Prime Deliverance (Katieran Prime Series (Book Five)) (5 page)

“I am LanER.”

“Thank you both.” She saw the gratitude made both men blush. They were adorable. “Don’t let me interrupt your discussion.” She waved them to talk while she ate her food.

“The female warrior did not say that, AtOM,” the other male whose name was LanER said.

Female warrior? “Are you both talking about Captain Jaxon Malone?”

Both males looked at her excitedly. “Yes, she is amazing. Have you met her?”

“Yes, I helped arrange her and Dr. Morris’s move into the suite with Cassie Tomlin.”

“She is very outspoken for a female,” AtOM said.

AriELa laughed. “Yes, she is.” She was really enjoying herself for the first time in weeks. They continued discussing how different the Earth females were.

“What are you doing here?” a loud male voice demanded.

AriELa jumped in her seat. She glanced up into the stormy eyes of TarAK. “Why are you yelling at me?” The other two males took offense to TarAK’s tone. They stood and acted as if they were ready to pounce.

TarAK growled at the two males. How dare they flirt with AriELa? She was a Prima, far above them. They weren’t worthy to wipe the sand from her shoes. “You will leave and never speak to Prima AriELa again,” TarAK ordered.

AriELa was livid. How dare he interrupt her meal and then order males away from her? He had no right to do that. She stood and pushed at his chest, which did not make him step back as she hoped. He was too strong for that.

“Back off, TarAK! AtOM and LanER were keeping me company during my Evening Meal. You’re the only one not welcome here.” She glared at him.

TarAK grabbed AriELa by the arm and started to drag her out of the Meal Room. The two males reached for TarAK prepared to take him down as everyone around them watched the scene unfold.
This was turning into a catastrophe.

“Wait, AtOM, LanER. We need to all calm down. I’ll leave with TarAK.”

The two males reluctantly backed away from TarAK. “If he hurts you in any way, let us know and we will break his legs,” LanER said with a serious face.

She giggled. She couldn’t help it. “I will tell you immediately if he transgresses against me.”

TarAK harrumphed as he pulled AriELa behind him out of the Meal Room. He didn’t say anything until they got inside the blue lift, which was designated for the seventh and eighth floors only.

“What were you thinking?” he demanded of her.

“I was enjoying my meal with friends.”

TarAK took a step closer to her making her back up against the wall of the elevator. “They were not thinking friendly thoughts of you, AriELa. They were thinking of sexual ones.”

AriELa shook her head. “That’s not true. How would you know that?”

“Any male would think sexual thoughts about you. You are a beautiful female.” TarAK was within an inch of her.

She could feel his warm breath. Her brain seemed to get stuck on one thought. “You think I’m beautiful?”

TarAK emitted a low sexual growl without thinking. Her scent was getting to him, fogging up his mind. This was a mistake, being inside a small enclosure alone with her. He didn’t mean to lean forward, but he did. He was an inch away from her lips. He could taste her sweet breath. Then the doors to the elevator opened and ended the spell he had been under. He jerked away from her.

“Go to your suite, Prima.” He gently pushed her out of the elevator and hit the close button.
Kitana, I’m in trouble
.

“What in Kitana?” AriELa stood there staring at the closed door of the elevator. She couldn’t believe what just happened. TarAK had said she was beautiful and he acted jealous that she was spending time with other males. He almost kissed her then walked away from her. She wasn’t sure what she was angrier about; him suddenly acting jealous or him
not
kissing her.

She made her way back to her suite. She needed to forget what happened. He was probably just feeling bad from being rejected by Cassie. It didn’t mean anything. That’s what she told herself over and over as she prepared for bed, but she still dreamed of him when she went to sleep.

*****

She was back in the Meal Room eating with AtOM and LanER. TarAK came in and fought the other two males. The other males suddenly disappeared and TarAK sat down across from her. They talked about all kinds of things. They laughed and smiled just like any other couple.

The lights in the Meal Room faded and suddenly there were stars above them. TarAK reached out and caressed her hand. AriELa smiled at him shyly. “TarAK,” she whispered his name.

