Mismatch

by Lisa Lace

  “No. You’ll have to fix yourself. We’re going to be stuck on this ship together for a long time. We’re related now, sister-in-law. I thought we might become friends.â€�

  “Don’t count on it. I’m nobody’s project.â€�

  I frowned, completely taken aback by her attitude. “Well, okay, then.â€� I didn’t like to think of myself as the type of person to storm off angrily, but I wished there was a door around me so I could slam it. I rushed until I caught up with Arnon and the rest of his family. He smiled when he saw me and pulled me into his arms. I inhaled his scent and felt better as soon as he touched me.

  I had forgotten about Elle until I looked back and saw a defeated look on her face. Her expression cut through my anger. She walked behind us with arms crossed over her chest and eyes downcast. She was completely alone.

  As Arnon led me around a curve of the long hallway, I heard a loud thump behind me. We turned to see what it was and my heart jumped in my chest.

  Elle lay motionless on the floor.

  Chapter Fifteen

  ARNON

  Elle was the first to fall ill, but not the last. Allex had been working with the ship’s doctors to diagnose her condition. They hadn’t made any progress.

  I should have seen this coming. Everything was finally working out for us and now the women were sick. It was just like when Mom died. It was happening all over again. Were my people cursed?

  “Allex, there must be a diagnostic test you can run to figure out what’s happening to them.â€� I couldn’t prevent the fear from invading my heart.

  “It takes some time to grow a culture.â€� Allex used a soothing voice when he was talking to patients and had a unique tone when he found himself in a conversation with the crazy ones. He was using everything on me right now. I still couldn’t believe my youngest brother was a doctor, and a fantastic one, at that. “I don’t think this is what it looks like. It’s different than what happened to Mom.â€�

  “If it’s different, why are only the women affected?â€� I tried not to show my fear. Now that we were on the verge of finding the women our civilization needed to survive, we were going to lose them all again.

  “It’s not only affecting the women. It’s only affecting the people of Earth.â€�

  “Is that an important distinction right now?â€�

  “It might be. We don’t know if the condition is a result of their gender or their race. Think about it. All the women on this ship are from Earth, and all the men are from Auxem.â€�

  I paced back and forth in his office.

  “How’s Jayne?â€�

  “She’s fine, for now.â€� I couldn’t help thinking that it was only a matter of time until she became sick and died.

  “See? You’ve got nothing to worry about.â€�

  “Elle’s so sick that Jayne is affected. She’s lost in fever half the time. Jayne and Ayrie take turns sitting at her bedside. They want to do something to help, but there’s nothing for them.â€�

  “Why is Jayne so worried about her? Were they friends back on Earth?â€�

  “I don’t think so, but Jayne has a soft spot for everyone. She feels responsible. They got into a fight right before Elle collapsed and I think Jayne has a cloud of guilt hanging over her. Also, she was hoping she could be friends with Elle. They’re sisters-in-law now and are going to be stuck together with a bunch of freaks.â€�

  Allex laughed. “Sounds like a good plan to me. They should band together.â€�

  “Elle took it the wrong way and thought she was trying to fix her or something like that. I never had a chance to understand women on Auxem. I don’t understand them on Earth. Jayne is sure everything is her fault.â€�

  Allex sighed. “Well, we’re working on it. The lab technicians should have the test results soon, and then we’ll be able to make a better decision. Avren’s supervising them, so you know that there won’t be any errors. He’s a stickler for doing everything meticulously.â€�

  “All right. Let me know as soon as you hear anything.â€�

  “You got it.â€�

  I activated the intra-ship transporter system and materialized on the pad in the royal suite. My family had the privilege of having transporter pads in our rooms, but everyone else was forced to transport into the hallway. Royalty had its privileges. As I approached Ayrie and Elle’s door, it opened. Jayne emerged and bumped into me.

  “I’m sorry, Arnon.â€� Jayne looked distracted.

  “Is she doing any better today?â€�

  Jayne shook her head. “This fever is really something. None of the drugs we brought from Earth are bringing it down. We think that years of malnourishment in the Districts left her with a weak immune system. I’m going to get a shower and some dinner.â€� She kissed me on the cheek. “Want to come?â€�

  “As tempting as that sounds, I’m going to have to decline. I want to check on Elle for myself.â€�

  “Ayrie’s been there as long as I have. You should try and get him to eat something. Or sleep, at least.â€�

  “I can try, but I don’t think he’s going to listen to me.â€�

  “I know. I understand your brother. Do your best.â€�

  I kissed Jayne before she left. When I walked into the dim room, I felt my anxiety increase. The situation reminded me of when my mother was sick.

  “How are you doing, Ayrie?â€�

  Ayrie didn’t bother answering me. He was sitting the wrong way on a folding chair. His arms were on the top, and his chin rested on his forearms. His eyes focused on the woman in front of him.

  I sat in the other chair, which was still warm from Jayne’s body heat. The last time we fucked was three days ago. We would have to catch up tonight. We weren’t supposed to let more than two days elapse without having sex to get her pregnant as soon as possible. During her fertile cycle, we were expected to fuck every day.

