Claimed by Aliens [Claimed 1] (Siren Publishing LoveXtreme Forever)

by Rachel Clark

  He concentrated on getting the car as far away as possible before the distance became too great and the illusion lost its substance. It was better to make the car disappear as it turned a corner than have it appear as faded or pixelated, so he shut the illusion down and prayed that the people—whoever the fuck they were—didn’t immediately turn back to guard their home.

  Then he, Kyle and Noco hurried into the garage, the illusion of them not being there actually much harder to create. Trying to keep the background in place as they moved past it was a whole lot harder than creating a picture in front of it. Thankfully they made it to the garage without seeing any signs of movement, and then they hurriedly dived into the car.

  “Ready?” Noco asked with a wide, confident grin as he went to start the vehicle.

  “As I’ll ever be,” Joal said, grateful at least that his podmates had faith in his abilities.

  * * * *

  Chloe wasn’t certain what was going on, but considering Varn’s actions it was obviously something they’d been prepared for. She’d never seen Rick in his shifted form, but she was pretty sure the huge German shepherd that had been wandering around the parking lot earlier was her dria-coldar.

  She was surprised to see all four men—the two who’d confronted them and the two who’d been leaning on Varn’s car—walk away, but she wasn’t silly enough to believe that was the end of it. Thankfully, Friday afternoon drinks continued to flow. Only a couple of people acknowledged her, but since she’d always worked through these social gatherings, she hadn’t really expected anything more.

  “We’re going to join any large group leaving the building, and casually climb into my car,” Varn said very quietly. He wore a happy smile for anyone who might be watching, but he’d spent the last five minutes on the phone mostly listening. He squeezed her hand in reassurance. “They’re close. We’re not alone, sweetheart.”

  She nodded, trying not to show Varn how nervous she felt. Ever since she’d learned they were aliens she’d worried that something like this might happen. She’d written it off as too many late-night sci-fi movies, but now that it was happening she really wished those terrifying outcomes weren’t in her mind.

  “Hey,” Varn said, wrapping his arm around her waist and pulling her closer, “Rick and Joal know what they’re doing.”

  “I know,” she said as ice-cold fear for her lovers trickled through her. She didn’t doubt their abilities to keep her and Varn safe. She worried what it might cost them to do so. She’d only just found her family. She couldn’t lose any of them now.

  Varn held her close, urging her forward when a group of about eight or nine of her ex-coworkers headed toward the exit. They left the building in the middle of the small group that essentially stepped around the vehicle Varn had parked in the loading zone. Varn opened the passenger door quickly, helped her in, and then moved casually to the driver’s side and climbed in beside her.

  A car pulled out of the parking lot in front of them, moving faster than Chloe felt was normal. Her heart pounded in her throat even as the unfamiliar truck continued onto the road and disappeared into the traffic. She was shivering all over in reaction, but Varn simply turned the car on and headed in the same direction.

  “Rick disabled their cars. He’s watching for anyone he might have missed before following us himself.”

  “He was in the parking lot?” she asked. She hadn’t seen the German shepherd again so she’d assumed that Rick had planned to meet up with them somewhere.

  “He was near his truck,” Varn said with a smile, “but he was wearing a face you probably wouldn’t recognize.” He leaned over to grab her hand, flattened it against his thigh, and then pressed his warm palm on top. “No one will recognize him. He can shape-shift into human forms as well as animals.” Varn made a series of turns, even driving through two underground parking garages to make certain that no one was following them. “And Joal, Noco, and Kyle should be around this corner.”

  Chloe grinned with relief when they turned left and found three of their husbands exactly where Varn had expected them to be.

  But the feeling was short-lived.

  Chapter Eight

  Three more cars left the parking lot at the same time as Varn and Chloe, two of them turning the same direction. It was possible they were just people on their way home from work, but Rick’s family was far too important to him to leave anything to chance. Already the agents were reporting the problems with their vehicles, at least one of them crawling under his car to check for damage.

