ALIEN AFFAIRS 4: PANDORA'S BOX by Kate Hill Format(s): Ebook Heat Level: Erotic Pairing(s): M/F Genre/Themes: Sci-Fi Length: Novel Publisher: Ellora's Cave Cover Art: Syneca ISBN: 9781419921933 Purchase Links:Ellora's Cave / Amazon Related Books or Books Set in the Same Universe: Doing Thyme, Menage a Tasia, Pandora's Box Blurb: Pandora Fourteen has been trained in the arts of seduction and assassination. To test her skills, she is ordered to seduce, ACT Corps officer Steel. Pandora and Steel had been raised in a lab and were inseparable until the government forced them apart. They are explosively attracted to each other when they meet again. To Pandora, seducing Steel is no longer an assignment, but when she decides to turn her back on her career to marry him, threats from her manipulative superior separate them once again. After Pandora spurns Steel's affection, he leaves the ACT Corps for a new life in the notorious Delilah Sector where he becomes an intergalactic bounty hunter. His all-consuming love for Pandora had nearly destroyed him. Yet when the government hires him to track down Pandora, who has disappeared before completing her latest assignment, he can't resist the chance to see her again. Finally reunited, their lust burns hotter than the sun, but the past has left scars that might never be healed. The following excerpt from PANDORA'S BOX is for readers 18 and over. Excerpt from PANDORA'S BOX: In her room, Pandora changed into a seductive dress of pale green with a deep neckline. Gazing at herself in the full-length mirror, she touched a fingertip to the delicate green shell necklace resting between her breasts. She sighed, recalling that wonderful night Steel had bought it for her. They had been so happy then. She thought she'd been jaded, but in reality she had been almost blissfully innocent. She had no idea then the horrors that would ensue--the loneliness and desolation of a life without love, only cold, calculated murder. Her eyes narrowed at her reflection, as if searching for some remnant of the girl who had been in love with her magnificent cyborg soldier. She shook her head and left her room. She made her way down the winding staircase to the lowest level of the bordello, nicknamed the dungeon. The rooms in this section were reinforced with Laetez exo-filler--one of the strongest substances in the known universe. Bangle usually placed potentially dangerous clients there. If they got out of hand, they could be restrained by hidden doors. Knowing Searilla strength, it made sense that this client would be serviced in the dungeon. Already Mr. Jax Coolheart raised many questions in Pandora's mind. Why was Bangle so certain she would enjoy sleeping with him? He knew how she felt about relationships, even superficial ones. Using sex for murder had turned her off the act. The only time she felt true arousal was when she remembered being with Steel. It was pathetic how she still loved a man who had probably forgotten her. Not that she blamed him. Part of her hoped he had found happiness. When she reached the lowest level, she heard nothing but the click of her heels echoing across the marble floor. It seemed to be deserted down here today. Not unusual, considering Bangle was very serious about security and rarely allowed in anyone considered threatening enough to warrant the dungeon. She paused outside the door behind which Jax Coolheart waited. A strange feeling swept over her and her stomach tightened. She had the crazy urge to turn and flee. Then she shook her head. What the hell was her problem? With all the horrors she'd faced in her life, she had no reason to fear a Searilla male who wanted nothing more than sex. She touched the color-coded keypad on the door and it opened. Pandora stepped into a sitting room with black marble walls and a thick lavender carpet on the floor. A plush black and purple couch stood against one wall. To her left was a fully stocked bar and to her right a potted tree bearing colorful fruit. "Hello?" she called. "Mr. Coolheart?" No one answered and she cautiously made her way toward the archway leading to the bedroom. When she reached it, her heart skipped a beat and she momentarily stopped breathing. "Hello, Pandora," Steel said, a wicked smile on his slender lips. Wearing black pants, boots and a dark green tank top, he lay on the bed, his broad shoulders resting against the carved headboard. If possible, his body was even more chiseled and hard-looking than she remembered. Muscles rippled beneath the silvery flesh of his arms. He had some sort of tattoo on his left shoulder and another on his right forearm. A sleek black cap covered his head and she caught a glimpse of a metal hair sheath dangling from the back of it, protecting his sensitive Draper hair. His piercing gray eyes stared at her from his savage face, rendering her momentarily speechless. "What's the matter, beautiful?" he asked. Pandora recovered quickly and anger overtook her shock. How could Bangle do this to her? He knew all about Steel, including what he looked like. Her best friend had set her up and she would not forgive him for this. "I don't have to ask what you're doing here, do I?" she demanded. It was no coincidence that their paths crossed now--one of the most feared bounty hunters in the galaxy and a recently defected spy. He drew a breath and cast her a lustful look. "Since this is a bordello it doesn't take a genius to figure it out." "Don't insult my intelligence by claiming to be here as a