Finding the Jewel Read online

  The words startled them both and Chloe looked around in horror to see Monk Taroni frowning at them.

  How could she have completely forgotten that they had an audience? An audience of only one, true, but still, the fact that someone had been watching her act like a sex-starved stripper was almost more than she could bear.

  “I…we…we can’t do these things in public—I mean, where anyone else can see,” Chloe said, fumbling for some explanation—some reason—to keep the monk from making them continue. “It…it’s too embarrassing.”

  “Hmmm.” The monk was still frowning but at last he nodded. “Very well. But if you will not perform here, then I must give you an assignment for tonight.”

  “An assignment?” Chloe slid off the big Kindred’s lap, noticing with relief that their robes—both of which had turned deep, rosy red—reformed and solidified, filling in the missing areas over their crotches the minute she stopped touching Tark.

  “Yes, and the assignment is this—you must continue feeding the Skin Hunger.” The monk frowned at them sternly. “Tonight in your chamber, I want you to give each other pleasure. You…” He pointed at Tark, “stroke and caress your lady’s curves—give her pleasure with both fingers and tongue—make her come to completion many times.”

  Tark’s golden eyes widened and he glanced at Chloe quickly before nodding that he understood.

  “And you,” Monk Taroni continued, pointing at Chloe. “You must also give your man the pleasure of your mouth and hands. If you feel able to, it would be best to spread your thighs for him and finish what the two of you started here this evening. Feeling his shaft and seed inside you will go a long way towards feeding the Skin Hunger. Do you understand?”

  “Um…yes.” Chloe could scarcely look at Tark, she was so embarrassed. The monk was practically ordering them to have sex! It was mortifying.

  “Good.” Monk Taroni pointed at them both this time. “The two of you have accrued a massive Touch Deficit—think of it as a debt you owe to yourselves and your relationship. If you do not start to ‘pay it down’ as it were—and allow yourselves to start touching and loving again—you could do serious and permanent damage to your union. Also, you will never achieve Oneness which all couples crave. Do you understand?””

  “Um, yes. Yes, we do,” Chloe said and Tark nodded gravely.

  “Very well. That’s all I can do for you in this first session.” Taroni sighed as though he had been working on a difficult task which was still far from finished. “Come with me and I’ll lead you to your chamber.”

  Chapter Ten

  Tark’s shaft ached with need as they followed the monk down more twisting corridors to the sleep chamber that was assigned to them. Gods, having Chloe in his arms, getting to taste her sweet lips and feeling the warm, wetness of her pussy pressed against his cock had been almost too much to bear! She was so beautiful, so desirable…and so frustrating.

  How could she be kissing him and doing everything she could to encourage him one minute and then pull away the next? How did she really feel about him? What did she want?

  Tark knew what he wanted. Though he told himself he needed to concentrate on the goal at hand, what he really wanted was to have Chloe for himself.

  Mine, he thought, unable to help himself or stop the possessive wave that rolled over him when he looked at her. She was so lovely with her soft, curvy body and her long pink hair and big blue eyes. He longed to do as the monk had ordered them and pleasure her with his fingers and tongue. He could just imagine himself between her thighs, lapping her sweet, wet pussy as he slid two fingers deep in her tight channel to fill her at the same time.

  Kindred had a biological need to taste their females and though he knew Chloe wasn’t really his, Tark was feeling that need deeply now. Maybe it had something to do with the “Skin Hunger” Monk Toroni had claimed they had—or maybe it was just that she was his ideal female—the one he’d been searching for all his life. But for whatever reason, Tark’s hands itched to caress her skin again. He wanted to take her to the bed and taste her until she cried out her pleasure…then fill her with his cock and the mating fist that throbbed at its base. He wanted to bond with her and make certain she could never leave him.

  Stop it, he told himself roughly. You can’t bond an unwilling female. Also, you still don’t know exactly how she feels about you. She could just be acting a part.

  But it hadn’t felt like acting when she’d pressed herself against him and kissed him. And what about how hot and wet her pussy had been? How could such a reaction be acting? She must surely feel something for him?

