by Poppy Rhys
“Shit,” she swore, grabbing for a cloth and dabbing at the small puddles.
“Are you up or what?”
“Yes,” Willa hissed. “Why?”
“Because,” Tosh moaned, “I’m restless, and I need my running buddy.”
“I’ve barely touched my meal.”
They’d begun the journey home earlier that morning, and already Tosh’s cabin fever was starting up. In truth, Willa figured it had more to do with what, or who, was waiting for her at the end of their travel.
Cobin. Her on again, off again boyfriend. Currently, off.
“Well hurry up,” she whined. “Or I’m starting without you.”
The comm beeped again, signaling the end of the call.
****
“Why did you bring them?”
Willa’s gaze slunk to the trio trailing behind her as she and Tosh jogged along the indoor track. The red beasts were uncharacteristically awkward in their movements, as if they were torn between walking and running. Like the concept of jogging was new to them.
White Freckles bumped into the bigger fella, which threw off their already ungainly tread, causing all three to collide as they tried to regain their stilted jog.
Willa snorted, amused.
“I couldn’t leave them in my apartment again.”
“Yes, you could’ve.”
“No,” she protested, keeping pace. “I mean, I tried, but they just looked so…” Willa searched for the right words as their confused faces reemerged in her mind’s eye.
She’d tried to leave, told them to ‘stay’, she really did, but they just looked so…
“Lost. Yeah, lost.”
“Hard to believe,” Tosh scowled. Sometimes Willa wondered if her bestie was intentionally hard shelled.
“You’re a ray of sunshine, and it’s only-” she glanced at the digital clock imbedded in a wall, “ten in the morning.”
“I’m sorry.” Tosh sighed, her jog slowing to a stop, causing Willa to do the same. “It’s just-”
“Cobin? I know.”
“Yeah, him.”
“Do we hate him today, or do we like him?” She inquired, because it seemed to flip flop daily lately, sometimes hourly. The back and forth gave her whiplash on the best of days.
Deep down, she didn’t care one way or the other. Not because she was slacking in the friend department, but because Cobin was just so… boring.
She figured that’s what Tosh liked about the guy. He was safe, and Willa was pretty sure the poor thing had no idea what the definition of fun was. The last time she hung out with them -during one of their on again times-, his idea of a good time included a cheese platter and charades.
Willa had to stifle a snort at the memory.
“I don’t know. I hate him, and I kinda miss him too.”
“What did he do now?”
“It’s what he didn’t do!”
“Oh boy.”
“His mother.”
“It’s always his mother.” One of Willa’s brows rose as she patted Tosh’s back. “She still thinks you’re unfit to date her perfect son?”
“Something like that.”
“She’s just jealous of your perfectly bobbed hair.”
Tosh’s lips twitched, and Willa grinned.
“But seriously,” she went on, “if Cobin listens to that old hag, then he doesn’t deserve you. There’s a universe stocked full of other beings, and half are bound to be male. Or, you know, something like a male.”
“I don’t want all of those other ‘males’.”
“Half the time you don’t want the one you have!” Willa exclaimed. “Not that I blame y-”
“Don’t bash Cobin!” Tosh scolded.
“He’s boring, Tosh.”
“No, he’s just…”
“Boring. Dull. Snooze fest deluxe.”
“No-”
“Who are we talking about again? Oh, right, Cobin. He’s just that forgettable.”
“You’re rotten.”
“I know.” Willa grinned cheekily, shrugging her shoulders and fluttering her eyelashes dramatically. “But you love me anyway.”
Tosh pursed her lips.
“C’mere, bring it in,” she held open her arms, getting close to Tosh when all she did was stand there. “You know you wanna hug me.”
“No, I really don’t,” her bestie mumbled, standing there for a few seconds as Willa wrapped her arms around her and swayed back and forth as she forced a hug on her.
After a few seconds, Tosh sighed and finally returned the embrace.
“See, I knew you wanted one of these. Best friends just know.”
Tosh grumbled. “Don’t ruin it.”
****
“Oh, Killian!” Willa sang, catching up with him at the end of the hallway. She slipped into the elevator, holding the doors for the trio that wedged into the available space.
“Willa, what’s this about?” Her brother looked intensely uncomfortable, being shoulder to chest with the, now clothed, Khymas.
“I was thinking,” she began, putting on her doe eyes, “that instead of going straight home, we could make a stop along the w-”
“No.”
“But Kill, you didn’t even hear me out!” Willa’s jaw sagged.
“No.”
She narrowed her eyes, his face a mask of calm as he scrolled through that damn tablet he always had. Not five minutes could go by without him checking the status of the ship, seemingly disbelieving the crew could handle anything in his absence from the bridge.
“Even if this stop could bring you a fat bonus and score points with dad?”
A muscle in his cheek ticked, and Willa bit the inside of her lip to keep from yelling SCORE! aloud. He’d look up in three… two…
“Spill it,” Killian sighed. She had her brother’s buttons on speed dial.
“Well, Tosh and I may have worked out a deal-”
Threatened a bartender.
“-for the coords to an interested party-”
Literal party.
“-looking to purchase a large amount of Nin fuel-”
Straight up lie.
