by Starr Struck
Tears choked off the rest of what she wanted to say. Cassie glanced up at Zolan, saddened to find him staring pensively in her direction. "Forgive me," she whispered.
Ignoring his anguished calls, she fled the banquet hall.
* * * *
A curt message appeared on the vid screen several hours later, informing her officially of her termination. Marinda, it seemed, had only dropped in on the banquet to check on Cassie's progress, but it had taken her most of the night to assure the Cetian party no insult had been intended. Ambassador Zolan, Marinda wrote, had been too upset to speak a word.
Back to the fishing farms of Octavia, Cassie thought dismally. The gleaming chrome of Epsilon Station had seemed so exotic compared to her green, wet world. Perhaps that was where she belonged after all.
A chime signaled a visitor at her door. She wasn't dressed to receive anyone with her eyes swollen from crying and her hands grubby from packing. The door chimed again. Deciding it no longer mattered, Cassie palmed the entry.
It opened with a whoosh, and she found herself staring up into those blue, mesmerizing eyes. He wore neither cloak nor headscarf. Silver cloth clung to every muscle. He looked like a silver statue come to life. Cassie choked back a gasp.
"Ambassador Zolan!"
"Zolan," he insisted quietly. His eyes wandered past her shoulder at the narrow confines of her quarters. "This is where you live?"
"It is where I used to live," she corrected. "I'm taking the first transport back to Octavia."
Zolan strode past her without invitation. "It is far too small for you. A beautiful woman requires beautiful things." His forehead wrinkled with distaste. "Too shabby, this." Cassie opened her mouth to object, but he interrupted her. "Ah, but first I must apologize."
"Apologize? Oh no, Ambassador, it is me who owes you an apology."
"Nonsense." Zolan reached out a burnished hand to tuck a stray curl behind her ear. "The fault is mine. I hope you will forgive me my indulgence."
The Cetian Ambassador should not be standing uncloaked in her quarters. If Marinda found out about this one, she'd have Cassie vented through the air lock. She should not be having a conversation uncloaked with the Cetian Ambassador, Cassie corrected herself. But inexplicably he stood before her, and in spite of all that had happened she found herself desperately wanting to kiss him again. He stood so close, far closer than Cetian social conventions allowed. She felt the heat from his body through the thin material of the loose pants and tunic he wore. Ignoring his proximity, she forced her brain to work.
"Indulgence? I don't understand, Ambassador."
"Zolan," he said again. Long golden lashes lowered as he looked intently down at her. "I never meant for you to be hurt." He framed her face with his hands and lowered his mouth to kiss her.
One touch of those feather-soft lips and she was nearly lost again. That fleeting caress sent an avalanche of sensation coursing through her. Images of their earlier encounter dangled tantalizingly in her mind.
Oh, how she wanted to kiss him again. Kiss him and more. "Zolan!" Cassie stopped him with a hand against his chest. A very muscular, warm chest covered with golden down, her fingers told her.
He stopped and pulled away slightly, his lips inches from hers. A deep sigh escaped his lips. "There was no misunderstanding, Cassie."
"No--what? You mean you--"
"Understood you completely," he finished. "You must believe that I never meant you any harm, Cassiopeia."
She blushed again, and this time she had no veil to hide behind.
"I find the way you do this," Zolan stroked her cheek, "endearing. It is called blushing, yes?"
Cassie nodded automatically. That he drew her attention to it was even more mortifying. Still there was one thing she had to know. "If you understood me, why did you still want me to marry you?"
Zolan didn't blush, she noted. But he did look uncomfortable. "I must marry," he said quietly. "For state reasons." He sighed. His warm breath smelled faintly of spice, "But, I have found no one among my people I wish to marry. You ... touched me in a way I had not expected."
Truth was, he touched her in a way she hadn't expected either. No one had aroused her passion the way he had. No one made her burn with a single glance. No one's voice set every nerve on fire the way his did.
His golden eyebrows drew together in concentration. "With you I felt ... comfortable, even though we come from different stars. It is strange, is it not?"
"Not so strange," Cassie said. She had felt exactly the same way about him.
