Klingon Hearts 10 Exposed - In The Light of Evil Page 3

  Sherise knew differently, now. She'd seen him when those officers had died. Saw the anger...and helplessness at the situation. She saw him take command and save them when everyone else was still trying to grasp the situation. It was intimidating, really. To see him in that light. She hadn't known who he was until now. She'd only seen the persona he wanted everybody to see.

  Robert Paris was a complex man. A fact which he demonstrated again more than once last night. Sherise had the feeling there were many more surprises that awaited her in this relationship.

  Like the fact that it was a relationship. He'd left her with no doubt about that.

  Their conversation after he made love to her the second time made that point blatantly clear....

  She had been sprawled out on her stomach, the pillow he'd placed under her hips a short time before still supporting her. She hadn't had the energy to move once he finally laid down next to her.

  Sherise viewed him with half-lidded eyes as he caressed the bite mark on her shoulder with his fingertip, sending little shards of pain darting from the wound.

  "I've marked you," he told her in a gravely voice. "You belong to me."

  "I marked you too," she whispered back. "Does that mean you belong to me?"

  "Forever."

  His blue eyes were intense with some unidentifiable emotion. Sherise trembled under his touch. For some reason, she felt the need to break the spell he had her held in. Shakily, she rose from the bed, wincing at the interesting little pains that shot through her.

  "Sore?" he guessed.

  She nodded, not meeting his gaze. "I think I'll take a hot shower."

  He rose to stand beside her. "A bath would be better," he whispered, his arms encircling her tightly for a moment before disappearing into the bathroom to fill the tub.

  When he retuned to her she was sitting on the edge of the bed, wrapped up in a dressing gown.

  Unconcerned of his own nudity, he knelt down in front of her, taking her face in his hands to kiss her passionately. After a few moments, he broke the kiss.

  "I want you all over again," he whispered, dropping soft kisses all over her face.

  She moaned, drew him into her arms and laid back on the bed, offering herself to him.

  He lifted her up and carried her into the bath instead.

  "Later," he promised. "I'll just hurt you now. I've already done more than I should for your first time."

  "I don't mind," she told him seductively.

  Robbie groaned and set her on the floor. "Bath," he growled.

  As she dropped her robe and stepped into the heated water a fierce frown creased his brow when he noticed the blood streaking her thighs.

  Sherise sank into the hot water and almost bolted out again when it reached the sensitive, abused flesh between her legs. She bit the inside of her cheek to keep from gasping.

  Robbie sat down behind her and pulled her into his arms to lean back against him. He bathed her gently in the warm water. She shivered when he carefully brought the soft cloth to the throbbing, tender skin at the junction of her thighs.

  "Did I hurt you very much?"

  Grateful she was facing away from him, Sherise blushed from the top of her head to the tips of her toes. He was so blunt. Did anything embarrass him? Probably not, he was a physician.

  "Sherise?" he prodded again, not willing to take her silence as an answer.

  "It hurt more than I thought it would," she told him honestly.

  His lips touched the damp, heated skin at her temple. "I'm sorry," he apologized, tightening his arms around her.

  She turned her head to look at him. "Don't be, please," she begged. "It was wonderful and...."

  "And?" he prodded.

  "And I'm glad it was with you."

  *****

  Robbie glared at the computer terminal. He'd left Sherise sleeping alone to take a priority one message from Command, only to discover it was his father and he had to return to Earth immediately.

  He was not pleased. Leaving Sherise and the Dakota right now was not an option he wanted to consider. They both needed him. There had better be a -damn- good reason for this.

  "What's this all about, Dad? Why do I have to return to Earth?" he demanded.

  "Robbie, please," his father sighed. "I'll tell you everything when you get here. This channel might not be secure. It's imperative you come home. Immediately."

  "I should say no," he retorted. "You're damn lucky I have a physician on board to cover me. I'm the Chief Medical Officer on this ship. I have responsibilities here, you know. I can't just walk away from them on a whim."

  "Dammit, Robert!" Tom snapped, losing his patience. "This is not a whim! People's lives are at stake! I need you home! NOW!"

  His father's agitated state shocked him. It was a rare occurrence when Tom Paris raised his voice. Something was very wrong.

  "All right," Robbie gave in. "I'm sorry. I should have known you wouldn't ask this without a good reason. I'll be in a shuttle within the hour. I just need to say good-bye to someone."

  Something in Robbie's voice gave Tom pause. A seriousness that told him whoever this person was, they were important in his son's life.

  "Who?" he asked bluntly.

  "What?" Robbie couldn't believe his dad was prying like this.

  "Are you involved with someone?"

