Tempting Tabitha Read online

  Chapter Six

  Deno watched as the large, blue and white planet grew steadily closer. At first, it was nothing more than a bright blue dot in the darkness of space. It grew larger as they sped toward it.

  How long had they been gone? He hadn’t paid attention. Seeing the bright blue dot of Earth had taken him by surprise. It was amazing how differently time passed while they were in the bubble created by the standard space-folding drives most people in his galaxy used.

  He hadn’t been paying attention to how long they’d been traveling. At the beginning of their voyage, he’d been too busy trying to avoid Tabitha. Then, over the last handful of days, he would have done anything to seek her out. It was amazing how differently time passed while they were in the bubble created by the standard space-folding drives most people in his galaxy used.

  Some of the time, they had traveled faster than light using folded space. Other times, they had gone slower, as they were now, though it was still thousands of miles per hour.

  Smiling at the thought of finally spending time with Tabitha, he turned from the section of transparent hull and headed to the cafeteria. It seemed that everyone had gathered there for one final meal together before reaching Earth and returning to their homes. He hoped Tabby was there. He needed to apologize to her for missing their date. Their father had taken it upon himself to lock his three unmated sons in solitary rooms for the last handful of days to... How had he put it?

  “I’m doing this to teach you three what it’s going to be like to spend your lives alone. Maybe a few days in your own company will convince you to never turn your nose up at a gift from the goddess.”

  After spending the last three days talking to his rack, he’d decided, as had his younger brothers, that he would never turn away from another goddess-given gift.

  “There you are!” Tabitha practically ran up to him, her eyes flashing with anger. “I’ve been looking all over for you.” She rested her hands on her hips.

  Deno suppressed a sigh and fought the urge to massage the back of his neck. She most likely thought he’d ditched her the other day. What could he say to convince her that his absence was his father’s doing?

  “Yes. Here I am. I’m sorry I haven’t been around. The only explanation I can give is that my father took it upon himself to teach my younger brothers and I a lesson. Is everything okay?” With any luck, she’d direct her anger at someone else. He didn’t hold his breath though. It seemed as though there was nothing he could do that would bring a smile to Tabitha’s beautiful face.

  It was his fault though. He had made his proverbial bed, and it was time he decided to lie in it.

  “I need you to tell Charly and Xeno that I can take care of myself.” Her violet eyes flashed again, and his stomach muscles contracted.

  Wait. What? She isn’t mad at me for a change? She should have been angry at him. After all, for all she knew, he’d been avoiding her over the last several days.

  “They keep telling me I should stay with them.” Her face flushed red. “Like I’m some charity case. Like I would even think about staying in their house listening to them... watching them...” Her cheeks reddened, and she stomped her foot. “Just tell them that I can take care of myself.”

  “Why would they listen to me? No one listens to me. My brothers don’t ever hear a word I’ve got to say. What makes you think your sister is going to pay attention to me?”

  His heart beat faster as he took in her flushed face, the heavy breaths that drew his attention to her generous bosom, and the fact that she’d asked for his help for the first time since they’d met.

  “Because they keep telling me we belong together. Maybe they’ll listen when you tell them there’s nothing between us but air.”

  Tabitha crossed her arms beneath her breasts, pushing the lovely flesh up, accentuating her already generous display of cleavage.

  Deno’s tongue went dry for a moment before his mouth watered with the desire to draw that succulent flesh between his lips and suckle like a day-old babe.

  “Hey!” She snapped her fingers in his face. “My eyes are up here, you pervert.” She waved her hand in front of her face. “Dammit! I should have known you wouldn’t help me. Why should you? You didn’t even have the common courtesy to cancel our breakfast date last week. You’re just a self-centered asshole who thinks of nothing more than his next conquest.” She rested her fists on her hips, curled her lip and huffed out a breath.

  She spun around as though to leave.

  “Whoa! Wait a minute, there.” Deno grasped her upper arm and turned her back around. “I think you have the wrong idea.”

