Warlord's Mercy - Cynthia Sax Page 0,18

moat of debris.”

That was a lie. She was very much her father’s daughter and couldn’t not assist a being in trouble, but the Warlord didn’t know that.

Not waiting to hear his reply, she jumped from stone to stone until she reached the safety of her private chambers.

“I don’t need the blasted barbarian.” She set the unfinished garment on a ship panel she was using as a workspace. “I survived without him before he arrived, and I’ll survive without him after he’s gone.”

Her gaze shifted to the sleeping support she’d crafted from flat rock vulture skins layered over rolls of subpar leather. It would be yielding and soft, unlike the stone floor she’d been lying on over the past three planet rotations.

“I would think clearer and feel better after a rest.” Being fucked into the rock and tending to an ill and unappreciative Warlord had exhausted her. “I could dream of other males, males who want me and not some female they have already claimed. They’d be big and strong and not at all a Chamale clone.”

That appealed to her.

“But I also ache.” She rolled back her shoulders. “And I smell of him.”

She bore the scent of the male who had harshly dismissed her, calling her unfuckable.

“His words hurt me.”

Tremendously.

“I should hate him for that.” Yet she continued to want the male, to crave his touch.

That had to stop.

“Pull it together, Lea.” She lifted her chin. “He doesn’t respect you or value you. That makes him merely a nicer, more-intelligent version of Daisun, and you deserve better than a male like that.”

As soon as she said that, she realized it was a lie.

Tolui was nothing like Daisun. The Palavian wouldn’t allow the females under his control to speak, kept them bound. The Warlord had trusted her to lead him to safety, listened to her advice.

“Go for a swim. That will break the connection between you and Tolui.” If she washed, she could erase his scent, wipe away the memory of his touch. She could put the humiliation and heartache behind her and concentrate on her plans for her future.

Her private chamber split the tunnel into two. The growing chamber was situated to the right. That was where she kept her plants.

She entered the smaller chamber on the left. It had only one entrance, was semi-private, and deliciously warm.

“This was the right decision.” She realized that as soon as she breathed in the humid air. The strain stretching across her shoulders eased.

She removed her garments, stripping bare. The stone was soothing against the soles of her feet. She padded toward the far side of the space. There, the stone floor had fallen away, exposing a deep, slow-moving underground stream.

“Watching the water flow always relaxes me.” She kneeled by the edge of it, cupped some of the cool, clear liquid in her palm and sated her thirst.

The rocks gave the water a mineral taste.

“When I saw this chamber, I knew this was home.” She dangled her fingers in the stream.

The current would normally carry away her intense emotions, leaving her with a peacefulness she treasured. This planet rotation, the anger and the hurt stayed with her.

“Why are you allowing a near stranger to disrupt your life like this?” As Lea asked herself that question, she knew the answer.

Because he wasn’t a near stranger. They had fucked numerous times. Hard. And there was a connection between them, a link she hadn’t felt with any being.

As though the universe wanted to emphasize that, the atmosphere in the chamber changed.

Awareness swept over her.

Tolui had entered the chamber. He hadn’t made a sound. His tread was silent. But she was certain it was him. Only he affected her that way.

Lea wasn’t ready to face him, to speak to him. Not yet.

She dove into the deep stream. Coolness flowed over her form, dousing the heat he had caused. She undulated under the surface, rippling like a ribbon of leather, moving as far from him as she could. Her fingers touched the stone wall and she drew herself upward. Water coursed down her back.

A moment passed. She tried to remain silent, to punish him by holding back her words.

That was beyond her capabilities. “Were you too weak to return to her?”

She didn’t look at him as she treaded water, remaining close to the wall.

“I’m a Warlord. Warlords aren’t weak.” Disdain edged his voice.

“Yet your female is looking for you, and you’re here, spending time with someone you would never fuck.” She rolled her eyes. “What is that, if not