The League 3: Paradise City Read online

  Paradise City

  The League Series Book 3

  Sherrilyn Kenyon

  Publisher: Love Spell

  Date: Aug 1994

  ISBN: 0505519690

  DISTANT STAR, ENDLESS LOVE

  Devyn Kell's knowledge of women, gambling, and medicine was as vast as the cosmos. But what he knew about a spaceship's maintenance system wouldn't fill a moon crater. So when irresistible Alix Garran told him that his vessel's rear stabilizer was down, Devyn hired her as his engineer. While she taught him about his ship's nuts and bolts, he longed to tutor her in the mechanics of love.

  Fleeing her past, Alix wanted a life free of trouble. Yet no sooner had she signed on with Devyn than they were outrunning the authorities and heading toward Paradise City, where even assassins weren't safe. But Alix didn't know what real danger was until Devyn's burning kiss awakened her restless spirit with a taste of heaven.

  PARADISE IN HIS KISS

  Before he could stop himself, Devyn leaned down and captured Alix's moist, sweet lips.

  Alix gasped at the contact of his mouth against hers. All thoughts fled her mind and left her sitting there like a fool. She knew she should push him away. Instead, she opened her lips, welcoming him into her lonely, isolated world.

  Inhaling the warm spicy scent of him, she wrapped her arms around his strong shoulders, drawing him nearer. She felt like the mythological tyrilian girlbeast who allowed itself to be lured by a lover, knowing that at the end of the act its mate would only incinerate it, its life forever sacrificed for a moment's pleasure.

  But she didn't care. Instead, she wished she could melt with Devyn, become part of his beautiful world where the slave girl could be forgotten. A place where she could be free.

  Chapter One

  Devyn knew a lot about women, gambling, and medicine, but what he knew about a ship's maintenance system wouldn't fill the empty space of a miser's wallet. He was hot and tired, and more than ready to fly off this miserable, backward space station, but he couldn't get clearance until his ship stopped flashing warning lights at the landing bay's controller.

  As he pulled open the panel for the rear leading hook, his anger boiled. "What's wrong with this stupid thing? Twenty minutes looking for a—"

  "Excuse me. Your rear stabilizer is down." Devyn froze at the sound of the husky female voice that reminded him of a soft, cool caress sliding down his naked spine. Without conscious effort, his mind flashed on an image of what the woman who possessed such a voice must look like. His body burned with desire.

  Suddenly, the idea of staying on this stifling station for a little longer seemed appealing.

  A sly smile curved his lips as he closed the panel and stepped around the back of his ship to face the woman of his dreams. His smile faded in slow disappointment. The woman standing before him was nothing like he'd imagined. Instead of a gorgeous seductress, she looked more like a lost puppy.

  A faded red cap covered her head, shielding her eyes from him. Her nondescript brown hair fell over one shoulder in a thick braid hanging to her hips. She wore a baggy, brown battlesuit that had seen far better days. Even her boots were scuffed and worn out.

  From what he could see of her face, her features leaned toward plain. The only interesting part of her was her chin, which she lifted with pride. Stepping closer, he noticed the small cleft.

  "What did you say?" he asked.

  An intriguing blush spread across her cheeks. She pointed to the rear of his ship. "Your back stabilizer is down. I think that might be what you're looking for."

  "Hmm," Devyn mumbled, grateful someone knew what was wrong with the damned thing. He moved to check on it.

  "Are you Captain Kell?" she asked, following a step behind.

  Devyn slammed the stabilizer plate back into its original position. Wondering what she could want with him, he turned back to face her. He'd learned a long time ago to be suspicious of people who came looking for him. "Maybe. Who are you?"

  She extended a small hand out to him, her features stern and determined. "Alix Garran. I heard you were looking for a new crewmate, and I'd like to apply for the job."

  Accepting her answer, he took her hand and noted the calluses there as he shook it. She might not appear much older than an adolescent, but her hands told him she was used to hard work.

  Normally he wouldn't consider someone so young for a member of his crew, but right now he'd take on the devil himself as long as he could operate the flight checks and get the Mariah back into space. "I need an engineer and a gunner. You got any experience?"

  "Well, I was born on a freighter and have worked on one since I was old enough to hold a wrench." She shifted the backpack on her shoulder and lifted her head with an arrogance he found admirable for her age. "I know how to run preliminary flight checks, keep logs, and I can fix any engine malfunction with a piece of string and a drop of sealant."

  Devyn laughed. For some reason, he didn't doubt that last boast in the least.

  He leaned against his ship with one hand and narrowed his eyes on her. "My last gunner was killed in a run-in with the HAWC. The Mariah's a runner; do you have a problem with that?"

  She met his gaze unflinchingly, and he noticed the strange dark blue shade of her eyes. "I won't run drugs or slaves."

  "Good, neither do I."

  "Then I don't have a problem with it."