  Where did his dad get off asking him that? He was twenty-six years old, for the love of Kahless!

  "I really don't see how that's any of your concern," he replied in a curt voice.

  "I don't have time to argue with you, Robert! Are you involved with someone or not?"

  "Yes! All right. I am. Are you happy? I can't see what this has to do with anything," he grumbled.

  "Bring her with you," Tom ordered.

  "What?!" His father couldn't be serious.

  A warp core breach would have -nothing- on what Sherise would do if he told her she was to come home with him. Meeting his family was out of the question. She was too uncertain of her own feelings right now.

  "That's an order, Lieutenant. I want your mate on that shuttle with you in less than an hour."

  "Who said she was my mate?"

  "Robert, we don't have time for games. If you love this woman you better make sure she stays with you."

  His eyes widened with sudden insight.

  "It's still going on, isn't it? The people who were after K'Leena and Lucas...you're worried they might come after me and Sherise."

  Realization dawned. Robbie met his father's gaze in shock.

  "Kahless!" he cursed. "They already did! This was because of me! Those officers lost their lives because someone wanted -me- dead!"

  Tom sighed. "Just get home...fast."

  "All right, we're are on our way."

  Robbie set about packing his things after signing off with his father. He was still in shock.

  People were dead, because of him. His shipmates. His friends. For no other reason than someone wanting -him- dead. What a pointless way to die. Pawns in someone's little game of revenge.

  What had Lucas done?

  Maybe it wasn't Lucas....

  Maybe it was K'Leena....

  Or maybe it wasn't them at all.

  What if this went further? They'd gone after Lucas and K'Leena more than once now. Now they had come after him.

  What if....

  "Son of a bitch!" he swore.

  His parents. Everything led back to them. Why else would their children be stalked.

  The door of his quarters chimed.

  "Come in," he called out.

  "What the hell is this?" Sherise demanded a moment later, storming into his quarters holding a PADD.

  "I take it you got your orders," Robbie replied calmly.

  "Yes...from an Admiral Paris...a relation of yours I'm assuming--I'm to accompany you back to Earth immediately."

  "Admiral Tom Paris...he's my father."

  "What is this, Robbie?"

  "If I knew, Sherise, I would te
ll you. All I know is I have to return home and I'm to bring you with me."

  "Why do I have to go?"

  "You're in danger...because of me."

  "What kind of danger?"

  "I don't know, but we have our orders."

  "This doesn't make sense. I'm just your friend."

  Robbie gave her a hard look. She was a lot more than that, and she damn well knew it, but now was not the time to debate the issue.

  "Sherise," he growled. "Get packed, we have to go."

  "Oh, all right," she conceded ungracefully. "But I don't have to like it!"

  Then she turned on her heel and stalked out the room as fast as she had entered it.

  Robbie grinned and shook his head as he went back to packing. He was going to like being her mate.

  *****

  "Your dad is furious with me, you know," Mike told Tessa as he moved the dresser against the wall of the bedroom. They had been unpacking her stuff all afternoon.

  "Really?" She grinned mischievously.

  "Yes. And your mother didn't help matters much when she told him his feelings on our living together were irrelevant."

  She laughed. "Uh oh, Momma must be pretty ticked at him. Dad goes off the deep end at the "I" word. She only uses it when she -really- wants to annoy him."

  "She does?" Mike was surprised. Seven didn't seem like the kind of person to do something like that. Although, every now and then, he did get the impression that she was laughing up her sleeve at things.

  "You bet," Tessa told him. "It's the fastest way to set him off, and she knows it."

  Mike opened a box and lifted something from it.

  "You have a doll that looks like your Mother?" he asked with a grin.

  Confused, Tessa turned to see what he had, then burst out laughing.

  "Oh God!" she exclaimed. "-Don't- let her hear you say that!"

  "Why not?"

  "Momma -hates- that doll. Uncle Tom gave her to me for my sixth birthday. She was my favorite toy. I took her -everywhere-. She came with lots of clothes and a house and I would play with her for hours on end."

  "Why didn't your Mom like her?"

  Tessa rolled her eyes. "You know what Uncle Tom is like. I think he picked this doll -because- it looked like Momma. Aunt B'Elanna couldn't stand her either, said she was a bad role model for girls. K'Leena was never much for dolls and such, so she never had one."

  Mike chuckled. It wasn't hard to picture Tom Paris doing something like that.

  "She does have some -interesting- proportions," he admitted with a smirk.

  "Oh! Give me that!" Tessa grabbed the doll from him. "Quit leering at her like a sex-fiend. She's just a child's toy."

  "Did she have a name?"

  "Sure, she was called Barbie."

