Contract to Pleasure Read online

“A body in my bed would simply shut up and accept whatever I choose to give her.”

  She clamped her mouth shut. Anticipation clogged her throat. She braced herself when he came back on the bed with her. To her surprise, he kissed her instead. It was a hungry kiss, one she had no hope of resisting. The heat inside her flared to life once more, instant and all consuming. Kendrick curved a hand over her mound, seeking and finding, manipulating her clit into painful tightness. His blunt fingers penetrated her wet cunt, slipping in and out with firm pumping strokes. Again and again, he rubbed that special spot inside her vagina that made her shudder every time.

  Tamara was a goner. Where she’d been expecting rough, he was persuasive. It proved embarrassingly easy and she soon throbbed with intense need, aroused and aching. When he nuzzled her breast, she trembled. Every touch pushed her higher, threatening to break down her defenses and she was close to crumbling. She panted, gasped and threw her head back. God, she needed him inside her. Now.

  Thrown off balance, she didn’t protest when he got to his knees and pushed her thighs wide apart. He grabbed a pillow and shoved it under her hips, elevating her and giving him the perfect angle. Something cold slapped against the puckered orifice of her ass and she froze. Around and around, he spread the sticky substance. She jerked when his finger slipped in, her hips reared off the pillow. He went in, up to the first knuckle, before it was joined by another finger.

  Kendrick tunneled in and out, stretching her, leaving her well lubricated. In the meantime, his free hand kept a dizzying tattoo on her clit, swiping moisture from her slit and spreading it all over her pussy. Attacked on both fronts, Tamara writhed on the bed. When the broad tip of his cock prodded against her ass, she let out a gasp. With his fingers, he manipulated her swollen clit, giving her a double dose of distraction.

  Tamara whimpered. “Oh, God, Kendrick. You’re too --” She couldn’t hold back any longer, and gasped out his name when the head finally eased through.

  He stilled, letting her get accustomed to having him inside her that way.

  She panted. He slipped in another inch. She moaned. He worked his cock in a little bit more. “Look at me,” he growled. Utterly possessed in the most intimate way, she obeyed his order. “I didn’t fuck Rahda.”

  Instinctive words of protest bubbled up in her throat but they all turned into a gasp when he moved a little deeper. She forced them past her lips. “I… I saw the two of you.”

  Holding her hips tightly, he surged in, seating himself to the hilt. The combined pleasure and pain that streaked through her was nearly unbearable and took her breath away. After a moment, he began to move. Gently at first, letting her get used to his thick length inside her. In. Out. Oh, God. He was so big.

  Kendrick pushed her thighs up and out, looking down to where they were joined. “You’re mistaken. It’s true she tried to get me to bed.”

  Her lips parted on a soundless moan, her rear muscles tightening on his cock in sheer pleasure. It was incredible. So primal, so basic. His thumb never stopped circling her clit, keeping her balanced on the knife sharp edge of bliss.

  “I didn’t want Rahda,” he continued in a gruff, pleasure-roughened voice. “I wanted a certain stubborn, flame-haired woman who is foolish enough to dare reprimand me for thinking I slept with another.”

  Tamara had long given up on holding back her responses. Her hair clung to her damp cheek as she tossed her head. “Kendrick, I -- Oh God, yessss. Yesssss.”

  “It’s only you I want to fuck,” he whispered, bent close to her. “I didn’t fuck Rahda. Do you hear me, Tamara?” His shaft pistoned in and out of her ass. “It’s only you I want to fuck.”

  Pleasure surged inside her, overwhelming and all encompassing. Tingles spread from her nerve endings, making her tremble violently. “I did not --” he thrust in forcefully, “fuck --” again and again, “Rahda.” His grip on her was bruising but she didn’t care. It was too much. She couldn’t hold back. With a shattered cry, she came, exploding with pleasure. Kendrick uttered a rough groan, swelling impossibly bigger inside her before blasting her walls with his hot seed. Tamara had no recollection of putting her arms around him. When she finally became aware again, she was clinging to him like a weak baby, panting for breath. She’d just been utterly possessed.

