by Tana Stone
From the limited intel of the Spartosians, he knew they resembled Drexians—a smaller, washed-out version. His dark hair would certainly draw stares, as would his bronze skin. Luckily, he didn’t plan to be seen by the pale-haired natives. The device Vekron had given him should allow him to move unseen throughout the city, the stealth technology creating a bubble around him as long as he wore the device and as long as it worked properly. Without it, he probably didn’t have long until someone spotted him, and he did not want that to happen.
“Here goes,” he muttered to himself, as he pressed a button on the smaller device on his waist.
Like he’d flipped a switch, he disappeared from view. He patted his own body—the still-soaking clothes plastered to his skin—but couldn’t see anything. When he moved, there was a slight rippling in the air and the objects behind him looked like water had passed across them for a flicker of a moment, but aside from that, he was invisible.
“When I get back to the ship, I need to give Vekron a promotion.”
He started to walk, but realized that he was leaving a trail of water in his wake. He cursed again. He couldn’t be undetected if he left puddles as he went.
Brok started to unbutton his pants, then hesitated. What was his problem? It wasn’t like anyone could see him, after all. Sure, he’d have to reveal himself when he located Serge and Madeleine, but by then he should have been able to procure some dry clothes. And he certainly had nothing to be ashamed of. He was in the best shape of his life since he’d spent hours in the battleship’s Kranji ring, trying to pound away his unwanted desire for the tribute bride.
He shook his head and continued to undress, dropping his pants and then pulling off his dripping shirt. He wadded both up and jammed them behind a rock, along with his military boots. When he wore only his tight, black boxer briefs, he clipped the devices to them.
“No one can see me,” he reminded himself. Not even he could see him.
He continued up the rocky path, his footfall virtually silent without his thick-soled boots. It was so strange not to hear his own feet pounding against steel flooring—like on the ship—that the quiet was almost unnerving. There was no such thing as silence on an Inferno Force battleship.
Brok was glad that he no longer dripped water or announced his approach with echoing footsteps as he drew closer to the city. The lapping of the water against rock was soon replaced with voices and the air no longer smelled of salt, but instead, carried the scent of cooking grease.
Rounding a corner, Brok was met with a long canal, with buildings on both sides. Boats were tied to some of the buildings, with goods being sold off them, and people hung out of windows, bartering and offering other items for sale. The occasional hoverboat skimmed by, but more flat-bottomed boats were propelled by long sticks. Rickety bridges that did not match the buildings spanned the canal in numerous places, and residents crossed them gingerly.
Brok guessed that the canal led into the city, and according to his device, that was where the human and Gatazoid were. He stood on the edge of the water, waiting patiently until a hoverboat passed. He leapt on, causing the boat to pitch to one side. The passengers shrieked as they rocked, and the Spartosian at the back glanced around, as confused as anyone as to why the boat had rocked so suddenly.
Taking care not to jostle the boat again, Brok made his way to the front to balance the weight, standing with his legs wide apart to keep from falling in, as they sped through the canal and took wide turns. Soon, the run-down edge of the city gave way to the glittering buildings he’d seen rising out of the water.
There were no makeshift bridges in this area. Instead, beautifully-carved stone bridges—some of them covered—spanned the width of the canal, and none of the boats were propelled by hand. Grease did not linger in the air. Instead, the scent of flowers surrounded him, although he did not see many blooms. Occasionally, bright blossoms burst from a window box, but not nearly enough to explain the perfume in the air.
Music spilled from doorways, and it seemed like every other resident was singing, even the males steering the boats. Brok was grateful no one could see him, because he was sure his mouth was dangling open in likely a most unattractive way. Had he arrived during some sort of festival? The Spartosians seemed to be celebrating something, he thought, as a boat filled with scantily-clad females draped in various provocative positions glided by. And they all seemed to be wearing almost as little clothing as him.
The boat he was riding slowed long enough for the riders to be handed some bright-red fruits from a vendor on the bank, which they proceeded to feed each other seductively, as the boat continued on. Brok tried to ignore them and the increasing fervent noises the couple made once they’d finished the fruit.
He glanced at the male steering the boat, who didn’t seem to notice or care that the couple now openly fondled each other as they sped through the city. Clearly, the rumors that Spartos was a hedonist society were true. He’d never seen a place—and that included several of the pleasure planets—where residents were so uninhibited.
Glancing back to the couple sitting in the boat, he now saw that the male had his head completely underneath the female’s voluminous skirts as she moaned loudly, giving no doubt to what he was doing between her spread legs.
Brok forced himself to look away, even as he felt his cock harden. The thought of having his head between a female’s legs sent blood rushing south. It had been so long since he’d been with a female—any female—that he almost growled in response to the female’s breathy moans growing louder. She let out a final scream of pleasure before the male emerged from beneath her skirts, grinning widely. Before he had to witness, or hear, the man whip out his cock and begin rutting between her legs, the boat slowed to a stop.