  He didn’t know…and he didn’t know how to ask.

  * * * * *

  “Well, this is certainly…nice.” Chloe tried to smile as she looked around the medium-sized cavern which was their bedroom as long as they stayed at the Resort of Resonant Oneness.

  There was a strange sort of bed which was actually a large, rectangular pit sunken a few feet down below ground level. It was filled with pillows and furry blankets and looked like it would be hard to get out of if you had to pee in the middle of the night—which she usually did at least once.

  There was another sunken pit in the floor—but this one was round. It appeared to be a kind of hot tub because steam was rising from its surface and there was a pile of thick towels on one edge.

  Too bad I didn’t bring a swim suit, she thought. A dip in the hot tub would have been nice.

  Their belongings had been brought to the room, including the clothing they had shed and the tablet and stylus Tark had brought with him for communication purposes. They lay in neat piles beside the bed pit.

  “Your evening meal will be served to you here,” Monk Taroni told them. “I have instructed that you not be allowed to eat with the other couples in the main dining area. You need to spend as much time alone—just the two of you—as possible. Without distractions.” He picked up the tablet and waved it in their faces before making it disappear into his voluminous white and black robes.

  “H-hey! W-whu-wait a m-m-m—” Tark’s golden eyes glowed with frustration as he reached for the tablet.

  “I don’t think so.” The monk gave him a disapproving look. “You need to spend time with your mate—not waste it playing with electronic gadgets and neglecting her.”

  “He doesn’t neglect me to ‘play’ with it,” Chloe said quickly, seeing how upset the big Kindred was. “We use it for communication purposes.”

  “Communicate through touch,” Monk Taroni suggested. “No words need to be spoken at all—I want the two of you to spend the entire night wrapped in each other’s arms, feeding the Skin Hunger.” He pointed at Tark, who was still visibly agitated. “You can have this back at the end of your stay. Not before.”

  Then he swept from the room and was gone.

  The big Kindred turned to her, his massive hands clenched into fists at his side.

  “Ch-Chloe,” he began. “I n-n-n-n-n—” He shook his head and gave an inarticulate growl of pure frustration at his inability to communicate.

  “Sing it,” Chloe suggested quickly. “You know now you can sing without stuttering—so sing it. You don’t have to sing a tune—you can just go up and down one or two notes, like monks doing a chant,” she added, singing to demonstrate what she meant.

  “I—I’ll try,” he sang, imitating her, his rich baritone filling the cavern.

  “You have a beautiful voice,” Chloe exclaimed, overcome with admiration again. “I can’t believe no one ever told you to try singing instead of speaking before.”

  “As I said, my father was ashamed of my speech defect,” Tark vocalized. The low, sonorous tones of his voice going up and down and echoing in the cavern really did remind her of a Gregorian Chant.

  “It’s not a defect,” she said firmly. “That makes it sound like there’s something wrong with you and there isn’t, Tark.” She touched his arm, looking earnestly into his eyes. “There’s something different about you but that’s not ne
cessarily a bad thing.”

  “S-s-seems l-luh-like a b-b-bad thing to m-muh-me,” Tark growled, obviously forgetting to sing.

  “Just different,” Chloe sang back to him, reminding him. “Look,” she added, talking in a normal tone. “I can see how much it bothers you. I know you’re hoping to find the jewel that will cure you right away, but in the meantime, would you let me teach you a few exercises and coping techniques? I mean…” She shrugged. “We’re kind of stuck in here together until everybody goes to bed and we can sneak out and search, right? And it’s not like we’re actually going to do the ‘homework’ that Monk Taroni assigned us.”

  She tried to laugh but it came out sounding forced and embarrassed. She couldn’t help wondering what he must be thinking of her now after the way she’d been grinding all over him a few minutes ago.

