by Imogene Nix
He said something in his language, but she didn’t bother trying to comprehend. She just continued walking, and he kept following. It felt odd to have someone on her heels. It felt even odder to have that someone be an invader who wasn’t trying to kill her. Maybe they all weren’t bad aliens. Maybe there were some good ones, ones who didn’t like hurting humans. Her father had once said that every person had a different personality, and it was up to them to decide to be either an asshole or a nice guy. Maybe these invaders were the same way.
“Did your people leave you behind because they knew you’d heal quickly or because you didn’t want to stay with them anymore?” she asked, glancing over her shoulder at him. He just met her stare, doing that unblinking thing he always did. “You see, I’m having this problem relating you to what I know of the invaders. You’ve saved my life once and spared it once, which no alien would ever do. They left you behind, bleeding, with a broken leg. I thought you’d gone to rejoin them when you left me, but you didn’t take that opportunity. So, there’s something missing, and I wish I knew what it was because I’m thinking it’s a good tale.”
She sighed. She had to admit, he fascinated her. How crazy that when she finally found a traveling companion he wasn’t the same species. Was she that desperate for companionship?
Possibly.
They walked until the sun was directly overhead and her belly began to growl. She made an eating gesture with her hands and he nodded. They set up a mini camp, and while Niah made a fire to cook, she used her net to do more fishing. She also found a few wild onions around the muddy riverbank and pulled them. They’d add a lot more flavoring to the fish.
When she walked back to the camp, a nice fire was burning. She pulled out her skillet and used her knife to cut up the onions before peppering them around and on top of the fillets.
The food was filling, and as she washed everything up in the river, Niah appeared next to her and handed her some wildflowers. For a second, she didn’t know what he was trying to do so she stared at the flowers in confusion.
“Bree,” he said, and pushed the bouquet toward her.
“Oh,” she said as she realized he was giving her a present. Just like that, her emotions went off the chart. Her eyes welled with tears, her hands began to shake, and her heart simply melted.
She took the flowers from him and buried her nose in their scented petals. It didn’t matter that they still had roots or that one had a bug in the center. And it wasn’t the fact that no one had ever given her flowers before, it was that she never thought a man would give them to her.
Without thinking, she threw her arms around him and hugged him tightly. He stiffened in her arms and, pressed against him, she felt every hard, rippling muscle, and it ignited a fire in her blood. All of a sudden, it didn’t matter that he wasn’t human. Niah chose to be there, with her, and it made her so incredibly happy.
“Thank you,” she whispered. “Bree thanks Niah.”
Slowly, very slowly, he relaxed. His arms returned her hug, and then the hug turned from heartfelt to intimate in a heartbeat. She felt the manly part of his anatomy stiffen against her belly, and she knew what it meant. He wanted her. Sexually, he wanted her.
She gasped and pulled back, searching his eyes for some other hidden meaning. His big hands cupped her face, one sliding to the back of her neck to bring her up to meet his mouth. His head dipped, and then he was kissing her. And it wasn’t just an innocent kiss, Niah claimed her mouth like he was in a desert searching for water. There was a desperate quality that made her heart pound like crazy. All the while, she kept thinking that this was her first kiss, the first time a man touched her lips with his. This was the first time his tongue swept inside to possess her completely, even tilting her head to deepen it further. There wasn’t one part of her that was safe, and it scared the hell out of her.
She couldn’t feel this overwhelming feeling for an invader! It was wrong, on so many levels. Morally, ethically, personally…she couldn’t do this knowing that human blood was on his hands. She’d be betraying everything and everyone. Her mother, her brother, her father, even that settlement.
She pulled back, and he growled deep in his throat, a protest that echoed within her own body. But she pressed her hands against his chest, halting him when he would’ve swept her back into his arms.
“I can’t, Niah,” she whispered brokenly. Her lips felt bruised and swollen and it was hard to articulate around them. “I can’t do this to my people, no matter how good this feels. It’s wrong of me to kiss you, to want you. Thank you for the flowers, but I can’t kiss you anymore.”
She broke out of his arms and took a step back from his warm, hard body. She knew she’d be dreaming of him tonight.
“Bree,” he said in a thick voice, which showed her that he was just as affected by her as she was by him. She wished she knew what force drew them together. “Stay. Bree stay.”
She nodded. “I’ll stay with you. But no more kissing.
Chapter 7
They traveled through the day and made camp as twilight fell. Niah went out hunting and came back with a skinned rabbit. She could only assume he had the knife in his pack, which disturbed her since she could’ve been the one skinned. Bree found some berries, and they had a nice dinner. He banked the fire as they settled down to sleep and she dreamt of Niah kissing her.
When she woke, he wasn’t there, although his backpack was still next to hers. Perplexed, she stood and went looking for him, and much to her surprise, found him washing in the river.
She stood transfixed, staring at how the water hugged his muscular body like diamond tears reflecting the morning sun. His black hair looked like ink as he shook his head, scattering droplets everywhere. Bree felt light-headed, panting slightly as her body flushed with heat. Was this…desire? Her mother had warned her desire would be insane, but this…this was impossible.
