MAIA AND RYLAN
An Ellora’s Cave Publication, September 2005

Ellora’s Cave Publishing, Inc.
1056 Home Ave.
Akron, OH 44310

ISBN MS Reader (LIT) ISBN # 1-4199-0302-0
Other available formats (no ISBNs are assigned):
Adobe (PDF), Rocketbook (RB), Mobipocket (PRC) & HTML

MAIA AND RYLAN Copyright © 2005 ALLYSON JAMES

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. This book may not be reproduced in whole or in part without permission.

This book is a work of fiction and any resemblance to persons, living or dead, or places, events or locales
is purely coincidental. They are productions of the authors’ imagination and used fictitiously.

Edited by Heather Osborn.
Cover art by Syneca.

Warning:

The following material contains graphic sexual content meant for mature readers. Maia and Rylan has
been rated E–rotic by a minimum of three independent reviewers.

Ellora’s Cave Publishing offers three levels of Romantica™ reading entertainment: S (S-ensuous), E (E-
rotic), and X (X-treme).

S-ensuous love scenes are explicit and leave nothing to the imagination.

E-rotic love scenes are explicit, leave nothing to the imagination, and are high in volume per the overall
word count. In addition, some E-rated titles might contain fantasy material that some readers find
objectionable, such as bondage, submission, same sex encounters, forced seductions, and so forth. E-rated
titles are the most graphic titles we carry; it is common, for instance, for an author to use words such as
“fucking”, “cock”, “pussy”, and such within their work of literature.

X-treme titles differ from E-rated titles only in plot premise and storyline execution. Unlike E-rated titles,
stories designated with the letter X tend to contain controversial subject matter not for the faint of heart.

TALES OF THE SHAREEM:

MAIA AND RYLAN

Allyson James

Allyson James

Chapter One

DNAmo compound

Twenty years ago

Rylan snaked his hand through Maia’s black hair and she opened her lips for his

kiss.

His forbidden kiss, which made it sweeter.

She traced the sculpted muscles of his bare shoulders and back. Her fingers caught

on the black chain on his left biceps, which indicated what he was.

Maia wore a similar chain, hers more delicate.

His skin was hot. Shareem temperatures rose when they were aroused, higher than

that of a normal human’s. Her own body temperature shot up to meet his.

Rylan skimmed his hand across her sarong, loosening the fabric. Yes.

This was forbidden. Maia was a prototype, the only female Shareem ever made. She

was off-limits to the male Shareem. To everyone. Many experiments were yet to be

made on Maia.

Rylan had long ago found secret ways into Maia’s chambers. When they were

children, he’d crept in to bring her presents of the candies and toys she was not allowed

to play with.

As adolescents, he’d taught her about kissing.

As adults, he was teaching her all about deep pleasure.

“Want to play a game?” he murmured against her mouth.

“Yes.”

Rylan played the best games. He was a level two Shareem, which meant he

specialized in games and wicked fun.

“Pretend that you love me.”

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Maia and Rylan

“I do love you,” Maia said.

Rylan smiled his devastating smile that began in one corner then spread across his

face. A wicked light entered his eyes.

A Shareem male, fully aroused, was a beautiful sight. His irises widened, filling his

eyes with pure, dark blue. His skin had gone flame-hot under her fingertips, and shone

with perspiration. He still wore his loincloth, which hugged his hips, but she felt his

huge cock behind it, erect and wanting.

His light brown hair, streaked from the sun, was scraped back from his face and

fastened in a tail, caught once at his nape and again halfway down his back.

Maia loved his hair. She loved his smile, and his eyes and his lovely, long cock.

Well, everything about him.

She belonged to Rylan, in her mind. He never let the other Shareem, especially Rio,

with his black hair and sinful smiles, touch her.

She and Rylan never fucked fully, because DNAmo wanted Maia to remain a virgin

until they began experiments. But Rylan showed her that they could have all kinds of

pleasure other than vaginal penetration.

“What’s the game?” she asked, interested.

The lights were low in her bedroom, the mikes muted, so no one who happened to

be monitoring her could see or hear. They would assume her asleep. Rylan had learned

long ago how to diddle the computers to give them privacy.

“I brought a strap,” he whispered into her ear.

Her Shareem temperature jumped another few degrees. “Punishment?”

“Well, I don’t know.” Rylan sat up, his eyes sparkling like they always did when he

began his games. “You’re too sweet, Maia. I don’t think I can punish you.”

She got to her knees, her black hair brushing her bare back, sensual against her

warming skin.

“I can be bad,” she said fervently. “I can be very bad.”

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Allyson James

Rylan was a genius with the short piece of leather. He could make it sting, but not

hurt, pain and pleasure mixed until she burst into a glorious climax.

She loved it when he played full Dom, but he did not always. Sometimes he teased

her, brushing the whip over her skin, then putting it away and leaving her. She’d

scream in frustration, and hear his answering laugh fade through the passageways

behind the walls.

The man knew how to make her want him.

As if he needed to try.

He removed the thin strap from the bag he’d brought with him and traced her

cheek with the leather. “You can never be bad. You don’t have it in you.”

“Yes, really, I can be.” She thought a moment, trying to come up with something.

Her breasts ached, and her thighs were wet with cream. If he teased her and walked

away tonight, she’d die. He hadn’t been able to visit her in weeks. She’d missed him

desperately.

“I kissed Rio,” she said in a rush.

His face stilled, and the spark left his eyes. “What?”

“I kissed Rio. I couldn’t help it.” She shrugged. “He’s Rio.”

She was lying, though she had seen Rio yesterday, and he’d brushed his fingers

over her lips. His Shareem pheromones had drifted over her, making her hormones

dance in response.

Rio was a level three Shareem, which meant a full Dom. He wore black leather that

matched his waist-length black hair, and his blue eyes were always—watchful. Like if a

lady wasn’t careful, she’d end up in a dark passageway with her hands in manacles,

pleading with him to release her.

Or to fuck her. Or both.

In any case, Maia had smiled and walked away from him. She belonged to Rylan.

“Rio,” Rylan repeated.

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Maia and Rylan

She nodded. Rylan’s eyes flashed—with jealousy? Wouldn’t it be wonderful if

Rylan felt about her the way she wanted him to?

But Shareem had been genetically programmed not to feel strong emotion. Not love

or hate, rage, depression or joy. They existed in a neutral state, friendly, happy and

content.

Well, that was the theory. In truth, Maia loved Rylan to distraction. She’d never

admit that to anyone, though.

Rylan’s eyes narrowed. “I told you not to go near Rio.”

She shrugged, like she never listened to what he said.

“That’s gonna cost you,” he growled. “Stand up.”

Maia unfolded her legs and scrambled off the bed. With deft fingers, Rylan finished

loosening the sarong and stripped it from her.

She stood, naked, in front of him, loving the way his gaze roved her body. The stark

hunger in his eyes made her happy. Her skin prickled, and a dark wanting coiled in her

belly.

Rylan got off the bed.

He towered over her, eight inches over six feet. He’d been bred for incredible

handsomeness, meant to adorn a highborn lady’s drawing room, as well as pleasure her

in the bedroom.

She was shorter than he, genetically altered so that smaller men would not be

intimidated by her.

She intimidated them anyway. No one had liked the way the female Shareem had

turned out, which was why she was the only one.

The female researchers liked to list her shortcomings. The male researchers

stuttered and dropped things when she came near them.

Rylan always called her beautiful. And mine.

“Bend over the bed,” he ordered.

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Allyson James

The amusement had gone from his tone. Maia shivered in excitement and fear. She

knew Rylan would never hurt her, but he was Shareem, and Shareem sometimes lost

that edge of control.

That was why women craved them. Shareem were expert lovers, but they also

carried a hint of danger.

Maia put her palms on the bedcovers and bent at the waist. Her hips stood up over

the edge of the bed.

Sometimes he prepared her, drawing the smooth lash over her bare back and down

her thighs. Sometimes he pushed it between her legs, massaging her clit, pressing it

against her opening.

Today, the leather came down abruptly, slap, on her rear. She gasped.

“There,” he said. “How does that feel?”

“It feels good,” she whispered.

He whipped her again. “It feels good, what?”

