by Ella Maven
I never felt the need to fill the silence. It was nice to wait for others to speak, since they always revealed too much about themselves. But with Reba, I wanted her to hear my voice.
“You’re beautiful,” I said, and she jerked slightly at the sound of my voice before her lips turned into a soft smile. “I would give anything to put my mark on you with my mouth. To take your nipples between my teeth and tug just to listen to you gasp and squirm and plead. I’d inhale your sweet cunt and lick your cream until you screamed my name. Always my name. Then I’d show you the true pleasure of a Drixonian cock. But not just any cock. In my dreams, you are mine, Reba.” I exhaled as I leaned her back so I could wet her hair. She bent with me, eyes trusting as she clung to my biceps. I soaked her hair and rung it out in the qua, happy to see the dirt, grime, and oils wash off down the stream. Her hair and skin fascinated me, the way the qua soaked into it instead of beading off the way it did on my skin.
“But those dreams have to stay dreams,” I told her as I brought her back to standing. She swayed slightly and cocked her head at me. I cupped her cheek, daring to brush my thumb along her soft skin just once. “My duty is to keep you safe, and that means from me too.”
I swallowed and stepped back. This time, she let me lead her to shore. I turned when I gave her the clean clothes, listening as she dressed quietly. She spoke a soft, “Um dun.” I turned around to see her in a pair of pants which were entirely too big and a shirt that probably once belong to an Uldani child. The boots were also too big, but her soles needed some protection. She bundled her wet, torn Earth clothes under her arm and took my hand as I led her back to the hut.
As much as I wanted to get going, I thought it best we stay another night. We both needed more rest and food. I still wanted to inspect the cabin for any other supplies. I hoped there was some tech laying around—a comm was probably too much to hope for.
My fear was my resolve was slipping. I’d survived the incident at the river, but I didn’t think Reba understood the impact she had on me. She definitely didn’t understand what it meant to mate a Drixonian. We mated for life. If she gave herself to me, then that would be it. I wouldn’t let her go. And that was the problem— what if Daz declared her off limits, but I’d already mated her. What would I choose? My clavas and drexel who I owed my life to? Or my mate.
She is all.
I knew the answer. And that was why I had to stay strong. My brother and the other males were depending on me to return. I was one of Daz’s most trusted males. I couldn’t let them down. I couldn’t let Reba down either.
Reba
I should have felt rejected, and maybe I would have if Ward’s eyes weren’t so expressive. His face didn’t change, but those whirling irises told everything he was thinking and feeling.
I’d never been that perceptive of another person other than my sister. With her, I’d been able to know everything she was thinking and feeling just by the way she scrunched her nose or shifted her shoulders. We’d been so in tune with each other. When she died, I’d felt a piece of myself die with her.
I sat on the pallet while Ward stoked the fire. On the way back, he’d killed another animal for him and Luna to eat. He’d also plucked some berry-like fruit, which had been rather tasty and a nice break from the fatty protein. He’d refilled the water jugs and had taught me a word for it—qua.
Now, he sat crouched by the fire, seemingly lost in thought while he stared at the licking flames. He’d moved my pallet closer to the fire, so the heat of the burning wood warmed my still-damp hair. I fingered the ends, unable to forget the reverent way he’d washed me. I’d never been touched like that, and now I cast a critical eye back at my sexual experiences. They’d been a race to the finish, and my body was merely a means to an end for the men who’d fumbled, fingered, and mouthed at my flesh.
Ward had been cleaning me, but there’d been no hurry and no selfish goal in sight, other than the contentment he seemed to find in seeing me clean. He’d wanted me though. I felt the bulge in his pants like a branding iron at my back. His breath had quickened, and his heart pounded a mating call down my spine.
When I’d taken off my shirt, I’d been scared I’d poked the beast too far. That he’d scoop me up and plunge himself into me for punishment for making him want so much.
I shivered. My imagination was getting away from me. He hadn’t wanted to touch me like that—or maybe he wanted, but not enough to do it, and I had to be okay with that. I’m not sure which reaction I wanted—did I want him to take what I was offering like a savage or did I want to know I could trust him with taking care of me without asking for something in return?
