Mismatch
Page 27
“Are you okay? You don’t look good. Is it the smoke? Can I get you something?� I slowly realized that I was bombarding him with questions without letting him answer. “Er, sorry about that.�
“You don’t have to be sorry. You wouldn’t ask questions if you didn’t care, right? Don’t worry about me.�
“What happened to your wings? They disappeared.�
“What wings?�
“Don’t even start that with me. I’m never going to forget about them.�
“I put them away. Does that bother you? Do you like the wings?� There was a hint of amusement in his eyes.
“They’re interesting, that’s for sure. I don’t know if I would say that I liked them. I can see how other girls might find them sexy, though.�
“Really? I’ll make a note of it.�
“Do you know something? It’s past time to call my parents.� I managed to reach my mother on her phone. They had both been terribly worried, but I explained that Arnon had picked me up and I wasn’t in any danger. I felt embarrassed about being vague, but I couldn’t tell her the truth without revealing anything about their wings. Those boys were concerned about my ability to keep a secret, and I felt it was important to prove Arnon could trust me.
My parents didn’t care about the details. They just wanted to know if I was safe. They had been in a part of the city unaffected by the fire. I was relieved to know that they were safe, too. They had rented a suite at a hotel and gave me their address. When the conversation ended, I noticed Arnon was watching me. He looked better than before, but he still didn’t get up to see me to the door.
“I’m heading out now,� I said. “I’m going to my parents’ hotel.�
“Of course.� I thought he looked a little disappointed. Maybe he didn’t want me to go, but we barely knew each other. He wasn’t expecting me to spend the night here, was he? Of course not. They mated for life.
But I felt sorry I had to go, too. Part of me wanted to stay and take care of him. Ever since we arrived at the hotel, something seemed vulnerable about him. I just couldn’t pinpoint what it was.
I sighed to myself. “I’ll call you tomorrow. Let’s see the waterfalls. On foot, no wings.�
He smiled. “Of course.�
I left the room, but an ache in my heart urged me to stay.
As soon as I saw my mother, she enveloped me in a tight hug. I saw she had tears in her eyes. Before I knew it, my father appeared and wrapped his arms around both of us.
“Thank goodness you’re okay,� he said.
“Is Maria all right?� I had forgotten to ask about my older sister, who lived in the city to the north.
“She’s fine. The fires didn’t go up that far.�
I nodded weakly. All of a sudden, I felt the events of the last few hours catch up with me. I fell down on the couch as my legs gave out.
Mom reached out a hand to touch me. “Are you sure you’re okay? You had a close call tonight. That can be more stressful than it seems.�
“I’m all right, Mom. I think I’m just tired. I was lucky that Arnon showed up when he did.�
“Who is Arnon?� my father asked curiously.
“Khellen.� My mother shook her head. “Not now. He’s the crown prince of Auxem.�
“I don’t care who he is. I’m sure he’s not good enough for Jayne.�
“He’s the best, Dad. Don’t worry, okay? We’re…â€� I hesitated, suddenly feeling shy.
“You’re what, sweetie?� Mom looked worried.
“We’re moving on to round two together.�
“Are you kidding me? Don’t you have days to decide? You just met this guy!�
“Khellen.� My mother grabbed his arm. “You remember our courtship, don’t you? Or are you so old that you’ve forgotten everything about it?� She raised an eyebrow at him.
“I might remember something.�
“I seem to recall someone saying they fell in love with me the moment they saw me.�
“If anyone ever said that, they must have been an excellent judge of character.� A smile broke out on my face. For just a moment, I stopped seeing him as my dad and realized that he must have been attractive during their courtship.
“Are you saying you think Jayne doesn’t have good judgment?�
“Well, she does, of course, but…â€�
“There are no buts. Do you trust Jayne or not?�
“Yes.� He turned toward me. “I trust you. But I don’t trust him.�
“Didn’t you read the brochure? These aliens mate for life. They’re not like human men, fucking anyone who can breathe. They wait patiently for their bond mate and stay married forever.�
“Yes, I read it. It sounds good, but there might be problems at the same time.�
“Why would you say that?�
“They might mate for life, but what if you make a mistake? You’ll be stuck with him forever.� Dad looked distraught. How long had he been thinking about this? “I don’t want to see you fade away in a loveless marriage.�
I sighed. “I am an adult. I promise I will not marry anyone I don’t love. If Arnon doesn’t work out, and there’s no one else who interests me, I’ll withdraw from the program. I might be able to go as a supervisor.�
I knew I was telling a lie. There was only room on the ships for fertile, bonded females. They wouldn’t carry any dead weight. Specifically, people who weren’t going to produce babies.
“Maybe you’re right.� Dad looked like he knew what I said wasn’t true, but he wasn’t going to contradict me.
