Delivered by the Defender (Kindred Tales)

“It’s a love story,” Selena snapped, snatching the book from him. She’d had as much humiliation as she could stand for one day—she didn’t intend to explain her penchant for BDSM romance to the tall, dark Kindred. She should have just brought her reading tablet, she thought, where she could have read anything without the cover showing. But she’d forgotten it back on Earth and hadn’t wanted to buy a new one on the Mother Ship, so she’d grabbed a paperback instead.

“I see,” the big Kindred said neutrally. “Forgive my inquisitiveness.”

“Fine. You’re forgiven,” Selena said quickly, still refusing to meet his eyes. “I, er, I’m going to read now.”

“And I will study for my deposition,” he rumbled. “Let me know if your seatmate starts encroaching into your territory again.”

“Um, okay.” Selena didn’t know what else to say. She just sat there with her cheeks burning, reading the same sentence over and over again without seeing it and willing this awful trip to be over. Her visit to Ma’shorka Centra was turning out to be a complete disaster so far, but surely things couldn’t get worse than this!

Again, she had no idea how wrong she was.

5

Valen studied the curvy little Elite with considerably more interest than was proper. Though he had promised himself to leave her strictly alone, their brief but intimate encounter had forced him to interact with her. He could still feel her soft cheek pressed against his hard shaft. And, even aside from that, the strange cover of the book she was reading couldn’t fail to pique his curiosity.

Keeping his own device firmly in front of him, he cut his eyes to the left and studied the page he could see.

* * *

“You will do as you’re told,” my Master tells me as he tugs on my leash, forcing me to look up and meet his eyes. “You are mine now, and you must obey or suffer the consequences. If you’re a good girl, you’ll get special kisses. But if you’re bad…” He lets the words trail off ominously, implying the worst.

“Yes, Master,” I whisper, bowing my head submissively.

I will be a good girl for him—I will submit…as long as it suits me. But I know if I’m naughty, I’ll get a spanking and the thought makes me tingle, between my legs.

I can’t help picturing the results of my disobedience. My Master is very strict with me—if I’m bad, he will take me across his knee and tan my bottom with his big, hard hand until my little ass stings fiercely and my pussy is wet with desire. Then he will fuck me—taking me deep and hard to prove he owns me—until I beg him to make me come.

Sometimes the punishment is better than the reward…

* * *

This was as much as Valen could see without actually turning his head and making it obvious he was reading over the little Elite’s shoulder, but he couldn’t help being intrigued by it.

What kind of love story talked about a male spanking a female, as though she were some kind of naughty child? Kindred culture was very much against any kind of violence towards females—it was unthinkable to his people, which was one reason he deplored what he was. He had to hurt a female to get what he needed from her—it was a terrible, unforgivable thing that his nature forced him to do.

And yet, here was the little Elite, reading a book about a male hurting a female—well, maybe not hurting her in a traditional sense, but punishing her and giving her pain—and she had said it was a love story. How could anyone show love through pain? It was anathema to a Kindred male—unthinkable to hit a female. Yet the female in the book seemed to be anticipating it—and the little Elite was apparently reading it for pleasure. What was going on here?

Valen supposed he would never find out. When the shuttle docked at last in the Ma’shorkan spaceport, the little Elite was the first one up. She hastily unbuckled the belt at her lap and rose as fast as she could, climbing quickly over the Torpid’s lumpy knees and reaching into the overhead compartment to get her belongings.

Valen wondered if she would be safe in the busy spaceport where bad things had been known to happen to females on their own. But maybe she had someone to meet her. Also, he could see the yellow ribbon and royal blue Seal of Independence wrapped around her left wrist. So clearly she was prepared for Ma’shorka Centra—as prepared as she could be, anyway.

He watched her depart before getting up with a sigh. He would probably never see her again…and he couldn’t help being a little sorry about that, even though he knew it was foolish.

But just as he was about to clamber awkwardly over the sprawled out Torpid himself, he looked down and saw that she had forgotten her book. He picked it up, intending to call her back, but then he realized that she was already gone—the first one off the shuttle, apparently. And given how determined she was to get away from him, he was pretty sure he wasn’t going to be able to return her lost property.