Galactic Gladiators Box Set 2, page 47
Her.
He registered the small weight in his arms. Mia.
He took a second to acknowledge her slight curves, and look at the shining cap of golden hair on her head. She smelled so good. Just her scent alone quieted the writhing, horrid mass of emotions inside him.
She lifted her face up to him and smiled. “Feeling better?”
Vek pressed his face against her hair.
“Mia,” a deep, male voice said.
Vek tensed and spun. He pulled her closer to his chest.
“I’m fine, Galen,” Mia said.
The man standing on the other side of the bars was tall and muscled. He wore leather trousers, and a sleek, black shirt that molded over every ridge and rope of muscle in his chest. A black cloak fell from his shoulders, and a black patch covered his left eye. He had a rugged, scarred face.
Vek was used to assessing opponents in an instant. His survival had depended on it. In the ring, he knew that a missing eye could be used as a weakness. Take out the other eye, and it would leave this man blind and vulnerable. A red haze covered Vek’s vision. Kill or be killed.
But the man had a powerful body, and the hilt of a large sword was visible over his shoulder, sheathed on his back. He also had a calm, icy gaze that was calculating, cunning.
He was a fighter, and he would not be easy prey.
“I’m not sure I agree with you,” the man said. “Maybe step out for a bit.”
Galen. Vek remembered through the haze that the man’s name was Galen.
He was trying to take Mia away.
“Mine.” Vek spun and heard Mia gasp. He pulled her closer and moved to the back wall of his cell, sliding down to sit on the floor. He pulled her onto his lap, and buried his face in her hair.
“I’m okay. I’m okay,” she called out. “Just give us a minute.”
“A minute,” Galen growled. “If you get hurt, I have a house full of Earth women who’ll want my blood.” In a whirl of his cloak, he was gone.
“Calm down, Vek. We’re okay.” Mia shifted against him.
Vek lifted his head and saw she was staring into his face. She had blue eyes the color of his skin.
She was so small. All the women of Earth were. He remembered that she’d been abducted, as well. Like him, she’d had her freedom stolen, lost any chance to return to her homeworld, and she’d been hurt. He growled.
She cupped his cheek, running her fingers through his beard. “This is getting even longer. I will get you to agree to shave it off, one of these days.”
He tilted his head, absorbing the feel of her caress. She didn’t look at him like he was a monster. She looked at him like she enjoyed what she saw. He felt his cock stir, and confusion hit him. Deep in the center of him, every cell of his being was screaming for more of Mia.
Vek had never been with a woman. For years, all his sexual need had been channeled by the drugs into a fighting rage. Sometimes, he’d listen to prisoners coupling in the dark of night, and sometimes he’d stroked himself. But mostly, when need had ridden him hard, he’d just fought and spilled blood, not seed.
Until he’d been led out into the ring and he’d seen this tiny woman on the sand.
He frowned. He had no idea what to do about it.
“I have something for you.” Mia pulled something from her pocket and held it up. “Grezzo. It’s almost like chocolate from Earth. It’s delicious.”
Vek was still wary about eating. In the past, his food had often been spiked with drugs. But he trusted Mia.
She pressed the small brown square to his lips, and he opened his mouth. He chewed, and flavor exploded across his tongue. It tasted so good. Better than the rotten meat he’d been fed in the fight rings. Even better than the meals here at the House of Galen.
They sat quietly for a while.
“Bad night?” she asked quietly. “Did you have nightmares?”
His sleep was hardly ever restful. For so many years, he couldn’t sleep deeply, for fear of someone attacking him. And when he did sleep, he saw the faces of all the people he’d been forced to kill. Saw their blood spraying on the sand. He shrugged a shoulder.
“The nightmares will pass in time,” she said. “Mine are much better.”
“I would take your nightmares, if I could.”
“You have enough of your own.” She leaned into him. “The House of Galen has an arena fight tomorrow—or probably today, now. I asked Galen if you could come and watch, and he approved it.” She glanced at the bars. “If you’d like to come, I’ll convince him not to change his mind.”
A chance to watch a fair fight intrigued Vek. He knew that Kor Magna’s arena was famous, and that spectators came from many different planets. It was also a chance to breathe fresh air.
“They aren’t fights to the death,” she reassured him. “Just House versus House, in a display of strength and prowess. You have to try and stay calm, and I’ll be right beside you.”
