Orient Fevre Read online

  “Are you all right?”

  Levy steadied me when I momentarily lost my balance from the shock.

  “No, I’m not all right,” I snarled, pushing his hands away. “I came to you last night for a quick fuck, not to get married.”

  “On the contrary, I came to Ernye for a bride.”

  “You didn’t ask me if I agreed to become your wife.”

  “Your agreement isn’t required. As long as you said my name three times and I recited the Kisacte-nya Zharaiha perfectly, we are a lawfully wedded husband and wife.”

  “My agreement isn’t required? What kind of bullshit is that? You should have told me first.”

  Levy narrowed his eyes, looking annoyed. “I didn’t know you were the one until I kissed you. I simply can’t let you go.”

  “Then, I want a divorce.” I yanked the stupid gold bangle from my arm and slammed it on the coffee table. I grabbed my boots and slipped into them as fast as I could.

  His piercing blue eyes glittered alive and his lips pursed. The beast within him looked as if it was ready to pounce. He was as dangerous as he’d been last night when I’d approached him in the bar. My hunch had told me I shouldn’t have been messing around with him, and it was proven right. Maybe I should have paid more attention to my instincts.

  “I won’t grant you a divorce. You’re mine forever, Violet Jasmine Cross. Not even death will us part.”

  “How did you know my middle—whatever. I’m out of here.”

  “We’re not finished having this discussion.”

  “Oh, yes. I’m finished. There’s nothing to discuss. You can’t pick up a woman in a bar, trick her into getting married without telling her and expect her to be okay with it. I don’t even know you.”

  “That is why we got married, to get to know each other.”

  I shook my head. “You people are weird. I’m leaving. Goodbye, Levy Frye.”

  “You’re not leaving me this easy, Violet.”

  “We’ll see about that.” I pushed the door open. I couldn’t get out of the Blue Ginger Hotel fast enough. My gut told me I hadn’t seen the last of him.

  I went back to the Ernye station. My ship, Orient Fevre, was scheduled to depart to the Froste system in six standard hours. We were an intergalactic transport company delivering high-ticketed goods, and sometimes, escorting VIPs to their destination across the universe. I worked on the Orient Fevre as Captain Hawk’s Chief Mate. That was why I was so anxious when I realised I hadn’t returned to the ship last night. I had never been this slack.

  Another surprise waited for me. My ex, Mac, frowned as soon as he saw me walk past the front door of my stateroom. “Where were you last night?”

  “It’s none of your business.”

  Mac took a good look at me and flipped out. “You fucked somebody.”

  Man, why was I so easy to read? I must have had a sign “Just Had Sex” stencilled on my forehead. “What do you care? I caught you bench pressing your assistant.”

  He stiffened, and his big, brown eyes softened, pleading at me. “I made a mistake. Give me another chance, Violet.”

  “I don’t think so. We’re through.”

  Mac didn’t give up that easily. “I’ve never been unfaithful to you and I slipped. I’m not making an excuse for myself. What I’ve done is unforgivable. But we’ve been together for almost a year. I don’t want us to end this way.”

  Honestly, I didn’t know what to say. I loved Mac. I always had. But he’d fucked his assistant just a month before our wedding. Had he done this before without being caught? I was a firm believer in giving someone a second chance, but when I thought about what he’d done, I couldn’t forgive him as much as I wanted to. Then there was Levy Frye…

  Seeing me quiet, Mac took my hands and brought them to his heart. He kissed my fingertips tenderly. He could be a prince charming if he wanted to, but he rarely showed it. His job as the Chief Security Officer on this ship meant Mac treated everything as if he was in the battlefield. He’d been a colonel in the army before taking a civilian job on Orient Fevre. I guess it was his badass attitude that had attracted me to him in the first place.

  I took a step backward. “I don’t know, Mac.”

  “What can I do to make it up to you?”

  “Listen, I’m not ready to have this conversation. I need some time alone.”

  He looked disappointed. “Can we discuss it during dinner?”

  I shook my head. “There’s nothing to discuss.”

  “You’re punishing me.”

  “I’m not punishing you.”

  “You were punishing me by sleeping with whatever guy you picked last night.”

