Mated to the Warriors(28)
“Hannah, talk to me, or I will have you over my knee.”
I squirmed at his threat, my bottom still sore from its earlier spanking and the plug still filling me. I knew he wasn’t making idle threats. I sighed, and decided I might as well tell him the truth, or at least as much of it as I could. His darkness and the hurt it caused me? I had some pride. That I would keep to myself. “I can’t be your mate, Zane. I’m sorry. I know the computer or whatever matched us, but I can’t do this.”
“You fear our deaths. I can sense your sadness, Hannah, your fear. We’re all going to die, Hannah. Death is part of life. Is it our death you fear, or is it me? Do you wish to test another? Are you invoking your right to claim a new mate?” His voice was soft, deathly quiet, and I heard Dare’s quiet footsteps as he approached from behind, listening to our conversation.
“No. I don’t want another warrior.” His grip loosened slightly and I took a deep breath. “I don’t want to be a bride. I want to go home.” I spoke from the heart, and I knew he’d hear the sincerity of my words. I couldn’t allow myself to fall in love with him. It would be a complete disaster. The idea of a perfect love, of an intense, all-consuming love, was exciting and fun and something every woman on Earth dreamed about. The reality of knowing I’d lose one of them, or both, was too intense, too much for me, especially when I knew Zane was hiding from me, that he wasn’t going to love me in return. I was scared. A chicken. I admitted it, didn’t try to deny it.
The silence grew heavy and thick in the air as I waited for his response. If I gave them everything, and one of them died, I wouldn’t survive it. I’d crumble into a million tiny pieces of dust and drift away on the wind. Faced with the very real possibility of having the kind of man I’d always wanted, the kind I could completely lose myself in, I was terrified. They would own me. Body and soul. I would belong to them, but Zane? I could sense the shadow in him, and it was growing stronger. He would hide forever. I could feel his determination through our link. And he was the commander, the most disciplined warrior in the entire interstellar fleet. If he decided to hold himself apart, there wasn’t a damn thing I could do about it. He would never truly belong to me. I couldn’t live with that.
Two beeps filled the air. “Commander.”
Zane stiffened behind me. “Yes,” he said to the room at large.
“You are needed on the command deck.” The room had some kind of ship-wide communication system.
“On my way. Deston out.”
Dare cleared his throat. “Her bath is ready.”
Zane sighed. “We’ll discuss this later, Hannah.” His arms tightened for a brief moment before he turned with me in his arms and handed me off to Dare.
Dare nodded and Zane left the room without another word. I knew I’d hurt him somehow, wounded the most formidable commander in the Prillon fleet. But he’d asked for the truth. The truth that I was petrified to be permanently tied to him and then have him die on me, or live, but never be mine. Either possibility brought me nothing but heartbreak.
“Come, Hannah. There is nowhere for you to go. Let’s set your fears aside for now. Let me help you in the bath.” Dare held out his hand and I took it, allowing him to lead me through the small door I’d glimpsed off to the side of the main room. He was right. Where was I to go? I had no clothes, no way to get home. I could tell Dare was trying to soothe me; I was overwhelmed. The conversation wasn’t over. My concerns hadn’t been resolved, but I would wait. A bath did sound good. I was sticky and sore.
It was odd to walk with the plug deep inside me. “Dare,” I said, looking anywhere but at him. “What about… um, well…”
Perhaps he had an idea as to my problem or perhaps he could sense it through the collars.
“The plug stays in. It is a training plug, not a pleasure plug.”
I frowned, for I didn’t know the difference between the two, but I could tell by the look on his face that he would not be swayed. I sighed and took in the bathroom. It wasn’t huge, but it was luxurious, with glowing white fixtures that looked like they were made of fire opals lit from within. A full tub of water awaited me. The bath was huge, large enough to easily fit two, if not all three of us. Dare tugged the sheet from my body and stripped off his uniform to reveal a chest lined with muscles, a broad strong back that tapered to thin hips and powerful legs. His cock hung, still semi-hard between his legs, the sight reminding me of his taste, of the flavor of his cum as it spilled down my throat.
“Stop looking at me like that, Hannah, or I’ll fuck that sweet mouth again.” In one fast motion, he lifted me off my feet and stepped into the warm water, immersing us both up to our shoulders in the scented bath.