Brok glanced down at the device on his waist. He had not reached the exact spot where Serge and Madeleine were—and now it appeared they were slightly separated—but he needed to get out of the boat. With a single jump, he leapt onto the landing and strode away without a backward glance, almost bumping into a pair of males taking turns jumping up and attempting to kiss a pair of breasts hanging out of an overhead window. The female who owned the ample breasts was laughing happily as the males—who appeared to be not much more than teenagers—jostled each other and jumped higher, hooting and cheering when their tongues made contact with one of the pink nipples.
He staggered out of the way before he bumped into them, although he doubted either male would notice a thing. They were too captivated by the female teasing them with her round breasts. He did not consider himself a prude—after all, he had frequented pleasure planets and pleasure houses, as every Drexian did—but what the grek kind of place was this? And why did everyone seem like they were drunk on Palaxian Pleasure Tonic?
Panic roiled in his gut. If they had paid the Ganthar pirates handsomely for Madeleine, he had no doubt why they had. He had to find her before she did anything she would regret. Or before anything was done to her.
Chapter Six
“Where were they taking my friend again?” Maddie asked the queen, as they entered a spacious room overlooking one of the canals.
The queen gave a curt flip of her hand. “He’ll be perfectly safe, my dear. We have no intention of harming either of you.”
That wasn’t entirely comforting, Maddie thought. Nor had it answered her question, although she’d come to notice that the Spartosians weren’t the most direct people. They seemed to prefer talking in circles and smiling a lot. Why did everyone on this planet smile so damn much?
She tried not to worry about Serge—the little guy was tougher than he looked, right?—and focus on where she was. They hadn’t walked far from the main hall, so she knew they were still in the palace, but this room appeared to be private chambers of some sort, although not a bedroom. If she were being honest, it looked more like an indoor playground or quirky gym.
There were mats along one section of the floor covered in a silky fabric, and a pair of swings susp
ended from the ceiling in the center of the room. Giant, gold balls pushed against the walls reminded her of exercise balls she’d used in the gym to do crunches when she was feeling really badass. Cloth poufs were clustered around a set of high arched windows like chairs arranged in front of a flat-screen, and in an alcove over to one side were a pair of sunken pools. One had steam rising from the surface and the other did not.
The queen took her hand, and her grip was surprisingly strong. “You look like you need to relax and enjoy yourself.” She tugged her toward the swings. “I can see the tension in you.”
Madeleine allowed herself to be led to the pair of swings, even though she found it a little odd that the queen would spend her time swinging. It didn’t seem like a very regal thing to do. Not that she was an expert in queenly behavior.
They both sat on one of the fabric swings and, as if on cue, two females emerged from side doors and took their place behind them to push.
Totally normal, Maddie told herself. Nothing weird about this at all. Aside from the fact she hadn’t been pushed on a swing since she was probably about six years old.
“Tell me about the Drexians,” the queen said, as they were both pulled back and then pushed forward.
Madeleine held on as she flew forward, and her skirt blew back into her lap. She used one hand to try to smooth it back down, since the breeze blowing the sheer fabric left little to the imagination and revealed that the Spartosians didn’t believe in underwear. “I don’t know much about them. I’ve only seen them in passing.”
The queen twisted to look at her. “But you are one of their tribute brides?”
Madeleine noticed that the queen didn’t seem to care that her skirt was also blowing into her lap. I guess we’re all friends now, she thought, trying to politely avert her eyes. “I wasn’t on their space station long before we had to evacuate, and I never met the Drexian I was supposed to marry, if I’d even been assigned one yet. I mostly interacted with Reina and Serge, who you met.”
“Yes. The little creature with the funny hair.”
Madeleine found herself feeling defensive of Serge. “He’s a Gatazoid.”
The woman nodded and swung higher, her long, bare legs extended in front of her as her blonde hair flew behind. “Doesn’t the wind feel wonderful on your skin?”
“Mm-hmm.” Madeleine made a sound of agreement, but she definitely wasn’t as into the swinging as the Spartosian queen was. Sure, it was kind of fun, but the rapturous expression on the other woman’s face made her think she somehow wasn’t getting the full effect.
“So, you are not mated to a Drexian, yet?”
“What? Mated? No, and I don’t even know if I want to be.” Why was she confessing this to a total stranger?
“No?” The queen slowed her swinging. “I have heard that the Drexians are quite large and physically impressive. Is that not true?”
Madeleine shrugged. “No. As far as I’ve seen, that’s true.”
“Then you do not think it would be pleasurable to mate with them?” The queen put her feet to the floor to stop herself.
Well, she didn’t beat around the bush much, did she?
Madeleine’s cheeks warmed, as she also slowed her swinging. “I guess. I mean, I don’t know. I hadn’t really thought about it like that.”
The blonde locked her icy-blue eyes on her, her lips curling into a smile. “What other way of looking at it is there?” Before waiting for an answer, she grabbed Madeleine’s hand and pulled her out of the swing. “If something doesn’t feel good, there’s no point in doing it.”
Madeleine definitely didn’t agree with that. Most of the things she did weren’t necessarily enjoyable, but they gave her a great deal of satisfaction. She would never be able to claim that she enjoyed being puked on, or bled on, or all of the other crazy things that happened to her as a paramedic, but she also wouldn’t trade it for the world. And most of the things that gave her a thrill—free diving, rock climbing, skydiving—were pretty terrifying when she was in the middle of them. But the adrenaline rush was worth any momentary fear or even pain. The rush made her feel alive.
