His laugh rumbled through his chest, vibrating against her cheek. "I tried. I really did try."
"I'm glad you failed." She pressed a kiss to his collarbone. "I like your hands on me."
"Good." His arms wrapped around her, holding her close. "Because I don't think I could ever stop touching you."
16
LOKAN
Lokan stared into his coffee cup, his mind still turning over the conversation with Losham from earlier that morning.
His brother had asked about the concubines. He had tried to sound measured and indifferent, but he hadn't fooled Lokan. He'd been in the same place only a few years ago, planning a crazy infiltration of the harem to find his mother. He'd failed to secure the mother-daughter pair of telepaths he'd needed for that mission, had been caught by the clan, but he'd gained so much more than he'd intended. He'd met Carol, his truelove mate, and she had delivered what he'd failed to do with all of his scheming.
"Are you looking for answers in your coffee?" Carol slid into a chair across from him. "Because if you are, you need to pour out the liquid first and look at the shapes formed by the coffee grounds."
He lifted his head and looked at his beautiful mate. After all the time they'd been together, she still took his breath away, with her blond curls, cherubic face, and a Marilyn Monroe figure.But beneath the sex kitten appearance was one of the strongest people he'd ever had the honor of knowing.
"The grounds don't hold the answers to my questions, but the harem ladies do."
She frowned. "Care to explain?"
"Losham asked about the concubines, trying to sound just mildly interested, but what he really wanted to find out was whether I knew who his mother was. I told him that I didn't know, but I could probably find out."
Carol arched a brow. "He could have done that when the ladies were staying with Navuh at his mansion. In fact, they could have found all their sons who were still around. Why didn't they?"
"Good question." It hadn't occurred to Lokan that the ladies and the sons could have found a way to reunite after the harem was evacuated and they were no longer sequestered. "My father probably forbade any contact between the ladies and his generals. But now that they are free, they might want to find out who their sons are. Kian has those portraits of us hanging in the office building in the gallery, the ones that Dalhu drew. We could take them there."
Carol's eyes widened. "You think they might recognize their sons?"
"Maybe. I think they will like it. For some, it has been long centuries, even millennia in Losham's case, and the babies they remember are now grown males with hard faces. But who knows? Maybe they will find something to identify them by." He snorted. "The problem is that most are not the kind of sons they would be proud of. Other than Losham, they are ruthless killers."
"Losham is not?"
"He is, but not as bad as the others. Anyway, I would like to find out who his mother is before I talk to him again. Maybe even snap a picture of her."
Carol smiled knowingly. "You want to use her as leverage."
"You know me well, my love."
"I can call Tula and organize a little get-together for the ladies. We can meet at Tula's place, chat for a little bit, and then take them to the gallery. That way, we will not spring this on them all at once. They will gradually be exposed to the idea that they can finally find out about their sons."
"That's an excellent idea. Do you think Tula can organize it at a moment's notice?"
"Why not?" Carol pulled out her phone from her pocket. "And if she can't, I can. You need answers before the next call to Losham, right?"
He nodded. "Don't tell Tula or the others what we are negotiating for."
"You mean Khiann?"
"Yeah. Losham himself doesn't know, and we want to keep it that way."
"Naturally." Carol placed the call.
Lokan listened as she explained the situation to Tula, keeping the details vague but conveying the urgency. Tula agreed immediately and said that she would have everyone at her place in half an hour.
"I like how decisive and assertive Tula is," Carol said as she ended the call. "Anyone else would have been wringing their hands and saying that she needed at least a day to prepare."
"I doubt she can pull it off so fast." Lokan pulled out his own phone. "I should let Kian know what we're planning. He might want to be there when the ladies tour the gallery."
