by Presley Hall
“No. I think they intended to keep us, instead of selling us like they did to you. But the warriors who rescued you from Nierra, the Kalixians, were on the Orkun ship as prisoners themselves. They staged a revolt and took control of the ship, rescuing me and the other human women on board before the Orkun could force us into the same mating ceremony they had planned for you.”
I have the women’s full attention now, their expressions intent and curious as I speak. I can see relief on several faces as they absorb the news that I once experienced a similar plight, and that the aliens who rescued them really are that—rescuers.
“We’re headed back to Kalix, the home planet of these alien warriors. I, along with the other women who were on that ship, have lived among the Kalixians for some time now. They are ruled by a king whose name is Khrelan. He is kind and fair, and he has issued an edict since our arrival allowing us to become a part of their society and be treated like any Kalixian citizen.”
“Can we go back to Earth if we want to?” one of the women asks, and I hear a murmur of nervous assent.
“If any of you really want to return to Earth, King Khrelan will make whatever arrangements he can to get you there,” I say, “although there are no official ships that can go to Earth. Smugglers can be bartered with to take any of us back who choose to go, although that could potentially be quite dangerous.”
Taking a deep breath, I pause to organize my thoughts quickly.
“I have to be honest with you all,” I add. “None of us have chosen to return. I know that I personally have no desire to go back to a place where my own government chose to sell me to slave traffickers. All the women who were rescued aboard the Orkun ship have been accepted and given a safe place to live. We’ve flourished on Kalix and been happy. Some of us have even fallen in love with Kalixian warriors, and three of the women who were rescued are pregnant now.”
I see several eyebrows raise at that, and a soft murmur of shock from some of the women. I can understand that. There was a time when I would have been absolutely shocked by it too. I was suspicious of Rose and Tordax’s bond at first, thinking that surely there must be some coercion involved, that it couldn’t possibly be real.
But now?
Now I know better. I know exactly what the bond is, and what it feels like.
“If there’s anything else you’re worried about or want to know, I’m happy to talk with you as much as you like. I know this has been difficult for all of you. But I promise, no one here will harm you or take advantage of you in any way. And if you wish to speak to a Kalixian about your concerns, Druxik will be happy to talk to you too.”
All the women still look slightly shell-shocked, which is hardly a surprise. They’ve been through a hell of a lot recently and have had their most basic understanding of the universe shaken up by the revelation that aliens are real. Now I just threw another piece of surprising information into the mix. I’m sure it’s a lot to process, but I want them to know about the mate bonds now that so they’re not surprised when we arrive back on Kalix. I want them to understand how deeply the mated Kalixian males worship and care for their women.
And despite their quiet murmurs, none of the women protest our current course to Kalix or speak up and say that they want to go back to Earth.
I expected as much. Every one of them knows that our own people betrayed us and sold us out, and they saw the fierce way that the Kalixians fought to free them.
It will take time, just as it did for me and the others, for them to feel truly safe and comfortable again. I’ll do everything I can to help them reach that point. It makes me happy to know that I’ve succeeded in the task I set for myself—the reason why I came on this mission in the first place. I can help these women assimilate, along with any other humans who might come to join us on Kalix in the future.
A few of the women do have questions for me, taking me up on my offer. They want to know what Kalix is like, where the women live, and whether they’ll truly be welcome in an alien society.
I explain as much as I can and let them know that they’ll receive excellent medical care for any injuries they’ve sustained once we reach Kalix, as well as a place to live and a stipend for food and necessities. I also let them know that the Queen of Kalix is one of us, a woman who was rescued on the same ship I was on.
A soft murmur goes through the group at that. They visibly relax, clearly comforted by the knowledge that a human like them shares the duty of leading Kalix.
After a while, Miri leans into me, gazing up at me with sleepy eyes as she raises her arms toward me. With a soft smile, I reach down and hoist the little girl into my arms.
“I’m going to take Miri and put her to bed,” I tell them. “But don’t hesitate to reach out to me if you need anything at all.”
