allowing only her hips to meet him. She understood why too. There was no way she’d
be able to resist him in such a ridiculous position, no question of fighting back at all.
Daaron held her completely at his mercy.
Slowly, oh so slowly, his wide cock head took her. Tessa felt every inch of him
pushing against her sensitive membranes, felt the way he widened her and pressed
inexorably within. Fortunately her opening was well slicked with her own fluids, and
he continued to work her clit with both fingers. Long moments passed. The tight pull of
tension centered between her legs rose so high she felt like she might come on the spot.
Each time his fingers grazed her she wanted to die, desperate to pull away from him
and end the near-painful stimulation, and terrified that he would stop all at the same
time.
It just wasn’t fair.
Now he spread her farther open, spearing her until she wanted to shout in
frustration. Why was he moving so slow? Then he hit the barrier of her virginity,
pushing against it until pain threatened to overwhelm the pleasure.
“Hold tight,” he said. His hand left her clit, reaching around her waist to brace her
body, and he thrust into her hard and fast.
The bed muffled her shriek.
Daaron stilled as she screamed, primitive satisfaction washing through him. Now
he understood why men of the Warrens kept their women chaste—to experience this,
the total ownership of a woman’s body. Tessa belonged to him, and no other. Despite
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Joanna Wylde
his need to take her and ease his own tension, he waited, allowing her to adjust to the
sensation of his prick splitting her moist heat. It was strange—she felt spread open,
impaled, helpless before him. He had all the power, she couldn’t move at all, yet when
she flexed her interior muscles, unconsciously trying to push him out, he gave an
agonized groan and jerked. Her slightest squeeze was enough to challenge his defenses.
Long moments passed, and then his fingers drifted back to her clit. Tessa shivered
as he grazed her sensitive flesh. She knew his finger had to be slick with her moisture,
but his cock stretched her in new ways, and everything felt different now. She
wondered if it was possible for her to feel every ridge of his fingerprint, if each tiny
bump could really stimulate her like this. She clenched one more time and he moaned,
leaning down against her back.
“Tessa, please,” he whispered, and she wondered what he meant. Then he moved
and she forgot everything else. His cock pulled out of her slow and steady. Just
moments earlier she’d thought him too big, but as he pulled away she felt an emptiness
she’d never imagined. She pushed her hips back at him, wanting him inside again. He
held his hips steady, but his finger spasmed against her and his breath caught. She
wasn’t the only one overwhelmed by their union.
“Tess, I never imagined it could be this good,” he said, kissing her neck. She gave a
mewling cry, needing him to stop talking and start moving. Her body cried out for
fulfillment and he could give it to her, no question about that. He pushed back into her,
still going too damn slow. She wiggled her ass a little, encouraging him, and he lost
control, lunging into her harder than she could have imagined.
Oh that did it.
Again and again he thrust, pushing her tender flesh apart further than she could
have dreamed possible. He seemed incapable of giving her clit the slow, steady
stimulation he’d offered earlier, but he kept his hand on her. Now he used it to press
her tender flesh against the hardness of her pelvic bone. Each thrust brought new
friction, working the nerves with exquisite force. Tension grew in her body, a tight
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Garnets or Bust
triangle of sensation running from her vagina to her clit and back up to her breasts,
which found their own form of stimulation against the harsh fabric of her shirt.
Tessa hadn’t been a stranger to physical pleasure. Her decision to remain a virgin
hadn’t kept her from masturbating, and up to that point she’d thought she knew what
an orgasm was. But the sound of Daaron’s rasping breaths, the smell of his sweat as he
plowed her from behind, the sensation of his hard prick cleaving her open again and
again—this was far beyond anything she could have imagined.
Dear heavens, she didn’t want it to ever end.
At the same time, the pounding of her heart and the tightness of her chest made her
wonder how much more she could take. She felt her release hovering just beyond the
edge of his touch, knew it waited for her, taunted her with its closeness.
She struggled against his weight, no longer seeking escape. Now she wanted to
move, wanted the leverage to take what she needed from his body to end this terrible
need. If it didn’t stop soon she’d die. Fuck that, if it didn’t stop soon she’d kill him.
Daaron, that bastard, owed her this orgasm.
He was close too, she knew it from the stiffening of his body and the way his cock
seemed to be swelling and growing impossibly harder within her. Inspiration struck,
and she squeezed him as hard as she could with her internal muscles.
He choked back a groan and then pulled his hand away from her pelvis.
Gripping her hips with both hands, he raised his upper body and knelt behind her.
This new position set her free, and she lifted up on her arms to meet the forceful blows
of his hips.
Almost there.
