Brides of the Kindred Volume One Read online

  “Don’t worry, no one will,” Sylvan said, looking back to address her. “We’re taking you in through the outer passageways, not the more populated center of the ship. From there you and Baird can travel directly to his suite.”

  “Suite, huh? Where are we anyway, the Kindred Hilton?” Olivia muttered seemingly to herself, but at least she stopped protesting and allowed Baird to carry her without struggling.

  They passed through the round, irising airlock door that protected the rest of the ship from too much oxygen loss and turned out into one of the long, plain metal corridors that were mainly used for transporting goods around the outer edge of the ship. Baird wished that his new bride would relax against him as he carried her, but she remained as cold and stiff as a piece of metal or wood in his arms. What would it take to thaw her icy demeanor?

  At last they came to an empty medic station and Sylvan nodded for Baird to sit her down on the plain metal table. But the moment he did, Olivia yelped as though she’d been stung. Baird was about to gather her back into his arms—he didn’t like not touching her anyway—when she waved him off.

  “It’s okay. The damn table is just ice cold and I’m practically sitting on it bare ass. That’s all.”

  “My apologies,” Sylvan said smoothly as he dug in one of the wall storage units for the materials he needed. “This will only take a moment, I promise.”

  “Uh, okay.” She was watching him dubiously, as though unsure of what was about to happen. Baird thought of reassuring her that Sylvan was a first class medic but somehow he didn’t think words from him would make her feel better. There was one way he could help her though—she was still shivering from the cold. Without saying a word he unsnapped his shirt and shrugged it off, baring his upper body.

  “Hey, whoa—what are you doing?” Olivia was looking at him with wide eyes as though he was about to pounce on her. Did she really think so little of him to believe that he would try to take advantage of her when she was injured and helpless? Baird felt his heart fist in his chest.

  “Only this,” he said gruffly, draping the crimson shirt around her shivering bare shoulders.

  “Oh…uh, thanks.” She was staring at him now, as though she’d never seen a male before. Baird looked down at himself to see if there was something wrong. He had spent a full hour in the bathing pool that morning preparing but was it possible he had spilled something on himself before getting dressed to claim her? The broad planes of his muscular chest looked all right to him—his dusky tan skin was marked by the whitish scars left by the AllFather’s torture but a Kindred warrior always wore such marks with pride. There was a small patch of black hair between the two flat copper disks of his nipples and a trail of it led down his corded abdomen into the black uniform pants he was wearing. Truly there was nothing to stare at—so why was she still staring?

  “Is there a problem?” he asked at last. “You don’t like the way I look?”

  “Uh, no, I…You look fine. Just fine.” Olivia looked down at her hands, her fair skin blushing a deep embarrassed red.

  “What’s wrong then?”

  “Nothing.” But her beautiful silvery eyes were still flickering up to his bare chest and back down to her hands as though she couldn’t quite look away.

  Baird resisted the urge to tilt her chin up so she would have to meet his eyes directly. Why did she keep looking at him? He looked down at his chest again. Maybe she preferred smooth skin only? If so she was out of luck, only Tranq Kindred grew no body hair. “What’s wrong, Lilenta?” he asked her earnestly. “Is there somethin’ you want me to change?”

  “No, it’s nothing you can change. You’re just so…” She made a helpless little motion with one hand. “You’re just so big. And…and muscular.”

  Baird frowned. “Sorry about that—a warrior has to keep his body in top physical shape.”

  “No, don’t apologize.” She shook her head. “I’ve just…never gone out with such a big guy before. It’s kind of, uh, overwhelming.”

  Baird wisely resisted the urge to point out that they were doing much more than “going out” as she put it. Instead he remembered Sylvan’s words in the Human/Kindred Relations building. His half brother had warned him that his new bride might fear him because he was so much bigger than the puny human males she knew—apparently he had been right.

  “Olivia,” he murmured, bending down to be closer to her. “I know I’m bigger than the males you’re used to but I want you to know that my size and strength will never be used against you. I live to protect you now—I would never hurt you.”

  She looked up, her silver-grey eyes flashing defiance. “Even if I deny you? Even if I won’t…won’t give you what you want?”

  Baird sighed. What had he done to earn this level of enmity from her? If it hadn’t been for the long months of dream-sharing he might almost have been tempted to think he had the wrong woman. But no, there was no mistaking her sweet scent. Olivia was the one, she just didn’t want to admit it.

  “Yes,” he said softly, looking into her eyes. “Even if you won’t give me what I want. What I need. Because make no mistake about it, Lilenta, I need you, need to touch and taste and kiss your soft, sweet body the way I need my next breath. But if you want to make me wait, well…” He shrugged even though his heart was heavy. “That’s your choice.”

  Her eyes went wide and they stared at each other for a long moment. Baird could feel the heat rising in her again, just as it had when he held her in his lap on the journey up to the ship but all her body language said she wouldn’t welcome his advances. What could he do to get through her barriers?

  “All done.” It was Sylvan who broke the uncomfortable silence that had grown between them. For once Baird was grateful that his half-brother was a talkative male.

  “All done?” Olivia looked down at her hurt foot in disbelief. “But…I didn’t feel anything.”

  “I know. I numbed the area before removing the glass.” Sylvan smiled at her and held up a small, clear vacuum tube with a small shiny speck floating in its null-grav center. “Thanks for distracting her,” he said to Baird, as though the whole scenario had been pre-planned. “It made it a lot easier to heal her without hurting her.”

  “Heal me?” Incredulously, Olivia looked at the bottom of her foot. “Hey, I’m not bleeding anymore. In fact…” She examined herself more closely. “I don’t even see any break in the skin at all.”

  Sylvan nodded. “I told you—I healed you.”

  “But…but how?” Olivia looked upset. “I wanted to see! You Kindred are so secretive and that was one thing I was looking forward to, actually seeing alien medical technology.”

  “Sorry.” Sylvan shrugged. “If you’re really that interested you can observe in one of our wellness centers.”

  She nodded eagerly. “I’d like that. When?”

  “Not until after our claiming period is over,” Baird rumbled, scooping her off the table and holding her close to his chest. “For now we need to get to my suite.”

  “But, my things…” She looked upset. “My sister Sophia is supposed to be bringing them to the HKR building. Will I still be able to get them?”

  Baird frowned. Now that she was well and in his arms again all he wanted was to get her back to his suite. The sooner they were alone together, the better as far as he was concerned. She needed time for his scent to work on her, time to realize they belonged together. “We’ll have someone pick them up,” he promised.

  Sylvan nodded. “I’ll go back for them myself, mate of my kin,” he said formally to Olivia. “You and Baird just get settled in his suite and don’t worry about anything.”

  “Mate of my kin, huh?” She gave him a crooked smile. “I, uh, guess that’s your version of ‘sister-in-law’ huh?”

  “It’s what we call the bride of our siblings,” Baird told her. “And since you’re my bride—”

  “You say that the same way you’d say I was your property,” she interrupted him, frowning. “Like I