Her palms itched to touch him. Her lips yearned to kiss him. Her heart thundered for him. And yet he was everything she shouldn’t want. But as she watched him leave the river, his sculptured body a thing of beauty, all the reasons why she shouldn’t want him evaporated. His buttocks were firm, his thighs were thick with muscles, and dear Lord, he was big everywhere! She stared at his shaft in awe. Although it was limp from the cold water, it was still a sight to behold.
She wasn’t dumb. She knew about the birds and the bees, had seen animals mating, but she trembled a little at the thought of lying in his arms. Imagination, however, could only take her so far, especially when she was ignorant of what truly transpired when a woman lay with a man. Her mother had never fully explained it, and she hadn’t felt comfortable talking to her father about such things. She didn’t even tell him when she was on her monthly courses, so how could she possibly ask him about sex?
Niah made her think of sex.
As he pulled his pants up over his hips, she took a step back, meaning to return to camp and try to erase the exhilarating picture of him naked from her memory bank. When a twig broke under her foot, Niah looked around in her direction and their eyes met.
Gone was the unblinking stare he always had around her. Instead, his green eyes were turbulent pools of lust, all directed at her. She wondered if her own eyes mirrored what was so blatant in his, and as she flicked a glance downward, she saw his shaft was no longer flaccid. Now his pants tented with his need for her, and her heart thundered so loudly that it practically drowned out everything else. Her body was hot, her clothes felt tight, and all she wanted to do was press herself against him, let him ease her ache.
Niah raised his hand toward her, but that was one step she couldn’t take. As much as she wanted to, she just…couldn’t. So she turned and ran, away from him and away from temptation.
He didn’t talk to her as they headed out. The terrain was beginning to get a little rockier as they began their ascent up the mountain, so they had to focus a little more on where they stepped. Bree wondered what he was thinking, if he understood why s
he’d turned from him. She couldn’t even fathom how to tell him the reasons in their extremely limited sign language.
The tension was giving her a headache, and she absently touched the bandage on her forehead when her foot slipped out from under her. She slid and would’ve toppled backward if he hadn’t grabbed her arm, steadying her.
“Thank you,” she said, a bit breathless. “Wow, that could’ve been painful. And now I’ve got an adrenaline spike. I can’t imagine what you’re thinking about me, but I swear I’m usually not this incompetent. I’m pretty good at navigating, even through miles and miles of wilderness. I’m heading up this mountain simply because my father once told me about it. It took me a while to want to deal after he…died, but as soon as I find whatever it was he was talking about I think I can finally lay him to rest.”
He grunted at her, but she ignored him. She found her footing again and resumed their pace up the incline.
“I figured he found one helluva shelter. At least, that’s what I’m assuming. You know, some of this looks familiar, and I keep racking my brain to try to remember if I’ve been here or not. Ten years can change a lot of things.”
She snuck a quick glimpse of him over her shoulder. Niah stared at the path, placing one foot carefully in front of the other. Images of him naked in the river kept flashing through her brain, and like a ninny, she kept stealing glances at him. Why did she feel this pull toward him? It was like the more she was with him the more she wanted to be with him.
At mid-day the sky began to darken as thunderclouds rolled in. Bree began to scout for shelter when Niah tapped her shoulder and pointed to a rock outcropping not far away. She nodded her agreement and they altered course. They hadn’t made it yet when the heavens opened up and rain poured on them. By the time they found a large rock awning, they were both soaked to the bone.
This was going to be one of those nights where she stayed cold because any wood they would’ve gathered to make a fire was in the rain. She’d been cold before, of course. She didn’t like it then and she liked it even less now, but at least rain wasn’t pouring over them as she set her backpack down and pulled out a blanket, which was slightly damp. Niah followed suit, but when he sat down he gestured for her to sit next to him.
“What? You want me to sit there? By you?”
Niah patted the ground by his side.
“Uh, I don’t think so. I’ll be fine right here.”
And she sat down with her blanket wrapped around her shoulders. She couldn’t help the tiny shivers that took hold of her body. She heard Niah sigh and then watched through wide eyes as he rose, walked over to her, picked her up, and brought her back to his spot. When he sat down, she was on his lap and he was wrapping them both up in his blanket.
And now…well, now she felt too hot. Like a furnace had been lit deep inside. She was uncomfortable so she shifted, and when she did, she felt him. She froze, and her gaze shot straight to his. His green orbs were narrowed and trained on her lips, and she knew he was remembering their kiss because she was remembering their kiss and, oh…how she’d love to repeat it.
As if reading her thoughts, his head lowered. She didn’t even have the good sense to turn away because she wanted this. Lord help her, she didn’t want to turn him away this time. The attraction for this man consumed her, terrified her, and confused the hell out of her, but she could no longer deny it.
