Chapter Two

Cam stirred sleepily and nestled deeper into the warmth surrounding her. A wonderful spicy scent filled her nostrils and she felt warm and relaxed, languid pleasure softening her muscles despite the terrible dream she had had. Dream? As the memories surfaced, her body tensed and her eyes flew open to see a large expanse of heavily muscled chest covered by textured, golden skin. On the positive side, she was no longer chained to the wall of a dark cold cell. Instead, she could feel a soft mattress and even softer sheets beneath her body. On the other hand, she was not alone in the soft bed but pressed closely—very closely—against a warm male body. Cautiously, she tried to slip free but the strong arms curved around her shoulders and hips immediately tightened. Unable to break free, she could only tip her head back far enough to see the beautiful alien from the previous day looking down at her.

A jolt went through her as their eyes met. He had the most remarkable eyes—shaped like a cat’s and colored a warm honey gold. As she looked more deeply into his eyes, she could see swirls of bronze in the gold, swirls that darkened and spread as she stared at him. A smile curved one corner of his mouth and she was unhappily conscious that both of them were completely naked. By the feel of the hard length pressed against her stomach, he was quite satisfied with that fact. Panicking, she pushed at his shoulders but he held her easily. His smile broadened enough for her to see very white, very sharp teeth and a glimpse of fangs.

“Only just awake and already ready to play, my pet? What a delightful surprise.”

His voice was mocking and she scowled and struggled harder. “I’m not your pet.”

With a soft laugh he rolled, pinning her to the bed beneath his massive body but keeping enough weight off of her so that she could breathe. Her body shivered with a feeling that was not entirely fear as his warm mass settled over her.

“Oh, but you are.” He ran a finger down her cheek and across her bottom lip in a gentle touch at odds to the cool mockery in his voice. “You are whatever I say you are—and you would do well to learn that lesson immediately, my pet.”

“I am not your pet,” she repeated. “You don’t own me.” Cam struggled against his hold but her efforts only rubbed her nipples against the smooth warmth of his chest and rocked his enormous cock harder into the soft flesh of her stomach. An unwilling ache started between her thighs and she bit her lip as his eyes darkened completely to liquid bronze.

“Since I bought and paid for you, I do own you. And unless you want me to take advantage of that fact immediately, I suggest you stop wiggling.” His voice was no longer mocking and she froze in place. He owned her? The thought terrified her but fear made her defiant.

“I don’t see how you could have paid for me since you killed the aliens who kidnapped me.”

His brows snapped together. “Would you have preferred that I left you with them? Or left them alive so that they could go back and get another human of their own to play with?”

“No,” she whispered. She wouldn’t wish her experience on anyone. At the reminder of her ordeal, she suddenly realized that she no longer hurt all over. Startled, she tried to look down at her body but only succeeded in rubbing against her captor. He growled and she stilled, her eyes flying to his face.

“I’m sorry. I just realized that I don’t hurt anymore and I was trying to see if I was still bruised.” She hurried to explain before he got any ideas.

He regarded her face for a long moment then dipped his head in acknowledgement. “You still have some marks but the healing gel I applied took care of most of your wounds.”

“You applied?” This big aggressive male with his mocking voice had taken care of her? His lips curled at her obvious astonishment and she realized that he had a much too attractive smile. She shifted her attention quickly from his smile but remembered her manners. “Thank you.”

“I believe there are better ways to show your gratitude,” he murmured.

Before she could react, his head lowered and his lips met hers. She gasped and he immediately took advantage of the opening and slid his tongue into her mouth. As soon as he did, her senses exploded. He tasted incredible and he took possession of her mouth with a demand that she couldn’t resist. Her body melted beneath his and she managed to free an arm enough to curl it around his neck and hang on as she lost herself in the intensity of his kiss. Her nipples tightened until they throbbed in time with the ache between her legs. By the time he lifted his head, she was breathless and dazed, barely able to open her eyes enough to see the burning intensity in his gaze.

“Wow,” she breathed. His eyebrows rose but before he could respond, a soft gasp sounded from one side of the bed. Their heads turned in unison and Cam saw a slender purple woman standing next to the bed, her head bowed.

