by Zara Zenia
“I told you I’m not an astronaut.”
“I’ll close the viewport.”
“No. I mean, I’m getting used to it. And it is gorgeous.”
“This far away, yes. Earth littered its skies with a multitude of satellites. It’s dangerous, but your people do many dangerous things.”
“You’re judgmental. You know that?”
Akrawn shrugged and fussed with my blanket again. “As a prince, it is my job to evaluate many situations.”
“Isn’t there something else you can do besides staring at me like I’m a meal?”
He cocked his head once more. “Of course, my Cat. Can I get you food or drink?”
“Alcohol,” I spoke definitively because I needed a drink. But it could be a poor idea. This Trilyn prince considered whether he should have some freaky machine neutralize my contraception so I could bear his child.
Akrawn left the room, but moments later returned with two cocktail glasses and a dish filled with fruit and sat on the bed.
“Now, my darling Cat, sip this. It should help to relax you.”
I sipped it and found it delicious. “What is in this?”
“A secret recipe my father concocted when he courted my mother. He swears it helped.”
“How?”
“To induce her to say ‘yes’ to him.”
He handed me a dish of strange purple fruit.
“This is Perl,” Akrawn said. He peeled the purplish fruit and offered me a piece.
I know now why Akrawn smells of cinnamon and oranges. It comes from this fruit.
“This,” he said, “makes me—”
"Heartsick?" I said.
"No, homesick." He laughed. "But I was heartsick.”
"Rawklix mentioned this. What is heartsickness? Is it a serious illness?"
"Yes.” He laughed again.
“Akrawn, don’t make light of this. If you are sick, I should know.”
He smiled and offered another piece of fruit. “But you, my Cat, have cured me.”
"How?”
“By being your magnificent self.”
“That isn’t much of answer,” I said.
“No? It is all the answer I need.”
“Heart disease is nothing to mess with. If you need to see a doctor—”
“Ssh, my Cat. All is well now. Many of my people have been heartsick since we lost our women. For a single man such as myself, it comes on when we wait too long to marry.”
“I still don’t understand.”
“Our scientists say it is because our system gets overloaded with too many male hormones and it causes an ache in the heart.”
“Your heart breaks if you don’t marry?”
He cocked his head to one side and studied my face.
“I suppose you can say that.” He brushed my hair with his fingertips, then took my fingers and kissed the tips of each one.
“Every part of you is glorious and luxuriating in your presence makes my heart glad.”
I swallowed hard. No man had been this romantic with me.
He hummed a crooning song and ghosted kisses on my neck and arms. He continued down my stomach and then legs, from outer thigh to inner and trailed butterfly kisses to my toes while he hummed. Akrawn made every part of my body tingle. He spoke Trilyn words and the foreign words tumbled from his mouth rhythmically like a poem.
He stared at me with a smoldering gaze while he sucked on my toes and heat rose through me. How did a man make mouthing toes sexy? Electricity pulsed through me and I squirmed wanting his attentions elsewhere. I burned from the inside out as he teased me with his song.
Akrawn hummed up my legs, one thumb pressing into one side while his mouth teased the other. I whimpered because he did everything but touch my most sensitive places. My breathing became gasps and moans, and I was ready to beg him to give me relief.
“Your skin is soft,” he murmured. “Your scent is headier than wine, and I soar high on the promise of your sweetness.”
He passionately kissed my tender flesh and then hummed between my legs and lapped at the tender flesh as he feasted on my cream. Oh my god, I just might come from that. But the bastard watched every twitch and sigh and backed off the flesh he inflamed at the moment. Repeatedly he brought me to the edge of pleasure then pulled away.
“Akrawn!” I whined. “It’s good, so good. I need, baby, I need so much.”
He lifted his head and gazed at me lovingly. My cream glistened on his lips, and he licked it off as if it were a confection.
“My darling, and I need you. But I want as much of you as I can get. Forgive my selfishness for taking my time.”
