Hearts Enchained Read online

  She took another step and then couldn’t quite convince herself to go any farther. “You were in charge of my transfer to Gemarra post-kidnapping. Not the kind of thing a girl forgets.”

  “No, of course not.” He looked her up and down, assessing her. “Medalyn told me you were smart. It was one of the things that first drew him to you.”

  Okay, at least now she knew the councilor was still in the picture, not that she’d really doubted it. “Is this his place?”

  “Yes.” He stepped back from the doorway and gestured for her to follow. “Come into the receiving room and we can talk.”

  Sorcha didn’t want to do his bidding but she needed the information he was promising to give. She trailed behind him as he led her into a large, bright room that continued the elegant brothel theme.

  He gestured to the twin couches that faced each other over an ornate coffee table. “Shall we sit, Lady Medalyn?”

  She swallowed around the hard lump of fear that clogged her throat. “My name is Sorcha Meehan.”

  “Not anymore.” Strolling over to the couch, he sat down, stretched one arm along the backrest and waited her out.

  “What do you mean?”

  “I’ll explain it all when you’re ready to sit down and listen to me.”

  Gritting her teeth, she padded across the floor and took a seat opposite him. “So you’re going to tell me what’s going on?”

  He gave her a false smile. “That’s why I’m here.”

  She found it hard to believe that a sergeant in the Brightstar army would happily hang around to provide her orientation. “Are you Medalyn’s lackey?”

  He laughed. “No, we’re friends. I do favors for him, he does favors for me and we both benefit.”

  “So what are you doing in Sapphire?”

  “We’re not in Sapphire.” Leaning over the side of the sofa to a small table, he pressed a button on a console and one entire wall transformed from opaque to transparent. Sorcha shot to her feet and wobbled over to the now glass-like wall. Looking out and down, she saw a city chock-full of lights, high-rises and a terrifying array of airborne vehicles. She had to be at least fifty floors high. This was what she’d always imagined an alien planet would look like, the tight spaces and advanced technology were Sci-Fi 101.

  “This is Allsgate, isn’t it?” she asked. “The city owned by Brightstar. The place we were supposed to be delivered to that first day.”

  “Yes, this should have been your home all along.”

  She turned to face him. “This will never be my home.”

  “If you say so.” He gestured to the sofa. “Come back and sit, Lady Medalyn.”

  “I told you, my name is Sorcha.” She resumed her seat, keeping one eye on Edrick and the other on the city-scape that lit the window.

  “That’s the first rule you need to learn. From now on you will be known as Lady Medalyn so everyone understands who owns you. Sorcha Meehan no longer exists. It’s the same for all the other women who live here. Every one of them takes the name of the man they serve.”

  She clasped her hands together, knuckles white. “I don’t serve anyone, especially Medalyn Consbaregh.”

  “But you will.” Edrick reached out to touch another button on the console and a clear 3D image of Medalyn appeared in the center of the room.

  “Good evening, my dear,” it said. “I hope your trip to Allsgate was comfortable and that Sergeant Edrick is doing his best to help you settle in. The building you are in is called the Residence and it’s set aside for the exclusive use of trade delegates and diplomats from Ivasta. The heavily guarded section you now occupy is restricted to a handful of wealthy, influential, like-minded men who believe there is more to life than duty and public service. My friends and I have created a happy little enclave for ourselves and I have no doubt you will be a lovely addition to our little community.”

  Sorcha had no doubt she would hate every minute of it but she didn’t have a chance to protest as the Medalyn transmission kept talking.

  “Our rules are quite simple. You may have the run of the top five floors but you may not cross any checkpoint. You may talk to the other slaves and any member of the female staff but you are forbidden to speak to any man without my express permission. You will wear the clothing I purchase, you will eat the food I deem appropriate, you will follow the schedule I provide for you and when in my presence you will obey every command I give with grace and alacrity. Failure to comply with any and all of these instructions will result in a punishment that far outweighs the crime.” The image winked. What an ass-hat.

  “I have to stay in Sapphire for a few weeks because we can’t have my absence coinciding with yours. I will be counting the days until we see each other again.”

  The consul clicked and the hologram disappeared.

