"Thank you, Guildmistress," Dani said, startled.
"Call me Karya, child," the older woman said with a graceful smile. "The Guild is fortunate to have you among its members."
Chapter 2
She was stunning, Drake thought as he watched her step gracefully out of the air transport he'd sent to collect her. She was so beautiful it was unreal. Tall and slim, her white-blond hair cascading down her back like a curtain—just the sight of her was enough to make his breath catch.
When he'd first seen her at the reception last night, he hadn't thought she could possibly be as lovely in person as she'd been on the screen. Ostensibly, he’d been overseeing parts of his spymaster’s surveillance of the reception last night because they suspected the Kelmorian ambassador would be meeting a key contact from the Imperial court that night, a contact Drake might recognize. Only Drake knew the real reason he’d been watching. He was looking for her; she was the key to his plans. The work of the past three years, all his plans and those laid by his brother, depended on her.
What he hadn’t counted on was her affect on him. He'd wanted her, wanted her naked and spread under him. Wanted her in his bed, on his desk, against the walls of his palace. He wanted to f**k her long and hard, until she screamed in pleasure.
He wanted her so badly that he hadn't slept the night before. When it came time to summon her, he hadn’t needed to feign his desire to his spymaster or guardsmen. It radiated from him, visible to all around him. In a way this was a stroke of good luck as it made the stories he intended to tell them all the more plausible. But it could complicate things as well.
He strode off his private balcony and across his bedroom. His guards snapped to attention as he walked past them and out the main doors of his suite. She was coming up the stairs, escorted by his assistant. His throat tightened and his c**k stiffened as she came closer.
She was wearing a garment formed from filmy black scarves. With each step, they outlined her exquisite form, revealing and enveloping her charms all at once. He was filled with a burning desire to rip them off her body, exposing her for what she was. Her eyes met his, then, and he stopped breathing all together. A brilliant blue, they sparkled with the force of her personality. She was curious, intelligent.
Powerful. He could see it all in a glance. He recognized her look. It was the same look he saw in his own eyes. With a quiver of anticipation, he realized that he had finally met the woman who might be his equal.
The thought sent a surge of lust so strong through his body that he almost gasped. He hardened as she approached, fighting the desire to cover his arousal like a teenage boy. What would it be like to touch her? He thought he might explode into flames at the mere thought…
"Lord Von'hot?" she said lightly, looking him up and down with a measuring glance. "I don't believe I've had the pleasure of meeting you before now."
"No," he said in a rasping voice, taking her outstretched hand and gently turning it over to kiss it. Her skin was smooth and supple under his lips, and he allowed his tongue to ever so lightly graze her palm. He felt a shiver go through her, and a surge of pure, masculine triumph welled within him. This woman might have the power to stun him with her presence, but he had power over her, too. "But I saw you at the reception last night, and was quite taken with your beauty."
"I wasn't aware you were at the reception last night?" she asked, her face registering polite surprise. He was willing to bet she was well aware he hadn't been present at the reception. He smiled at her smoothly.
"I was spying on the guests," he said, watching her reaction carefully. If she thought anything of his admission, she didn't betray it in her face. Good. She could dissemble, regardless of her feelings.
"How charming," she said, maintaining her polite smile.
"Thank you," he replied, drawing her hand into the crook of his arm. He started strolling slowly down the hall, guiding her. "My name is Drake, by the way. It could be rather awkward if you call me
'Lord Von'hot' all evening."
"I'm Daniella," she replied without looking at him. "Dare I ask where we're going?"
"Of course," he murmured, glancing over at the smooth perfection of her face. "I've arranged dinner and some private entertainment for us. I hope you'll enjoy it."
"I'm sure I will," she said, a chill in her voice. She didn't like his attitude, he realized. She probably thought he was rude. The thought amused him. "Thank you so much for inviting me," she added.
"The pleasure is all mine," he replied, drawing his breath in deeply. She smelled like flowers, light and fragrant. He wondered what she tasted like, and the thought nearly unmanned him.
Regardless of his long-term plans for her, she was his to enjoy for the night, he thought with satisfaction. He planned to use her well.
Chapter 3
She had never seen anything like Lord Von'hot's palace. It took every bit of Dani's willpower to keep her eyes focused directly ahead, rather than staring around with her mouth gaping. The walls were made of some crystalline rock that seemed to have been grown, rather than fashioned. There were guardsmen everywhere, dressed in dark uniforms and carrying frightening weapons of a kind she'd never seen before. The walls were hung with portraits, formally dressed men and women whose visages reeked of power and privilege.
How had she ended up here? She simply hadn't understood just how wealthy a man like Lord Von'hot must be when she'd originally turned down his invitation. He owned an entire star system and a confidant of the emperor, her mind whispered in panic.
And she was just a single pleasure worker, sent to spy on him.
She stole a glance up at him from beneath her lashes. He was tall, with hair so black it seemed almost bluish in the light. His skin was alabaster white, his cheekbones high and sculpted. His eyes were turned to the corridor ahead of them, but she couldn't forget the dark intensity of his black gaze. He'd stared right through her, as if he could strip her naked with his vision alone. She'd felt helpless before him, a small and frightened animal caught in the glare of the predator's sight.
But with that fear was longing. His fingers were slender and strong; the touch of his lips against her hand had made her quiver with desire. She'd seen the bulge of his erection, something he hadn't bothered to try and hide from her. The thought of that thick, hard mass plunging into her body made her wet with longing.
She'd never felt so instantly attracted to a man, and she had known hundreds of men in her time. She was in way over her head.