Page 62 of Coveted

Alana couldn’t hold back a scoff, and she shook her head as she hid her grin against his collarbone. Vax couldn’t be any further from the other politicians she’d met, but it was something she was growing to appreciate about him.

“I beg to differ about fitting. The way my muscles ache seems to say you’re much too large.”

His huff bounced her against him, and he thrust his hips up, shifting his knot inside her. Her answering spasm made her whine despite the arousal still simmering in her blood. She wanted to explore what they’d done together again, just not right then.

Fingers dug into the muscle on each side of her tailbone, the building tension releasing as she lifted her head to stare at Vax. He gazed back, lips quirked, before his expression became more serious.

“I’m sorry your welcome to Farcon 1 wasn’t better. I had hoped to show you around, but I’ve lost what little extra time I might have had.”

She raised a hand to push fingers through his short hair, Vax’s eyes closing as he leaned into the touch.

“I understand. This wasn’t your fault, and it’s important to see to your people’s welfare. You’re a good Chancellor.”

He huffed again, brows drawing together as he opened his eyes. His fingers froze on her back, and she immediately missed the massage he’d been giving her.

“I may not be one for much longer. Things are going to get worse when the Council arrives. There’s going to be backlash from me closing the mines, and they’re going to want to depose me.”

Alana let her hand drift down to his shoulder, raising the other to knead the muscles there. He still needed to rest and relax, but she could feel him tensing beneath her.

“The people have stopped them from doing that before, can’t they do it again?”

“What good is the threat to quit when the mines are already closed? They hate me, and replacing me might upset the population, but the people need to eat. No one else will offer to feed them if they’re not working, so they won’t have a choice.”

Alana frowned as Vax let his head tip back to lean against the edge of the tub. His eyes closed and he showed every sign of accepting what he thought was coming, but she was convinced no one else would care for the people of Farcon 1 like he did. She didn’t care about being First Lady, but she didn’t want to see someone else in Vax’s position when it clearly meant so much to him.

“What can I do?”

Vax cracked an eye open, looking at her before letting it slide shut again.

“I’m not sure there’s anything thatcanbe done. The other Chancellors will arrive day after tomorrow, and even if I avoid them while they’re settling in, there’s no way I’ll be able to avoid announcing what I’ve done at dinner.”

Alana felt Vax’s knot finally slip free, but his grip on her hips held firm. She felt a bit awkward sitting over his lap with fluids leaking from her to mingle in the water, but he showed no signs of wanting to move. The jets had kicked on once the tub finished filling, and she had to admit the warm water and pressure helped with the soreness.

“Okay, so that’s what you do. Have Varner tell everyone you’re busy handling an emergency that popped up, and once everyone gathers for dinner you tell them what happened. Thattheir greed led to an accident that left the mine unsafe and the workers injured.”

Vax lifted his head, dark eyes locking on hers.

“Alcam claimed not to know which Chancellor he was working for, only that someone named Egard offered him too much to refuse if he could produce a hold full of Grade B and higher. They didn’t even want it refined, probably because they knew there was no way that wouldn’t be noticed.”

Alana frowned. It would have been easier if they had at least one Chancellor to point to.

“If you had to guess, was this set up by one Chancellor, or the whole Council?”

Vax remained silent as he thought about her question. It was such a change to have someone include her and treat her like an equal and actually listen, but she was too worried to enjoy the feeling.

“I don’t think it would have been the whole Council. There never would have been a unanimous vote for it, otherwise they’d have just removed me already and done everything in the open instead of trying to hide their actions. I’m not sure who it could be, or if there was a group of them since there are more than one Chancellor pressing me for more crystals, but there are a few I’d believe wouldn’t supersede safety measures because they understand the risks due to mining on their own planets.”

Alana nodded, his reasoning making sense.

“So that’s what you need to lead with. Not thatyou’vebeen betrayed, but the Council as a whole has been betrayed. They may not like you, but theCouncilis supposed to be invincible. This has to feel like an attack on all of them, not an individual. Stress the fact that if someone did this without the Council’s knowledge, that means they weren’t going to share the crystals. Make them feel like it was coming out of their own pockets.”

Vax stared at her, mouth hanging open until a grin grew across his face. She’d been around her father and men like him enough to know the only way they’d be as upset as Vax over the incident was if they were directly affected, and nothing hurt them as much as affecting their income.

Large hands moved up to bracket her head, fingers curling around her skull.

“You are a genius.”

Vax yanked her forward into a kiss before she could respond and didn’t let her free until she was pushing against his chest, desperate for breath. Releasing her head, he took hold of her hips again and lifted her as he stood, depositing her on the other seat in the tub before turning and stepping out onto the floor. She couldn’t keep her own smile hidden, Vax’s praise sparking warmth in her chest.

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