Mastered By Love (28 page)

“
Good. I will.”

“
Holy hell, brother, what’s
eating you?”

“
Nothing.”

“
Does that Concordian of
yours still have you by the balls?”

Dario glared at him. “No,
she does not, and I don’t want to talk about it.”

Mateo shook his head.
“Right.”

“
I’m hungry, that’s all.”
He reached for a dish of spiced scrambled eggs.

Across the table, Shadow
was watching him. Dario gave the Demon Kin a cool glance, then
ignored him. They could wonder all they wanted. He wasn’t going to
talk about it. No-one needed to know his moods were so much at the
mercy of a mere slave.

“
Mateo, will you do
something for me?” he said.

“
Certainly. What is
it?”

“
Keep an eye on Tariza
while I’m gone. Make sure she doesn’t get into any
trouble.”

“
I don’t think it’s
possible to keep her out of trouble without chaining and muzzling
her.”

“
It is if you keep a close
watch on her.” He tried to erase the irritation from his face.
“She’s a good companion when she’s not angry. You should have her
sing for you.”

Mateo grinned. “I might be
willing to do that, especially if I can use her.”

Dario swallowed. His fists
clenched in his lap. Tariza was his alone; he didn’t want to share
her. Yet treating her as his exclusive woman had somehow made her
think she had a special claim on him. Perhaps it was time to share,
if only with his brother.

“
I expect you to protect
her.”

Mateo clapped him on the
shoulder. “Don’t worry, Dario. She’ll be fine while you’re
gone.”

***

Something was
poking her, over and over, right where her rib
cage ended. Tariza slapped at the offending object. It poked her
even harder.

“
Get up. Slave, get
up.”

She raised her head and
pried her eyes open. One of the uniformed servants stood over her,
a scowl on his face. “Who –where’s Dario?”

“
Your
master
the prince has left the city. You’ve been
summoned. Now get up.”

“
He left?” She sat. Her
whole body ached from hours on the cold floor.

Dario left without her. He
must be furious with her. She’d been stupid to argue with him when
he had all the power. Yet it had never occurred to her that he’d
leave her alone in the palace.

Tariza forced herself to
her feet. “I’ll bathe.”

“
No. You are wanted
immediately.” The man grabbed her collar, forcing her head back at
an awkward angle. He clipped a plain, brown leather lead to it.
“Come.”

She had nothing on and the rooms were
morning cold. The servant tugged on the lead as he spun on his heel
and marched toward the door. Where was he taking her?

Goddess, not to Grasos.
Please, let it not be Grasos.

The trip didn’t take long.
The servant brought her to the next chamber down. Mateo’s rooms.
Tariza sagged a little in relief. The servant knocked on the door
and waited for permission to enter.

Mateo lounged on his bed, a sleeping
woman on either side of him, one of them Lola.

The crown prince grinned as
the servant brought her to the center of the room. “Bring her over
here.”

The servant led her to the bed and
handed the lead over to Mateo. With a bow, he left the room. Lola
lifted her head, blinking sleepily at Tariza.

“
You’re with me until Dario
gets back,” Mateo said. “I want to see proper slave posture,
immediately.”

She ducked her head, but not before
she saw the incredulous glare Lola sent her.

Dario had left her with
Mateo? Dismay gripped her throat with iron claws. Had he changed
his mind about her, decided he didn’t want her anymore?

“
Did you hear me,
slave?”

She kept her gaze fixed on
the floor. “Yes, Master.” She forced the words past the lump in her
throat. Her eyes began to sting.
Dario!

“
I’m a stricter master than
my brother. Don’t think you can get away with any attitude while
you’re under my authority.”

“
No, Master.”

“
I punish my girls when
they misbehave,” Mateo said. “If you defy me in any way, I will
punish you. Is that understood?”

“
Yes, Master.”

“
Good. Come over here and
kneel.”

She glanced at him in
alarm. What did he want of her? He knew as well as anyone that
Dario didn’t share her.

Uneasily, Tariza came to him and sank
to her knees. Lola sat up in bed, her whole body trembling. Mateo
threw back the covers and swung his legs over the side of the bed
to display an impressive erection. The swollen head already
glistened with a droplet of pre-come.

“
I’m going to fuck your
mouth until I come down your throat and you’re going to swallow
every drop.” He caught the back of her head in one big
hand.

“
But Master Dario
–”

“
Is gone and left me in
charge of you. That means I get to use you as my own.”

“
He –”

“
Ah, ah. One more word and
I’ll crop you until you can’t sit down.”

She swallowed audibly,
fighting down her rage and resentment. Mateo was a handsome man,
attractive to be sure, but he wasn’t Dario. She didn’t want to
service him like a – like a slave.

You are a
slave.

He pulled her head forward.
“You may begin by licking me.”

“
Yes,
Master,” she whispered.

***

Dario was
miserable. They’d only been at the country house
for three days, and he’d already brought the Demon Kin prince to
four separate parties flush with lovely slaves available to serve
every erotic whim a man could conceive, yet he felt no desire for
any of them. At this very moment he reclined on embroidered
cushions while two naked dancers, jewels dangling from their
nipples, gyrated over him in time to the insistent beat of a
drum.

He smiled and reached up to
fondle one of the girls, but it was all show. His cock didn’t give
the slightest response. That wasn’t even natural. When was the last
time he’d failed to respond to a naked female? He couldn’t remember
a single such incident.

