by Ella Maven
A familiar green orb in a patch of brush below me caught my eye. I grinned. At least I could give Val a gift before I told her we had to leave soon at a blistering pace. So sweet, my Val. I’d get her to safety if it was the last thing I did on this wicked planet.
Thirteen
Val
I sat in the center of the pallet in the bunker and hugged my knees to my chest, emotions washing over me. I’d learned over the last year that grief was unpredictable. After my mother died, I didn’t process my thoughts over her death, because I threw myself into all that came after—planning the funeral, dealing with medical bills, handling calls from her friends and other family members. I’d gone from caring for her in life to caring for her in death, as if her passing and the aftermath was its own sentient thing.
But I hadn’t let myself grieve the woman she’d been before the disease, the woman who I could call and vent to, but who didn’t expect anything in return, who would listen simply because she loved me. I hadn’t given myself permission to just be fucking sad and pissed about her death. I could almost hear Sax in my mind telling me it was okay to rage at the world for a while. Then it was time to pick myself up and move on.
There were plenty of things I missed about Earth, but I had to admit that now that my mom had passed, no one was waiting for me there. My disappearance wouldn’t affect anyone’s everyday life. They’d fill my position at the hospital, and I’d be but a name in their past employee files.
As much as my mom’s death had been the worst time in my life—other than this little alien abduction thing—maybe it was a good thing. She left Earth knowing I was safe with a good job. My only regret was she would never meet Sax, who was undoubtedly the best person I’d ever met, other than my mother.
I ran my fingers over the loks on my wrists. Here, on this strange planet with alien creatures, I’d be missed. I knew in my heart that Sax would care deeply if something happened to me. Maybe here, once we made it to the safety of his clavas, I could find myself again. I could remember what made me happy. I could try to make a home here. I wondered what the other women were like, and I found myself eager to meet them, especially Frankie.
I’d always worried about meeting a man and falling so deep into him that I’d lose my identity. But Sax was helping me find my identity. He encouraged me to stick up for myself, and he respected my knowledge of healing. I could maybe be an asset to his clavas and learn more about their medicine. I could be something here, in a way I had only faded into the background on Earth.
I had to have the courage, and I couldn’t rely on Sax for everything. That wasn’t fair to him. He deserved a strong mate who wasn’t a worrywart burden. I rubbed at my chest, taking deep even breaths even as the walls seemed to close around me. Why was being courageous so damn terrifying?
The hatch opened and Sax’s voice echoed down the shaft before he dropped to the floor in a crouch. He was grinning, and I smiled in return, because his good mood was infectious.
He strode toward me, braided hair swinging over his shoulder. In his palm, he held a green ball. As he drew closer to me, he sliced it open with a claw, revealing a jelly-like center. “I return bearing gifts,” he said.
I peered at the ball. The outside was like a thin membrane, and the jelly center glowed like it was phosphorescent. It had a clean, slightly floral scent. He dipped a finger into the jelly and swiped it onto his arm.
“It’s called feerum. It grows on Corin too,” he said. “We sometimes used it on our skin. It was popular with females.”
I dabbed at it with my finger, and when it didn’t hurt or burn me, I dipped out a dollop and smeared it on the back of my hand. A cooling sensation spread over my skin as the jelly soaked into my parched flesh. The scent changed, turning a little sweeter, but still very pleasant. I rubbed it into my skin, reveling in the renewed softness. This stuff would have sold like crazy on Earth. It reminded me of super-powered aloe.
“It’s so nice,” I whispered as I began to slather it on my arms. “It feels so decadent.”
I’d never spent a lot of money on beauty products, although Mom had insisted I do something to prevent crow’s feet around my eyes. But this stuff… Now I understood why people spent hundreds on skin care.
Sax slathered some on himself too, humming happily. On him, the scent altered, meshing with his body chemistry. He smelled like himself, but… better.
“Do I smell different?” I asked him.
