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Nikol was getting to her and Darcy found herself softening toward him against her will. She was supposed to be lulling him into a false sense of security so he’d become lax in his vigilance of her. To do that, she’d had to expose more of herself, share a level of honesty she hadn’t given another, not even Kevin.
Doing so meant Darcy was vulnerable in a way she wasn’t used to. Nikol, for his part, lavished attention on her in the bedroom while maintaining his silence on any topic Darcy broached outside a frivolous nature. He distracted and redirected with skillful hands and lips whenever she tried to pin him down.
Sex should have been a means of controlling him but it was easy to discern they were both beholden to their body’s need for one another. It was maddening how much she enjoyed his touch and Darcy had to work hard to remember her goal. She was not going to become a docile harem slave.
She upped her game and challenged him at every turn. Her resistance over basic things amused him. Trying to take the top and ride his cock, received a look of derision. Often, Darcy found herself laughing as she gave in during their tussles for dominance.
Then there were the gifts. The jewelry he left on her pillow in the mornings was extravagant beyond belief. Finely designed necklaces, thick bracelets covered in amber and blue stones, as well as a variety of rings in every style.
At first, Darcy thought they were attempts to pay her for sex and her anger had soared white hot. The morning after she received the third piece, she’d gathered them in her hands with the intent to throw them in his face when he returned to the kitse. Amia had stopped her as she stormed from her alcove, heading toward his.
Cecilee came out when she heard them arguing. Once she realized what Darcy planned, her eyes flashed with humor.
“These are holkom,” she explained.
Hosting? Darcy frowned, not understanding what hosting had to do with anything. “Listen, Cecilee, I can’t be bought and I’m going to make sure your master knows it.”
If that meant she ended the subtle truce between them by ramming these down his throat, then so be it.
Amia shook her head and blew out a breath. “They are holkom, gifts of thanks.”
It made no sense to Darcy. Her fingers clenched on the expensive jewelry. “Sorry, ladies. I don’t get it.”
At Amia’s gasp, Cecilee held up a hand. “Allow me. A tutanis is given holkom to thank her for accepting a man in her punan and doing it with beauty and grace.”
Darcy played with the meaning the translator provided until her mouth fell open. “Wait, Nikol’s thanking me for letting him put his dick in my...in me?!”
Amia smothered a grin behind her hand. “You must make him very happy to receive such costly gifts this soon.”
Darcy closed her eyes and groaned. She and Nikol had been having sex for over a week. He’d started leaving the jewels after their second night together. Damn him. She hated to admit knowing the meaning changed her feelings on the pieces. When Darcy opened her eyes, she ignored the women’s amusement and headed back to her alcove to place the jewelry carefully on the small table beside her bed.
The reason behind his actions worried at her mind during their walk today and she couldn’t stop her thoughts from wandering while he showed her around.
“You are distracted,” Nikol said, interrupting her mental emo party.
Darcy tipped her head up to find him watching her with the icy expression he always wore outside the kitse. Of course, he’d notice. His sharp gaze constantly watched every nuance that crossed her face. However, she hesitated to mention what bothered her.
He came to a stop in the hall and lightly touched her forearm. Darcy flinched, causing him to frown and focus on her. “What is it? Tell me”
Darcy knew by the way he bit the question out that they wouldn’t move further until she answered. She matched his glare and crossed her arms over her chest. “Holkom.”
Surprise flashed across his face as if he hadn’t expected her to say that then humor glinted briefly in his brown gaze before he masked it. “What about it?”
He was taking pleasure in being deliberately obtuse. Darcy rolled her eyes. “It’s not necessary.”
“On the contrary,” Nikol drawled. His brown eyes heated with a familiar smolder. “I am very grateful for the welcome I receive from your punan.”
Face on fire, Darcy had to squeeze her thighs together to put a halt to the way her inner muscles spasmed. There was no way he missed her response to him. The corner of his mouth quirked up. He calmly started walking again and Darcy gaped at his broad back. She hurried to catch up and grabbed him. “I don’t want gifts for...that. It feels weird.”
Not payment as she’d initially thought but not necessarily something she was comfortable with either. Nikol paused and pointedly looked down at her hand on his arm. She dropped it with a huff and he resumed his pace.