“You do not agree?” The queen looked down at her, studying her expression, which Madeleine suspected revealed just how much she didn’t agree.
“To each their own. I guess I get my enjoyment out of things that aren’t obviously pleasurable.”
The blonde narrowed her eyes at her. “Very curious. Spartos made a decision to cut off contact with other species because we found the conflict and war to be unpleasant. Interacting with other planets detracted from our overall enjoyment, so we stopped it. Our planet is rich with natural resources, so we do not need trade with other worlds, and we have been very happy keeping to ourselves. But I feel now we have been missing out on variety.”
“How long ago was that?”
The queen led her across the room by the hand until they’d reached the pair of round, sunken pools. “So many generations I’ve forgotten.”
“Then why am I here? I’m not from Spartos, and your people had to deal with space pirates to get me.”
Her pupils flared. “I can only imagine how terrifying that must have been, dear.” She stepped out of her skirt and unhooked her top so that it dropped to the floor, leaving her completely naked. “My people brought you back because, as much as we do not want to deal with other species, we can’t help being curious about them.”
Madeleine quickly looked down. Apparently, the Spartosians didn’t have modesty issues. Naked, the alien’s skin looked even more pearlescent.
The queen stepped into the pool with steam rising from the surface, moaning as she submerged herself completely. When she was leaning back in the water with her elbows hooked on the side and her breasts bobbing above the surface, she waved for Madeleine to join her. “You must come in. It’s divine.”
Something in the woman’s tone made her think that it was not a request. Okay, Maddie, she told herself. You can do this. You’re not a prude. You’ve skinny-dipped before. This is no big deal.
Glancing over her shoulder, she spotted the females who’d been swinging them positioned a few steps away. They were smiling at her, but nothing in their expressions indicated that this was out of the ordinary.
She took a deep breath and dropped her own skirt and halter top, leaving them on the floor and walking as quickly as she could into the pool without tripping over her own feet. The heat of the water stung her skin at first, but after a few moments, she felt her muscles relax. An involuntary moan escaped her lips as she inhaled the perfumed steam rising off the water.
The queen laughed. “I told you it’s heavenly.”
Madeleine couldn’t argue with her, there. She took another deep breath. The scent of the oils in the water were addictively calming, and after a few more breaths she wondered why she’d been tense at all. The queen was right. This felt good.
She folded her arms on the side of the pool and rested her face on them, as she stretched the rest of her body out behind her in a long line. Why shouldn’t it feel good? Why shouldn’t she feel good?
A giggle bubbled up in her throat. She hadn’t felt so light and carefree in, well, maybe ever. Certainly, not since before her parents had died in the train crash and she’d survived. She gave her head a small shake. No, she didn’t want to think about that. Thinking about that time in her life didn’t feel good, and right now all she cared about was feeling good. Feeling pleasure. Wasn’t that what the queen had said was important, anyway.?Maybe these Spartosians had it right, after all.
She turned to tell the queen that she agreed with her, but she only saw the retreating form of the woman’s naked back as she stepped out of the pool and was wrapped in towels by the attendants.
“You stay and enjoy the water,” the queen said, as she walked away. “I have some things to attend to.”
Odd, Madeleine thought, but she leaned her head back on the side of the pool and closed her eyes. A sense of contentment filled her again, and
her skin practically hummed from the pleasure of the hot water enveloping it.
When she felt the large hands on her waist, it took a moment for her to realize that she was not imagining it. Turning swiftly, she saw one of the princes from earlier standing next to her in the water—also naked, with an expression of desire on his face that made her mouth go dry.
Chapter Seven
“What the actual fuck?” Madeleine slapped one hand across her bare breasts, the euphoria slipping away as he tightened his grip on her waist.
“I thought you might enjoy some company.” He smiled as if it was the most normal thing in the world to get into a hot tub naked with a total stranger.
Maybe it was in their world, but it wasn’t in hers. Shaking her head hard to dislodge the strange dopey feeling that had overtaken her, Madeleine put her free hand on his chest and pushed. “You were wrong.”
Unfortunately, he didn’t budge, and his wide smile didn’t falter. “I can make you feel good. Even better than the water does.”
She let her eyes drop to the steaming water and the intoxicating scent rising off it. Was that what had made her feel so happy and uninhibited? Was there something in the water? Biting her bottom lip to give herself a jolt, she tasted the tang of blood and felt the brain fog lifting.
“Thanks, but I’ll pass.” She twisted out of his grasp and sidestepped him quickly, heading for the stairs.
His strong arm looped around her waist from behind and he jerked her back. “You don’t mean that. I’m a prince. Every female in Spartos wants to be pleasured by me.” His breath heated her ear as he pressed his body flush to hers. “I’m legendary.”
She could feel his legendary claim pressing up against her ass, and her heart raced. She swiveled her head around the room, but everyone had gone. Not that she guessed anyone would come running if she screamed. She was pretty sure that anyone within hearing range was under strict orders not to disturb the prince while he made his conquest.