“-and since we have an excess from our last purchase, I figured we could make some extra credits, and impress dad.”
I’m going to hell.
Willa held her breath, picking a piece of lint off her shirt in an attempt to act normal, chill, like she wasn’t tricking her brother -yet again- in order to further her own interests. She tried to justify it. Getting back that heirloom was important. For her neck, and his.
Their parents wouldn’t just strangle her, they’d blame Killian too for not keeping a better eye on Willa and Tosh.
She was really doing him a favor.
“Where’d you get this information?”
“Last night, at-”
Dussy’s Hole.
“-Holsh’s station.”
The specifics were unnecessary.
“And you trust the source?”
Fuck no.
“Yeah, sure.” When Kill narrowed his eyes at her, she amended. “I mean, it’s barely out of the way. We can alter course, and maybe be out twelve hours. No biggie.”
She and Tosh could get in, nab the necklace, and be out in no time flat. Of course, she’d be turning back up with the same amount of Nin fuel, and no extra credits, but that was trade. Shit happens.
Killian would understand when she told him why. Once she had the necklace back and the threat of being strangled was no more, of course.
He pinched the bridge of his nose, like he was really struggling with indecision.
Come on Kill, don’t let your incessant need for dad’s approval fail me now.
“Alright,” he sighed.
“Woo!” Willa stood on her toes to kiss his cheek.
“Don’t make me regret this, Will.”
The elevator doors opened and she shot out, the trio following. “Killian, you worry too much!”
Willa wiggled her fingers a
t his scowl, the doors closing with him inside.
Now, she just had to get Tosh on board.
“Come on boys,” she tightened her pony tail, “we got an angry blond to convince.”
CHAPTER EIGHT
“That’s the worst idea you’ve ever had!” Tosh’s eyes bugged, mouth hanging open. “And that’s saying something.”
“What? How?” Willa was taken aback. She figured it would be a bit of a pill to get Tosh to agree, but if she really thought on all the stupid schemes she’d ever dragged them into, infiltrating the Wenden’s party wouldn’t have been the cake topper.
“It’s just a party, Tosh.”
“Yes, the Wenden’s party.”
“Still a party.”
Tosh rubbed her forehead like it pained her to even think about wearing a dress. Which, naturally, she’d have to. It was formal. A little tidbit they’d squeezed out of the bartender. Willa wasn’t looking forward to it either, but getting the necklace was more important than fashion.
“How would we even get in?” Tosh folded her arms. “Did you think of that part?”
Willa pursed her lips. “I’ll figure it out.”
“It’s just a necklace, Willa-”
“It’s an heirloom, Tosh,” her brows knit. They’d had this conversation before. “How would your parents feel if you lost Beatrice?” She pointed to the gold band dotted with shiny emeralds upon the blonde’s thumb.
Her demeanor shifted slightly.
They’d both been gifted an heirloom from Earth from both their families the day they got Pearly. The items were priceless, really, considering Earth was simply a private park now and the precious gems in her depths couldn’t be mined any longer. But it was more than that.
“Besides, it’s more of a pride thing,” Willa tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear, a tone of earnestness in her voice. “He cheated, Tosh. I wasn’t over confident in that shelk game. In all the time you’ve known me, have I ever lost?”
Tosh looked doubtful, but then said, “Maybe you just met your match.”
“Bullshit!” she blurted, and could feel the males shifting behind her. She breathed in, reining her temper. “None of it added up. I should’ve won that game.”
They stared at each other for a moment longer, and then Willa added, “You know I would’ve never wagered Violet otherwise.”
“We have to come up with a plan, then,” Tosh finally said.
“Of course.” Willa smiled, hugging her bestie. “We can get the outfits on the next refuel.”
Tosh grumbled at the idea of wearing a dress. “I must really love you.”
****
“Mmmmm fuck that pussy!”
Willa sat on the edge of her bed, staring at the wall and listening to the porn play in the other room. She couldn’t sleep with all the moaning for two reasons…
One, it’d been a long time since she’d been properly tossed around a bed herself, and as ridiculous as that woman sounded in whatever vid he was watching, she was getting some.
Two, and most importantly, Willa was curious why White Freckles was watching porn for the second night in a row. At least, she presumed it was him.
She glanced at her clock. 1:15 AM Standard Universal Time. If this was him establishing a pattern, she didn’t think she would like it. Interrupting her precious sleep was like poking the bear. A horny, sleep deprived bear.
Another thought skirted the edges of her mind, but it seemed unethical somehow.
Maybe he could help a girl out…
Willa squeezed her eyes shut, dropping her face into her hands and scrubbing.
She was losing her shit.
Definitely unethical.
He kind of worked for her, after all. No, it was worse, because she was his keeper. She didn’t even pay the guy.
Gotta do something about that.
Gnawing on her bottom lip, she stood, stopping at her door. What was he doing out there anyway? Did he watch it because he didn’t find anything else interesting, or was he just as sexually deprived as she was?
Willa wouldn’t know unless she asked…
She’d seen his cock, and that gave her pause. It was big. Thick, and veined, and that was limp. The one time he’d been hard, she’d seen the length outlined along his thigh.
