Talent For Trouble (2 page)

“They will never control you again. I promise.”

“How can you say that?”

He pulled back and stared deep into her eyes. “Because I believe in you, Jana.” He leaned in and kissed her lips sweetly, briefly, shockingly, before pulling back once more. “When I healed you, I went deeper than I ever have before. I touched your soul, little one. And what I saw there was so breathtakingly beautiful, I know deep in my heart that you’re free. Your bright spirit will never allow itself to be taken over again.”

A tear streaked down the side of her face, past the glinting reminders of what she had been through. He leaned in and licked it away as her breath caught in her throat.

“What if I’m not strong enough?” All her fear was in her stark words, condensed and trembling.

“You are. But, as I keep reminding you, you’re not in this alone, anymore. You have your sister and new brother-in-law behind you. Not to mention me. Though my power is nowhere near Jeri’s or Micah’s, I’m still considered one of the more Talented folks here. I can help you as I have before. I won’t let anyone undo the work I’ve put into saving your life. I promise you that.”

He lifted her chin with tender fingers and kissed her again, this time lingering a bit longer, licking her lips as if seeking entrance. Something fluttered low in her belly, but she didn’t recognize the sensation. It felt good, but it was frightening, too.

She opened her mouth to tell him to leave her alone, but she never got the chance as his tongue swept inside. He stroked her mouth gently, tangling his tongue with hers and enticing her to come out and play.

She found herself responding before she really even knew what she was doing, and the tingling in her tummy turned to hot, molten fire. She clamped her legs together as she felt the unaccustomed heat. Something strange was happening, and it had to stop. She was afraid.

When Darak’s hand moved down to toy with her breast, she found the strength to push him away in her momentary panic. She held him by the wrist, but his gaze was kind, his expression soft in a way she never would have expected.

“Don’t do that again, Darak. I mean it.”

He turned his wrist and, somehow, came up with her hand gently cradled in his long, strong fingers. He brought it to his lips and kissed her gallantly.

“That, I cannot promise, sweetheart. I like kissing you. And, judging by your reaction, you like kissing me, too.”

Her senses screamed at her to let him continue, but her mind was saying stop. She knew to which she should listen.

“If you try it again, I’ll bite you.”

His chuckle was wicked. “You promise?”

The silly, leering grin on his face almost made her want to laugh, but she reminded herself just in time how dangerous this man was. She didn’t want to fall under his spell as so many other women did on a daily basis. He had the entire female staff of this facility making eyes at him, and even some of the men sent admiring glances his way. Some wanted him, but most wanted to
be
him. It was disgusting. Really.

“You’re looking stronger every day, Jana.”

She was relieved when he changed the subject and let her go. She lay back on the bed as he moved to the window, lifting the gauzy curtain to peer out at the green grounds.

“They have me doing therapy, and I can sit up and even walk for longer and longer each time.”

“So your doctors tell me. Which brings me to another thing.” He turned to face her, and she had a momentary pang of fear from the serious look on his handsome face. “When you’re better, the Council would like to question you.”

“I expected as much. I don’t remember a lot, but I will freely give what information I can.”

“I told them that would be your answer, but you will face some skeptics. Be prepared for a little hostility. Some of them see you as an enemy, and it will take time to make them understand just how fully you were under the collective’s control.” His gaze hardened. “But they need to know, Jana. For that reason alone, it’s important that you submit to their questions. They don’t understand our enemy, and that could be a fatal mistake. They need to know how the collective operates and why you and those few ship captains took the chance to defect when Jeri and Micah shattered your control crystal.”

Just the mention of the huge blue gem that was now splintered and embedded in her skin made her shiver. Darak saw the fear coursing through her and stepped forward, but he didn’t dare take her in his arms again. That way lay madness. He couldn’t hold her without wanting to have her in every way a man could have a woman. He wanted her in his bed, in his home, in his life. And that thought was truly scary.

