The Illegitimate Claim (39 page)

Ana’s friendly threat due to present company. Ana held Curi and took Darien’s hand

then looked back up at her first assistant. She smiled, and then turned to leave with

Gilroy, but Meah understood the order. Andru was drunk, and it wouldn’t take much

to put herself in a very dangerous position. Andru held the door as the two walked out

and then turned and offered his hand to Meah.

“Shall we walk our guests out?” His gaze penetrated right through her like charged

electricity, and she felt the lightning bolt singe deep within her gut.

She looked at his hand then his eyes and knew Ana was right. He would let her

have it if she didn’t obey. With the plan she was contemplating, the best thing to do

would be to keep Andru humored. She walked over to him, and he led her out the front

door with his hand gracing the back of her neck.

After the two of them flew off, he stood there holding the back of her neck, not

moving, until she was sure he was looking down at her. She looked up and her heart

slammed in her chest at the devilish gray eyes that swarmed above her. He lowered his

lips to hers and his heat burned her mouth. She groaned in spite of her personal lectures

to remain aloof until they’d talked over their fight and that baby. Instantly, his arms

were wrapped tightly around her and he pulled her close to deepen their kiss.

“Are you going to take her right here on the front porch?” Darius laughed as Andru

pulled away and left her in a fog. “Take her upstairs, son.”

“Good idea.” Andru grinned and reached for her, before she could pull away.

When he realized she considered resisting, he yanked her up off the ground and threw

her over his shoulder.

“Andru, put me down,” she hissed, and straightened her body against his.

The slap on her rear end stung, and she howled out instinctively.

“I’ve just about had it with your telling me what to do.”

He placed her on her feet when they reached his bedroom, and she stood frozen,

not sure which direction his mood had gone. “Stay here,” he growled but his tone

wasn’t fierce.

She looked up as he walked back out his door, leaving it wide open. She heard him

open the nursery door down the hall and then his cheerful voice as he wished his

daughter a good night and then gave instructions for Paleah to stay in the room until

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morning. He then came back to his room and closed the door behind him. She met his

eyes and simply stared at him.

“Now why would you have such a worried look on your face?” There was

something in his tone that alerted her.

She straightened. He smiled and closed the distance between them. “Could it be

that you anticipate a punishment for your behavior earlier? Does my lady have a guilty

conscience?”

“I know my words upset you, but I don’t regret saying them. I won’t tell you what

to do, and you don’t tell me what to do, deal?”

“You were out of line this morning,” he growled, and his eyes darkened.

Ana wanted her to submit to him, but if she did, her point this morning would fall

on deaf ears. She couldn’t let this man control her. He would then control the Runners.

Runners wouldn’t tolerate that and inevitably it would lead to disaster.

“You tried to tell me what to do.” She cocked her head at him and put her fists on

her hips.

He looked down at her venomous blue-green eyes and her pursed red lips. They

looked absolutely kissable.

“I didn’t try. I did tell you what to do,” he said and reached for her.

She jumped from his grasp and darted to the other side of the room. Like she was

safe anywhere in the room with him there.

“Andru, you can’t order me around like that. You made it quite clear that you’d

deny your claim on me. I won’t be your mistress, that’s for damn sure.”

He straightened as she spoke and she instinctively looked around her for a means

of escape. There was none. She’d backed herself into a trap. He moved in on her

silently, put his hands on her shoulders and backed her up until he had her pinned to

the wall.

“You’re mine, Meah, and you always have been. You and your children are mine.”

His hands moved from her shoulders, across her collarbone, and to her neck. She

wore her black tank top that was common Runner apparel under the long-sleeve shirt.

In hot weather, many Runner women wore just their tank top under their leather jackets

when they traveled. Although it was made of the same bulletproof material, the amount

of skin exposed at the moment made her feel incredibly vulnerable. He loosened his

grasp on her then massaged her neck gently. His thumbs pushed under her chin and

lifted her face to his.

“I’m sorry I hurt you with the things I said, but they were necessary if I was going

to know your true feelings.” He was inches from her, and she could smell the Gothman

wine on his breath. His eyes focused on her mouth as he talked, and she felt the

incredible urge to submit to mounting desires racing through her.

“They were necessary? What are you saying?” Her voice cracked as she whispered

the words.

