Daughters of Lyra: Heart of a Commander (8 page)

He went to speak again but
she tiptoed and kissed him. It was sweet, tender, and he couldn’t
help responding to it. His arms slid around her waist and he tugged
her against him, so the full length of her body pressed into his.
He leaned into her, kissing her with more force than before, hungry
to taste her and to feel her body on his. Her hands caught his
shoulders and she moaned into his mouth.

He pushed her off him,
getting the better of himself. Looking down at the floor, he cursed
himself for kissing her again in the hall.

“
It is my duty
to protect you while you are on this vessel,” he whispered to their
feet, afraid of looking at her in case he couldn’t stop himself
from kissing her again. His hands shook as he fought to restrain
the feelings that she brought out in him. The subtle taste of her
blood filled his mouth, its memory as potent as the reality had
been. His eyes brightened as his teeth extended slightly. She
wanted him. She wanted to be his. He could make her his. He
compressed his lips, grinding his teeth together in an effort to
stop them from changing further. The hunger subsided with the
memory of her blood. “That includes not exposing you to comments
about your personal life.”

Her fingers grazed his
cheek, sending a warm shiver across his skin. “Is it your duty, or
your desire to protect me? It looks like desire from where I’m
standing.”

Her voice was so sultry a
whisper that he had to look at her. Her eyes were wide, their
enchanting sky blue depths darkened by her enlarged pupils. He
wasn’t the only one the kiss had aroused. He could sense her
hunger, could feel it in her touch and see it all in her
eyes.

Taking her hand, he held
it tight, feeling it shake in his. She knew as well as he did that
they stood together on a precipice, facing a point of no return,
and neither knew where it would take them. He didn’t know if he
could control himself in the heat of the moment. Something about
Amerii, about his feelings for her, made his bloodlust difficult to
control. He only hoped that his feelings towards her would protect
her from the bloodlust when it overwhelmed him.

His eyes held hers, his
heart thundering as his mind raced to imagine the feel of her body
against his, and the bloodlust began to push at the boundaries of
his restraint. To feel everything that he wanted to, to show her
what he wanted to, he would have to relinquish control. He wasn’t
afraid. He believed now, just as Amerii believed.

He wouldn’t hurt
her.

He wouldn’t allow himself
to.

His eyes brightened and he
held her hand tighter.

“
If you wish to
see desire... I can show you just how much I feel for
you.”

****

Chapter
6

Amerii stumbled along
behind Van as he marched down the corridor. She knew where he was
taking her and she wasn’t afraid, not even if her heart was
threatening to burst out of her chest. She ignored it and held his
hand. His vice-like grip on her was painful but she endured it,
knowing that he had little control over himself. She had seen his
eyes change. She had never seen them so bright or so full of
conflict. There was violence in their depths, but fear and love
tempered it. This was a leap forward for both of them, and she
wouldn’t fool herself into thinking that it wasn’t a dangerous one.
She had faith in Van though. He had been practicing relinquishing
control since they had first met a year ago. In that time, he must
have made substantial progress. He had made enough that he could
kiss her without hurting her but when he had tasted her blood
earlier he’d had trouble maintaining control. He had bordered on
violent when his crew had interrupted them and had almost killed
the officers back in the corridor.

Sophia had told her that
Regis had fought the palace guards when he had been lost in his
bloodlust. He had wanted to kill them because they had interrupted
him. Perhaps it was vital to make sure that didn’t happen when she
was with Van. Maybe if she locked them away and removed all
possible methods of communication from the room then he would be
all right and wouldn’t perceive any threat to her. Once her blood
was in his system, and she suspected what he had in mind would
involve biting, he would become unpredictable. The bloodlust would
take him completely. There was no doubt about that. When it did,
she had to remain calm and she had to pray they weren’t disturbed.
The thought of Van hurting his crew because of her was sickening.
She hadn’t wanted to be responsible for that and she didn’t want it
to happen again.

They reached his door and
it opened as though it had recognised him. Amerii tripped on her
feet when Van pulled her inside and clung to his arms to stop
herself from falling. He held her elbows and helped her stand
again.

The door
closed.

“
Amerii,” Van
whispered in a tight voice full of emotion. She looked up into his
vivid red eyes. “Do not fear me.”

Amerii shook her head and
brought her hand up to touch his cheek. She could feel him shaking.
He closed his eyes and leaned into her touch.

“
Know that I am
yours to command. Even in the haze of the bloodlust, I may still
respond to you even before I have claimed you as rightfully mine. I
heard your voice back in the corridor. If you are frightened, do
not hesitate to stop me.”

Amerii liked those words.
Yours. Claimed. Mine. They had a beautiful ring of certainty about
them. They sounded strong and fixed, unwavering. She was his. He
was hers. Once he had placed a claim on her, then she would never
have to fear the bloodlust again.

Sophia had told her that
too.

When they were bonded, Van
would no longer perceive everyone as a threat to her when he was in
the bloodlust. He would be able to assess the danger and act
accordingly.

He would no longer see
every male as a potential mate for her.

It was that desire to
protect what was his that would make him dangerous until they were
bonded.

She went to the door and
frowned at the control panel beside it. It was totally different to
any she had ever seen.

“
Do you wish to
leave?”

Those whispered words
carried pain that cut deep into her heart. She spun on the spot to
face Van and shook her head again.

“
No, Van...
never,” Amerii said and went back to him when she saw all the hurt
in his red eyes. She touched his cheek again and he brought his
hand up to claim hers, holding it tight as he pressed a kiss to her
palm.