  I had to save these lustful thoughts for later. My brother looked like a wreck of a man. I wondered what was going on in his head.

  “She’s still sick, and it’s my fault. We weren’t getting along with each other. I knew she was stressed out. She was scared to go into space. I think the events affected her immune system. You know the lecture Allex always gives us about health? I could have been more understanding and helped her fight this off.â€�

  His eyes looked empty.

  “I don’t love her.â€� He didn’t stop long enough to give me a chance to speak. “But I promised that I would take care of her. I’m messing this up already.â€�

  “You’re not making any sense, brother. There was nothing you could do.â€�

  “I should have protected her. I couldn’t save Mom, either.â€� I wondered what had happened to my brother. He sounded illogical and not like himself at all.

  “Allex is working on it. He’ll make sure everyone is okay. It’s not going to be like before.â€� I tried to sound confident, but I couldn’t believe myself.

  He turned to look at me. “How do you know that?â€�

  “I have hope. That’s all I need. The odds are completely against it.â€�

  “No one thought a disease would take all the females on our planet, but it still happened, didn’t it?â€�

  JAYNE

  Arnon and I were busy all day and into the night. I spent my time checking up on the women from Earth. If they weren’t terribly ill, I would visit, trying to help keep their spirits up and inquire about the care they received. For those who were unconscious, like Elle, I would sit with them, hoping I could ma
ke them free better by my presence.

  I think I just made myself feel better. I felt entirely responsible for everyone who was sick, and I felt like I had let them all down, especially Elle. I should have been more understanding with her. I had no idea what sort of life she had come from or what type of person she was. She might be prickly, but I could have made friends with her if I had enough time.

  We had made instant judgments about each other. I hoped that if I continued my attempts at friendship, Elle would see I was genuine. I didn’t look at her like she was a project. I wasn’t in the business of fixing people, nor did I want to be. If I got the chance, I would have to show her that I meant what I said about being friends.

  She was in the worst condition of everyone. Allex looked grave whenever he came in the room. The team of doctors and researchers were working to find the source of the illness, but their tests required incubating a culture for twelve hours. With everyone so impatient for the results, it might as well have been twelve years.

  Even though Arnon checked in on Ayrie and Elle frequently, I could tell he was keeping his distance from the women. I suspected he thought the experience would be just like when his mother passed away.

  I didn’t blame him. If something that traumatic had happened to me, I would be terrified of it occurring again. There was still too much we didn’t know. Allex had said it was impossible to tell if the illness was because they were female or because they were from Earth. Either way, a handful of people, including me, were still unaffected.

  The men were going crazy. I wondered if there was something I could do to take Arnon’s mind off his troubles.

  ARNON

  I didn’t want to fly, but I needed to fly. People from Auxem had a biological reason to take their wings out and use them every few days. If we didn’t fly, we ran the risk of infecting our wings in their pouches. High-stress conditions made it more likely that we would have medical problems.

  There was a special section of the ship that was completely open from top to bottom and perfect to take out our wings. The area was off-limits to humans, and it was off-limits to the public tours of the ship.

  I had been wearing formal attire all day during meetings with my father and his senior advisors. We were plotting our course back to Auxem and which planets we would use to resupply. I slipped into some comfortable pants and went into the bathroom to get my wings out. Jayne wasn’t home, but I didn’t want to risk changing in the bedroom. She might catch me in the middle of unfurling my wings. I didn’t want her to learn about our suffering.

  When I tried to secure the door, the lock wouldn’t close at all. I contacted the maintenance crew, who said someone would fix it in a few hours. I closed the door firmly and hoped it would be enough.

  I took a deep breath and unfolded them, wincing and bending over as the searing fire shot through my body. It felt like I was lying on a bed of red-hot nails. The sensation didn’t stop at my back. It radiated through my entire body like my body was rejecting the wings.

  We couldn’t naturally fly. Our wings were scientifically engineered to protect us from environmental dangers. We would not have survived on Auxem without them, but it came at a price.

  I gasped for air, trying to calm down. The feeling was awful. To us, it was worth it, but I doubted the humans would agree with us. Just like before, they would send us back to our home planet alone to face our inevitable extinction.

  I left the bathroom and stepped onto the transporter pad, reappearing in the flying room. When I returned, dripping with sweat and tired from an hour of exercise, I saw Jayne sitting on the bed in red panties and a red baby doll dress. The outfit was lingerie I bought for her on Earth.

  I grinned. I was getting lucky tonight.

  JAYNE

  When Arnon materialized on the transporter pad, I pulled my hand away from where I had been touching myself. He had his wings out. Sweat covered his body, chest glistening from his efforts.

  “You look pretty good in that. Let me hop into the shower.â€�

  “Why don’t you come over first?â€� I had been waiting for a while, and I was so aroused that all I wanted was for him to take me.