Tessa sensed the restrained power in the hands holding her, the hardness of his
thighs against her legs, the solid length of his cock. She wanted to answer with her own
violent thrusts, wanted to take her pleasure from him the same way he’d taken her
freedom and her garnets.
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Joanna Wylde
But not even the thought of her lovely gems could distract her from her raging
need.
Again and again they came together, until she couldn’t hear for the pounding of her
heart, couldn’t breathe for the tightness in her chest—her release lay so close yet still not
overwhelming her. He gave one more powerful shove and she exploded in a whirlwind
of sensation beyond anything she’d ever approached on her own. Above and behind
her, Tessa was dimly aware of Daaron reaching his own release. Then they collapsed
together on the bed, panting and exhausted.
Tessa tried to collect her thoughts, blinking and dazed by the force of her orgasm.
She’d never experienced anything as magnificent as the last ten minutes. Not when she
graduated from college, not when she’d gotten her first job. Not even when she’d found
that enormous cerulean star garnet…
Garnets.
She froze, reality rushing back in an instant. She needed to get her garnets and go,
quickly. And she would have to take Daaron with her as her hostage, she realized. She
might be able to get away from him here and now, but even if she did, he would hunt
her down. He’d said he had backup out in the darkness, so she’d have to use Daaron as
her shield. It all sounded like something out of a holovid, not the kind of thing real
people did, but the alternative seemed to be giving up her lovely, lovely gems and
&n
bsp; doing what Daaron told her.
Not an option.
Taking a deep breath, Tessa forced a sensuous smile to creep across her face,
drifting her hands along his back in the most soothing manner she could imagine. All
she had to do was convince him she wanted him again. Daaron’s colossal ego would
take care of the rest for her. He rolled over to look at her and smiled. So easy.
“That was good for you, wasn’t it?”
“Yes,” she replied, telling the truth. “But there’s something I’ve always wanted to
try.”
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Garnets or Bust
“What?”
“Lean back and close your eyes,” she said. He did, and she knelt next to him on the
bed, rubbing her hands up and down his chest. His nipples hardened as her fingertips
grazed them. She found his chest fascinating—she’d never been up so close to a man
before. Well, a naked man. They were far more interesting in the flesh than in books.
When she leaned over and licked the skin right above his navel, she told herself it was
all part of her ploy to distract him.
No matter that the salty taste of his skin made the flesh between her legs burn with
hunger.
Tessa shifted, trying to dismiss the sensation, and dropped her hand to the hard
length of his semi-erect cock. He still wanted her, even though they’d only just finished.
She knew that wasn’t the norm; her roommates at college had been clear on that one.
Most men were useless after coming, but Daaron seemed to just be warming up. She
leaned over and blew lightly on his member. Daaron groaned.
“Whatever it was you wanted to try, you’d better do it soon,” he said, voice
strained. “Or I’ll lose patience.”
A wave of pleasure and power washed through Tessa. She loved how he responded
to her, and thoroughly enjoyed the idea of using her sexuality against him. She blew
again and then flicked her tongue out, catching the flared head of his penis with the tip.
Daaron shuddered. Tessa gripped his length firmly in her hand and rubbed up and
down, feeling the ridges of the veins within, pulling the soft skin up along his length.
She shot a look up to his face to make sure his eyes were still closed before glancing at
the floor. The fool had left his blaster sitting right there, next to his clothing. She
gripped him harder and he moaned.
This time she didn’t have to force a smile, it came naturally.
Tessa leaned over again, took a deep breath and sucked his length into her mouth.
The taste of him, salty and warm, surprised her. She wiggled her tongue against him as
her roommate had described doing. Apparently she did it right, because Daaron bucked
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Joanna Wylde
against her and gave another of those deep moans of excitement. She pulled up. His
hand reached down, gripping her hair and trying to push her head back down, but she
grabbed it and pushed it away.
“No, this is my fantasy,” she said. “Stay still.”
He did as she asked.
Moving quickly, she leaned over the edge of the bed and grabbed the blaster. As he
started to sit up, she shoved the cold metal of the gun into his groin, right at the base of
his cock.
“I said stay still.”
Daaron froze, eyes flying open. His face filled with rage, and she realized she could
never, ever allow him to overpower her again. If she did, he might kill her.
“You said you had some friends outside,” she said slowly. “I’m taking you hostage.
We’re going to get my garnets and leave this damned planet, and your buddies better
not try to stop us. Do I make myself clear?”
“You’re my wife, you have to obey me,” he said. “That’s the way it works in the
Warrens.”
“How stupid do you think I am?” Tessa snapped back. “Women of the Warrens
might have to obey their husbands, but only as long as they’re alive. Don’t push your
luck.”