The sun had just set, and I lay on the pallet and closed my eyes. After a moment, I heard a rustling, and then careful footsteps move in my direction. They stopped by my pallet.
A hand ran through my hair, fingers tugging at some knots before his voice came in soft, halting tones. A finger brushed my lips, and I reacted, pursing them to press a kiss to the digit.
Ward froze, and I opened my eyes to meet his. His lips were pressed into a thin line, chest motionless as he seemed to stop breathing. He rose and tore his eyes away from me to retreat to the far side of the hut. I lifted onto an elbow to peer at him in the dark.
He sat on the large chair near the front window like a king on his throne. His massive thighs were spread apart, his arms casually laid on the armrests. The moonlight streaming through the open window bathed his face in an ethereal silver glow. I shamelessly took him in, from the proud jut of his chin to his wide nose to the high cut of his cheekbones. His eyes gleamed impossibly black as he slowly turned his head to catch me watching him.
I didn’t look away, and he didn’t either. He hadn’t said a word or made a single gesture, but his heavy, dangerous gaze on me sent a bolt of warmth sliding down my spine to pool hot and boiling in my center.
I’d never been this turned on from only a look. I hadn’t been this eager for a man in… a long time. I’d been promiscuous in my youth but after my sister died, I’d shut myself away, too scared of my own shadow to put my body and heart on the line for a man.
But Ward… with his strength and that sinful twist to his full lips, he stirred desires inside me I never knew I had.
Maybe there was something in the air of this planet, but I decided to take a chance on what I wanted. Not outside in a river while he seemed intent to perform some cleaning ritual. But here, where my intent would be blatantly obvious. It was crazy. I knew it was, but that wasn’t going to stop me. One thing that last few days had taught me—tomorrow wasn’t certain. Right now, I wanted Ward and the consequences didn’t really matter when I might not be alive to see them. I wanted to take back my power and re-establish my identity as a woman with her own mind, rather than a helpless victim.
I pulled my shirt over my head, baring my naked upper body to Ward’s gaze. His muscles went taught. His hands curled into the armrests, lengthening claws digging into the wood enough to make it splinter. His eyes, normally a bottomless black, swirled and lightened, glowing a near neon violet in the moonlight.
His mouth opened and his fangs glistened as he licked at the sharp tips with his wickedly long and pierced tongue. I took one step toward him and his lips curled into a nearly feral snarl. Was he warning me not to come closer? The bulge in his pants was unmistakable, nearly obscene. His gaze dropped, taking in my breasts and stomach. I hooked my fingers in the waistband of my pants and underwear, then tugged. They dropped to the floor in a soundless heap, and I stepped out of them. Another foot closer. Then another. I was close enough now I could hear his ragged breathing, a raspy sound which rapidly expanded his massive chest. Another step and I brushed the front of his knees.
His eyes flashed. “Gorpa marinu mah erudi viner.”
The words could have been a threat or an invitation. I didn’t care at that point, my sole focus on relieving the pressure in my core, where my pulse beat fast and torrid. Naked as a jaybird, I straddled his g
iant lap.
His thighs quivered beneath me like a taut bowstring, ready to be let loose with a flick of a few fingers. I placed one hand on the back of the chair at his shoulder, then the other over his opposite shoulder. Knowing he couldn’t understand me, I spoke anyway, insinuating as much as I could into the tone of my voice. “I want you, Ward.”
With a flare of his nostrils, his hand shot out quick as lightning, and those deadly fingers wrapped tight around my neck. I gulped as his claws pressed against my delicate skin. Had I taken too many liberties? Maybe he had a family at home; maybe I was an alien marriage homewrecker. But sue me, I didn’t care in that moment. I couldn’t care. Not when my body screamed for him.
His hand slid from my throat to the back of my neck, and before I could take another breath, he wrapped his fist into my hair and tugged. I cried out as I was forced to arch my back with my neck completely exposed. He could do whatever he wanted to me now, dig those fangs into my flesh and rip me apart. I fought for breath and closed my eyes as I grew wetter. I was more attracted to danger than I thought. I had dated too many nice guys who just didn’t do it for me, so I kept looking and hoping.