client, Mr. Coolheart." "Why wouldn't I be? The only non-Searillas who would fuck me are suicidal and most Searillas won't touch a mixed breed, so that doesn't leave me with many options, does it, beautiful?" "Quit calling me that." "I don't recall you having a problem with compliments. Your beauty is the greatest weapon in your arsenal, isn't it? However if you'd rather dispense with the flirting and get right down to business, that's fine with me." He patted the empty space beside him on the bed. Pandora's heart still pounded and her head spun. She'd thought she was long past the point in her life when anything could shock her or stir her emotions, but then she'd never thought her path would cross Steel's again. Even after all these years and after all the things she'd done she still loved him every bit as much as she had fourteen years ago. Yet it was insane to think anything could ever exist between them again. They were strangers. But the last time they'd met they had also been strangers, parted as children. The feelings between them had held strong. Now that Re Lord was imprisoned, should she finally tell him the truth about why she'd broken off their engagement so long ago? Was there a chance he still loved her too? Even if she told him the truth, she was still a deserter. If he returned her love that meant he would also become an outlaw. "Of course being a Searilla mixed breed yourself, you have the same problem I do regarding our deadly sexual nature. I was surprised to find someone here I could do business with. It must be slow for you however. Searillas generally aren't into fucking mongrels." She stared at him hard. "You presume a lot." "No no." Another wicked smile touched his lips. "I used to presume a lot, but I grew up." "Yeah. You went from a respectable soldier to a space-scum bounty hunter." His smile twisted into a sneer. "You're hardly one to talk. What happened, Pandora? Did the assassination business finally start to bore you? I have to admit I can't figure out why you'd leave such an esteemed, well-paying job to become a strumpsca in the Delilah Sector, but considering I'm going to benefit from your career change, I won't complain." Seeing that she wasn't about to go to him, he rose from the bed and approached her with long, slow strides. Hell, even after fourteen years he still had a body to die for. She'd almost forgotten how tall and rangy he was. He was slightly heavier and more muscular than she remembered, but in her opinion a man didn't really reach his peak until he hit his thirties. His eyes were as sexy as ever and the bastard refused to take them off her. It was one of those rare moments when Pandora wanted to turn and flee. Steel did things to her she wasn't ready to handle, not anymore. Instead of backing away, she stood her ground. "Steel, I don't believe you know me or my situation well enough to understand what I'm doing here." "I don't care what you're doing here, Pandora. I came here to fuck and I intend to get my money's worth," he said with such coldness that his statement actually hurt. Was this the man she had sacrificed her life for? There was a hardness in his eyes she'd never seen before. This tattooed bounty hunter wasn't the soldier she'd fallen in love with. Of course she wasn't the rather naïve young woman she had once been, either. He grasped her shoulders and tugged her closer, but she braced her hands against his chest and pushed. She knew her strength was insignificant to him, yet he paused and tilted his head slightly to the side, an almost sinister half-smile on his lips. A chill raced down her spine. What had happened to him? What had happened to them both? His gaze drifted downward and he touched a fingertip to the shell necklace. "You still have this," he said, his voice scarcely a whisper, as if he wasn't aware of speaking the words aloud. "Yes," she said. "It's one of my best memories, that night we went to the festival." "Why? Because it marked your first professional conquest?" he said bitterly and once again met her gaze. Her teeth clenched but she tried to relax. How was he to know why she had left him? She had done a great job of convincing him that her love for him had been a charade. "Steel, we need to talk." He pulled her closer. Her breasts pressed against his chest and in spite of her emotional doubts, her body responded to him. The man still aroused her more than anyone she had ever known. Her nipples tightened and her clit throbbed with desire. Dipping his head toward hers, he spoke against her lips. "I didn't pay to talk." "I thought bounty hunters were supposed to uphold the law? You plan on forcing me?" "First of all, here in the Delilah Sector there is no law. Second, I doubt I'd be forcing you. You still get that wild look in your eyes when you want to fuck." She curled her lip. "Wild look? What the hell is that supposed to mea--" His mouth descended on hers, silencing her except for the moan of desire that escaped her throat. Pandora's thoughts blurred and all she could do was cling to him. After fourteen years this should feel like the kiss of a stranger, but it didn't. It was as if they had never been apart, so perfectly did their mouths and bodies align. She loved his taste and scent, the hardness of him against her. His tongue slipped between her lips and teased her with gentle yet demanding strokes. Pandora's eyes closed and for some brief, blissful moments she surrendered to him completely.

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