I take the little girl back to what I’ve decided will be her room. It served as my cabin for part of the journey to Nierra, but it’s empty now, since I started sleeping with Druxik every night after we both gave in to the bond.
Inside the small quarters, I clean her up and help her get ready for bed, then tuck her in on a mattress that’s far too big for her.
“When we get back to Kalix, you’ll have a room made just for you and a bed that’s your size,” I promise her.
She reaches up, wrapping her arms around my neck as I lean down to tuck the blankets around her.
“I’m safe now?” she asks querulously, and I blink back tears.
“Yes,” I promise, stroking her hair softly as her eyelids start to droop. “You’re safe now, Miri. I’ll always be close by, I promise. And I’ll never let anything hurt you. Neither will Druxik. You’ll be safe with us.”
I sit with her for a little while as she falls asleep, then head into the bathing room and wash up, keeping an ear perked for any noise in the bedroom. I want to make sure she doesn’t wake up again and get scared. When I’m satisfied that she’s completely out for the night, I slip quietly out of the room.
As I turn a corner in the hallway, not really looking where I’m going, I run smack into Druxik, my nose bumping against his chest.
He catches me before I can trip and fall, and as I look up at him wide-eyed, I feel the spark flare between us all over again. It’s just like that first time in the corridor, before I knew I could be so lucky as to have him as my mate. Back when he was just a fantasy I thought I’d never really have.
My mate wraps his arms around me, pulling me closer to him. He’s cleaned up from the fight as well, his skin no longer smeared with blood and dirt, and his familiar scent teases my nostrils.
“We seem to have a habit of running into each other,” he murmurs, his voice deep and husky. His lips curve into the sexy smirk that I know so well, and I reach up to wrap my arms around his neck as I tilt my chin up to kiss him.
“I hope I get to spend the rest of my life running into you,” I tell him, laughing softly.
His brown eyes flash, a hint of gold appearing in his irises. “Oh, you can count on it.”
He bends to kiss me before he even finishes speaking, angling our bodies and pressing me back against the wall as his lips possess mine.
This time, there’s no hesitation or doubt between the two of us. I’m his now, heart and mind and body and soul, and he’s mine too. I kiss him back fiercely, threading my fingers through his hair, relief and gratitude that he’s safe washing over me. I lean into him as his hands slide over my waist and hips.
He pulls me tightly against him, letting the hard length of his cock rub against my stomach, barely constrained by his loincloth.
God, I don’t ever want to stop kissing him.
I could do this forever, losing myself in the touch of his soft lips on mine and the feeling of his muscular body against me.
“We should go to my quarters,” Druxik says roughly against my lips, his voice hoarse with desire. He reaches for my hands, lifting them over my head and pinning me against the wall for just a second as he grinds his hips quick and hard agains
t me, letting me feel just how powerfully aroused he is. “Before I take you right here in this corridor and we get caught.”
A flush of desire races over me, heating my skin and making me briefly lose the power of speech as I nod wordlessly up at him.
He grins at me, that cocky, confident expression that turned me on so much when I first got to know him, and sweeps me up without another word, gathering me into his arms.
“When we get back to Kalix,” he says softly as he carries me the few feet to his cabin, “the first thing I’m going to do is find a place for us to live. I want to fall asleep beside you every night, your body still trembling from climax and your skin damp with sweat. I want to claim you over and over again. Because you’re mine, Cora. Now and forever.”
27
Cora
Druxik kicks the door shut behind him as he carries me into his cabin, then sets me down on the bed. I expect him to follow me down, caught up in the wave of desire that seems to overtake both of us anytime we kiss or touch each other.
But instead, he steps back, leaving me sprawled on the bed as he gazes down at me.
“Take off your clothes, my beautiful Irisa,” he murmurs. “Let me see all of you.”
