Page 18 of A Mate for Vasek
Something at the back of his brain screamed for him to stop, that something was wrong. He couldn’t smell any danger, so he listened instead. There was the sound of creatures moving in the woods around them, big ones. Bright feathers flashed in between the trees. Carrion birds, scary-looking but mostly harmless, were more interested in the mess he’d left behind than in him and his delectable prize.
This was when he realized Dawn was still shaking like a leaf in his arms. Didn’t she know that the danger was over? He had her now, and he’d protect her. He put her on the ground and she scrambled away from him, and he realized it was him she was afraid of.
In fact, Dawn was absolutely terrified of him.
He recalled the first time he’d seen that look on her face. Bakum had been holding her by the hair, and the sight had Vasek’s fangs descending. Was that what she was scared of?
On the outer planets, unaffected by the Goddess’s teachings, some females found males who went into bloodlust sexy.
But some Tallean females found going into bloodlust impolite and uncouth, especially those from the more religious parts of the inner planets. The Goddess’s favored were a sub-species of Talleans who were smaller, more delicately built, and had lost the ability to go into the altered state meant to enhance their senses when fighting. The Favored were the Talleans’ ruling class and didn’t need to fight when they had common, lower-caste Talleans to fight for them.
But Dawn was human, and humans didn’t have an altered state that helped them fight or hunt. Also, it wasn’t disgust that radiated from her, like it would from a Favored witnessing bloodlust, but fear.
Vasek wanted to tell her that he would not harm her, but the only words that came from his distorted cheeks were unintelligible. Dawn took another step back from him, almost stepping right into the very plants that had given her that rash on her thigh.
Vasek swooped her up onto his arms again and strode toward their shuttle, which was a bit difficult since his cock was still hard and in the way.
He was glad he’d managed to stop himself. Not only had Dawn been completely terrified of him when he was in bloodlust, but he also didn’t want to trigger a mate bond. Though satisfying his lust for her once might not cause that to happen.
But also, the wilderness was no place to celebrate his victory. The rash that was healing on her leg was a reminder of just how delicate she was. Not weak, though. No weak-minded soul would ever find the courage to brave the wilds alone, even in New Rhea.
And what was she doing out here on her own anyway? She surely wasn’t attempting to rendezvous with these thugs. Where was she planning to go? Logically, her best bet was to stay with Vasek. Until now, he’d demanded nothing from her, and even his actions now were only because he’d been acting on instincts alone, something he swore to himself would not happen again. He had better control than this.
The more Vasek thought about it, the more upset he got at the fact that she’d tried to run off when he’d shown her nothing but kindness. From what he’d heard, she’d known the group was after her. And she also knew there were dangers in the wild, yet she’d still chanced it. But for what?
Humans were known for their intelligence. It was what made them different from the Fietes. The Fietes were the most common subjugated species in the Dominion because they were obedient and none too smart. Humans, on the other hand, were wily, intelligent, and hard to control. And while their brains were wired for logic, sometimes emotions overrode their more logical side, like his own species. Hate, love, and hope were the eternal enemies of reason.
Was that what was happening here? Was there someone Dawn was trying to get back to? A male, perhaps. Another slave? Maybe someone else? A friend or acquaintance of Kotch? The thought of her with another male had Vasek tamping down a growl.
Dawn
They were back at the shuttle, and the big Tallean male was wiping her down from head to toe with a thick wet wipe. He wasn’t being gentle about it either, and something about the way he was doing it made her feel like a bad kid who’d been caught stealing from the corner store and was about to get an ass-whooping.
His top had been slashed open, and she was staring at his big, muscular chest. It was better than seeing the scary, stern look on his face.
“What in Stars’ name were you trying to do?” he demanded. The words were a bit distorted by his cheeks and fangs, but she understood them. But even if she couldn’t, she could read the anger on his face.
He jerked her chin up to look at him.
Vasek’s fangs were mostly retracted now, but his cheek creases were still partially extended, and there was blood on his face. Dawn squeezed her eyes shut again at the memory of him tearing one of his enemies’ throats out.
“Were you trying to get yourself killed?” He’d grabbed a new wipe to clean her face.
Dawn flinched at the sting, and when he went over the scrapes on her cheekbone from the bark, he softened his touch. She wondered if Vasek would be upset that the scrapes would scar and lower her value. Kotch would’ve been.
She couldn’t believe she’d actually hoped Vasek would come and rescue her from Morad. How silly she’d been! She’d jumped out of the frying pan and into the flames. He caught her trying to escape. He was rightfully angry.
She had just witnessed what an angry Vasek was capable of. He’d ripped those guys apart with nothing but his fangs and claws. Even with their blasters drawn, they hadn’t stood a chance. Morad had run like a coward.
If you’d asked her which one she’d prefer this morning, she would’ve said Vasek, hands down. But now she wasn’t sure. He’d come after her, tearing the clothes from her body when he was still in bloodlust.
She knew that after the enhanced state some Talleans called bloodlust, they often craved sexual release. The wires between violence and sex were slightly crossed in Talleans, and the first often led to the second. Dawn had known some females who were turned on by it, but she wasn’t one of them.
It scared her. A lot. And now Vasek scared her.
“What is so important that you’d brave the wilds and those thugs on your own?”
He sounded more normal now, and Dawn dared another peek. The fangs were normal again, which meant they were barely peeking out, and his cheek creases were folded. Done with cleaning her, he was now wiping himself off with another one of those disposable wipes.
