The Thief Of Mardu Part 12

With preternatural speed he disrobed her, caressing and kissing her as he found bare skin along the way.

"Catam, wait," she breathlessly protested, her eyes glazed with pa.s.sion.

But he wouldn't stop. He couldn't. He lifted her in his arms and set her on the bed, following her to prevent her escape.

"Let me show you what you can do," he whispered and ran his lips down her body. His hands toyed with her b.r.e.a.s.t.s while he hurried to taste her, needing to experience Isa's essence in its truest form.

His mouth immediately centered over her mound and he kissed the thatch of silky hair, satisfied at the s.h.i.+ver that shook her. Her scent enveloped him and he nuzzled her mound, seeking the source of the spice that beckoned him forth. Moving lower to the soft folds protecting her treasure, he licked them and groaned when he tasted the moisture that flowed between her thighs.

"Catam, please," she moaned, squirming beneath him.

"For you, love," he answered, "anything." He plunged his tongue between her folds, lapping at the honeyed fluid. He dipped his tongue into her sheath and closed his eyes, feeling her arousal seep into his.

He gripped her thighs to steady himself, when all he really wanted was to f.u.c.k her senseless, long and hard. He wanted to come inside of her, wanted to feel her p.u.s.s.y gripping him tight.

But the soft mews and hungry motions her body made kept him firmly ensconced between her thighs. So sweet, sounded like a mantra in his head as he licked the evidence of her desire. She tilted her pelvis and cried out, releasing another gush of want, and her c.l.i.toris commanded his attention.

He lifted his head to stare down at her, spreading her legs further apart to better see her beauty. Red and flushed, her c.l.i.toris looked like a ripe fruit. Smiling at his a.n.a.logy, he bent down and bit her gently.

"Catam," she cried and convulsed, stiffening beneath him. Her o.r.g.a.s.m consumed her for more than a minute while he continued to lave her with his mouth.

When she stilled, he stopped and rose above her.

"You are amazing," she gasped. Her eyes were hazed with pleasure, her soft skin flushed with pa.s.sion, and he thought she had never looked as beautiful as she did then. Her black hair spread around her like a bed of night, illuminating the golden vision of pure sensuality lying in naked glory.

"I can't be mad at you when you do that," she pouted. Her full lips, stung from his loving, curled into a smile and he knew she'd forgiven him.

"If I'm not inside of you in two seconds, I might die," he groaned.

"But I don't think you're truly sorry yet," she said and her breathing accelerated.

"Hmm?"

"Stand over there," she ordered as she left the bed. "Turn around."

He turned and found her staring at him. Her gaze traveled from the top of his head to rest on his swollen c.o.c.k.

"Very nice," she purred. She walked up to and around him, and it killed him when her b.r.e.a.s.t.s touched his back. Her arms encircled his waist, and her hands teased the hard planes of his abdomen.

He drew in his breath when her fingers teased his pubic hair.

"Please," he begged, needing her hands around him. Already his d.i.c.k felt like it would explode. He could smell her on his tongue and on his lips, and the scent made him wild to have her.

"Tell me again how sorry you are," she said and trailed one glorious finger over his throbbing shaft.

He closed his eyes and prayed for a quick end.

"I'm so very, very sorry," he said thickly, but kept his hands to his sides. This was Isa's show, and he'd be d.a.m.ned if he'd do anything to interrupt her now.

Her hand fisted around his c.o.c.k and he groaned her name.

"Now I'm going to give you what you really deserve," she said and began pumping his shaft.

Chapter Twelve.

Isa felt heady with power when Catam's head rolled back on his neck and his body trembled. She quickened and slowed her pace around his c.o.c.k, wanting to bring him to the edge without letting him go over.

As much as she'd already come, she wanted him again. Teasing Catam made her wet with desire, and she wanted him out of control and insane with l.u.s.t. She wanted power over him, as he'd wielded the power to hurt her with his thoughtless words earlier.

