Kidnapped by a Warrior (10 page)

She
moved aside the brown wrapping paper and gasped. Shaking her head slowly, she
pulled out her print of Escher’s
Relativity
.

“
You had so many paintings in your home, but since
this one hung near your bed, I assumed it had special significance for you. We
can hang it over our bed, if you like.”

Callie
placed the print on the table and walked over to him. “I don’t know what to say
right now. This isn’t the kind of thing I’d expect a captor to do. It’s more
like … like what a lover would do.”

She
saw him swallow, and the look in his eyes was tentative, unsure. It was so
uncharacteristic that she had to blink back tears. She placed a hand over her
mouth.
“Oh my God.
I’m not just your prisoner, am I?
You have feelings for me.”

He
nodded. “I do indeed.”

“
When did that happen?”

“
I don’t know, Callie. I didn’t mark the time.”

“
I’ve overwhelmed by your gesture. Thank you so
much.” The struggle on his face was terrible to watch. “Please just say it.”

“
Say what?”

“
Whatever it is you’re trying so hard to hold back.”

“
You will think me weak.”

Callie
wrapped her arms around his shoulders. “Weak? You’re not weak. You’re the
bravest, strongest man I have ever met. You risked your life to bring these
things to me because you know how important they are to me, and you wanted me
to have a piece of my former life here. That’s not weak. It’s noble and
generous.”

His
gaze softened, and she swore again there was love in his beautiful eyes. “Then
I have a question to ask you. And I will know if you evade the truth.”

“
I won’t lie to you. I promise.”

He
swallowed hard again. “Is there a chance that you may one day care for me, as
well?”

“
Oh, Jakara.
I already do.”

“
Do not mock me.” His tone was more desperate than
angry.

“
I’m not mocking you. I do care for you. Why do you
think I’m lonely and depressed when you’re gone?”

He
cupped her face and kissed her, rough and hard. She moaned in the back of her
throat and clung to him, slipping her hands down his body and over his tight
ass. When he released the kiss, he took off her clothes so fast she almost became
dizzy. Before she could reach for his shirt, he was naked as well, and then he
picked her up and carried her to their bed.

Her
pussy was soaking wet, and that was a good thing because he didn’t even bother
with lube this time. He sank his cock into her wetness, and she cried out,
grasping his arms and wrapping her legs around his muscled thighs.

“
Callie … baby, I can’t get enough of you.”

“
I never want you to.
Never.”

He
moaned loudly and thrust inside her with the same impossible strength and
stamina she’d now grown used to, but which never failed to bring her to climax
within a minute. She rode the waves of her contractions as tears spilled over
her lashes.

The
emotion his lovemaking conjured up was like nothing she’d ever experienced, and
most of the time she couldn’t even identify what caused such a reaction. She
only knew that when she was in his arms, and he was inside her, it was as if
everything she’d ever wanted in her life had come to fulfillment.

He
withdrew and turned her onto her stomach, then opened the nightstand drawer and
took out the lube. She knew it by the sound the stopper made when he pulled it
out,
and by the scent that wafted past her nose.

“
Up on your knees, baby.”

She
moved to her knees and elbows, which had become his favorite way to fuck her.
She loved it because he could reach underneath to touch her breasts and clit
when his dick was inside her.

He
slipped two lubed fingers into her asshole, and Callie groaned in pleasure and
anticipation. “Touch yourself, baby. I love to watch you do that.”

She
moved so that her face rested on the bed but her ass was still up in the air,
and then grasped her right breast.

“
Oh … that’s right. That is so fucking sexy to
watch.”

Callie
moaned as he put on a condom and then slipped his cock into her ass. When he
began to thrust, he reached under to play with her left breast. She moved her
hand to her clit, and he groaned loudly.

“
Come for me, my love. Make yourself come for me.”

He’d
never called her
my love
before.
Callie rubbed her clit, and between Jakara playing with her nipple and the
sweet ass fucking he gave her, it didn’t take long for another orgasm to crash
over her.

“
Oh, that’s right. Perfect. Don’t stop.”

She
couldn’t have stopped even if she’d wanted to. He withdrew, took off his
condom, and turned her onto her back again. Then he sank his cock into her
pussy once more, and cupped her face as he fucked her so slowly she thought
she’d go out of her mind with need.

“
Take it all, baby. Take it for as long as I can hold
off, love. Look at me. You are so fucking beautiful.”

Callie
could hardly breathe. He’d never made love to her like this. He’d never been so
tender yet possessive before. Her pulse raced as her own needs grew once again,
and she hoped he fucked her for hours like this. It was so intimate and
personal this time, and she realized that as impossible as it seemed, her
feelings went way beyond simply caring for him.

She
was falling in love with him.

As
the truth finally hit home, she began to cry again. He wiped her tears away,
kissed her sweetly, and kept fucking her with slow, deliberate thrusts. Each
one massaged her clit, and when the third climax exploded, she almost begged
him to stop. It was that intense, and she wasn’t sure she could take it.

But
he was far from done with her tonight. He intended to own her completely.
Heart, body, and soul.
Callie understood that now in a way
she never had before, and she welcomed it. As he finally increased his
thrusting in speed and moved toward his own orgasm, she closed her eyes and
clung to him, enjoying the ride.