The heated rasp of his voice makes my breath come faster, and I don’t hesitate to do as he commands. I never thought of myself as the type to enjoy following orders in bed, but something about the way Druxik speaks makes me desperate to give him what he wants.
Sitting up, I slowly let the fabric slide off my shoulders. It drops to my arms and then falls onto the bed behind me. I’m wearing nothing underneath it, and Druxik’s nostrils flare as my small breasts come into view, my rosy nipples already hard and aching for his touch.
His cock visibly jerks beneath the small covering of his loincloth, and I keep my gaze fixed on his as I raise my hips off of the bed just a little, sliding my pants down and kicking them to the floor along with my shoes, leaving me completely bare.
Druxik’s eyes widen, fixed hungrily on me, and I lean back on my elbows, parting my thighs ever so slightly. He licks his lips, his eyes now a bright shining gold.
“Now you’re the one who’s overdressed.” My voice is husky with desire, my heart beating hard against my ribs.
Without a word, Druxik unties his weapons belt and loincloth. He discards his sword and drops the strip of leather to the floor, allowing me to see him fully, gloriously nude. Every inch of his muscular body is bare to me, his thick cock straining toward me.
It’s far from the first time I’ve seen him naked, but there’s something different about it this time, when we’re on our way back home.
Home.
I’ve thought of Kalix that way before, but not like this. Now it will be not just a new home for me, but a home for us. It’ll be the place where Druxik and I will start our life together.
A fresh wave of desire fills me at that thought. My gaze roams over him unabashedly, taking in every inch of him as he stands before me—the dark curving horns and golden eyes, the sharp angles of his face, the broad shoulders and rippling muscles from chest to stomach to thighs, and the long, thick shaft that I suddenly need inside me like I need oxygen.
I’m breathless with the knowledge that he’s mine, all mine, every single bit of him.
His body, his heart, and his soul.
As if he’s been thinking the same things I have, Druxik crosses to me in two quick strides. Kneeling on the floor in front of me, he tugs me closer to the edge of the bed and then reaches up to spread my thighs apart. His hands—one bronzed flesh and the other glinting metal—slide up my soft inner calves and thighs without hesitation or fear.
He’s stopped worrying that I’ll reject him, that I’ll flinch back from his touch because of his robotic appendage. I see only confidence in his face now, along with a desire so intense it makes my stomach flutter.
Druxik looks up at me as he leans forward, spreading my legs wide as he bends to kiss the mound of my pussy. His lips brush over my sensitive, heated flesh, and I gasp aloud.
“Oh, god! Fuck, that feels…”
My voice trails off as his fingers stroke my inner thighs, then reach up to part my folds. His tongue slides over my clit, lapping up my arousal. He moans when he tastes me, the sound vibrating against my skin, and I clutch at the bedspread as I writhe beneath him.
My back arches as my hips lift a little off the mattress, wanting more. Needing more.
Druxik’s tongue slides over me in a long stroke, hot and soft and hungry, and I moan aloud, tossing my head back and forth.
I’m not going to last long. I’m already falling apart.
He laps me up as though he’s starving for me, as if he wants nothing more than to taste me, to devour me for all time. His tongue seeks out the spot that makes me arch and grind against him over and over, and I become a panting, writhing mess as he pushes me closer to the edge.
“I can’t—fuck, Druxik, I can’t hold on much longer. It’s too good.”
With a satisfied growl, he presses his lips against me, sucking my clit into his mouth as his tongue circles around it. I tangle my fingers in his hair, grinding against him a little as his deep voice vibrates against my skin. “Don’t hold on. Let go. Come for me, my sweet Cora. Let me feel you come on my face.”
My toes curl at his filthy words, my stomach fluttering with fresh desire. God, I want that. I want to feel the waves of pleasure crash over me as he devours me.
I’m so close. All I need is a little more—
“Come, Cora. Now.” With that rough command, he slides a finger into me, and then a second one, pressing upward as he begins to stroke inside me.
