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Authors: Paulette Oakes

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BOOK: Fighting Chance
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Mahoney pushed away from his chest, roiling emotions causing
her to shake all over. Her eyes were bright with tears that she refused to let
fall. “Don’t you see, Mikael? That’s the problem. I belong to no one but
myself.”

He watched in stunned silence as she walked away from him,
leaving him cold, naked, and alone.

 

Chapter Twelve

 

Mikael lay prone on the medi-bed in the medical ward and
tried to figure out what had gone wrong. He had thought that he and Katsuko had
shared a moment together, a closeness that could lead to more. Then she had
walked out on him. He couldn’t understand her anger. Did she not feel their
connection? Could she not tell that he wanted her?

“Quit squirming, Commander!” the chief medical officer
snapped. “You are the fourth warrior I’ve had to treat today with injuries from
your human female. Zandar’s arm was completely pulled out of socket, and Rodane
and Finian were both dripping their life’s blood all over my floors before I
could heal their wounds.”

Mikael closed his eyes, but couldn’t stop the proud smile
that stretched across his face. “You should have seen her. She was magnificent
and fierce. Never have I seen a woman that could not only match the skill of a
T’Kalan warrior, but defeat them, too.”

A light feminine chuckle reached his ears. “It does not
sound as if her fighting style is all that has you enamored with her.”

Mikael peeked out of his one good eye to meet the familiar
pale green gaze of the woman standing over him. Her face held a secretive and
knowing look as she passed the cellular regeneration device over his bruised
face. Relief flowed through him when the corrective treatment passed over his
swollen eye. The pain receded as the swelling faded when the skin was restored
and the battered tissue was healed.

“I can hide nothing from you,
mina
. She is brave and
intelligent. Her spirit is full of fire and passion. I cannot seem to keep
myself from wanting to touch her and pull her into my body. For the first time,
I find myself desiring a lifemate and young ones with shiny black hair and
exotic, dark-brown eyes,” he confessed soberly, his eyebrows pulled down in
consternation.

The medical officer sighed and positioned the device on a
charging pod. Placing her lightly tanned hand in his, she helped him to sit
upright and began to wipe the dried blood from his face with a moist cloth.
“Have you coupled with her?” she asked, her tone brisk and no-nonsense.

He nodded mutely, submitting to her tender ministrations. “Yes.
After we sparred, our bodies joined together with much hunger and satisfaction
on both our parts.”

“Then why do you look as if the stars are falling down
around your head, my
soma
? Why are you not in your quarters with her
now, showing her your heart and filling her with your body?” she asked gently,
searching his eyes for answers.

He shook his head angrily and hopped to the floor to pace
restlessly. “I do not know,
mina
. I offered those things to her, but she
was upset with me and demanded to go back to her own room. I do not know where
I went wrong. I loved her with my body and told her she belonged with me and
that I would never let her go. That seemed to make her even more upset. She
said she belonged to no one except herself.”

She closed her eyes in disbelief before demanding, “Mikael
Ontari R’Varsel, please tell me you explained yourself fully to her. Did you
specifically tell her that you wanted her for a lifemate? Did you help her
understand that she would be your equal in all things and no longer a captive?
Have you spent time with her and explained the laws of our world, and where she
could find her place in it?” The woman pressed her fingers into her temples
before adding, “Have you even told her why you took her friend and what she can
expect when we arrive on T’Kala?”

A dull, red flush began to creep up his chest to disappear
under his dark beard before tinting his cheeks with ruddy color. “There was no
time to do that yet,” he protested defensively. “I told her that I wanted her
and that I would like to see her belly rounded with my child. I gave her my
word that no harm would come to them under my command.”

“Have your
dadan
and I taught you anything?” she
exclaimed with incredulity. “You must put yourself into her thoughts. She has
been snatched from all that she knows while protecting her friend from what she
assumed was a threat. She has awakened in a strange place to find that she has
not only been captured, but that she is no longer even on her own planet. You
know that the Earthlings are not yet advanced enough to be aware of other inhabited
planets. She is likely frightened and angry, and you have done nothing to ease
her mind!”

Mikael’s shoulders slumped under the weight of her words and
he buried his face in his hands to rub his whiskers wearily. “I have behaved
dishonorably and allowed my
cockar
to guide my actions. What should I
do,
mina
? How do I fix this?”

