Gypsy Moth

Chapter 4

"Husband?" Damon squeaked. Which made her wonder what kind of modifications he'd undergone. She'd emerged perfect from the womb, her genetic sequence fine-tuned ahead of time to ensure she was everything her parents wanted. A perfect daughter. A tool for making alliances and enriching the family. Father might take issue with her choice in husband, given Damon was not only common but not even the highest-ranking person on board his ship.

Gurgle, splash? Fizz quivered with question.

She rolled a shoulder. "Yes, I know he's a borderline pirate." She whirled and gazed at Damon. "But who cares about that? He's got the dreamiest eyes. And the nicest voice. And... Sigh..." The gushing was for the Kanishqui's benefit. Would Damon have the wits to grasp the drama she enacted?

For a second, he stared dumbly then caught on. "When I heard my darling spouse was taken, I thought it must be a mistake. I mean, who steals another man's wife?"

"Which is why," the captain said, taking over, "we didn't mention it when we contacted you. Especially since I'm sure your taking of my first mate's spouse was completely accidental on your part."

Water over pebbles.

"No, we haven't been married long," Damon replied. "Still practically honeymooners, which is why I acted rashly." Reaching out, he grasped her around the waist and lifted her, just the right height for the kiss he planted on her lips.

He's kissing me. And without permission, but she couldn't exactly protest - he is my husband. Nor did she want to since it proved as electric as before. For her at least. She could have kissed him all day. He, though, wanted to talk. "Quick thinking," he murmured quietly amidst moans. Hers, she should add.

"Mmmm."

He set her down - pity - and tucked her behind him. "Captain, now that I've found my wife, I demand satisfaction. The commander of this vessel unlawfully stole my woman."

"The evidence is pretty damning. Care to explain?" The captain didn't bat an eye as he queried the giant blob.

*She wasn't married when I took her.

"Even if I wasn't, I wouldn't marry you." She lifted her chin.

A warm urine stream on a piling mound of...

Her mouth rounded. "Oh, that was foul."

"Take that insult back." Damon stood tall and offended. "You can't talk about my wife like that."

Warm squirt on a favorite blanket.

Damon huffed. "You hear how he insults me, Captain?"

"My man is right. You are insulting us all." The captain held up a hand as the Kanishqui gurgled a stream. "Nope. You can forget that case of chocolate I was going to give you. And definitely no alliance with your family. Really. I thought better of you than stealing a man's wife."

Drip. Drip.

"I do understand their marriage wasn't common knowledge, but you are aware of it now and still refuse to let my man leave with his wife. Unacceptable. You can consider our trading deal off."

Gurgle, siphon?

"Talk? We will only talk once you let me and my man off this ship."

Water down a drain. *You may leave as a measure of my respect for the captain.

The door to the docking tube suddenly opened, yet Damon did not smile or relax. He laced his fingers through Michi's. "Shall we, wife?"

She held her head high as she entered the tube. This wasn't one of the more elegant ones with a moving walkway and music. It was opaque, yet blurry, giving the outside silhouettes of the ships a sinister shape. The stars were fuzzy distant balls. She gripped Damon's hand tight, willing him to go faster.

They might have fast-talked the Kanishqui into letting them go, but it would be best if they got out of there in case they changed their minds.

Only once they exited the tube and the door to the ship sealed shut behind them did her rescuer laugh.

"Damn, princess, that was the perfect ploy to get him to release us."

She pursed her lips. Now for the possibly unpleasant part. "It wasn't a ploy. We are married."

He snickered. "Sure, we are."

"We are married. Have been since that first kiss."

"Hate to break it to you, my naive princess, but it takes more than a smooch to make it so."

"I know it takes more than a kiss, which is why you also have to repeat the trigger phrase."

He stopped laughing. "Hold on, are you serious?"

A bob of her head and she explained. "I knew that I had to make it real in case the Kanishqui commander demanded proof. Which is why you wear my mark."

"Mark?" he repeated slowly while his captain, who had more manners and would have probably made a better rescuer, ignored them to bark out orders to his crew to get them moving, sooner rather than later.

"Yes, mark. On the inside of your lip." She tapped her bottom one. "You'll find my crest tattooed on your flesh. It identifies you as my lawful husband."

"You marked me?" He again squeaked, bringing into question his gene quality.

"It is how we marry in my religion." Dkar - a relatively young religion - was only two centuries old and discovered by humans during their explorations, adopted and adapted and gaining ground among the wealthy.

"But I never agreed to marry you," Damon sputtered.

"You said the ritual words."

"I didn't know what I was saying. I certainly never meant it."

"Nonetheless" - she shrugged - "it's binding."

Although she really wished it weren't when he uttered, "I don't f*****g believe this," and left.

It was an intriguing change of pace from the males who'd been trying to maneuver her into choosing them for years. Males who either tried to woo her into marking them or, like the Kanishqui, coerced her into doing it.

Doesn't this Damon Faulkner realize the honor I paid him by choosing him?

Apparently not, since he left her to fend for herself on a strange ship.

She glared at the door he'd left through while the captain cleared his throat.

"Despite knowing your father, I don't think we've ever met. I'm Captain Jameson of the Gypsy Moth."

Casting a glance at him, she spent a brief moment admiring his dark skin, his vivid green eyes, and engaging smile.

"I meet very few of my father's allies and friends." He kept his daughters sequestered lest the wrong person be tempted. "Why is it you sent your first mate to save me rather than do it yourself?" He would have been a perfect choice for a husband.

"I couldn't." The captain turned over his arm and raised his sleeve, displaying a tattoo.

Already taken. Figured.

"Thank you for providing assistance." She remembered her manners.

"I have to admit I was surprised when your father contacted me. It's been awhile since we did business."

"Father never forgets who his allies are."

"You are unharmed?"

"Physically, yes." But her irritation was rather elevated given her abandonment by her husband.

"And you truly did marry Damon?"

"As per the ways of the Dkar. Your first mate doesn't seem pleased."

"You took him by surprise." The gravelly tone didn't match his smooth looks.

"He'd better get used to it." Because the marriage, while unplanned, was binding. For him at least.

He'd better stop aggravating me, or this wouldn't go well for him.