  The door chime sounded a second later. Mike left the bedroom to answer it with Tessa following right behind him.

  "Admiral Paris," Mike greeted their unexpected guest. "Please, come in."

  Tessa grinned and gave her uncle a quick hug and a kiss. "Hey, Uncle Tom, what brings you here? You gonna yell at Mike for 'dishonoring' me like Dad did?" she asked with a smirk.

  Tom laughed. "I probably should, huh? But I happen to know it's you who won't marry him, so I figure if anyone is being dishonorable around here...it's you."

  "See," Mike wagged a finger at her. "I told you. I have my reputation to think about, you know. Now everyone thinks I'm easy."

  Tessa's lips twitched. "Uh huh. Cause you would never sleep with someone you're not married to. Right?"

  "Of course not! What kind of a man do you think I am?!"

  She rolled her eyes. "What's up, Uncle Tom?" Changing the topic of this ridiculous conversation seemed her safest bet at this point.

  "Actually," Tom began seriously. "Can we sit down for a minute. I need to talk to you."

  "Sure," Tessa replied, gesturing to the couch. "You want something to drink?"

  "No, thanks anyway. I need you two to pack a bag or two and come with me to the estate," he told them plainly.

  "Why?" Mike asked calmly.

  He didn't fool Tom for a second. Mike Burns was not a stupid man. He probably knew more about what was going on then either Will or Tom had given him credit for. Lucas too, for that matter.

  Meeting the younger man's gaze head on, Tom spoke:

  "Can you just trust that we will tell you what this is about as soon as we can and that right now, it's imperative you come with me."

  Tessa felt the tension in Mike. She looked up at him in confusion.

  "I'm going to hold you to that, Admiral," he warned Tom. "We'll come with you."

  "You can go with him if you want," Tessa said. "But I have to go to work tomorrow. I'm not traveling from the estate everyday when Command is three blocks away from our apartment."

  "Tessa...," Mike growled, but Tom interrupted.

  "I've already spoken to Admiral Gellis, Tessa. You've been assigned to me temporarily. We're going to the estate."

  "You did what?" she asked quietly.

  "I had you assigned to me. I'm ordering you to the estate."

  Tessa glared at him. "Yes, Sir," she snapped smartly, then got up and left the room.

  Mike whistled under his breath. "I'm glad I wasn't the one who had to do that."

  Tom sighed. "Yeah, well, what's one more person angry at me? Robbie tore strips off me already this morning. I figure B'Elanna is next," he stated grimly.

  Mike chuckled.

  *****

  K'Leena leaned against the shower wall of their temporary quarters on the Enterprise, trying to stay upright. This was a really bad idea. Taking a shower was draining her more than she thought possible. Closing her eyes against the mind-numbing dizziness she started to sink to the floor.

  Lucas' strong arms caught her an instant later. The curse he used raised the temperature in the room by at least ten degrees.

  "What were you THINKING?!" he yelled at her. "I can't even leave you alone for ten minutes!"

  "I just wanted to take a bath...I didn't think it would tire me so much," she said weakly.

  "Stubborn woman! You just had a -baby-! Yesterday! for crying out loud! You should be in bed!"

  "Other women...."

  "Other women didn't go through what you did, Blaze. Trust me," he reminded her impatiently.

  She let him help her from the tub and towel her off before she told him she could manage the rest on her own.

  "You sure?" he asked, not at all convinced she wouldn't pass out the minute he left her.

  "I'll be fine," she snapped, more than a little annoyed. "I can brush my teeth and get my nightgown back on without your help."

  "Maybe...."

  "Lucas," she threatened. "Get. Out."

  He hesitated and her eyes flashed angrily. With a nod, he left her alone.

  When she left the bathroom a few minutes later, she wasn't surprised to find him hovering right at the door.

  K'Leena rolled her eyes.

  "Would you -please- find something else to do besides following me around like a puppy?"

  Lucas frowned darkly.

  "If I hadn't been here, what would you have done?" he demanded to know.

  "I would have sat down for a few minutes until I got my strength back and finished my bath," she told him calmly. So she got a little dizzy. It was no big deal.

  "You might have fainted and hurt yourself, K'Leena! What about Michael? If you were lying unconscious on the floor, how could you take care of him?"

  "So...not only am I too stupid to take care of myself. I'm also an unfit mother?"

  "That's not what I meant!"

  "Could have fooled me," she retorted, trying and failing to keep the hurt from her voice.

  Lucas stilled and took a deep breath. What was he doing? She didn't need this.

  "I'm sorry, 'Leena," he apologized feelingly. "I just got so scared when I found you like that...." He drew in another breath to steady himself.