  No words were said. What was there to say? When Kendrick disengaged from her, she trembled. He walked away and came back moments later with a warm cloth. While he cleansed her with a gentle touch, she marveled at this side of him. There were so many things she didn’t know about him. She never would have suspected he even had a tender side. She lay exhausted on the bed, silently accepting his ministrations. When he eventually came back and slid into the bed, she didn’t demur when he pulled her close and wrapped his arms around her. The moment was too fragile to disrupt with unnecessary words. The silence lulled her into sleep.

  Chapter Six

  Whatever conversation they might have had the next morning, the chance was taken away from them. The sun had barely come up when there was a loud knock on the door. Orrin stood on the threshold, braving Kendrick’s displeasure, and spied Tamara buried under the covers.

  “We received an emergency communiqué from the Earth Federation,” he announced, not blinking an eye at his prince’s naked form.

  At the mention of Earth Federation, Tamara pushed her tangled hair away and blinked. “What?”

  “It’s regarding your father, the premier.”

  At Orrin’s words, Tamara scrambled to her feet, wrapping the sheet around her. “What happened?”

  “He was on his way to the parliament building when a bomb exploded near his transport.”

  Shocked, Tamara went cold. “Oh, God. He’s not…”

  Orrin shook his head. “He’s alive. I’m afraid the communiqué didn’t reveal the extent of his injuries.”

  “Xerexians?” Kendrick asked, his tone hard.

  “All preliminary indicators point to them.”

  “Get the Xerexian emperor on the line. I think we need to impress upon him our seriousness in assisting Earth in this matter,” Kendrick growled.

  Panic flared inside Tamara. “I have to go. I have to…” She looked around, frantic and close to tears, a thousand worst case scenarios flitting through her mind.

  Kendrick halted her frightened movements. “I’ll have my ship ready to take us to Earth.” He turned to Orrin. “Make all the arrangements.”

  Orrin bowed and retreated, leaving them alone once more.

  “You don’t have to go with me.” Tamara walked to the enormous dressing room and pulled on her Special Services uniform.

  “No?”

  That one word compelled her to explain. “If it is indeed the Xerexians who planted the bomb, then you have more important matters to attend to here. You pledged to help the Federation.” Her voice broke. “Stop the Xerexians before they attempt any more underhanded attacks against the Federation.”

  Kendrick frowned. “I’m going with you.”

  “I’ll be back,” she assured him. “I need to see my father.” Her thoughts were whirling and she hardly knew what to do next. When she looked back and found Kendrick staring at her with an enigmatic look on his face, she stopped. “I have to go.”

  He took some time before he answered. “I understand.”

  For some reason, she couldn’t just leave. There was something underpinning his gaze. Something she couldn’t quite fathom. “Kendrick?”

  “Go.”

  At the harsh command, Tamara walked out. Her thoughts were already on her father. Please don’t let him die. Fear gripped her heart as she left for Kendrick’s ship, and she knew it wouldn’t go away until she saw her father in the flesh.

  * * *

  Tamara paced back and forth in the hospital room. A med-bot stood next to her father’s bed, checking his vital signs. “What was your security doing? Didn’t they do a sweep of the area you were driving through?” she asked, feeling her temper rise. “An advanced team sh
ould have been sent to make sure everything was clear. That’s standard procedure.”

  Joseph sighed, glancing with irritation at the med-bot that was checking his pulse. “It was chaotic that morning, Tamara. I was rushing to go to parliament.”

  “That’s not an excuse,” she snapped. “Whoever is currently in charge of your security detail should be fired. No question about it.” She jammed her hands into her pockets and stared broodingly out the window. “I should be heading your security detail. We can’t entrust your safety to incompetent fools.”

  Her father shooed the med-bot away, ordering it to come back later. When the door closed, he glanced at Tamara. “What happened was an accident. It was a security slip that won’t happen again.”

  Her lips thinned with anger. “It never should have happened in the first place. Next time you might not be so lucky. I should have been there, Father.”

  “It’s rather pointless to say that now. We both know why you’re in Bandar.”

