Surrender (5 page)

“I don’t follow orders at all,” he responded, hitching one booted foot on the bedrail.

She drew in a deep breath, an action that caused her breasts to rise, spilling even farther over the low-cut neckline of her gown. “Then we shall have to change that.”

Jarek barked a laugh. “Kira, I’m a king. I will never obey you.”

The awareness of his body made her tingle. She watched his big hands clench at his sides, and the image of those same hands splayed over her flesh sent goose bumps galloping down her spine. “Then we have a problem. I know you don’t want anything to happen to Devlin.”

He inclined his head, and a lock of sandy brown hair slipped over one eye. He brushed it away with a casual sweep of his hand, which created a tight fullness in the center of Kira’s stomach.

“Devlin will be fine, Kira.”

“Are you so conceited that you would risk his life?”

Jarek’s foot dropped to the floor, and he strolled toward her, much too casually for her liking. He stopped when he stood mere inches away from her. A flush covered her skin, and Kira resisted the urge to fan herself.

He flicked the small ribbon of lace hanging between her breasts. “You should always make it your responsibility to learn about your enemies, my sweet.” He chuckled low in his throat, and Kira caught her breath. His eyes hypnotized her, and she swayed toward the heat of his body.

“I know enough,” she whispered.

“Apparently not. As God of the Air, Devlin exists within the atmosphere. You cannot kill him or exile him. In fact, you cannot make him do anything he doesn’t want to do.”

His fingers caressed her neck, and for a moment, confusion clouded her brain. She was supposed to be in charge, the one calling all the shots. Why was it, then, that she couldn’t speak or move?

“Do you remember my challenge to you, Kira?”

He expected her to think now? She swallowed hard and tried to formulate a response. “I’m in control here,” she managed on a croak.

Jarek chuckled before he leaned in and brushed his lips over the pulse jumping in her neck. “Do you have any idea how beautiful you are?”

Kira knew then that her control had vanished, but she put up a good fight anyway. “Stop trying to seduce me.”

He lifted one eyebrow, and Kira saw the smirk before he responded, “Is that not what you wanted when you came to me in the dungeon? Was I mistaken, then?”

Her breath whooshed out of her lungs. She’d wanted to be the aggressor, to take what he didn’t offer, but in the end, did it really matter who took whom?

She grasped a fistful of his hair and dragged his head to her lips. She wanted him, and she would have him.

Chapter Four

Set’s fury burned within his veins as he watched his daughter take hold of the king of Timara. How dare she betray him like this? When she’d said she wanted children, he’d brushed aside her comments, believing it to be an idle thought. He never expected her to defile her body by lying with an enemy. Had she not thought of the dishonor it would bring to Enun?

Spitting on the ground, he felt the anger building. Perhaps he had allowed Kira too much power. He should have tightened the reins a bit more. Now, with her belief that she owned Timara, she would be unstoppable, at least by the gods under her rule.

He felt his wife’s call, and a part of him hated her for this weakness enveloping her body. He needed her to be strong for him, for Kira.

As he walked away from the erotic scene unfolding scant inches away from his eyes, he cursed the day he’d convinced Kira she belonged there. He should have kept her in ignorance as he’d done most of the women under his rule.

Or he should have waited until she’d reached maturity and then taken her for his own, instead of raising her as a daughter. Now that his wife lay dying, he would need another to fill her shoes. Kira would have done quite nicely, but she saw him as her father. He’d allowed it.

He cursed the air vividly and sprang up into the dense atmosphere. No matter. Mistakes were easily corrected.

Her passion slammed against his skin, stealing his breath. Jarek wrapped his arms tightly around Kira’s lithe body and drew her closer, closer, until they burned heart to heart.

“Take me now, King,” she demanded in a breathless voice.

He threw her on the bed. “You would have me grovel.”

Kira propped herself up on her elbows and pinned him with eyes he could drown in. “I would have you any way I could.”

Jarek released the catch on his leather pants. “So be it.”

She licked her lips, and Jarek watched the desire cloud her eyes. He lowered his pants past his thighs, and his cock sprang up, hard and heavy. Her lids came down to half-mast, and she watched him disrobe completely.

“This is my decision,” she whispered.

Jarek heard the doubt in her voice, and his lips tilted up in a half smile. “As you say, my queen.” His knee dropped to the mattress. If she needed to think she was in charge to salve her conscience, he’d allow that. For now, all that mattered was touching her, caressing her skin, and sinking into her warmth.

“Are you not going to rid yourself of these cumbersome clothes?” He fingered the hem of her gown, inching it ever so slowly up over her thighs, hearing the slight intake of her breath, while his father’s words played over and over in his mind like a litany.
She is your queen. She is your queen.

Her back arched like a graceful feline’s, and Jarek caught a glimpse of satin. His fingers tiptoed beneath the flimsy material. Her softness beckoned him. “I want to taste you.” He didn’t give her time to consider the offer as he propelled himself farther down the bed.