“I take it on Earth there is nothing similar,” he finally said as they’d traveled some distance and down two flights of stairs.
Darcy made a rude sound as she blindly followed him. “Hardly.”
She was about to add more on the cultural differences between their worlds when Nikol stopped at a large guarded set of double doors. She finally took note of where they were on the main floor and peered around in confusion. They didn’t usually venture down here. There were only so many places to see inside a house this big and the ones Darcy was truly interested in, she was sure Nikol wouldn’t show her.
The guard leered at her naked breasts, reminding Darcy for the first time in forever that she was essentially walking around topless. He licked his lips and cupped his crotch. Her hands crept up to cover herself but before she could hide her breasts, Nikol shook his head.
The stark warning in his eyes stopped her. Darcy dropped her arms, guts churning in a mix of shame and anger.
“We are going outside,” Nikol said.
The guard chuckled, eyeing her nipples and then the length of her legs revealed by the slit in her shellam. “She appears to be trained well.”
Excited about the prospect of going out, Darcy refused to let his ignorance ruin this for her. She clasped her hands together and almost danced in place. Giddiness replaced the momentary anger and without thought, she moved toward the door. “Nikol, this is won—”
The guard swung out with the palm of his hand. The crack of skin on skin was shocking. Her hand flew to her burning face and Darcy jerked in shock. He’d smacked her.
“Son of a bitch!” she yelled.
Emotions took over and she launched at the guard. Her fist glanced off his jaw, enraging him. He growled and pushed her back, the muscles in his arms bulging. “You dare!”
“Damn right!” Darcy kicked out and her sandaled foot thudded into a thick thigh.
She lifted her leg to try again and an arm caught her about the waist. Darcy was left swinging and kicking at empty air. Gloating, the guard stepped closer into her personal space and cocked his arm far back to strike again.
She was set on her feet so fast she stumbled back into the solid wall of the chest behind her. The guard’s thick wrist was caught in a brutal hold by the hand stretching over her shoulder. “No.”
Nikol used his free arm to shove Darcy back, moving her out of reach as he closed in on the guard who’d almost struck her a second time.
“You dare, Ryz,” Nikol snarled in a voice Darcy had never heard him use.
“S-s-she was trying to leave. I merely stopped her,” Ryz babbled as sweat popped on his face. He leaned forward, attempting to ease the strain on his arm.
Nikol’s fingers clenched tighter. He twisted to the side, drawing forth a pained whimper and sending Ryz to his knees with a crash. “Do you think she’d leave with me standing right here?”
“No! I’m sorry, Nikol. My apologies for the misunderstanding. I’ve heard Earth women are known to cause trouble. I was disciplining her for you.”
Darcy bit down hard on her inner cheek. No one disciplined her. She was a grown woman.
“I do not need your help disciplining what is mine.” With a violent thrust, Nikol let the guard’s wrist go.
The force sent him sprawling on the floor. He was slow getting to his feet, his manner demanding retribution when he shot a glare at Darcy. “There is still the other matter.”
The air thickened with tension. Darcy’s breath came in light pants, not liking the turn the conversation had taken. Nikol’s eyes narrowed. “Are you implying I don’t know how to handle my tutanis?”
Ryz cradled his injured hand to his chest. “No, Nikol.”
“Punishment or correction?” Nikol snarled at him.
“Correction.”
Nikol nodded. “Do you trust my judgment?”
He looked like he wanted to protest. Instead, he inclined his head. “I withdraw my right to see to it personally. I only request she be corrected publicly as her actions toward me were public.”
“I agree to the request.” Nikol jerked his head toward the door. “Open it. Now!”
They scrambled to open the door. He bowed low as Nikol grabbed Darcy’s arm and pulled her through. Once the door closed behind them, Darcy breathed out a sigh of relief.
Releasing her arm, Nikol was quiet as they walked along a gray stoned path. The angry jut of his jaw had Darcy erring on the side of caution by remaining silent. Patrolling men in uniform nodded at Nikol as they passed and were ignored. They watched Darcy following in his wake with a curious glint. Face stinging, she kept her head down and avoided eye contact with them.