  “The wrong idea. You think I have the wrong idea?” She glared up at him as though he’d just killed a kitten. “If I have the wrong idea about you, mister, it’s your fault. I’m not the one who declared his independence from... how did you put it? Oh, right, a nagging female permanently in your life.”

  Deno wanted to kick himself for saying those words. How many times did she plan on throwing them back in his face? Still, he’d hurt her with them, and it was her right to remind him how much of an ass he’d been when they first met.

  She yanked her arm from his grip. “Excuse me. I have to go. I need to find a toilet to clean or something. Anything would be preferable to staying here talking to you. I have no idea why I thought you would help me. Shame on me. I should have known better.”

  Tabby pushed past him before he could shake off his stunned silence. She was halfway down the corridor before the idea hit him. It wasn’t a great idea, and she might see through it, but it was all he had.

  “Wait a minute. I thought we were starting over,” he called out to her. This entire situation had him confused.

  Tabitha stopped and cast her gaze toward the floor.

  “We were...” She sighed and shook her head. “Before you stood me up, that is.”

  “I didn’t stand you up against anything. What the hell is that anyway?” What was the woman talking about now?

  She stared at him through narrowed eyes.

  “I can explain what happened if you’ll let me.”

  “Don’t bother. I don’t want to pressure you into doing something you don’t want, and I certainly don’t want anyone pressuring me either. I’m just upset, I guess. I’m sorry.” She turned to leave, and he grasped her arm.

  “Wait. I have an idea to get your sister to see that she and Xeno need to be alone.” He wasn’t surprised when she turned around, her expression filled with trepidation.

  “What kind of idea.”

  “It’s a bit unorthodox, but I can almost guarantee that it will work if we play things just the right way.”

  “How? At this point, I’m willing to try almost anything to convince Charly that I need my privacy as much as she and Xeno will need theirs.”

  “You’re not going to like it.” He was positive she wasn’t going to like it, but if he could get her to agree, he might have a chance to change her mind and win her as his mate, after all.

  What in the hell are you thinking? This idea is never going to work.

  Deno wished the little voice inside him that kept rubbing his nose in his mistakes would just shut up and listen quietly, the way it always did when he had stupid things to say. The only reason he knew he was on the right track was the fact that his damned inner voice wouldn’t shut the hell up.

  “We tell them that we’ve decided to move in with each other to try to see if there’s anything between us.”

  “What?” The color drained from Tabitha’s face. Bending down, she rested her hands on her knees and took several deep breaths. “I don’t know how that would convince them of anything. They know how much we hate each other.”

  Deno fisted his hands and closed his eyes. He’d done that. He was the one who had driven her to such intense feelings about him, though his father hadn’t helped.

  There is a fine line between love and hate.

  If he hadn’t known better, he could have swor
n those words had come to him in a female’s voice, not his own. Still, it didn’t matter. It was true. Perhaps Tabby was so mad at him because she had feelings for him that she didn’t want to admit to having.

  “My brother and Charly know that you are angry with me. They can’t know the depth of your true feelings unless you’ve voiced them to someone. Have you told them you hate me, or do you think they are making that assumption?”

  “I think they’ve been able to figure that out for themselves.” She stared at him as though he wasn’t the brightest light on the console. “Don’t you think our snarky comments to each other and your little speech about being nagged at were clear enough for them to conclude that we can’t stand to be in the same room together?”

  “I think that you’re jumping to conclusions now. My brother knows how difficult it is to resist the woman meant to be his mate. He will assume that I feel the same way about you. Deep down, your sister is a romantic. Because she is happy with Xeno, she will want you to be happy as well. Her heart will cause her to believe we want to be together because she truly wants to see you content in a relationship of your own.”

  “I don’t like lying to them.”