“Jana, I’ve been thinking long and hard about those jewels you wear so prettily.” His voice was deliberately coaxing. “The Wizards used the larger stone to control you and the other ship captains. But what if you learned how to use the crystal shards in your skin to focus your own Talent against the collective?”

He sensed she was considering his words. He’d gotten her attention. Now, he just had to get her mind working on the problem.

“Do you think it can be done?” he asked, drawing her gaze.

“I don’t know. But it’s an interesting thought.”

“Those who live on Council worlds don’t use stones to focus our Talent. In fact, we’ve never seen anything like the shards the Council has been analyzing. The ones I was able to get out of your skin. Do you know where the crystal is from?”

“I have no idea. But I do remember that we feared the blue stones and the Wizards that wielded them, even as children. They are the mark of a high-level Wizard, and they were the ones that would come and take children away from their parents.”

“If I’m right and the crystal connected you to the collective while you were so far out of their home range, then it’s possible that targeting the crystals of other Wizards will also put them out of commission.”

“Except for the fact that the psi wave released when Jeri and Micah shattered my crystal almost killed me and would have burned every Talent within a parsec of the blast had Jeri and Micah not been there. Only their shielding allowed everyone to live through that unharmed.”

“Unharmed, perhaps.” An ironic smile lifted the corner of his sensual mouth. “But not unchanged.”

“That’s when you rose from Dominar to Master Mage, right? You skipped right over one of your Council’s highest rankings, as did the other people on your ship, Jeri told me.”

“And we haven’t completely figured out what it did to you, yet. Aside from your new, all-too-permanent jewelry, that is.”

“I’ve been too wrung out emotionally, physically and psychically, to even attempt to use my Talent. I don’t even know if it’s still there.”

“Oh, it’s there all right.” Darak grinned at her. “I can feel it snapping along my nerve endings. It’s there, and it’s strong. Never fear.”

“But, without direction of the collective, I’m basically untrained. The healers here have warned me not to try focusing on anything until I’m fully healed and they can arrange a base-level test and some strong shielding.”

“I think Jeri wants to be with you when that starts. Micah, as well. Their honeymoon is nearly over, so they can be with you when you’re ready to try again.”

Darak noticed the way Jana stiffened at the mention of her sister, but didn’t understand the reason for her reaction. He knew she loved her sister, and vice versa, but was there some problem between the siblings? If so, they’d have to work it out. They needed each other, as far as he was concerned. Family was important. Too important to allow a misunderstanding to linger and corrupt the relationship.

“You think I need two Shas to shield me? Are you that worried about what the stone might have done to me?”

“Yes.” Darak watched her carefully as he leveled with her. “I know for a fact that Jeri is worried, too, and wants to be with you.”

“Just how well do you
know
my little sister?”

The question took him totally off guard. He reared back a bit in surprise.

“What kind of question is that?”

“You heard me. You speak of her as if… as if…”

“As if I’ve been inside her?” He deliberately pitched his voice low, watching the furious flush rise in her cheeks. Her raw Talent sparked along his senses, and it made him hot in more ways than one.

“You’re disgusting.” She turned her face away from him.

“No.” He spoke softly as he sat on the side of her bed. “Just truthful.” He sighed heavily. “I have loved your sister.”

She didn’t think her heart could take the pain that lanced through it at his admission.

“Love? You call that love?” She couldn’t fathom this culture or the way they shared their bodies so freely. She just did not understand it.

“A small part of my heart will always be hers, just as a small part of her thinks of me fondly. But she loves my cousin deeply and truly, in a way that I’ve never experienced. They belong together. Micah will care for her all the days of their lives.”

“Then, why in the world would he let you…?” The question slipped out before she could censor her words.

“Fuck her?”

She gasped at the blunt word, and Darak sighed heavily. He moved closer on the soft mattress, but didn’t touch her.