  “Maybe, I was.”

  “Then we’re even. We should get past this nonsense and move on.”

  Mac was never this thick. He looked rough on the outside, but on the inside, he was always gentle and caring towards me. He adored me—treated me as if I was his princess. But over the past week, he’d morphed into an insensitive son of a bitch I didn’t recognise.

  I pointed to the door. “Out!”

  Mac stiffened and straightened his hulking figure, his eyes flashing angrily. He looked so pissed that the roots of his close-cropped blond hair were also flushed. “I’m not giving up on you, Violet.”

  “Out! Out! Out!” I wasn’t in the mood for civility. I had to go to work in twenty minutes and the last thing I needed was dealing with this bullshit.

  “We’re not finished.” He stormed out and slammed the door.

  Geezes. What was with the men I’d had to deal with this morning? First Levy and now Mac. I strode into my cramped kitchen. My hamster, Fluffy, greeted me like always from his cage on the kitchen counter. He lifted his front paws, begging for his morning treats. I fished out a handful of sunflower seeds from a cookie jar and piled them in his bowl. Fluffy ate them with greed.

  “Men are assholes, aren’t they?” I griped to Fluffy.

  He gave me a sympathetic look and continued to eat his meal.

  “If only somebody could invent vibrators that were as good as a real cock, then we wouldn’t need men anymore, don’t you think? Life would be less complicated.”

  I vented out to Fluffy for another ten minutes until I felt better about myself. A good thing about pets was that they were excellent listeners and they didn’t talk back. I stopped ranting when the ship communication system flared a transition shift alarm. I changed into my uniform and went to report to my captain.

  Captain Hawk was waiting for me in his office when I reported for duty. With a headache pounding my head and my pussy thrumming dull pain, I was sure I looked like a train wreck, which Captain Hawk noticed the instant I arrived.

  “For the love of Darian’s balls, Cross, you look awful. Are you all right?”

  “I’m fine, sir.”

  I smoothened the creases on my uniform and double-checked on my weapons.

  He narrowed his eyes, nodding his approval. He hated whiners. He shuffled a stack of hard copies from his desk and flipped open a folder. “We have a VIP passenger we must escort to D’Keghan. Since Mackenzie called off sick, I’m assigning you to guard the prince to the Yule Ball when we make transit to Chereshaz-X.”

  “The prince?”

  “Prince al’Tarakh of D’Keghan. We’re cancelling our original route to the Froste system and heading to D’Keghan. It was a last minute order from our corporate office. The prince was supposed to board with Wyler & Crat’s security ship this morning, but he changed his mind and requested us instead. Lucky us, I guess. We’ve been privately chartered for this trip.”

  “Hooray,” I said in a bland tone. I wasn’t looking forward to playing bodyguard with any prince. I’d done it in the past and it had been nothing but a pain in the ass. Royalty and rich people were nothing but a bunch of cranky, over-pampered assholes.

  Captain Hawk scrutinised me under his gaze again. “You having problems with Mackenzie?”

  “I was, sir.”

  �
�I heard rumours you broke the engagement.”

  My cheeks blushed. “True, sir.”

  Captain Hawk tapped his fingers on the desk, arching his eyebrows. “Why?”

  “It’s a private matter, sir.” I liked to keep my personal business my own.

  Captain Hawk lifted his palms up. “Fine with me if you don’t wish to share, Cross. I wanted to make sure your personal problems wouldn’t interfere with your performance.”

  “I’m fit for work, sir.”

  “Good, because I heard this prince is rather tricky to handle.”

  “Why are you punishing me with this assignment, sir?”

  “If Mackenzie hadn’t asked for an emergency personal leave, I wouldn’t have given this job to you. The prince must be escorted by one of our senior officers. With Mackenzie and Blue not around, this job belongs to you, Cross. Congratulations.”

  I sighed. “How tricky is the prince, sir?”

  “Rumour has it he’s a womaniser.”

  “Fantastic. You must really hate me, sir.”

  Captain Hawk roared.

  The holocom buzzed and Hawk’s aide’s voice seeped through the speaker, announcing that the entourage from D’Keghan had arrived.

