The Consul’s Taming by Bella Blair
SELENA
the worst kind of asshole in the universe. As if it wasn't audacious enough for him to summon me, his minions dared to handcuff me as well. That I was seething was an understatement. He obviously had no clue who he was dealing with. Well, maybe he did because there had to be a reason for the summons.
Or so I hoped for his sake. Because if he thought for a second that I would join the ranks of females who had been throwing themselves at him, he was in for a big surprise. I would not lay panting at his feet, hanging on every word he decided to bestow upon me, and lastly, I would never have sex with him. Ever!
When the big guard with the purple skin pushed me towards a chair in the anteroom to the Consul's office to wait my turn as he described it, I had had enough. If the Lord High Consul, or whatever his fucking title was, wanted to see me, he would see me now. I would not sit here and wait until he was done with whatever meeting he was in. After all, the soldiers I wanted to save were his.
Meeting, my ass anyway, I snorted derisively. Garrath was a renowned lecher. Rumor had it that a different human girl graced his chamber every night. Well, I would not sit out here and wait for him to get his hard-on taken care of by whomever was unfortunate enough to be his belle-de-jour. I had better things to do. Mainly, a rebellion to run. A rebellion against Garrath and his minions.
So, when big purple tried to push me, I threw myself against the two males guarding the high consul's chambers. I knew I wouldn't stand a chance against the four males who had escorted me and the two guards. Neither did I know how to open the door. But that was beside the point. My plan was simply to create a stir that would force the lecher from his lair.
That one of the guards just so happened to fall against the panel and open the sliding doors was bad luck, or good, depending on your point of view. Either way, the four males and I stumbled in a heap into the skirt-chaser's office.
Hands grabbed me painfully under my armpits and heaved me up, and I came face to face with the object of my calamities.
"Consul Ryx, I presume?" I sneered.
"I beg your pardon Consul, the prisoner—" big purple tried to explain.
"Silence!" The alien, who I assumed to be Garrath, yelled. Somewhat flustered by the spectacle created by his soldiers and in front of his guest, whom I now noticed.
A tall, turquoise Zylonian stood next to a human woman. Both had their hands on the hilts of their swords. Were they planning on running me through, or the guards? At first, it seemed their attention had been placed on the guards, but now both stared at me.
Also present were another woman and a copper-skinned alien. In how many different colorings did these bastards come? I wondered.
At least the assembled males in here were something to look at, contrary to the cursed Abbaddoths, who had not only acted like Satan reincarnate, but looked like him as well.
Every single alien, besides the Abbaddoths I had seen so far, no matter their skin color, had been very handsomely built. Breathtakingly so, I admitted grudgingly.
Even the depraved consul was a sight to behold. Easily six and a half feet tall, he was built like a swimmer. His muscles were hidden underneath a black uniform, but I was willing to bet my next meal that he would be stacked. His wide shoulders and narrow hips hinted at steel-like muscles.
My stomach flipped when my eyes landed on his amber orbs. Good grief, a girl could get lost in those, despite the irritation flickering inside of them for the interruption.
"And whom do I have the pleasure of meeting?" he asked almost politely.
"This is the female you ordered us to bring, sir," a guard said, with a wary eye towards me, while he attempted to straighten his uniform.
Garrath's eyes narrowed. "Selena Montessori?"
"That's Major Montessori to you." I corrected him irritably. I didn't like the way my body responded to his presence. I didn't like the way my heartbeat changed, hammering harder, how my blood rushed faster through my veins, and least of all, the way my stomach fluttered. This was bullshit. This happened in stupid dime-store romance novels schoolgirls used to enjoy reading. Not a seasoned soldier like me.
"As you can see, I'm in the middle of something, if you—"
He had to be fucking kidding me, right? He was the one who ordered me brought here. But instead of fuming at him the way my flaring temper dictated, I took a deep breath and played it cool. "That's just fine by me. Have your goons remove my cuffs, order me taken back to Earth, and we can forget this unfortunate incident ever took place."