“I know you and Jeri were raised on Mithrak and that your culture is different from ours.” He shook his head, as if frustrated. “Our people discovered, not long after the Council was formed, that those with Talent have a way of reenergizing each other through sexual pleasure. Though first joinings can be dangerous, once the energies are aligned, the giving and receiving of pleasure can enhance our natural Talents, recharge us and heal those in need of psi energy.” He looked back at her, pinning her with his dark gaze. “This was discovered several centuries ago by the Founders of our Council, you understand. Over the years since then, joinings among Talents became more open, more free. Micah and I, as well as just about everyone who lives on a Council world, were raised to give and receive pleasure freely.”

“So, you’re telling me that my little sister sleeps with anyone she pleases? I thought she was married!” Her anger was getting the better of her, but there was no way not to get angry at the thought of her innocent little sister being victimized by these Council brutes.

“That’s not what I’m telling you at all.” Darak’s voice was calm. How could he be so blasted calm when he was talking about having sex with her sister? “Jeri was on the run for most of her life. I don’t know all the details, but she did tell me that after the Wizards took you and murdered your parents, they hunted her. She hid among the horses, eventually stowing away aboard a ship bound for Pantur. Even there, she wasn’t free. The Hill Tribes share pleasure almost as openly as we do, but she never joined in. She came to my cousin a virgin.”

“She told you that?” She couldn’t imagine her little sister speaking so frankly about such private things.

Darak grinned wickedly. “No. He did.”

Just like a man to discuss his conquests with his buddy. She was disgusted. But then why did she feel just a tiny flicker of flame low in her belly? It must be anger, she decided. All men were swine.

“I’m not getting a very good impression of my new brother-in-law.” Her voice was purposely haughty, but it didn’t appear to affect Darak in the least. He winked at her, and she sniffed and turned her head.

“My point is that Micah wanted to give her the experiences we all grew up taking for granted. We’ve shared pleasure in many different and varied ways. I’ve seen and done enough to know that when I saw Micah and Jeri together, I was witnessing something almost sacred.” Now, Darak looked away from her as if he didn’t want her to see too closely. “Micah knew he loved Jeri, almost from the moment he found her. But he was afraid, I think, that because she’d never been with anyone but him, she didn’t really know her own heart. He let her fly free. He gave her the experiences that all young women on our worlds usually have and stood by her, sharing in her pleasure, showing by example that his love made every moment they had together more special than a mere joining of bodies and sharing of pleasure. What they share is love in its purest form.”

Silence reigned a long, long moment. She didn’t think he’d meant to say so much. He refused to look at her, apparently lost in thought, but she could feel discomfort coming off him in waves. She was empathic enough, even without focusing her Talent, to know that he was uncomfortable with the revelations he’d just made. She let the moment pass, saying nothing.

“It was my honor to join with Jeri and Micah, and normally, I wouldn’t entertain questions about my activities, but you have a right to know.” His eyes met hers steadily. “I want the air clear between us. I joined with your sister, but I doubt I will ever be invited to do so again.”

Her eyes narrowed. He was trying to convey something to her, but she didn’t quite understand what lay beneath his words.

“Would you? If you were asked now?”

Slowly, he shook his head.

“No. Not now.” His hand covered hers, resting atop her upper thigh. “Not ever again.”

Could he mean…? No. No way. Even she could see this man was a playboy. He went from woman to woman like bees went from flower to flower. So, maybe he wouldn’t sleep with Jeri again, but there was no way he’d give up his wanton ways. Every other woman was fair game. Including, it seemed, she herself.

His hand stroked her fingers, warming her from the inside out. It made her uncomfortable, but she could hardly object. He wasn’t overstepping the bounds of propriety. Yet.

But she knew he would. It was in his nature. This man liked to push the envelope in all ways, and she feared he would push her as far as she’d go. It was up to her to push back.

Her experiences with men were nothing but bad, traumatic memories. She wouldn’t be tempted to let this rogue into her pants anytime soon.

She hoped.

But he had a way about him…

“You’re thinking too hard, Jana.” Darak tapped her temple lightly then wrapped his palm around the nape of her neck in a gesture of comfort. “Give it time.”