“Thank you all for your kindness to Lady Deston, but she is weary from her transport. I must take her back to our quarters now for some much-needed rest.”
They all nodded agreement and Dare wrapped his arm around my waist and led me from the room in almost the exact same way Captain Hendry had led Anne. He towered over me, but he didn’t remove his hand as we walked the hallway back to our quarters.
The walls shifted from a dark orange, to blue, then back to the familiar cream-colored brown that I knew meant we were close to our private quarters. As we approached, my thoughts turned to Zane. He was in charge of the entire outer space army, the same army that protected Earth and all the member worlds? He was the leader of all of it?
And more important, would he be in our quarters, waiting for me? What was I going to be dealing with when those doors opened and I stepped inside?
Dare must have felt the muscles along my spine tense as we drew nearer.
“The commander will be on the command deck all night. We arrive at the front soon. I have a few hours before I must report for duty. He will return for you then. We will always care for you, Hannah. You will never be alone or unprotected, not while we live.”
“Yes, but you might die. Both of you. I can’t give myself to a man—to two men—who willingly put their lives in danger.”
“You are a bride of Prillon, Hannah. To be sent here means you are like us, you seek the harsh edges of life, Hannah. You enjoy a sharp bite of fear or pain, that hint of danger.”
I remembered the dream and the hand about my throat. It hadn’t been real, but I’d felt it. I’d liked it, being tied down, submitting to not one man but two, his power over me evident in the way he touched me.
“I see by the flush on your cheeks that you admit this is true.” When I was about to speak, he held up his hand, tucked a finger around his collar. “You can’t hide it. Perhaps Zane may choose to deny it as well, for fear of hurting you, but I can see it clearly. You were matched to Prillon because of our prowess, in bed and in battle. If we weren’t warriors, you wouldn’t want us. You must relent and trust in the match.”
“Yes, but…” I began, but bit my lip.
Dare cocked his head. “What?”
I tugged at my collar. “I sense… I sense he’s holding back.”
Dare’s eyebrows went up at that. “He’s commander. He has many secrets.”
The answer was vague, but probably true. Was I feeling a wall so that Zane didn’t share the horrors of his job? It was a worthy question, so I just nodded in reply. I would need time to consider and, perhaps, more time with Zane.
“Now then,” Dare said, coming up beside me, stroking his knuckles over my cheek. “Both of your mates need not be present to continue your training. No Zane tonight, just me.”
I hated myself a little bit as my entire body relaxed at the news. Zane was so big, so intense, and so damn hard to resist. The connection with him was even more powerful than with Dare. I didn’t want to deal with my fears where he was concerned, for that strong connection also meant strong fear that I would disappoint him. That idea is what tore me up inside.
Was I drawn to Zane because he was a warrior? It made no sense, for all my experience with men on earth made me run from their false dominance. I had learned the hard way that, more often than not, their concerns had always been selfish ones. With warriors of Prillon Prime, however, I knew what I felt through the collar could not be faked.
I didn’t want to deal with my emotions where Zane was concerned. They were still too raw. A yawn threatened to escape me, but Dare’s next words ruined the soft, contented feeling.
“We only have a few weeks to prepare you for the claiming, and I am not the kind of warrior to neglect my mate.”
Chapter Nine
Hannah
Dare opened the door to our quarters and waited for me to precede him into the room. The moment the door slid closed, my gentle and considerate companion disappeared.
“I know Zane is being careful with you.”
I turned to him and frowned. So, Zane had been holding back? I’d felt it, through our connection, but having Dare confirm it made me feel uneasy. It was hard to believe because the fucking, God, the fucking, had been incredible. What else did Zane want from me that I hadn’t given him? What else did he need from me? I’d given them everything. I’d given him everything—but my heart. That was still my own. “Why would Zane—I mean…?”
“Zane believes you are too soft, too small to take our cocks the way we want to fuck you.” Dare leaned over and tipped my chin up with his fingers. “I will not be so soft, mate. I need your body prepared for me.” He kissed me then, softly, so sweetly that his words took an extra moment to register. “I do not want to wait any longer than necessary to claim what is mine.”