  “Let’s not go through that again.”

  “How is he treating you?” Joseph asked gruffly.

  “I can take care of myself.”

  “I still don’t like it.”

  “What’s done is done. And besides, he treats me fine. I wanted to do it.” She smiled. “Lara’s always telling me I need a man in my life. Now I have one.”

  “It’s only temporary,” Joseph retorted. “And what happens after?”

  “I get on with my life. The same way he gets on with his.” She sat on the edge of the bed. “You’re lucky you escaped that attack.”

  “The Xerexians tried to attack another remote Federation outpost last night,” Joseph revealed. “A Bandarian ship chased them away.”

  “Good,” Tamara muttered. “He’s fulfilling his end of the bargain.”

  “As your father, I hate that I have to see you do this.” His tone softened a little bit. “It’s sometimes hard for me to admit that my daughters are grown women. Between you and Lara, you were always the independent one. You always went your own way. I just hope I didn’t make a mistake in allowing you to do this.”

  She clasped her father’s hand in hers. “Don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine. Now, I want you to sleep and get some rest. They removed all the shrapnel from your legs and arms. In the meantime, I’m going to have a talk with your security detail. This can’t happen again.”

  * * *

  Lara pounced on Tamara as soon as they were alone. “Okay. I want to know everything. Every single, juicy detail.”

  “There’s nothing to tell. I only did what was necessary.”

  “Bullshit. All this crock about duty and having no choice is simply not true. I don’t buy it, Tamara. You’re the strongest person I know. Kendrick couldn’t have forced you to stay with him if you didn’t want to.”

  “All right,” Tamara conceded. “Maybe I did want to do it. A little.”

  “So how’s the sex?”

  She was amused by her sister’s bluntness. Subtlety was not Lara’s style. “It’s okay.”

  “Okay? Just okay?” her sister asked with disbelief in her voice. Lara clutched her chest. “I mean, when Father gave me the bare bones of the arrangement, I couldn’t believe it.” She sighed dramatically. “It’s like a fantasy, you know? A man demanding your body in exchange for helping out your people.”

  “Oh, stop it.”

  “Come on, Tamara. Aren’t you the least bit flattered? Kendrick could have asked for anything. He wanted you.”

  It was true. Out of all the things he could have demanded the Federation give him, Kendrick asked for her.

  “I wish I could meet a man who would want me that much,” Lara added wistfully.

  Tamara refused to mull over Lara’s words. Her arrangement with Kendrick was just that, an arrangement. No emotional involvement on either side. This was a business arrangement, if it could be called that.

  That night, settling into bed, she piled on extra pillows to her side, roughly the same size as Kendrick. Tamara frowned. Surely it didn’t mean anything? All it meant was that she’d just gotten used to sleeping with Kendrick right next to her. If the pillows helped her sleep tonight, then so be it. It didn’t mean she was missing him.

  * * *

  Her father was released from the hospital a week later. During that time, Tamara had personally overseen selecting a new security detail for him despite his protests. She drilled into them the security protocols and instituted strict guidelines for them to follow.

  The doctor ordered Joseph to take it easy for the next few days. After being disallowed to go to the office, he scheduled meetings at the house. Tamara couldn’t fault him. She knew the situation with Xerex was still volatile and everything had to be monitored closely. Now that her father was home and on the way to recovery, she was already thinking of going back. She had a commitment to fulfill.

  Dax arrived that afternoon with a report. “Hourly reports from remote outposts are very encouraging. There has been no activity from the Xerexians. The Bandarians might have had something to do with that. They’ve sent warships to all the far flung stations.”

  Joseph nodded. “Kendrick sent me a communiqué saying that would be done.”

  Dax gave Tamara a meaningful glance. “Yes. Quite generous of the Bandarians.”

  She tried to stop the flush that spread over her cheeks but knew she failed. “Let’s hope this will dissuade the Xerexians from launching another sneak attack.”

  “The investigation is still ongoing,” her father said. “If indeed there are spies among us, we’ll find them.” He leaned back, releasing an exhausted sigh. “Thank you, Dax. I know I can always count on you to keep an eye on things.”