“Um.” Sometimes he told her to call him my lord, or whatever was appropriate to

the game they were playing, but he didn’t always tell her in advance what he wanted.

“Um,” she said again. “Rylan.”

Over her shoulder she saw him ease his loincloth from his hips, saw his cock spring

heavily forward. She devoured it with her gaze, stiff and erect and oh-so long.

I want it in me. Please, please, please let the gods make him fuck me before he can stop

himself.

“Who do you belong to, Maia?”

“You,” she said hoarsely.

“That’s right. Rylan.” Slap. “Not Rio.” Slap. Slap.

“No.” Her mind darkened, his jealousy so turning her on that she would come

before he even touched her.

“Say it!”

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Maia and Rylan

“Rylan,” she babbled, her body aching for climax. “Not Rio. Never Rio.”

“That’s better.” The lash fell on her buttocks, stinging and raw. “Remember it.”

“I will.” She started to come, her body jerking while wild feelings poured over her.

She lost coherence. “I love you, Rylan. I love you, I love you.”

She felt a final slap, slap, slap and then she screamed.

Her climax took her hard. She welcomed it, falling onto the bed, her own hands

finding her warm slit.

Tears of release poured from her eyes. Rylan lifted her in his arms and sat on the

bed, his mouth on her skin, his tongue sculpting her face, licking away her tears.

“Rylan,” she gasped. “Please, this time, fuck me.”

He shook his head. His skin burned, and his cock, engorged and erect, nudged at

her buttocks. She wanted it inside her so bad. She wanted to squeeze it into her, to hold

him, all of him.

She’d never be complete until she did.

“Please.”

“No, sweetheart.” His voice was ragged. He wanted it as much as she did, but as

always, he held himself in rigid control. “I can’t have you. Not that way.”

Her tears came thick and fast. “But I want you. I want you so much.”

“I want you, too.” He drew her against him. “I want you so damn bad it’s killing

me. But I don’t want them to punish you for what I do. I don’t want them to make it so I

can never see you again.”

She nodded against his shoulder, knowing he was right. That did not make the pain

any less.

He moved her fingers out of the way and pressed his own into her slit, massaging

her mound with the heel of his hand. She arched against him, loving the sensation,

loving the feel of his hard arm around her back.

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Allyson James

A sense of being protected surrounded her. Rylan always took care of her, no

matter that he was even forbidden to see her.

He stroked her, fingers working magic, until she came again. She shuddered with

need and release, knowing that his fingers inside her were all she could have.

Rylan lay her down on the bed and draped himself next to her. His long, hard,

naked body seemed to enclose and shield her.

“Maia,” he said. He ran languid fingers through her hair. “You know that DNAmo

is collapsing. The government finally banned the work on Shareem, and will shut the

company down.”

Maia peered up at him. She’d heard the whispers, but had not known what to

believe.

“I don’t know what they’ll do with us,” Rylan went on, “but you and I are getting

out. No matter what.”

Hope leapt in her heart. “Where would we go?”

“There’s a place on the other side of the sand sea, where they make the singing

spheres. It’s a long way away.”

“So far?” Maia knew the geography of Bor Narga and about the singing spheres—

balls of delicate glass made from cave crystals that produced lovely music.

That is, she knew all about them from books and digitals, but she’d never set foot

outside the DNAmo compound or ever seen a real singing sphere. “How would we get

there?”

“You leave that to me. When it’s time, I’ll come and fetch you.” He kissed her

forehead. “And then, we’ll always be together.”

Always be together. She closed her eyes. His Shareem touch soothed her, and she felt

relaxed now, heavy and languid.

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Maia and Rylan

Rylan had always been good to her, since the day when she’d been ten and he

eleven, and he’d brought her a handful of jelly buttons. She hadn’t known what they

were, and he’d had to show her how to eat them.

From that day to this, Rylan had been her comfort. Life at DNAmo was bearable

because she had Rylan’s visits to look forward to. She trusted him. She loved him.

To be with him always sounded like pure paradise.

His lips burned her skin, his body fever-hot. Dangerously hot.

“You need release,” she said, skimming her hand to his arousal.

His cock leapt in her palm. “You could say that.”

Shareem had to release their sexual pressure or burn up inside. Rio claimed he

knew five hundred ways to find that release, with or without a partner. He’d grin when

he said it.

Maia knew what Rylan liked best. She kissed the hollow between his pectorals, then

his hard abdomen, then the tight curls above his penis.

He groaned. She smiled, liking teasing him as much as he teased her. She drew her

tongue down the length of his cock, then fitted her mouth over it.

She loved the taste of him. Better than jelly buttons. Maybe she could place the jelly

candies on various parts of his body and eat them off him.

She shivered. Next time. She’d smuggle some from the food halls and hide them,

and then when he came in… She giggled in her throat.

He grasped her long hair and lifted his hips, gently fucking her mouth. “Maia.”

She sucked harder, getting down to the business of pleasuring him. He’d taught her

how to run her tongue around his tip, how to lick her way down the sides of his cock,

how to tease his balls with her tongue and lips.

She liked the way his balls felt, tight and hot, his hair prickling her tongue.

Today she licked even lower, behind his balls, in the space between them and his

anal star.

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Allyson James

She would ask him to teach her how to take him in her ass. It wouldn’t be the same

as what she wanted, but at least he’d be inside her.

Once, briefly, he’d put his mouth to her asshole and started tongue-fucking her.

She’d nearly gone insane. The thought of his whole cock pushing into her, filling her,

made her crazed with need.

She dipped her own tongue once to his anus, then raised her head again and

plunged her mouth over his cock.

He bucked into her, saying her name over and over. Then he came.

Hot, salty goodness shot into her. She sucked, drawing it all into her mouth before

she swallowed him down, like he’d taught her.

Then he was lifting her again, pulling her to snuggle against him on the bed. He

kissed her while he pressed his hard thigh against her opening.

She rocked against him languorously. She thought about herself and him, alone in

the high desert canyons, in a house just for them. Together.

They would learn how to craft singing spheres and he’d finally take her completely.

They’d always be together.

Always.

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Maia and Rylan

Chapter Two

Twenty years later

Dr. Laas stuck the marking stylus through the sloppy bun she’d dragged her hair

into and looked back at the handsome Shareem through the console.

Damn, she and DNAmo had done some fine work. Shareem aged slowly, about a

month for every year a human aged, so Rylan looked little different than he had the day

DNAmo had shut down.

He wore a thin white tunic that bared his arms and the chain on his biceps. His

body was beautiful, and so was his face. Bred for perfection.

Except his eyes had changed. They were haunted, not sparkling and wicked as they

used to be.

“Well?” he growled.

Dr. Laas sighed. “Nope. There’s no mistake.”

“I don’t make mistakes,” Baine the computer boasted in its clipped male tones.

“Can you get it?” Rylan asked, ignoring the voice.

“Yes,” Dr. Laas said. “I’ll send Rio.”

His eyes narrowed. “Rio?”

“If anyone can get it out of there, it’s Rio. The man can charm a snake out of its

skin.”

“I suppose you can call it charm. Tell him to call me when he’s got it.”

Rylan said his goodbyes perfunctorily and signed off.

“Poor Rylan,” Dr. Laas murmured.

“Compassion,” the computer said. “An emotion not often detected in the famous

Dr. Laas.”

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Allyson James

“Shut up, Baine,” she said. “And get me Rio.”

* * * * *

Rylan was putting the finishing touches on a ruby-red singing sphere when Rio

called him.

Hands made for pleasuring—Shareem hands—were also good at fashioning the

raw crystals into spheres that wafted music when touched.

One wall of his workroom was a huge panel of glass, a foot thick, tinted and

insulated against the Bor Nargan sun. His house hugged the slopes of a high desert

canyon, near a community watered by the canyon’s clear stream.

Rylan had built the house with Maia in mind, choosing the floor-to-ceiling windows

that overlooked red rocks and gnarled pines for her. Maia, who had grown up never

seeing the world, could have viewed its beauty from here every day.

Maia filled every space in the house.

But she had never seen it.

Maia had disappeared from DNAmo the day it had shut down twenty years ago.