It was strange to see so
strong a man act so weak. A desire to protect him in return rose
inside her and she wrapped her arms around him, hoping that her
embrace would give him the reassurance he needed. He buried his
face into her neck, his hands claiming her waist and pulling her
body flush against his.

“
I wanted to
lock the door,” she said and ran her fingers through his fine long
black hair. “Maybe cut communications so we’ll be truly
alone.”

“
Amerii,” Van
whispered into her neck. “As the commander of this vessel, I must
maintain contact with my crew.”

She frowned and then
smiled. “Would you cut communications if a member of royalty
ordered you to?”

He came out of her embrace
and looked deep into her eyes. “An order?”

Amerii nodded. She had to
make sure that no one could disturb them, or at least ensure that
she had stopped every possible method of interruption. She couldn’t
do anything if someone was foolish enough to knock on the
door.

Van left her arms and
walked past her to the door. He pressed a series of buttons on the
control panel and then turned to face her. She bit her lip, nerves
churning her stomach as she watched him remove his communication
device from his collar.

She swallowed when he
followed that by removing his jacket, revealing his bare torso.
This was really happening. Everything she had fantasised about was
on the brink of coming true. With trembling fingers, she undid the
fastenings of her jacket and walked towards him. It felt as though
this was her first time again. She hadn’t been this nervous about
sex in years.

Then again, she hadn’t had
sex in years. Every male in the fleet avoided her and she wasn’t
naive enough not to realise why. Her father had ordered all Lyran
males of mating age within the army to keep their hands off her. It
was a good job that she and her friends had visited Lyra Six all
those times or she really would have been facing her first time. As
enjoyable as being royalty was, it certainly had its downsides too.
Usually when a man realised she was a princess, they were quick to
run in the opposite direction. She didn’t think her father was that
frightening, and it wasn’t as though she had to marry every man she
was intimate with.

But then, she would marry
Van in a heartbeat.

He stepped up to her and
pushed her open jacket off her shoulders. The feel of his hands
grazing her arms sent a warm shiver of pleasure through her and her
eyes half closed, her lips parting.

“
Are we alone
now?” she whispered, lost in the feel of his touch. Her jacket fell
to the floor.

His hands skimmed up her
sides, fingers brushing the undersides of her breasts. She sighed
and furrowed her brow, her mouth turning dry.

“
Yes,” Van
husked in a voice so low it sent her trembling. His breath was hot
against her cheek as he moved closer to her and lowered his hands
to her sides again. This time when he brought them up, he raised
the hem of her white vest with them. His hands brushed her bare
stomach, sending a powerful jolt through her that made her hands
tremble with the need to touch him.

She had to feel him and
feel this was real.

Her touch was a tentative
caress at first, tracing the line between his pectorals. Her eyes
opened, her gaze tracking her hands as she flattened them against
his chest, her fingertips pressing in. He tensed his muscles. They
were rock hard, sending an ache to her stomach that made her hunger
rise. She wanted to feel every inch of him, wanted to lose herself
in the moment and the pleasure she knew that he could give her.
There wasn’t a man like him in the universe. None of the men of
Lyra Six compared to Van.

Her fingers trailed lower,
charting the pronounced muscles of his stomach with a light caress.
Van trembled beneath her wandering hands, his breathing shaky. A
glance into his eyes revealed they were vivid crimson, intently
fixed on her face. He pushed his hands up and under her vest,
claiming her bare breasts. She bit her lip to stifle the moan that
tried to escape her when his thumbs brushed her pebbled nipples.
Sparks shot out from their hardened points each time this thumbs
tortured them. She pushed her breasts into his hands, eager to feel
more than his hands on her. Her mind raced to imagine how it would
feel to have his mouth on her, his teeth teasing her nipples and
tongue torturing her.

“
Touch me,” she
begged, arching into his palms, aching inside.

Van growled and pulled her
vest off. The chill air sent a wave of goose bumps washing over her
skin. Her heart pounded as he pulled her into his arms and picked
her up. She clung to him, peppering kisses across his cheek, his
forehead, his neck, anywhere she could reach. She bit lightly on
his collarbone and he stilled. The air in the room seemed to shift,
turning heavy and hard to breathe. He threw her down on the bed,
towering over her, his eyes red and intense. His fingers stroked
the point on his neck where she had bitten.

Amerii’s breathing
quickened as she stared into his eyes, seeing his feelings battling
inside him. Biting him might not have been her greatest ever
idea.

With a low rumbling growl,
he covered her body with his, his hands claiming her wrists and
pinning them to the bed.

A little more dominant
than she had expected.

She wriggled to get free
and his grip tightened. His lips parted to reveal sharp teeth. The
shine left his eyes, making her feel as though he was no longer
conscious of what he was doing. He lowered his head towards her and
she gasped when he kissed her. Rough. Passionate. Everything she
had imagined it would be and so much more. His mouth slanted over
hers, his tongue thrusting into her mouth. She tried to respond but
he was too fierce. Their teeth clashed. Too hungry. She submitted
to him, hoping he would calm down. A flash of pain burst in her lip
and her eyes widened when she tasted blood.

Blood.

Van’s kisses grew
hungrier, deeper, stealing her breath and turning her giddy. She
pushed her arms up but he growled and shoved her wrists harder
against the bed. Wrestling her mouth free of his, she turned her
head to the side, breathing hard in an effort to clear her head. It
spun but she wasn’t frightened. She knew in her heart that Van
wouldn’t hurt her. He was just caught up in the moment and the
bloodlust.

“
Van,” she
whispered to her arm, staring at his right hand where it tightly
gripped her wrist. Her hands were pale. He was holding her too
tight.

His body pressed against
hers and she moaned internally at the feel of his hard arousal
grinding against her groin.