by Lexi Ward
“I’m sorry,” she said as she leaned in and kissed him.
He released her hands and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her into him. “Then I want to remember everything about you,” he said as he lifted her shirt over her head. He ran his hands over her body, sending shivers running up and down her spine.
She leaned forward, pressing her body to his. He laid back, keeping his hands wrapped around her waist, and pulling her on top of him. He kissed her passionately, and she let her hands slide up and down along his bare skin. Sitting up, her legs on either side of him, she pressed her hand to his chest and felt his heart beating strongly underneath it.
“I love you, Nicole,” he whispered up to her.
“I love you too, Amias,” she said before leaning into him again.
The sounds of the fight happening around them only spurred her to dive deeper into the moment. The feeling of being with him filled her completely, and as they let their bodies melt together, she felt a surge of longing blaze through her.
His strong body consumed hers, and as their moment of passion became more intense, she couldn’t help but dig her teeth into his neck, as he dug his nails into her back. The delicateness with which he moved the first time was gone. This time was a rush of pure desire—a desire to become one, a desire to hold on to what little time they had together. It was a moment of complete release as they let their emotions fill the room and overtake them both.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Slipping out of the building, Nicole and Amias ducked around the corner and made their way off in the opposite direction of the fight. Their initial plan to take her car was quickly abandoned when they realized that between them and the vehicle was a raging battle.
“What do we do now?” she asked him as they made their way back towards the Gen-Lab main campus.
“Don’t worry,” he said wrapping his arm around her and leading her to the parking lot. “I have an idea.” He walked over to one of the handful of cars parked there. He smiled at her over his shoulder as he threw his elbow into the window of the car, breaking it upon impact.
The car let out a loud alarm, which he was able to quickly deactivate by pulling at a few wires under the steering wheel. She stood, wide-eyed, as she watched him fidget around with one wire then another. “How do you know how to do that?” she asked in amazement when the car’s engine buzzed to life.
“I told you,” he said as he slid into the driver’s seat and waited for her to run around the car to get in as well. “I was a pilot back home.”
“A pilot is one thing,” she said as he backed the car out of the lot and took off down the road. “A car thief is another.”
“It’s not that complicated,” he explained. “Once you understand the workings of a complex engine like the ones we have, something as simple as a car is nothing really.”
They drove for some time, the wind whipping into the car through the broken window. “Where will you go?” she asked him after they were sure they were far enough from the fight and were safe.
“I don’t know,” he answered, not taking his eyes off the road. “We’re going to have to keep searching for a place to settle.”
“It has to be hard,” she said trying to imagine how he must feel, “not having anywhere to call home, being constantly on the move.”
“It is,” he said reaching out and taking her hand in his, still keeping his gaze focused ahead of him. “But you want to know something?”
“Sure.”
“Leaving Zexilon was sad; it was scary venturing out, not knowing if we would ever find somewhere to call home again.”
“I imagine.”
“But leaving you now—it’s harder than that.”
She leaned in and rested her head on his shoulder, letting the heavy feeling in her chest consume her. She closed her eyes and listened to the sound of the wind whirling around them, trying not to give in to her sadness. It wasn’t long before she drifted to sleep, letting the safe, secure feeling of being with him comfort her one last time.
When she woke up, they had arrived at their destination. Before her, she saw an enormous, sleek, metallic ship. “Unbelievable,” she whispered, sitting up and wiping the sleep from her eyes, not fully comprehending what she was seeing.
Amias turned and smiled at her, laughing slightly. “I’m guessing you’ve never seen one of these before.”
“It looks like something out of a movie,” she replied, unable to pull her eyes away.
When he parked the car, they both got out. She continued to observe the massive construction. It looked large enough to house a small city. The entire thing seemed to be made of windows, although she couldn’t see inside any of them. “Amias!” she heard a woman’s voice call out.
Shifting her attention from the ship to what was going on in front of it; she saw a small group of people running in their direction. “Nayara!” Amias called out to the woman who was leading the rest.
When they met, they threw their arms around each other and hugged happily. Turning to Nicole, Amias made a quick formal introduction. “Nicole,” he said holding out his hand for her to take it. “This is Nayara. She’s another pilot in my fleet.”
“Nice to meet you,” Nicole replied, her face blushing slightly.
“You too,” the woman smiled at her kindly. “Is she coming with us?” she asked Amias.
“No,” he said dejectedly. “She had things she needs to do here.”
“Well,” the lady said looking between them. Remembering what Amias had told her about his kind’s abilities to read emotions, she wondered if Nayara could sense the feelings shared between the two of them. “I’m sorry to say it,” she continued. “But we have to get going, soon.”