“For starters, you should apologize to her for withholding
information and explain our laws fully. Ensure that she understands her choices
so that she feels in control of her destiny once more. Give her freedom of
movement to come and go on the ship as she pleases and give her a purpose that
appeals to her mindset. Tell her why you have taken her friend and what awaits
her on T’Kala. Then, my
soma
, you spend time with her and get to know
her heart and allow her to learn yours. The stars will take care of the rest, I
promise,” she advised him, her voice gentling with affection.

His eyes were full of anguish as they met hers. “But what if
I do all of this and she chooses to leave me?”

The softly rounded woman pulled him into her warm embrace
and rubbed comforting circles on his back. “Then you must give her a reason to
stay.”

Chapter Thirteen

 

Mahoney awoke the next morning feeling cranky, sore, and out
of sorts. She had all but run back to her room the night before as if the
demons of Hell were on her heels. Even after a hot shower and a replicated
meal, she found that she couldn’t sleep. She had kept expecting Mikael to burst
through her door at any moment to continue their confrontation, but he had been
conspicuously absent and silent. She was torn between not wanting to see him
again and the desire to spend all day in bed with him. She wasn’t used to this
kind of emotional turmoil. She had been in several relationships before, but it
had always been easy to walk away when things grew difficult. For some reason,
she was already in over her head with Mikael, and she had only known him a day.

She rolled over onto her back and stretched, relishing the
pull of tight muscles and the twinges of her sex that was still sensitive from
her passionate encounter with her abductor. Her eyes closed and her nipples
hardened into points as she replayed the memory in her mind over and over until
she was flushed and breathing heavily. Just as she was about to take matters
into her own hands, an electronic chime sounded and interrupted the mood.

“What the hell was that?” she asked aloud, sitting up in the
bed.

The chime sounded again, and if a chime could sound
impatient, this one did. “Jarvis, what is that noise?”

“Command was ordered not to speak until the name ‘Jarvis’
was spoken. The notification chime was used instead,” the computer explained.

Mahoney made a gun out of her finger and pretended to shoot
herself in the head. “What do you need to notify me about, Jarvis?” she asked
with exaggerated patience.

“Commander Mikael R’Varsel has ordered me to deliver a
message. All restrictions have been lifted for Katsuko Mahoney and Jessica
MacGregor and free reign of
The Ax’Sandre
has been granted.”

Mahoney’s eyebrows shot up in surprise. That was certainly
unexpected. It was difficult to think of herself as a prisoner when she could
come and go as she pleased. Her spirits began to lift as she thought of going
back to the training room later for more sparring. Just as suddenly, a new
thought occurred to her. Even though she was protected with an IUD, the fact
remained that she and Mikael had unprotected sex. Perhaps it would be a good
idea to visit with the ship’s doctor to ask about alien STDs.

Her train of thought was derailed when the notification
chime sounded yet again. “What do you want, Jarvis?” she snapped.

“Commander Mikael R’Varsel has also asked me to extend an
invitation to Katsuko Mahoney for a private dinner and audience in his quarters
at 19:00 hours. He adds that this is an invitation, not a command,” Jarvis
explained.

She was shocked, yet again. The bossy, arrogant alien was
changing his tactics. This could be very good, or very bad. “Jarvis, please
tell the commander that I will think about it,” she replied, feeling smug.

“Affirmative.”

Mahoney collapsed back on her pillow and tried to figure out
what this new development was all about. Was it because they had sex? Was he so
sure of her compliance to his will that he no longer felt it necessary to
confine her to her rooms? What were his plans for her that night, or for that
matter, for the future?

The door to her room slid open and Jessica came skipping
inside. “Get up, sleepyhead! You owe me some dirt!” she called out as she
headed for the replicator.

Mahoney flung the covers back on the bed with a groan of
defeat and reluctantly made her way to the restroom to use the facilities and
change into a clean set of replicated clothing. Jessica continued to chatter
through the closed door, exclaiming over the news that they had free run of the
ship, how much fun it had been to eat lunch with the crew, and explaining in
detail about the different species of aliens she had met before the Lieutenant
had escorted her back to her room.

Beating on the door, she concluded, “And I haven’t heard
from you since! What happened with Mikael? Did you kick his ass? Did he kiss
you again? Why didn’t you come to my room last night?”

