Taken By The Alien Next Door

by Tiffany Roberts

  Karak’duun, I didn’t actually want to kidnap her!

  As unsuccessful as he’d been in wooing human females before now, he was fairly certain this was not the way to proceed. But he knew with equal certainty what was expected of him. Tabitha had seen him without his holoshroud activated. She had likely seen the ultricar.

  She was a threat not just to him and his mission, but to the Exthurizen, to the faloran people. If she spoke to anyone about what she’d seen…

  He would have had to reveal himself to her eventually, had things gone as he’d hoped. But that would’ve been after building mutual trust, after knowing she would safeguard his secret. Their relationship hadn’t quite reached that point. All his training, all his experience, told him there was only one way to handle this for sure.

  But Zevris refused to follow that course of action. He would not lose Tabitha. He would do everything he could to court her, to gain her trust, to make her see that he was not her enemy…

  Zevris smoothed his palm up her thigh, stopping it just below her ass, and squeezed.

  He would make her see that she was his.

  He opened the hidden compartment behind the television and removed the adjustable restraints. They’d simply been part of his kit; he’d never anticipated using them, and he didn’t want to use them now.

  Don’t humans sometimes like to be bound during mating?

  He cast aside that thought. He had no idea if Tabitha enjoyed that sort of thing, and, again, this seemed a highly inappropriate time to be considering such matters. And he was sure that mating was the last thing currently on her mind.

  Zevris carried her to the bed, unwound his tail from her wrists, and dropped her atop the bedding. She let out a startled little gasp as she bounced on the mattress. He leapt onto the bed before she could recover, straddling her and using his weight to hold her in place. When she slammed her hands against his chest to push at him, he touched a restraint to each of her wrists. Commanded by his neural transceiver, the bindings’ material snaked around her pale flesh and sealed itself to make closed loops.

  “What are you doing?” she asked, her voice rising in panic as she looked at her wrists. She bucked beneath him, but he didn’t budge. “No!”

  He leaned forward, drawing the loose end of the binding on her left wrist to the corner of the bed. She tried to pull her arm away, but she couldn’t match his strength. He attached the restraint to the post on the slatted headboard. Tabitha’s breaths came quick and hot, fanning across his chest. Zevris did his best to ignore the way her body felt beneath his, especially now that her full breasts were pressed against his abdomen.

  Tabitha went incredibly still. “Logan, please don’t do this.”

  He placed a hand on the headboard’s upper rail, fingers trembling as he struggled to keep from crushing the wood in his grasp. “Zevris.”

  “What?”

  “My name is Zevris Akkaran,” he said, forcing himself back into motion. He drew the restraint on her right wrist toward the other bedpost. “Logan Ellis is an alias.”

  “What…what are you?”

  The binding secured itself to the post. Zevris hesitated for another moment, closing his eyes. She was right here beneath him, in his bed, her body against his…

  Muttering a curse, he shoved himself away from the headboard and rolled off Tabitha. He stood up and stepped away from the bed the instant his feet touched the floor. He didn’t let himself look at her, not yet; not while her scent was still lingering in his nostrils, not while his skin still thrummed with her warmth, not while traces of that mysterious pheromone remained in his system.

  “I am a faloran. My race comes from a planet very, very far from Earth.”

  “So you’re…an alien.”

  He walked to the open compartment, tossed in the extra restraints, and closed the panel. “I am.”

  There was a soft rustling on the bedding, and Tabitha’s bindings creaked against the wooden headboard. “Are you going to kill me?”

  That question struck him hard, landing like a blow to the chest. He knew its impact was only intensified by it being wholly valid—and the fact that, were he following protocol, he would have killed her already.

  He whipped his face toward her, and when he spoke, his voice was harsh and raw. “No. Never.”

  Her brows creased, and the corners of her lips turned down as her eyes moved over him. “Are…you going to probe me?”