He wrapped his arm around my waist and tucked his face into my neck. He inhaled there, and I laughed at the tickling feeling. Pulling back to grin at me, he said, “You smell like my Val, just even better.”
“Can we take this stuff with us?” We’d only used about a quarter of the jelly.
“Of course.” His expression sobered. “Speaking of leaving. We have to go. Now.”
“Now?” My heart skipped and then began to beat double time.
Sax seemed to notice, because he wrapped his fingers around the back of my neck. “We’re not in any immediate danger. But to evade the Kulks, we’ll have to follow the Triad River to the western plains to overtake the Kulks’ path. They can’t cross the river, and as long as we stay on the opposite side, we’ll be okay.”
I trusted him—how could I not? “Okay.”
He gripped my arms. “I’m not perfect, but I’m good with directions. Really good. I know this terrain better than anyone.”
I cupped his face. “I happen to think you are perfect, and if there’s a way, I know you’ll get us there.”
Purple swirled in his eyes, and his chest heaved. “Your confidence in me makes me hard, and that’s not good, because we don’t have time to do anything about it.”
I laughed. “Well, let’s get going because the faster we get home, the faster we can do something about it, right?”
With a lunge, he smashed his lips to mine. By the time he pulled away, we were both breathless. “You’re right. Let’s pack light and get going.”
Using his claws to slice the fabric, Sax fashioned a pack out of the bedding, and we filled it with some qua and food. I strapped it to my back, as Sax would be carrying me. So really, he’d be carrying everything.
I looked at our bunker, reluctant to leave a spot where I’d felt so safe. I could have used another bath, but there was no time. We climbed up the ladder, and Sax hauled me onto his back. My arms were still sore from the last time we’d traveled like this, and I tried to hide how they trembled as I gripped him.
Sax straightened and looked at me over his shoulder with a frown. “Why are you shaking?”
“Shaking?”
“Your muscles. In your arms.”
“They’re just a bit sore. It’s fine.” I couldn’t complain when he had the much harder job.
His frown deepened and he gestured for me to get down. “Are your legs sore?”
I shook my head. “No, just my arms from holding on to you. It’s fine though, don’t worry about me—”
“You are my concern,” he said sharply. “If your arms are sore, tell me and we’ll try something else. Speak up for yourself with me, my lioness.”
I nibbled my lip, his concern for me making my head spin and my body flush hot. “I’m sorry, but I didn’t think I should say anything when you’re the one doing all the work carrying me.”
“Holding on to me is work too, and I’m a Drixonian. My body can endure more than a human’s.”
I didn’t even care about the slight to my species. He wasn’t wrong. “Okay, then yes, my arms are still a little sore.”
“We will both go on foot for a while, then.” He grabbed the pack from me and strapped it to his back. “Is that acceptable?”
I nodded. I liked the idea of stretching my legs a bit. I was sure I’d be wheezing and out of breath soon, but we’d cross that bridge when we came to it. “Yeah, let’s do it.”
“Keep up as best as you can. I’ll slow my pace for you.”
Okay, now I was annoyed at the humans are weak
attitude. I did a little dance on the balls of my feet and shook out my arms. With narrowed eyes, I said, “Oh, is that right? What if I have to slow my pace for you?”
Sax threw back his head on a laugh. Since he was distracted, I took off. Sax’s laughter cut off when he realized what I was doing, and then he was after me, his footfalls nearly soundless. I batted a branch out of my way and kept going, pumping my arms as the feeling of freedom soared in my chest like an eagle. Fuck the Kulks. Sax and I were a team, and a damn good one. I whooped, not too loud, but just enough to release the burst of optimism in my chest.
Sax caught up to me in seconds, his grin nearly feral. “There’s my lioness,” he said. “Knew you’d come out when I tested you.”
“I guess you know how to get a rise out of me,” I said as we ran side by side.
“I think it’s the best out of you,” he said. “You’re at your best when you’re standing up for yourself. And us.”
