Our eyes clashed and I knew he knew I was withholding from him and my breath caught because I knew a Korwahk warrior would not like that, not at all.

Then he growled, “You’re my gold, nahna xaxsah is my hahnee rah. Kay jahnan nahna lisa, na uvan tee luh kay. Ana kay jahnan nahna pahnsahna, Circe. Kay nayeesan tee. Fahzah.”***

Okay, it couldn’t be said that I understood everything Lahn said but I understood enough that I knew I’d managed to lay down a challenge, he was a warrior who had been trained since he was a little boy to face any challenge and best it and he’d just vowed to me that he would win.

Shit, I had a feeling I was screwed.

But, being me, I didn’t give up.

“You got lucky tonight, big guy,” I whispered, “but so did I. Now, I’m really tired so will you get off me so I can trahyay?”

He scowled down at me a second, his hand still holding my face. Then his eyes moved, drifting, they caught on the bruise still marking my cheekbone. Then I watched the glower fade slowly as his eyes went soft. Then his hand tipped my chin down and held me still while his lips slid across my bruise.

I closed my eyes.

Shit, I really freaking hated it when he was sweet.

I felt his forehead on mine and my eyes opened.

“Yes, my Circe, you sleep,” he said softly then he moved his head, let my jaw go, rubbed his nose along the side where his thumb had held me, he gently pulled out and slid his body down and partially to my side, tucking me underneath him, tangling his legs in mine.

I sighed and was so exhausted and sated I couldn’t help but let his warmth relax me.

My eyes drifted closed.

They drifted right back open when his arm tightened in an affectionate squeeze and he whispered in my ear, “Anka, ta linay tera leenyahso na lapay, claws against steel.”****

He sounded tired, satisfied and also like he was looking forward to tomorrow. Like, a lot.

Seriously, Lahn learning English so fast sucked.

And even more seriously, I knew I was screwed.

*Translation: Thank you, my Jacanda, now you sleep, my doe.”

**Translation: My wife is gold. Her cunt is liquid gold. Beautiful.”

***Translation: “You’re my gold, your cunt is my liquid gold. I will have your mouth, you will give it to me. Then I will have your spirit, Circe. I will own it. Always.”

****Translation: “Tomorrow, we see how skilled you are, claws against steel.”

Chapter Eighteen

The Horde

My eyelids floated open when I heard the cham flaps slap back and I took in the bright sunlight on the walls of the cham.

It had to be late morning.

I arched my back slightly in a light stretch and tipped my chin down on the pillows to see which one of my girls had come in.

I blinked when I saw a pair of muscular legs in hides coming my way.

My eyes flew up and Lahn was looking down at me with a seriously hot, seriously satisfied look on his face.

He aimed his ass to the bed as I rolled to my back and that was when it hit me that my nightgown was bunched at my waist, exposing me top and bottom. He hadn’t pulled the silk over us last night, warding off the chill with his body.

My hand flew to my nightgown but didn’t make it even close. It was captured in a firm grip, pushed back and pressed to the bed. My eyes shot to him as I tried with my other hand which was captured too. Then both were pulled up over my head and held in one of his while his eyes followed his other hand which drifted palm flat from my chest, between my br**sts, down my midriff, over the silk then he cupped me between my legs.

Shit.

His eyes came back to mine and I skewered him with a glare.

“You love the feel of me,” he whispered and my glare slipped as I blinked.

“Wh… what?” I whispered back.

His finger slid inside and that felt so flipping great, coupled with that look on his face, my lips parted and a swirl of pleasure uncurled in my belly.

He bent slightly more toward me and repeated, “My tigress loves the feel of me.”

His finger moved.

Shit.

“Lahn,” I breathed as it hit me. I’d said that to him last night and, this morning, he’d seen to finding out what it meant. “You’ve been talking to Seerim.”

He smiled and damn, it was sexy.

Yep, he’d been talking to Seerim.

First on my morning’s agenda, find Diandra and kill her.

His finger moved, sliding out and in. “Sah me lapay the part of me you love gahn tee jahkal,”* he murmured.

Okay, no, first up, Lahn was going to play with me, give me an orgasm and then I was going to find Diandra and kill her, the crazy Korwahkian matchmaker.

And I was right about the morning’s agenda, with one hand holding my wrists over my head, his other hand worked between my legs until my back arched, my h*ps ground down on his fingers and I cried out when he made me come really, freaking hard.

It was still washing through me when he let my wrists go and tugged me gently into his lap, wrapped his arms around me, buried his face in my neck and cradled me.

“My Circe’s claws are not so sharp,” he whispered there.

My body tensed.

Seriously, he was annoying.

I lifted my hands to his chest and shoved hard enough that he moved back an inch as I snapped, “Go away, Lahn, I need a bath.”

His head came up and his silently laughing eyes caught mine. “Yes, kah Dahksahna, me too.”

Oh shit.

He went on. “Kah bahsah bathes zah Lahn, kay bathe kah bahsah.”

He said, “My wife bathes her Lahn, I bathe my wife”.

Oh shit!

“Lahn –” I started, he grinned then turned his head and barked, “Teetru!”

The cham flaps instantly opened and I pressed my chest to his, my arms going around him to hide my nudity (not that I needed to, my girls had seen me plenty of times but it was habit) as my head twisted around to see all five of my girls traipsing in with buckets of steaming water, cloths and rough, creamy disks of soap. They set them down in a new area I hadn’t noticed last night that was stone and grass and no rugs.

The mess we made with Lahn’s bath was not to be repeated, I saw. We now had a shower area.

Crap.

Then they shuffled out without looking at us.

“Lahn –” I started but I was up because he was up and carrying me. “Lahn!”

“Quiet,” he ordered.

“Lahn!” I snapped, he dropped my feet, they hit stone and my nightgown immediately slid down to my ankles. Before I could decide to go for the nightgown or just make a run for it, his hides were at his. He stepped out of them, bent to grab the handle of a bucket, I prepared for flight but he caught me at the waist, yanked me into him, my body slammed against his and not a second later he poured a whole bucketful of warm water on our heads.