said, “Can you find out when they’ll return me home please? I need to be able
to tell Pixie when to pick me up. Fuck! I need more than Pixie to pick me up,
I’ll need to find a place to live.”

“Will you shut up for one second and give me a moment to
finish?”

Stunned that he not only yelled at her but used the words
“shut up”, Poppy plopped back down onto the couch.

“Did you not hear anything I just said? I said that I questioned
the speed of the match…I’m sure you did as well,” he said, pointing a finger at
her. Poppy did remember saying something about how fast it was to Valerie…
Crap, he was right.

Nodding slightly for him to go on, she crossed her arms over
her chest and waited for him to continue.

“Poppy, I may not have
wanted
you in my life at
first…but I now realize how much I
need
you in my life. In the short
amount of time that you have been here, you have made me smile, laugh and feel
more than I ever have. It is scary and not what I expected or even wanted but I
cannot let that go now that I have had a taste of it. Your face does show your
emotions. It is a face that I look forward to staring at every moment that I
have free. The preconceived idea of what I had in my head regarding a political
bride was forgotten not long after you arrived. Please do not make me go back
to the silence I had before you came and started yelling ‘fuck’ at me. I do not
believe I could survive that.” The last words were said on a whispered breath
so quietly she barely caught it. His breath seemed to catch in his throat as he
waited for Poppy to do or say something.

“Wheaton, from what Thorne said on that message I’m not even
sure it’s my choice. He made it sound like all the brides are going back. What
if they make me go? No matter what we do, it may not be our choice.” Poppy slid
her arms around his body. The anger that she had felt when she heard the
message had been forgotten during his speech.

She wasn’t sure what her options were for staying but she
did believe what he said. Maye he’d had questions when they first met, but now
he wanted her to stay as much as she wanted to. Her head hurt when she thought
about this mess. Hoping to draw some comfort from him, she held on tight to
draw in in some calming breaths.

Hugging her back tightly, he kissed the top of her head and
breathed in her scent.

“Let me talk to Thorne. I am on the Council. They cannot
take you away from me…at least not without a fight.” Hugging her back just as
tightly, he paused and then continued, “I need to listen to that message
again.”

At that moment, the door chimed, indicating a visitor. They
both stared at each other grimly.

“Well hell, they didn’t waste any time at all.”

“Sit down and I will get it. Remember what I said. You are
not going anywhere,” Wheaton said in a voice that screamed finality.

Opening the door with his wrist, Wheaton stood back with his
arms crossed like a barrier to the world. Poppy was surprised to see not only
Thorne but also Dathrow and Valerie standing in the opening. Valerie seemed
just as emotionally drained as Poppy felt.

“Val!” Poppy walked over to Valerie, mindful of the still
broken glass on the floor, to give the frazzled-looking woman a hug. Shortly
after her arrival on the ship, Poppy had started speaking to Valerie by video
conference often and they had become close friends in a short amount of time.

“Oh my god, Poppy! I’m so sorry for this mess.” Val was on
the brink of crying as well as she hugged her back.

“You’re doing about as good as I am right now, aren’t you?”
Poppy said with a teary smile. Stepping back, she linked hands with Wheaton.

“This is one hell of a mess,” Val heaved out with a sigh.
“From the handholding I’m assuming you’re not happy with the news?” She
gestured to their linked hands.

“
Hell
no!
We think the match is perfect and
had already decided I was staying before we heard the voice message this
morning. What’s going to happen?”

“Maybe we can sit for a moment and discuss the situation?”
Dathrow suggested in a somber voice.

“Yes please, sorry. I didn’t mean to have y’all stand in the
door.” As Poppy moved to let them pass, Wheaton tightened his grip on her
fingers.

Thorne and Dathrow sat while motioning for Valerie to speak.

“Okay…well…it seems there was a bug in the matchmaking
code,” she stuttered out. “Apparently, they ran the matches again and a
different warrior popped up as your match, Poppy. It’s a huge mess. Many of the
liaisons are taking heat for it even though we had nothing to do with the
actual programming of the system.” Val cast a glance at Thorne and Dathrow
before continuing. “We’ve been accused of matching the higher-ranking warriors
over the others, and now the higher-ups on both sides want to wipe the slate
clean and start over.”

Wheaton stepped forward, tugging Poppy with him. “No! I am
keeping my bride. She is my match no matter what the system says.”

Thorne stood and started pacing. “Wheaton, it’s not that
simple. The Council is pushing to send the previous brides home and start over.
Not only that… Wheaton, there is another situation that ties into this.”

“Thorne, just say it. This can’t get any worse,” Poppy said
with a sigh.

“Poppy, Wheaton has been assigned another bride,” Thorne
said quickly as if to lessen the blow.

“I want
no
other bride!” Wheaton shouted, startling
Poppy.

“Well, fuck. I guess it
could
get worse. What do we
do?” Poppy glanced at Val, who she knew even without asking was on their side.

“Well, right now, we’re really trying to figure out what we
can
do.” Val let out a watery sigh, as if she might cry again. “Can I talk to you
in private, please?”

“Wheaton?” Poppy glanced at him. “I’m going to take Val into
the bedroom and talk for a minute. Can you see if there is anything that you
can get out of Thorne and Dathrow?” When he was about to protest, she said,
“Val is on our side, sweetie. She may have an idea she wants to run by me
before saying it in front of another Council member.”

“Fine. Do not take too long. We might not have much time
together. I do not want to waste a moment.” Releasing her hand, he sat next to
Dathrow and huffed.

Clutching Val’s arm and leading her into the bedroom, Poppy
hoped she had a couple tricks up her sleeve to figure out how to fix this mess.
Clusterfuck indeed.