From that day to this, Rylan had found no trace of her. He’d looked, damn, he’d looked,

every day of his life. Even today.

Rylan made a minute adjustment to the sphere on his work table and pressed the

answer button on the console.

Rio came on the screen. His swarthy face was serious, but his eyes gleamed. “Rylan,

old friend. If you’re holding something breakable, put it down.”

Rylan carefully set the tuning instrument on the table and pushed the crystal away.

Rio leaned close to the screen. His voice dropped, and he grinned.

“We found her.”

* * * * *

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Maia and Rylan

Seven hours later, Rylan arrived at Dr. Laas’ house, hidden away in the heart of Pas

City.

The computer opened the door. “Welcome, Shareem.”

Baine’s voice followed Rylan as the door closed, directing him through the dark

entrance hall to the lift. “If there is anything you need, I can provide it. A glass of spiced

wine? Fine pastry? Fellatio?”

“Nothing,” Rylan growled, stepping into the lift. “Take me to Dr. Laas.”

The computer sighed. “I am so wasted in this house.”

The lift dropped, carrying Rylan into the bowels of the compound that Dr. Laas had

built for herself after DNAmo shut down. She existed in cushioned exile with her

snarky computer, seeing only Shareem, and avoiding detection. None but a few

Shareem knew she’d not fled off-world with the other scientists.

The lift opened into a lush corridor, lit with a pink glow. The air was perfumed

with an exotic flower scent. At the end of this hall lay Dr. Laas’ laboratory.

Not for Dr. Laas, the cold white of a lab. She’d decorated hers in earth greens and

light browns, the floor carpeted in a fine nap that tickled bare feet in a sensual way.

Couches strewn with cushions stood about, and the softly lit walls hid her hordes of

computer equipment and databanks.

Her console, lit from beneath in soothing greens and blues, hummed on the far side

of the room. That was Baine’s true home, although the computer flowed through the

entire house.

Rio and Dr. Laas stood in the middle of the room. Between them a crate rested, long

and wide, filthy with time.

“Rylan,” Dr. Laas said, her usual sardonic tone softened. She wore a long robe, slit

up each side to her thighs and down her front to her navel. Her blonde hair had been

wound into a bun, locks tugged loose where she’d worried it all day.

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Allyson James

Rylan crossed the room, throwing off his outer robe as he went. Rio, in his usual

black leather pants and leather tunic open to the waist, shot him a sympathetic look.

When Rio looked sympathetic, things were bad.

“Is that it?” he asked.

The crate was old, made of a metal he did not recognize, battered and dented.

Controls had been set in its side, but they were smashed and coated with grime.

“Shit,” he said.

Dr. Laas started to lay a hand on his arm, then arrested the movement. A woman

couldn’t touch a Shareem without wanting to caress him, and this was not the time.

The crate was a suspended animation unit. It had been listed among the effects of

one Dr. Flinders, a DNAmo researcher, who’d died last week. Rylan had sifted through

the contents of his estate via computer and had found this item—

One suspended animation vessel, warehouse 27, sector D, Pas City, Bor Narga.

Rylan’s heartbeat raced, accelerating beyond even Shareem speeds. “Is it her?”

Baine sounded affronted. “I can match DNA, Shareem. It’s rudimentary computing,

even after all this time. I am never wrong.”

“Can I strangle him?” Rio muttered out of the corner of his mouth.

“I heard that,” Baine said.

Rylan studied the crate again, battered and worn with time.

The day DNAmo fell, he’d entered Maia’s room through the secret passages, only to

find it empty. A cloth bundle of belongings, things she’d never leave behind, lay

forlornly next to her bed.

But no Maia.

He’d scoured DNAmo and the grounds around the compound. Rio had helped. The

place had been chaos, researchers hastily downloading notes from computers, stuffing

files and info chips into bags, wiping consoles of information.

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Maia and Rylan

Government auditors strode through corridors, tall women with superior looks on

their faces, confiscating everything they touched, searching for elusive Shareem.

Most of the Shareem had made good their escape and melted into the alleys of the

city.

Rylan himself had nearly been caught, before Rio had dragged him away.

He’d searched every room in the fucking complex, and then he’d started searching

the nearby streets.

He had never, ever found Maia—not any record of her, nor any trace.

She’d simply vanished.

After things had cooled down, and the government had ruled that killing the

Shareem would be inhumane—would make them look bad, they mean, Rio said—Rylan had

returned to the city and searched it.

To no avail. Nowhere had he found any knowledge of the black-haired, beautiful

girl he’d fallen in love with.

Then, a day ago, he’d discovered the existence of the suspended animation unit and

called Dr. Laas.

“Open it,” he said abruptly.

“We should run more tests,” Baine said. “The unit has badly deteriorated.”

“Open the damn thing. I have to know.”

Dr. Laas nodded, understanding. “Baine, can you open it without disturbing the

contents?”

“As you can see, the controls have disintegrated. Not the best packing container.

The idiot who chose it obviously didn’t care about keeping her alive.”

“Baine!”

The computer sighed. “Touch the large round control on the left. It is only a

mechanical latch, and will open the crate without destroying anything.”

Dr. Laas looked at Rio. “Would you?”

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Allyson James

“Let me,” Rylan interrupted.

Rio glanced at him. His swarthy face was tight, without a trace of his usual humor.

He nodded at Rylan.

Rylan touched his fingers to the control. He tried to stretch his Shareem senses to

feel what lay inside the crate.

After twenty years of searching, had he finally found her? Buried and forgotten in a

warehouse, mystery solved?

He pressed the control.

The box wheezed open, the mechanism long frozen. Rio grabbed one side of the lid,

and together he and Rylan hauled it off.

Inside lay a coffin-shaped box covered with a sun-blocking sheet. Rylan heard a

faint hum of circuitry.

“Baine?” Dr. Laas prompted.

“The control system is functioning—barely.”

Rylan couldn’t stand it any longer. He reached for the metallic blanket.

Dr. Laas stopped him. “Let me do it. You might disturb something.”

Rylan’s fingers froze on the sheet, then he nodded, and released it. Dr. Laas folded

back the metallic cloth.

A woman lay, naked, in a transparent container, body floating in an anti-grav field.

Soft lights blinked along the sides of the box. Tubes and coils snaked through the

container and around her limbs, binding her like blinking vines.

A thick braid of lush black hair twined about her abdomen. Her breasts were round

and full, the areolas as large as old-fashioned copper coins. She had shapely hips and

plump thighs, between which swirled a brush of midnight hair.

Her eyes were closed, her round, pixie-like face pale and relaxed. Her lips, lush and

full, were parted slightly, as though she awaited her lover to kiss her while she slept.

Rylan laid his hand on the transparent lid.

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Maia and Rylan

After all these years, and all this emptiness. He’d found her.

Maia.

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Allyson James

Chapter Three

“I’m going to open it,” Dr. Laas announced. “These controls are pretty far gone.

Even if we only move her to another unit, I have to get her out of this one.”

Rylan folded his bare arms, his fingers catching on his black metal chain. “What are

the chances she’ll survive?”

Dr. Laas’ gaze shifted. “Pretty good.”

“Don’t lie. I’m Shareem. I can smell lies.”

She met his gaze. Her eyes were tired. “About forty percent that she’ll live.”

“Is that all?” Rio asked.

“It’s the best I can do.”

“Fuck,” Rylan muttered.

“I know this sounds cruel, Rylan,” she said. “But even if she dies, at least you’ll

know what happened to her.”

If anything, this slim hope was worse. To find her after so long, only to see her lost

permanently, was more than he could stand.

“I want better odds,” Rylan growled. As Dr. Laas opened her mouth to protest, he

held up a broad hand. “But we don’t have them. Tell me what you want me to do.”

Dr. Laas looked back at the tall man clad in the same sleeveless tunic as when he’d

contacted her this morning. His sun-streaked brown hair was caught in a disciplined

tail, folded once on itself and bound at his neck.

Everything about him was controlled and tight.

Except his eyes. His Shareem eyes, blue irises wide, were tormented.

The Shareem don’t love, she remembered a stuffy researcher saying.

Gracksfeathers.

