I had no retort for that.
“I wish to know what dishonor you would lay at my feet.”
“You are well aware of your actions. Or perhaps there is a short-term memory problem here on Trion?”
Tark released my arms and I covered them with my own hands instantly in a sorry attempt to hold in his heat. He moved to a chair, sat down and leaned back, stretching his long legs out before him. Placing his elbows on the armrests, he put his hands together. “I have a perfect memory, mate. Now, tell me what displeases you.”
I sighed. Perhaps all men, no matter which planet they were born on, were obtuse.
“Did you forget that you’d just fucked me when you sent for another?”
His eyebrow arched then. “I requested another woman? Who?”
While Mara didn’t like me, I didn’t want to get her angrier. I felt like I was tattling like a child, but Mara hadn’t gone off in search of Tark, she’d been requested. I was only stating fact.
“Mara.”
Tark frowned. “Now your earlier statement about Mara makes sense. But Mara belongs to Davish, and I assure you, even if she did not, she would not be a woman I would request.”
It was my turn to frown. I was starting to feel a little uncomfortable, as my anger was quickly falling away. My insecurities were beginning to show. I looked down at the patterned rug.
“Oh.” I replayed the scene from memory. The harem guard had not mentioned Tark when he told Mara to go. Just he. That he had obviously been her mate, Davish.
What a bitch.
Through my lashes I saw him shake his head slowly. “I sent for the woman I wanted, and she refused me.”
My head came up then. He crooked his finger, beckoning me closer. I swallowed as I stepped toward him, the rug soft beneath my bare feet.
“Do men on Earth claim any woman they want?”
I shook my head. “No.”
“Do men on Earth have no honor?”
Tark put his hands on my hips and pulled me to stand between his parted knees. The hot feel of his grasp made me gasp.
I shrugged. “Some do not.”
“I assume you have only had interactions with the dishonorable sort?”
I looked at his forearms, thick and corded with muscle, covered with dark hair.
“Some.”
“Are you familiar with what a harem is?” he asked.
I glanced up at him, his dark eyes clear and focused on me. The anger was gone, from both of us.
“They had them on Earth a long time ago. Certain cultures allowed a man to have several—many—women just for himself. A harem was the name used to include all of his women, but also it could be the place where they remained until called upon to service his needs.”
“I now see the problem we have.” His thumbs stroked up and down the top of my thighs, working the thin material of my slip higher and higher until he stroked over bare skin.
“A harem on Trion is a place, well-guarded and fortified, where a woman stays when a man cannot offer protection. Each of the women you met belongs to someone, just as Mara belongs to Davish and you—” he leaned forward and placed a kiss on my abdomen, “—belong to me.”
The way he said you belong to me caused a little brightness of hope to flare to life. “I thought—”
“I know what you thought. I’ve told you my name, but I did not tell you that I am high councilor. I am sure there is a similar role on Earth, perhaps with a different title. I am the leader of the northern continent and the seven armies. We are here at Outpost Nine for the annual general meeting of the planet’s other councilors. Each of us represents a different region or area of the planet.”
“We have something similar on earth, but each country has a leader. There is not a leader for all of Earth.”
“And are all countries equal on your world? Or do some hold more power than others?”
“There are a few large countries that control almost everything.”
“That is how it is here as well. My region is the most powerful and the largest. Do you now understand the importance of my role and the danger that follows both me and my mate? Yesterday, I wished to shield you from all the curiosity.”
I bit my lip. “Curiosity?”
“Politics would demand that I select a woman from Trion as my mate, but I refused many offers. I waited for an interstellar bride because I did not want a political match. I wanted someone who would be mine, and mine alone, with no political agenda and no ulterior motives. I wanted a woman who would be a perfect match for me, the man. As you are.”
I tilted my head, but all the fear, all the worry was gone. “How can you be so sure?”
“I knew the moment the transfer was complete.”