“I’ll be right there,” he answered her. When she had walked away and out of earshot Amias turned to Nicole, placing his hand on her shoulders and looking down at her sadly. “I don’t want to leave you,” he whispered.
“I don’t want you to go,” Nicole replied, throwing her arms around him and holding him close.
“You can change your mind,” he said softly. “You can come with us.”
The idea suddenly seemed like the only option. She didn’t know why she had considered anything else before. Standing there, his arms wrapped around her, she was complete. There was nothing here for her. She was about to tell him that she would—she would go with him—when the sound of a gun firing rang through the air.
“What was that?” she asked pulling away from him and looking in the direction the sound came from. Not far from where they were, she saw a caravan of vehicles moving rapidly in their direction. Standing on the bed of one of the trucks, wielding a very large gun was her father.
“Get back here!” she heard Nayara’s voice yell to them to take cover.
Amias grabbed her hand and hurriedly led her towards the ship. “Nicole!” she heard her father’s voice call to her. Stopping abruptly and turning to face him, she saw that they had stopped their cars just about twenty yards from where she and Amias were standing. “Nicole! What the hell do you think you’re doing?”
“Stay away!” Amias yelled in return, warning him not to make a move in their direction.
“You shut the hell up!” her father replied. “I’m speaking to my daughter!”
Nicole tried to take a step forward, but Amias kept a firm hold on her hand. “I have to go,” she said turning to look up at him. “If I go to him, maybe he’ll let your people go peacefully.”
The sound of guns being loaded and cocked around them seemed to be deafening. “No,” Amias said to her firmly. “It doesn’t matter. He won’t let us leave, no matter what.”
Before she can respond, a loud crack filled the air. “Someone fired! You know what to do, boys,” Nayara said to her group.
They all began to change quickly, filling the air with a heavy heat and thick cloud of smoke. “Nicole,” Amias said, leaning in so that she could hear him over the commotion going on around them. “You have
to believe me. I know. I can sense it. He’s not going to stop!”
Around them, a battle suddenly broke out. She tried to make out the figures darting back and forth, but the smoke still hung in the air making it hard to see exactly what was happening. “Stay here!” Amias ordered her.
“Okay,” she agreed, too afraid to do anything else.
As he took off to join his people in the fight Nicole stood, motionless, watching the two sides attack. The air was filled with tension and a hint of confusion as the cloud of smoke prevented her father’s men from seeing their targets clearly.
At first, she didn’t feel it—the stray bullet that hit her. She was too paralyzed by fear that her senses refused to register the blow. But when she looked down and saw a red stain forming around her left shoulder her body jolted suddenly with pain.
Letting out a scream, she fell to the ground, clutching her arm and trying to stop the bleeding. The sounds around her became muffled, and her vision blurry. The last thing she remembered seeing was her father’s face, staring at her from a distance, the same look of disappointment spread across it that he always had for her.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
When she woke up, she was in a hospital room. Her body ached, and her head was pounding. It took a while for her eyes to adjust, but when they did she saw the face of a woman peering down at her. “Hello, there,” the woman said to her sweetly.
“Where am I?” Nicole asked, trying to remember the events.
“You’re in the hospital, dear,” the woman said, turning away from her and writing something down on a chart next to her bed.
“Where is Amias?” Nicole asked, quickly remembering the last time she saw him. He was in a battle; her father was there. “Is he okay?”
“You need to rest,” the woman said to her, not answering her question.
“No!” she yelled out. “Where is he? Is he okay?” she felt a wave of panic wash over her. If she wasn’t answering her questions, it had to be because something happened! The woman just patted her shoulder and turned to walk out of the room. “Wait!” she cried out after her. “Come back!” But it was too late, the woman was gone, and it was clear she wasn’t coming back.
“You shouldn’t yell in a hospital,” she heard a familiar voice say; “it’s not polite.” Around the corner, Amias appeared. His arm was in a sling, and he had a bandage going across his head.
“You’re alive!” she exclaimed, a feeling of relief filling her. “I was so worried! I had no idea what happened to you!”
He walked over to her bed and sat down next to her, smiling at her kindly. “How are you feeling?” he asked stroking her hair slowly.
“Better now that you’re here,” she replied. “But, wait,” she said, pushing herself up. A jolt of pain radiated out from her arm, but she tried her best to ignore it. “What about your people? Where are they? Did they get away? How are you here?”
“Nicole,” he said slowly, “look around you.”
She did as he said and noticed that the hospital room she was in was unlike any she had seen before. The machines appeared more advanced, and the lights let off a warm green color, instead of the usual fluorescent white. The wall next to her bed was covered in panels, all closed up tightly. “Are we on the ship?” she asked as the pieces fell into place.