  Deno was at his wit’s end. He needed to convince her to put on an act so he would have the opportunity to convince her they belonged together. He wasn’t sure when he’d changed his mind, but he had. He wouldn’t give up until Tabitha agreed to be his mate. He couldn’t. He wasn’t sure when it had happened, but like it or not, at some point over the last weeks aboard his father’s ship, he’d lost his heart to her.

  Chapter Seven

  Tabby stared up at Deno. Her heart slammed in her chest as he tried to convince her to do the one thing she wanted most desperately to do. It didn’t matter that it would be nothing more than an act to him. It would still allow her to spend time with him. She might even be able to get him to kiss her once or twice in front of her sister and Xeno, of course.

  “I-I’m not sure that’s a good idea.” It was a horrible idea, and she knew it. The last thing she needed was to fall in love with the big jerk. Still, she was halfway to loving him already. At this point, being able to spend any time with him was better than none at all.

  She could have kicked herself the moment the words tumbled from her lips. She wanted nothing more than to have the chance to see whatever it was that drew her to his delicious scent. Her body hummed every time she got close to him. Her heart beat faster, her breathing hitched, and heat pooled low in her middle.

  To put it in plain language, the man made her hot. For some reason, her insides turned to putty every time she got close to him. She melted every time she saw him, and the creamy fluid ran from inside her sex and coated her panties.

  “Of course, it’s a good idea. Xeno won’t suspect a thing. He knows how I am and, well, Charly will be so happy that we’ve both decided to get along, she won’t suspect a thing, either.”

  “I still don’t like the idea of lying to Charly.”

  “Really?” He raised a brow. “Isn’t that what you’ve been doing since you came back into her life? I mean, you’re not, in fact, a black house cat, but you pretended to be one for two years. She knows you lied to her for a good reason, and she accepted it. She’ll accept this, too, once you explain why we did it.”

  “You make this all sound so reasonable.” She sucked her bottom lip into her mouth and bit down. She wanted to say yes. She wanted to have a reason to smile up at him and to see him smile back at her, even if it was a lie. “Okay. Let’s do it. How do we manage to convince them that we’ve gotten together?”

  “That’s the easy part. Let’s go and get something to eat on the mess deck. Everyone will see us there, eating, being civil to each other, and possibly, if you think you can muster up a laugh or two, having a good time in each other’s company.”

  “I think I can do that.” Tabby felt like smiling for the first time in days. “Lead the way.”

  “Nope.” Deno held out his arm. “We’ll take our time strolling through the ship, arm in arm.” He waggled his brows. “Nothing would convince them faster.” He offered his arm again. “Shall we have breakfast together, my lady?”

  “I would love to, fine sir.” Tabby slid her arm through his, gooseflesh covering her arms when he placed his other hand over hers and started walking.

  Something told her he would break her heart, but she didn’t care. All she could think about was how good it felt to have her arm through his, with his big, warm hand covering hers.

  Deno kept his hand over hers until they reached the dining area. Clyde was there, along with Geno, watching something on the huge monitor that took up almost the entire surface of one wall.

  “It’s good to see you two getting along,” Deno’s father said as they entered the room. He turned his attention back to his companion, and they both laughed at something on the screen.

  Tabby didn’t pay attention to what they were watching. Her whole body hummed with the knowledge that Deno was near, his warmth seeping into her as he led her to a table.

  Her body had betrayed her. She’d realized that a week ago. Nothing she could say would change the fact that she went into complete meltdown every time Deno was near. Her nipples hardened, her hands trembled, and her lips tingled with the desire to feel his mouth covering hers.

  She stared at his mouth, wondering if they could take it that far. Would he allow it? Would she?

  “Have a seat.” He held a chair for her as though she were a lady and he a gentleman.

  Tabby knew better than that. She knew he didn’t want to be the butter to her bread, the clasp to her necklace, the—

  “... Decided yet?”

  “Um... excuse me. I’m afraid I wasn’t paying attention. What did you say?” Not watching his mouth as he spoke would have been impossible. His lips were perfect, full, and soft looking. It was impossible to resist wondering how they would feel pressed against hers in a passionate kiss.