Her mouth went dry as she tried to swallow.
Already she felt that spark coming alive between her legs, and she knew then that nothing was going to stop her from pitching the idea now.
The door hissed open smoothly, and once again she was greeted by the blue glow of the projector, White Freckles on the edge of the couch, the other two dead asleep. He turned to look at her.
Willa’s abdomen twisted as her gaze flickered to the projector just in time to see a close up of a woman being repeatedly impaled by one of the many men.
Another gang bang.
Again, she was taken aback that he wasn’t watching soft porn, or something more along the lines of other species closer to his kind. No, he was watching a human gang bang.
She leaned on the back of the couch, fingers clenching the fabric. Her eyes flickered from the vid down to White Freckles who was sitting slightly to the side from where she leaned.
His completely turquoise blue orbs were directed at her, expression blank. She tried not to think about how eerie it was that they were always so collected, hardly showing emotion of any kind.
Gaze traveled down his naked chest, the muscles rippling in a mouthwatering cascade that tapered into a V at his abdomen. The idea of licking down his candy red skin brought on a new wave of arousal.
He was humanoid in shape, but he was definitely alien. She’d never been with a non-human before, and the idea was strangely alluring, yet frightening at the same time. There were so many things to think about. What if they truly were incompatible? What if he rage fucked like she heard the Vinto’s did?
He’d rip her apart, and it’d be too late to stop it.
Yet, she felt herself slinking backward, waving a hand, silently asking him to follow her. He looked at the other two, dead to the world, then stood.
Willa held a single finger to her lips before waving her hand in a ‘come hither’ motion.
Once in her bedroom, the sounds of the gang bang became muted moans and grunts. His eyes drifted to the transparent wall, the streaking stars of space zooming by. The windows opposite her bed made her feel less claustrophobic. She drifted to sleep with the view of space every night.
“Pretty, right?” she whispered, taking a step toward him.
He remained still, quiet, but his unnerving gaze was back on her. She extended her hand, fingertips grazing along his pectorals. The left flinched, the muscles jumping.
Willa had to crane her neck to watch his face as she flattened her palms on his hard, warm stomach, exploring. His skin was warmer than any human she’d felt, and when she pressed her lips to his chest, inhaling, the earthy scent of male flooded her senses.
That distinctive, addictive, wild, natural musk, with a hint of sweet citrus. That little note had her mouth watering.
“You can tell me to stop,” Willa looked up, moving away long enough to lift her tank over her head, and push her sleep shorts down her hips.
White Freckles licked his lips, a knot in his throat bobbing.
Her eyes traveled his body, noticing the tent he was pitching in his sleep pants. That was all the encouragement she needed.
Willa pressed a hand against his chest, moving with him until his back was pressed against the wall. She kissed down his chest as it rose and fell quicker than before. Tongue darting out to taste his skin, and her pussy clenched when he hissed a breath.
Down she traveled, her fingers deftly untying his pants and pulling the waistband down until his penis sprung free, bobbing before her hungry eyes.
It was massive, more so than she’d originally imagined, and the double slit at the tip wept. She looked up, wrapping her fingers around the base.
He jumped, leaning more
heavily against the wall, eyes rolling in his head before he focused back on her.
“Relax,” she grinned, her tongue flicking the slits. His hips jerked, and he groaned. Willa’s clit throbbed, and she felt herself grow even wetter.
He tasted citrusy, almost like a sweet and salty mixture. The strangeness was distinctly alien. No human male she’d been with tasted like that.
As much as she tried, she couldn’t get her fingers around his girth. It was like a thick, hot pole, dotted with strange ridges along the top and underside. The winding veins along the sides seemed to beat with his pulse.
Willa wrapped her other hand along his length.
A two-hander guy.
On the first stroke, she thought he was going to fall to his knees he trembled so fiercely. His cock wept a healthy dose of precum and she licked the head again, pulling another hip jerk from him.
“That’s right,” she whispered, stroking again and watching his red sac pull tight, cock giving up more fluid that she lapped at. “Do you like that?”
Willa watched him, his intense gaze searing down into her, lips parted and showing the sharp tips of those dangerous teeth.
Without breaking eye contact, she fit the tip between her lips, twirling her tongue around the head.
A deeper moan that time. He rolled his hips toward her mouth with restraint, like he was holding back, wanting more but hesitant to do anything she wouldn’t allow.
Willa discovered something then.
She liked being in control.
Her pussy was throbbing, and soaking wet as she realized she was turned on by the fact that she had the upper hand. He wouldn’t do anything without her say so.
White Freckles forehead was dotted with sweat, and his face contorted with a mixture of frustration and pleasure. Willa could read it so plainly, and she liked being able to finally read some kind of emotion on his face.
Her tongue twirled around the head again, silently rewarding him. His cock grew harder, his sac tightening until she knew if she stroked him any further, he’d bust in her mouth.
Willa withdrew completely.
Both were breathing hard, his eyes boring down into hers, almost pleadingly.
“Don’t worry,” she licked her lips, getting to her feet and crooking a finger, “I’ll finish you off as soon as I get mine…”