  “No…I guess not,” he vocalized, his voice coming out low and subdued. He frowned. “About that…about what…” He coughed and cleared his throat. “A-a-about wh-whu-what h-h-happened—”

  “Oh, it was all just an act,” Chloe said quickly, trying to head him off. “I mean, for both of us, right? We have to at least pretend to do what they tell us or they’ll kick us out before we can find the jewel. Right?” As she spoke the hem of her robe-dress went from white to black and the fabric itself became the pink color of a blushing cheek. What was up with the color changes in these damn resonite robes?

  “R-ruh-right. P-pretend,” Tark repeated, but for some reason he didn’t look very happy. The hem and edging on his trousers turned black as well but the fabric was a deep bluish-gray.

  Chloe wasn’t very happy herself but what could she do—admit she wanted desperately to jump his bones and her impromptu lap-dance a few minutes before had been for real?

  Huh-uh, don’t think so, whispered a little voice in her head. That’s waaaay too embarrassing. Especially when he already has plans to take you back home so you know he’s not interested in anything long term.

  “So…” Chloe clapped her hands together. “Will you let me work with you? Unless the idea offends you,” she added quickly.

  “N-nuh-not o-o-o—” With a visible effort, Tark took a deep breath and sang instead. “I’m not offended by your offer. I think it would be a good way to pass the time. Since I can’t sing everywhere I go,” he added wryly.

  “With a gorgeous voice like that, I don’t see why not,” Chloe said, smiling. “We would have killed to have you in my show choir back in high school! But I understand what you mean. Okay, to start with, you have to relax.”

  He frowned. “R-re-relax?”

  “Sure—a lot of times tension and stress makes stuttering worse,” Chloe told him, just as she told the kids she worked with on a daily basis at her therapy practice. “And of course, stuttering makes you feel more stress and so you stutter more and block harder and the whole thing is just a vicious circle. So let’s start with some relaxation exercises. Okay?”

  Wordlessly, he nodded.

  “Okay, good. Now I usually start out sitting on the floor but since the floor is hard, cold stone…”

  Tark reached into the bed-pit and pulled out a fur blanket with patches of red and brown and black on it. Chloe wondered what kind of animal it had come from. Whatever it was, it must have been huge—as big as an elephant—because when he spread it out, it covered a large section of the floor. There were also long, furry black tails every few feet along its edge, like some kind of a fringe. Were they from some other animal or was the fur really from a multi-tailed animal? What a strange looking creature it must be! But at least its pelt was plush and soft.

  “Thank you.” Chloe nodded, pleased. “That’s really good. Now come sit down with me in the middle. Come on—criss-cross applesauce,” she added, sitting cross-legged in the center of the fur blanket—which was surprisingly thick and cushiony. It felt good on her bare feet, too—which had been getting cold despite the temperate warmth of the caverns.

  Tark frowned as he sat down beside her, imitating her posture.

  “Cri-iss cr-cro-cross wh-what?” he asked.

  “Oh, sorry.” Chloe gave an embarrassed little laugh. “I work mainly with kids so please forgive me if I kind of fall into that speech pattern. It’s not meant to be belittling or insulting—it’s just kind of a habit.”

  “That’s all right,” he sang softly, his eyes meeting and holding hers. “I never feel insulted by you, Chloe.”

  Chloe felt her heart give a little jump in her chest but she tried to ignore it.

  “Well…thank you, Tark. I…um…I…I…” Suddenly she realized she was just staring into his eyes and not saying anything intelligent at all. Damn it, she had to get hold of herself!

  Be professional, Chloe! she lectured herself. Just treat him like any other client and try to forget how ridiculously hot he is.

  Which was easier said than done. But she was damn well going to try because if she didn’t, she was going to wind up humping his leg like a Cocker Spaniel in heat which was no good. Damn it, why did she have to be so attracted to him?

  “Okay,” she said, tearing her eyes from his by sheer force of will. “Let’s start with your breathing. Now first—look where your shoulders are.”

  “M-muh-my shoulders?” He frowned.

  “Yes—they’re up around your ears. Here.”

  Chloe jumped up and went around behind him. He was so tall she didn’t even have to stoop to put her hands on his broad shoulders.