  “You’re welcome, sir,” Dax replied. “I will be heading to Primus One tonight. I’ll check in when I get there. Now, I think you should get some rest. Tamara can see me out.”

  “Good idea. Will you give me a minute with my daughter please?”

  Dax nodded and left. As soon as the door closed, her father spoke. “You’re going back.” It wasn’t a question.

  “I’ll stay if you want me to.”

  Joseph snorted. “It’s better if you go. You’re smothering me.”

  Tamara grinned. “You just want to get me out of the way.”

  “They told me you replaced my whole security detail and almost reduced a highly decorated Special Services agent to tears. They’ll be relieved to see you go,” he said with amusement.

  “You have to stay on top of these things. I gave them strict instructions on what to do, protocols to follow.” She gave a confident nod. “You don’t need to worry about this group. They know what to do.”

  “Tamara, I’ll be fine. I’m more worried about you.” He held up a hand. “I know, I know. You know what you’re doing. You can’t blame me. I’m your father. I’ll always worry about you.”

  “No need,” she replied lightly. “As you can see, I’m fine.”

  “Take care of yourself.”

  Tamara blinked. The last thing she wanted to do was cry in front of her father. “I will. Now you do the same. Lara will stay here to take care of you.”

  “You have a transport waiting?”

  “I thought I’d hitch a ride with Dax.”

  “I hope to be up and about in the next week or so.”

  She bent and kissed his cheek. “And I’ll keep in touch. I love you.”

  “I love you too,” he responded gruffly. “Take care of yourself.”

  Tamara emerged from her father’s room and found Dax waiting for her. “I need to talk to you.”

  She groaned. “Oh, Dax. Not you, too.”

  “What do you mean, not me too? You really didn’t expect me not to try to pound some sense into you after I heard what you’ve done?”

  “This wasn’t supposed to be public knowledge.”

  “I’m not the public, Tamara. I’m your friend.”

  “I did what I had to do.”

  Dax ran his hand through
his hair. “I don’t want you to get hurt.”

  “I won’t.” The confidence with which she answered wasn’t really how she felt inside. Truth to tell, she was beginning to miss Kendrick. The nights were the most difficult. She found it increasingly hard to sleep alone. How could she have formed such an attachment to him in such a short time? “Do you have room for another passenger in your ship?”

  “Since nothing I say will change your mind, I suppose I can take you back to Bandar.” The resignation in his voice made her smile. “I might as well meet this Kendrick. Be ready to leave in an hour.”

  * * *

  Vartan caressed the large breast of the shapely female squirming on his lap, enjoying the feel of her plump ass rubbing against his swelling cock. He glanced over to Kendrick, who was staring into his mug of Bandarian ale and looking morose. He stifled a grin. All around them, scantily clad performers writhed to the heavy beat of drums. One was gyrating in front of the prince, doing her best to attract his attention, discarding her top and swinging her pendulous breasts in front of his nose to get a reaction. Nothing. Kendrick merely leaned back and watched her performance without any reaction. With a resigned sigh, Vartan gently pushed the woman off him and with a light slap on her ass, sent her away. With a flick of his hand, the rest of the women soon filed out, casting disappointed glances over their shoulders at Kendrick.

  As soon as they were alone, Vartan spoke. “What is the matter with you? You’re about as much fun as patrolling the Dead Sector.”

  Kendrick lifted his gaze. “You’re having enough fun for the two of us.”

  “Damn right I am.” Vartan frowned. “I’ve never seen you like this. You haven’t fucked a woman since Tamara left. I’m exhausted trying to keep all the females in your household happy.”

  Kendrick snorted. “I didn’t hear you complaining last night when you had Rahda, Nadeen and Sela in your bed.”

  With a chuckle, Vartan shrugged. “What’s to complain about? I’m proud to say the three women thoroughly enjoyed themselves last night. Damn near killed me, but who cares? I would have died happy.” After a moment, he sobered. “Your staff is getting worried about you. It’s not like you to sleep alone at night.”