The door opened to the bathroom and Mahoney calmly made her
way over to the replicator to order a veggie omelet, turkey bacon, fresh fruit,
and a cup of black coffee. When she sat down to her meal, she finally answered.
“Everything’s fine, Jess. We fought, he won, and I came back to my room. I was
exhausted and fell asleep. I’m sorry if I made you worry,” she explained, her
eyes on her meal.

Jessica took in the unusually subdued manner of her friend
including her averted gaze, busted knuckles, and purple goose egg on her
forehead and reached a conclusion. “Oh, my God. You two totally knocked boots,
didn’t you? What was it like? Did he have any weird alien stuff going on
downstairs? Even more importantly, did he rock your world?”

Mahoney sighed wearily and rubbed her eyes to buy time.
Jessica was picking over her leftovers and waiting impatiently for an answer.
Before she could fire off more questions, Mahoney decided to appease her
curiosity, knowing it was the path of least resistance.

“Yes, we had sex, Jess. It was passionate, amazing, and the
best orgasm of my life. There is nothing weird about his penis, except it’s
quite large, and then I came back to my room for a shower and to sleep. That is
all, I swear,” she divulged, her tone emotionless.

“That doesn’t sound like that’s all that happened,” her
friend shot back. “If you just had the best sex of your life, then why are you
so upset? If I were you, I would be waking up in his bed for some more of that
hot alien loving, not sitting here moping in my own room.”

Mahoney pushed back from the table to pace across the room.
“You don’t understand, Jess. He said he would never let me go. He kidnapped us,
and we still don’t know why. I am no more than his property with no control
over my life. How can I ignore all that just because he’s good in the sack?”

Jessica tucked an auburn curl behind her ear and her face
lost its animation. “I see your point,” she conceded, running a fork through
the uneaten eggs. “Maybe you should talk to him and tell him how you feel. I
saw the look on his face every time he watched you yesterday, Mahoney. That man
is smitten with you. And I have to be honest here. I’ve never seen you this
tore up over a man in the years that I’ve known you, either. He’s the first man
to come along that has been able to challenge you and catch your eye. That has
to be worth something, right?”

Mahoney absently ran a brush through her shoulder-length
hair and pulled it away from her face with a tie. “I just don’t see any way
around it. There can be no future for us without equality. As long as I am his
property, I will never be happy. As long as he keeps us from returning home, I
will continue to fight him.”

“Has he tried to talk to you since last night? I assume that
you told him some of this since he has given us our freedom on the ship. That’s
a step in the right direction, isn’t it?” her friend asked, hopefully.

“I guess so,” she hedged, before adding, “No, I have not
seen him or talked to him. However, the computer relayed a message from him. He
is inviting me to his quarters for dinner and to talk. He made sure to stress
the point that it wasn’t a command.”

Jessica’s face lit up with excitement. “He asked you out on
a date?! What did you say?”

“I said I would think about it.”

Jessica’s face was a mask of disapproval. “Oh, you’re going,
Mahoney. He’s put forth an effort to be accommodating, and the least you can do
is show up to hear him out. If you don’t like what you hear, you can just leave
and come hang out with me.”

She paused for a moment, before capitulating. “Fine. I’ll
go, but if I don’t get the answers I need, then I am declaring war on him. I
will make him sorry he ever brought me on board this ship,” she swore, her eyes
darkening with purpose.

Jessica clapped her hands and rose to her feet. “Good! Now
that that’s settled, I say we go exploring! Let’s go!”

For the next several hours, they wandered the large warship
and poked their heads into every room they came across that allowed them
entrance. Some of the crew shot them nervous or curious looks, but others
greeted them warmly and introduced themselves. Many of the warriors that had
been present during the training eyed her warily when they crossed her path,
but several that she hadn’t met yet stopped to ask her if she would be coming
back for more training that afternoon.

When they reached the medical ward, Mahoney stopped at the
door and said, “Hey, I’m just going to run in and have them check out this bump
on my forehead real quick. Can I meet you in half an hour in the cafeteria for
lunch? We’ll try out some authentic T’Kalan cuisine if you’re feeling brave.”

“I’ll just come with you,” she offered, as she made to pass
by her.

Mahoney stopped her with a hand on her arm. “That’s okay,
Jess. I just need to…ask a few questions of the doctor. Can you give me a few
minutes?”