  “You’re all tensed up,” she told him. “Take a deep breath—in through your nose…good. Now let it out through your mouth and let your shoulders ease down as you do so. Good…good…we’re making a conscious effort to relax here. Close your eyes and just breathe.”

  Tark seemed to be making an effort—he dropped his shoulders and followed her instructions—but his back still felt knotted with tension to Chloe. For her part, she felt pretty far from relaxed, too. Just being close to the big Kindred warrior—touching him and breathing in his smoky, spicy scent—made her want to do much, much more. God, what was wrong with her? She had never felt so strongly attracted to anyone in her life, to the point where she could barely keep her hands to herself.

  Is this how guys feel when they’re horny? she wondered distractedly as they continued Tark’s breathing exercises. Like they need to touch? Need to grab?

  Maybe that was one explanation for all the subway gropings and things of that nature that went on back on Earth. Of course, no matter how strong the urge to touch was, it was no excuse not to keep your hands to yourself. But she was having a really hard time doing that at the moment. Considering the way she could barely stop herself from sliding her hands lower, to caress his hard pecs…

  Speaking of his pecs… Chloe frowned.

  “No, Tark—you’re not breathing deeply enough,” she told the big Kindred. “You need to breathe from the abdomen—the belly—not your torso. Now look…”

  She let her hand slide down until she had her hands right where she wanted them, over the hard muscles of his chest. But of course, she was only trying to show him the correct breathing technique, she told herself. That was all.

  “You’re breathing from here,” she said, patting his chest. God, his skin felt warm! “You need to be taking deep breaths from here…”

  She let her hands slide lower to caress his rippling abdominals. Forget a six-pack—Tark definitely had an eight-pack going on. There was a little trail of dark, silky hair which led from his navel down into the waistband of the robe-trousers he was wearing—which had turned deep red again, she noticed distractedly.

  “Breathe from your abdomen,” she told him, wishing her voice wouldn’t come out so breathy. “Make this space here—the space between your breastbone and your belly button really long and tall.” She demonstrated with her hands, stroking her fingers up and down his lean, muscular abdomen. “Feel your body letting go of tension,” she said, though in fact, she herself had never felt more tension in her life.

 
Sexual tension, anyway.

  Tark did as she said but then his hands somehow found hers. He slid his palms over the backs of her hands and interlaced their fingers, drawing her closer to him.

  Chloe bit her lip but went with it, going down on her knees so that she could press her front to his back, just as she had when Monk Taroni had ordered her to. At once the front of her robe-dress melted so that her bare breasts were against his bare back again. Chloe knew she ought to pull away—there was no excuse for touching him so intimately now, without the monk making them do it. But somehow she couldn’t make herself stop.

  Nor, however, could she quite make herself abandon the little charade they were playing out. Though this was never how her speech therapy sessions went back home, she at least tried to keep up the fiction that she was only working with the big Kindred—instead of straight up feeling him up.

  “That’s good,” she murmured in his ear. “Good breathing, Tark. Now let’s try to say something.”

  “Ch—chl…chlo” He seemed to be trying to say her name but he attacked the first sound fiercely, as though it was an enemy.

  “No, no,” Chloe chided him gently. “Just listen—take a deep breath in and then speak on the exhale. And when you do, let the first syllable come out softly—almost a whisper. Then draaaaaw it out. Like this—Chlooooooeeee.”

  Tark took a deep breath.

  “Ch-chloooooeee,” he said. Her name came out in a gravelly whisper which seemed to do all kinds of strange things to Chloe’s insides. It was almost a groan—the way he might say her name while he was coming if they were—

  Stop that! she scolded herself. Stop perving on your patient and get back to business.

  “Try it again,” she murmured. “Gentle on that first sound—stroke it with your tongue.” Oh God, now why had she put it like that? But the words were out now, she couldn’t call them back.

  Tark took another deep breath.

  “Chlooooeee,” he rumbled without a single stutter. “Chloooo-eee.”