  Zevris stared at her; she was laid upon his bed like an offering, arms spread to either side and hair fanned around her head. His cock twitched with want, and his skin tingled with the memory of how her body had felt against him.

  How would she look were she unclothed? How would she look were she…open to him, thighs spread, sex bared, her lush breasts thrust forward, with desire gleaming in her eyes?

  Oh, he wanted to probe her, but not in the way she had implied.

  He drew in a deep breath and turned to face her fully, taking a step toward the bed. “Truly, Tabitha, I mean you no harm. We…can work through this situation together, if we both remain calm.”

  “You have me tied to your bed, Logan!”

  “My name is Zevris,” he corrected as gently as he could, “and this is not the way I wanted things to go between us. But my mission will be compromised if I let you go.”

  “What do you mean? What mission? Why…why are you here?”

  Zevris tipped his face toward the ceiling and paced at the foot of the bed, his body assailed by alternating waves of tension and lust. His tail flicked back and forth in stilted motions. He was going against everything he knew in this, but if Tabitha was to be his mate, he needed to be honest with her.

  “My people were devastated by a virus a few generations ago that killed most of our females. The effects of it have only strengthened over the years, and now we find ourselves facing eventual extinction. I was sent here to…” He halted, sighed, and swung his gaze to Tabitha. “I was sent here to make a human female my mate so we can learn whether your people are compatible with ours. My efforts have been unsuccessful thus far.”

  Tabitha stared at him silently, brows creased. “So…you’re here, disguising yourself as a human, so you can…breed with one?”

  “No, to mate with one,” he corrected. “The, uh…breeding would potentially come later. Our scientists do not even know if it is possible.”

  “You have the technology to travel through space to get here and to disguise yourself as a human, and some high-tech tools”—she glanced up at one of her wrists, giving it a twist—“but you can’t, like…make babies in tubes or something?”

  “We cannot. For our people to reproduce, a mating bond must be made. It triggers a biochemical reaction that enables fertilization, and that reaction cannot be artificially replicated.”

  She sighed, closing her eyes briefly as she relaxed her arms. “What is a mating bond? Is that your form of marriage?”

  He resumed his pacing, though his tail’s movements were a little less erratic. “No. The mating bond is for life. It cannot be undone once it is made, and it is forged through a process somewhat more intimate than the exchange of vows and rings.”

  Tabitha’s gaze followed him. Thankfully, the fear he’d seen in her eyes had faded, leaving only wariness.

  “If you’re successful, and you make this bond and are able to impregnant a woman, what then? Are you planning to bring more of your people here, all disguised as humans?” Her eyes rounded. “Or are you going to start abducting people?”

  Once again, Zevris halted, this time running a hand through his hair and letting the tips of his claws drag across his scalp. “I am not planning anything, Tabitha. We’re not here to harm humans or start a war. We’re not even supposed to be here at all, as underdeveloped civilizations are deemed off-limits by several intergalactic governmental associations.

  “But my people’s need is dire. My mission is simple, and it is as I have stated. And if my people intended to abduct anyone, don’t you
think it would have made more sense to do that early in the process, rather than leave me here for almost a year failing to make any sort of meaningful connection with Earth females until—”

  He pressed his lips together, silencing himself.

  “Until what, Zevris?” she asked.

  Closing his eyes, he allowed himself a moment to relish the sound of his name from her lips, barely suppressing the pleasurable shudder threatening to course down his spine. When he opened his eyes, he met her gaze. “Until you, Tabitha.”

  Her eyes flared, and she balled her hands into fists, once more tugging on her restraints. “W-What do you mean until me?”

  Keeping his gaze locked on her, Zevris moved to the bedside. He reached down, meaning to brush the backs of his fingers across her cheek, but she flinched away from his hand. He knew the pang of hurt in his chest wasn’t justified; he had captured her and tied her to his bed. She had every right to pull away from him.