She leaned across the table at the same time he did. Their lips met with soft, gentle touches. TarAK pulled her closer with one hand by gently cupping the back of her head. AriELa groaned from the pleasure his kiss brought.

The next thing she knew, TarAK pulled her across the table and pushed her onto her back. He stood between her legs and leaned over her. All their clothes faded away and they were skin to skin.

“AriELa,” he moaned her name as he trailed kisses down her neck. His large hands squeezed her breasts and played with her nipples.

She wanted more. She needed more. She arched her back, offering her breasts to his demanding lips. He suckled her causing a rising heat within her. An ache grew in her lower stomach. She felt desperate. Her hips rose up against him without her thinking about it. He ground himself against her and started a rippling effect within her. Her inner muscles clamped down.

“TarAK!” she called out as she released.

*****

AriELa awoke, drenched in sweat. Her dream seemed so real. Her body still tingled from her dream-induced release. She never felt like that before, it was so strange and unnerving.

A knock sounded at her door. “AriELa, are you okay?”

Oh Kitana!
Her aunt must have heard her call out. “I’m fine. Just had a bad dream.”

“Do you need anything to drink?”

“I’ll take a quick shower and then come out to get something.”

“Okay. I’ll be out here for you if you need me.”

“Thanks, Aunt SandELa.”

AriELa went to take a shower. Her body felt sensitive. She lathered up her sponge with a specially made all natural cleanser that smelled of the ocean, fresh and clean. It felt good to have the warm water run down her skin.

When she finished and got dressed, she went out to the main part of the suite. Her aunt was sitting at the kitchen table with two glasses of the green water from Katiera’s water supply. She pushed the glass forward when AriELa sat down.

“Do you want to talk about your nightmare?” her aunt asked her while giving her a piercing look.

Uh oh
. She knew it wasn’t the truth. “No. It was more disturbing than a nightmare. How are RendEL and Cassie doing?” She wanted to change the subject in the worst way.

SandELa let it slide. “Ren had some good news.”

“What?”

“They are going to mate officially.”

“That’s wonderful news. We can help her plan the ceremony.” AriELa’s eyes brightened with excitement.

SandELa nodded her head. “I offered our assistance and Cassie was grateful.”

“Will her friend, Captain Malone, want to help with the planning?”

SandELa laughed. “I don’t think so. KydEL is keeping her and the other female warriors busy.”

AriELa smiled. “I heard about the training session on the beach. I shared the Evening Meal with a couple of the warriors. Captain Malone knocked Kyd on his backside.”

SandELa looked shocked. “But she is so much smaller than he is. She is even smaller than Katieran women. That is amazing.”

“I want to ask her if she would be willing to train me,” AriELa said carefully, not sure how her aunt was going to react.

“You want her to train you to be a warrior?”

“Not a warrior. I think that would take years to train for, but I would love to learn how to protect myself. I think it would be important for all our females to be able to do that.”

SandELa slowly nodded her head as she thought about what AriELa said. “If our females had learned some form of defense, we may not have been easy prey to the invasion by the Morins all those years ago. Many of our females were either taken, killed, or infected with the virus.”

“That’s what I was thinking. Maybe Captain Malone and the other female warriors would agree to offer classes for all our females.”

“There may be some resistance from KydEL and RendEL. Our males are very protective and may take offense, thinking that our females do not believe in their abilities to defend us,” SandELa told her.

“They can’t protect us all the time.”

“Perhaps we could speak with Cassie first. It would be easier to convince RendEL if Cassie was behind the idea.”

AriELa smiled at her aunt. “That’s a great idea.”

There was a short pause as both women took a sip of their water. “So tell me about the two warriors you shared Evening Meal with.”

AriELa blushed. “It was AtOM and LanER. They were very pleasant and fun to be around. Then TarAK came and ruined it all.”

SandELa raised an eyebrow up at her. “TarAK? How did he ruin your fun?”

“We were laughing and talking. Then TarAK comes up to the table and orders me back to my suite. He accuses AtOM and LanER of flirting with me, which is ridiculous.”

“Were they?”

AriELa shrugged. “I don’t know, maybe. It’s none of his business.”