Kira tugged her panties down over her thighs before dropping them to her ankles. Kicking them free of her legs, she opened her thighs to accept the breadth of his shoulders. Her hands clenched in the sheets, and when he kissed the inside of her thigh, she moaned low in her throat.

“No orders. No commands, Kira. Just you. And me.” As he spoke, he punctuated his words with wet kisses against her skin. Her scent, a musky blend of sex and heat, intoxicated him. His tongue flicked the petals of her sex, and her knees fell open farther in blatant invitation.

He dove into her, nuzzling, nipping, and licking until Kira screamed his name, fisted her hands in his hair, and bucked beneath him. She surrounded him with warm, feminine skin and creamy silkiness, and he knew at that moment he was lost.

How could this woman entice him so much? She was supposed to be the enemy, and yet, all he could think of right now was filling her, feeling her pussy stretch to accommodate his thickness. Another flick of his tongue had her squirming beneath him, and he pressed his face closer to her, savoring the sweet taste.

Enraptured. Captivated. Completely out of control. Somehow, he’d lost the upper hand, and when she finally came, pleading and screaming his name, he committed his father’s words to heart. She was his queen. This wild, defiant goddess would be his.

The decision made, he rose up over her and thrust into her tight, wet sheath until her body fully enveloped his cock. As he stared into her upturned face, their gazes locked.

Kira stiffened, her mouth opening slightly. This sweet perfection. She’d never experienced such a thing before. It felt natural. Right. Her breath hitched. Like they were right where they belonged.

The connection was more than sexual. It was a powerful, magnetic union of bodies and souls as if they melded into one being. And it terrified her.

Jarek saw the realization dawn on her face, and he stilled. “Kira, this is meant to be. You. Me. Here. Like this. You are my destiny.”

Fear engulfing her, Kira started pushing him away frantically. “No!”

Pulling away from her, he allowed her to scramble to the top of the bed, dragging the sheets with her. “I don’t know what in the hell you’re talking about, Jarek, but it’s not funny.”

“Do you see me laughing? I am not any happier about this than you are, but the second your body connected with mine, you felt our union.” Just as his father had told him. Dragging a hand through his hair, he came to the edge of the bed and sat down. “Kira, I—”

“No. Stop.” Kira’s voice held a wealth of bitterness. “What did you mean when you said I am your destiny?”

“My father told me the woman who would be my queen would come on the day of his ascension. I didn’t want to believe you were the woman he spoke about, but I’ve known from the first moment I saw you. There was something different about you, different from any other woman I’ve ever known.”

“Well, I’m glad you know, but that doesn’t mean I do. I don’t have to believe this nonsense.”

As he watched her fight the inner battle, he felt sorry for her. She would rebel against it as he had, but with each touch, her body would meld to his. This was what his father had explained to him over the past few years—the same way Lamar had joined with Jarek’s mother.

“Did your father not tell you that each of us has a soul mate, a person who is part of our destiny?”

“No, he didn’t.” Sliding back against the mattress, Kira let out a shaky sigh. “I don’t think he believes that.”

“Then he is a fool. A god who proclaims himself a ruler should know that our destinies are decided long before we are born. It was Set’s responsibility to inform you of yours.”

“Timara was supposed to be my destiny.”

Her lower lip trembled, and for a brief moment, Jarek thought she might actually cry, but then her shoulders squared, and she looked him squarely in the eye. “Besides, my father chose not to pay attention to the idle chatter of old women with nothing better to do than conjure unimaginative tales.” The words ceased abruptly. “Destiny is a myth. You have no basis on which to believe otherwise.”

“No? Then tell me what you felt when my body joined with yours.”

He watched the heat flood her face and knew she wouldn’t respond, at least not truthfully.

Breasts heaving, Kira lowered her head, silky hair sweeping over her face like a curtain. “I can’t believe this is happening.”

Standing, Jarek reached for his pants, pausing to look over his shoulder. “Deny it if you will, Kira, but this is what brought you to Timara, not your father.”

She placed her fingers against her lips and shook her head.

He finished dressing and turned to face her once more. He expelled a sharp breath and stalked toward the door. “Our destinies are united, and they will no longer be denied.”

Destiny? The word resounded like the clatter of a bell inside her head. Jarek truly believed they were connected by the Fates?

Impossible. He was mad, and his belief could not be proven. But the way he’d raced out of his chambers assured her that he was more than serious. And did he honestly expect her to be sitting here waiting for him when he returned? She needed to get out of here now, but the trouble was, her body wasn’t cooperating.

Kira’s fingers shook as they readjusted her gown and slipped her panties back up over her thighs. She lingered for a moment, brushing her palm over her damp mound. As much as she wanted to deny the truth, she knew that, for a brief moment, she’d touched a man’s soul.

She’d always thought the scribe’s words were a myth, thereby allowing fathers to choose their daughters’ mates while proclaiming them soul mates. It allowed the men to retain power over their women. She’d never actually seen evidence, and besides, it only happened to gods of infinite virtue, integrity, and honor. That was one mold she certainly didn’t fit. Destiny, if that was indeed what it was, rarely had time for the misfits.

