Dekon: Fated Mate Alien Romance (Mated to the Alien Book 10) Read online

  It was perfect.

  One kiss turned to another and their tongues tangled. Manda let out a sound she barely recognized and Deke's guttural groan matched. Her legs circled around his waist, his cock brushing up against her, a hard temptation trapped between them.

  She wanted him in her. Now. No waiting.

  But Deke was a sadist determined to take his time.

  And when he slid down and let her legs wrap around his head, she couldn't complain. After a minute of his tongue mercilessly torturing her, she couldn't do anything but enjoy the pleasure.

  She gasped out his name, forgetting she was supposed to be quiet. Her fingers tangled in the cold sheets beneath her, creasing the fabric with the evidence of her pleasure. He knew exactly what to do, exactly how to stroke, to have her begging for release.

  Then he stopped and she could have cried. Was he trying to drive her insane?

  Insane with lust, probably.

  The denya bond pulsed in her chest, a reminder that this man, this Detyen was hers and only hers. Her mate.

  Deke rose until his cock was seated at her entrance, ready to take her as she wanted him to forever. And then he was pushing in slowly, almost too gently for her taste.

  That didn't last long.

  And perched as she already was on the edge of orgasm, it didn't take much to have her core rippling around him as she called out his name and begged him for more.

  He wasn't done. Far from it.

  He kept going, plunging into her as his hand reached down to play with her sex. Manda babbled something, a promise of forever, a declaration of love, a vow to conquer the universe, she wasn't sure what, and she couldn't be held accountable for it from the way Deke was touching her.

  She came again, her mind blanking out from the bliss he gave her. How did people survive this much pleasure? She was on the verge of oblivion and she would lovingly fall into it if it meant that Deke was with her for eternity.

  She had never imagined it could be like this. Even in her wildest dreams, the ones she had told no one about and would never admit to, even under threat of death, had she thought that she and Deke could make such beautiful love.

  If she had the ability of conscious thought, she might have regretted time wasted to hurt feelings.

  But that ability washed away on the wave of another orgasm as Deke pumped into her with another grunt and his hot seed spilled.

  Her mind was pleasantly mellow, and while she hated the way alcohol made her lose control, she would gladly drug herself on the things Deke could do to her body forever.

  She cuddled in close to him after he pulled out of her, already missing the feel of his thick cock binding them together. She was coming to understand the importance of a honeymoon.

  Not that she and Deke were married.

  Did she want them to be?

  Manda let that thought float away and focused on the feel of Deke's body beside her. There were much better things to think of. She wasn't going to worry about the future right now, not when she had this man beside her.

  Her bed was somehow even smaller than the one they'd shared on the transport. There would be no escaping each other in sleep.

  She loved the idea of sleeping in her mate's arms.

  She never wanted to sleep alone again.

  I love you.

  The words almost slipped out, but Manda kept her mouth shut. She could feel Deke's chest starting to rise and fall and she figured he was already asleep.

  And he hadn't said it to her.

  They'd already shared enough tonight. He could have a confession in the morning. Or in a week.

  For now she was going to enjoy the cuddle and save her worries for tomorrow.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Curled up beside Deke, anything felt possible. Manda traced her fingers over one of the clan markings on his naked chest.

  "So what do you think happens next?" She didn't feel like she was being ignored anymore, and she hated that she ever had felt that in the first place. But she had to remind herself that everything was still new between her and Deke, no matter how far back it actually went. They had to talk things out, they had to communicate. The denya bond was something great, something to appreciate, but it couldn't answer all of their problems.

  "I was thinking breakfast," Deke said.

  She gave his chest a playful slap. "You know that's not what I meant."

  He grabbed her hand and laced their fingers together. "Are your parents going to have an issue with me being here?"

  Manda hadn't thought of that. Maybe it made her a bad daughter, but she was an adult and she lived her own life. "I don't ask for their permission." But that didn't mean they didn't share their opinions. And she could only imagine how they would react when she and Deke walked downstairs in the morning. It startled a laugh out of her.

  "What's that for?" Deke sounded concerned.

  "You'll find out," she teased.

  "Now I'm scared."

  "You should be." But he had a point about her parents. She'd been chafing at what it felt like to live with them for the past year or so. "I think it's time for me to move out." She hadn't dared think it before. Saying it out loud made it real. But it was the truth. And not just because of Dekon. She couldn't let her family be stuck in the horror that had happened to her all those years ago. They were clinging tight, hoping she never disappeared again. And she wasn't going to. Or, if she did, she would always come back. But living together like they had been wasn't healthy for any of them anymore.

  "I didn't even last the night with my brothers," Deke admitted.

  "What do you mean?"

  "I came in search of you. I love my family with all my heart, but I'm not sure I can stick around anymore. Not after everything that's happened in the last few years."

  Worry zinged through Manda at that revelation. Was he planning to leave again? Would he ask her to go with him? Would she let him leave without her? She could feel her heart beginning to race. She didn't want Deke to leave again. Maybe one day she would be happy to journey throughout the galaxy, but it wasn't today. Sure, she was ready to move out of her parents' house, but that didn't mean she was ready to leave the freaking planet.