“I apologize if I interrupted you, Lord Kievan. I was scheduled for this morning.” The woman’s voice was soft and melodic, almost bird-like. Cam examined her curiously, noting the long arms and legs and the slender, but definitely female body, only too clearly revealed by the sheer sarong that tied on one shoulder and fell to mid-thigh. A cloud of white hair fell to her shoulders and moved slowly around her face. As the woman finished speaking, she raised her head but kept her eyes lowered. Her delicate features were alien but extraordinarily beautiful, with huge tip-tilted eyes and a gently curved mouth.

“I have other plans. You are dismissed.” His voice was cold once more and Cam thought she detected a flash of something in the woman’s eyes before she meekly nodded her head and left the room. As soon as the door closed behind the other woman, she turned back to the man on top of her but he was already rolling away. Completely uncaring of his nudity, he stood up and moved across the room, letting her unwillingly admire every inch of his magnificent body. The golden perfection of his skin was not completely flawless. He had an intricate tattoo spread across his upper back and even from the bed, she could see the white etchings of a number of old scars. Pulling on a long silken robe, he turned to face her.

“Who was that?” she asked, before he could open his mouth.

“Another one of my slaves.”

“Another? Slave?” Too stunned by what his words implied to continue, she simply stared at him.

He nodded and moved to manipulate a panel on the wall. “Breakfast for two,” he ordered before turning back to her. “I told you, you belong to me. I am Kievan Rus and you are now my slave.”

“Oh, hell no, I’m not.” Forgetting her own nudity, she jumped out of bed and stalked over to him, poking her finger in his chest with each word. “I do not belong to you; I am not your slave.”

“Really?” Kievan looked amused and the cool mockery was back. “Then what are you?”

“I’m a free woman. I have a job; I have a house…” Her voice trailed off as she remembered how empty that life had become. “I have a job,” she repeated, but her words stuttered to a stop again as she realized that what little she did have had been on Earth—and she was no longer on Earth. “Where am I?” She could hear her voice trembling.

A fleeting expression of sympathy seemed to cross his face but it was gone so quickly she wasn’t sure if she had imagined it. “You are on Sigrast, the space station that belongs to me. If you do not want to belong to me, I will offer you the opportunity to leave right now.” She knew the relief must have shown in her face because his voice hardened. “You will leave exactly as you are—naked and without resources. I can assure you that anybody you encounter will be much less…pleasant to deal with than I am.”

Suddenly conscious of her nudity and fighting back tears, she retreated to the bed and pulled a sheet around her. The hours on the ship after she was taken flashed through her mind and she shuddered violently. They had tormented her repeatedly and only the fact that they were bringing her to this man had stopped them from actually raping her. Another shudder shook her body and then Kievan’s arms were around her, his spicy scent surprisingly comforting. Despite his words, his arms felt warm and protective and she had to fight the instinct to relax into them.

“You are much safer here, my pet. No one would dare to touch anything that belongs to me.”

Her eyes filled with tears as she looked up at him. “But who will keep me safe from you?”

A muscle flexed in his jaw but he released her without answering. “Come. You will bathe me.”

“I will what?”

“And yourself as well, my pet. I could only do so much with cleansing cloths.” His calm response stopped her outrage as she realized how much she longed to get clean. Meekly, she followed him across the room and into the largest bathroom she had ever seen. Every surface was covered in gleaming white marble but the floor was gently warm beneath her bare feet. Two bowls, which looked like they were carved out of raw stone, stood along a long counter on one wall. The entire wall was mirrored and she flinched at her reflection. She had never been entirely comfortable with her naked body and the sight of it now did not reassure her. Dark circles surrounded her eyes and she looked pale and tired. Her hair was a tangled mess. Even worse were the marks that still covered her skin. Although the pain was gone and she realized that most of them were smaller and less inflamed, enough remained to remind her of the horror she had endured.

Hastily averting her gaze from her bedraggled condition, she returned to her survey of the room. A door next to the sink counter led into a private toilet compartment. Across the room, a raised dais held a large lounge chair upholstered in white beneath a glowing ceiling light. An enormous tub filled with steaming water was sunk into another raised dais and she cast it a longing look as Kievan led her firmly into a glass enclosed shower room. A multitude of nozzles in different shapes and sizes filled the walls, the ceiling, even the floor, and she watched bemusedly as his fingers played across a control panel until gentle rain showers were falling from overhead while more demanding sprays jetted from one wall.