She
had no idea what was going to happen, but she knew two things. This was where
she would live out her life, and she loved this man.
Completely.

Chapter
Nine

Jakara
spent the next two weeks only leaving Callie’s side to use the bathroom. He’d
hung the Escher print over their bed, and she’d tried to explain to him why she
loved it so much, but he really didn’t understand it. Still, because it had
made her so happy, he didn’t regret bringing it back here with him.

Lesha
had taught her to cook quite a bit in the short time before he’d taken this
vacation, and she surprised him with how much she’d learned. Each time they ate
a meal, she waited until he told her what he thought of the food, and was so
pleased every time he liked it that Jakara wondered how often she’d made
someone happy in her former life. He’d assumed that an educated, intelligent
woman like Callie would also have strong self-confidence, but he’d been wrong
about that.

One
evening, after they’d eaten and were listening to Bach on her iPod, he asked
her to tell him about the former men in her life.

“
There’s not much to tell. I had boyfriends in
school, but I was a virgin when I went to college. I lost that at a frat party
that turned out to be a threesome. And no, that wasn’t planned.
At least not by me.
I later found out that
he
had planned it that way, and I was
really upset.”

“
You mean because you found the experience of having
sex with two men unpleasant?”

“
No, actually that part was kind of hot. What upset
me was that he tried to pretend it was an accident his best friend just
happened to barge in on us and weaseled his way into the mix. The entire thing
was staged. They even tried to take pictures with their cell phones.”

“
I’m sorry. That sounds dishonest.”

“
Very. And that’s what upset me.”

“
I wouldn’t do that to you.”

She
eyed him suspiciously. “You mean you want me to have sex with you and another
man?”

“
Hell no.
I’m not sharing you with anyone.
I mean I wouldn’t try and trick you like that.”

She
smiled, and his heart soared as it did each time that gesture lit up her pretty
face. “Good.
Because I only want you.”

The
words were perfect, and he knew she meant them. But what he didn’t know was
whether her heart was filled with the one emotion he now knew he couldn’t live
without from her.
Love.
One month ago, if someone had
told him he’d feel this way about a woman, from Earth or otherwise, he’d have
laughed.

But
she’d captivated him, body, heart, and soul. There was no turning back. He’d
never felt this way, and he knew he never would again. She was the one he
wanted. But how could he expect her to feel the same way toward him? Sure, she
cared for him. She’d said
that
two weeks ago. But love
was another matter. It was entirely different. It took the relationship to an
emotional plane that simply wasn’t possible in this situation. And he had no
one to blame for that scenario but himself.

It
was too late to turn back now. The only thing he could do was try to win her
love.
Because he would never give her up.
Never.

****

Callie
taught Jakara to play poker, and he taught her a card game called Lucky Seven,
which to her wasn’t much different from Crazy Eights. He was very skilled at
the game, but she won almost as many games as he did. Every time she did, he’d
pull her over his knee and give her a half-hearted spanking, telling her she
should have let him win.

This
produced peals of laughter from her, and aroused her to the point of physical
pain. These card-playing sessions usually ended with them having rough sex on
the floor, and then they’d move to the bed or sometimes the rooftop.

That
was her favorite place on hot nights. He’d bring a blanket up there, and after
he’d taken her quick and rough, they’d make slow, luxurious love under the
stars. Only the wind and an occasional distant sound served as their backdrop.
She asked him why she never heard any animals or insects, and he told her she
would when the weather turned cooler.

As
the second week wore on, Callie tried to stop thinking about him returning to
his missions, but she knew he had no choice. On the last night of his vacation,
she asked him if they could take a walk around the property at night, just so
she could stretch her legs a bit.

They
waited until it was well after dark, and then he had her dress in combat fatigues
and boots, just in case. He said that if, on the off chance anyone spotted them
from a distance, they’d assume she was a fellow soldier.

Callie
breathed in the warm night air, and glanced up at the sky. She was used to the
different look of the stars now, but if she thought too long and hard about it,
the realization that she’d never see Earth again still overwhelmed and
frightened her. They were so isolated. She missed having friends to talk to,
and wondered whether that bothered him, as well.

“
Tell me what it was like growing up for you.”

He
gave her an odd look. “What do you mean?”

“
I mean did you have friends? What kind of games did
you play? Did you go to school?”

He
led her toward an outcropping of rock as they walked. “We had tutors. The Regum
children go to formal schools. You would call them boarding schools, I believe.
But we were trained at home. And I did have friends, but we didn’t have much
play time. Not like you were used to. Our fathers taught us to fight, and our
mothers cooked and took care of the house.”

“
Do you get lonely here all by yourself? I mean did
you, before I came here?”

“
Only for someone to share my
bed.”
He
stopped walking and turned to face her. “Tell me what’s bothering you, love. I
can sense it.”

She
swallowed hard. “I’m afraid to be alone. I’m not used to it. I jump at every
noise, and Lesha doesn’t talk to me. She answers questions, but I can’t engage
her in conversation. I don’t like this. I don’t know how you stand it.”

He
pulled her close and held her. “Callie … I wish I could change things for you.
But I promise you that you are safe inside my home. And Lesha has always been
like that, but if this helps at all, she does like you.”