But he wouldn’t do anything now to put his Yuri in danger. That death in combat that he’d long anticipated had become a bitter thought. She gave him a reason to want more, gave him a chance at a future and a path to obtain it.
His temples throbbed, and a sharp ache briefly pierced the center of his skull. It would’ve been easy to attribute it to overthinking, but he knew it had more to do with the solid blows he’d taken from the skeks earlier.
And that reminder triggered another—his work wasn’t done yet. If he wanted to sleep before sunrise, he needed to get moving.
There’d be plenty of time for contemplation when Thargen and Yuri made it back to Arthos.
“Fuck,” he grumbled, forcing himself to stand up. “Find some good sticks to use as skewers, zoani. I’m gonna see to our food.”
Yuri approached him, running her fingers up his arm and along the back of his shoulders. A thrill zipped down his spine, and his cock leapt in response.
“I love a man who can cook,” Yuri said with a chuckle as she walked past.
He inhaled deeply as he watched her walk away, glad for once that her smell was mostly masked—this time by the sweet smoke of the fire. He forced his focus onto her belt instead of her ass. Sized for a skeks waist, it had been far too big for her, but Thargen’s improvised adjustments seemed to be working well enough, and seeing the sheathed knife at her hip offered him a bit of comfort.
“Keep the cave in sight,” he said as he strode to the dead beast and grabbed hold of it. “I’ll be close.”
“Yes, sir!” she called.
That was enough to make his cock twitch. He gritted his teeth and hauled the body away from the camp until he couldn’t see Yuri anymore; he’d have to be content with just hearing her move around amidst the vegetation and fallen branches. This was messy work, and she didn’t need to see any more blood today if it could be avoided—the goal was to keep food in her stomach long enough for her body to take some actual sustenance from it.
He worked in silence, bleeding, skinning, and butchering the alien creature as quickly and efficiently as he could—and feeling like a clumsy novice throughout. His talents had always leaned toward those bursts of brutal action. As good as he was with a knife in a fight, his hands felt unsteady and unsure once he had to slow down and think about what he was doing. It didn’t help that the creature was unfamiliar to him.
Still, he returned to the campfire with several hunks of promising-looking meat that he was determined to enjoy no matter how tough, stringy, or gamey they were. Yuri was already sitting at the fire waiting for him, all her skewer sticks set out with their ends carved to points, and her belt laid on the ground next to her. She’d spread out some of the spare clothing to sit on, leaving plenty of room for him.
He grinned, eyed her with undisguised hunger for a few moments, and sat beside her to start slicing the meat into smaller pieces. To his surprise, Yuri took those pieces and skewered them neatly, her skin not even paling a bit.
Apparently, it really was just blood that triggered her spells.
When they were done, they had several meat-laden skewers ready to cook. Thargen laid a few over the fire pit before grabbing one of the canteens they’d obtained from the skeks—all surprisingly modern, with built in filtration and purification systems—and using it to rinse his hands. Yuri did the same afterward.
Thargen smiled as he recalled how they’d filled these canteens; it felt like that had been ages ago even though it had been only hours earlier.
They’d stopped at the riverside to drink around midday, when Thargen had finally deemed them far enough away from the dead skeks for a brief rest. Yuri had opened one of the scavenged canteens and plunged it into the water. When she lifted it out, she shook it vigorously, dumped it out, and repeated the process several times. Thargen hadn’t needed to ask what she was doing—he just mimicked her with one of the other canteens.
Yuri and Thargen had rinsed—and eventually filled—all four of the containers that way, kneeling on the wet grass beside the chilly river water. There’d been no need to exchange words. The moment had been oddly soothing, and it had made him feel even closer to her than before.
It had also been further example of her immense resolve. He’d wrapped her feet again, but they’d been hiking at a brisk pace for hours by that point. He’d known she was in pain, but she’d never once complained.