I appreciated my parents’ concern, and I knew that they wanted what was best for me. But I was a grown woman and had to make decisions for myself. I remembered how fragile Arnon had seemed back at the hotel room. It was a sharp contrast to how confident he had been during the fire. I had been thinking about his hot skin and the hard muscles of his body all night.
I stared off into space, thinking about him for a moment, barely registering the knowing glance my parents exchanged. I wasn’t in love with Arnon already, was I?
“You look fantastic.�
Arnon stood beside me, properly clothed, and not a feather in sight. His beautiful brown eyes gazed at the waterfall. A calm breeze blew through his hair and made it stand on end.
The wind was going to destroy my ponytail. I pulled my hair out and rapidly fixed it before the wind could tear it all out of my fingers. Even though I worked as fast as I could, some curls escaped and blew into my face. Apparently, there was no point in trying to fix my hair until we were out of the wind.
“Your hair looks nice that way. You don’t have to change anything.�
“There’s no point. It doesn’t listen to me in calm weather. And on a day like today? Forget it. Let’s do something so you forget about my hair. Do you want to go behind the waterfalls? It’s my favorite part. Come on.�
I led him to the end of the walkway where a couple was taking a picture of themselves. They smiled at us and started making their way to the next observation point. Once they weren’t looking at us anymore, I grabbed Arnon’s hand and pulled him to the rail.
“What are we doing?�
“We are jumping the fence.� I put one leg over the rail and hooked my toes onto the board. Once I had stable footing, I swung
my other leg over the edge and climbed down the rest of the fence like a ladder. When I came close to the bottom, I let myself fall and looked up. “Are you waiting for an invitation? Get down here before someone sees us. We’re not supposed to go off the walkway. That’s why there’s a barrier.�
I beckoned to him while moving my head around to see if anyone was approaching. He looked behind him, then flipped over, easily climbing down. I admired his athleticism. And his ass looked cute when he dropped to the ground beside me.
“Are you sure this is a good idea? There are usually rules for a reason.�
“That’s something my sister would say. She’s always wanted to stop me from doing anything fun.�
“It sounds to me like she was protective and smart.�
I frowned. “Look, this isn’t going to be dangerous. They stopped letting people go through here because everyone was destroying the landscape. It’s totally safe.�
“You’re the expert. Lead us.�
We followed a twisting path that led through the forest and over rocky terrain. Eventually, we began climbing. After a few minutes, we emerged on a point of land that overlooked the waterfalls. The rushing water was close by, and the spray immediately started getting my clothes wet.
“Make sure you don’t go too close to the edge,� I said.
“If you say so. You know I can fly, right?�
I nodded, and we gazed at the awesome power of nature. The sight was so inspiring that we fell silent. I loved this spot, but there was another place I wanted to show Arnon. I led him back down the way we had come and down a different crooked path. Soon we were standing directly behind the falls with water pouring down in front of us.
The water splashed into a rocky basin which fed into a deep pool. The humidity was off the charts. We were both sweating despite the wind.
“Do you want to go for a swim?� I impulsively pulled off my tank top before he could answer me. Arnon stared at my pink sports bra in stunned amazement.
“Won’t it hurt if we go down?� He was looking at something in the distance, and his eyes appeared glassy.
“Not in the waterfall, in the pool. It’s deep, cold, and will cool us off. Aren’t you hot?� I undid my jean shorts and dropped them to my feet, kicking them away. It wasn’t like I was naked or anything. I still wore my pink panties that matched my bra. “I hope you’re not offended. Just think of my underwear like a bikini.�
I slid into the pool. “This feels terrific,� I said, ducking my head under the cold water. “Come in, Arnon. I don’t bite.�
Once I was submerged, he seemed to regain the power of speech. I wondered if the sight of my body had affected him.
He smiled. “Sure. It is awfully hot out here.� He pulled off his T-shirt revealing powerful biceps, a broad chest, and six-pack abs. I had seen it all yesterday, but I wasn’t going to complain about seeing it again. He was a good-looking alien.
“Would you mind turning away for a second?�
“I guess so, but it seems weird. Are you afraid of me looking at you?�
“A little bit.� He didn’t explain further but looked uncomfortable.
I blushed when I realized that he didn’t want me to see his cock standing at attention. I would have bet my life on it. I turned away from him without a word and ducked my face into the cool water again. When I surfaced on the other side, he was in the water and had carefully submerged his dick.
He swam over to me. “Jayne, round two involves physical contact, you know.�
“I know. I’m in charge of this project, remember?� My chest was starting to rise and fall as my breathing became erratic. He leaned into me. I could feel the heat coming off of his chest.
