Her Mate and Master (Zandian Masters 6)

Not. His.

She was the daughter of Seke, his mentor. The male who’d been like a father to him after his escape from Zandia. He had no right to veck with Seke over rights to his female offspring.

“We’ll see about that,” she muttered, and another twist of foreboding tickled his nape.

But he was Talia’s protector, whether she liked it or not. He’d keep her safe. Even if he had to keep her prisoner to do it.

Chapter Two

So it isn’t true that there are no Zandian females of childbearing age?

King Fluut had taunted Master Seke with this question when he’d threatened to kill her.

The idea had made goose bumps stand up on her arms then, and her skin crawled even more now that Tomis had confirmed how badly they wanted her.

If he thought she was sticking around to become a breeder for the Zandian species, he was sorely mistaken. She hadn’t escaped a lifetime of slavery to become sexually enslaved to a different master, even if this one did have the same color skin as her.

No thank you.

While she appreciated the rescue from King Fluut, she needed to cut ties with Tomis as soon as possible. There was no way she’d allow him to take her to his Prince Zander or the male he claimed was her father. That story could be a giant hoax to make her come along without a fight. He painted some kind of happy family reunion, when, really, Seke could be nobody to her. She had no memory of a father. Of a family. A sister. Nothing. The language wasn’t familiar to her. Nothing had jogged any memories loose of Zandia or their species.

Talia. Ray turned the name over in her mind. It rang no bells. Was she the female Tomis believed her to be? Part of her didn’t want to completely reject his story. Especially considering how appealing she found the male.

He carried her like she weighed nothing, weaving through the underground corridor for kilometer after kilometer. He was an incredible specimen of malehood. Broad-shoulders, iron-muscled, and, yet, so gentle. The worst he’d done was deliver a few slaps to her ass. Which, unfortunately, had thrilled her. She wished to hell she knew if his story was true.

But she couldn’t risk following

him blindly.

After several hours, Tomis reached what appeared to be a dead end. He placed her lightly on her feet.

“Did you take a wrong turn?”

“No. I memorized every map of our planet before I came. We should be outside the city walls now. This must be the exit.”

Our planet.

That much was true. No matter what she believed about her species, this planet certainly was hers. Her body had responded the moment she arrived, strengthening. Ripening.

Tomis ran his hands along the stone wall.

She joined him. “What are we looking for?”

“A small lever or catch made of metal. That’s what I found when we entered.”

Her fingers brushed over a protrusion. “I found it.” She lifted it, but nothing happened. Tomis’ large hand closed over hers and, together, they pressed it down. She ignored the flutters of excitement that ran through her at his mere touch. It must be the crystals making her body more sensitive because sensation seemed to shoot up her arm, straight to her chest like tiny prickles of heat. Or awareness.

What if she tried this male before escaping him? What was the harm in that? She’d managed to keep her virginity all these years—it was the one thing she could say for Thurn as a master. He’d protected her sexually—never allowed the males they served in the tavern to touch her. Why, she couldn’t fathom. He could’ve made a great deal more money selling her body than using her as a barmaid. Perhaps because he’d raised her from childhood, he’d kept some semblance of protectiveness for her.

But now that she was on Zandia, she had no interest in maintaining her maidenhead. Her body desperately craved the feel of a hot-blooded male between her legs. To satisfy the ache that grew worse every day.

She didn’t have the slightest clue how to seduce this male, though. He hadn’t shown any interest in claiming her. No—that wasn’t true. She’d felt his cock pressing against her back earlier. She tilted her ass backward as a wall of stone rolled aside, but it was too late to catch his attention. Tomis was in warrior mode, pulling her behind him as he peered around the wall into the starlit night. The corridor had been hidden in the crevice of a giant boulder, blending into the natural surroundings. They appeared to be in an unsettled area of Zandia.

“Stay here,” he breathed, pushing her back into the corridor as he crept out silently, arms bent at the ready to smash any foes. She wondered why he didn’t use the laser gun at his hip.

There was no way she was staying in the tunnel, though. What if the entryway rolled shut and she got locked in there alone? She had no way of navigating that maze or finding another exit.

She followed, keeping her footsteps slow to avoid making sound. Could she outrun the male?