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Maia and Rylan

She took Rylan’s hand, which was hot and dry. “Come here,” she said. “I’ll show

you what to do.”

* * * * *

Searing pain coursed through her, and she gasped.

Air hit lungs that had been still for twenty years, burning like sand on glass. Her

heart throbbed to grab the first intake of oxygen, stabbing white-hot pain through her

chest.

She writhed, trying to get away from it, and found herself bound fast. Snakes

wound themselves about her, clenching her, opening mouths to devour her.

She screamed. No sound came from her lips.

She was choking, she was dying.

Through the pain came a frantic buzz of voices. “We need to calm her.”

“Not with a tranquilizer.” The voice was clinical and cold. “With all those chemicals

you pumped through her, it would kill her.”

“No shit, Baine,” a woman’s voice said. “Rylan.”

Hands touched her. Two hands, strong and large and warm. They slid under the

snakes, keeping their mouths from her.

But the pain remained. She whimpered, trying to roll away from it.

“Rio, help him.”

More hands. Hands callused and rough, stroking her skin, sliding over her breasts

and her belly and her legs.

And voices, deep and sensual. They eased into the dark parts of her mind. “It’s all

right, love. Shh.” “That’s it, sweetheart. You’re safe now.”

The four hands roved her breasts, sliding over her thighs, brushing her mound.

Then down her calves to her feet, and up her legs again to her abdomen.

“You’re back with us, Maia.”

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Allyson James

Maia?

She opened her eyes.

She could see nothing but piercing light, and clamped them shut again.

“Shh,” said the voices. They murmured things she did not understand, but

somehow they encased her in sound, calming her. Her limbs grew warm and supple.

Slowly, bravely, she opened her eyes again.

She could see little more than a blur at first, then, with each blink, her vision

cleared.

Two men hung over her. One had black hair trailing over his shoulder in a long tail.

The other had sun-warmed brown hair dragged back from a chiseled face.

The brown-haired man wore a sleeveless garment with a black chain on his upper

arm. The other wore black, a fabric that creaked as he moved.

They went on touching her. Strong, sinewy, practiced hands slid over her body,

down between her legs with a touch as light as silk.

Looking into their blue eyes, hearing their voices and feeling their touch, brought a

strange lassitude to her. Her panic receded to the back of her mind.

“That’s it,” the brown-haired man said. She craved his voice and the lips that spoke

the words, but she did not know why. “Lie still, sweetheart.”

She closed her eyes. As long as he stayed with her, she would be all right.

“I’m going to disconnect the tubes,” said the female voice. Compared to the male

voices, it was harsh and staccato. “Baine?”

“Trying now, madam.”

The snakes writhed on her legs. Her eyes flew open again, and she bit back a

scream.

“Shh,” the brown-haired man said. “We’re trying to make it better.”

“Don’t worry, sweetheart,” the black-haired one murmured. “You’re in the best

hands.” He chuckled.

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Maia and Rylan

“Ah,” said the cold voice. “A Shareem with a sense of humor.”

“Pay attention, Baine,” the woman snapped.

“Madam, I am capable of running fifty-four complex tasks at once. A normal

computer would have fried by now.”

“At least it would be quiet.”

The four hands touched her body, palms warm, fingers deft. She relaxed to it. A

hand traced her breast, fingers gently pinching the areola.

Before she understood what happened, the snakes writhed once, then receded.

She breathed a sigh of relief.

Then suddenly, she felt very, very sick. A thick moan escaped her as her body

flooded with pain.

“Easy,” said the black-haired man.

“Dr. Laas,” the other man snapped. His voice was harsh and angry.

“Damn,” the woman growled. “I was afraid of that. Move, Rio.”

The black-haired man stepped aside, and a woman’s face filled her vision. Her chin

was pointed and her eyes were sharp.

The woman held up a hypo with a long, pointed needle.

A flash of light blinded her. She seemed to see a man, white-haired and small, his

smile crazed, plunging a needle into her side. She screamed.

“Rylan, hold her down!”

The strong hands grabbed her in an unyielding grip. She stared in horror at the

brown-haired man’s determined face, and then felt the sting of the hypo.

She tried to form the word why? and then all went dark again.

* * * * *

Rylan studied Maia sleeping next to him in the bed, her body half covered with a

sheet. He’d washed and re-braided her hair, which lay in a black line at her side.

23

Allyson James

As in all rooms in Dr. Laas’ house, the air was softly scented, this time in light

lavender. It induced a restful sleep, Dr. Laas said.

Rylan loved Dr. Laas right now, because the woman had saved Maia.

Maia had started to die when Baine removed the tubes and turned off the anti-grav

unit. Baine had said, Perhaps it’s for the best; she’s probably brain-damaged.

Rio had threatened to bash the computer to bits. Dr. Laas had told Baine to shut up

and then worked fiercely to save the girl’s life.

She had done it—how, Rylan did not know, but Dr. Laas was a genius.

In the end, Maia breathed normally and her heart beat normally and her organs and

brain worked normally. Rylan had been covered in sweat by the time Dr. Laas was

done.

He’d stripped off and bathed himself in one of Dr. Laas’ extravagant bathrooms.

Then Dr. Laas carried Maia down on a float pallet, and sat on the side of the huge tub

while Rylan bathed Maia, too.

Maia had awakened during the bath. She’d stared at Rylan in stark fear until Rylan

soothed her with hands and voice, and she’d fallen into natural sleep.

Now Rylan lounged on her bed while she slept beside him.

He lifted her hand. In her sleep, she coiled her fingers around his.

The door hissed open, and Rio walked in. He’d removed his clothes, having bathed

himself—it was a popular activity after the stress of saving Maia—and wore only a

loincloth strung across his hips. His black hair glistened with water.

“How is she?” he asked.

“Sleeping.” Rylan’s hand tightened on hers. “She didn’t know me.”

Rio swung into a reclining chair, put up his bare feet, and leaned back. “Hey, if I

spent twenty years in a box, I wouldn’t know you, either.”

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Maia and Rylan

“Dr. Laas said some memory loss after suspended animation was normal.” He

touched the silk of Maia’s black hair. “She also said that with the state the unit was in,

the loss might be permanent.”

Rio, as usual, looked for the bright side. “In that case, she’ll just have to get to know

you all over again.”

“I’m going to take her to the house. I built it for her, even though I knew she’d

never see it.”

“Don’t get maudlin. Take her out there, work your Shareem magic. Within a day,

she’ll be begging for you to fuck her. Two days, she’ll be your devoted slave.”

Rylan gave him a sardonic look. “No wonder all the women love you. You’re so

damned romantic.”

Rio grinned. “They love me because I know how to make it hurt good. They don’t

want flowers and jewelry, they want a collar around their neck and me ordering them

to get on their knees.”

“Are all level threes as swell-headed as you?”

Rio considered. “Yeah, pretty much. Swelled heads and swelled cocks. That’s your

level three Shareem.”

Rylan knew Rio was being a smartass to keep Rylan’s spirits up. He appreciated it,

but he’d never admit it to the egomaniac.

“Come to the house with me,” Rylan said.

Rio’s brows shot up. “Yeah? It will be easier for her to get to know you without me

there. I can distract a lady’s attention.”

“Stuff it. I was thinking that if she didn’t respond to me—if I can’t make her

remember—maybe she’ll respond to you. You are kind of—unforgettable.”

“That’s one way of putting it. But I’m not the one in love with her.”

Damn Rio and his damned perceptiveness. Rio played the sex-crazed bad boy—and

he was—but he always understood what was what.

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Allyson James

Rylan caressed Maia’s limp fingers. “That doesn’t mean she’ll be in love with me.”

Rio sat up. “So what are you saying? If she falls in love with me, you’ll step aside

and let me have her?”

Rylan opened his mouth to say, Yes.

Then he stopped. He said, “No way.”

Rio’s grin returned. He chuckled. “That’s what I thought.”

* * * * *

Dr. Laas recommended Rylan wait a few days before taking Maia that far. He

chafed with impatience, but knew she was right.

Maia never did regain her memories. She had no idea where she was, what her

name was, who Rylan was, or Rio or Dr. Laas, people she’d seen many times while

growing up at DNAmo.

She could not remember anything before waking up in Dr. Laas’ lab.