  “I’m a little sweaty here.â€�

  “Sexy.â€�

  “My wings are out.â€�

  “Also sexy.â€�

  He stared at me curiously. Did I remember the size of his cock when he had his wings out? Of course.

  “I remember.â€� My breath caught in my throat. I went to him and pulled down his pants. He was bigger than I remembered. “I took it once.â€�

  “As long as I don’t break you…â€�

  “Let’s do it like the first time,â€� I whispered.

  He grinned wolfishly at me and unhooked my bra. It fastened in the front, and his manipulation made my breasts spill out into his hot hands.

  “They’re perfect.â€� He gently squeezed them, then tossed the bra aside and led me to the counter in the kitchenette. Before I could blink, I was sitting on it. He kissed me with such intensity that our teeth clashed. I didn’t care.

  Arnon hooked his fingers in my panties and ripped them off me, opening my legs wide. I held my breath as he lined himself up with my entrance. “Are you ready?â€� He slid a hand down to check for himself.

  “I’ve been waiting for an hour. What do you think?â€� I gasped when he slid two fingers inside me, stretching me in preparation. He took his hand away, immediately pushing in an inch. I moaned as he sank into me. I looked down and gasped when I realized he was barely inside. How could he possibly fit? He pressed in farther, and I started to pant. I couldn’t take all of him. What had I been thinking?

  “It’ll fit.â€� He paused to let my body adjust itself to accommodate his girth. “It did before, remember?â€�

  I didn’t bother answering. Instead, I pulled my knees back to spread myself wider. The sensation was so intense that I was sweating.

  He took my lips, kissing me deeply, his tongue moving in and out of my mouth. I wanted him to taste my pussy the same way. “Do it now.â€� He thrust hard, sheathing himself to the hilt as I cried out.

  “Are you okay?â€�

  “I’m more than okay. Fuck me.â€�

  He bent and sucked my breasts until I was moaning and gasping, writhing against him where he penetrated me completely.

  “Arnon, I can’t wait anymore.â€�

  Only then did he begin pumping slowly in and out of me. I looked down at our joined bodies and felt my arousal increase when I saw his cock moving.

  “Faster.â€�

  He plunged into me, taking the space up so slowly that I thought I would go insane. There was a method to his madness. I finally felt myself crest as an orgasm washed over me with an unexpected blast. He pounded against my pelvis, then stopped until I felt him cum inside of me. His seed filled me and sparked another orgasm. The contractions squeezed every drop out of him. When we were both spent, he lifted me and lay me down on the bed with my legs up the wall.

  I wish I could say we fucked again immediately, but after my tiring day, I fell asleep with him beside me. I was satisfied, happy, and content with my life.

  I would have slept through the night if I didn’t have to pee. With a groan, I dragged myself out of bed to go to the bathroom. My bladder seemed to hold less than before. I wondered if that was because of the space travel. I would rather be sleeping in a sex-induced coma instead of stumbling around our darkened room.

  The door was closed. Shit. In general, the accommodations on this ship were fantastic, but it would be nice if there were two bathrooms in a suite. Whenever Arnon was using the bathroom, he made sure the door was locked. It seemed a little excessive to me. Why would I want to see a grown man peeing?

  I really had to go,
so I tried the door, hoping I might get lucky. It opened! The bathroom was dark and lit only by a small night light, which was why I didn’t notice that Arnon was already in the bathroom.

  What happened next was shocking. Arnon saw me come in, but he was in the process of retracting his wings. Arnon panicked when he spotted me. He tried to stop the process, but couldn’t do anything. It appeared to be impossible to halt the action once it began.

  Something went wrong.

  As he pulled in his wings, his face contorted in distress, and he broke out into in a sweat. Arnon bent over, curling in on himself like he was in agony. He let out a groan, and I stepped forward.

  “What’s wrong?â€� I didn’t dare touch him. “Can I help?â€�

  He turned to me, eyes dull with suffering. “Get the hell out of here.â€�

  Chapter Sixteen

  ARNON

  She had seen me.

  There was only one thought in my head on an endless loop as I tried to cope with the usual torture of retracting my wings. She hadn’t figured everything out yet, but she would, one way or another. She was a smart woman and when she connected the dots she would leave me.

  By this time, losing the women in my life was a familiar experience. But this was something different and worse. If Jayne left me, she would be choosing to go, and that was a pain that was new to me. The pain from my wings seemed to go on for longer than usual as if the suffering in my mind and heart had intensified it. It took some time for me to see normally again.

  What was going to happen now? Jayne would know soon. Would she hate me or want a divorce? How could I have screwed up this badly? I was breaking every rule my father had made to benefit us.

  “Arnon?â€� Jayne’s voice came through the door. “Are you okay? I’m worried about you.â€�

  I came out of the bathroom looking normal, with no signs of the suffering she had seen only a few minutes earlier. I didn’t answer her. Nothing I could say would make the situation better.

  “You seem okay now.â€� She looked confused, but I could see her mind working. “Why do you always go to the bathroom to put your wings away or take them out?â€