Teril's Fire: A Mate Index Alien Romance (The Mate Index Book 12)

by S. J. Sanders

  She longed for someone to trust and want her that much.

  If she were a better person, she might have left him alone and hoped he might change his mind and approach her in his own time. It just so happened that she believed that sometimes one just had to rip off the bandage and move on rather than endlessly licking wounds and wishing for things to be the way they once were.

  This was just her version of ripping the bandage off.

  She grinned as she entered the last bit of code. He really was a naughty boy who was desperate for someone else’s touch, from what she could see from the stream she was interrupting.

  He probably wasn’t going to appreciate that. Oh well.

  If she couldn’t stare at him in person, then he would have no peace from her likeness standing in for her. Setting her datapad aside, she lay back, her hands stacked behind her head, and waited.

  Chapter 13

  Borth slipped into his sleeping quarters silently, sighing in self-disgust. No matter how much he attempted to avoid the female, he was drawn to her, spying on her without her knowledge. Not even Grish knew how much he lusted after her from afar, how much he wanted her. Her smiles were imprinted on his memory, no less than watching as his brother roused her passions with his kisses and touch.

  Borth couldn’t keep himself from imagining himself in his brother’s place, bringing need to their female. It was something he couldn’t have and shouldn’t want as badly as he did. He shouldn’t stalk her from the shadows, watching her work as she came up with one devious plan after another to torment him… but he did.

  In truth, he felt foolish working so hard to evade the presence of one small female who for all appearances seemed intent on having him, but part of him did not trust her interest. That part of him did not believe that she wouldn’t change her mind once he gave in to her.

  So he avoided her—and with good reason.

  The last time he had been at her side, even with the destruction all around them, he had wanted her desperately. When she had made the outrageous suggestion that he put his mouth and tongue on her, he had been filled with a raging desire. He had been unable to bear the idea of accepting her offer only to be laughed at or turned away. It was clear to him then that even being in her presence, he was too vulnerable to her. He could not laugh off her comments as he might have once before with a flirtatious female. Not with the way they made him yearn.

  He cursed the contract that brought her there. The same contract that tied her to them for eight months so he was forced to skulk around his own domicile in order to avoid her. A deep growl rumbled out of him as he divested himself of his shirt and fell into bed. The viewing screen facing his bed, as programmed, immediately reacted to his presence and flickered on.

  He expected to find his favorite vid stream waiting for him, the one thing he could use to escape his pressing desire for Crystal. Instead, he could lose himself in an impersonal stream of females beckoning an unknown lover to join them as they touched and teased themselves. There was no judgment, no interaction… just fantasy. Although more and more visions of Crystal interrupted the fantasy, drawing molten fire through his blood, he ignored them and pretended that it meant nothing.

  Letting out a cleansing breath, he settled back comfortably on the bed, allowing his pants to fall open. He took himself into hand… and froze.

  Pouty feminine faces filled the screen, but not those from a number of anonymous female pleasure actresses. It was all Crystal. Her hands slid down her clothed sides and along her thighs, hitching her shirt up. Not enough to bare skin, but to show the flared curves of her thighs and hips contained within her tight pants. His cock throbbed as his eyes fastened on the apex of her thighs encased in black fabric. She winked playfully, and a hand dipped under her shirt onto her belly…

  He did not watch any more, but bolted up from the bed, closing his pants around his straining erection as he strode to the door. Anger fueled by hot, demanding arousal flooded through him as he stalked down the hall. He didn’t know how she did it, but he knew without a doubt that she was responsible, just as she had been responsible for all her other pranks.

  If this was a prank, then she had finally gone too far!

  Exiting his room, he drew up short in surprise. Even from a distance, he could see that, at the other end of the corridor, her room stood open. As if he were expected.

  He snarled silently. He probably was. Without hesitating further, he stormed toward her room, his pulse hammering beneath his skin.

  The female knew exactly what she was doing even if she had no idea just what sort of male she was taunting and attempting to lure for some reason. The closer he got, the clearer he could see into her room. Her bed sat still along the same wall it always had, but what was different was the human female sprawled across it, a smile playing on her lips.

  At that knowing look, he wanted to storm up to her side. He wanted to demand that she tell him her secrets, to pin her down until she yielded—to fuck her until neither of them could move and she was too exhausted to torment him any longer.

  Crystal pushed herself up, her eyes meeting his.

  “What an… unexpected surprise, Borth,” she greeted him cheerfully.

  He snorted in disbelief but did not stop coming at her until he had her backed up against the wall, his right knee on the soft bed as he pressed forward. He could smell the sweet, exotic perfume of her body as he dropped his head close, his breath fanning her skin.

  “Do not play with me, female,” he growled.

  He watched as a shiver rolled over her, her breath hitching slightly in response to the looming presence of his body and the caress of his words running over her. Even though it was a warning, she reacted to it with such pleasure that it gave him pause and spurred his own responses. His cock surged impatiently against his pants as he dropped his nose and nudged the exquisitely soft flesh there.

  “You intruded into my privacy. Repeatedly.”