  Sorcha glared at Edrick. “That man is psychotic if he thinks I’m going to comply with any of his demands.”

  Edrick shrugged. “Don’t let the lighthearted tone of that vid delude you. Medalyn is as cold as they come. Here in the Residence, slaves are a symbol not only of status but of personal power. You are lovely, of course, but the real attraction is your strong personality. You’re willing to fight for your independence and if I know Medalyn you’ve probably got a bad temper running just below the surface.”

  Sorcha rubbed at the ache in her belly. “I’d like to think that sounds like me but how do any of those traits scream ‘submissive’?”

  “They don’t, that’s the point. We have a saying in our little club. ‘The best slaves are the ones you have to break.’ The stronger a woman is, the more esteem a man’s accorded when he bends her to his will.”

  Sorcha clutched the arm of the chair and waited for the room to stop spinning. “How does a man break his slave?”

  Edrick leaned forward, his eyes heavy-lidded. “Lots of ways. Threats against family and friends work well if a woman has to appear to leave her home voluntarily. Drugs are sometimes used, either as a tool of addiction or to keep a woman docile and calm. Depravation of food, light, space, even air can work. My personal favorite is corporal punishment. Nothing speeds submission like flogging a woman’s back until she bleeds.”

  Oh my god. Edrick may have appeared like a saner option but he was just as deranged as Medalyn. She had to find a way to get out of here, and she had to do it before the councilor arrived to claim her.

  Chapter Ten

  Kaelum sat on the end of the bed and wondered how much longer he could hold out. He, Jax and their dragons had agreed to give Sorcha some time before they made another run at her. This was his third day in limbo and he didn’t think he’d survive day four.

  He liked Sorcha a lot and she aroused him just by walking into a room, but it was the dynamic of the three of them together that had Kae convinced she was right for his relationship with Jax.

  When he and Jax made love it was intense, pleasurable and connected but there was very little lightness in it. And that’s what Sorcha brought to their bed. Her teasing and her laughter lifted his heart and her willingness to stand her ground allowed Jax and Kae to join together and focus on something other than themselves.

  When Sorcha had demanded Jax remove his shirt, Kae had been sure the night was ruined. But she was sensitive enough to offer a solution and Jax bent enough to meet her halfway. As Kae reached up and felt Jax and Sorcha skin-to-skin his heart swelled so big he thought it might blow out of his chest. He realized in that moment that Sorcha could ease them both in a way they’d never be able to ease each other.

  Jax walked into their bedroom, shedding his clothes as he made his way to the bathing room. “You joining me?”

  Kae nodded. “Soon.”

  Jax stood for a moment, his naked body magnificent despite the vicious scars that covered his flesh. “Bad day?”

  Kae lifted his head and met those dark-green eyes. “Bad three days.”

  His lover’s mouth tightened. “I’m not talking about that. We agreed to give her time.”r />
  “Yeah, well, time’s up. I’m siding with Tengale on this.”

  Jax snorted. “Tengale wants to bring her here and lock her in the den until she admits she belongs to all four of us.”

  “Like I said, I’m with Tengale.”

  “Fuck, you’re worse than a newly hatched chick.” And with that helpful observation, Jax turned and strode into the bathing room.

  Kae flopped back onto the bed. Jax was right. Happy, easygoing Kaelum Sentrellovere was now officially languishing over a woman. It might have been pathetic if the woman in question wasn’t utterly extraordinary and the perfect addition to their little family. With an insight he should have reached days ago it dawned on him that sulking like a child wasn’t going to get him what he wanted. And he wanted Sorcha. He wanted what she could offer but more than that he wanted what she could give to Jax.

  And Kae was going to get it for them even if he had to drag his lovers forward by the hair.

  Feeling better than he had in days, he launched himself off the bed, stripped to the skin and walked into the bathing room. Jax was sitting in the half-filled bath, watching the water pour from the spigot. He turned when Kae walked in and immediately went on high alert. “What’s going on?”

  “What do you mean?” Kae smiled, all feral teeth.

  “For three days you’ve been angry and frustrated and you’ve done your best to shut me out. And now you come in here all sexy with that I’m-gonna-fuck-you gleam in your eye.” Jax swiveled and placed his back against the wall. “I don’t trust it.”