I nodded, unsure what to say. He had a point. I felt the most powerful when I didn’t let myself be pushed around, when I didn’t let anger and frustration well up in me until I overflowed with pessimism.
For the first time, I was starting to actually feel like his lioness.
Sax
Val kept pace with me well. I wasn’t running as fast as I could, but I was happy enough with our progress not to scoop her into my arms and set off on a sprint. Even she seemed surprised by her stamina. I wondered if the mate bond had something to do with it. Did she feel any physical changes? I felt stronger and faster.
The only issue was my leg. I tried to hide my limp, but it was getting harder and harder to run through the pain. When we stopped to get a drink, I excused myself to piss and took a glance at my thigh. The injection site was black and angry. Pus leaked from the prick in my skin, which had expanded, and my whole thigh was darker in color, hot to the touch, and swollen.
I wished I had some medis, and for the first time, I began to feel real worry. What had he injected me with? Could it even be cured?
“Sax?” Val’s voice called softly. “You okay? Your aura is off.”
I pulled up my pants swiftly and turned to join her. She stood next to a tree, her little teeth worrying her lip. When she saw me, her expression remained concerned.
“I’m fine.” I held her hands and pushed as much reassurance as I could into my tone. “Just thinking.”
She studied my face, and I worked to neutralize my expression. Pressing her lips together, she nodded. “Okay.”
“You all right to ride on my back now? The terrain coming up is a little rough.”
She glanced in the direction we were heading and sighed. I’d noticed she’d been pretty winded when we’d stopped. Finally, she nodded. “Yeah, that might be for the best. But if I get too heavy, let me know.”
Like I’d ever do that. She strapped the pack to her back, I hauled her onto mine, and we were off again.
I hadn’t been lying about the rough terrain. If I had timed this right, and the Kulks didn’t drastically change direction, we’d be able to cross the river before the falls and safely pass into the western plains.
But the plan could still go to shit. The Kulks were a variable. Another variable was my leg. The pain was increasing, and even when I shut down into cruise mode, the nagging weakness of the limb threw off my pace. Fleck Borhan. Even in death, he was messing with me.
Still, despite the growing heat and stiffness in my leg, I ran on until the sun began to dip, and the sky darkened. As the pain spread from my ankle to my hip, I finally slowed to a jog.
Val’s arms flexed around my neck. “Where are we?” she murmured, her voice hoarse.
“Need to rest for a bit.” I patted her thigh. “Get some food and water.”
“Good idea.” She made to drop down from my back, but I held her arms steady. “Hold on. We can’t rest here. Let me get us somewhere safe, and then I’ll let you go.”
“Okay,” she said, her voice confused.
I glanced up, checking the trees for one with the sturdiest, densest branches. After choosing our rest area for the night, I jumped, grasping a low branch with both hands, and pulling us up.
Val gasped. “We’re resting in a tree?”
“Yep. Kulks can’t climb. And now I’ll be able to see where they are.”
“Oh,” was all she said as she held tight with her arms and legs.
I climbed higher until I found us two sturdy side-by-side branches, less than a body-length apart. While Val sat in a safe crook of the tree, I cut through some thinner branches with my machets and laid them crosswise across the branches to make a pallet. After covering those with leaves and some moss for comfort, I wiped my hands and peered at Val in the increasing darkness.
She took small sips from the qua and handed it to me. “Here,” she said quietly, handing me the drink as well as a few energy bars. I downed two and tried to give her my third. She waved it away, and I inhaled that too. I’d give anything for a nice big hunk of antella meat. If we had the time, and I had the energy, I’d go hunt one.
I lay on the pallet, which wasn’t exactly comfortable, but better than the wet, rocky ground.
Val crawled over to me and curled up at my side. “How do you feel?” she asked quietly.”
“Tired.” I yawned.
“Do you need more food? Drink?”
I turned my head to face her. Her pretty blue eyes glowed in the greenish-gray moonlight. She gazed at me with so much trust and care that it nearly took my breath away. This little human was such a good mate, and I imagined she’d been a great healer back on Earth. Her scent drove me wild, especially with the freeum still lingering on her skin. My cock hardened swiftly, and my pants tightened across my groin.