It wasn’t until they’d walked far enough to be out of sight of anyone that Nikol stopped and turned. The house was visible in the distance. “Look at me.”
He lifted her chin before she had a chance to comply. Gaze cool, he studied her right cheek intently. “Does it hurt?”
“Uh, yeah,” she responded honestly.
His fingers tightened, thumb pressing into her bruised skin. Darcy winced and he released her to say through gritted teeth. “How could you be so stupid?!”
“Me?!” she yelped.
His hands fisted at his sides as he paced away in agitation. “I thought you understood how important it was for you to follow the rules but I see now, I was too lenient.”
Wait. Wait. What was he saying exactly? “He hit me and now you’re blaming me?”
He spun around and faced her. “You attacked a male! Females are not allowed to hit men on Marenia. I warned you of this.”
It wasn’t easy to keep a lid on her anger but Darcy held her calm and asked, “What are you going to do?”
“What I should have done when you first showed your basic lack of understanding for how precarious your position here is.”
His cold voice sent shivers arcing up and down her spine. Darcy’s heart was a virtual thunderstorm, pounding in her chest. “Specifics. Give me specifics.”
His brows rose and amazement creased his forehead. “And you continue to make demands. You believe you have a choice in this. You broke rules, Darcy. There are consequences.”
She swallowed and hid her trembling fingers in the folds of her shellam. “What consequences?”
Darcy wasn’t sure she wanted to know. She also knew the terror of the unknown was often worst than not knowing. Nikol’s gaze remained steady on hers. “Correction.”
Her breath stuttered. Maybe it was better not to know. Visions of having her fingers cut off or, being sold again, scared her stupid. Darcy braced a hand on his chest. “Nikol, please.”
He grasped her wrist but didn’t push her away. His fingers rubbed over the jumping pulse on the inside. His gaze roved over her face, hesitating on what she was sure would be a faint red imprint from being hit. A glimmer of hope filled her chest. Maybe he’d reconsider.
“Nikol.”
The voice calling his name stopped whatever Nikol was about to say. Darcy glanced behind them. The man approaching was tall, almost as tall as Nikol. His brown hair was pulled back in a short nub at the nape, bringing attention to the harsh scar running down the side of his face and cutting into his bottom lip.
Midnight black horns curled back from his head and she noticed there weren’t as many lines and detailing on the surface, unlike Nikol’s horns. The newcomer also lacked what she was coming to accept as the typical body mass of Marenians. This man was leaner but judging by the fit of his gray shirt and black pants, no less muscled. When his brown eyes took in Darcy’s appearance from head to toe with a cold stare, she didn’t doubt he was as dangerous as the others in this place.
“What is it, Dain?” Nikol asked, dropping Darcy’s hand.
She stayed in place while her body was urging her to fight or flee. The only reason she controlled it was because she sensed the deference Nikol gave the other man and his guard wasn’t up.
Dain. She’d heard the name only a handful of times when she and Nikol talked. His tone hadn’t changed during those conversations so, she hadn’t paid much attention. Now, she wanted to rethink her opinion. Especially since Nikol’s stern visage wavered with a semblance of respect.
Dain’s dark eyes flicked over Darcy before dismissing her. “I need to speak with you.”
“Is it important or can it wait?” Nikol asked after a wary glance at Darcy.
She had the feeling he wished her a million miles away right now.
“It requires your urgent attention.”
Darcy shivered at the icy delivery. Frustration crossed Nikol’s features. “I must take care of another matter first.”
Dain’s brow creased. “What is more important?”
“My tutanis struck Ryz at the front door. Twice. He has demanded public correction as his recompense.”
Dain eyed Darcy and exhaled wearily. “I will witness.”
Nikol nodded.
“Witness what?” Darcy asked, the fear returning in full force.
“Quiet!” he roared. “When I am done, maybe you will consider your safety more seriously.”
If he thought abusing her was the answer, he was dead wrong. She stared into his eyes and said with all the venom she could muster, “If you hurt me, I will find a way to hurt you back.”
He came close to her and brushed his thumb over her bottom lip. “There are worse things than pain for the sake of pain, astéri. Physical hurt is fleeting. Today you will learn that.”
Blood drained from Darcy’s face and she only remained on her feet because she was too scared to fall.