by Zoey Draven
“Do you still need to rest more?” he asked in her language. Her eyes were looking at him in a way he didn’t like. Slightly wary, a little unsure. But she didn’t pull away from him, so he counted his blessings. After their conversation in the washing stall the previous night, he’d wondered about her strange human customs and how mating embarrassed her. Ridiculous.
He’d teach her that there was nothing to be embarrassed about. Luxirians had always been a carnal race. They appreciated sex and breeding. Sexual energy fueled them, gave them power. Mating was celebrated among his race and he’d need to erase her misgivings about it before they reached his planet. In his youth, when there was a plethora of unmated Luxirian females, it wasn’t an uncommon sight to see a coupling in public.
“No,” she said. Her brow furrowed, the strange little hairs over her eyes drawing together. Vaxa’an thought them adorable, as was the neat patch of hair between her legs. “For a moment, I thought that maybe I would…” She stopped.
“Yes?”
She swallowed and her green eyes met his. “That maybe I would be home.”
Vaxa’an’s good mood left him. Home. She’d said something similar to him the night before, about wanting to return home. He swallowed the panic rising in his throat and his voice came out tight. “No.”
“I don’t belong here.”
“You belong with me.” Vaxa’an pushed himself off of the sleeping platform. Her eyes found his cock but even though he was still hard, he didn’t encourage her gaze. He pulled on his leg coverings, the soft leather molding uncomfortably to his cock.
His Kat blew out a sharp breath and Vaxa’an sensed her frustration before she spoke. “I didn’t ask for this, Vaxa,” she argued. Now that his female was refreshed from sleep, she seemed more determined than ever. She also pushed off of the sleeping platform, the black tunic he’d given her last night falling well past her knees. “I have a life back on my planet.”
Something that didn’t occur to him before surged to the surface. “Do you have a mate on Earth?”
“What?” she asked, those hairs above her eyes pulling together again. “That…that doesn’t matter!”
“Do. You. Have. A. Mate?” he asked, pronouncing every word clearly so she would not misunderstand him. “Do you have offspring?”
A scowl settled on her lips and Vaxa’an didn’t like seeing it. She crossed her arms. “I don’t have a husband or boyfriend or any babies running around, not that it’s any of your business.” She bared her teeth, anger lighting her cheeks up with the pink he was so fond of.
So his female had claws. His lips curled into a smile, unbelievably relieved that she had no mate. Not that it would have made a difference, he realized. He never would’ve let her go, even if she had.
“What are you smiling about?” she asked, her tone edged like a sword, and Vaxa’an thought that anger looked good on her, that he would like to see it unleashed on him when they were mating. Rough matings were always the most satisfying, the most cathartic. And while he’d only mated with one Luxirian female in his youth, right before the Plague, there had been more females of different warrior species, females with appetites as ravenous as his. But none of them had been his luxiva and none, other than the female standing in front of him, would inspire the raw desire he felt now.
“Come,” he said, his voice calming. He approached her, feeling affection light up his chest. He ran his palms from her shoulders down to her wrists, circling them, feeling her heated pulse quiver against his fingertips. It was a common gesture of respect, of admiration, in his culture. She wouldn’t know that, but it was only reserved for family, for Breeding pairs, and for life mates. “Let me feed you. We will discuss this at another time.”
“I want to discuss it now,” she said, her voice firm.
“Accept that you will be with me always, luxiva,” he said, needing her to understand. “In my culture, life mates are just that. You will return to Luxiria with me, you will bear our offspring, you will rule beside me. We will create a new beginning, and a prosperous future, for my people until the end of our spans.”
She wrenched her wrists out of his grasp, surprisingly strong for someone so small. Her eyes flitted to the door before returning to him. “What are you talking about? I’m not your mate! Do you understand how completely crazy you sound right now? I will most certainly not be having your children or rule over ‘your people’ or whatever that means. I want you to take me back to my planet, right now. I just want to go home!”