Thargen had chosen to carry her later in the afternoon, after she’d begun to lag—not because she’d been unable to go on, but because he’d been unable to bear the sight of his zoani struggling. She was weak, hungry, and tired, and none of that was her fault. Still, he didn’t doubt that Yuri would’ve kept walking until she collapsed had he not intervened.
With the added gear from the skeks—including the heavy rifle that had nearly put an extra hole or two in Thargen—he’d actually felt the burden when he’d picked her up. But he had strength to spare for her. He’d always find more for her.
Back in the present, Yuri shook excess water from her hands, closed the canteen, and returned it to Thargen. The meat was already sizzling over the crackling fire, and the aroma it emitted was mouthwatering.
The day had been long and hard, yes, and they’d brushed up against death this morning, but Yuri was safe, and they were about to have their first hot meal in…a week? A week and a half? He wasn’t sure how much time had gone by, but he didn’t really care. He had her with him. His terran, his female, his zoani. This was worth it. The hunger and thirst, the aches and pains in his body—both old and new—were worth it.
As he flipped the skewers, he said, “If I could be stranded on an alien planet with anyone, Yuri, I could do a hell of a lot worse than you. I’d do this all again so long as you were with me.”
She lifted her gaze from the fire to look at him, one eyebrow quirked. “I’m not sure if I should take that as an insult or compliment.”
“Meant it as a compliment, but I am much better at insults.”
She chuckled, but her smile quickly faded, and her eyes shifted back to the crackling fire. Some time passed before she asked, “Do you have family waiting for you back in Arthos?”
Thargen’s smile fell, too, though his gaze lingered on Yuri. He missed his friends, but he hadn’t thought about them much. It was always easier for him to focus on the immediate—and he didn’t like the idea of them worrying over him. “Yeah. Not related by blood, but family all the same.”
“Family is family.” She drew her legs up and wrapped her arms around them, resting her chin on her knees. “Most of my family is still on Earth. Their lives are established there, and it would have been too much for them to migrate to Arthos. But Takashi and I… We had no direction. I mean, I knew what I had wanted to do, and when that didn’t work…” She shrugged. “I didn’t know what else to do with my life.”
Yuri frowned, and sudden sorrow gleamed in her eyes. “He’s going to be so worried. If something happens to me… I hope he doesn’t get himself killed looking. Hope he didn’t already get himself killed.”
Thargen picked up one of the skewers to examine the meat; it was golden brown now and glistening with juices, its smell even more appetizing than before. “You were assaulted twice, kidnapped, kept naked in a cage for days, demeaned, survived through a crash, and have been attacked by skeks on top of having to hike through a rugged alien wilderness and survive with little food and no clear way home, and you’re still worried about your brother?”
Yuri’s brows furrowed as she looked at him. “Well…yeah. Why wouldn’t I be?”
He bit down on one of the smaller pieces of meat and tore it off the stick, chewing thoughtfully. It was certainly tough—a tad overcooked, perhaps—but it was still savory, easily the best food he’d had in as long as he could remember. As he passed the skewer to her, he said, “Just figured you’d have more immediate stuff to concern you is all.”
She took the offered stick. “Not much we can really do at the moment, right? No point in
sitting here worrying myself to death about our situation. We’re still alive. It…could be worse.”
Somehow, Thargen’s admiration of her—which was already immense and overflowing—only expanded.
“But I’m allowed to worry about my brother,” she said as she turned the skewer on its side, holding one end in each hand, and bit into the meat. Her eyes rolled up, and she made an appreciative moan that went straight to Thargen’s cock.
“So…effing…good,” she said as she chewed. She took several more bites, barely swallowing one before taking next—and kept making those little moans.
Fuck. Gonna have to plug my ears if I want to get through dinner without throwing myself at her and tearing off her clothes…
Thargen removed the other skewers from the fire and replaced them with the raw cuts before allowing himself to eat. He struggled to keep his attention on the cooking food as he ate, but it was difficult with Yuri right there, making those pleased sounds, smelling so nice, looking so beautiful.
Soon. It’ll be time soon… But only time for a taste.
