Free Valan's Bondmate by Mardi Maxwell

pleasure giver."
    His words brought tears to her eyes. She buried her face in his neck and hid them from him. She couldn't bear it if he laughed at her for wanting a child of her own. His arms tightened around her.
    "Besides preparing our meals you will be responsible for keeping our quarters clean."
    "What will I do with the rest of the cycle?"
    "When I bathe, you will wash my back."
    That wiped the smirk off her face.
    "I won't."
    "You will. You'll do whatever I demand of you."
    When she stiffened and sat up, he jerked her against his hard chest. She let out a small shriek of outrage.
    "You will obey me in all things, Lia. Do you understand me?" He slid his fingers beneath her chin and lifted her face when she didn't answer him immediately.
    "I understand your language perfectly, Valan."
    "And, you will obey me?" When she hesitated, he growled.  
    "Yes," she snapped. Then, added peevishly, "stop growling." 
    One dark brow flicked up. "Is that a command?" His voice soft but threatening.
    She shook her head.
    "Rephrase your request."
    "Please, stop growling at me, Valan."
    "Better. You will not be allowed to leave these quarters without me. When you are allowed to leave, you will behave. Any mischief you cause will be harshly disciplined. In a few cycles, if you behave, I will take you on a tour of my starship."
    "So, you expect me to accept this situation? I won't, and no amount of disciplining will make me." As he started to interrupt her, she rushed on. "You wouldn't accept being abducted and held against your will."
    "I’m a warrior."
    "It doesn't make a difference. Females have feelings, Valan. I have feelings."
    "You will please me by accepting your position as my pleasure giver."
    "What if I don't want to please you? What if I don't want to be a pleasure giver?" The knowledge that she would never be a mother reminded her of her own mother and the last words she’d spoken to her. Tears ran down her cheeks. "What about my mother, Valan? She must be frantic with worry by now."
    ***
     
    Valan never had to deal with these kinds of tears before. In the past, females cried in his arms with pleasure, but never sorrow. They’d cried when they wanted a trinket or when he’d left them. Lia slid her arms around him and rubbed her wet cheeks on his chest. The action had a profound effect on him. Clumsily, he patted her back, as he was filled with an unfamiliar wave of remorse. 
    Had his own mother ever cried like this? He couldn't remember ever seeing her cry. His twin sister, Magda, cried all the time. Usually, when he and Cam refused to allow her to come along on one of their adventures. But, as young warriors, they’d simply laughed at her tears and tried to send her away. She’d never obeyed them though. Stubbornly, she’d follow behind them until they gave in and made her part of their group.
    The memory of how disobedient Magda was surprised him. He remembered complaining to his father about her but he’d only laughed and ordered him to let Magda tag along. A wave of sorrow and longing rushed over him. He hadn't thought about his twin sister in annuals. It’d been easier to remember her and his mother the way they’d been the last time he’d seen them. Happy and eager for his and his father’s return when the truth was they’d already been dying from the Wrothian virus and didn’t know it.
    "Can't you let her know I’m alive, Valan?"
    Lost in his memories, it took him a moment to answer her. "No."
    "Please, Valan. You can't let her go on hoping to find me. That would be cruel."
    Her words, coming so soon after his memories of his mother and Magda tore through him. "Cruel? You Wrothians know about cruelty. Thank Tor, you're still alive and not dead like my mother and sister." Standing, he let her slip from his lap to the floor at his feet. He bent down, looming over her. "Do you think I wanted you, the daughter of Selik ad-San as my mate? Don't ever beg me for mercy, Lia. For you, I have none." He stepped