It felt like he’d swallowed a rock. It weighed heavy in his stomach as he witnessed her sadness, her anger, her desperation. He wondered what it would be like to know that he would never see his home, Luxiria, again and he clenched his jaw. But he was selfish. She was his hope, his people’s hope. He’d gone to the Pit seeking a Breeder, but he’d discovered so much more.
Everything was new to her, he realized this. His female was afraid because of the change in her destiny. But the most valuable lesson taught during military training was the importance of adapting to strange and unfamiliar situations. It had saved his own life many times and he believed that his mate was strong enough to eventually overcome her aversion to her new life.
“You will adapt,” he said, gazing down at her. “I will protect you and any offspring we will have. I will provide for you. I have riches that you cannot fathom. I will take care of you and you will never want for anything, Kat.”
“Except my home,” she said, a quiet rage burning in her gaze. “And my name is Kate.”
- Do not break her. Tread carefully. -
Even his Instinct sensed her anger. But he truly believed that she just needed time.
“Come,” he finally said. “You need to eat.”
“I’m not hungry,” she said, her jaw setting in an expression he knew well. Perhaps they were both too stubborn for their own good.
“You will eat, female,” he growled.
Kat stared at him and he held her gaze right back, mirroring her crossed arm pose. She needed to learn that he was not one to be disobeyed. He was a leader to his people and he had been brought up as one his entire lifetime.
“And I said I’m not hungry.”
Vaxa’an looked down at her in disbelief. He didn’t remember the last time his orders were so blatantly refused. He took a step towards her until she was backed into the wall of their quarters. His Kat was breathing hard, but she stared defiantly up at him, his little privixi from the depths of the blackworld.
“You will obey me,” he rasped.
“Or you’ll what?” she taunted softly, pushing a finger into his chest. “Force me into submission? Will you hit me?”
“Never hit you, female,” he hissed. Violence against females in his culture was the worst crime a Luxirian could commit and was automatically punishable by execution. “But you will learn how to bend to my will and you will like it.”
She made a snorting sound through her nostrils. His pliant, biddable mate from the night before was long gone, replaced by this hellion who set his blood on fire. And every part of him reveled in it.
“Don’t get your hopes up, buddy.”
SEVEN
Un-freaking-believable.
The overwhelming sadness she’d felt just moments before dissipated like a mist meeting a hot sun.
This guy was the most high-handed and arrogant male she’d ever met in her life. And he had the balls to say that she would bend to his will? Yeah right. No, thank you, asshole.
Last night, he’d tried to comfort her. He’d given her the most incredible pleasure and put her to bed, wrapping his arms around her like he never wanted to let her go. And for a moment, a brief vulnerable moment, she’d wondered what a life with a companion like him would be like.
She’d been half in shock yesterday. Her only priority now was to find a way to get home and this alpha asshole alien was standing directly in her path. She needed to remember that.
“I will not leave these quarters witho
ut you, female,” he said, caging her in against the wall with those massive arms. She tried not to inhale his scent. She remembered the crazy things his pheromones had made her feel the previous night and the last thing she needed right now was to hookup with the alien keeping her captive. “You either walk to the meal deck with me or you will be slung over my shoulder like last span. You decide.”
He was threatening her.
He was threatening her.
Kate narrowed her eyes. She did not want to be tossed over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes again. It had been humiliating. She considered her options, but even she could admit that there weren’t a whole lot. He was easily ten times stronger than she was. He was at least seven-feet tall and the big guy had muscles on muscles. There was no way she’d be able to stop him from picking her up and carrying her out of here.
Sometimes you had to lose the battle to win the war. But oh, would she fight…
“Fine,” she bit out, nibbling on the inside of her cheek in irritation. “Do you have anything for me to wear then?”
In his defense, he didn’t gloat over this minor victory. He simply pushed off the wall. As if to taunt her, his muscles bunched and flexed across his now-silver skin.