I whimpered. “Baby,” I said as he returned to lapping me. I gripped the sheets and arched my back, and muttered, “Please, oh god, baby, need you, need you.”
“Okay, my Cat,” he said with a sigh. He stood and pulled off his clothes. His cock was rock hard and weeping. He sat on the bed again.
With infinite care, he opened my robe revealing my breasts and lowered his head reverently to them. He hummed his Trilyn songs while licking and sucking my nipples and white heat ran through me. I threw my arms around his neck. When he raised his head with surprise in his eyes, I kissed him. He tasted of me, oranges, and cinnamon and I pressed my tongue further to claim his mouth. I was drowning in sweet citrus and spice, and everything in the world swirled away. His hands reached to squeeze my butt, and I pushed against him, the heat between my legs driving me insane.
Hot and hard, he slid between my legs yet not inside.
My back arched seeking to connect with him. He nibbled my ears and mouthed my neck and behind my ear. One hand trailed down my front to find my delicate nub and his fingers danced and played on the flesh he enervated with his tongue.
Enough teasing. I reached for Akrawn's cock and palmed the fat head. He gasped as if no one had ever touched him. His eyes closed as I slid him toward my entrance.
“Come on, baby,” I said. “I’m waiting for you.”
He bit his lip as he entered me and huffed out a breath. I let my head fall back as inch by inch he filled me.
“Damn it, Akrawn! Stop teasing and start pleasing!”
He gave me a lazy smile and put his index finger on my lips. He meant to quiet me. Instead, I opened my mouth and sucked his finger inside it and used my tongue to play with it as if it was his cock in my mouth. Akrawn smiled wickedly and fucked my mouth with that finger still laden with the taste of Perl and drew in and out of me with his cock. Slow and long strokes made my toes curl, and my breaths came in rapid breaths. He lit a fire deep inside me. Akrawn slid in me with a gentle in and out teasing rhythm drawing out each movement until I could no longer take it. I slid my arms around his neck and wrapped my legs around his waist and jutted my hips demanding his cock deliver my satisfaction.
He gasped while I exploded and found myself in a place far beyond Pluto.
Chapter 17
Akrawn
Catherine O’Shea surprised me because her desire for me burned as bright as mine for her. I wasn’t used to a responsive woman and I thought Earth women were a bigger gift than we’d realized. Even Bella, despite her salacious talk, was never eager in bed. While I had no complaint, she did not take me to the heights my Cat did.
My Cat sated and completed me, but I sensed the mating bond had not solidified and it should have by now. I wished I understood why it hadn’t. Maybe there were more reasons than sabotage regarding why the genetic compatibility analyzer failed.
Though I hated the idea, I needed to speak to Bella, who knew more about biology than me, and who made the damn analyzer work. I should have imprisoned her for treating my Cat with disrespect. But as my father said more than once, when you discourage people from speaking their mind, you will never get their true thoughts on a matter. Kings and princes needed the opinions of others to govern well. No man had all the answers.
That was the reason my father listened to Cat, though I was sure how my mate spoke anno
yed him. If a king grants you an audience, you speak your mind with respect. My adorable Cat was not a diplomat.
I decided to give my pilot a break and bring my Cat to the pilot’s cabin. We were on a trajectory to rendezvous with the Trilyn mothership keeping orbit behind Earth’s moon. It was one of our battlecruisers having the capacity to couple with and transport all seven of our royal yachts. Regrettably, my yacht remained at the San Francisco Airport. This ship had been my home for the past four years, but it was a part of my yacht that coupled with it when needed.
Wide-eyed amazement filled my Cat’s face as we walked through the ship. She had seen little of it and her fingertips trailed on the walls lined with beautiful Trilyn woods.
We entered my lab which was the hub of my home and I passed my hand in front of the wall that led to the pilot’s cabin. Cat’s eyes opened wider as the wall dissolved to reveal this working part of the ship.