  Curling his fingers into a loose fist, he withdrew his hand. “I was attempting to court you, Tabitha. I have encountered no female who has set my blood ablaze as you have, none who have captivated me as you have. I’d intended to ask you on a date, to follow your human customs, to gain your trust, and reveal everything to you in time, but circumstances have made all that impossible.”

  With her eyebrows furrowed, Tabitha drew her legs closer and slowly pulled herself up, leaning her back against the headboard. “You…chose me?”

  “Yes.”

  She leaned toward him, and some of her long hair fell over her shoulder. “Then just let me go. I won’t say anything to anyone. I swear.”

  He shook his head. “You know too much, Tabitha. I can’t let you go. You…are now mine.”

  She yanked on the bindings, baring her teeth. Her position thrust her breasts out toward Zevris, and he couldn’t stop his gaze from briefly dipping to them.

  “Damn it, Zevris, you can’t do this! You kidnapped me, have me tied to your bed, and…and you just expect me to want to have your babies?”

  “Eventually.”

  Tabitha gaped at him. “You’re insane.”

  Zevris leaned over her, bracing himself on one hand while he caught her chin with the other. She struggled to pull away, but he held firm. “And you are beautiful.”

  She stilled, staring up at him.

  “I want you, Tabitha. I crave to know your touch, thirst for your taste, and yearn to make you mine. I have chosen you to be my lifemate, and it is my mission to make it so.”

  She shivered, releasing a short, sharp breath.

  Zevris lowered his face until it was mere inches from hers and stroked the shallow cleft in her chin. “I would never hurt you, but I can’t let you go. Not yet.”

  “This is wrong. Just let me go. Please, Zevris.”

  He moved his thumb to her plump bottom lip and traced it, hungering more than anything to feel it against his own…but not until she was willing. “I will win you.”

  “People are going to wonder where I am. You can’t keep me here.”

  “I must, Tabitha.” Withdrawing his hand from her face, he pushed himself off the bed and walked toward the door.

  He would have loved to remain here with her for hours, would have loved to talk with her until she understood the situation, until she understood that he had no choice—and that they could make something meaningful of this. But having to abruptly kidnap his human neighbor presented several other matters that now required his attention, and it was best to see to all of it sooner rather than later.

  “Where are you going?” she asked, a hint of fear creeping into her voice.

  “I will be back soon, Tabitha. Do not worry.” Zevris opened the bedroom door.

  Tabitha yanked on her restraints hard enough to shake the bed. “Let me go!”

  He did not respond as he stepped out of the room and closed the door behind him. Her shouts, only faintly muffled by the door, followed him into the hall.

  “Help! Someone help me!”

  Zevris turned toward the door, leaning his forehead against it. Hearing her pleas was heart wrenching, and knowing that he was the cause for her fear, her distress, her helplessness…

  His hand crept toward the doorknob.

  “Svesh,” he growled, stilling his hand. He closed his fist, digging his claws into his palm, shoved away from the door, and walked down the stairs. How had he fucked this up so badly?

  Nine

  Frowning, Zevris crouched and brushed his fingertips across the gouges on the floor. They were deeper than he’d initially thought—not that he’d been very focused on the damage while it was being inflicted. He could perform the necessary repairs on his own, and, at worst, would have to make an extra trip to the hardware store. But those repairs were the least of his concerns.

  Laying a rug on the floor and hanging a painting on the wall would suffice for the time being. He could mask the damage.

  Just as he should’ve been masking himself.

  He grunted, picked up the fallen stone tray, and rose to carry it over to the stand beside the front door. After returning the tray to its place, Zevris bent down to pluck his keys off the floor. He dropped them onto the tray with a heavy sigh.

  His carelessness today—his carelessness as of late—was inexcusable. Perhaps he could have placed the blame upon Tabitha for trespassing and spying on him, but her actions shouldn’t have made any difference. Had Zevris been maintaining the appropriate level of caution all along, she could’ve wandered the perimeter of his dwelling, looking into every window, listening at every door, and never would have seen or heard anything to alert her to his true nature.