She acted grateful to them for saving her life, after Dr. Laas explained it, but she

regarded the two Shareem warily and kept her distance.

She did not want to go with Rylan to Canyon Roble. “Why can I not stay with Dr.

Laas?”

Dr. Laas had laughed. “My dear, you would be bored to death. I have my face stuck

in my computer most of the time, and I never go out. Rylan has a beautiful house out in

lovely countryside.”

“You’ve seen it?” Maia asked.

“Well, no. But it has to be better than here.”

In the end, Maia went, because Dr. Laas made it clear she could not stay, and Maia

had nowhere else to go.

Rylan got tickets for three on a cross-world transport, and they left the next

morning.

26

Maia and Rylan

Rylan hoped that as soon as they reached the peace of the red rocks, the pines and

the cool air from the river, Maia would relax, and remember.

She never did.

* * * * *

Maia pressed her hands to the glass wall in the living room of Rylan’s house three

days later, and gazed over the canyon. At the bottom, the stream gleamed, dancing in

the sunlight. Across the room, a singing sphere, which Rylan had given her the night

they’d arrived, wafted soft, chiming music.

“It is all so beautiful,” she breathed.

“All for you,” Rylan said.

She sensed him come up behind her.

She held her breath, waiting to see if he would touch her. He hadn’t touched her

since she’d woken up in the bath at Dr. Laas’ to feel his body slick and wet against hers.

She’d been scared at first, but he’d put his hand on her hair and said, “Shh, Maia.”

She’d relaxed, reveling in his skin on hers, his hand cupping her head. She’d

relaxed so much, she’d gone to sleep, damn it.

When she’d awakened again, in a bed, he’d been in the room, but on the other side

of it, lounging in the recliner. Her bed had smelled of him, though, and she wondered if

he’d been there, beside her.

But since then, he kept his distance. Today was the first time he’d approached her.

She remained still, hands on the glass, wondering what he’d do.

Rylan put his hands above hers on the glass wall, and leaned into her.

She closed her eyes. His scent filled her, exciting and relaxing her at the same time.

Dr. Laas had explained that Shareem could send pheromones and other chemicals over

a woman’s body to make her pliable and excited.

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Allyson James

Her own Shareem chemistry stirred under his, and she sent pheromones back. She

was not sure how she knew how to do that, but she did.

He brought his body closer. His huge cock, behind his tunic, brushed her backside.

She wriggled the slightest bit, pressing her buttocks against the foot-long staff. She

wanted to see it. She wanted to hold it. She wanted to feel it inside her mouth.

Touch me. Please.

His body was so large, easily covering hers, the hands placed above hers, powerful.

She sensed him tighten. Then, very carefully, he lifted himself away.

She almost cried.

“Rio should be back soon,” he said.

She turned. He had moved away from her, his footfalls muted on the woven straw

matting that covered the floor.

Rio had gone down to the town to buy things. She did not care about Rio.

Or at least, not much. He made her shiver, but in a different way. But Rylan…

She leaned back against the glass, feeling it cool her through her sarong. Rylan was

turning away. He was going to leave the room. She would be alone. Again.

“Rylan,” she said hurriedly. “Will you kiss me?”

28

Maia and Rylan

Chapter Four

He came toward her, moving as deliberately as a panther in the canyon.

“You really want that?” he asked.

“Yes.” Maia swallowed. “Please.”

She felt his raised body heat as soon as he neared her. He cupped her face in hands

that shook. “Make sure you want it.”

“I do want it,” she babbled. “I wanted you to kiss me on the transport. I wanted you

to touch me in a dark corner where no one could see. I want—”

He stopped her words with his mouth.

His tongue jabbed, rough and hot, between her lips. He tasted her whole mouth,

licking every corner and the moisture behind her lower lip.

His body pinned hers against the glass wall. She felt the whole length of him, his

hard pectorals, his ridged abdomen, his thighs and his cock jammed against her

stomach.

She felt possessed, she felt wanted. And for the first time since she’d awakened, safe.

He ravished her mouth, lips bruising. He hurt her, he caressed her. He pulled her

lower lip between his teeth and bit down. She cried out.

He released her, then hovered over her, his lips an inch from hers. “Rio will be back

soon.”

“Why do you keep saying that?”

“I’m giving you a chance to get to your room, to be safe from me.”

“I want to stay with you,” she whispered.

His eyes were so blue, irises enormous. He wanted her.

She wanted him just as much.

29

Allyson James

“I feel safe with you,” she said.

He shook his head. One lock of his sun-streaked hair fell along his cheek. “You are

anything but safe with me.”

She slid her hands up his chest, tracing the hard ridges of muscle. His skin was

fever-hot under the thin fabric. “Rylan, tell me the truth. Back when we knew each

other at DNAmo, were we lovers?”

He stilled a long moment. His eyes darkened, and beneath her hands, his heart

pumped harder.

“Yes,” he said.

Her eyes filled with tears. “Then why didn’t you tell me?”

“Shh.” He lowered his mouth to her cheek, licked away a tear. “Dr. Laas thought it

better. She thought it would make you feel pressure to remember.”

“I want to remember.”

“Not all of your memories will be happy.” He traced her cheek. “I brought you here

to remember this. To remember now.”

She longed to scream that she wanted to remember something, not this blank void,

not these flashes of white that terrified her.

She’d been a lover to this man, and she knew nothing about him. Had they been

close? Or casual—friends with a twist? He and Rio seemed to take sex, and nakedness,

so matter-of-factly.

The two males were comfortable with their bodies and the sexual aura they exuded.

In the last three days, they’d lounged about the house dressed in very little, oblivious to

her hungry stares.

At least Rylan was oblivious. Rio grinned, liking her watching him.

Women of Bor Narga were supposed to abjure sex, Dr. Laas had explained—in a

world in which children were created outside the woman’s body, sex was not

30

Maia and Rylan

necessary. Among the upper classes it was considered gauche, if not completely

forbidden.

But Maia had noticed the looks women had given Rylan and Rio as they’d caught

the transport in Pas City, even though both men had been fully clothed.

The women in their layered robes had swiveled their heads and pulled away dust

veils to look. Rylan had strode through without noticing. Rio, on the other hand, had

winked and smiled, not minding the attention.

The upper-class women were not alone in their interest. Maia’s gaze riveted to

Rylan’s body every time he came into view. She loved it when he abandoned his clothes

to wear only a loincloth.

A tall, big man with only a piece of cloth between him and the world made her

heart beat fast and her Shareem temperature rise. She kept having to go downstairs and

dive into the cool pool, built from an outlet in the mountain stream.

The water was at the exact temperature needed to take Shareem blood back to

normal. Rylan swam there often.

I brought you here to remember this, he’d said. To remember now.

She slid her hands down his tunic and pressed her palms over the ridge of his cock.

“That’s dangerous,” he said. A glint entered his eye, one she’d not seen before.

She wanted dangerous. She stroked downward.

“Maia,” he growled.

“Can we play a game?” she asked. She did not know where the question came

from, but it was suddenly important to ask it.

His cock jumped. “Don’t tempt me.”

She gave him a little smile. “Why not?”

She rubbed his cock up and down, up and down, feeling it throb with his pulse.

“I play for keeps,” he said huskily.

She squeezed her fingers, hard, over the tip of his cock.

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Allyson James

“Damn.”

He stepped back, then in one move, he stripped off his tunic. He unfastened his

loincloth and tossed it aside. His cock fell heavily into his hand, a bead of moisture on

its tip.

He was so beautiful.

Every muscle, every ridge, was sculpted for perfection. His cock was so huge she

could barely get one hand around it.

He made a raw noise at her touch. His hands found the fastenings of her sarong,

then he deftly stripped it from her body.

“What game is this?” she whispered. Her voice croaked—she probably sounded as

sexy as a dry-frog.

“A game of you taking me in your mouth,” he said.

She smiled hotly. She knelt, brushing her tongue over his hard abdomen and across

his navel.

Her knees rested on the floor mat, her feet pressed against the cool glass. His cock

stood out, firm and heavy from his tight balls and golden-brown hair. She kissed the

tip, and he flinched.