His mouth settled on hers and that was it. The world melted away. Her arms snaked around his neck to pull him into her as his lips moved gently over her own, warm and soft and hot. He reached out with his tongue to trace her bottom lip, and her mouth opened on a surprised sigh. He seized the moment and immediately deepened the kiss. His right hand slid up her back to tangle in her hair and hold her head still, tilting it just a little to deepen the kiss even further. It was a magical kiss, bathed in the thunderstorm raging around them as all thought and reason fled her mind. Her body went from chilled to burning hot under Niah’s tender ministrations. She was no longer conscious of who she was, where she was, or of right and wrong. She became an entity of feeling and she wanted more.
Niah moved both of his hands down to her bottom and rolled until he lay on top of her and his body nestled into the juncture between her thighs. She gasped as his arousal settled right in the heart where desire pooled in her body like hot silver. Then he moved his hips ever so slightly to rub himself into her through their clothing and she thought she would die from the kaleidoscope of pleasure. Breaking from his kiss, she threw her head back to revel in the sensation as his tongue moved down her throat. He nipped at the skin right at the base of her neck, and she moaned.
In a haze, she felt her shirt shifting to the side, revealing her shoulder. He pressed hot kisses against her skin, licking the moisture off. His fingers began unbuttoning her shirt, and she had a brief moment of clarity, that if she let this continue they were going to have sex. Did she want this? Was she ready for this? Her heart was racing like a skittish horse, and she tried to gulp in deep breaths to clear her head. She had to answer this very important question before things went too far.
Was she ready?
Niah pulled his lips off her shoulder to look into her eyes, and at that moment a flash of lightning illuminated the shelter. At that point in time, they were the only two people that existed, regardless of the fact that they were from two different species. Once they had been enemies, but Bree couldn’t think of him as such anymore. Now, they were just Bree and Niah.
Partners.
She nodded, giving her consent, and his mouth swooped down to cover hers again. As he kissed her, his free hand took off her shirt. She wore a tank underneath and their kiss broke as he helped her sweep it over her head. She lay bare under his gaze, her nipples beading from a combination of the chilled air and his intense stare. Her breasts weren’t very large and for that she’d always been grateful, but now she wondered if Niah preferred large breasts. Did the women of his race have large breasts? He was more or less built like a human male, probably a little bigger, so she assumed the women had to be the same.
He skimmed a finger over one turgid peak and she groaned. She arched her back, wanting more, and he obliged. She wanted him to devour every inch of her, to possess her completely, and the only way to make sure he understood was to give herself freely.
Soon he urged her to take off her shoes and pants, and he helped, pulling them down her legs and free from her body. He kissed and licked his way over every inch, leaving her panting and yearning for him. When he went to remove his own clothing, she watched through wide eyes as he bared his magnificent body for her. She didn’t even have time to get cold before he was back on top of her, fitting between her legs.
Licking and kissing his way down, he settled in the spot that was dripping with need. His first lap brought her body off the ground in a moan of desire. Releasing her arms, he pulled her legs apart as he thrust his tongue into her sex. She thrashed her head back and forth and thought she would die from the unbelievable pleasure. She felt a tightness coil in her belly and wanted to beg for something, though she didn’t know for what.
Over and over his mouth fed on her until, suddenly, the tightly wound coil burst and she unraveled in a violent shudder of release. Stars burst under her closed eyelids as her body melted. She wasn’t aware that Niah had removed his mouth from her or that he’d moved between her thighs. She slowly became aware of him, of his arousal still burning hot and heavy and clearly unrequited in climax. She opened her eyes as he moved over her and settled between her legs, propping himself up to keep his weight from crushing her. He moved one hand down between their bodies and guided the tip of his shaft to her entrance. With their eyes locked on each other, he surged forward.
She knew there’d be pain, her mother had warned her of that, but his girth stretched her so tightly she didn’t think he’d be able to fit. Tears stung her eyes, and he murmured something soft and endearing, or at least it sounded like that. He waited, holding himself still a
s she adjusted to his invasion. His free arm reached back to move her legs to encircle him, and when she did, he moved, setting the pace. In and out, again and again, deeper and harder. He rode her and she hung on, meeting every thrust with a moan or a sigh. They moved to a pinnacle that she was only just learning but they stared at each other, every breath a benediction to their mutual desire. And when they reached the top together, she knew that her heart belonged to him.
After their breathing returned to normal, Niah made them a bed and bundled her into his arms. He kissed her temple and she fell asleep, feeling complete for the first time in her life.
Chapter 8
The next morning there was a playfulness about Niah as he continuously found new and clever ways to kiss her. They ate food from his pack and continued their journey. He would murmur things to her, and although Bree didn’t know what they meant, she figured they were terms of endearment since his tone brought thoughts of naughtiness to mind.
If she wondered why he was still with her or what would happen once she found what she was looking for, she pushed it to the back of her mind. Perhaps it was foolish of her, but she wanted to be foolish. She liked this intimacy with Niah, liked that he kept touching her.
After a couple of hours, they reached a plateau that had lots of wildflowers growing all over the place. The view was breathtaking, and she sat down to admire the world spread out before her. Perhaps this was the place her father meant, and a surreal feeling overcame her.
Tears welled up in her eyes. She hadn’t realized how much she needed this, how much she had needed to let go of him in order for her to continue on. Niah came over and sat next to her, not touching her but simply lending his quiet strength.
