Oriana's Stallions (Collection) Read online

  One of his hands held her head in place, and the other kneaded her ass, pulling her tighter to him. He started to lift her so she could straddle him, but she came to her senses and pushed him away. “We’re still in the doorway.”

  He shook his head as if to clear it. “You steal all my sense, vixen.” He looked down the hall each way, but no one was watching them.

  She smiled. “Do you truly have to go?”

  He nodded. “Yes. My guests do expect me to put in an appearance.”

  She sighed. “Are you really going to tell everyone we’re engaged?”

  “Yes. Lady Hendrix is no doubt wagging her tongue about your disheveled appearance right now. Once the ball is underway, we will make our announcement.”

  Raya’s breath caught, and she coughed. “We?”

  He smiled. “All you have to do is stand beside me and look pretty.”

  “Fuck!” That was not her forte.

  “And try not to curse.”

  “I do know how to speak civilly. I just prefer to do it in comfortable clothing and in reach of a decent comm.”

  He brought her hand to his lips, placing a soft kiss on her knuckles. “I will call for you in two hours. Wear the green dress you wore when we dined on the terrace.”

  “Isn’t it a bit daring for the likes of the Hendrixes?”

  Calder grinned. “I want to save you from ruin, not change you completely.”

  “Yes, my lord.” She lowered her eyes and did her best to look as meek as the Misses Hendrix.

  Calder snorted. “Behave.”

  She gave him a wicked grin. “Don’t I always?”

  He crushed her against him and kissed her until her knees weakened. “When I get you upstairs after the party you’d better not.”

  He was gone before she had a chance to give a tart reply.

  * * *

  After what felt like endless hours of greeting guests as they entered Calder’s ballroom, Raya followed her lover up a curved staircase until they stood on a landing overlooking the dancers. Calder signaled the musicians to take a break, and with his commanding voice, garnered everyone’s attention.

  “Thank you all for joining me in celebrating the conclusion of a productive governing session. I wish you all well, as you depart for your own territories and enjoy the winter holidays with family and friends. But before we resume our festivities, I have a very important announcement.”

  Calder paused. Raya suspected it was purely for dramatic effect. The room was still except for the occasional rustle of a skirt and the clank of glassware as footmen cleared the tables at the edge of the dance floor. Calder looped Raya’s arm through his, and she stepped closer to him. “Miss Varvara has consented to be my wife.”

  The room came alive with a rush of whispers and a few shocked gasps. Raya’s cheeks burned with embarrassment, but she managed to smile and look down at the vast audience without focusing on any particular person. Then a dark-haired man who was nearly as tall and as striking as Calder began applauding. Others followed suit, and soon she was curtseying to a ballroom full of people who were clapping and whistling for the “happy” couple.

  She glanced at Calder. He was beaming, soaking up the attention. His arm was warm and comfortable wrapped around her. His happiness and the excitement of the moment felt terribly real. Briefly, she let herself pretend it was.

  Then she caught sight of Lady Hendrix. She stood near the edge of the crowd with several other older women. None of them were clapping. They all looked like they’d taken a bite of something rotten. She shouldn’t give a damn what they thought of her, but they symbolized the expectations of Orianian culture. Their disapproval reminded Raya why she could never fit in here. She had a foul mouth, a healthy interest in sex, and no intention of giving up the right to wear pants. Not only would she be miserable here, she’d make Calder an outsider too.

  “Dance with me.” Calder’s breath was warm in her ear, but it made her shiver.

  “I’d love to.” She might prefer New Earth dancing to Oriana’s archaic styles, but anything that would get her away from the stares of the entire party sounded damn fine right then.

  Calder signaled the band to resume and led her onto the dance floor. The first strains of a waltz began, and Calder pulled her far closer than custom dictated. He’d taught her to waltz when she’d stayed with him before. They’d had dinner on the terrace, and he’d been shocked that her cultural lessons hadn’t included the waltz.