  Her head moved in a jerky nod, emphasizing the thrum of her excited pulse. Slowly, he extended his tongue and ran it along the fragile tempo, a thrill running through him as she squirmed, the heavy scent of arousal stirring around him.

  “Yes,” she gasped as he stroked his tongue along her throat again.

  He leaned back just enough so that he could meet her eye. “I warned you away. I made every effort to spare you my attentions until you could be free of us. Why?”

  An unreadable look flashed over her face before it disappeared, and she gave him a helpless look. “I don’t know. I just want to be happy. I’ve been rejected several times… Did you know that? Maybe I couldn’t bear the thought of being rejected again. And for some reason that even I can’t quite understand, I want you. There’s something here between us that I can feel.”

  He let his breath out in a painful hiss. There was something… He couldn’t deny it. Even forcing distance could not mute it, not when it pulled him back and had him spying on her in secret. But neither did he want to consider that it might be more than lust. Lust he understood, and he could scent all over her skin. It was glorious, but it was impermanent, and it would not look beyond his imperfections. Lust would not hold her to him, and he was not sure he wanted it to.

  “I am not like Grish. I cannot promise you a future.”

  Her small pink tongue swept over her lips, drawing all his attention.

  “We have eight months to decide,” she whispered. “Does there have to be a promise right away? Can’t we just try and see if we can be a family?”

  His eyes closed as he considered. Could he do that? Would he be strong enough to let her go once her fascination ended if he became attached?

  A quiver shot through him as he opened his eyes and focused his gaze once more on her. “And if we do not mate… what will become of you then?”

  He watched with interest as her throat worked and a weak smile pulled at her lips.

  “I’ll return to Earth.”

  He cocked his head, careful not to accide
ntally swipe her with his ganthli or its horns. “If you have been rejected so often, why did you not return home before now then?”

  “There’s not much of a home to return to,” she replied quietly. “I didn’t want to go back, but it seems this is my last chance. Apparently, the Mate Index Distribution Program is tired of losing money transporting me to grooms who decide not to keep me and demand refunds. If this is going to be it, Borth, then I want it to be something spectacular for as long as I have it. It’ll have to last me a long time.”

  His lips turned up slightly, flattered despite himself that she put such weight on joining with them. “I am certain that it would not have to last you long before you found a human male. Someone more worthy of you.”

  Even as he said the words, he hated that they even fell from his tongue. Not only did they fill him with an inexplicable rage that she might give herself to another male after him, but her smile dropped away and her expression shuttered.

  Running a hand through her hair, marveling at how large it appeared beside her head and how fine her hair was as the threads spilled between his fingers, he swept his hand down to cup her cheek and tilt her face to meet his eyes.

  “I do not say these things to hurt you, but to reassure you. If you join with me now, it will not change anything. I will still not give any promises. I will not agree to mate and bind you to me.”

  A quiet sigh left her parted lips. “Borth, if this is about your leg…”

  “Do not,” he interrupted, his heart tightening in his chest. He did not want to hear false assurances about his disability. He did not want to hear her tell him that it is fine when it was not, when she hadn’t seen him in the worst agony during the midwinter.

  One soft hand ran along his jawline, playing among the small nubbed horns there before tracing up his cheek until he finally looked at her. She arched an eyebrow at him as her fingers continued to dance across his scales.

  “Just this then… For now?”

  “So long as you understand.”

  “I’ll understand as long as you try. You don’t have to make me any promises, nor will I try to force them from you… but don’t ignore me any longer.”

  He narrowed his eyes on her. “Will you cease sabotaging our domicile?”

  A charmingly crooked, cunning smile lit up her face.

  “I promise nothing,” she replied sweetly.

  “Then I suppose my brother and I will have to keep you too tired to create mischief.” He paused, a thought occurring to him. “You and Grish, have you…?”

  She shook her head. “Not that I didn’t want to. I’m pretty sure he wanted to as well, but he seemed determined to wait.”

  Borth grunted, feeling an overwhelming flood of emotion for his brother. Grish held back until he was certain that they would both be able to enjoy the pleasures of having Crystal there with them. Borth was still concerned that his brother would give his heart too quickly and too easily before Borth was ready—if he was ever ready. That his brother made that sacrifice gave him a certain peace about the arrangement that he hadn’t felt until then.

  Grish had not pushed and would not push him for more. He was letting Borth lead with as much as he was comfortable with. Only their crafty female demanded that he begin to move outside of what was comfortable and familiar since his retirement. She did it in such a way that, even if it drove him mad and infuriated him at times, he couldn’t resent her.

  Pushing more firmly up onto the bed, Borth hovered over Crystal, pausing long enough to give her one more chance to change her mind and back out. Although during the conversation, their arousal had ebbed, her arms opened to welcome him. One hand gripped a lower horn as she drew him, unresisting, to cover her. Dipping his head, he caught her lips with his, enjoying the taste of her on his tongue as he explored her.

  The kiss went on, their tongues sliding together as they learned each other’s flavors and pleasures as groans and pleased sighs broke the air. His body moved against her, his cock hard and aching without relief. He needed more.

  Bending forward more, he sought to change his angle so to be able to part his pants when his knee spasmed. His body shuddering with pain, he reluctantly broke the kiss and pulled away. Turning his head, he glared down at his useless knee.