  Fuck. If that’s how Jax felt then Kaelum had screwed up in more ways than he thought. “It was never my intention to shut you out. Yes, I had a lot to think about and when it comes to Sorcha we want different things. But the one thing we both want is each other. Nothing will come between that and nothing will change it. I am beyond sorry if I caused you even a moment of doubt.”

  Jax shrugged. “Not doubt exactly. I know you love me but it’s…challenging…knowing you love her too.”

  Kae stepped into the tub and sat on the wide tiles that formed the rim, allowing his legs to dangle in the water. “I remember what it was like when Jaysada first claimed me. When I felt the pull of her call, I knew I was on the brink of something extraordinary. Then I saw her and I touched her for the first time. I fell so deeply in love I knew I’d never come out.”

  “It was the same for me with Tengale,” Jax said.

  Kae held out his hand and waited. Jax turned off the water and glided across the pool, reaching out to lock their calloused palms together. “That’s how I feel about you too. I love you with everything that I am but that in no way diminishes what I feel for Jaysada. If our hearts are big enough for two, there’s no reason to think they’re not big enough for three.”

  Jax laid his head on Kae’s thigh, rubbing his cheek against the warm skin. “If we do this, we’ll have to stretch our hearts to five.”

  Kae ran his fingers through Jax’s hair and smiled. Two dragons, two Enforcers, and one elusive female made the perfect family as far as he was concerned. “Five is good.” He rubbed his hand over Jax’s shoulders and back, enjoying the texture of his skin and the play of muscle. He also felt every scar he could reach, every pucker, dip and bulge that remained from Brightstar’s knives and brands.

  Every bit of repaired flesh was a mark of Jax’s honor and courage, and Kae was the only person to ever see them. Every time Kae put his hands on Jax’s skin he felt a powerful mix of love and privilege, knowing that as far as Jax was concerned, allowing this touch was more intimate than fucking.

  Jax lifted his head and moved to position himself between Kae’s legs, kneeling on the underwater bench so they were almost eye to eye. “I get that my relationship with you is part obsession but you’ve always been all right with that.”

  “Still am.” Kae smiled. “Always will be.”

  “Yeah, I get that too.” Jax smoothed his hands up Kae’s thighs in a touch that had both of them breaking out in skin bumps. “You know part of my concern about bringing Sorcha into our lives was the risk it posed to our relationship becoming public.”

  “Yes.”

  “Well, I had a very interesting conversation with Ari this afternoon.” Jax leaned closer and fisted Kae’s cock, pulling in long, even strokes so powerful Kae had to fight to focus.

  “And what did Ari say?”

  “He told me, with no shame or embarrassment at all, that he and Tarkan were lovers now too.” Jax’s free hand strayed to Kae’s balls and Kae had to clutch Jax’s shoulders to stay upright.

  “They fuck each other?”

  “Yes,” Jax replied. “Just like we do. And according to Ari, putting a woman in the mix will give us a fascinating range of options when it comes to whose cock, fingers and tongues go where.”

  Kae panted, tensing every muscle to try to hold his orgasm back. “Are you in then, with Sorcha?”

  “I don’t know. I’ve never lived with or loved anyone but you so I don’t know if I’ll be any good at it. But I’m willing to try.”

  If they could talk her around. Sorcha was really pissed with them at the moment and Kae didn’t know how they were going to soften her up. But that was a problem for tomorrow.

  “Turn around, Jax, I need to be in you.”

  Jax stood, leaned over to brace his hands on the edge of the bath and spread his legs. Kae reached for one of the vials of gel they kept on a shelf, using his free hand to rub and squeeze the firm, muscled globes of Jax’s ass.

  “Spread for me.”

  Jax reached back, spreading his cheeks so Kae could smooth the lubricant down the seam of his ass. More gel went onto his fingers before Kae eased one inside his lover. A push to the first knuckle, then out, another push, this time to the second knuckle, then out again. Slow, deliberate, every cell in his body focused on nothing but Jax and their shared pleasure.