She did not know quite what to do, but she wanted this inside her, wanted to shape

her mouth around it.

She leaned forward a little and sucked the large tip into her mouth.

Rylan nearly went insane. He wanted to rock back, to fuck her mouth and her

pretty lips, to come now all over her face.

He drew a ragged breath and willed himself to still.

She opened her mouth a little more, sliding her tongue along his cock. He braced

his hands against the window glass, widening his stance so she could take more of him.

32

Maia and Rylan

She did not remember what to do. She explored him, licking and nipping down his

length. She teased his balls with her tongue, the wet tip flicking over him again and

again until his body was sheened with sweat.

His hands shook, perspiration beading on the window. His hips moved of their

own accord, pressing himself into her mouth again, a little further this time.

“Take me,” he said raggedly. “Take more. You know how.”

Obediently, she opened her mouth wider, let another inch slide in. Gods.

He wanted to pump inside, feeling her teeth scrape him, until he came, hard.

Play with her. Don’t hurt her.

To hell with games. He needed her. He’d needed her for many long, lonely years.

Outside, down the long path that led to the house, he saw Rio come around a curve,

a package tucked under his arm. Rio looked up, and abruptly stopped.

Rylan slid one more inch into Maia’s mouth. She sucked him readily, her questing

tongue all over him.

He imagined what Rio saw. A beautiful, naked back. A rope of black hair falling to

Maia’s shapely ass. Rylan’s hands pressed against the glass, his body rocking slightly

while Maia sucked him.

Rio grinned. He laid his package down, lounged on a rock, resting one arm on his

bent knee.

Ready to enjoy the show.

Against every screaming nerve in his body, Rylan backed out of Maia’s mouth.

She looked up at him. Her Shareem eyes were wild and blue, her lips parted, her

face flushed. “What—?”

“Stand up,” he ordered. “Turn around and put your hands on the window.”

She stared in surprise a moment, then rose to her feet, turned, and placed her palms

against the glass.

He saw her start. “Rio’s down there.”

33

Allyson James

“I know.” He grasped her hips. “Lean over. Walk your hands down the glass. I’ll

tell you when to stop.”

Maia gulped. Rio sat about ten feet below them. Even from here, she could see his

grin. He was enjoying this.

She scooted her feet back and slowly moved each hand down the glass. Rylan held

her hips in powerful hands, guiding them.

“Stop,” he said.

She froze. Her butt was thrust our behind her, her legs straight, her breasts

swaying.

Below her, Rio shifted, folding his arms across his chest, his grin fading.

Rylan pushed her braid aside, then his long cock landed across her back. He

couldn’t fuck her like this, could he? She was too short—his hips and hers did not

match.

He seemed in no hurry to enter her. He slid his cock across her back, the warm

heaviness intoxicating.

Then he leaned over her. She shivered, legs weak, anticipating.

She nearly groaned aloud as he touched his lips to her nape.

He moved, dragging his tongue down her spine. He stopped to lick the small of her

back, as if sensing the heat gathered there.

The hot wetness went farther, dipping between her buttocks, tickling her anal star.

Then he dropped to his knees, still holding her hips.

Please. Yes.

Slowly, Rylan traced the lips of her opening with his tongue. It felt incredible. She

wiggled her hips, wanting him to slide inside.

Maddeningly, Rylan stuck to the outside, lapping up her cream as it came out of

her.

34

Maia and Rylan

She pushed at the glass, wanting to shove her cunt right over his mouth. The dark

slice of his tongue flicked into her, and she squealed.

Below her, Rio watched avidly, his gaze intense.

“Rylan, please,” she panted.

Rylan ignored her. Stroke after stroke he licked her, his practiced tongue covering

every inch of her. He slid himself under her and raised his face to tease her clit.

She wriggled and gasped with wanting.

“Do you want to play with toys, Maia?” he asked, his lips brushing her clit.

“What kind of toys?” She could barely speak.

“The best kind. I’ll get them. Stay here. Do not move an inch.”

He rose to his feet, his glorious warmth leaving her. She whimpered.

He leaned over, putting his lips close to her ear. “Not an inch. Or I will punish

you.”

Her cunt squeezed and parted again.

“All right,” she breathed.

He straightened, not answering. She heard his soft footfalls on the matting, then the

door opened and closed.

The empty feeling in the room told her he had gone. She always knew when Rylan

was near, or not. She’d noticed this at Dr. Laas’—how her body stirred whenever he

entered a room, how the joy went out of it when he left it.

Her legs ached from holding her stance. She nearly relaxed to the floor, cheating,

but then she wondered if the room had monitors. Perhaps he watched her even now, to

see whether she obeyed.

Besides, Rio was out there, watching, and he’d tell Rylan what she did.

Except that Rio had picked up his parcel and was coming on to the house.

35

Allyson James

Maia suddenly felt vulnerable, leaning here with her butt sticking out. She didn’t

move, wanting to play the game. It was important, for some reason. But she hoped

Rylan would return before Rio could come in.

That didn’t happen.

The door opened. She sensed Rio’s pheromones, different from Rylan’s. Rio’s were

sharp and harsh, like a predator’s.

She heard the creak of leather as he slid clothes from his body.

She could run away. But maybe this was part of the game. Maybe Rylan had told

Rio to come here, to tempt her into moving, while he watched.

Rylan, she begged silently. Hurry.

The air grew hotter as Rio approached. When his hand landed on her back, it

scalded like a brand.

She gave a soft cry.

“Maia,” Rio purred. “I would never fuck a lady who belonged to another

Shareem—unless he gave me his permission.” He lifted her braid and traced her back

lightly with its end. “Of course, I’m not going to tell you whether he gave me

permission.”

She shuddered. To be fucked by Rio would be wild and hard and wonderful.

But her heart did not want him. She wanted Rylan. She wanted Rylan to be the first

to put his cock inside her.

“No,” she whispered.

“I’m a level three Shareem,” he said quietly. “I do not like a lady to speak unless I

allow it.”

She bit her lip.

He laid the braid down again and placed his palm on her back.

The warmth of it made her nearly miss the next feeling, that of a thin leather strap.

Oh, dear.

36

Maia and Rylan

The strap moved across her back, then down to her buttocks, tracing the same path

Rylan’s tongue had.

“I’ll be sweet to you now, because I know you’re healing,” Rio said. “But when

you’re all better…”

Her legs shook and her hands were slick with sweat. The strap moved along her

opening, teasing her. She shifted.

“I believe Rylan told you not to move.”

“No,” she whispered. “I mean yes.”

“And I did not give you permission to speak.”

She gulped, clamping her mouth shut.

Rio chuckled, a sound warm and heady and dangerous. “You aren’t very good at

this, are you?”

“No.”

He brought the lash up between her buttocks. “Because it isn’t me you want giving

you orders. It isn’t me you want telling you you’ll be whipped if you don’t obey.” He

brushed the strap over her back. “You want Rylan.”

“Yes.” She knew in her heart that Rio spoke the truth. It had always been Rylan. She

could not remember, but something inside her did.

“Mmm, thought so. And for that, Maia, you’ll pay.”

She felt a brush of air as he raised the lash.

Oh, gods. Rylan! Where are you?

As if in answer, the door opened.

She knew Rylan came in, although from her position, she could not see him. Rio

lowered the lash, resting it against his brawny leg. “Just keeping her warm for you,” he

said.

She heard Rylan setting things on a table. “Level threes have no patience.”

“Oh, we have infinite patience, my friend.”

37

Allyson James

“Hold onto it a little longer.”

Rio’s hand moved on Maia’s back, his skin growing hotter. “Are you inviting me to

stay?”

Rylan hesitated a long moment. Then he said, “Yes. I wouldn’t mind your help.”

“Hey, I always enjoy a level two game now and then. What did you have in mind?”

He was silent a minute, then said, “Oh, man, you have a great imagination.”

Maia could not look without moving, so she had no idea what Rylan was

preparing.

“First things first,” Rylan said.

She sensed him approach, her whole body aching for him. When he dipped his

hand between her legs, she nearly cried out.

“Hmm,” he said, stroking her. “Won’t need much lube.”