  The memory of those lessons, which had begun with him twirling her around the terrace and ended with him laying her out on the narrow stone wall and feasting on her, had her breathing harder than was warranted by her exertions. She closed her eyes and lost herself to the feel of the dance, relaxing in Calder’s arms and letting him twirl her. She felt nearly as wild and free as she did on horseback.

  “I need you,” she whispered in his ear.

  He pulled her even closer so she could feel his erection against her belly. Obviously, he needed her too.

  He maneuvered them across the floor until they were just inside the door leading to the conservatory. He stopped their circular movement. Raya’s back was to the ballroom, but her heart pounded as she imagined people watching him. “What are you doing?” she asked as quietly as she could, thankful Calder’s superior hearing would pick up her words no matter how softly she whispered.

  “Giving you what you need.”

  “Here? Calder, are you crazy?”

  “Shhh! You wouldn’t want to attract attention, now would you?”

  Raya shivered as he worked the front of her dress up enough to slide his hand between her legs. His fingers brushed over her clit. She bit her lip to keep from groaning.

  He braced his other hand against the wall of the alcove and bent to kiss her. When his lips were millimeters from her, she managed to get out the words she’d been trying to say. “Everyone can see us.”

  “A kiss in the shadows might be frowned upon by the strictest matrons, but most people would overlook it.” As he said the words he slid two fingers deep into her pussy and found her clit with his thumb.

  She sucked in her breath. “This is far more than a kiss.”

  “Keep still, and no one will know.”

  “Damn you, Calder.”

  His mouth took hers before she could protest further. His fingers worked back and forth, faster and faster, and his thumb gave her the deep pressure she craved on her clit. How the fuck was she supposed to stay still?

  Her legs threatened to give way as pleasure swamped her, pulling her closer and closer to the edge of an orgasm she didn’t think she could experience without screaming.

  Calder’s free arm came around her waist to support her, forcing them closer together. The heel of his hand now rubbed against her clit, and she bucked against him, desperate for more. His lips left hers and slid along her throat. “Remember, you can’t move if you want to keep this little tryst a secret.”

  “I can’t. Calder, please.”

  “You can and you will, because there is no way in hell I’m stopping. I want you to know I can take you anywhere, anytime. I want to see your face as you go over right here in front of all my guests.”

  “Fuck you.”

  “Yes, you will. I intend to claim you properly tonight.”

  “C-claim me?” She wanted to say more, but she couldn’t make the words come out between the delicious strokes of his fingers.

  “Like a proper Canterini stallion.”

  Raya frowned. “Not… a mare… I’m --”

  “Mine, and tonight I will mark you as such. But first you’re going to come for me right here.”

  He slipped a third finger inside her and ground the heel of his hand against her clit. Each deep stroke of his fingers rubbed her G-spot. He knew just how she liked it, hard, fast, lots of pressure. Burning hell, why had she ever left this man?

  She was going to come, right here, in front of everyone, just like he wanted. There was nothing she could do
about it. Gods help her, she was going to scream. How could she keep it in? How could she stay on her feet? No. No. Oh gods, no.

  Her body convulsed. Calder’s strong arms held her on her feet. She bit her lip so hard she tasted blood. Somehow she swallowed her scream, but the aftershocks of her orgasm seemed to go on forever. She kept her eyes closed and let him hold her.

  Finally, he slipped his fingers from her slowly, letting her dress fall to the ground. He stepped away from her, and she opened her eyes.

  “Thank you for a lovely dance. I’m afraid I must speak with some of the other guests. I will find you when it is time to go down to supper.” His eyes sparkled as he kissed her hand then walked away.

  Chapter 3

  Raya quickly downed a glass of champagne -- her third? fourth? -- and deposited it with a passing footman. She could face a boardroom full of angry investors without breaking a sweat. She could coerce the tightest of tightwads into putting his money into something one of her clients believed in, but put her in a room full of people who expected her to make small talk, and she felt like a rabbit who’d been sighted by a fox.