  If they recognized Varn’s car, then they probably knew Rick’s by sight as well. He couldn’t risk going back to his own vehicle, but he didn’t want to leave it behind and risk having it impounded. If some of the crime shows on television were true, then it meant humans had the ability to determine DNA from some of the smallest evidence. He had no doubt if these men got ahold of his car that they’d be able to find something to prove that aliens were living on this planet. And with the sanitizing rods back at the house he had little choice.

  He hated the necessity, but they’d backed him into a corner so a few coincidences would be easier to write off than actual evidence of aliens. Closing his eyes, he visualized the undercarriage of his truck, pierced the fuel tank with his telekinesis so that it sprayed gas into the cabin, and then pushed in the cigarette lighter.

  Just as the fire sparked one of the agents noticed his vehicle and started to head toward it. The explosion was small but deadly, the agent too close to survive.

  And in that split second, Rick made a choice he hoped wouldn’t lead to the death of his family.

  * * * *

  “What the hell?” Chloe asked as the sound of emergency sirens suddenly filled the air. She wasn’t certain in all the confusion but they did seem to be heading toward the building they’d just left only minutes ago.

  “I’m not sure,” Joal said as he helped her climb into the huge off-road vehicle that Varn had often referred to as the “family” vehicle since it could hold all six of them comfortably. He touched her cheek as he gave her a reassuring smile. “Rick’s okay. I can feel it.”

  Chloe gave him a worried smile, nodded, and then turned to buckle her seatbelt. She knew that Joal’s skills included something he’d described as a raw kind of empathy, not quite emotions but a connection to each of his podmates that transcended distance—but she had no idea how it worked. As much as she wanted to believe him, she wouldn’t take an easy breath until Rick was in the car with them.

  * * * *

  The man sat up and looked around the area as if seeking an explanation to his miraculous escape.

  Rick had used his telekinesis to shield the agent from the heat, flying glass, and scorching flames even as he’d thrown him backward, away from the vehicle. He’d landed with a hard thud but was thankfully alive and unburned. Now, several of the other men ran toward him as the man watched the flames that should have killed him engulf the vehicle.

  Satisfied that no one else was close enough to be hurt, and that any DNA evidence of alien existence had been obliterated, Rick moved past the agents, following the crowd of people as sirens sounded in the distance. Before police could arrive and start questioning witnesses, Rick slipped away and joined the shoppers in a local supermarket. He kept his head down, changing his face slowly so that he wouldn’t be recognized on any of the security cameras. Thankfully he wore his usual jeans and white top—a fairly common combination for tradesmen and building workers—so he wasn’t too worried about having his clothing stand out from the crowd.

  By the time he left the supermarket, he again looked like someone else. He hadn’t had much use for these skills on Jernodria so he was very glad for the paranoia that living on Earth had provided. He’d practiced changing into several different forms—human and Earth animals—over the past year, but even then he’d never seriously believed he’d need to use them.

  As soon as he got his family home safely he would write a list of recommendatio
ns for other dria-coldars who planned to come to Earth to find dal-sheras. If there was already a group of humans suspicious enough to target them, Jernodrians would need to be even more careful. He just hoped it didn’t lead to panic and possible unpalatable outcomes. As he’d told Chloe three weeks ago, they were aliens but they weren’t monsters. Giving humans a choice on whether they left the planet or not was the right thing to do. But desperate people did desperate things. If the wrong people could influence the Jernodrian High Council, life on Earth might be changed forever. In Rick’s mind keeping their presence a secret was better than causing a planet-wide panic.

  Love for Chloe swelled through him as he walked toward the rendezvous point. He’d fucked up by claiming her how he had, but she’d forgiven him and for that he would be forever grateful. He’d still given her the choice on whether she wanted to leave the planet or not, but he was very glad she’d chosen to come with them. He’d risked their entire family on one impulsive action.