“I’ve known TarAK for a long time. His mother was a good friend of mine. Do you want me to speak with him?”

AriELa shook her head. “No, it doesn’t matter now. I told him that it wasn’t his business.”

SandELa gave her a shrewd look. “Was he jealous?”

AriELa thought back to TarAK’s reaction and it did fit.
Was he jealous? Did it matter?
She shrugged her shoulders
.

Chapter Five

The arrival EWG (Earth World Government) to verify the conditions and treatment of the Earth females was anticipated, but it also brought some unexpected problems to Katiera, several to be dealt with actually.

AriELa stood with her Aunt SandELa and her three cousins, RendEL, KydEL, and SydEL. Cassie remained in her suite with TarAK guarding over her. This was the first time she had seen Earth males. They seemed to range in all different ages and sizes. They were smaller in build than Katieran males. AriELa wasn’t impressed with them.

Her eyes caught on an Earth female making her way to them. She was about the same height as Katieran females with golden brown hair. KydEL turned to her and her aunt letting them know who the female was. “That’s Lindsey Carreli, the Katieran Advisor for Earth Relations that we hired back on Earth.”

“Miss Carreli, welcome to Katiera,” RendEL greeted the Earth female with the Earth’s strange custom of shaking hands. AriELa had never seen that before. Then Ren introduced Miss Carreli to AriELa and her aunt.

Miss Carreli had brought her own family with her to Katiera, which included her little sister, Lisa, and her father, Leo. AriELa noticed her aunt was touching her hair and she blushed when she looked at the older Earth male.
Interesting.

AriELa was drawn to the little girl. She was absolutely adorable. She asked RendEL, “Are you really a prince?” From RendEL’s quick explanation, a prince was the same as a Prime and a princess was the same as a Prima.

While her aunt took Miss Carreli’s father and sister up to their suite, AriELa remained with RendEL. She would show Miss Carreli to her suite after the introductions were made with the EWG. She was curious about the other female. Her cousins seemed to respect her opinion a great deal.

Tensions were high throughout the day. The Earth male who had gotten Cassie with young was now on Katiera. Which had her cousin, KydEL, keeping a close eye on RendEL to prevent him from going after the Earth male.

Then the unexpected visitor also arriving with the EWG, a Senator Rowe, turned out to be the father of Erica Rowe, who briefly dated RendEL. She hadn’t taken it well when RendEL told her he was going to pursue Cassie. The female attacked Cassie in public. One of the Katieran Laws stated plainly that females and young are to be protected at all times. For the Earth female to endanger the life of a precious young could have resulted in her own death. RendEL took a different approach by having her confined to her suite until she could be returned to Earth. However, now her father had come to Katiera and he was demanding to see his daughter. Things had just got a lot more complicated.

*****

An hour and a half later, AriELa showed Miss Carreli to her suite where her family was waiting. She took the opportunity to ask her some questions, “Miss Carreli, are all females on Earth treated with equal respect as the males?”

“For the most part. There are still areas of the world that pay men more, give the men higher-ranking positions in the military and government. But with women far outnumbering the men on Earth, many positions have to go to the women.”

“What are the males like on Earth?”

Miss Carreli laughed. “Men are almost the same everywhere you go. You’ll find good men, bad men, weak men, strong men, men who treat you like they think they are your father, and men who want you to treat them like you were their mother. They’re just…men.”

AriELa wasn’t sure about all she was saying. She didn’t have a lot of experience with men. None, in fact. She was as untouched as the rare and delicate lotus bloom on the fourth quadrant Luna. No one touches it in fear of making it die. Yet without touch, the lotus bloom lives a shorter shelf life than all other plants in the Katieran Solar System.

She parted ways with Miss Carreli and headed back to her suite. On her way to the eighth floor, she encountered TarAK, who had been tasked as Cassie’s security while the EWG was on Katiera, being relieved from duty by RendEL.

She nodded her head but didn’t talk to him. She could feel his eyes following her all the way down the hallway, but he didn’t approach. That was the story of her life. Men might look at her, but they didn’t come near her. It hurt and made her angry at the same time.