  Dinner had been passable, the company at her table engaging, and the food amazing. Calder sat beside her, touching her legs under the table, brushing her more than necessary as he reached for serving dishes, doing everything he could to keep her hormones jumping. She noticed a few older matrons scowling in her direction, but everyone else treated her amiably.

  After dinner, Calder needed to circulate, and she found herself on her own. She’d contemplated fleeing to her room, but Calder was right, she owed him and she was going to survive this no matter how suffocating the social mores of Oriana were.

  When she entered the salon where the ladies retired after dinner, she literally ran into Lady Hendrix. The woman practically leapt away and brushed at the sleeve of her dress as if Raya might have transferred something catching. Lady Hendrix looked her over, making no attempt to hide her censure. “You look quite tired, Miss Varvara. Should I call a footman to assist you to your room?”

  Raya bit back a retort that would have required the lady to swoon. “No, thank you. I am simply overtired from my long journey, and the afternoon’s exhilarating ride.” She emphasized the word “exhilarating” hoping Lady Hendrix understood her double meaning. “I do so love Lord Brinkley’s choice horseflesh.”

  Lady Hendrix smiled but not with her eyes. “He is an excellent judge of horses though they are often a bit fast for my taste. I prefer a sedate carriage ride to the sort of wild gallop he must have subjected you to.”

  Raya inclined her head. “I’m afraid I must disagree. I find that the wilder the horse, the better they perform.”

  Lady Hendrix narrowed her eyes. Had she not been a gently bred lady she might have growled. “I understand you are from New Earth.”

  Raya simply nodded.

  “Will you have to leave us and rejoin your family prior to your nuptials?” Lady Hendrix sounded hopeful.

  “I haven’t made specific travel plans yet. My family will not mind my absence, but I will be expected to report back to work before too long.”

  Lady Hendrix laid her hand on her chest, making a show of her shock. “Surely you do not intend to continue working now that you are betrothed.”

  Raya smiled. “I hardly see how that would matter. Most of the women I work with are partnered.”

  “Lord Brinkley will certainly set you straight. He would not permit --”

  Raya refused to let her continue. “Lord Brinkley knows what it means to marry a woman from New Earth.” Rage boiled in Raya in part because she had no idea what Calder would say about her working. If they were truly getting married, that is. Would he expect her to quit her job?

  Married women didn’t work on Oriana, not ones of Calder’s social standing anyway. What would she do if she didn’t have her job at the bank? She’d have plenty of time for riding. But this betrothal wasn’t real.

  The walls of the salon were closing in on her. “You’ll have to excuse me, Lady Hendrix. It’s quite stuffy in here. I need some fresh air.”

  She walked away, not looking back. After a few wrong turns, she found a door opening onto the terrace. She was relieved to see several other guests outside. At least she wouldn’t be making a faux pas in stepping out for some air. She spotted the dark-haired man who began the applause when Calder announced their pretend betrothal. He was standing with a beautiful red-haired young woman who was smiling at him like he was the light of her world.

  A few months ago, Raya would have thought they looked dopey, but now she was envious of the easy affection this couple shared. The woman was nearly as young as the Misses Hendrix, but she looked like she knew her own mind.

  The man caught her watching them. She started to step back inside, but he called to her. “Miss Varvara, please join us.”

  She did as he asked. “I appreciate your support earlier, Mr…”

  “Drayton. I own a piece of land adjacent to Lord Brinkley, and I also have the distinction, or curse, of holding a seat in the Orianian Assembly.”

  She smiled and remembered to curtsy rather than offering her hand. “I’m pleased to meet you, Mr. Drayton.”

  “As I am pleased to meet you.” He turned to his companion. “Miss Varvara, may I present Miss Partington.”

  Raya must have failed to keep her face neutral, because Miss Partington laughed and said, “I suppose you’ve heard that my father wished to betroth me to Lord Brinkley.”

  There was no point in denying it. “I did hear that rumor.”

  Miss Partington smiled. “It’s true. My father pushed for the alliance. Not that he thinks much of Lord Brinkley, only of his money.”