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“I needed to see your loyalty. And, my hot-tempered little vixen, I will teach you

how to submit.” His lips took possession of hers.

They were soft, demanding, and they scorched her with their desire. His hands

moved from her neck down to the top of her shirt. He stroked the swelling of her

breasts and fire-burning need flared to life between her legs.

She gasped as she tried to regain control of her senses. He was manipulating her,

and if she gave in she would become his property—his mistress.

“Stop it. I won’t be your mistress.” She squeezed out from under his arm, and

quickly moved toward the door.

“Then what will you be?” He grabbed her easily by the back of her pants and spun

her back around to face him.

“I am your claim,” she said defiantly, and tossed her long braid that fell over her

shoulder back behind her.

His eyebrow shot up, and a crooked smile appeared on his face. He didn’t look half

as drunk as he did a minute ago and her eyes widened. He’d tricked her. Her fury

mounted. He manipulated her into demanding to be exactly what he wanted her to be.

Hadn’t Ana told her earlier that he viewed her as his claim?

Her eyes narrowed on him, and his grin widened. He lifted her up into his arms

and held her very close with their faces level. “That’s right, you are. You’re the claim to

the heir to Gothman, and it’s about time you started acting like it.”

With that, he tossed her onto his bed and came at her quickly. Part of her wanted to

collapse into the bed and let him take her. But as badly as she wanted him, she

couldn’t—no, wouldn’t—have him like this. Okay, he’d just admitted that the claim

stood, but he wanted obedience. She knew he demanded it from everyone, and that he

usually got it. But…not her. He may feel he needed to train her to be submissive. But

the way she saw it, he needed to learn a few lessons. And it was worth the agony of

teaching them.

Meah rolled to her side quickly, and flew around him with lightning speed. He

cursed, and turned on her quickly, and she felt his fingers run through her hair when he

tried to grab her as she bolted out of the bedroom and down the hallway.

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Chapter Twenty

Meah ran through the kitchen, startling Fulga. She slammed the back door behind

her, then tore through the yard. A loud crash sounded in the kitchen, followed by

Andru cursing up a storm, as Fulga wailed in her defense. It was the half-second lead

she needed. The guards around the house had no instructions to detain her. So although

they watched her warily, no one made a move to stop her.

Dirt flew when Meah’s glider left the ground. Once airborne, she pulled her comm

from her pants pocket and fumbled with it as she worked to wrap it around her ear.

Good Crator, her hands were shaking. The way Andru took off after her—she’d only

got a glimpse of his face in her flight—but she could tell he was furious.

“Tara.”

“What do you think you’re doing?” Tara’s voice sounded harsh.

“That’s why I’m contacting you, my lady. I didn’t plan on doing it this way, but I

wanted your consent to do something. I wasn’t going to start doing it and then ask you,

but I kind of experienced a diversion.”

“I’ll say. Andru’s got Gilroy on his way over here, and he and Darius are going at it

in the kitchen. What’s going on?” Tara didn’t sound pleased.

“I don’t know what’s going on with them, unless Lord Darius is trying to talk his

son out of wasting his time with a ‘hotheaded vixen’.”

Tara chuckled. “He’d be a hypocrite to say that. No, they’re not talking about that.

They’re arguing over how to bring you back. Now tell me what you’re up to.”

“I’m going to go get Tory.”

“What? Do you know where he is?” Tara gasped.

“No, but Rog knows. And I don’t plan on going to sleep tonight until Tory is asleep

next to his sister.” Meah paused, and Tara said nothing.

She could hear some kind of commotion in the background, but was scared to ask

what was going on. “We’ve had troops search every possible hiding place and he hasn’t

turned up. I want to try a different approach. I know Rog. I worked by his side the

entire time we built the Crator temple by the ocean. There’s nothing for him to

accomplish at this point, and I thought I’d offer him an out that might help him save

face.”

“What are you planning on offering him?” Tara’s voice grew clearer, and Meah

realized the background noise had stopped.

“The chance to save his camp from complete annihilation.”

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Again, there was silence and when Tara spoke her voice was barely above a

whisper.

“Darius is calling me. I won’t be able to lie to them, so expect to be followed, but go

do what you can,” Tara said. “At least you’ll have backup—whether you want it or

not.”

Meah landed at the edge of the Neurian campsite and this time, several Neurians