  But there was no reason to panic. She'd just decided communication was the most important thing between them. So now was the time to communicate. "How much of your brothers' property have you seen?" she asked.

  "I know what it looks like."

  "It's changed a lot in the past few years." It was a big plot of land and the NaZades were using it to the fullest. "They built Doryan and Amy a house not too long ago," she said. "It's nestled back near the woods. Doryan finds that peaceful. And I think if you asked, if you wanted, they could do the same for you."

  "Is that what you want?" he asked.

  Manda wasn't sure what she had to do with it. It was Deke's house they were talking about. "That's not what I asked."

  Deke brought their joined hands up to his mouth and kissed the back of her hand. "I'm done running. Where you go, I go. That's what we do now. What you think?"

  "Are you asking me to move in with you?" Her heart almost hurt to hope for that future.

  "Do you want me to be?"

  Manda wasn't sure how to respond. But that would definitely solve the problem of finding a place after leaving her parents, and they would still be just down the road. Plus it meant she got to keep Deke all the time and have him to herself.

  "We don't have to rush," he said.

  "It's not rushing." But she wasn't ready to dive completely in, not yet. She needed at least a few more minutes to process. And then her stomach growled. "Breakfast did sound like a good idea."

  Deke laughed. "Then let's go."

  ***

  Deke was relieved when Manda suggested having breakfast back at his brother's house. The invitation had come through on both of their communicators, and by unspoken agreement they left her house quietly. Her parents weren't around, possibly out at work, but he got the idea
that Manda didn't want to talk to them about him yet.

  They'd deal with that later. They had all the time in the world.

  The walk back to his brother's house was pleasant, and he did not let go of Manda's hand the entire time. When they got there, Naomi, Shayn, and Braxtyn were seated around the table.

  "Where's Vita?" Manda asked. She took a seat and started reaching for food to fix a plate for herself. Dekon sat right next to her.

  "She had to run into town," said Braxtyn. "She should be back soon."

  No one else seemed to be worried about it, so Deke felt it was a pretty normal occurrence.

  "You look well-rested," said Shayn with a grin.

  Deke's cheeks heated and Manda froze with her fork halfway to her mouth.

  "Don't tease," said Naomi.

  "It's okay," Manda said after a moment. "I think he deserves some teasing. But don't tease me. I don't deserve that shit."

  That broke the tension at the table and they all laughed.

  And for the first time, it was like he was stepping back into his old life. Things had changed, but only for the better. He had Manda now, and he was certain she was his and that he was hers.

  He had his brothers, along with their mates, and their family was growing.

  It was the kind of existence he'd never imagined could be possible.

  And soon Vita would arrive and complete their number.

  Deke enjoyed the food but when he looked up, he noticed that Naomi had a concerning look on her face.

  "Is everything alright?" he asked.

  She took a sip of water and her hand shook. "I'm not sure," she admitted.

  "A vision?" Shayn asked.

  "More like a feeling. It'll pass."

  But after that, the mood at the table soured. If Naomi wasn't feeling good, that meant something bad might be heading their way. And Deke had the sinking sensation that it was all his fault.

  Who was the man with the scar? He racked his brain, trying to remember something.

  And then with a flash of recognition he did. A mission two years ago. He'd been working with a small crew doing security for some pissant warlord with a stick up his ass. He didn't know the crew. Those kind of jobs had a way of going bad. But Deke had needed the money. And one of the aliens was that guy. The one with the scar on his face. The job went bad, a lot of people got hurt. And Deke ended up shooting him when the guy tried to turn on the warlord and kidnap him for ransom.

  Did that alien recognize him? Had he led him to Earth and his family?

  Manda seemed to sense something wrong. She reached over and put a hand on his leg. "Are you alright?" she asked quietly.

  "I--" He had to leave. He had to get out of here. If that alien was coming Deke had to lead him away from his family, from his mate. He couldn't put them in danger.

  But before he could say anything more, the front door burst open and Vita came in, her lip bloodied and eye turning black. "Some asshole just attacked me," she said, her blaster clutched tight in one hand. "I got a shot off. But he said he wants Deke."

  The strangest sense of calm washed over him. It was weird to feel reassured in knowing that the danger was real, but it was, and now it was something he could fight.

  He leaned over and kissed Manda's forehead before standing up. "It's okay," he told them. "Stay here. I'm going to go handle this myself."

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  "You're not going alone." Manda wasn't the only one to say it, but she was the most vehement. She could see the thoughts running through Dekon's mind. All of that guilt that had built up over the years, everything that had sent him running to the Temple of Peace. Well, screw that. He was her denya, and he didn't get to run into danger alone.

  "We're not letting you commit suicide," Shayn said, backing her up.

  "Six on one are much better odds than one on one," Vita pointed out. "And if Doryan and Amy were here they would say the exact same thing. Too bad they're at the office."

  Deke paced the room like a caged animal. "I can't let any of you go into danger for me. This is my problem. I should deal with it."

  "You're family," said Braxtyn. "You're my brother. So you can stop arguing now or we lock you in the attic. Your choice."

  Despite the seriousness of the situation, Manda couldn't help but smile.