“Captain Genween, I’ll relieve you.”
Genween looked over his shoulder and almost smiled, but his face froze when he saw Cat.
“Is there a problem, Genween?” I asked.
He shook his head. “No, your Highness. I just didn’t expect... Forgive me, my lord. I haven’t been off the ship since we arrived and have not met an Earth woman.”
Cat stepped forward and offered her hand, which was an un-Trilyn thing for a woman.
“Inspector Catherine O’Shea, San Francisco Police Department. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
I thought Genween might explode. His face blushed red, and he stared too long at her. While I was proud of the reaction she drew from other men, I disliked it too.
“My Cat,” I said. “My men are not used to a woman of your beauty walking among them. Please forgive the captain’s stares.”
“Oh,” she said. She wasn’t sure what to do, but I pointed to the co-pilot’s seat.
“Captain, take some rest while I show my Cat the beauties of her solar system.” I emphasized for the second time that Cat was mine to my man although Cat had not agreed yet to be my mate.
“Yes, your Highness. Thank you.”
Genween stood stiffly and because the small space here crowded us, I saw it wasn’t because he sat too long in one place. I must arrange some shore leave for my men.
Genween left the cabin and Cat pursed her lips. “That was awkward.”
“My men find you beautiful.”
“I didn’t mean that. It’s just so obvious.”
“Forgive him or any of my men who find you attractive. I’ve ordered they stay on the ship. Earth is very particular about immigration and we did not want to alarm them with the number of people we brought.”
“But how can you keep the number of your people secret? The immigration authorities have to know.”
“Cat, by diplomatic agreement, all Trilyn vessels are official embassies. We can keep as many people there as we wish, but they can’t visit the cities.”
“So you locked them up on your ships for four years?”
“Yes. They understand their sacrifice is for the good of Trilyn.”
“I wonder,” said Cat. “I can imagine someone must be unhappy and that could be the source of these attacks against you.”
“I would find that difficult to believe, my Cat. They all come from families with generations of service to the royal family.”
She shook her head. “You know your people best, Akrawn.”
Cat’s suggestion shook me. Could there be a traitor? I didn’t realize Bella was a traitor until I figured out what she did with the genetic analyzer. But she didn’t sabotage it for political reasons. Or did she?
“Now, I want to show you something.” I pulled up the holos from our navigation satellites and showed her Earth.
She stared at them. “This resolution is incredible.”
“Here,” I said as I keyed the controls, “SFPD police station.”
The image zeroed in on the police station. She stared at the image. “The damage seems light.”
I considered this and worked the controls to display different angles. A few windows were without glass, but otherwise, the building appeared in good shape.
“You are right, my Cat. And that proves it was not my bomb that exploded. That one would have caused far more damage.”
“They could have contained it in the bomb vault.”
“For their sake, I hope they did. However, even contained, the bomb would have done significant damage, not just put out a few window panes.”
“Akrawn, that means they are still in danger.”
I shook my head. I had accessed my command codes and disabled the mechanism.
“No, my Cat. A second ago I disarmed the bomb. Your friends and colleagues are safe.”
She frowned. “I want more information on what happened.”
“Then let us listen to a news station. ENN repeats the same story repeatedly.” I keyed the command to display.
“You’re familiar with finding news stations in space?” asked Cat. She arched an eyebrow.
“We all listened and watched in our assessments before we announced ourselves on Earth.”
She frowned.
“But how did you do that without someone detecting you?”
I reached for her hand as naturally as a plant seeks water. “My Cat, most of your satellites point to and watch Earth. Few scan the skies about Earth. It is easy enough to evade detection.”
Her frown deepened and her adorable face flushed red.
“Well, gee. Now that you’ve found Earth, don’t you think other races would find us too? Why didn’t you think to tell us so we could ready our defenses?”