  When Kae inserted a second finger, he twisted and scissored, stretching Jax’s ass. He savored the feel of his lover pushing back against him, the tight clench of muscles around his fingers an enticing prelude to the feel of those muscles around his cock.

  He really should have used a third finger but he didn’t want to wait and he knew from experience Jax could take him even if he was underprepared.

  “Brace.” It was the only warning he gave but Jax was quick to comply. They were both breathing hard when Jax spread his arms and legs even wider, hollowed his back and pushed his ass high.

  Kae placed his lubricated cock at Jax’s tight hole and gripped him at shoulder and hip. Kae pushed in just enough to feel the squeeze and release of the first ring of muscle.

  “You are mine, Jaxmyre Randovar, body, mind and soul.”

  Jax’s head dropped forward and voice was barely audible. “Yes, Kae, I’m yours.”

  Kae shoved himself in, hard and tight. “Don’t you ever fucking doubt it.” He rocked in and out, a long, slow glide that wasn’t enough for either of them. “No matter what else happens this doesn’t change.”

  “Good. This doesn’t change.” Every short sharp sentence Jax wheezed out coincided with a stroke of Kae’s cock. “I get that. We’re together. No argument.” Jax hissed. “Now stop talking and fuck me properly.”

  Kae kicked Jax’s feet out even farther, then laid himself over his lover’s back, plastering himself skin-to-skin. He flexed his hips half a dozen times then started fucking Jax hard and fast. Sliding one hand down to grasp Jax’s cock, Kae used the other to smooth over his scarred chest, plucking and twisting his nipples, clutching his bunched muscles.

  Kae loved being dominated by Jax, he loved surrendering himself and his pleasure to his den-mate. But he loved this too. He loved being balls deep, his cock squeezed hot and tight as he drove into Jax’s body. Lifting up onto his toes, he changed the angle, forcing Jax to hold both of them up as Kae powered into him.

  Jax cursed and the encouragement he’d been giving until now turned into one long moan of need. His cock jerked and
Kae reached down to grab Jax’s balls.

  “Come. Now.” Kae bared his teeth and bit down on the fleshy part of Jax’s shoulder and he exploded, his hard cock jerking under Kae’s hand, pulsing as the orgasm ripped through him. As soon as he was sure Jax was spent, Kae straightened up and let himself go. Gripping Jax’s hips, he yanked that tight ass against his cock, pumping hard, fast and deep. His balls drew up tight and heavy, the base of his spine tingled and every muscle in his body locked in an agony of pleasure as he shot hot jets of semen deep inside his lover.

  Jerking with every aftershock, he collapsed onto Jax, staying inside him as his den-mate lowered them both to their knees. Kae kissed his way along one shoulder and wrapped both arms around Jax’s waist, pressing them back to chest. “All right?”

  “Yes. Good.” Jax took Kae’s hand and placed it over a particularly ugly scar on his hip. “What do you think she’ll make of these?”

  Kae nuzzled into Jax’s neck. “I think when she first sees your scars she’ll be horrified. Not because of how they look but because of how you got them. She won’t like the fact that you’ve been hurt in such a way.”

  “I’m tired of seeing the horror in a woman’s eyes. That’s why I stopped going to the bower houses in the first place.”

  Kae couldn’t even begin to imagine what it must be like for Jax. Those scars were a daily reminder of what had been done to him and what he’d survived. In a way, the men who tortured Jax would always have their hands on him.

  Kae eased away from Jax and moved around so they were face-to-face, kneeling in the chest-deep water. “You’ll have to give her time. Time to see you and process what happened to you, time to get used to the scars until she doesn’t see them anymore.”

  “Do you see them?”

  “Yes.” Kae lifted both hands and placed them on Jax’s chest, fingers wide. “I see them. Every scar reminds me of your honor. Every mark represents a secret you refused to tell those bastards.” He leaned forward, kissing a trail over a broad burn scar. He knew Jax couldn’t feel it on his skin but he would feel it in his heart. “You are the strongest, most courageous man I know.” He licked at the knife wound that curved over Jax’s shoulder. “You had the strength not to break under torture, you had the courage to come back to the den and make a life for yourself. And when there’s a raid you get on Tengale and ride out to battle the people who tried to break you.”