I held out my handcuffed hands, wiggled them for maximum effect, while all the while I tried my hardest to ignore my audience.
"I'm afraid you misunderstand me. You have been accused of leading armed attacks against my soldiers and will stand trial—" Garrath began to list his grievances.
"Consul Ryx, if you don't want to watch your fourth garrison burn down to the ground within the next. . ." I pretended to check my nonexistent watch on my cuffed wrist, "three minutes, you need to let me go. Now!"
Garrath's turquoise face turned a few shades darker blue, and his eyes narrowed. He took a step towards me, and I squared my shoulders while I jutted my chin out. Bring it on, lecher.
"Tell your soldiers to stand down immediately, Major Montessori, or you will lose your head." He threatened between clenched teeth.
"Oh," I turned my head and batted my eyelashes, "you misunderstand. I don't have that kind of power."
"Do not play games with me, Major. I know exactly what kind of power you wield and—" His tense posture and tone of voice indicated that he was close to exploding and somehow that appeased me immensely. The devil might have been riding me, but I burned to see him lose his temper.
"You misunderstand me again, Consul, you see, it's not my men attacking your garrison. . ." I paused for dramatic effect, and Garrath looked as if he was going to choke me any second now—a notion that sent strange shivers down my spine. For the briefest of moments, I wondered what his hands would feel like on my flesh before I chastised myself for it. Where had that thought come from?
I took a deep breath to dispel images of him touching me. "My men are busy watching the bad guys who are readying themselves to kill yours. So, I suggest you let me go to assist my men, to rescue your soldiers."
I stretched my arms towards him one more time and wiggled my wrists. Garrath's irritation came off him in waves as he gestured for one of the guards to loosen my cuffs.
"I swear to the gods, Major, if you play me false. . ." He left the threat hanging. "We will meet again, Major, and next time. . ."
Something about him appealed to me, and I hated myself for it, which was why I immensely enjoyed irritating him even more. The urge to goad him, to see how far I could push it, was nearly overwhelming.
A movement to the left turned my attention towards another door, and with ice-cold clarity, I was reminded why I despised the Lothario. "Oh, look, somebody else is waiting for you, Consul."
Disgusted, I pointed my chin towards the door, which obviously led to the Consul's bedroom from where a young woman stuck her head out. Blonde tousled hair surrounded her like a halo, and her scantily clad body appeared lush.
"Gar? What is all that noise?" she pouted.
Gar? I shuddered—what a bimbo.
I didn't miss the look of irritation on Garrath's face at her appearance, which only served to fuel my anger even more. How dare he get irritated with the woman who had probably given him pleasure not too long ago. Was this all that human females meant to him?
I realized my anger at him was way out of proportion, but I couldn't help it. It was like a volcano erupting from deep within the pit of my stomach—spreading lava through my veins. I saw red.
Garrath, too, appeared about ready to explode. "Don't you have a mission to run, Major?"
His words brought me back to reality. He was nothing to me, nothing! I neither had a claim on him nor did I want to have one. I squared my shoulders, took a deep, cooling breath, and returned his gaze. "I do."
Big purple approached my still outstretched hands, the cuffs came off, and I resisted the urge to massage my wrists. I couldn't help but throw another scorching look at Garrath. His amber eyes glowed as he regarded me thoughtfully, which somehow irked my ire again.
Resolutely, I turned to big purple and snarled, "You heard him, take me back."
Trying my patience even more, the male turned questioningly towards his commander, who gave him a curt nod.
"Be quick about it," Garrath said between clenched teeth.
Before I left his office, I heard Garrath say, "My apologies," towards his guests, and for the briefest of moments, I wondered what their stories were. Especially the two human females, of which one, the black-haired woman, appeared vaguely familiar to me.
But then I remembered that I had a mission to run, and if my goal was to avoid innocent bloodshed, or shed the enemy's blood, however you wanted to look at it, I needed to be quick about it, just like Garrath had said.
And that thought reawakened my anger.