  “I cannot…”

  Her fingers pressed lightly to his lips, stemming his flow of self-castigating words. “Then don’t. Tell me how you’d like me.”

  He looked up from his leg in surprise, meeting her earnest gaze, and was grateful that she saved his pride by not offering or demanding to take control. Instead, she surrendered it completely to him, waiting for his instruction as she stared up at him eagerly, her skin once more wearing the musky perfume of her desire. Nodding, he stood, his fingers quickly separating the front seam of his pants.

  “Lights off,” he growled as he slipped the material off his hips.

  The soft light of the moon filtered through the window as he settled on the bed. Just as he had once imagined, he covered his lower legs with the bedding. His cock was already swollen, stabbing proudly into the air. His balls tightened with a tingle of pleasure as he watched her disrobe until she stood naked beside the bed. Although he couldn’t see the light sprinkle of freckles that a few days of sun had painted across her skin, he could make out the shadowed globes of her breasts and the lush curve of her thighs that hid her sex from sight.

  “Come,” he ordered.

  It was only a whisper of movement, and then she was there, her body sliding over him. The slick heat of her sex settled against his abdomen, and she wiggled excitedly, her bottom brushing his cock. He let out a deep groan, fingers squeezing her thighs. Instead of pushing her back to cover his cock, he gave a short, demanding tug forward.

  “First, I want to taste you. Come up here.”

  Crystal balked with uncertainty. “Umm, Borth, I’m kind of big for that.”

  He let out a bark of laughter. Odd that now of all times she would be uncertain. “You are tiny, female.”

  “You’re not going to think that when I’m suffocating you.”

  He snorted at the idea.

  “I do not worry about such things, nor should you. Now move.”

  She followed his demands until she settled her sex over his mouth. The scent of her soft, damp sex made his mouth water. Without hesitation, he gripped her legs to keep her in place as he ran his wide tongue from the base of her slit to the small pearl of flesh at its head. She jerked with a shallow gasp of surprise, but he did not let her up. Her flavor was unlike anything he had ever experienced. He immediately swiped his tongue again, harder this time, to draw up more of the intoxicating sweetness. A groan broke free from him, filled with urgency as she squirmed and bathed his tongue with her heat.

  More!

  Chapter 14

  Crystal groaned and moved against Borth’s mouth, her hips straining against the iron-hard grip of his hands locked upon them. His thick lips sucked on her sex and his long tongue stroked her as he worked her body. A soft whine trembled in her throat as she felt a quiver deep within her. She squirmed, attempting to chase the orgasm, but Borth kept her locked in place, leisurely, hungrily lapping at her until she wanted to scream in frustration. He was intentionally keeping her right on edge, playing with her, drawing out her arousal until her pussy was a slippery mess against his mouth as he eagerly licked and sucked it off.

  “Borth, quit fucking with me and let me come,” she panted with another twitch of her hips.

  She felt his chuckle as much as heard it. He moved his mouth aggressively over her at her demand, a hungry growl vibrating against her sex as his tongue prodded her, swirling just inside of her channel in a loud slurping sound. Her hips arched against his hold, a cry tearing free from her as her muscles tightened. She ground against him, her sex clenching on air when suddenly his tongue disappeared and his mouth pulled hard on her clit. The sharp pleasure-pain shot through her, igniting her climax as her body trembled and bucked against him. He
held tightly to her through it all, sucking on her clit alternating with long swipes of his tongue over her slit.

  Crystal trembled against him, her clit overstimulated, sending sparks through her as his lips continued to toy with her. A sigh of relief escaped her when his mouth finally withdrew. She entertained the thought of collapsing on her side for only a moment before he lifted her easily into the air and moved her down his body until she felt the hot press of the head of his cock against her slick opening. He paused only for a moment, his fiery gaze meeting hers, before slowly lowering her, his sex pressing deep in a relentless drive.

  His girth stretched her wide, and instinctively she bore against him, her pussy clenching as if attempting to fight out the large intrusion. Borth growled, his thumb pressing against her clit, and flicked it as he lifted his hips and shoved his way in. A fresh flow of arousal eased his way in by a couple of inches, but when it became apparent that he wasn’t going to fit in any further, he drew back his hips and pumped into her repeatedly, each thrust taking him deeper within her as he continued to play with her clit.

  Her breath burst out of her in pants as she moved against him, the penetration sending sparks of pleasure racing through her. She pushed down against his every thrust, determined to take more of him, demanding more pleasure. Her body quivered, a fine sheen of sweat on her skin when at last his cock nudged the mouth of her womb, and the scales of his belly pressed intimately against her.

  She was fully seated on his massive cock. She instinctively clenched tightly around it, relishing in how full she felt, dragging a low, snarling groan from the male as his cock jerked within her.

  His eyes blazed at her as he gave her a chastising look. “Keep that up and I will not restrain my rut,” he bit out.

  A spasm tightened her channel, making the head twitch hard within her. He hissed and pulled her down against him as he ground into her. She felt the first spurt of something warm that sent a tingly rush throughout her pussy like it was lit with electric pulses.