Could this have been some kind of trickery? Had Jarek somehow managed to shake her foundations in such a way that she would doubt her own beliefs?

Soul mates.

The words burned in Kira’s mind, and she didn’t want to believe it. Yet the connection she’d felt when Jarek’s cock had slipped inside her had been real. Tangible.

As much as she wanted to claim this as fantasy, she already knew the truth.

When Jarek’s body had claimed hers, she’d touched his soul.

And they’d become one.

Jarek didn’t know whether to curse his fortune or be grateful for it. Either way, destiny had given him a queen he would have to tame. He gave no thought to his disheveled appearance as he stormed down the stairs into the dungeon where he should have stayed. He found Devlin sitting on the bottom steps, his chin in his hands with a morose look on his face.

“The chains were too easy,” Devlin muttered. A god with immeasurable skill, Devlin prided himself on being able to escape the inescapable, including chains no ordinary god could break.

Jarek smacked his shoulder. “Not now, old man. We have another problem, and a much bigger one at that.”

Devlin leaped to his feet and dusted off the back of his trousers. “We do?”

Jarek waved him up the stairs, leading the way.

“This wouldn’t have anything to do with Kira, would it?”

“It has everything to do with Kira.”

“I thought the two of you had gone to your chambers to scrog.”

Flicking the god a sharp glance over his shoulder, Jarek continued on his way. “That’s precisely the problem.”

Devlin’s face cleared instantly before he winced. “Ah. Yes, well, you should not be too concerned, Jarek. You’ve been under a lot of stress. I mean, the woman did try to take over your kingdom. ’Tis only natural that you would have difficulty arousing any feelings of passion for her.” He shrugged thin shoulders beneath his tunic top. “And my lips are forever sealed. No one need ever know.”

Jarek came to a stop, and Devlin sidestepped to avoid plowing into his back. “What in the bloody hell are you rattling on about?”

Devlin’s eyes widened. “You. I meant, your…” he coughed, “…minor, insignificant, totally understandable inability to, um…” another cough, “…complete the coupling.”

By the gods, he was being tested to extremes this day. Jarek stared at his faithful assistant, unsure whether to laugh or groan. “You think that’s what I’m on about?”

Devlin lifted both hands upwards in a gesture of surrender. “I’m certainly not trying to offend.”

“Oh, would that it were that simple, my friend. No.” Jarek wagged his finger in the air. “’Tis not the problem at all. In fact, quite the opposite. The coupling was well underway when…” he lowered his voice and leaned in closer to his advisor, “…it happened.”

Devlin pulled back instantly, a pained look on his face. “Jarek, I hardly think—”

Jarek cut him off with a slash of his hand. “Not that. The touch.” He drew in a deep breath, and at Devlin’s blank look, he plunged in. “Our souls touched, just as my father said.”

The skinny god stumbled backwards and clutched his hands together, holding them close against his heart. “By the gods.”

“No, by the Fates.” Jarek tipped his face toward the ceiling. “Fates with a definite sense of humor, damn their souls.”

Devlin snatched hold of Jarek’s arm and dragged him into the nearest alcove. “Jarek, no matter your frustration, you must not let it get the best of you. Are you sure this is what you felt when you dallied with Kira?”

Jarek clamped his hands on his hips. “Do you think I don’t know? My father found my mother exactly the same way.” He thumped his head back against the brick wall. “And he said Kira would know when our souls connected.”

Devlin’s eyes widened. “Are you sure she felt it then?”

“Oh, I’m extremely sure.” His eyes narrowed. “As sure as I am that she knows a hell of a lot more than what she’s telling me.” He took two steps away from his friend and paused to add, “Inform the other gods. Their king has found his queen.”

“Surely you don’t intend to marry her.”

Jarek continued walking. “I have no choice. Our destiny is sealed.”

Devlin trotted to keep up with him. “But, Jarek, to marry Kira is to align yourself with the enemy. Her only desire is to take over Timara.”

Jarek gave the man a lopsided grin. “Not anymore.”

As Kira paced, her fury grew. Destiny be damned. No man would own her. She whipped around and collided with Jarek’s broad chest. Her eyes blazed across his face as his hands banded around her arms.

“Release me at once.” She gave the order with an imperious tilt of her head.

“Is that the way it’s to be, then? We battle to the death?” Jarek taunted her.

“I have no interest in your fairy tales, Jarek. I don’t believe in them.”

He released her as if he’d been slapped. “How could you not believe? You felt as I did.”

“I felt what you wanted me to feel.” The lie was more to convince herself than him. She couldn’t admit what she’d felt, how she’d felt. For in doing so, she’d play right into his hands. “Is that the way you will convince me to give up what is rightfully mine? Is this some devious plan you’ve concocted to force me to bow beneath you? I will not. I have overtaken Timara, and like it or not, you are no longer ruler here.”