Something about him had changed. Earlier, he’d been tight, controlled, even

worried. He’d relaxed a little since kissing her, and now his tone was warm, teasing.

Games and wicked fun, Dr. Laas told her. That was a level two Shareem.

And, oh, what games.

Rylan drew his finger, loaded with Maia’s cream, to her asshole. Very gently, he

slid the tip of his finger inside.

She moaned.

He slid in a tiny bit farther. Her muscles contracted and her flesh prickled.

“I think she likes it,” Rio said.

“Can you take that?” Rylan asked her.

“Yes,” she gasped.

“Good.”

She bit back a cry of disappointment when he took his finger away.

38

Maia and Rylan

She grew delighted again when cool lube touched her hole. His finger slid inside

again, slick now. It went farther. She squeezed.

“Not too much,” he murmured.

“More,” she pleaded.

“No.” He slid out again.

More lube. Then something thin and rigid touched her ass. She flinched.

“Relax,” Rylan said. He laid his hand on her back, his Shareem magic loosening her

limbs.

She drew a shaking breath, growing warm and open.

Rylan slid a plug in to her. It was fairly short, but, this being Maia’s first time—or

was it?—it filled her and made her happier than she’d been since she woke up.

“Give me that,” Rylan said.

He must have been talking to Rio, because she heard something slap into Rylan’s

palm.

“Only if I get to use it later,” Rio said.

“Not yet,” Rylan said, his voice too damn calm. “Not level three yet.”

She felt the thin lash stroke across her back, this time held by Rylan. She made a

noise of frustration.

“Hush,” he said, then he slapped it across her hip.

She yelped.

“Don’t move,” he said.

The strap came down again.

“Rio,” he said. His breathing had quickened, his voice deepening with excitement.

“Have Maia take your cock.”

Rio laughed. “Now, that’s more like it.” He moved readily to Maia’s side.

“Take it, Maia,” Rylan ordered.

39

Allyson James

Maia turned her head. Rio’s cock, enormous and dark, pointed to her face. The

brown-red flange touched her lips.

It was Rylan she wanted inside her, but Rylan ordering her to take Rio excited her

to crazed levels. The butt plug filled her ass, and Rylan was behind her, aroused and

erect and holding the lash. Maia opened her mouth and let Rio in.

“Gods,” Rio groaned. “Now I know why I came out here.”

Mistake, Rylan thought. Watching her mouth form around Rio’s cock heightened his

excitement until he thought he’d come right there, all over her ass, before he was ready.

Rio dropped his head back, his dark hair falling to his hips. His jaw clenched, and

he let out a feral growl.

Rylan’s cock throbbed in pain. He tried to relieve the pressure by spanking Maia

with the strap.

Rio closed his eyes, hands balled into fists, and rocked his hips toward Maia.

Rylan’s heart compressed. Watching Rio’s cock slide between her lips turned him on,

but it also made him possessive as hell.

He’d asked Rio to come to the house and to stay for the games, in case Rio could

stimulate Maia’s memories. Or, if nothing else, help him pleasure her. Rio also would

protect Maia. Rio might be wild and dangerous in the bedroom, but he knew how to

take care of a lady. Maia needed to learn to trust again, and Rio was the master of trust.

But Rio would not be master of this ménage. Maia belonged to Rylan. His need for

her had not diminished, no matter how much time had passed.

Rylan, he thought, slapping her lightly with the strap. Not Rio.

Maia’s mouth stretched wide, the dark saltiness of Rio’s cock filling her. The lash

stung and smarted on her ass, and the plug made her feel complete.

Rylan, the word echoed in Maia’s head. Not Rio.

40

Maia and Rylan

Suddenly, the glass wall, the cool matting, the view over the canyon, the men with

her, melted. White light filled her brain, and she seemed to see a tiny, cramped room

containing a narrow bed.

She felt herself bent over the bed, her heart throbbing with happiness because Rylan

was with her. Rylan smacked a lash against her buttocks and thighs, his breathing

ragged, his pheromones spilling over her.

“Rylan,” he growled. Slap. “Not Rio.” Slap, slap.

The tiny bedroom splintered, pieces flying around her and resolving into this

beautiful room filled with light. She screamed.

Her legs gave way as shards of memories poured over her, good and bad, ugly and

beautiful. They hit her all at once, cutting her. She found herself on the floor, pressed

against the matting, sobbing.

Then she felt Rylan’s hands, his touch strong, banishing the fear. He gathered her in

his arms, lifting her from the floor. “It’s all right,” he said.

She clung to him, burying her face in his chest, her disorientation making her dizzy.

“It’s all right,” Rylan said again. “I’m here. I’m not letting you go, ever again.”

She shook, but she quieted, cradled by his strong arms.

Rio put his hands on his hips, staring at them.

“Huh,” he said. “I’ve never gotten that reaction before.”

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Allyson James

Chapter Five

Rylan eased the butt plug out of her. Rio took it away somewhere, while Rylan

scooped Maia into his arms and walked with her to the backless reclining couch.

He sat down on it, holding her on his lap. He brushed her hair from her wet face,

fingers shaking.

Rio discreetly departed the room. Rylan admired that about him—Rio always knew

when to play and when the games were over.

“You remembered,” Rylan murmured into her hair.

She nodded. His heart tightened. It couldn’t have been easy, and he could do

nothing to make it better.

“You left me there,” she said brokenly. “I waited for you to come for me, but I was

all alone in that horrible box. I don’t remember it, but I feel it around me, trapping me

inside.”

He pressed a long kiss to her forehead. “I searched for you. Every single day of my

life has been hell, because I couldn’t find you. I’ve missed you so fucking much.”

His voice penetrated her irrational panic. She was here, on his lap. He was solid

flesh, not a dream, holding her close.

“Can you tell me what happened?” he asked softly. “Take it slow.”

“Dr. Flinders.” She winced, remembering the white-haired man who’d burst into

her room the day DNAmo had fallen. He’d gazed at her with wild eyes and told her he

would never let anyone destroy her, would never let the Bor Nargan government get

their hands on his work. “He had a hypo.” She remembered the gleam of the needle

and the panic pounding through her. “I tried to get away from him. He stuck the hypo

in me, and I—” She gulped. “Everything stopped.”

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Maia and Rylan

Clinically, she knew that the man had put her in a comatose state to prepare her for

the suspended animation unit. But feeling her breathing stop and her heart slow and

her blood grow cold in her veins, had terrified her.

She’d tried to call out for Rylan, and could not make a sound.

She shuddered. She wrapped her arms around his strong body, so happy to feel

him real and warm and here. “You once told me that when we got away from DNAmo,

we’d always be together.”

He stroked her hair, his touch warm, soothing, so unlike the fevered heat when he’d

whipped her with the strap. “Now that I’ve found you, Maia, I’m not letting you go.

Never again.”

She tightened her hold on him. “Promise?”

“Promise.” His voice was gruff. “You belong to me.”

“I’ve always belonged to you,” she murmured.

“I remember when I brought you the jelly buttons when we were little,” he said. “I

would have done anything to meet the pretty, black-haired girl I’d seen across the

compound.” He cupped her chin, and drew her face to his. “I knew you were mine,

even then.”

He kissed her. It was a gentle kiss, the storm and excitement over. It was a kiss of

love, a kiss that sealed them together. The ache in her heart eased.

“I love you,” she whispered.

He growled into the kiss. He slid his hands over her naked body, then he scooped

her up and deposited her on the couch, on her back.

“Spread your legs.”

Delight squeezed her, and she promptly opened her thighs. “Are you going to fuck

me now?”

At last.

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Allyson James

He smiled the wonderful smile she remembered, and his eyes gleamed with wicked

light.

“You sound eager,” he said.

“Please, I want you inside me.”

He chuckled. “Give me a chance to get down there.”

He dropped to his knees beside the couch, not on top of her, as she wanted. She

reached for him. He slapped her hands away.

“Just a damned minute. I’m going to enjoy this all the way, and so are you.”

She made a sound of disappointment. He stroked her mound with a strong hand,

fingers swirling her hair. She lifted her hips to the movement.

Rylan leaned forward, his long tail of hair brushing her abdomen. He dipped his

mouth to her clit and gently sucked.