Most of all, it would be a chance to be with Mia.
Vek pushed down the aggression churning through him and nodded.
She rewarded him with a brilliant smile. “Good. We’ll have fun. Now…how about I sing for you?”
His chest tightened. He loved when Mia sang.
She started singing, her voice rising and falling. The words didn’t always make sense to him, but really, he just liked the sound of her pretty voice.
Vek shifted her onto the floor beside him, and then lay down to rest his head in her lap. He gripped one of her calves, liking the feel of her skin under his hand. She stroked his hair, and started another song.
One by one, his muscles relaxed, and his breathing evened out. He fell asleep to the sound of her voice. And there were no more nightmares.
Galactic Gladiators
Gladiator
Warrior
Hero
Protector
Champion
Barbarian
Beast
Rogue
Guardian
Cyborg
Imperator
Hunter
Also Available as Audiobooks!
Preview: Edge of Eon
Framed for a crime she didn't commit, a wrongly-imprisoned space captain's only chance at freedom is to abduct a fearsome alien war commander.
Sub-Captain Eve Traynor knows a suicide mission when she sees one. With deadly insectoid aliens threatening to invade Earth, the planet’s only chance of survival is to get the attention of the fierce Eon Warriors. But the Eon want nothing to do with Earth, and Eve wants nothing to do with abducting War Commander Davion Thann-Eon off his warship. But when Earth’s Space Corps threaten her sisters, Eve will do anything to keep them safe, even if it means she might not make it back.
War Commander Davion Thann-Eon is taking his first vacation in years. Dedicated to keeping the Eon Empire safe, he’s been born and bred to protect. But when he’s attacked and snatched off his very own warship, he is shocked to find himself face-to-face with a bold, tough little Terran warrior. One who both infuriates and intrigues him.
When their shuttle is attacked by the ravenous insectoid Kantos, Eve and Davion crash land on the terrifying hunter planet known as Hunter7. A planet designed to test a warrior to his limits. Now, the pair must work together to survive, caught between the planet and its dangers, the Kantos hunting them down, and their own incendiary attraction.
Eon Warriors
Edge of Eon
Touch of Eon
Heart of Eon
Kiss of Eon
Mark of Eon
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Also by Anna Hackett
Team 52
Mission: Her Protection
Mission: Her Rescue
Mission: Her Security
Mission: Her Defense
Mission: Her Safety
Mission: Her Freedom
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Treasure Hunter Security
Undiscovered
Uncharted
Unexplored
Unfathomed
Untraveled
Unmapped
Unidentified
Undetected
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Eon Warriors
Edge of Eon
Touch of Eon
Heart of Eon
Kiss of Eon
Mark of Eon
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Galactic Gladiators: House of Rone
Sentinel
Defender
Centurion
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Galactic Gladiators
Gladiator
Warrior
Hero
Protector
Champion
Barbarian
Beast
Rogue
Guardian
Cyborg
Imperator
Hunter
Also Available as Audiobooks!
Hell Squad
Marcus
Cruz
Gabe
Reed
Roth
Noah
Shaw
Holmes
Niko
Finn
Theron
Hemi
Ash
Levi
Manu
Griff
Dom
Survivors
Also Available as Audiobooks!
The Anomaly Series
Time Thief
Mind Raider
Soul Stealer
Salvation
Anomaly Series Box Set
The Phoenix Adventures
Among Galactic Ruins
At Star’s End
In the Devil’s Nebula
On a Rogue Planet
Beneath a Trojan Moon
Beyond Galaxy’s Edge
On a Cyborg Planet
Return to Dark Earth
On a Barbarian World
Lost in Barbarian Space
Through Uncharted Space
Crashed on an Ice World
Perma Series
Winter Fusion
A Galactic Holiday
Warriors of the Wind
Tempest
Storm & Seduction
Fury & Darkness
Standalone Titles
Savage Dragon
Hunter’s Surrender
One Night with the Wolf
For more information visit www.annahackett.com
About the Author
I’m a USA Today bestselling romance author who’s passionate about fast-paced, emotion-filled contemporary and science fiction romance. I love writing about people overcoming unbeatable odds and achieving seemingly impossible goals. I like to believe it’s possible for all of us to do the same.
I live in Australia with my own personal hero and two very busy, always-on-the-move sons.
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Anna Hackett, Galactic Gladiators Box Set 2