  No, none of this was her fault. Zevris was the fool who’d left the back door open while he was undisguised and speaking with the ultricar.

  She was still yelling in his bedroom, calling for him, calling for help. After all the things he’d done, all the death and destruction he’d wrought in the name of his people, he’d never felt as monstrous as he did now. Dragging Tabitha into his dwelling and binding her to his bed seemed the most heinous act of all.

  So why did some deep, primal part of him like it? Why did that part of him like having Tabitha beneath him, having her at his mercy, having her staring up at him with her cheeks flushed and hair tousled?

  His feelings were a chaotic jumble, as they’d so often been during his stay on Earth. He hated what he’d had to do, and he felt guilty for doing it—and for not doing enough. He was frustrated with himself, with the mission, with the universe. Yet he still thrummed with desire for Tabitha. That undiminished want only further complicated his feelings.

  This was what he’d wanted, wasn’t it? Tabitha in his home, in his bed?

  He followed a trail of scattered blades of grass and wet, incomplete footprints from the front door to the back, reversing the path of Tabitha’s frantic flight through his dwelling. She’d surprised him; she’d made him proud. Though she was not a warrior, she had put up a valiant struggle, and had shown a strong spirit at her core that had only made her that much more attractive to him.

  After tucking his tail into his pants, Zevris activated his holoshroud, deactivated the forcefield before him, and unlocked the glass door. It slid open smoothly, nearly silent. The screen door beyond it was another matter. Its warped frame jittered and scraped the rails as he tried to pull it closed, sticking so firmly after moving a few halting inches that he simply gave up and shoved it off the railing completely.

  Stepping onto the patio, he set the misshapen screen door aside, closed the sliding door, and reengaged the forcefield.

  The cool breeze was still flowing, gently rustling the vegetation behind his yard. Big, fluffy white clouds rolled across the cerulean sky, drifting leisurely; they were carefree. The sun was bright and clear but not hot, making everything seem more vibrant. It was a beautiful day on Earth, a peaceful one—at least in this little part of the world.

  All Zevris had to do was step back inside and that sense of peace
would be gone.

  Tabitha’s words echoed in his mind. People are going to wonder where I am.

  He raked his fingers through his hair and growled. His lack of knowledge concerning Tabitha had been a source of limitless intrigue less than ten minutes ago, and now it was a liability. Friends, family, coworkers, neighbors, debt collectors, the mailperson—there were so many people she might have been connected to who would eventually notice her absence. Once the local authorities were tipped off, it would not be long before they knocked on Zevris’s door to ask questions.

  He’d need to learn as much as he could about her as quickly as possible, and he would need to use that knowledge to somehow keep up the pretense that nothing was wrong. He would have to somehow prevent the people who cared about her from becoming suspicious.

  “That’ll be simple,” he grumbled. “As simple as this whole damned mission.”

  And yet his greatest concern was for Tabitha herself. How could he make her comfortable, how could he best tend to her needs, how could he make this unfortunate situation as pleasant for her as possible—or at the very least, how could he mitigate the unpleasantness?

  The only way for Zevris to have her, to keep her, to stay with her forever, was through a mating bond. It was only a matter of time before she became his mate, before they made that bond. There was no other choice. But that process would be far more enjoyable—and far faster—if he showed her that he would tend to all her needs. If he showed her that he cared for her.

  If he was unsuccessful in those endeavors…what would Exthurizen Command do with a human who knew of the falorans’ existence, of their presence on Earth, of their objectives?

  Zevris knew the answer to that question, but he refused to acknowledge it. He would not let anyone harm Tabitha.

  All uncertainty had to be cast aside. It made no difference that faloran scientists didn’t know if humans could form mating bonds with falorans; it had to work. And Zevris only had thirty days to make it happen.