She suddenly let go of his shaft and circled to his front. He panted like an animal and she smiled, a feline grin that made him swear.

"Tell me what you want," she whispered and lowered to her knees. "Tell me exactly what you want."

Catam's hands were clenched so tightly she thought he'd leave marks in his palms.

"Isa," he stopped and shook when her tongue licked the side of his shaft.

"Isa what?" She blew on the head of his c.o.c.k and licked the fluid that sobbed to be released.

"Suck me, Isa," he breathed, his golden eyes glowing as they glittered at her. "Take me in your mouth. Swallow me, love, swallow all of me."

She opened her mouth and took him in an inch at a time. His knees shook and she sucked him, hard. He shouted and thrust, unable to stop himself. And she sucked harder.

She swiftly created a rhythm that brought him closer to relief, and then she grazed his velvet sack with her hands.

"Isa, love, I'm going to come," he groaned as she cupped him.

She increased her rhythm and continued to caress him. His thrusts grew stronger and she let him pulse, needing him to come. She wanted him to be as powerless in her hands as she was in his.

"Sweet," he whispered on a strangled moan before he shot into her. His c.u.m slid down her throat like honeyed cream, thick and rich. He pulsed and pulsed, his hands clenching her shoulders for support when he began to tremble.

Finally spent, he eased down beside her on his knees and took her in his arms. He hugged her to him as if he'd never let her go, and something s.h.i.+fted inside of her.

The hurt and the self-doubt disappeared. She had brought Catam, a legendary lover, to his knees. She had done this. And he had reveled in it. By all rights she should have been imprisoned, and he had risked everything to help her.

She hugged him back and closed her eyes, basking in his warmth. She could taste him, salty sweet, all man and yet more than that.

"It'll all work out, love," he whispered against her hair. "You'll see."

How long they remained like that she couldn't say, but it took an intercom warning to break them apart.

"Fifteen minutes to Tekar."

"Already?" she asked in astonishment.

"Unfortunately so." He sighed and patted her on the b.u.t.t. "You'd better get dressed unless you want the crew seeing you like that." He frowned and she knew the thought disturbed him.

A ball of pleasure warmed her belly at the thought that Catam might feel jealousy over her. As she dressed, she mulled over what his jealousy might mean.

"Isa?" He spoke her name with a tenderness that had her blinking to see if it was real. "Thank you, love." He took her limp hand and kissed her palm. "I owe you more than you know."

"What--"

"Catam and Isa to the boarding platform. Now," Mara's voice commanded through the overhead speaker.

He kissed Isa quickly and once they both dressed, pulled her after him to the second deck of the s.h.i.+p, to the boarding platform.

"I found Cheltam and he's willing to meet with us. I get the feeling he doesn't exactly like Harron."

"Not many do," Isa admitted, adding her name to the list.

Lurin and Mara joined them on the platform.

"Good luck," Lurin said as he shook Catam's hand. He grabbed Isa's hand in his and heat burned at the contact.

"Although I don't think you're going to need it," he said to Catam through a wide grin.

Catam nodded. "Thank you. I'm borrowing a com unit so I can contact Sernal tomorrow."

"Thank the Stars," Mara muttered.

"He won't bother you again."

"Yeah, well, it might not be a bad idea to keep us in the loop too," Lurin offered. "Just in case you need any help."

Catam opened his mouth in protest, Isa was sure. The man had an aversion to receiving a.s.sistance. "We will," she said firmly and nudged Catam to answer in kind.

"We will," he said quickly.

She contained a grin, pleased that he still seemed willing to do anything to stay on her good side.

Mara gave her a conspiratorial wink and stepped back with Lurin when the s.h.i.+p landed.

The outer hull opened to allow their exit, and they left armed with two phasers, a com unit, and a small bag of provisions to see them through the next few days. Flor willing, they'd only need to get through tomorrow. With luck, Cheltam would show them just how to beat Harron at his own game.