A look of comprehension came over her face. “Got it. No
problem. Cafeteria in 30?”

Mahoney nodded in the affirmative and entered the sliding
door into the medical ward. She looked around in awe at the sight before her.
Rows of hi-tech beds with built in scanners, flashing lights, computer screens
running foreign characters, and devices she’d never seen before were spread out
across the large room. There were at least three different crew members spread
out around the space wearing royal blue lab coats and protective equipment.

At her entrance, one of them, a Harani male from the looks
of him, glanced up to see who had entered the ward. He took in her appearance
and smiled revealing sharp fangs. His fur was burnt orange with white stripes
and his paws held a device that was beeping with a readout.

“You must be the human female that so many have been talking
about,” he greeted her. “My littermate, Felonia, has told me much about you. I
am Fallon, an intern medi-tech. Are you here to have your wounds treated?”

Mahoney froze, not expecting this development. The last
thing she needed was gossip about her and Mikael to spread across the ship via
siblings. Scrambling for an excuse, she stammered, “Uh, I was just-“

“Thank you, Fallon. I will take it from here,” a familiar,
lilting voice interrupted.

Mahoney peered around the feline man to see a T’Kalan female
approaching. She was slightly different from the other T’Kalan females she had
met on board. She was shorter even than Mahoney who had been several inches
shorter herself from the other T’Kalan women. Her hair was an unusual color,
too. It was light brunette with blonde streaks that was pulled back into a
no-nonsense bun, where the others had hair as dark black as her own. Her eyes
were shadowed by goggles, so she couldn’t tell their color, but they appeared
to be as pale as the others and her skin was a light, tanned imitation of the
tawny skin she had come to recognize.

The Harani male nodded respectively and went back to his
task while the woman ushered her into a private room. “I must admit that I am
surprised I haven’t seen you in here before now, Katsuko. I expected you to
arrive last evening after I finished healing the three warriors and the
commander. Although, looking at you, I can see that my worry was greatly misplaced,”
she added, gesturing her patient to lay back on a bed.

“You saw Commander Mikael last night?” Mahoney blurted. “I
mean, has everyone recovered from their wounds?”

A secretive smile dimpled the medical officer’s cheek. “Rest
assured, while their bodies may have been restored, their pride has not.
T’Kalan warriors are hard-headed, full of arrogance, and ruthlessly lethal.
They have also never been bested by a woman before. The whole ship is talking
about you, Katsuko.”

Mahoney blanched at that news. She had never been
comfortable with being the center of attention. That’s why being a stuntwoman
was the perfect job for her. She could still be in movies, but no one would
recognize her on the street. “Please, call me Mahoney. The only person who
calls me Katsuko is my
haha
,” she replied automatically. She paused for
a second, then added, “And the commander.”

The medical officer picked up a handheld device and pressed
lightly on the screen and the bed hummed to life. Moments later, a red,
horizontal laser passed over her head and continued down her body until it
disappeared past her feet.

“As you wish, Mahoney,” the female complied, her head bowed
in concentration over the screen of her device. “It appears that the damage to
your body is not too bad, and definitely nothing compared to your first scans.
Your forehead is deeply bruised and the skin crushed, but there is no
concussion or damage to the cranium. There are several stretched muscles, some
irritated tissues, and the skin of your knuckles is shredded in several places.
Your feet have some minimal bruising and there are myriad other minor abrasions
and contusions. Shall I proceed with corrective treatment?”

Mahoney struggled with her next question, but necessity
forced her hand. “Does the scanner tell you if there are any…diseases present
in my body?”

A soft, motherly hand reached for hers and squeezed it
firmly. “Yes, the medi-bed scans for all viruses, bacteria, chemical
imbalances, and bloodborne diseases. That includes any sexually transmitted
diseases, as well. I want to assure you that
all
members of this crew
are scanned routinely and corrective treatment given for any irregularities. We
tolerate no illness or incapacity on this ship.”

An audible sigh of relief whooshed out of her body. “Thank
God,” she murmured, giving the woman’s hand a return squeeze. “Please proceed
with the treatment.”

The woman picked up a different device and pressed several
buttons before moving to stand behind Mahoney’s head. She moved the device
slowly over her body and the only thing she felt was a slight warming sensation
and the relief of eased pain.

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