  “Well.” Captain Hawk rose from his seat. “Let’s see our prince.”

  I tailed my captain to the ship’s main entry hatch. A multi-terrain lander glided through the cavernous hall and stopped at the end of the hatch’s bridge. The lander’s door opened. A throng of men dressed as D’Keghan royalty climbed out. My jaw dropped when I saw one of them. Levy Frye caught my eyes and winked.

  I felt woozy when Captain Hawk introduced us, saying Levy was the one I was to escort to the Yule Ball.

  Like a fool, I mumbled in disbelief at the revelation, “You’re Prince al’Tarakh?”

  “His Highness Levy Frye al’Tarakh, Miss Cross,” one of his entourages piped in. He was a plump man, wrapped in black clothes, and had a moustache as thick as a sausage perched under his nose. He wasn’t happy I was being disrespectful to his prince.

  “You should accustom yourself with the proper acknowledgement, Miss Cross. I’d be delighted to give you a crash course if you’re interested.”

  Levy tipped his head at me. “I assume you‘ll be my personal guard during this trip? Lovely. I’m looking forward to your company, Miss Cross.”

  I wanted to groan. The day couldn’t have gotten any worse.

  “You’re despicable!” I griped at Levy as soon as we were alone in his designated stateroom. “Don’t you think I don’t know your trick. You made us change route twelve light-years away from our original destination so you can get even with me. Admit it!”

  Levy didn’t say anything to my outburst. He snatched my arms and pushed me against the wall. His mouth plastered mine a heartbeat later. His grip dug at my flesh, as his tongue stroked deeply in the cavern of my mouth. He kissed me like a sex-starved man who’d been deprived of carnal pleasure for a long time. Ferocious. Demanding. And I melted from it. My objection was forgotten. My mind was wiped blank. I felt dizzy when he finally tore his mouth off me.

  “I told you, kitten, you’re not going to get away from me that easily. I’ll find you. I’ll get you, and I’ll make you mine forever.”

  His claim brought an indescribable effect on me. Somehow, it felt nice being wanted like that. A hot flush surged through me. My nipples hardened, my wanton pussy stirred. I was turned on by his kiss and the way he claimed me, even though I was beat from sleep deprivation and his rampaging cock last night.

  “Honestly, Lev. This is getting ridiculous. Haven’t you had a one-night stand before?”

  “Of course I have,” Levy murmured, his fingers stroking my cheek. “I went for a quickie, but I found a soul mate. I can’t let you go now, can I?”

  “Don’t tell me you believe in that bullshit.”

  “You don’t believe in soul mates, Violet?”

  “No. Companies use it as an excuse to sell candies, flowers, and stupid, over-priced gifts.”

  “Too bad you have such a mindset. Our people believe when the soul of a man was first created, the Gods cut him in half before setting him and his pair to embark upon a journey into the world. Therefore, he wouldn’t be lonely in his mortal life. Sometimes, he and his pair find each other, and sometimes they don’t. And when they finish their time in the mortal world, they become one again in the afterlife, whole, like the Gods first created him. How does the soul of a man know his other half?” Levy touched my cheek. “With a simple kiss. When we first kissed last night, I knew you were the one. My other half. My soul mate.”

  “You’re nuts.”

  “I know what I’m feeling. And I know you’re feeling the same, too.”

  “I don’t know what I’m feeling. I was pissed. I was horny. What happened meant nothing me. It was just a fuck.”

  “Liar.”

  “I’m not going to argue with you, Levy. You hired my company to take you D’Keghan and I’m supposed to keep you safe. End of story.”

  “Wrong. Try again.”

  “You’re stubborn.”

  “I think you’re the stubborn one.” Levy took a strand of my hair and curled it between his fingers. He stared with fire in his eyes as he spoke to me in a low voice.“ Listen to your heart. If you’re telling me what we shared meant nothing to you, then you’re the biggest liar I’ve ever seen.”

  Okay, I might have been the biggest liar I’d seen, myself, when I’d told him our encounter last night hadn’t meant anything to me, but I had recently broken up with Mac. I should still be feeling angry, betrayed, and harbouring love and hate at this stage. But last night, after I saw Levy, that anger had evaporated. Poof. Gone. Well, I still felt annoyed with Mac, but not in a way that hurt me so much. Levy had made me forget about Mac and what he’d done to me. It was freaky. I mean, people didn’t just end a relationship and the next second fall head over heels for someone new. It didn’t make sense.