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Garnets or Bust
Chapter Four
Daaron took deep breaths, forcing down the anger thundering through him. The
situation was his own damn fault. Losing control of your weapon was a fool’s mistake,
and if one of his men had done it, he’d find himself cleaning latrines for a month. He’d
forgotten just how intoxicating Tessa’s presence could be, and seriously underestimated
the woman herself. Being near her all but wiped out his ability to think, and now they
would both pay.
Tessa stepped away from him, holding the blaster steady, and awkwardly pulled
up her pants with one hand.
“Get up,” she said. “We’re going to walk outside and you’re going to stand in front
of me as a shield. I want you to tell your friends to leave us alone until we get to my
cruiser. We’ll be taking the first available transport off-planet, and then I’ll make
arrangements to sell my garnets and disappear. If you do everything I tell you, you’ll
survive. Do you understand me?”
He nodded his head, not looking forward to the next ten minutes. His team didn’t
respond well to threats.
“Pick up your clothes,” Tessa added.
“Should I put them on?”
She gave him a speculative look before offering him a rather dark smile.
“No,” she replied sweetly. “It will be harder for you to run if you’re naked. Now
we’re going to leave. I’m going to stand right behind you as we go out. You’ll pause in
He nodded his head, knowing it wouldn’t get that far. Together they moved toward
the opening and Daaron stepped out slowly. Tessa nudged him with the blaster, and he
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Joanna Wylde
opened his mouth to speak. Before anything could come out, a hail of drugged
flechettes rained through the air.
Daaron went down first, tranquilizers blazing through his system in a mere
heartbeat. His last sensation as he fell was the punishing hit of a blaster bolt. She’d done
it, he marveled. Soft, sweet Tessa had just shot him in the back. He heard her shriek and
the world turned black.
* * * * *
Tessa awakened slowly, her mouth tasting metallic and bitter. She took a deep
breath. The air smelled odd, recycled, like the air on a space station—or in the deepest
reaches of the Warrens. Not the fresh, clean breezes of her camp, certainly. She opened
her eyes and looked at the ceiling, finding bare metal punctuated only by endless rows
of rivets. The bed upon which she lay was soft but far from luxurious, although the
fabric of the covers had the smooth, perfectly inviting feel that only natural fibers could
create. Expensive, like everything else Daaron had ever owned.
Daaron.
Memory flooded back. Dear Goddess, she’d killed Daaron. Shot him point-blank with
his own blaster. Tessa felt sick, completely disgusted with herself. She’d killed a man
over a handful of stupid garnets.
Daaron had given his life for a pile of fucking rocks.
How could she live with herself? Of course, her continuing survival probably
wouldn’t be a problem, not after his people got through with her. She’d enjoyed
threatening Daaron, liked the idea of him feeling u
ncertain and scared, the way he’d
always made her feel. But dead? No, never that. For long moments Tessa lay back on
the bed, trying to think.
Finally she sat up listlessly, wondering when her executioners would arrive. Her
cell was sparse. Bed, metal basin with water spouts and a fresher. Some drawers with a
mirrored surface on the wall above them. A small table beside the bed. Everything one
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Garnets or Bust
piece, everything bolted to the floor. She stood, trying to detect any signs of artificial
gravity. If they were in space, it was on something big and powerful enough to have the
best gravitrons money could buy.
Of course, money had never been an issue for Daaron.
The door pinged, and she watched it slide open without interest. Then Daaron
walked in and she froze.
“You’re alive,” she said, stunned.
“Obviously,” he replied, his voice tight. “Good thing you didn’t check the blaster to
see if the charge was lethal.”
It hadn’t even occurred to her.
“For the record, I’m sorry I shot you,” she said, meaning it. “I think I panicked. I
didn’t want you dead… Just out of the way.”
“I find that tremendously comforting,” he replied, tone dark with sarcasm. “Getting
shot with a blaster, even on the lowest setting, hurts like hell. And my men are pissed.
You’re lucky they didn’t kill you.”
“Why didn’t they?” she asked, trying to figure out her next move. She supposed
that as long as they kept talking, she’d stay alive. Anything to buy time.
“Because I gave them strict orders not to,” he replied. “And they always obey. I’m
not so sure I believe in the whole Warrens subservient wife thing though. Clearly it
didn’t sink into your psyche growing up.”
She fell silent, unsure of her response. According to the traditions of the Warrens,
they were married and she should obey him. She just didn’t want to though. And why
should she? He sure as shit wasn’t from the Warrens, she couldn’t expect him to love
and honor her in return for her obedience. No, he’d just use it against her.
“You said you had to marry me, to keep me from testifying,” she said after a long