“My dear Cat, Trilyn stands ready to defend Earth. Nor could your people withstand an attack from the more civilized worlds. Happily, Earth has nothing they want.”
My words did nothing to ease the fierceness on her face.
“So you are saying we are a Protectorate of Trilyn whether we wish or no?”
I scrubbed my face because this conversation was getting out of hand.
“My dear Cat. A Protectorate controls a territory. We do not control Earth, otherwise I wouldn’t have fled from Earth authorities.”
She grunted her grudging acceptance of this logic, but her face communicated her unhappiness. By Tri, these humans were stubbornly independent and paranoid.
“What are your plans for Earth?”
“My Cat, what can I tell you? You know our situation. We did not make it secret. For our race to continue, it must be with help from Earth women. The only Earth woman married to one of our princes is Amy and she’s unwilling to leave Earth. We do not know how you would fare on the heavier gravity of Trilyn and the situation there is not as stable as we wish. So we will continue to woo Earth women and take things one step at a time. If the Princes of Trilyn can take wives, then there is hope because our people will follow our example. If we do not, then the people will lose faith in their leaders and sink into despair.”
Cat stared the picture of the SFPD and sucked on her lip.
“My grandmother said ‘don’t let other people make their problems your issues’. But your people did and brought danger to Earth. You have more control over our tech than you should—”
Now my Cat alarmed me. “I’d never abuse that,” I said.
“But an unknown person is, Akrawn. This criminal attacked the SFPD Police Department to make you look guilty. Anyone near you is in danger.”
My Cat perceived the situation clearly, but her words were a knife stab to my heart. I did put her in danger. “I would let no one hurt you,” I said. “I will always protect you.”
She shook her head.
“Damn it, Akrawn. That’s not the point. I don’t need protecting. It’s my job to face danger daily. But it is not Earth’s job to save Trilyn. There isn’t enough tech you can offer us for that.”
I looked ahead at the viewscreen and concentrated on our course. Earth spun below us with white clouds spread over the blue wa
ters of this planet that for its size, reminded me of Trilyn. I keyed the sensors that should locate our battlecruiser, but curiously it didn’t return a return signal.
“Akrawn?” said Cat.
I continue to work the instruments while a sense of alarm ran through me. This cannot be right. The mothership should maintain a position behind Earth’s single moon and in range to pick up my beacon’s query.
“Akrawn!” said Cat more sharply. “Are you listening to me?”
“Cat,” I said. “There is a problem.”
“What?” she said.
Her voice rose, and I realized I should have phrased my words differently. She was not used to space travel and didn’t know the problems that could or would happen.
“I had expected to find our mothership here, but I cannot find it.”
Cat crossed her graceful arms and glared at me as if I was evil incarnate. “Mothership? Another secret, Akrawn?”
“I’m sorry, my Cat,” I said as I kept my concentration on the controls.
“Sorry, for what?” Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted she’d arched an eyebrow at me.
“I will give you all the details now. I assure you, we briefed all Earth governments on the details of our arrival. They are the ones who withheld this information from the general population.”
She blinked. “Damn it! I hate getting blindsided. The captain gave me the job to investigate and arrest you and I didn’t have all the info.”
My Cat’s mouth formed a grim line, and she oozed anger, but I had to concentrate on this mystery. That ship carried a thousand of our most accomplished people who volunteered to stay on the ship until we fulfilled our mission or went home. Where in Tri’s hells did they go?
Though not the best course of action between interstellar bodies, I programmed a fold to get us closer to the moon. In a flash, the moon filled the viewscreen. Cat gripped the armrests and her face grew tight.
“Give a girl some warn— whoa!” she said.
My mouth hung open too.
While the gray rock of a moon loomed in our viewscreen, our orbit shadow fell over the viewscreen. But even with the lack of light, the shimmer of a swarm of metal hulls loomed in the black. There must be at least fifty medium range fighters out there of Trilyn design. I passed my hand over the communication panel.