Amias reached over and grabbed a small remote sitting next to her bed. “What do you think?” he asked, pressing a button. The panels next to her hummed quietly as they slid up, disappearing into the ceiling, revealing a large window. Outside all she saw was dark space, with points of bright white lights sprinkled across it—stars.
“Wow,” she said, letting her jaw hang open.
“When you got shot, I had to bring you on board,” he explained. “You needed immediate attention, and your father didn’t seem concerned enough to make sure you got it.”
“My father,” she said under her breath. “Is he okay?” As much as she despised him, he was still her father. She still felt a sort of obligation to worry about him.
“That’s what I love about you,” Amias said. “You care about him, even though he treated you the way he did.”
“He brought me to you, didn’t he?” she asked smiling.
“Yes, he did,” he answered, leaning forward and kissing her quickly on her forehead. “And don’t worry. He’s fine. He was injured in the fight, but it wasn’t anything major. He drove off with his men, and I’m sure he’ll recover.”
“Good,” she said letting herself relax and fully absorb where she was and what was happening. “So, I’m going with you?” she asked, a hint of relief and excitement in her voice.
He leaned in and kissed her softly. “You’re coming with me,” he said to her. “We found a new planet. One that will support life.”
“Really?”
“Yes,” he said taking her hand in his. “We’re going there now. One of our other scout teams found it, and it’s safe, Nicole! We can settle there, forever. We can make a life there!” He lifted her hand and placed a soft kiss on the back of her knuckles. “You and me,” he said looking her deep in the eyes. “We can make a life there—together.”
*** THE END ***
The Billionaire Cowboy’s Baby
CHAPTER ONE
This is animal cruelty, Frankie thought to herself as she watched a cowboy wrestle a calf to the ground.
The audience cheered.
The announcer excitedly proclaimed how impressed he was by the sight—his voice cracking over the dented speakers.
Frankie crossed her arms and pouted. She had been sitting by her boyfriend over an hour ago, but ever since he left to get the two of them water, she hasn’t seen him. Alone, she was inhaling the scent of mud and dung while trying to daydream about her life back in New York. People were so close together—moving so fast—dreaming so big…the scent of rain and metal poignant in the air…shiny buildings looking like godly towers when the sun hit them at just the right angle…
The crowd cheered louder, making Frankie jolt and tense. The cowboy, standing in front of the tied up calf, took a bow.
Frankie sighed, her shoulders lowering. She scowled at the cowboy, even though it wasn’t his fault that she was here. It was her boyfriend Jack’s fault.
Okay, technically, he didn’t force her to go west with him. He had told her that he was restless and lost—that he was moving for his soul’s sake and not because of anything she had done—and because she had believed him, she offered to go with him.
They had only been dating a year. What was she thinking? She hated dirt. And she hated watching people attack baby animals for amusement. And she had been an accountant back home—making good money, living in a nice apartment.
But she loved Jack Moore. God help her, she really did. And if he could find peace from this setting, then maybe she could, too. Black people in the south weren’t victimized as much as they used to be, after all.
The thought made her stomach constrict. Placing a palm over her gut, Frankie stood and gently pushed herself past people.
She had to find Jack. She had to remind herself why this crazy move had been worth it.
As she walked in front of the bleachers—the announcer talking about the price of beverages or something—her eyes roamed about in search of Jack. What she found instead was a tall, attractive stranger, his cowboy hat askew on top of his short, messy hair.
He turned and, with the most gorgeous green eyes she had ever seen, looked back at her. Smirking, he winked.
Frankie blushed and snapped her gaze to the side. Jack, Jack, Jack—where was Jack?
If she was still in New York City, she would be spending this Saturday at a matinee. The lilting-then-dramatic music, fun costumes, inspirational or devastating themes…
Her lips spread into a feeble smile, tiredness and dust stinging her eyes.
She glanced around the bleachers and arena a few times, her gaze noticing a few gentlemen leading that poor calf to an adjacent stall.
&nbs
p; She had to get out of here. Just for a little while. Besides, Jack might be back at his truck. Maybe he had forgotten his wallet and he went to retrieve it from the dash? Or maybe he was bored out of his mind and he didn’t want to admit it aloud, so he went to his truck to hide.
Good plan, Frankie thought as she speed-walked to the parking lot.
In retrospect, Jack’s occasional suggestion for her to move back to New York City should have tipped her off in regards to his infidelity. If not that, then their constant bickering, maybe. Or the fact that every time they went to events together, he eventually ditched her.
“Got caught up in something,” he had told her over and over again. “Sorry, babe. Maybe you should go back to New York?”