“I don’t need any food or drink,” I said. “But I need you.”
Her cute brows drew together. “You need—” Her eyes widened and then fired. “Oh.”
Despite my fatigue, I didn’t want to rest without first being inside Val. It’d been hard to think with her touching me all day, her breath on my neck and the heat of her sweet cunt on my back.
I was about to roll on top of her when she rose above me, golden hair backlit by the moon and stars. After tugging her pants off, she knelt beside me, and in one fluid motion, stripped her shirt from her body. My cock jerked at all her creamy flesh on display, the freeum softening her skin and giving it a faint glow. I sat up to reach for her, but she shook her head with a cute little grin. With her hands on my chest, she threw one leg over my thighs to straddle me. I grasped her hips as her cunt settled over my hardened cock. I cursed the layer of fabric separating us, and thrust my hips up, seeking friction, release.
Her heavy breasts swung down, and I curled my back so I could pull one pert tip into my mouth. She gasped as I enveloped as much of her skin as I could and sucked hard, lashing her nipples with my piercings.
“Oh God,” she cried, arching her back and pushing her breasts into my face. “Your tongue. It feels so good.”
I sucked harder, then nipped with the edge of a fang, and she yelped. Her cunt gushed, soaking through my pants. My cock jerked and libo leaked from the tip. I pressed her breasts together, kneading the flesh, and went to work on her nipples, reveling in the flush that rose from her chest to her face and committing to memory all her little gasps and sighs and cries of pleasure.
I thumbed a stiff peak and wait for her hazy blue eyes to meet mine. “Would you pierce these for me?” I rasped. I hadn’t realized I’d wanted to ask this of her until the words hovered in the air between us.
After a sharp intake of air, she drew her hands up her body sensually until she cupped her breasts. Flicking her nipples, she rocked over my cock. “You want me to pierce my nipples?”
My eyes were glued to her small fingers on her gorgeous, full breasts. “I’d love to see golden rings in them.”
“You want us to match?” She smiled, and the sight of it hit me in the gut.
“Yeah,” I said. �
�I would.”
She dropped her palms to my chest and began to thrust her hips, working her cunt over my covered cock. “I never thought about it, but I would for you.” She bent down and licked at one of my nipples, then tugged at the ring with her teeth while watching me. I panted and she licked her lips.
“When we get back,” I said, nearly panting with the need to be inside of her. “I want these breasts pierced with my jewels. For me and only me.”
Her chest heaved, and those big, beautiful breasts bounced. “Yes, Sax. For you.”
I couldn’t take it anymore. Releasing my pants, I tugged down the front to free my cock. It sprang up between us, ready to join the party. I didn’t wait for Val to make the next move, because I was too consumed with lust for my mate. I lifted her up and impaled her on my cock.
She screamed as she whipped her head back, her hair brushing my thighs. My eyes nearly rolled back into my head at the feel of tight, wet heat gripping me like she was made for me. She was made for me. I gripped her hips and thrust up again and again. Her body jolted as I plundered her, and she fell forward, palms on my chest, fingers playing with my nipple rings as she rode me. Her ass slapped against my thighs, and her breasts waved in my face. I drew a nipple into my mouth and bit down.
She bucked hard and let out a sob. “Sax.” Her fingers curled into claws on my chest. “Fuck yes, Sax.”
My subcock extended, latching onto her clit and tugging. She slammed her mouth onto mine, and I thrust my tongue inside as she came on a long, low moan, her body shuddering and shaking as she rode out her climax. I took control, tossing her onto her back and powering into her. Her hands dug into my hair, and my tail lashed behind me as I roared out my release, coating her inner walls with my seed.
I collapsed onto my back beside her and drew her to my chest as I caught my breath. She lay an arm across my stomach and tucked her head against my biceps, where she fit perfectly.