“Well, then.� He moved closer and made my heart start pounding. “May I touch you?�
Chapter Eight
ARNON
I thought we might be breaking the rules of the trial. We were not supposed to have physical contact until the start of round two, which wouldn’t happen for a few more days. But I could barely control myself when Jayne took her clothes off and slid into the water while wearing nothing but pink underwear.
I wasn’t an expert on women, but it looked like she wanted a kiss. But I wasn’t sure. Our culture venerated women. One of our most basic rules was to make sure we knew what the woman wanted, then give it to her.
“Jayne, I want to ask you something.�
“Yes?� She gazed up at me with blue-green eyes that made my heart jump.
“May I kiss you?�
“You don’t need to ask.� She put her hand on the back of my head and pulled my face down.
It was nothing like the kiss I gave her the first time I saw her. This kiss was like a blazing inferno. She wrapped her arms around my neck, and I pulled her close, my hands drawing her hips against me. I wanted her to feel my cock. She should know how much I wanted her. The water felt cold, but our bodies were warm against each other.
She opened her mouth to me immediately, and our tongues did a dance in each other’s mouths. She let out a moan that made me want her more. Before I became too lost in her, I pulled away.
“Arnon, what are you doing?� Her eyes were glazed and unfocused.
“I think we need to stop. If we don’t, we’ll want to keep going.�
“I already want to keep going.� The truth fell out of her lips before she could stop it.
“So do I.� I put my hand to her cheek. “But it can’t be.�
“Why not? Do you have a no-sex until the tenth date rule on Auxem?� Her voice was almost plaintive.
“Consummation of the union creates the life bond.� I kissed her on the nose and floated away from her before I became tempted to take her in my arms again.
“It can’t happen by itself or there will be problems. There’s a proper order of things. Courtship, marriage with the bonding ceremony, then fulfillment. Mating completes the bond started in the official ceremony.�
“Well, that killed the mood.� She looked glum.
“I hope we may someday consummate our desire,� I said formally.
Her eyes widened as she realized the implications of what I had just said. To my dismay, she didn’t say anything similar to me. She only gave me a weak smile.
As difficult as it was for me to believe, was it possible that she didn’t want to bond with me? The thought was inconceivable, but I supposed it was theoretically possible.
I couldn’t believe the words coming out of my mouth. “If you’d like to move on to someone else, I won’t be offended.� I pulled myself out of the pool and turned my back to her as I put on my shorts. I didn’t want her to see my face, which might betray my feelings. “I’m sure there are plenty of other couples finding out they aren’t compatible at this very moment. We have no obligation to each other.�
She raced around and shoved her face in front of me. “No obligation?� she said emphatically. “What about the kiss? Was it only lust for you?�
I looked down at her calmly. “No, it meant something more. If that makes you uncomfortable, you are free to choose someone else.�
Jayne looked at me angrily. “Arnon, I don’t want anyone else.�
I stared into her eyes and wondered what I might learn if I could read her mind. She stepped into me and put her arms around my waist. I didn’t say anything, but I was listening.
“I may not know if I want to bond with you, but I wouldn’t want to bond with anyone else. Are you telling me t
hat you’re sure I should be your bond mate?�
I didn’t say anything.
“I didn’t think so. But I’m not done finding out. I believe you’re a little too serious about everything.�
She might have a point. Being the crown prince and living through the tragedy of our females hadn’t given me much time to fool around as I was growing up.
“On Earth, we have titles for our kings. I bet you’d be known as Arnon the Solemn.� I could tell she was teasing me. “I think we’re going to have to inject some fun into you. I know where we’re going for our next date. Bring your bathing suit this time. They won’t let us in if we’re only wearing underwear.�
I don’t know where I thought we were going, but I hadn’t expected where we ended up. We were in a place with water slides everywhere.
Our planet had high technology without being overly developed. Our houses were simple and traditional, with technology hidden behind doors and cupboards. There were no flashing lights or wires anywhere in our homes. In fact, our society was somber compared to the humans. We had always had a threat of death over us. Massive predators roamed our world, and we had taken to the skies so we could escape the deadly animals that threatened us on the ground.
There were no amusement parks on Auxem, and by extension, no water slides. I felt out of place here playing with her. I usually had something important to do. I was always working on an official project or worrying about my brothers. I never had time to enjoy myself.
“Don’t just stand there. Let’s do something!� Jayne took my hand and led me up a set of metal stairs. “We’ll start at the top. That will give us the longest ride down.�
I shrugged and let her pull me along. I enjoyed her enthusiasm even though I had a hard time sharing it. I couldn’t help thinking that we should be doing something more important than running around. When we reached the top, I realized the slide was just a long, enclosed tube.
Jayne gave me a mischievous grin. “Put your legs around me so we can go down together.