“Right.” She snorted in skepticism.
Alerio glowered. “I’m serious. Whenever a case requires empathy, you’re the first agent I think of assigning. Even when you were partnered with that asshole Terje, you always treated victims with delicacy and respect.”
She blinked up at him, and he realized he’d surprised her. “I knew we got a lot of sexual assault cases. I just thought you’d already . . .” She broke off.
He nodded slowly. “You thought I already knew.”
“I had no idea what was—or wasn’t—in that file.”
Puzzled, he studied her. “If you thought I already knew, why were you so pissed when I told you I’d hacked it?”
“Because it’s one thing to get the information because you’re supposed to have it,” Dona said, folding her arms and rocking back on her heels, “and another to hack a file you know is private. A distinction I’m sure you grasp.”
She had him there. “Yeah. That’s why I debated doing it for the past six months.”
Dona’s brows shot skyward. “Six months?”
“What, you thought I hacked your psychiatric file on a whim?” Temper stung him with a quick, hard bite. “You really don’t think much of me.”
“Alerio, if my opinion of you weren’t so high, I wouldn’t have gotten so pissed off.” Her voice dropped. “And hurt.”
“I never wanted to hurt you. That I regret to my soul.” Looking down into the violet depths of her eyes, he thought again how incredibly beautiful she was.
Then he was kissing her before he realized he was going to do it.
Alerio Dyami could pack more passion into a simple kiss than any of Dona’s other lovers put into the entire sex act. His kiss certainly affected her with more power.
As his mouth claimed hers, Dona had to straighten her weak knees, catch his powerful shoulders, and let her body melt into his.
She had no choice.
The Warlord made a rough sound against her mouth—half growl, half grateful purr. Strong arms wrapped around her, plastering her body against his.
Dona was always surprised at how soft his mouth felt, even during a kiss so fierce. Particularly compared to the thick erection mashed against her belly. She moaned as arousal blazed up in her like a campfire doused in booster fuel.
Alerio released her waist and drew back, cupping her face in his palms. His eyes burned Warlord red, and his breath came too fast. “Tell me to stop. I won’t be able to if you don’t.”
Dona gazed into his angular, handsome face with its bright tattoo. “What if I don’t want you to stop?”
His eyes flashed red, then cooled. “Are you sure? Five minutes ago you wanted to kick my ass.”
She laughed. “I can think of a lot of things to do to your ass, Alerio. Kicking it isn’t even on the list.”
And it was true. He had wrestled with whether to hack that file for months, had done so only because he was genuinely worried about her. All of which told her she hadn’t misread his feelings for her. Unlike Kavel’s, Terje’s, even her parents.
Alerio Dyami was a genuinely good man.
Dona’s sudden grin felt so wide, she suspected it looked a little goofy. She didn’t give a damn. Reaching for her uniform’s high collar, she traced a finger along the seal and watched his eyes blaze even brighter as the seam parted. “Make love to me, Alerio.”
“Okay, you talked me into it.” Alerio bent, swept her into his arms, and carried her up the winding path.
Laughing, Dona looped her arms around his strong neck. “Mind telling me where we’re going?”
He smiled down at her, his teeth flashing white against his tattoo. “You’ll see.”
“I love surprises.” Settling into his arms, she let herself enjoy the moment.
The ground leveled, and Alerio veered off the path, headed for a massive cliff that formed a sweeping curve. When he rounded the great stone face, a clearing lay tucked against its granite flanks. Flowers ringed it in brilliant shades of red, yellow, and deep, rich violet, along with leafy green cascades of ferns.
As Dona admired the scene, it seemed to ripple like a mirage seen through hot desert air, revealing a tent. Swags of red silk draped from its supporting poles, casting cool pools of shade. Inside the tent lay a thick pallet of white silk piled with pillows.
She blinked at it from the cradle of Alerio’s arms. “Where did that come from?”
Alerio ducked beneath the tent’s opening and lowered her to her feet. “I put it up early this morning before the teams Jumped. I wanted to make love to you somewhere more romantic than my quarters.” He grimaced. “I also hoped it would put you in a good mood so you’d be less pissed after I told you about the file. Reality had other ideas.”
“Either way, it’s lovely.” She smiled over her shoulder at him and stopped in surprise.
He was stripping off his uniform tunic, revealing the muscled width of his chest. Balancing on one foot, he pulled off his left boot, then his right.
As he opened the seal of his pants, his cock spilled free, thick and flushed dark. Dona stared, her mouth going helplessly dry, as he dragged his trousers down his powerful legs. Stepping free of them, he gave her a grin. “I can’t help but notice you’re a trifle overdressed.”
“Can’t have that.” Dona finished unsealing her tunic with eager fingers, and let it slide from her shoulders.
Alerio dropped down on the pallet and watched with unabashed lust as she kicked her boots off and wiggled free of her pants. He caught his breath as she straightened to her full height, all graceful nudity, her breasts full, tipped with the tight rose peaks of luscious nipples. A triangle of dark hair lay between the long, strong thighs that swept down to slender, muscled calves and slim feet.
The scent of her arousal teased his acute Warlord senses. The head of his erection bucked against his belly as he remembered the taste of her, the snug grip of her rosy folds wrapping around his shaft.
She licked her lips with her pointed pink tongue. The violet brilliance of her eyes darkened, her pupils expanding at the sight of him.
“You’re so beautiful.” Her voice sounded throaty, rasping. “I want to taste you. Everywhere.”
“Ah . . . Feel free.” His balls tightened as his cock lengthened. He wondered if he’d ever been this hard in his life—except for the previous times they’d made love.
She moved toward him in that liquid dancer’s stride, then dropped to her hands and knees on the bed. Breath caught, he watched her crawl up the length of his body.
Until she reached his cock.
Slowly, she lowered herself, bending her elbows until her head was mere centimeters from his cock. As she dipped her head, she kept her eyes locked on his in a hot, wild stare that made the blood thunder in his ears. “Sweet Goddess,” Alerio rasped. “You’re so damned lovely. I’ve never known a woman so utterly sensual.”
“Because you make me feel beautiful.” Her cool fingers closed around his hot cock, angled the thick shaft upward. “You make me feel like the most gorgeous woman on the Outpost with those Warlord eyes burning.”
Breath caught, he watched her open her mouth, watched the pointed tip of her tongue flick out to swirl over the flushed cap of his erection. Alerio groaned as pleasure thrummed along his nerves. Her fingers tightened around his cock, exerting the perfect degree of pressure as she stroked him slowly. Up and down. Her tongue licked and swirled, each delicate motion seeming to ignite the blood in his veins.
And the way she looked.