  And he’d just done it again by saving a human who was likely trying to kill them.

  He ground his teeth as he hurried. He wouldn’t have been able to live with himself if he’d been the reason for the man dying, but it was yet more proof that he needed to get his family off this damn planet. He was practically jogging by the time he rounded the corner and caught sight of Joal’s illusion. The huge SUV looked like a small four-cylinder car to everyone else, but because the illusion was created by his yala-coldar, Rick could easily see through it.

  He climbed into the passenger seat without delay.

  “Ready to go home?” Noco asked with a wide grin.

  Rick smiled—his first real smile since this drama had begun—and said, “Absolutely.”

  Chapter Nine

  “I can’t wait to show you and Kyle our planet,” Noco said as he dragged the last of their things into the suite of rooms. The ship wasn’t scheduled to leave for another two days, but after everything that had happened they’d decided as a family to board early. Thankfully the captain had agreed so they would be safe inside the shielded spacecraft until take off. And then they’d finally be on their way home.

  “I can’t wait to see it,” Chloe said with a nervous smile. She seemed to hesitate for a moment, yet asked the question again anyway. “But are you sure I’m the right person for your family?”

  Silence fell over them all. Considering that she’d asked the same question four times since they’d arrived on the ship it was kind of concerning. Apparently Chloe didn’t have any idea how much Rick and Kyle loved her. Hell, Noco, Varn, and Joal had only truly known her for a handful of weeks and they already loved her, too. Surely she felt the same. Hell, until this moment they’d believed she did. Noco certainly couldn’t imagine their family pod without her.

  Rick wrapped her in his telekinesis, completely immobilizing her in his grip. She giggled, clearly not afraid of being restrained this way. Considering some of the fun they’d shared over the past three weeks it wasn’t all that surprising. It seemed their shy little earthling was more sexually adventurous than even she’d realized.

  “Sugar,” Rick said in an exasperated tone, “if you ask that question one more time I’m going to take you over my knee.”

  She smiled wryly at Noco and Varn. “That sounds like fun, but it occurred to me at work today that I’m probably not the nicest of people. I never even knew most of my workmates. Fuck, I wasn’t even a very good friend to you and Kyle.” She wriggled in Rick’s telekinetic embrace, trying to see where Kyle stood. “I mean, the first chance I got I went spying on my best friends—well, I’m beginning to realize that you two were my only friends at the time—but instead of giving you both your privacy, I chose to sneak a look at the two of you having sex. Hell, you probably had to claim me just so I wouldn’t tell anyone your secret. On a planet with seven billion sentient beings I seriously doubt I’m the best choi—”

  Noco grinned as Rick pushed a hand against her mouth, stopping her silly words.

  “Sugar, if you’d freaked out and proven us all wrong I could have easily erased your memory of that time. I didn’t have to claim you to keep our secret.” Her eyes widened, but with her mouth covered she couldn’t question what he said. “We love you. You love us. It’s a very simple story. Even on a planet of seventy billion sentient beings, Chloe, you would still have been the one we claimed.”

  “He’s right, you know,” Kyle said, stepping closer. “Didn’t you ever wonder how, with so many unusual skills and his natural protective instincts, Rick would accidentally leave the door to my bedroom open?”

  “We wanted you in the family long before that,” Joal said, pressing a kiss to her cheek before turning to lift several travel cases into his arms.

  “And we want you in the family now,” Varn said very seriously.

  “Perhaps we need to show you one last time how much we love you before we leave Earth,” Noco said, his grin widening when all of his podmates nodded in agreement.

  Chloe’s eyes filled with tears, but she was grinning when Rick pulled his hand from her mouth and let her speak. “Do we have enough time?” They’d all overheard Rick arranging to discuss their frightening encounter with the Jernodrian High Council as soon as they could safely get a signal.

  “For family, sugar,” Rick said as he used his telekinesis to pull all of them closer, “we have all the time in the world.”