“You are wearing something,” he pointed out, his gaze zeroing in on her chest, at her nipples that were no doubt poking through the light, thin material.
“This is a shirt,” she said slowly, looking down at it and refusing to blush. The hem hit just past her knees, but she wasn’t wearing a bra or underwear or anything to cover her legs. “I need actual clothes.”
“My ‘clothes’ will not fit you,” he said.
“No shit, Sherlock,” she mumbled.
“What is this ‘Sherlock’?” he asked, frowning.
Kate blew out a breath. “Forget it. Let’s just get this over with.”
She adjusted his shirt so that her nipples didn’t poke through as much, hunching her shoulders a bit. What she wouldn’t give to have a good pair of jeans and a cardigan right now. Her best friend back on Earth, Beks, had always teased her that she dressed like a grandma. So sue her if she had a collection of cardigans in a variety of colors. She loved cardigans. They went with everything.
“We will get you proper coverings once we reach Luxiria. We have no textile worker on board this vessel,” he informed her, crossing to the hidden shelves on the far wall. He pressed a button and out sprang a drawer. He lifted a clean shirt and slid it over his chest. Kate told herself she wasn’t disappointed that his perfect, rock hard abs and nipple piercings were covered. She wasn’t.
Okay, maybe a little, she begrudgingly admitted to herself. She chanced a peek between his legs when he was distracted and her mouth went dry. His monstrous cock was still as hard as ever, perfectly silhouetted against his tight leather pants. God. She swore that she could see the outline of those hard knobs lining the underside.
Kate blew out a shaky breath, clearing the sudden lump in her throat, and reaching a trembling hand up to push back a strand of loose hair.
“Female,” Vaxa bit out, tugging down his shirt swiftly and meeting her eyes. Uh oh. His irises were turning gold again. “Have mercy on me among my men.”
“What?” she asked innocently. Maybe he didn’t smell her yet.
He approached again, leaning down, nuzzling the tip of his nose against her ear. “My female has claws. I like that. I like that you fight me. But to know that your cunt is wet after a fight will be my undoing.”
Her mouth dropped open. Don’t blush, don’t blush, don’t—shit, she thought, resigned as she felt her cheeks warm. “I—I am not—,” he cut her off.
“But I am the Prime Leader. My men expect a level of control…control that I cannot give them when my female tempts me with her scent and when I can think of nothing else but mating her.”
Kate set her jaw, cocking her head to the side. “Then maybe I should stay here,” she suggested, her voice sugary sweet and yet still mocking.
Vaxa did the strange purring/growling noise again. His horns looked a bit straighter than they had a few moments before. Did that mean he was angry…or turned on? Or both? She didn’t know.
“Or maybe you wish for me to lick your cunt again before we take our meal.”
Kate sighed, trying to ignore the tingling in her spine at his suggestion, trying to ignore the memory of last night when her legs had been wrapped around his face like a vice and she’d screamed so loudly that she’d worried the entire ship had heard her.
It had been worth a try at least.
* * *
The meal deck was near the command center. Vaxa’an knew word had traveled about his victory at the Pit. Most men that they passed only glanced at his female with curiosity, not surprise. Vaxa’an supposed that carrying her around completely nude last span hadn’t been his greatest idea. But he’d been eager to get his female onto his ship so they could depart for Luxiria. Now, he was wondering how many of his men had seen his female’s enticing backside and he couldn’t keep the scowl off his features.
Luxirians’ might be liberal with sex, but they certainly didn’t share their Breeding partners or mates. Just imagining his luxiva with another male made his scales bristle in possessiveness and jealousy.
Kirov was stepping out from the meal deck just as they reached the entrance.
“Prime Leader,” his friend greeted before turning his attention to his female. He inclined his head respectfully. “Lavrix’an.”
