by Maree Dry
“Zyrgins feel superior pleasure,” he said with such arrogance she didn’t know if she should kiss him, bite him, or cry.
He cupped her breasts, flicking her nipples with his thumbs, and Julia sucked in a sharp breath. Pleasure arrowed down into her pelvis. She moaned and rotated her hips on his lap. The pleasure was bittersweet. He was the only man who could ever make her feel like this. Another man might be able to pleasure her body but he would never engage her emotions the way Zurian did. At that moment, she knew she didn’t have a choice. She had to stay with him. She would love him no matter what.
She grabbed his hands and glared at him. “Don’t think I’ll forget our discussion. I’m going to nag you for the rest of your life.”
“Nag?”
Julia leaned forward and kissed his chin. “Yeah, when you walk in the door, I’ll start moaning and complaining and telling you how wrong it is to kill people.” She tested his skin with her teeth. Nope, too tough at this spot. “I won’t stop until you change your ways.”
He looked down at her with an intense unblinking stare that, a few months ago, would’ve had her running out the door. “Would it make you feel happiness if I pretended your weak human teeth hurt me?”
She bumped her head against his shoulder. The hand cupping her left breast moved to cup her head and held it still.
“No. And don’t get too complacent in your own strength. I’m a tough cookie.” Julia rethought those words almost immediately. She didn’t need another stint with that flame happy doctor. “That is a human saying that means I am a very tough woman and, if I put my mind to it, I can injure you.”
“I will allow you if it will make you happy.”
Julia touched the big scar on his chest and wanted to cry. Here she was, treating him exactly like his father. His father hurt him because he wanted him to be a warrior and she wanted to hurt him for being one.
“I don’t want to hurt you. I want to make love with you and then I want to argue with you until you agree with me,” she told him and, with a teasing smile, rubbed his bald head. “Did I mention that I love the shape of your head? And this ridge?”
“No. You may tell me more how I please you.” He leaned back, clearly prepared to accept her tribute.
Julia leaned forward and kissed the vein that pulsed in his neck, trying to hide her smile. She stroked the scar on his cheek, opened his shirt, and followed the one on his throat down over his uniformed chest, knowing each one by heart. She stroked a finger over his taut, muscled stomach. Trailed them lower, again, fascinated by his lack of hair there. “I’m not one of those women who like to use their mouths on a guy. In fact, I’ve always refused to swallow semen.” She gripped him in her hand. He was so broad her fingers didn’t close around him. “But sometimes, when I touch you, I’m tempted.” She squeezed him and his body turned to reinforced steel beneath her thighs.
“I will never allow you to do this.”
She drew back, hurt by his abrupt words. “Why?”
“It would be too much for me. I would lose control. I can never lose control around you.”
Julia was tempted to argue, but she nodded instead. “And if I kissed your whole body and don’t linger here?” She tightened her hand that still cupped him.
“It would be better but, in truth, I feel too much pleasure from any touch you give me.”
“Is that why you always stop me from touching you.”
“Yes.”
Still squeezing and releasing his penis, pulsing in her hand, she kissed him. “Let me touch you, pleasure you. I will stop the moment you lose control.” She might be playing with fire but, deep in her heart, she knew he would never hurt her. Even if he lost control.
He stood and swung her up in his arms in one motion. “Too late, I do not have control.”
He walked to the bedroom. Gently laid her down and knelt between her legs. Leaning forward he put her knees over his shoulders. Julia’s feet arched forward with excitement. Carefully parting her, rubbing the blonde curls, concentrating almost fiercely, he caressed and plucked at the crisp hairs and Julia moaned. Already, her body throbbed with pleasure, the blood rushing to her pubic area, the skin there suddenly ultra-sensitive until she was aware of every motion of his hands, his every breath wafting over her. He opened her even more and swiped his tongue over her clit. He used his slightly rough tongue, swirling and stabbing, until she was twisting and moaning with pleasure, contorting herself to touch and kiss any part of him she could reach.
“Please Zurian, I need to come.”
He looked up at her, red flares sparking at her, and very carefully inserted a finger inside her. She moaned and clamped her knees on his head.
“Please, Zurian, I need you, not your finger. Please.”
In one smooth motion, he pushed her knees back, withdrew his finger, and slammed into her. He thrust with long savage strokes, all the while staring at her with those tar pit eyes ablaze in curls of red. It should’ve been too much, but she wanted more, more of him, more of the hard thrusts.
“Promise me,” he said and, through the pleasure dominating her, she heard the strain in his voice.
“What?” She couldn’t focus, could only feel the pleasure tightening every muscle in her body.
“You will stay with me.”
“Yes, anything, please.” She was desperate. Her body needed release from the pleasure and tension, or she would go mad.
“Please, Zurian, I need, I need something.”
Still moving inside her with almost desperate strokes, he moved his hand between their bodies and found her clit. Moved to the spot he knew would push her over.