I reached blindly for him, but with one hand—with ease—he captured my wrists and braced them at my back. Immobile, on display, I could do nothing but swallow and wait. My nipples nearly ached from the cool air and arousal.
“Nehn,” he grunted with his deep voice before bowing his head and latching onto my nipple. I screamed as the wet heat of his mouth enveloped the hard bud of my chilled skin. He wasn’t gentle. He lashed it with his metal piercings and tugged on it with his lips. When he nipped me with a fang, I moaned embarrassingly loud. My pussy gushed, and I gasped when he released me with a pop to torture my other nipple. All the while, he kept his grip on my hair and my hands.
He took his time, nibbling at my breasts and sucking up patches of skin to the point of pain. I loved it all as I squirmed and moaned. It wasn’t until a draft hit my cheeks I realized I was crying.
I bucked my hips, eager to get some friction, anything to relieve the growing ache in my engorged clit. He nipped one last time, and I screamed at a white-hot split-second fire brand of pain. He leaned back, surveying his handiwork on my body before finally releasing the grip on my hair. I let my head drop and glanced down to see one small bead of blood on the top of my breast. He couldn’t take his eyes off of it, and when he licked his lips, I saw a bit of blood smeared on his fang.
Fuck that was hot, in a way that didn’t make sense to me, in a way I never would have let any man mark me. But Ward? He was no mere man.
I made a whining sound in my throat and tried to get closer to him. I wanted as much skin to skin contact as I could get, and he still wore his pants and boots. I wanted to see the monster responsible for the bulge in his pants.
“Please,” I murmured, wiggling my fingers.
With a heavy exhale, he released my wrists. He slid his palms up my ribcage, and I shivered at the touch. Palming my breasts, he flicked my now over-sensitive nipples.
I leaned closer, wanting to taste his lips. He jerked back for a second, but then his brows lowered. A flicker of worry passed in his violet eyes before he closed the distance between us. Our lips pressed together, and the kiss went from zero to sixty as soon as we touched. He delved his tongue inside, lashing it against mine, tasting the inside of my mouth and the back of my teeth with that talented tongue. With his hands on my back, he smashed me against him, so my nipples rasped along the scales of his chest. I gasped into his mouth, and he pulled back, a frown marring his expression.
I smiled, showing him it was fine. I reached between us and after a minute of figuring out how to release his pants, finally worked them open enough to reach inside. I closed my fingers around his hot, hard shaft, and stroked.
He nearly came off the chair. He arched and threw his head back, the cords in his neck straining. His reaction was intense, extreme, and when he lowered his head to look at me in awe, I got a feeling like he hadn’t felt this before. But that couldn’t be right, could it? Surely, he’d known females who could give him a hand job. A surprise growl left my throat thinking of another woman with him. Nope, this was about me and him, and if my hand on his cock was any indication of his responsiveness, then I looked forward to blowing his mind.
His chest heaving, his lips wet with saliva, he drifted his fingers down my stomach to rest on the top of my pussy. His little finger nudged under the hood of my clit, and when he found the right spot, I jerked in his lap. His lips stretched into a grin. A fast learner, he focused there, dipping down to my entrance to gather wetness before slipping back up to swirl a thick finger around my clit.
I pulled his cock out of his pants and glanced down. Sucking a breath, I nearly came on the spot. He was pierced with a thick ring through the tip. He had to have sex before, because why else would a male willingly choose to stick a needle through their dick? The sight was erotic, and his cock leaked copious amounts of slick fluid from the tip. I ran my palms through it and slicked up his shaft. His hips bucked into my fist as short, needy grunts left his throat. There was an interesting node at the base of his cock, and I ran my thumb over it. His stomach contracted, and he sank his teeth into his lip.
I needed more. It wasn’t the length of the foreplay, but the intensity, and we’d been operating at code red since his fingers had wrapped around my throat. I shifted closer to him and aimed the head of his thick pierced cock at my entrance. Our eyes met. Held. I went in for a kiss as I sank down onto his cock.