Fortunately, it wasn’t difficult for him to keep his attention on the food he was eating; he devoured the meat by the kilo, it seemed, and could barely cook it fast enough to keep up with the appetite it had woken in him. He’d been hungry for a long time, but he hadn’t realized just how much so until that first bite of freshly roasted meat. Yuri put away a fair portion herself. They lapsed into that companionable silence, replacing conversation with the sounds of their chewing.
“No one’s coming to save us, are they?” Yuri asked after a while, reaching for another skewer. She kept her eyes on Thargen as she bit into the meat.
Thargen paused in his chewing and glanced at her. He knew she was looking for hope, but he couldn’t bring himself to lie to her. She needed the truth. He swallowed his mouthful and took another bite, speaking around the food. “No one’s coming for us.”
“So we really are on our own here.”
He licked the grease from his lips and offered her a grin. “Yeah, but we’re alive. That’s bad for the smugglers and skeks, but it’s really good for us.” He reached toward her and gently chucked her beneath the chin with a curled finger. “We’ll find a way home, zoani.”
She smiled, and her eyes softened as she lowered her food. “Thank you, Thargen. For everything. I wouldn’t have made it this far without you. I really do owe you my life.”
The look in her eyes sparked a deep warmth in Thargen’s heart, the sort that he’d only felt since meeting her. He shook his head and dropped his gaze to the fire. “Fuck, terran, you don’t owe me anything. I’m having the time of my life.”
Yuri laughed. “You really get into this much trouble all the time?”
“Been in a lot worse trouble than this more times than I can count—and I can count at least to five.”
“Guess your guardian angel needs to step it up a little.”
Though Yuri’s tone was playful, her words produced an unexpected pang of guilt in Thargen’s chest. When she’d talked about guardian angels before, she’d likened Urgand to one—and she’d been right in a lot of ways. Urgand was undoubtedly worried by now, had probably been worried ever since Thargen hadn’t shown up for his shift days and days ago. Everyone back home was probably worried.
And Thargen hadn’t been kidding—he was enjoying his time here with Yuri, despite the downsides. However torturous his desire grew, however dangerous the obstacles facing them proved, he wouldn’t have traded this for anything. Wasn’t that pretty much like taking a big shit on his friends’ concern?
“Urgand already does more than he should have to,” Thargen said, voice low. “He’s not responsible for me, or my safety. I don’t want him to…babysit me. He’s got this thing with Sekk’thi, this ilthurii we work with, and he’s pretty much become the doctor for our crew. That’s the stuff he should focus on. I’ll be okay. I mean”—he lifted his gaze and locked it with hers as that inner heat spread and intensified with each beat of his heart—“I have you.”
She smiled. It was wide and genuine, and so damned sexy. “Yeah, you have me.”
Thargen grinned. “Fuck yeah, I do.”
Placing her empty skewer on the ground, Yuri leaned closer to him and tipped her face up. Her eyes dipped to his mouth. “You know, Thargen, you could have all of me.”
A single word blasted through his mind, resonating from every cell in his body—Mine.
She reached out and placed a finger on the center of his chest, slowly trailing it down his abdomen. “I recall someone promising to show me some…skills.”
His cock twitched, and Rage brushed against his conscious mind, forcing a low growl up from his chest. He drew in a deep breath through his nose. Her scent was suddenly stronger, enhanced by the perfume of her desire. His muscles tensed, and he balled his hands into fists. Though the body beneath her clothing was no mystery, he was ravenous to see it again—and he knew those clothes would offer little resistance.
Tossing his stick aside, he curled his fingers around her slim wrist, stopping her hand before it could reach his groin. “I did, didn’t I?”
He yanked her arm to the side. She fell across his lap, face down, and he released her wrist to pull up the hem of her shirt. Yuri flattened her hands on the ground and pushed up, but Thargen grunted and planted a hand on her back, holding her down. He hooked the fingers of his other hand beneath her waistband and tugged her pants down to her knees to reveal the curve of her ass and the backs of her thighs.
