Her Mate and Master (Zandian Masters 6)

Talia had chosen to come back here. She didn’t appear to be under duress.

He slid into a booth in the corner to watch her, forcing himself to wait. Stars help any being who laid a finger on her, though. He wouldn’t be able to stand by if any being disrespected her.

She worked steadily through wave after wave of customers, until finally the place quieted down.

He sensed the exact moment she spotted him, the air in the tavern seeming to leave through the doors, the din of voices changing to a loud buzz. Or was that the blood rushing in his ears?

They locked gazes, her pouty lips falling open with what he imagined must be a gasp. She untied her smock and removed it, never breaking eye contact with him. She’d showered since he’d seen her last, and her reddish-brown hair fell in thick, glossy waves, which bounced and swayed in time with her hips as she crossed the room to him. His cock thickened in his pants, and he had to shift to accommodate it.

Talia arrived at his table and leaned both hands on it, staring down at him. Her breasts fell forward, pressed together by the frame of her arms as if presented just for his mouth.

He nearly trembled from the effort it took not to move, not to yank her down onto his lap and bite her neck. “Hello, starshine.”

Her chin wobbled, and he cursed himself for being responsible for the vulnerability he saw there. “What are you doing here?” she asked warily. “You promised to let me go.”

He attempted a nonchalant shrug. “I promised to let you, but I didn’t say I wouldn’t follow you anywhere and everywhere you went.”

Her long-lashed eyes widened. “What does that mean?”

“It means I’m yours, beautiful. I promised to serve. I’m not quitting just because we’re off Zandia.”

She folded her arms across her chest, but not before he saw her nipples protruding beneath the fabric. “What about your prince? Did he send you?”

“No. I left his service. You’re the only being I serve now.” He finall

y permitted himself to reach for her, looping an arm around her waist and pulling her onto his lap.

“Tomis...what do you mean?” Her breathless voice so close to his ear made it hard to concentrate.

“I mean you’re mine, starshine. Whether you like it or not. I may not have pierced you yet, but I claimed you back at that waterfall, and nothing will keep me away from you.”

She wrapped a fist around one of his horns, and a shudder of pleasure made him yank her ass over his cock.

“You’d better know that touching me there is going to end with you getting vecked mercilessly against the first hard surface I can find,” he growled.

She squeezed and tugged on the horn, and he nearly came in his pants. “What about my father?” she breathed in his ear. “And Prince Zander? What about the battle to take back Zandia?”

He captured the back of her head, holding her still as he grazed her neck with his teeth. “What about them?”

“You’re leaving all that? For me?”

He bit down on the juncture of her neck and shoulder, hard enough to leave a mark. “That’s right, beautiful.”

She drew in a shuddering breath and he smelled, with horror, the scent of her tears.

“Starshine, no. Don’t cry. Please, baby.”

“You’d really give that all up for me?” She leaned her forehead against his.

“Yes. My life is nothing without you. Say you’ll wear my crystal, Talia. Let me be your mate.”

“Yes,” she sniffed, pressing her body even closer to his.

He inhaled her scent, smelling the soap from her shower and underneath it, her own unique essence, sweet and wild. “I never should have pretended I’d give you up. It would have been an impossibility, even if I’d wanted to. You’re mine. You’ll always be mine.”

“You’re mine, too.” She squeezed his horn. “And I require servicing.”

Tomis attacked her mouth, biting her lower lip, twining his tongue with hers. “Veck, female. I thought my need for you would relax once we were off-planet. But it’s only worse.”