  “Abigail.” Mr. Drayton gave her a warning stare.

  “Miss Varvara is from New Earth. I am sure I can speak plainly.”

  “You certainly may.” Raya smiled.

  “Lord Brinkley turned down the offer of my hand, because he knew I cared for Mr. Drayton.”

  “Forgive me if I’m being rude, but why don’t you two marry?”

  Mr. Drayton shook his head. “Sadly, I have land but very little money.”

  “My father has debts. Some of which he owes to Lord Brinkley. He thought I might serve as a payoff.”

  Raya was horrified by such a notion. “He would sell you to pay his debts?”

  She nodded. “Not that I find Lord Brinkley repugnant, not like some of the other men my father has hoped to marry me to. If it weren’t for Luke --” She paused to look lovingly at Mr. Drayton. “I might even have said yes, but I don’t love Lord Brinkley, and you obviously do. I’m glad things worked out as they have.”

  Raya tried not to think what she had done to reveal her feelings for Calder. “What will you do?”

  “I will marry Mr. Drayton once the new law takes effect. The worst Papa can do then is disinherit me. He’ll likely gamble away my inheritance anyway.”

  Mr. Drayton beamed at her. “Aren’t you proud of the wonderful changes Lord Brinkley has made?”

  Changes? New laws? Raya cursed herself for not bothering to check the news from Oriana before jumping a transport. She’d even ignored the in flight briefings as her stomach flip-flopped wondering how Calder would receive her. “I’m sorry. I’m afraid I don’t know what changes you’re referring to.”

  Miss Partington’s eyes widened in shock. “Is it possible he didn’t tell you? When he announced your engagement tonight, I assumed…”

  “You assumed what?”

  “I assumed he’d pushed the legislation through for you.”

  Raya’s knees went weak. What had Calder done, and why the fuck hadn’t he told her? The bastard better have a good explanation for making her look so ignorant in front of his friends. “I surprised him with my arrival this afternoon. We’ve had very little time to talk. Please tell me about the new laws.”

  She looked back and forth between Miss Partington and Mr. Drayton, willing them to give her the information she ne
eded. Mr. Drayton spoke first. “I will leave it to Abigail to give you the details. I’m afraid I must return to the smoking room and make nice with my fellow politicians, but let me simply say that Calder won approval for legislation I never thought to see. The Techno Laws, as people are calling them, will open Oriana to trade with pro-tech planets and provide for better communication and transportation of goods and people.”

  “Calder introduced these measures?”

  Miss Partington nodded. “He did. And fought for them passionately.”

  Raya’s heart pounded. His words echoed in her ears, and she was afraid that, for the first time in her life, she might faint. She wanted to ask more questions, but she didn’t trust her voice. While she’d been stewing back on New Earth, scared of her feelings and afraid to contact Calder, he’d been working to make Oriana more attractive to her.

  Part of her loved him even more for being willing to change a whole planet for her, and part of her wanted to punch him for his highhandedness. Not once had he mentioned these new laws, and he was making a hell of an assumption if he thought she would move here. Her natural rebelliousness had her railing at the idea, but with every moment of her stay, she wanted more and more to never leave him again. What if their engagement was real?

  Mr. Drayton smiled, seemingly oblivious to her distress. “Yes. And now that I’ve met you, I know why. He wants you to be happy here. I know I’m taking a liberty in saying this, but Calder and I have been friends since he first came to Oriana. I have nothing but respect for him as a governor, a horse breeder, and a friend. Calder could have his pick of the eligible young women on Oriana, but he’s never shown serious interest in anyone until you.

  “He loves you, and he’s willing to do anything necessary to have you. I’m not sure of the nature of your engagement, and it is not my business to ask, but whatever happens between the two of you, don’t hurt him.” Mr. Drayton’s amiable smile remained in place but there was a warning in his tone, and unlike most of these backwater prudes, she had no doubt he’d be a formidable enemy.