Qalteh's was a surprise. Isa had a.s.sumed the gaming club would be much like the filthy bar where she'd met Feltang in Shathra. Qalteh's, however, was anything but.

The premier gaming establishment in Tekar, and in the entire northern province, according to ads surrounding the town, Qalteh's catered to a higher clientele. Isa noted a few statesmen mingling with the high and middle cla.s.ses, all with avarice gleaming in their eyes.

Highborn or not, those in Qalteh's came for serious gambling or serious pleasure. Like the bar in Shathra, open fornication surrounded the gaming tables. Pleasurers by the dozen loitered near high-stakes tables offering solace to the losers bent on drinking themselves into oblivion.

Unlike the bar in Shathra, however, these pleasurers were handsome creatures, and watching them perform was akin to watching art.

Isa couldn't help staring at two male pleasurers servicing a fas.h.i.+onably half-dressed woman.

"You don't need two when you have me," Catam growled in her ear.

"I'm just surprised at the quality here. I didn't expect as much."

"I know." He nodded and looked around them. "This place sits in the slumpits of Tekar. Only the invited are allowed entry, and only if they pay the required fee."

She glanced up at him in surprise.

"Cheltam was interested when I mentioned Harron," he explained, "so he arranged for us to enter on his tab."

"How much are we talking here?" she asked uneasily. Catam might not understand the rules of the "underground," but she knew accepting favor from someone meant having to return it later at a much higher price.

"Don't worry. Cheltam owes me more than just one lousy entrance fee."

She wondered at his and Cheltam's relations.h.i.+p when a large man with a scar running down his face approached. Catam tensed until the man bowed and asked them, politely, to follow him.

Keeping himself between Isa and their guide, Catam seemed tense as he subtly looked all around them. Isa didn't understand the sense of threat. The club wasn't that crowded, and those that mingled seemed far too intent on gaming and s.e.x to even look their way.

She gave Catam an inquiring glance.

"The Ari," he said under his breath and she stilled.

She'd forgotten, or chosen to forget, that small, significant detail. How could she have dismissed a possible a.s.sa.s.sination on her life? She stared at Catam. Great s.e.x, that's how I forgot about it.

She didn't relax until they reached a private table in the corner lined with drapes. From here she'd be able to put her back to the wall, facing any coming threat.

"Welcome friends," a soft voice hummed from inside the drapes. The scarred man pulled back the part.i.tion to show a lone man sitting in the shadows.

"Cheltam?" Isa asked, quelling her nerves. She glanced at Catam and saw him make the oddest face.

He looked stunned, completely shocked at Cheltam's presence. Then he caught her staring at him and muttered, "No one else could command this corner save our enterprising host." His tone grim, Catam answered with a warning glance at the man patiently waiting. Then he reluctantly sat across from Cheltam and nodded for Isa to do the same.

Isa sat and the scarred man left them, dropping the drapes to surround the small table. A lone candle's flicker lent the small alcove a cozy feel, and had Cheltam not been present, she might have enjoyed the intimate setting with Catam.

"So, we meet at last," the informant whispered, the sound like the patter of raindrops on gla.s.s. "Isa Araye, in the flesh."

Isa studied the man, surprised at what she found. He sat straight and tall, his dark brown hair cut to his shoulders and tied in a fastidious sweep at the base of his neck. Amber eyes studied her with a keen intelligence as he tapped a graceful, long-fingered hand on the table.

"So you're Cheltam. Feltang mentioned you, and you're not what I expected," she said bluntly.

"I'm sure you expected someone as filthy and nervous as Feltang," Cheltam responded with dry humor. "I hope you're not disappointed."

"She's not," Catam interrupted. "We're here to talk about Harron."

Isa felt Catam's hand under the table curl around her thigh and she swallowed audibly. Heat flared where he touched her, and the possession in his grip thrilled her. She had to focus on Cheltam to control her desire, and she felt a flush darken her cheeks when she saw Cheltam's knowing grin.