  Devyn pushed himself away from his ship, pulled a cloth out of his back pocket, and wiped the grease from his hands. "How old are you?" he asked, not wanting to assist a young runaway.

  "Twenty-four," she answered without hesitation.

  Devyn lifted a disbelieving brow. He wouldn't place her at more than sixteen. "You got any ID?"

  She reached into her back pocket, pulled out a small wallet, and handed it to him.

  Devyn studied the picture and the birth date. He had a good eye for forgeries, and this ID was either the best he'd ever seen or authentic. Deciding on the latter, he handed it back to her. "You're a long way from Praenomia."

  She shrugged her thin shoulders. "My birth was registered there, but I've never spent more than two weeks on a planet in my life."

  He smiled. "Then you're used to recycled water and air."

  "And bad food, boredom, and stuffy noses," she added with a wistful sigh.

  "Then why do you want to sign back on to a ship?"

  She put her hands in her pockets and looked up at him with probing eyes that struck a long forgotten chord inside him, a chord he had hoped was forever severed.

  "It's home to me," she said dispassionately, "and I have to make a living. I don't know how to do anything else."

  That was one reason Devyn understood. Something about the dark tranquility of space seemed to comfort even the most troubled of souls, including his own.

  He scanned her competent stance. She seemed honest and capable enough. At worst, she had to be better at maintenance than either he or Sway.

  Their next destination was only three days' travel time. If she didn't prove to be as good as she claimed, he could always fire her once they reached Nera. "The job's yours if you want it."

  A puzzled look crossed her face. "Don't you want some credentials?"

  He shrugged. "Most people don't have any for this kind of work. You spotted the stabilizer with hardly any effort. Hell, I've wasted almost half an hour looking for it." He smiled at her. "You obviously know something about ships."

  She returned his smile, and he became entranced with a dimple in her left cheek.

  Devyn ran his hand through his hair and took a deep breath. What was wrong with him that such a waif could affect him so easily? Maybe Sway was right and he did need to break his celibate nature. "We're
getting ready to launch, so if you have any gear or good-byes jus—"

  "Just this gear," she said, shrugging her backpack off her shoulder. "And no good-byes."

  Devyn frowned at the catch in her voice. "None?"

  She clenched her teeth, and he had the strange sensation she fought against tears, but her eyes betrayed nothing. "My father died a few weeks ago. I don't have anyone else."

  He nodded in sympathy. He'd never lost anyone close to him, but he could imagine how hard it would be to lose one of his parents. "I'm sorry."

  She looked around the bay as if his words embarrassed her. "Don't worry; it won't interfere with my work."

  "Well then, uh ..." Devyn paused in an effort to remember her name.

  "Alix," she supplied with an odd half-smile. "My dad wanted a son." She looked down at her body and pulled at the loose material over her breasts. "I guess he didn't miss by much."

  Devyn noted the bitterness in her voice, and a strange surge of protectiveness ran through him. "You don't look like a boy to me."

  Her smile returned and sent a wave of heat through his body.

  "Yo, Dev! Your mom's calling." Devyn cringed at Sway's gruff, mocking voice. He knew the next word before Sway shouted it out. "Again."

  Devyn loved his mother dearly, but her constant, friendly calls were a source of extreme aggravation. But for once, his mother couldn't have had better timing.

  "C'mon," he said to Alix, moving to the ship's ramp.

  Sway met him at the top of the ramp with a snide smile that made Devyn want to slug the arrogant prato. But what the hell, they'd been friends for too long for him to take offense at the dorjani's normal taunting ways. Besides, he actually enjoyed Sway's caustic comments.

  "Are we ever going to get off this rubbish heap? Between your mom and the locals, I'm growing moss."

  Devyn handed him the grease rag. "You're green all right, but I always thought it was from the mold growing on your brain."

  Sway rumbled his version of a laugh. He caught sight of Alix standing in Devyn's shadow and sobered. "Who's the frelin?"

  "Our new mate." Devyn stepped aside to give Sway a full view of her. "This is Alix. Alix, meet our navigator, Sway Porrish."

  He looked back at Sway and warned him with his eyes to keep most of his usual snappish comments to himself. "Why don't you show her where to bunk while I take care of my call."

  From Sway's face, he knew the dorjani had to stifle a smart-ass response. But at least his friend was wise enough to hold his taunts.

  "Follow me," Sway said.

  Alix walked down the narrow corridor of the ship, her heart hammering against her ribs. She hated being on a new ship, surrounded by strangers. For the first time in her life, she didn't know every crevice of machinery, every chink in the cold, steel walls.

  She wanted to go home. But the only home she'd ever known now belonged to whoever had bought it in the auction. Her throat tightened. She clenched her teeth, refusing to cry any more tears over her lost ship. She'd done what she had to, and there was no going back.

  If she were careful with her pay, she ought to have enough money to put a down payment on her own ship within four or five years. Then she'd be free—the one thing in life she truly craved.