  “I asked if you’d decided what you wanted to eat. I’d be happy to replicate it for you.”

  “No. I haven’t tried many things yet. Just the steak we had at Birgit and Reno’s quarters, the fried rice, and oatmeal.” She rested her chin in her hand. “I love oatmeal.”

  “Well, we are here for breakfast, but oatmeal doesn’t sound like the kind of breakfast you’d have at a going-home party.” He grinned. “Would you like me to choose for you?” He held up his hands. “I promise I won’t choose fish.”

  “Sure.” She lowered her guard and smiled back. “You can choose, but I reserve the right to say whether or not it tastes nasty.”

  “Deal.” He frowned for a moment, rubbing his chin. “What do you think about French toast?”

  “I used to love it, but I don’t know about now.” She nodded. “I’d love to try it. Who knows, I might still love it.”

  “French toast it is.” Deno headed to the replication unit and touched the highlighted screen in several spots. A moment later, two plates filled with hot and steaming French toast appeared behind the transparent door, complete with silverware and two large glasses of milk. “I hope milk is okay.”

  “Milk is wonderful.”

  “I thought you might like it. Your sister always talks about how much you both loved your mother’s French toast with a big glass of milk. I think Charly says this recipe is very close. I hope you enjoy it.”

  Tabby leaned forward and drew the delicious aroma into her lungs. “It smells wonderful.”

  She picked up the fork and knife, slicing off a small bite. “Mmm...” She closed her eyes and sighed. “This tastes almost like Mama used to make.”

  Her eyes burned at the memory of her mother singing as she mixed the eggs, milk, sugar, and cinnamon. She’d always used bread that was nearing the end of its fresh cycle. Her mother always claimed that stale bread was best because it was just a little harder than fresh, and less likely to fall apart when dipped in the egg mixture.

  The melody of Frere Jacques playe
d through her mind as she remembered one of the songs her mother sang while she cooked.

  Her eyes burned, and her vision grew blurry as she stared down at the dish. How could just the taste of something familiar bring her to tears? Deno must think her a nut, sitting there crying over a plate of French toast.

  “Are you okay?” Deno sat next to her and leaned close. “I can dispose of it if it isn’t satisfactory.”

  “No,” Tabby said after she swallowed. “It’s wonderful. It’s just that...” She dabbed at her eyes with her napkin. “It tastes so much like my mother’s that it shocked me, that’s all. I haven’t had French toast since the last time Mama made it for me, and this brings back so many memories.” She smiled up at him, her cheeks burning. “It’s just that no one thinks to feed this to a cat.” Tabby glanced down at her plate. “There was one old woman who liked to feed me from her plate. I didn’t care much for a lot of the food she fed me, but even sauerkraut is better than seafood all of the time.”

  “You really do hate fish, don’t you?”

  “Yes. I can’t stress that enough .” “I’ll remember that.”

  “Why?” She glanced back up at him.

  Why couldn’t she stop staring at his mouth? Her fingers tightened around her fork until she was certain she’d bend it. Could they put utensils back into the replicator if they were damaged?

  “I mean... why would you care?”

  He closed his eyes for a minute, his expression changing. A look of irritation flashed across his face for a moment.

  “Forget I asked.” She shifted, ready to stand and leave. She didn’t need his constantly shifting moods, nor his attitude. She had enough issues without having to deal with a fickle male.

  “No.” Deno rested his hand on her arm, and she froze. “Don’t be upset with me.”

  “Don’t be upset with you? You’re the one who keeps getting irritated with me.”

  “I’m not irritated with you.” He ran the fingers of his free hand through his hair with a sigh. “To tell the truth, I’m irritated with myself. I should never have said those things to you when we first met. My father brought me up better than that. He brought us all up better than that. In truth, my brothers should have kicked my ass for saying those things, even if you hadn’t been around.”