She clutched his shoulder. “Please, Rylan, do it now.”

She felt a frantic urge, as though if he did not take her right now she’d never be his.

He answered by swirling his tongue over her clit. She arched up to meet him. He

continued to lick her, oblivious to her pleas.

While his tongue tortured her opening, he stroked his thumb over her swollen clit.

“Rylan, gods, I’m going to come.”

“Good,” he murmured, then went back to what he was doing.

Madness built up inside her. She remembered now what an expert he was at

tormenting her. First he’d rubbed against her while she stood against the window,

arousing her long-dormant Shareem needs.

Then he’d fucked her with his mouth, just like he did now, only now was the added

dark pleasure of him rubbing his thumb on her clit.

Then he’d sent Rio in to play with her and make her shiver in fear and excitement.

Then he’d slid the butt plug into her. She could still feel the imprint of it inside

her—it had opened her that much.

44

Maia and Rylan

Then he’d ordered her to suck Rio’s cock. She felt that too, huge and hot against her

tongue and lips.

Then he’d spanked her with the whip, like he was punishing her for taking Rio.

He’d worked her up and up and up into arousal and excitement, and now he took her

to the highest point.

He moved his mouth, and he bit down on her clit.

She screamed, and then she came.

Writhing and bumping against the couch, she came and came, calling his name.

“That’s it,” he said. He gently pressed her hands aside. “That’s it, Maia, open for

me.”

She raised her hips as though in response.

Swiftly, he lifted her. He straddled the couch, planting his feet on either side, his

cock sticking straight up. He moved her shuddering body to fit over him and eased her

down onto him.

She drew a long breath, opening her eyes wide. Rylan slowed. She felt his stiff

length inside her, where it belonged, for the first time.

A slight pain bit her as her unused sheath widened, and the small bit of skin that

meant she was a virgin broke.

Then he was fully inside her, and she was wrapping her legs around his waist. He

held her close, rocking a little.

She still throbbed inside from her climax. She ground her hips into his, squeezing

his length, loving it. Loving him.

“I love you, Rylan,” she babbled.

“Maia,” he said. “Oh, gods, I love you.” And then he came.

Scalding hot seed shot inside her, his seed, made for her. He kissed her, hard, his

mouth ravishing hers. He kissed her bruised lips, her neck and her face, and growled

those wonderful words over and over again.

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Allyson James

I love you.

* * * * *

Rio lounged, naked, in the hall waiting for them to finish. He laughed softly when

he heard Maia screaming, and Rylan saying he loved her again and again.

Those two so needed each other.

Rio was more of a free spirit.

Liar, said a voice inside him.

Well…

Did he believe there was a lady out there for him? Not really. He’d fallen in love

once, and that had taught him a damned hard lesson.

Maia was cute, but she was for Rylan.

But I don’t mind being the boy-toy.

All had gone quiet. Rio rose and hit the control to open the door.

The pair of lovebirds reclined on the couch, touching each other and kissing.

He sensed calm and contentment pouring from them, and the bond that sealed

them.

There would be difficulty in their future, as Maia learned to adjust and trust again,

but he was sure they’d work it out. They had enough love to get through anything.

He was glad. Rio had a soft heart, but gods, he’d never tell anyone.

“Hey,” he said. “I’m getting bored out here. Are we playing, or what?”

The smile Rylan gave him was exhilarated. For the first time since DNAmo, the

man looked happy.

“Come on in,” Rylan said, a wicked light in his eyes. “Hope you’re hungry.”

* * * * *

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Maia and Rylan

Maia couldn’t believe her luck. She reclined on the couch, the same one she’d just

made love to Rylan on, only now, silk tethers bound her to it.

Two Shareem, fully erect and aroused, stood on either side of her—Rylan with

wheat-brown hair on her left, and Rio, black hair hanging loose, on her right.

Rylan held a bowl in one hand, the kind with a control that kept food chilled, and a

flat scoop in the other.

He raked out a huge gob of whipped cream and tossed it, splat, onto Maia’s breasts.

“Mmm,” Rio said. He rubbed his hands together. “When can I dig in?”

“Not yet.”

Another splat of cream landed on Maia’s belly. She giggled.

Scoop by scoop, Rylan covered Maia from neck to navel in cream. Then he plopped

a huge gob on her pussy. She squealed. The cream was cold.

Two more scoops hit her thighs and ran down between them.

Rylan picked up another bowl and dipped his hand in, then started scattering cut

berries all over the cream.

“Give me some of those.” Rio grabbed two bright red berries. He stuck them into

the cream on each of Maia’s nipples.

She giggled again.

Rylan took out a handful of berries and pressed them on top of her pussy.

Rio eyed them hungrily. “Now?”

“In a minute.” Rylan sounded very calm. His erection, though, told another story.

He was rampant and wanting, his skin slick with sweat, his eyes dark.

He set down the bowls and picked up a metal bottle. “A little honey.”

He began drizzling it all over Maia.

The stream of sticky honey tickled. She laughed, her body jiggling.

“Damn,” Rio said. “Hurry up.”

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Allyson James

“One more thing.”

Rylan removed a ripe cherry from another bowl. Leaning down, he tucked it

between Maia’s lips.

“Hold that there,” he said. “Whatever happens, don’t drop it.”

She nodded once.

“Now,” he said softly. “Let’s eat.”

Maia laughed in joy as their mouths came down on her, licking and sucking and

devouring the cream and berries.

Both went for the nipples at the same time, Rio closing on one, Rylan on the other.

She squealed and laughed as their mouths aroused her, struggling against her tethers

and to keep the cherry between her lips.

They licked and nipped until both their faces were covered in cream, and she

laughed at them.

She stopped laughing when Rylan ordered her to spread her legs.

Both men licked cream off her thighs, then began eating the berries on her pussy.

Rylan went low, licking cream and berries out of her opening. Rio stayed higher,

sucking every bit of cream from her clit.

She came then, while Rylan still licked her, and Rio kept on teasing.

Just when she thought she’d fall off the couch, despite the tethers, Rylan nudged

Rio away and lifted her hips to meet his cock.

He fucked her, long and hard, standing upright and pulling her onto him, while Rio

sucked the last of the cream from her breasts.

Rio finished, and Rylan lay down on her, his cock penetrating deep. He only

needed a few strokes and she came, straining at her tethers, nearly squashing the cherry

in her frenzy.

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Maia and Rylan

Rylan and Rio didn’t let her rest. They licked her pussy, two expert tongues

bringing her to climax yet again, and then Rylan fucked her like he was prepared to go

all night.

They drove her wild, until she knew she was the happiest woman, Shareem or

otherwise, in the universe.

But it was Rylan who finally ate the cherry.

49

About the Author

Allyson James is yet one more name for a woman who has racked up four

pseudonyms in the first two years of her career. She often cannot remember what her
real name is and has to be tapped on the shoulder when spoken to.

Allyson began writing at age eight (a five-page story that actually contained goal,

motivation, and conflict). She learned the trick of standing her math book up on her
desk so she could write stories behind it. She wrote love stories before she knew what
romances were, dreaming of the day when her books would appear at libraries and
bookstores. At age thirty, she decided to stop dreaming and do it for real. She published
the first short story she ever submitted in a national print magazine, which gave her the
false illusion that getting published was easy.

After a long struggle and inevitable rejections, she at last sold a romance novel,

then, to her surprise, sold several mystery novels, more romances, and then
Romantica™ to Ellora’s Cave. She has been nominated for two Romantic Times
Reviewer’s Choice awards and has had starred reviews in Booklist and Top Pick reviews
in Romantic Times.

Allyson met her soulmate in fencing class (the kind with swords, not posts-and-

rails). She looked down the length of his long, throbbing rapier and fell madly in love.

Allyson welcomes mail from readers. You can write to her c/o Ellora’s Cave

Publishing at 1056 Home Ave., Akron, OH 44310.

Also by Allyson James

Tales of the Shareem: Rees

Discover for yourself why readers can’t get enough of the multiple award-winning

publisher Ellora’s Cave. Whether you prefer e-books or paperbacks, be sure to visit EC

on the web at www.ellorascave.com for an erotic reading experience that will leave you

breathless.

www.ellorascave.com