He slouched down and laid his head on the back of the chair.“She fights me for every inch of progress. I think I can hold her and then she slides out of my arms and runs from me again. It is maddening.”
“So it is just your pride aching.”Tair’s voice was suspiciously smooth.
“Of course.”Liken’s voice was firm, but he was rubbing his hand over his chest unconsciously.“She is merely a woman, pactmate or no. I grow sick of rejection.”
In nodding agreement, Tair gave a half smile. “So, do not worry, brother. In a few days, you can file incompatible. You will never see her again. The portal to Earth is always open. There are many females there besides her. Not another pactmate for you like her, but there will be females who are not so impossible.”
Liken’s head came up. He heard the goading tone in his brother’s voice but ignored it. His voice rose as he agreed,“That is right! I do not need this chaos. Who needs her?!”
Tair sat waiting silently. It wouldn’t be long, he was sure. The room was quiet until the silence was broken by Liken’s sigh.His voice full of misery, Liken said,“I do.She is mine and I am not giving her up.”
Tair sat forward and grinned.“Okay, brother. Then you will keep her.” His face turned serious as he said,“What you have tried has not worked. It is time to stop trying and start doing. You have never backed from a challenge before.”
Liken set the bottle down and leaned forward with new resolution.“You are right. Tonight she is through running from me. What cannot be taken with gentle patience, can still be held by force.”
He felt a new sense of calm and purpose. Sharon was at home weeping in anguish, he was sure. He would go to her and make things right. Then, he would force her to face herself and her relationship with him.
Opening his block with her, Liken went completely still. Both men felt the blood in their veins turn to ice. Jumping to their feet, they headed in a panic for the front door. Sharon was not at home. And she certainly wasn’t crying.
Chapter 11
Sharon was at the eatery. She had grown tired of sitting on the living room floor after Liken left. After about a half-hour in absolute misery she felt a sudden emptiness. Without being sure how she knew, she could tell Liken had withdrawn from her nearly completely. She should have been happy to have him out of her head. Instead, she felt a sense of loneliness that only added to her hurt.
Finally, she stood up with renewed purpose. With each step around the room, her hurt became swallowed by anger. How dare he order her around and expect her to wait for his return like a child? She was a grown woman. She had come to this planet,had mind-blowing sex with a near stranger, gotten laid in a dressing room,and eaten exotic food. She wasn’t some sweet helpless young thing too scared to leave the house.
She was tired of just reacting to whatever he did next. It was time to take charge. Past time. He had hurt her, but she wasn’t going to sit around and whine about it. The thought of possible danger crossed her mind. She was connected to the big idiot if she ran into mind trouble. Anything else she could handle herself. She needed to get away fromhis house. She was going out. To hell with him.
Leaving the house, she walked angrily for a while, not really caring of the direction. She was oblivious to her glittering skin or the beautiful glow of the buildings in the silvery moonslight. She didn’t see anyone else until she was nearly in front of the eatery. There were Shimerian males coming out and a few going in. Their dark features reminded her of Liken and she moved forward with resolution. She was not a prisoner, waiting for her jailer to give her permission to leave the house and have a night out.
Walking through the archway, she searched the room until she spotted an empty table. Around her, a dozen Shimerian men paused with their drinks halfway to their mouths. Another handful nearly choked as they watched her cross the room. There was complete silence.
Sharon was angry enough not to care. Sitting down at the empty table, she sent a sweeping glare around the room. Just great. More men. Like she wasn’t sick to death of them already. And where were the damn women on this planet tonight? It was testosterone hell.
A waiter she recognized from her previous visits appeared at the table after nearly running across the room. She looked up at him with a grim parody of a smile. “Bring me something alcoholic and put it on that idiot Liken’s account. You remember me, don’t you?”
He flashed her a cautious smile. “Of course,Isshal.” He seemed ruffled. “But I don’t understand… alcoholic?”The word was unfamiliar but his shock at seeing a lone unescorted female in the eatery at this hour was enough to cause greater confusion.
She searched for another word to explain. “Fermented. You know, a beer. Hell, a shot of tequila might be better.”
He must have understood what she meant because he nodded and hurried into the back. Sharon glanced around the room again, noticing conversations in low tones being carried on around the room. At least they weren’t staring at her like an exotic animal escaped from the zoo anymore.
Her thoughts turned inward and she thought about the ugly scene with Liken. The more she tried to push it away, the more their angry words echoed in her head. She was trying to stay angry. Angry was a lot better than hurt.
The waiter came back with a small bowl and set it down in front of her. She looked down at it in surprise. It looked like cream of wheat or something. She couldn’t believe it. She was too shocked to say anything as he nodded and scurried away.
She felt defeated. Her shoulders slumped. Nothing on this planet made any sense. She muttered to herself, “Ask for a beer and they bring me baby cereal. I hate this place. I feel like an idiot. What am I saying? Men are idiots.”
She felt a big body drop gracefully into the chair across from her. Lifting her gaze from the bowl, her mouth dropped open in shock. In the chair across from her sat possibly the most gorgeous guy she’d ever seen. He had a face like a dark angel. His black hair fell in soft waves just ending at the top of massive shoulders. He could have dropped down from heaven if it weren’t for his eyes. They were dark brown, nearly black and the hardness in them said he’d seen hell.
His lips curved upward in a smile that never reached those eyes. “Even idiots have their uses,sherree, wouldn’t you agree?”
The sound of him calling her by the same endearment Liken used caused her heart to clutch. “What doessherree mean?” Yet another question she should have asked long ago.
He looked amused by her question. He spoke in English with just a touch of an accent. “It is an endearment that doesn’t really translate well. I guess the closest English word would be baby.”
Anger washed through her all the way down to her toes. “It figures. He treats me like a child. I should have guessed he’s been calling me one.”
His smile widened. His voice was like chocolate, soothing and wickedly tempting at the same time. “I cannot imagine any man treating you like a child.”
She blushed. She stammered out a reply as her heart beat against her ribs. “I didn’t mean…” There wasn’t anything to say that wouldn’t mortify her even worse.
He was openly grinning now and it transformed his face. He looked like a mischievous little boy. “I presume you are speaking of your missing pactmate?”
She was startled. “Why would you assume I have a pactmate? And why would you assume he’s missing? I could just be out on the town by myself to relax after a hard day at the office. Besides, I could be pledged.”
He shook his head. “You are unescorted. You are too beautiful to be unclaimed. And you are from Earth. Yet, you are still here alone. That means there is an unhappy pactmate somewhere close by.” His voice was persuasive. “Tell me his name. Perhaps I will not mind fighting him for a woman such as you.”