  * * * *

  Joal groaned as Rick used his telekinesis to drag him closer and then lean in to kiss him thoroughly. For a long while it had just been the two of them and for a brief moment Joal reveled in being the center of Rick’s attention. When he felt Rick’s claiming barb graze the back of his throat he shook with a combination of arousal and love. He’d never once regretted being claimed by this man, and now that they were on their way home with their pod complete he couldn’t wait to create podlings.

  He clung to Rick as the barb pierced his skin, the familiar connection making his cock so hard he ached with need. When Rick finally pulled back, he played his teeth over Joal’s tongue, the very deliberate bite that prompted his own tongue barb to swell making him realize exactly what his dria-coldar had in mind.

  As Rick broke the kiss and stared into his eyes, Joal could do nothing but nod in agreement to the silent question. Rick smiled, kissed him quickly once more, and then held him close as he turned them to the rest of their family. He almost laughed with relief when he realized Varn and Noco were holding Kyle and Chloe between them, their grins almost as wide as his own.

  Joal moved to stand in front of Kyle, knowing without a shadow of a doubt that his human lover was more than ready to conceive and carry their child. They’d spoken of it often, and Joal already knew that Kyle had mentioned it to Chloe. Kyle didn’t hesitate. He nodded, lifted onto his toes and kissed Joal with everything in him. Varn and Noco continued caressing Kyle as Joal moved back and turned his attention to Chloe. Rick was right there beside him, the grin on his face not quite covering his nervousness.

  They’d waited a long time for podlings, and if Chloe wanted some time to get used to the idea, then they’d wait for her to be ready, but they both really hoped she’d agree to become pregnant to them today.

  “Chloe,” Rick said in that deep, caring tone of voice that had always made Joal feel like he was truly home, “will you have our baby?”

  “Of course,” she said with a wide smile, perhaps missing that he meant to start right now.

  “Do you understand how it all works?” Joal asked.

  They’d discussed this a few times in the past three weeks, yet it was best to be certain before getting their hopes up. They had no doubt Chloe would have babies with them, but they would wait if she wanted.

  “I think so,” she said with a warm smile as she looked around the men circling her. “Rick claims, Joel prepares, and Noco and Varn”—she got that mischievous look in her eyes—“fuck.”

  * * * *

  Rick smacked her bottom for the crude word, grin
ning at his bratty human even as a part of him wished that she wasn’t still fully clothed. He marveled at the variety of different attitudes having humans in the family had brought into their lives. He’d never thought of pain as part of pleasure, but both Kyle and Chloe seemed very happy to have it included in their love play. Judging by some of the amazing orgasms they’d shared in the past few weeks, Rick had absolutely no doubt Chloe and Kyle enjoyed it.

  “And Noco and Varn support us throughout the pregnancies,” Kyle added, bringing Rick’s attention back to the here and now.

  “That part I’m not quite clear on,” Chloe said with a smile, “but I trust my husbands.”

  “Enough to let us impregnate you now?” Rick asked quietly.

  “Now?” she asked, again glancing around the men surrounding her.

  Goddess, how he adored this human woman. As much as they all wanted podlings, he knew none of them would pressure Chloe to become pregnant before she was ready. “It’s okay to say no, sugar. We can wait,” Rick said, reaching to touch her face gently.

  “Hell, no,” she said with another mischievous smile. “No more waiting. I’ve waited too many years to find you guys. There is no way I’m waiting another moment to tie you all down with babies.”

  He felt his smile fade as he tried to interpret what she meant by that. Chloe noticed immediately. She stepped into his arms and held him tight.

  “I’m sorry, Rick. That was a poorly thought-out joke.” She reached up to touch his face, her warm hand against his cheek very comforting as he waited for her to explain. “I know that you and Kyle love me, and I know that one day Noco, Varn, and Joal will feel the same way.”

  “We already do,” Joal said with a warm smile.