  I pursed my lips, staring back at him with defiance. “I’m a cat. You’re a dragon. Shouldn’t you be looking for a fellow Draconian as a mate?”

  “If I hadn’t met my soul mate, I would. But I found you now. End of discussion.”

  I rolled my eyes. Chauvinist.

  “And I like cats a lot. Especially this cat.”

  “Oh, please.”

  “Maybe I should remind you what draws us together like moths to a flame.” Levy groped my thighs, fingers on the buckle of my belt.

  “Stop it! Stop it! Stop it!” My pleas sounded panicked, and I was. My cheeks were burning. “Don’t touch me.”

  Levy watched me quizzically.

  “I’m tender. So, please, don’t touch me there.”

  His eyes softened. “I should have you examined by my doctor.”

  “No! I’m fine. Drop it, okay? Just, please, don’t touch me. Ever.”

  He made a face. “No deal.”

  “Why do you have to make my life miserable like this?”

  “Miserable?” He shook his head. “No, kitten, you’ll be miserable without me. After the claiming, you’ll be lost when I’m not around. After the claiming, you shall desire no other man than me. After the claiming…”

  “Corny. I bet chicks fall for you when you talk like that.”

  Levy cursed, looking annoyed with my smarminess. “Listen, Violet. I intend to return to D’Keghan with a wife. You. And you’d better get used to the fact that you’re my mate. I. Have. Claimed. You.”

  “Geezes. Cranky, are we? Maybe I liked you better when you talked corny.”

  Seconds later, I regretted my big mouth. Levy looked as if he’d had enough of my digs. He swept me off the floor and carried me to the bed. My belly hit the mattress and his palm hit my ass. He spanked me so hard that for a long second, the only thing that occupied my mind was the sting of his palm.

  “Fuck,” I gasped, hands clawing the sheet.

  Exquisite pain burned my backside. My pussy throbbed. When he rained two mor
e spanks on my poor ass, I found myself being ambushed by an orgasm. I trembled as the world faded from my sight and the amazing but wicked ecstasy enslaved me for long, agonising seconds.

  “Shit.” I felt dazed when I floated back to reality.

  I couldn’t believe what had just happened to me. I’d come from being spanked. This was pathetic. Everything he did to me caused me to climax. No man had ever made me feel like this before. Not ever. Suddenly, Levy came and turned my world upside down. It seemed he had a way of mastering my body, bending my will to his whim because I couldn’t resist his devilish charm.

  He climbed on the bed and caressed my ass, his purrs close to my ear. “Look at you, kitten, so easy to please. You came when I petted you and when I sucked your nipples. Now you came when I spanked you. Why won’t you admit that we do share a special bond together? We’re soul mates, Violet.”

  My toes curled when he nuzzled my nape.

  I rolled on my back and halted him. “You’re complicating my life, Levy Frye.”

  “No, I’m simplifying yours.” He leant down to kiss me.

  “Please, don’t.”

  Levy paused.

  I closed my eyes, feeling desperate. “I need some time to think.”

  I heard him draw a long, sufferable sigh. “Six days. That’s how much time I’ll give you to take care of your unfinished business. When we arrive at D’Keghan, you will stay with me. I need to introduce you to my parents and the court.”

  I groaned. “Why don’t you shoot me in the head instead?”

  He kissed the tip of my nose. “Cute. But no can do. I need this kitty-cat as my mate.”

  Levy got off from the bed and left the room. I felt relieved. I thought he’d finally left me alone, but I was wrong. One of Levy’s entourages came in and sat a big bag on the bed.

  “Miss Cross,” the man greeted me. “My name is Isaac Hayworth, His Highness’ personal physician. The prince has ordered me to examine your condition.”

  “You—what?”

  “I believe you experienced some bleeding after the joining last night?”

  My mouth gaped like a fish out of water. I almost answered him before I realised I didn’t need to dive into this madhouse. “I’m out of here.”