"You charmed me, Protocol Officer Cassiopeia." He wound another crimson curl around his finger and seemed to marvel at its color.
A million objections rose to mind. Instead, Cassie said, "I am no longer a protocol officer." She had one chance to make this all right. "And you shouldn't be here, Ambassador. Not like this!" She indicated his unshrouded form. "We shouldn't be together like this."
Zolan silenced her with a finger against her lips. "I have explained the situation to your employer, Marinda she is called, yes? I told her there was no mistake, no misunderstanding. Our delegation will still hold its meeting here on Epsilon Station."
"But what about the other Cetians, the older man who looked so shocked?"
Zolan's face brightened. "The older man is my father, who wishes most of all that I be married."
"Wouldn't he want a Cetian bride for you?"
He offered her a devilish grin. "I have had a very long discussion with my father and we have come to an agreement. He will respect my wishes. Especially since he married a beautiful foreigner himself."
Cassie opened her mouth to protest and found instead her lips brushed tantalizingly by his. "Marinda will offer you your job back, if you wish it," Zolan said softly. "But I wish you to consider a proposal of another sort." He smiled tantalizingly down at her. "I will say this in Octavian, so there will be no misunderstanding between us. It is our custom to begin a relationship with courtship. May I have your permission to court you, Cassie?"
It was all too impossible. A ticket lay in her pocket, transport on the next shuttle out. Due to leave in an hour. "But, you will be traveling all over the galaxy!"
He nodded solemnly. "I suppose I will have to arrange much business on Epsilon Station."
She couldn't help smiling. Marinda would certainly be happy enough about that. "What does a Cetian courtship involve?"
Zolan's lips brushed hers again. "A little bit of this," he murmured, teasing her further. He deepened the kiss. "A little bit of that."
Her head still spinning from all the things Zolan had told her, Cassie returned his kiss. It seemed impossible that a few minutes ago, she'd been ready to get on the next transport far away from Epsilon Station, never to return. Now, she had her job back and a suitor as well. A suitor who could steal her breath with a mere glance. Not to mention what he did to her with his scorching kisses.
But there was no mistaking the reality of the man kissing her. No veils separated them now. His golden skin gleamed in the lighting of her cabin. Long lashes brushed her cheek as he closed his eyes and surrendered to the passion they were creating.
"And a little bit of this," Cassie echoed, adding a variation of her own. Boldly, she slid her tongue into his mouth, taking in the heady taste of him. He moaned softly at her intrusion. His tongue caressed hers, giving her a hint of what he'd like to do to her body. She reached up and wove her hands through his golden curls. His hair was coarser than hers, yet still downy soft. She wondered at the texture of it. Everything about Zolan was potent and sensual.
Stripped of his habitual veils and away from the constraints of Cetian courting rituals, they had only themselves to please. And Zolan seemed intent on pleasing her thoroughly. His warm lips left her mouth to explore the hollow between her neck and shoulder. The light, tantalizing caress sent pleasant little shockwaves to her very core. No wonder the Cetians controlled courtship so rigidly, she thought. They possessed the most potent sensuality she'd
ever experienced.
She tugged on the neck of his silver tunic, determined to return the favor. Her lips teased his collarbone. She heard him suck in his breath at the unexpected caress. His skin was slightly warmer than she was used to and a trifle more salty, yet not unpleasant. She could smell the unfamiliar, yet tantalizing herbs of his soap. His scent enticed her further and she dipped her head to explore the soft golden hairs in the center of his chest.
The material parted by some mysterious fastening. She gazed up to find Zolan staring down at her with those jewel-like eyes. The passion in his gaze nearly scorched her.
"Cassie," he said in that burnished voice. "It is obvious that we are ... compatible, but I would not push you too fast."
"Not too fast," she repeated. A few minutes ago she'd been jobless and homeless. Now she had lover who stirred her passion unlike any other. Of one thing she was certain, she wanted to explore all that Zolan was. "Not fast enough."
"Ah," he murmured, his head dropping lower still, brushing aside the material of her neckline to explore the tender flesh of her breast. His breath was hot against her skin. "So it's true what they say about Octavian women."
"What do they say?" she managed to croak out as his tongue teased the peak of one breast.