The girl he’d touched
undulated downward until she crouched next to him. She leaned over
and draped herself across him, her hand heading for his crotch.
Dario caught her wrist, keeping it tight against his
belly.

“
Sorry, pet. I’m not
interested.”

Her eyes went wide and her
lower lip trembled. “I fail to please you?”

“
No, you’re fine. I’m just
not feeling well tonight.” He patted her on her back. “Don’t worry.
You’re not in trouble.”

The girl nodded, looking
downcast. Maybe she’d been looking forward to serving him. He
almost wished he could oblige her, but she wasn’t Tariza. The
Concordian was the only woman he wanted.

Dario glanced to his right.
Shadow was already inside a woman, his narrow hips pumping
rhythmically. The woman beneath him tilted her head back, her mouth
open in ecstasy. Demon Kin were said to be exceptional lovers; he’d
have to keep Tariza far away from the foreign prince, just to avoid
temptation on either part.

Tariza wants only
you.

He snorted. That might have
been true once, but it seemed she’d changed her mind about
him.

Later, Dario and Shadow
rode back to Dario’s house, their breath and that of their mounts
making frosty clouds in the night air. Dario wore a fur hat, but
Shadow had to wrap scarves around his head because of the
interference of his horns. The headgear made him look even more
exotic, especially with the tips of his horns peeking out from
among the wrappings.

The Demon Kin prince turned
to him with a quizzical smile. “I don’t mean to be rude, Dario, but
you seem unhappy.”

Dario shrugged. “The
country makes me restless.” Untrue, but his thoughts were none of
the Demon Kin’s business.

“
Hmmm,” Shadow said
noncommittally. “There were some stunning dancers on display
tonight.”

“
Yes.”

“
Yet you practically
ignored them.”

Dario turned in the saddle
and glared at Shadow. “What are you getting at?”

Shadow smiled. “I’m only
wondering if you’re all right.”

“
I’m fine.”

“
You left Tariza in the
city.”

“
We fought.” Damn. He
hadn’t meant to say that.

“
I thought Saturnian men
beat slaves who disagreed or talked back.”

“
Not all of us.” Did he
think they were nothing but barbarians? “Anyway, Tariza is
different.”

“
That she is.”

Dario gave a heavy sigh. “I
thought I knew how to handle her. She seems to think I belong to
her instead of the other way around.”

The Demon Kin gave him a
considering look. “Maybe she just sees the belonging as
mutual.”

“
Is that how you Demon Kin
do it?”

“
Generally. Although our
women have been lost for so long and young men like me don’t have a
lot of experience with that kind of relationship.”

“
So how do you know what
it’s supposed to be like?”

“
Stories. Our elders.”
Shadow turned his dark gaze on Dario. “You should treasure your
women. You never know when they might be stolen from
you.”

He tried to picture an
Argelia devoid of women. What a bleak and comfortless place it
would be – no graceful female forms, no soft feminine voices, no
petting, no sex.

“
Why did you leave Miri at
my house tonight?” he said.

Shadow stared off across
the frozen landscape. “She frightens easily. I thought she’d feel
safer at home.”

“
You aren’t exclusive with
her.”

The Demon Kin shrugged.
“She isn’t ready for sex.”

“
You mean you haven’t taken
her?” A Saturnian male would have fucked her
immediately.

“
She’s been traumatized.
She’s terrified of men. She needs time.”

Dario stared at him. “Most
Saturnians would say you’re spoiling her. If you give her that much
choice now, you’ll have trouble mastering her later.”

“
I’m not a Saturnian. If
she’s to be my partner, she must be willing.” The Demon Kin glanced
at him. “I have no intention of mastering her.”

“
Then why did you take
her?”

“
Someone had to get her out
of that situation. Why not me? I have enough power to protect
her.”

Dario frowned. “You said
you liked the way the king had marked her.”

“
I lied.”

A wave of relief passed
through him. “Good. I’m glad you’re going to take care of
her.”

“
Even though she’s a
Concordian bitch?” Shadow said dryly.

“
Nobody deserves that kind
of treatment.”

“
Not even
Tariza.”

“
I don’t beat or starve
her,” Dario said hotly. He flushed at the memory of that last
punishment. Maybe he did beat her.

“
I didn’t mean to imply you
did. However, she is a collared slave. She has no control over her
life.”

“
She’s happy with
me.”

“
Is she?” Shadow raised a
skeptical brow.

His shoulders slumped. “I
thought she was, until last night.”

“
She’s accustomed to making
her own decisions, to being in charge. I doubt she’ll ever really
adapt to slavery.”

“
I can’t let her go. My
uncle would kill her.”

“
How much do you care for
her?,” Shadow said, watching him inscrutably. “What are you willing
to do for her?”

Dario gave the prince a
sidelong glance. “I’m not sure what you mean.”

“
There are other places in
the galaxy, Saturnios. Places where men and women are equal and
free.”

Was he suggesting Dario run off-world
with Tariza? That was impossible. He had obligations to his family
and country. Yet the idea was strangely tempting.

“
Even if I took her
off-world, we’d still be master and slave.”

“
Why? You’d have a chance
to start over, to change your relationship.”

“
Because, Demon Kin,
neither of us has any idea how to behave any other way with the
opposite sex.”

“
You’re both intelligent,”
Shadow said. “You could learn.”

He shot a half-shamed
glance at the other man. “I’m not sure I want to. I ... like
dominating a woman sexually.”

“
You can dominate a lover
sexually without enslaving that person.”