Julia heard a woman scream but she was lost in painful tension, pleasure so intense she couldn’t breathe, only vaguely aware of clinging to Zurian as surge after surge of ecstasy hit her.
When she returned to awareness, she moaned as she realized he still moved inside her with relentless, gentle strokes. He kissed her, a long hard kiss that allowed her only to accept his mouth on hers, his tongue thrusting into her mouth. He picked up the pace, his hips pulling back and then pushing deep inside her.
She could only feel pleasure from his movements. She was too drained to come again and held onto his neck, the only area her hands could grip, moving them up to stroke the ridge on his head, and watched in awe as he came—his head thrown back, teeth bared.
At last, he collapsed with his head resting on her shoulder, as always, careful not to crush her with his heavy frame. Julia lazily explored the contours of his head, walking her fingers over the ridge.
“Don’t think this means I’ll stop nagging you,” she warned.
He moved to lie next to her. “You may nag me, my breeder.”
Julia sighed and moved to lay her head on his shoulder, throwing her leg over his. She fell asleep, thinking how good it felt when he stroked her back like that.
Chapter 29
Eight months later, Julia shivered and snuggled her back closer to Zurian. He sat behind her with his legs on the outside of hers. Spring was here but the air was still chilly. He wore his usual army style pants and shirt and never seemed to feel either the cold or heat. She’d dressed in boots and jeans this morning and a long-sleeved shirt. Now the cool air had her burrowing into him. They sometimes left Mirabelle with Natalie and sneaked away to this spot.
Out here he was just a man and she was just a woman. She didn’t have to think about Zyrgin conquest plans or what her family was up to or how government agents were out to get them.
“There’s more of them every day. Many more.” She pointed to the tents pitched as far as the eye could see. From their vantage point on the mountain, they could see the town and miles beyond.
On this cliff, high on the mountain, she always thought they could see most of Montana. Far beneath them, No Name Town was a speck among the sparse vegetation. What looked like ants squirmed over the landscape as far as the horizon. Raiders, soldiers, and anyone who wanted to kill the aliens were arrivin
g all the time.
Julia shuddered. “Can we hold out against them?”
“Yes.”
“It scares me to look at them. Knowing they’re just waiting for a chance to kill us all.”
“They could never defeat us.”
“Since that broadcast it feels as if the whole country is swarming here.”
“They will not get past our shields. We will battle them again at a time of our own choosing.”
“What about Sarah and that woman?”
They were still in the guesthouse and were not allowed in the cave. A guard was stationed in the guest house day and night. Not that it was really necessary with Larz over there all the time. Julia sincerely hoped he was as tough as he looked. Marcie was going to break his heart if he wasn’t careful. Natalie and Julia took turns visiting Sarah. Sadly, their friend didn’t seem to sleep much and she barely ate enough to keep her alive.
“They are safe behind the shield.”
“In the movies, the shields always weaken and the bad guys get through.”
“Your movies are ridiculous. They will not get past our shields.”
“How can you be so sure?”
“Superior Zyrgin technology,” they said together.
She laughed and tried not to cringe as his evil sounding laughter rang over the mountain. If the humans heard it, they would storm the mountain, shield or no shield. As it was, every animal, insect, and bird for miles scurried away from them.
“Do you regret staying with me?” Zurian asked.
“No.” She knew he’d never let her go but every now and then he asked her if she regretted her decision. They still did not agree on many important issues. She insisted cold-blooded murder was wrong.
He seemed to believe any act done for the good of Zyrgin was right. But she felt she was slowly bringing him around to her way of thinking. She’d never stop trying.
“I cannot give you small warriors.”
“You gave me Mirabelle. That is enough for me.”
“I am a very generous Zyrgin,” he said very seriously.
She laughed up at him. “You humble Zyrgin warrior, you.”
He was silent for a long time, running his hands through her hair. He never seemed to tire of playing with her hair. He’d monitored its growth very closely. Whenever they made love, he spent hours arranging it to his satisfaction.
“Let’s make love right here,” she teased.
His conservative attitude toward making love always surprised her. For a man who could make love to her until she feared she wouldn’t be able to walk the next day, he was really reserved about it outside the bedroom.
“No.”
“It will be fun, exciting.”
He grasped her chin and turned her toward him. “You are doing teasing.”
“Who me? Wouldn’t dream of it.”
He held out a strand of her hair, she suspected, to see the sun shining through it.
“I would never shame you like that.”
“What if it wouldn’t shame me?”
“We have probes everywhere on the mountain.”
“Right.” All need to convince him to make love outside left her. She really didn’t want to be the next sex show for the Zyrgin home world.
“I am sorry I can never give you little warriors.”
It hurt to hear this proud man apologize for something he had no control over. “As long as I have you, I am happy.”
“I know you want the perfect family,” he said.
There was something so sad, so resigned in his voice that she turned around and crouched between his knees. She cupped his cheeks in her hands. “My definition of a perfect family has changed.”
“What is your definition now?” The hope she heard in his voice, the longing in his eyes that he tried so hard to hide, broke her heart.