His girth took my breath away, and I whimpered into his mouth. He didn’t move or slam into me. Staring into my eyes, he held his breath, and once my ass hit his thighs, we both exhaled.
I smiled; his chest heaved. And I moved. Slowly at first, because fuck he wasn’t only thick, but long. I swirled my hips, getting used to his size and appreciating the way his piercing dragged along my inner walls on a smooth glide.
“Ward,” I murmured, because it was the only word I knew he’d understand.
“Reba,” he growled, the sound not much more than a rumble from his throat. His eyes had lightened even more, and I got lost in their swirling depths as he tentatively moved his hips against mine. I braced my hands on his shoulders. “Yeah,” I nodded. “Like that.”
He grunted and moved faster. Then his hands clamped on my hips, and he bucked up into me so forcefully all the breath fled my lungs. I screamed, and he fucked me harder, thrusting like a madman so all I could do was hold on and enjoy the ride. Every stroke nailed my sensitive, elusive g-spot until I saw stars behind my eyes and sweat rolled down my back.
“Neh cunt,” he growled, his eyes locked with mine. “Neh cunt!” he roared louder. Something latched onto my clit, and I managed to look down to see the node on the base of his dick had extended and sucked at my clit like the world’s best sex toy.
“Oh fuck,” I screamed just as I climaxed in an explosion of heat and pleasure so intense it was painful. I couldn’t breathe as he powered into me, and I held on as he gave one last fierce thrust with a garbled shout and came. He coated my inner walls with his seed as he panted against my mouth. I slumped against him, every muscle jelly. He held me with my face pressed into his neck, his cock still inside my body, and his tail curled protectively around my lower back.
I sighed into his skin, lapping at the sweat-damp scales. “Best I ever had, Ward. Best I ever had by a mile.” I yawned, curled my hands against my chest, and closed my eyes.
Eight
Ward
There was nothing eventual about how Reba came to mean everything to me. I’d seen her and wanted to protect her. But now she’d let me inside her, and my entire world shifted. I knew of species who were casually intimate, but that wasn’t the Drixonian way. It meant something to give one’s body to another, and Reba had given me … everything. Her pebbled nipples and sensitive clit and tight cunt. All mine.
Last night, after she’d fallen asleep on me, I’d carried he
r to the bedding, intent of laying her down and walking away. But instead I’d crawled in the furs with her and fell asleep myself. The morning sun had risen about half a yora ago, and Reba still slept against my chest. I worried she was cold, as those little flesh bumps were raised down her delicate spine. Wishing I had something nicer, I reached for a fur and settled it over her. She immediately made a small little sigh as she burrowed further into my chest.
The only reason I didn’t say fleck it and stay in this remote cabin with Reba forever was because of the Night Kings tag on my arm. Remembering it now, the stamped metal felt like it was burning into my skin. What would Daz do when he knew I’d touched her? I’d tried to resist when she’d revealed her pale skin bathed in moonlight. But when she settled herself on my thighs with those creamy breasts so close to my mouth… I had been weak. I’d forgotten my duty and I’d gotten lost in her sweet taste and perfect cunt.
Even now my cock was rising again, the flecking traitor. My only consolation had been that it was her choice. That blew my mind she had wanted to touch me, and she’d let me touch her. Sure, I was the only male around, but we’d just escaped the Rizars. I hadn’t thought mating would be on her mind at all.
What would I tell Daz? And worse, would he consider this a punishable offense? He was strict as drexel. He had to be. About fifteen cycles ago, he’d found one of the Night Kings had betrayed the clavas, and he’d ousted him. The poor fleck was a lonas now, with his name and likeness sent to all Drixonian drexels so they would know not to take him in. It was a hard life, but it was necessary for us. Enemies were everywhere, and we had to maintain order inside or we’d never weather the storms outside.
I rubbed my brow, wishing I could have slept longer, but unable to stop my mind from working. I had to find a comm and get a hold of Daz to let him know where I was. It’d been a few rotations and he’d be worried. She is all, I chanted to myself. I had to keep my wits about me and not let Reba’s pretty eyes and tight little body distract me from the ultimate goal—keeping us safe and alive.