He hummed appreciatively as he settled his hand over her backside. Spanning his fingers wide, he smoothed his palm over her skin, slipping his middle finger between her thighs to tease at her slit. Her sex radiated heat, and his fingertip swept up a bit of the moisture gathering there.
Yuri whimpered and arched her back, reaching for his touch.
Thargen withdrew his hand and slapped her ass with a growl.
She gasped, her body jolting, and she turned her surprised eyes toward him.
“You move at my pace, zoani,” he said, gently rubbing the spot he’d struck. “Understand?”
There was heat in her eyes as she nodded. That heat—that desperation, that need—only stoked the fires burning inside him.
“Good.” Thargen continued to soothe her now pinkened flesh, somehow keeping his palm steady despite the building pressure within him. His nostrils flared as he inhaled more of her scent; her arousal was all he could smell now, and he took in as much of it as he could.
Her weight, though slight, was torturous to his cock, which throbbed beneath her, straining against the thin barriers of their clothing. So close. She was so fucking close…
He moved his hand down, squeezing her yielding flesh along the way, until his finger was back at her slit. The sound that emerged from him was the bastard offspring of a growl and hum. “Your little pussy’s wet for me, zoani.”
Yuri snorted, drawing his attention back to her face just as she dropped her head. A moment later, her body shook with near-silent laughter.
Thargen slipped his finger between her folds and brushed it over her clit. “Something funny?”
She gasped, her body stiffening. A moan followed as she eased back, pressing against his finger, but he kept it still—despite everything in him demanding more. Every moment he resisted her was the hardest of his life.
“Well?” he asked.
Yuri groaned, but she lifted her head and turned it to look at him, grinning. “You know the word pussy, but not angel?”
“The fuck, terran? I’m trying to set a mood here.”
She laughed and lifted a hand off the ground, slipping it between their bodies to grasp his cock through his pants. “Oh, I’d say the mood is pretty well set.”
Eyebrows falling low, Thargen clenched his jaw and closed his eyes, struggling to hold out against the overwhelming blast of pleasure caused by her simple touch. It wasn’t just his Rage anymore—all his instincts roared at him to take her, to rip o
ff his pants and bury himself in her heat.
And to tear her apart in the process?
“Fuck,” he growled through his teeth. Without allowing himself another moment to hesitate, he withdrew his hand from her sex and hooked his arm under her belly. He simultaneously flipped her onto her back and pulled his legs out from beneath her to get onto his knees; she landed atop the clothing spread on the ground.
Yuri reached for him. He caught her wrists in one hand and forced them to the ground above her head, pinning them in place. He returned his other hand to her sex, cupping it as he stared down at her face. Her eyes were wide and gleaming, her lips were parted, and her cheeks were flushed.
He leaned down, moving his face closer to hers. “My pace.”
“Okay,” she rasped.
Thargen dipped his head farther to graze her neck with his teeth. He pressed his middle finger between her folds again, gathering her essence as he stroked up toward her clit. He slowly circled the little nub with his fingertip.
“You don’t have a choice,” he said against her throat, barely keeping his voice steady.
Her breath quickened, and Yuri moaned as she dropped her knees to either side, opening herself to him.
Thargen’s hips rocked involuntarily, driven by another increase of pressure in his cock. Just her scent alone was almost enough to make him come. He lifted his head to watch her face as he slid his finger back down to her entrance and pushed it inside her.
Fuck.
Fuck!
His chest rumbled with a low growl. He was barely in past his first knuckle, and her sex had clamped down around his finger hungrily, squeezing to draw him deeper.
Yuri caught her bottom lip between her teeth as her eyes locked with his. “Is, uh, now the time to tell you I’ve never done this before?”
Thargen strained to keep from strengthening his hold on her wrists as he shoved aside thoughts of what her sex would feel like clamped around his shaft. Hot, wet, and tight; so fucking tight. “Not funny, terran.”
Savage Desire (The Infinite City Book 4) Page 25