Kievan dropped his robe and moved further into the shower until he was standing in front of the wall with the jets. He pulled her after him and handed her a white cloth which foamed gently in her hand. “Begin,” he ordered.

She scowled at him, but the warm water pouring over her felt so good that she had a hard time sustaining her irritation at the order. Her eyes went to the naked man next to her and she fought back another wave of admiration. Every inch of his amazing body was covered with lean, defined muscles. Her eyes went to his face but it was hard and determined. Accepting the inevitable, she moved closer, trying not to be intimidated by his size. He was at least a foot taller than she was and much broader. She had too many curves to usually consider herself petite but she felt small and feminine next to his massive body.

Keeping a cautious distance, she ran the cloth slowly up his arm. More scars marred the muscular perfection and she wondered what kind of life he had led to receive so much damage. His skin felt...different beneath her hands, with a slightly pebbled feel that was oddly stimulating. She finished with his arm and started on his broad chest. The warm water falling around them soothed her tense nerves. Kievan hadn’t done anything to alarm her and she started to enjoy herself, rubbing the cloth in gentle circles across his taut abs and around the dark gold disks of his nipples. They hardened under her strokes and she jumped as she felt the firm thrust of his erection pressing against her stomach. Startled, she looked up at him. His face was expressionless but she could see the bronze melting in his eyes and felt an answering tremor in her belly. Her nipples tightened.

His gaze flicked over them but his face didn’t change.

“Continue,” he ordered, his voice perfectly calm. His apparent ability to ignore his body’s reactions should have reassured her. Instead she found it annoying, especially considering that she was all too aware of her own reactions. Her eyes narrowed. She never backed down from a challenge. Moving lower, she washed his legs with long strokes of the cloth, starting with his firmly muscled calves and moving up to his strong thighs. She circled his inner thighs, scratching lightly with her fingernails, but careful to avoid touching his cock. She couldn’t help noticing that it was as beautiful as the rest of him—slightly darker gold than the rest of his skin and longer and thicker than she had ever seen before. Not that she had that much experience, but she was willing to bet that it was impressive by any standards.

He parted his legs slightly and she reached between them to cup his heavy balls with the cloth. They were as hair free as the rest of his body and slipped smoothly across the slick material. As she washed them gently, his cock twitched and she bit her lip to hide a smile. He certainly couldn’t hide the fact that his body was interested. Interested? Her actions suddenly seemed ridiculous as she realized the direction of her thoughts. What the hell was she doing? This man had told her that he owned her, that she was his slave. No matter how enticing his body, why was she trying to get him to acknowledge his reaction to her touch? Stepping back, she ran the cloth quickly over his (still tempting) erection and held it out to him.

“I’m done.” She refused to look at him.

He didn’t respond, and after a second, she dared a glance at his face. Her heart sank as she realized that he was looking amused.

“Very well. Your turn.”

Before she could protest, he had taken the cloth and started running it across her body. Unlike her slow strokes, his were quick and efficient but she couldn’t help shivering as he ran the cloth across her breasts and again when he moved between her legs. His hand slowed just a fraction as he gently but firmly parted the soft folds. Before she could react, he had moved on. When he finished, he reached for a small bottle and poured the liquid into his hand. His hands moved to her hair and she sighed with pleasure as she realized that the liquid was shampoo. His strong fingers massaged her scalp and she relaxed into the hands that no longer moved quite so quickly. Despite his words, the way he was washing her felt as if he was caring for her.

He paused and she was suddenly conscious of an odd tension in his hands but before she could analyze it, it was gone and he was moving her under an overhead stream to wash the shampoo away. After she rinsed, he turned off the water and opened a concealed compartment to reveal enormous fluffy white towels warmed to the perfect temperature.

“There are toiletries in the counter drawers. We will have breakfast and…talk when you are ready.” Once again, he was cool and remote. Before she could respond, he left the room.