"That they are passionate."
Until Zolan, she wouldn't have said that about herself. Her career absorbed all her time and energy. This stranger seemed to have streaked across the heavens and lit her aflame.
She caught her breath as he moved to give equal time to the other and Cassie felt her knees go weak. Zolan raised his head. His sapphire eyes flickered around the tiny cabin, taking in the few boxes packed for moving and the furniture that came with the tiny unit covered to protect it while the space was vacant. In a slow sensuous dance, he moved her backward, toward the couch that doubled as a bed. With one hand, he snatched up the sheet and dumped it on the floor. Alarm bells rang in her head. Zolan seemed content enough to be doing what he was doing. He'd straightened things out with his father and her boss, but their passionate encounter violated everything she knew of Cetian rituals.
"Zolan," she whispered.
He froze, his lips poised against hers.
"Should we really be doing this?"
A slow smile crept across his face, like the sun coming out after a day of clouds. He placed a chaste kiss on her lips. "Cetian courting rituals are often misunderstood."
"They are?"
He nodded. "Because we veil ourselves among strangers, people assume that we are cold and...." He searched for the proper word. "Shy ... yes?"
She nodded. There was nothing cold or shy about the golden man touching her. Not his slightly warmer body heat, nor the passion with which he caressed her. "But actually the reverse is true," she ventured.
"Because we don't speak of it in public, doesn't mean we don't enjoy lovemaking," he said softly. "But what happens between a courting couple is strictly private. No one will ever ask."
"So we are free to do as we please?" she asked.
"We are free to please ourselves however we desire," he clarified.
It was all the clarification she needed.
His fingers grazed her skin as he parted the cloth of her jumpsuit and stripped the material down over her hips. Clothed only in her underwear, she stepped out of the pool of cloth and looked up at him.
But he was gazing down at her seemingly in awe of her smooth, white skin so unlike his own. Slowly, languidly, he stripped away the rest of her clothing until she stood naked before him.
Taking her hands in his, he placed them on his own shoulders, encouraging her to strip the silver cloth from his broad frame and down over his tapered hips. He stood like a golden god in the puddle of silver cloth. Burnished skin covered every inch of his body. A tangle of downy blond hair began in the center of his chest, then narrowed to a thin line that ran between the rock-hard muscles of his stomach. Her eyes dipped lower, taking in all his glory. Unclothed, he couldn't deny his desire for her.
Zolan settled her against the cushions and lowered his weight on top of her. Reaching up, she pulled him closer still. His warmth surrounded her as he supported his weight on his elbows and leaned down to kiss her softly and thoroughly. Every inch of his golden skin pressed against hers.
He renewed his onslaught on her mouth while his hands continued to stroke and encourage her. She moaned out loud.
"Yes, I do believe we've been taking things far too fast," he murmured with that teasing grin. He put a hand between them and gently caressed the sensitive skin on the inside of her thighs. She felt the tip of his thick erection pressing against the apex of her thighs and opened her legs.
With agonizing slowness, he eased inside her. She caught her breath as her body stretched around him. She looked up into startling blue eyes glazed with passion that echoed her own. He withdrew and plunged gently deeper. Each stroke drove her passion higher. Her body tensed, holding him tightly within her.
He kept up that slow sensuous rhythm until she was moaning incoherently. Only then did he increase his speed. She moved against him as together they raced toward the summit of their desire.
Orgasm hit in a shower of stars. Her head cradled in the crook of his shoulder, Cassie cried out loud enough to be heard in the corridor. Zolan's chest rumbled as he moaned in his own release, then eased down against her.
By now the transport to Octavia had departed, Cassie thought distantly. Her ticket was useless. But she couldn't have cared as Zolan rested his head against hers and cradled her close. For a moment they dozed contentedly, then he turned, pulling her with him until he was lying on his back with her draped over him. Cool air from the ventilation system brushed her heated skin. She looked down into his thoroughly contented face. His eyelids drifted closed, but as she stirred, they flew open again. The look of love he offered her nearly stopped her heart.
"I guess I should unpack my blankets," she said.
His chest rumbled with laughter. "Perhaps you should," he agreed.
They said nothing further for a long time.