  Her thoughts turned to the captain, and an unexpected tingle filled her. He was something she hadn't counted on. Most runners were a lousy lot with rotting teeth and smelly bodies.

  Her first instinct had told her to ignore the posting for a new crewmate, but after checking with the crewmembers of other ships, she'd learned the Mariah's captain had a solid reputation for fairness and ran a clean ship. Alix had figured as long as the ship stayed clean, it didn't matter about the crew's hygiene. And heck, after putting up with Irn's disgusting habits and repulsive advances over the last year, almost anything else had to be better.

  But Captain Kell was more than just clean; he was marvelous. From his shoulder-length dark brown hair to the toes of his expensive black boots, nothing about him reminded her of the runners she'd come across in her travels.

  And his ship! Well, that surprised her most of all. The Mariah couldn't be more than a year or two old—something miraculous given how little money most runners earned. Obviously, the crew made a lot from their less than legal efforts. Maybe it wouldn't take very long to get her down payment after all.

  "You can bunk in here," Sway said, pushing the controls to open a door.

  Alix's eyes widened at the large sleeping compartment. The bed in the room occupied as much room as her entire private chambers on her father's freighter. Rich, blue carpet lined the floor. She'd thought only aristocrats had ships with carpet in them. Without a word, she stepped inside and ogled the rest of the furnishings.

  "I'm sure Devyn will want to run over the ship with you, but he'll probably wait until after we launch."

  Alix frowned. "Who's Devyn?"

  "The captain."

  "Oh," she said, feeling somewhat stupid. No one had bothered to tell her his given name. "So how many other people make up the crew?"

  Sway leaned his back against the open door frame and folded his arms over his chest. "Just the three of us. You got a problem with it?"

  Alix pursed her lips as she scanned Sway's body. He reminded her a lot of Captain Kell— both of them had attitude disorders.

  They were also about the same height, and had the same lean, muscular build, but Sway wasn't quite as handsome to her. Of course, she'd never been partial to humanoid dorjani life-forms, and Sway's yellow eyes with slit pupils unnerved her.

  "I've never had much of a problem with men chasing me around decks, if that's what you mean. As long as neither of you gets desperate, I think I can manage."

  Sway laughed, a deep rumbling sound that reminded her of thunder. "I think you'll fit in pretty well with us." He tucked one of his multitude of blond braids behind his left ear. "This isn't sexist or anything, but can you cook?"

  Alix wondered at the strange question. "Nothing fancy, but I do all right."

  A smile curved his lips. "Thank God. I'm sick of eating processed food."

  "And I'm sick of listening to you complain about it."

  Alix's heart sped up at the sound of Devyn's deep voice. She told herself not to feel this way; her heart and body had done this to her before and she'd been crushed. Men weren't interested in small-boned, small-chested women who looked more like their brothers. Besides, she didn't need anyone. She was here to work for the captain, not make sweetie eyes at him like a lovesick moron.

  "If you two don't mind, I think it's time we get out of here," Devyn said.

  Sway nodded and left.

  Alone with the captain, awkwardness consumed her. Alix studied her feet, wishing she could think of something to say. But as usual when she was around a handsome man, her brain couldn't focus on anything except the way his shirt clung to his muscular chest.

  She knew if she looked up, she'd meet his beautiful dark brown eyes that were tinged with a hint of sadness and forget everything she knew about men.

  "Your cooling unit isn't stocked, but we'll take care of that at our next stop. There's plenty of water and other liquids in the galley if you start dehydrating." He cleared his throat. "Take your time unpacking and whenever you're ready, the control room is at the bow of the ship."

  Alix nodded, still not willing to look up. She heard the door slide shut. Swallowing the sudden lump in her throat, she finally glanced at the door and sighed.

  She'd seen the look of disbelief in Devyn's eyes when she'd told him her age. His reaction was normal, but for some reason it bothered her more that he had done it.

  "What's wrong with you?" she said with a groan, dumping her backpack onto the bed. "You ought to be happy you get to spend time with two handsome men. Probably be the only time in your life that you can."

  Her father's laughing voice echoed in her mind. He'd often told her men would never look twice at her, and she knew he was right.

  But what did she ca
re anyway? Love was a give and take—the more you gave, the more people took. She didn't have any use for it. Life was hard enough without the added misery of a broken heart. Besides, if Devyn ever found out who and what she was, a broken heart would be the least of her problems.

  It didn't take long to unpack her two pairs of pants, three shirts, and two pantsuits from her backpack and place them in her storage closet. Alix folded her backpack up, stored it in the closet next to her clothes, then decided to join the men for the launch.

  Slowly, she made her way down the ship's corridor, dragging her finger along the sleek, cool steel wall. A soft tilt told her they were leaving the station, but the smoothness of the ride astounded her. On her old ship no one could stand, let alone walk, during a launching.