She leaned forward. “It means a man with eyes that flash red with passion when he looks at me.” She kissed his scarred cheek. “A handsome man whose kisses I can’t get enough of.”
He leaned down and kissed her.
“A man who gave me a beautiful daughter,” she said against his lips.
His hands settled on her waist, caressed, and explored. “It is a sacrifice I would make for no other.”
“I have come to realize that if I had a choice between a perfect family and a life with you, I choose you.”
“You do?” He leaned down and kissed her again.
“Always. You are my perfect family.”
He looked down at his hand cupping her breast. “If I had honor, I should let you go.”
She stroked his cheeks with her thumbs. “Why should you let me go when I want to stay with you? I could not be happy without you.”
He stared over her shoulder, still caressing her. “I have the madness.”
“Are you sure? I know you said you carry the gene but you seem pretty sane to me.” She sometimes whished he would be less controlled. She also understood his fear of losing control.
“The doctor says it is dormant in me,” he said, staring at the valley behind her.
“Is there a danger that you can become like your father?”
“A very small chance. But any children I have will have the madness. It is ironic, my offspring will be born true warriors, strong and unable to scar like my father wanted. But I do not dare let them be born.”
Not knowing how to comfort him, she kissed him. He clasped her to him, his kiss desperate and his hands roaming her body.
“Careful, we’re about to put on a show for the probes,” she said when they came up for air, secretly pleased that he’d forgotten himself like that.
They sat silent for a while, looking out over the valley, at the mass of humans camping out as far as the eyes could see. He ran his hands through her hair while she absently stroked his knees raised on either side of her. She tried to make out the force field surrounding them but it was invisible to the eyes. On the TC, they’d shown people trying to get through, walking into an invincible wall.
“My father knew he had the madness. He never should have had children,” he said suddenly.
“I am glad he decided to have children.”
He tensed around her. “I cannot give you--”
She placed a finger over his lips. “Shhh. I simply meant that I am glad your father decided to have children. If he hadn’t, I never would have had you.”
“I am glad you have me.”
They sat in silence for a while.
“I had three brothers.”
“What happened to them?” She sincerely prayed they were as sane as Zurian, but did not hold out much hope.
“My father killed one during one of his bad rages and two were killed after his death.”
Natalie had told her once that, for all their stoicism and courage, sometimes a warrior’s life were unbearably sad. For the first time, Julia understood what she meant. “That’s terrible, what happened?”
“They became violent.”
“Who decided to have them killed? Couldn’t they put them in an institution or something?”
“That is not the Zyrgin way.”
“I’m sorry, Zurian.”
“I could kill you. If the rage came upon me, I could kill you.”
“Was your father always crazy and violent? Since you were little?”
“Yes.”
Horror settled in her stomach. She remembered her father beating that poor man. She couldn’t imagine Zurian the size of Natalie’s son and being savagely beaten by his own father. At least she knew her parents would never turn on her. She’d contacted them and now they TCd once a month. They adored Mirabelle, her mother sending cute outfits regularly.
“I don’t care. We belong together and no illness is going to take you from me.”
“It might not give us a choice.”
“Remember when you said you would call me breeder even if I lost all my brain functions?”
“Yes.”
“I feel the same way.
I would still call you my warrior, no matter what. Though I would ask that flame happy doctor to give you a sedative to keep you calm.”
“Will you be happy? Having a weak baby and no little warriors?” Zurian asked.
She couldn’t laugh. She just couldn’t. “I will be very happy with my husband and our beautiful daughter.”
“I don’t want to hurt you and I could kill her so easily. I almost did it when I just got her.”
“You did?”
“She was so small and useless and, when I picked her up by her ankle, she smelled really bad. I wanted her dead.”
He still picked Mirabelle up like that and their daughter thought it a wonderful game. While she squealed in glee, he would stare at her with an intensity that Julia couldn’t decide if it was threatening or puzzled.
“And now? Do you still want to kill her?”
“No, sometimes I enjoy seeing her try to walk. Her determination makes up for her weakness.”
“She’s getting stronger. One of these days she will walk.”
Mirabelle got around by dragging her bum instead of crawling.
“And she will grow her first eighteen years.”
“You looked it up.”
“On your primitive databases.”
“I didn’t realize you were interested in her development.”
“I have to know what to expect and how to care for her.”
“Sometimes I love you so much,” Julia said.
There was a long silence. She waited. Even knowing that he didn’t necessarily feel love the way she did, she held her breath. The silence stretched. Julia tensed and was about to casually sit down again--to try and pretend that her heart wasn’t breaking into a thousand pieces--when he spoke.
“If I had a choice between being a warrior and having you, I would choose you,” he said.
Tears rolled down her cheeks. She knew what he’d had to go through to become a warrior. His words declared his love as if he’d shouted it from the mountain tops.
“I love you, Zurian. I would choose you above everything else.” She cupped his scarred cheek and drew his head down. “Now kiss me my undercover alien.”