  Deke gave up. "Okay, but you guys listen to me. I know this guy. Apparently."

  "He sure knows you." Vita had an icepack pressed up against her face and her words were a bit muffled, but she was clearly used to speaking around facial injuries. That's what she'd learned in her life as a bounty hunter. "He called himself The Butcher. Which seems kind of pretentious. He said you stole from him and he wants his money back."

  The Butcher? Manda knew Deke had a dark past, but she didn't like to learn that he'd made enemies of people called The Butcher. That couldn't be good.

  Deke made an affronted sound. "Stole from him? Yeah right." That stopped his pacing. "That asshole turned on me on a job a few years back. Turned on the client too. I shot him. Just a little bit. Clearly he's fine now."

  Vita accepted that explanation with a nod while Shayn, Naomi, and Braxtyn all seemed a little shocked. Manda had had a bit more time to get used to the idea of Deke the mercenary, so even if she had a little trouble imagining him shooting someone, she didn't show it.

  "What did this Butcher guy say?" she asked Vita.

  "What do you expect? He wants Deke to come alone. We're all in danger. Blah blah blah. I say we let him cool his heels for a little while and get a defensive system set up around the house. It's mostly there anyway. He'll eventually come here. And when he does, we'll take care of it."

  "Or we could call the police," Shayn suggested.

  Vita and Deke scoffed. "He'll have jammed the signal by now. Check your communicators." Deke pulled his own out of his pocket and showed the blank screen to everyone. "No signals in or out."

  Manda checked hers and he was right. And then a horrible thought occurred to her. "My parents."

  "What about your parents?" asked Braxtyn.

  They were just down the road. She could remember that horrible feeling of being watched yesterday. At first she'd thought it was Dekon, but what if it wasn't? What if it was this guy? "Where did he stop you?" she asked Vita.

  "About two kilometers up the street."

  "In which direction?" Panic was starting to set in, and Deke put an arm around her shoulders.

  "Towards your parents' house," Vita admitted.

  "Shit. If we can't call them I have to go warn them. If this guy's been studying us since we got back he might know they're there. He could go after them."

  That set off a new wave of protest. But it quickly subsided since everyone knew she was right. Her parents were close, both physically and emotionally. And if the guy knew enough to know Manda's connection to the NaZades, her parents were an obvious target. She didn't need to be a mercenary to know that.

  "It's not safe to go," said Vita.

  "I don't care if it's safe. I'm going." Manda couldn't just leave her parents, they were sitting ducks.

  "We can't leave the house unattended," Braxtyn pointed out.

  "I'm heading out the door in one minute. Someone can drive me or I can walk. But I'm going. You guys get the shit set up here. We'll be back before you know it."

  She realized she was speaking in the plural by the end of that sentence, and even if her mind didn't know, her heart knew that Dekon was coming with her.

  "Fifteen minutes," he said. "The Butcher will probably see us leave. He has to have this place under surveillance. He might come after us. Be ready."

  If they stayed any longer, there would be an argument. So she and Deke got up and left. At the last moment, Shayn told them to take his vehicle. And then they were off heading to save her parents from imminent danger.

  ***

  The drive was too short for Deke to get caught up in thinking about how this was a tactical mistake. They could defend his brother's
house. They were defenseless on the road. And he had a feeling there was an argument coming from Manda's parents. She'd gotten her strong will from somewhere, and that sometimes meant needing to fight.

  Manda didn't say a word. Deke wanted to offer her comfort, but what comfort could he offer? This was all his fault.

  Once they got to the house, Manda squeezed his hand. "I should go in alone. I have the best chance of getting them out of there."

  "You don't think they'd trust me?"

  "I don't know. They trust me more. Hopefully they trust me enough. Give me three minutes."

  He didn't want to. He wanted to insist on going with her. But Manda knew how to manage her parents best. And if The Butcher was focused on him, he couldn't think of a reason why he would have been attracted to Manda's parents. Not unless he had been watching him very, very closely.

  Had he?

  "Three minutes," he agreed. But he secretly compromised with himself. She got a minute and a half before he came for the door.

  Manda leaned in to kiss his cheek and headed for the door. Deke was already counting the seconds. Thirty went by, and he could feel that something was wrong. He didn't know if it was some sort of instinct born of the denya bond or if it was just the training that he'd had over the past four years kicking in and telling him to get off his ass and inside the house.

  Screw waiting.

  He got out of the vehicle and ran for the door. And once he got inside, it was clear he'd made the right decision.

  The Butcher was standing in the middle of the living room and had both of Manda's parents on the couch, bound up in tight synthetic rope. He had a blaster trained on Manda and smiled cruelly when Deke walked in.

  "Perfect. We are all here now. Close the door."

  Deke didn't think twice. He closed the door. Stupidly, he didn't have his blaster out, and he couldn't get it unholstered before The Butcher got a shot off. He wasn't going to risk it.

  "Surprised to see me?" asked The Butcher.

  Deke didn't dare glance at Manda. She was really smart. She knew how to deal with a dangerous situation. And he didn't want to give The Butcher any ideas. "Not particularly."