His tongue lashes over my clit relentlessly, driving me toward a breathtaking release. I’m propped up on my elbows near the edge of the bed, gazing down at Druxik’s head between my thighs, but as the orgasm hits me, I collapse back onto the mattress. My back arches and my hands clench at the sheets, my hips bucking as I come hard against his mouth.
Druxik doesn’t stop or even let up, carrying me through wave after wave of pleasure as I gasp and cry out. My moans reach a fever pitch as he keeps thrusting his fingers inside me, his tongue pressed against me.
Another orgasm hits me right on the heels of the first, making me cry out loudly as I clench around his fingers. But even then, he shows no signs of stopping. He plays my body like it’s an instrument he was born to master, wringing more pleasure out of me than I’ve ever experienced in my life.
I feel dizzy by the time he comes up for air. My hair is a mess from the wild movements of my head, and my muscles actually feel almost sore from tensing and contracting with the force of my orgasms.
Druxik crawls up onto the bed with me, lifting me with ease to reposition me with my head on the pillows, his muscular body stretched over mine.
He bends to kiss me softly, his hand stroking my hair as his lips brush over mine with the taste of me still on his mouth. A groan escapes him as I slide my tongue over his lower lip, and his cock throbs against my thigh, hard and hot and insistent.
“I need you,” he murmurs, his eyes bright and glowing gold with desire. “I need to be inside you. To feel every bit of you.”
“Yes. Please. God, Druxik, please…”
I part my legs as I whisper the words, reaching up to pull him closer.
It’s indescribable, the feeling of being underneath his powerful body, of feeling him slide into me, possessing me. As his cock notches at my entrance, I kiss his mouth, his jaw, his ear, his neck, and the curve of his shoulder.
“I love seeing you beneath me,” he growls as he bottoms out inside me. With his cock sheathed in my channel, he leans back, his gaze raking over my body. He cups my breast as he grinds his hips against mine, caressing my nipples as he looks down at me with a face so full of desire that I could never mistake it for anything else.
I feel so beautiful when he looks at me, so perfect, and I know he sees the same thing in my eyes.
He’s ever
ything I could have ever wanted. My perfect match, my mate.
My Irisa.
“I love knowing that you’re mine,” he adds in a hoarse whisper, and then, finally, he begins to thrust.
I cry out with the pleasure of it, my body responding to him so completely that I realize I’m already on the verge of coming again.
“Druxik,” I moan, my back arching as I reach up to run my fingers over his chest. “I’m about to come. Please don’t stop.”
“Krax, yes,” he whispers, thrusting into me hard, his arms wrapping around me as he holds me closer to him. “Come for me, Cora. I never want to stop bringing you pleasure.”
I shudder beneath him when my climax hits, washing over me in rolling waves that feel as if they’ll last forever. Somewhere in the middle of it, Druxik sits up, his arms still tight around me and his lips pressed to mine as if he’ll never stop kissing me. Crushing me to his chest, he thrusts up into me hard. My legs wrap around his waist, every part of me clinging to him as the bond between us arcs like an electric current.
I can almost feel what he’s thinking in this moment, because I’m thinking the same thing: we came so close to losing each other, and I’m so fucking grateful we didn’t.
Druxik’s cock pulses inside me as he fills me with his release, his sweat-slicked skin hot against mine. Even as we both begin to come down from the incredible euphoria of climaxing together, he keeps pulsing his hips, fucking me for as long as he can.
A shudder runs through me as he grinds against my clit, and I rest my head on his shoulder. We stay like that for a long moment, so deeply intwined together that I lose track of where I end and he begins.
Even our hearts seem to thud in unison, as perfectly in sync as we are.
28
Druxik
I’m still breathless from the intensity of what we’ve just done as I slowly withdraw from Cora’s tight channel and lie back, gathering her into my arms. As I hold her close to me, breathing her in, I feel truly content. For the first time, anything seems possible. We have our whole lives together ahead of us, and I can’t wait to get back to Kalix and begin mapping out our future.
