Sharra trembled, alone in the receiving room. Her pulse raced as she quivered with shock. It was him! The Karn’alian warrior was the stranger whose dreams haunted her night after night, tormenting her with jumbled images of explosions, two bloody women, a little boy and him, superimposed against the disturbing revelation of pain and heartbreak. She’d seen his nightmares and shared his physical pain.
Now she understood why her attempts to secure passage out of Zalian Three had been unsuccessful. It hadn’t been easy, but she’d managed to convince her guards to allow her to wander around the trade zone yesterday. As she’d pretended to peruse the wares of intergalactic merchants, she’d quietly inquired about paying for transport off the planet. There hadn’t been a vendor or cargo ship operator who’d been willing to take her. It was now clear why the gods hadn’t allowed her to escape. She wouldn’t have met him had she been able to leave.
The initial shock of seeing the man from her dreams faded. In its place was a calm acceptance, a deep-seated certainty that their lives were intertwined. Fate had brought him to her, though what role she would play in his life was unknown to her. It just felt right.
His appearance in her life was no accident. Her destiny was tied with the Karn’alian warrior.
Footsteps echoed through the chamber. Sharra whirled around. He stood a short distance away, dressed the same as he was earlier, minus the stiff military jacket. A thousand butterflies fluttered inside her stomach. Her breath caught as their eyes met, a wave of recognition slamming into her. This man was no stranger. She knew his dreams, his thoughts and his pain. Kismet. Destiny was at hand.
His eyes were dark and unfathomable as they swept over her. Sharra trembled, trying to maintain her composure in the face of his intimidating presence. He was big, well over six and a half feet, taller than any Zalian male she knew. His hair was short and thick, the color of a clear, starless night. It set off the deep green of his eyes, reminiscent of a lush forest. His nose was straight and proud, his jaw square, a perfect foil for his firm, unsmiling lips. A soft shirt molded his massive chest, outlining a taut, muscled body that appeared no less menacing than the weapon holstered at his side. Overall, his countenance was grim, daunting. Forbidding.
“I’m Logan.” He ventured closer. “Hello, Sharra.”
A strange, syrupy warmth seeped into her skin, penetrating clear to her soul. Her nipples tightened, reacting to his proximity. Sharra inhaled deeply, disconcerted.
“Don’t be afraid,” he murmured gently.
He stood so close she caught his clean, masculine scent. This near, his visage was less harsh, the striking features appearing almost handsome.
Logan’s lips tilted at the corners. “Are you not able to speak?”
Sharra caught her breath at the smile that transformed his whole face. “I-I can speak fine.”
“How old are you?”
“Five and twenty.”
“How do you feel about being given to me?”
A shiver slid down her spine at the faint possessiveness in his voice. “It is my duty to obey the Lord Marshall.”
“You are willing?”
His eyes were beautiful, darker flecks of green surrounding the lighter irises. Sharra pulled some air into her lungs in a bid to relax. “A single, unprotected woman in Zalian society has very limited options. Since my parents’ death, I have no family left. The Lord Marshall placed me in his son’s household in order to provide me with some measure of protection.”
“As a sex slave?”
Sharra tore her gaze away. “Zalian men like to collect things. The more money and power they have, the more women they can bring into their household. I was fortunate to be given the protection of the Lord Marshall’s name.” She lifted her chin, trying to discern feelings of disgust or disparagement from him, but detected nothing. He wasn’t easy to read. When he remained silent, she tilted her head. “You’re surprised by the Zalian way of life?”
“I’ve seen stranger things. Are you willing to settle on my home planet of Karn’al?” he asked abruptly.
Yes. I belong with you now. That certainty was tempered with apprehension at the thought of going with him to Karn’al, where she would run a greater risk of being found out. An empath in their midst would not be welcomed or accepted. “I have no wish to be the cause of a diplomatic problem. My place is with you now.”
“And what is your opinion about being given to me?”
“I’m not opposed.” Sharra dared to look at him directly. The sensuality etched in the sharp angles of Logan’s face ignited a fiery ripple of awareness in her body. She understood completely what being given to him meant and all that it implied. She was hardly a simpering virgin.
“And will you be forthright enough to tell me the truth about yourself?”
“W-what truth is it you speak of?”
“That you find no enjoyment in the act of mating.”
Heat crept up her neck. “Who told you that?”
His gaze was quietly assessing, missing nothing. “It’s true then?”
An’ric’s doing, she supposed. Sharra hadn’t bothered to refute the crass, careless statements he’d made in public. Letting people believe she was frigid suited her purposes. Men generally didn’t like to bother with women like that.
“Take off your clothes.”