Something tightened in Vaxa’an’s chest. Lavrix’an. He hadn’t heard that word since his mother was alive, since before she was taken by the Plague. That title would be his mate’s title from now on, not his mother’s.
Kat’s face, he was finding, was quite expressive and her confusion showed. She tried to repeat the word back to Kirov but had trouble with the last syllable. “Lave-ricks-eu-non.” Clearly, she thought the word was a greeting.
Kirov’s lips twitched, but his features remained blank. Vaxa’an tugged her closer and said, “Lavrix’an. It is your title, Kat. Kirov is showing you respect, as you will be my luxiva.”
His female glanced up at him, her eyes narrowed a bit as if she was angry. “You should tell him that I will not be your lucks-zi-va or whatever that means because I will be returning home at the first opportunity.”
A sharp exhale blew threw Vaxa’an’s nostrils. His stubborn female… “You may tell him yourself. He has your Ang-lish implanted.”
Kate whirled on Kirov, who had been watching the exchange with interest. “You speak English?”
Kirov glanced at Vaxa’an as if trying to gauge his position in this conversation. “Yes, lavrix’an.”
“Can you help me get back home?” she asked without delay, taking a step closer to his technology advisor. Vaxa’an growled, not liking her proximity and Kirov took a step back.
“We are going home, lavrix’an,” Kirov wisely said. He switched languages and asked Vaxa’an, “She does not wish to go to Luxiria?”
“She is not taking the change well,” Vaxa’an admitted to one of his closest friends. Only a few in his life would have the varx to ask him a direct question like that and Kirov was one of them. “She will adjust with time.”
Concern touched Kirov’s tone. “We will be home in two spans. Hopefully that will be enough time for her adjustment. If she does not wish to be your lavrix’an, our people will reject her as well. The fact that she is human…it is already a mark against her.”
“I know,” Vaxa’an growled. “She is my luxiva. I feel it. It goes beyond even the Instinct. They will accept her.”
Kirov inclined his head. “Birth right or no, you may be challenged by those who do not want a human lavrix’an. You will be busy. It will be easier if she wishes to be claimed by you.”
Vaxa’an sobered. He knew that well enough. “If I am challenged, then I will meet them. It has been too long since I’ve had to prove my right to rule. Perhaps this will be the reminder my people need.”
“I will stand with you,” Kirov said. “As will Lihvan, Rixavox, Cruxan, and Vikan.”
Vaxa’an clasped Kirov’s shoulder. All six of them had gone through military training together. Nothing formed stronger bonds than that, except blood and matehood.
“The Fates watch over you, my friend,” Vaxa’an said and then he stepped away. He cast a glance down to his female, only to find her observant eyes watching their exchange, taking everything in. He would deal with his people once they reached Luxiria. Most would accept her, but a small faction most likely would not and those were the warriors that would challenge him. “Come,” he said to her.
Kirov left them, making his way back to his post at the command center. The hallways of the spaceship were brightly lit, but the meal deck was dim, emulating the communal meal hall on Luxiria. Only a few of his men lingered on the deck from the night watch, already finished with their meals but taking the time to socialize with one another. All three stood from their seats when he entered, giving him the proper greeting.
“Why did they stand?” Kat questioned once they’d taken a seat at one of the tables, her eyes roaming the meal deck. She seemed so curious about her surroundings that she seemed to have forgotten her anger towards him, if only briefly. Her gaze flitted from his men, to the dark amber light sconces on the wall, to the silver pad installed into the table.
Vaxa’an relaxed. He had the urge to pull her to him so that she could perch on his lap, but there were eyes watching. It wouldn’t be appropriate. He settled for resting a hand on her bare thigh under the table, feeling his Instinct purr in contentment.
Kat shot him a sideways glance and pushed his hand off, flicking a gaze over her shoulder at the men that remained. His lips twitched.
“They stand to show their respect,” he answered.
“Why? They don’t stand for each other,” she observed.
