by Presley Hall
My stomach twists at the thought. I still haven’t told anyone about it, and I have no idea how anyone will react, least of all Axen.
I doubt he’d want to raise another man’s child, but would he even want me anymore, if he knew?
It’s a relief to see the village walls come into view, and we arrive back at the settlement in time for dinner. I stash the satchel of plants with the other medical supplies to make medicines out of later, and we join the others as they gather for the evening meal. I sit down on a log beside Sadie and Jaro, who are leaning close to one another and looking happy as can be.
The other men managed to bring down a large animal on their hunt today, and it’s been roasted over a large fire. It looks sort of like a deer, but it has two heads and is a bit larger than a buck would be back on Earth. There’s a sense of victory and accomplishment amidst the hunters, the simple joy of providing for their people lifting their spirits even on this awful prison planet.
I see Axen’s mouth twist into a pained, jealous scowl, and a flash of sympathy rises up in me. It must be killing him not to be able to join them.
“Elizabeth!” Kaide greets me with a grin, coming over to offer me a hunk of meat from the deer-like animal. I take it with a smile, and he plops down on the log on my other side, grinning widely. “I heard you went herb gathering today.”
A laugh falls from my lips at his description. I like Kaide. We got to know each other a little while we were healing Droth at the crash site. He’s not quite as tall as some of the other warriors, so he seemed a little less intimidating when I was still getting used to being around the Voxerans. His boyish grin reminds me of the cocky med students I would have to make rounds with when I was a doctor.
“Yeah, I did,” I reply. “With Axen. He was a big help.”
Kaide chuckles, nudging me playfully. “Akhi. Axen wouldn’t know a wharler from a taurfa plant. I’ll go with you next time if you want.”
I brush off his words, shaking my head. “Axen did just fine,” I say, feeling a little defensive of the big warrior.
Kaide doesn’t know about the mate bond, of course, but I’m not interested in him at all. The only man who holds my attention and makes my heart race is Axen, and I have no interest in encouraging Kaide. I’m not the kind of woman who enjoys playing games or pitting two men against each other for my affection, and I don’t want to hurt Axen by making him think I’m rejecting the mate bond because of him.
I’m the problem, after all.
That, and the life growing inside me.
The cocky Voxeran is still grinning at me, his gray eyes shining in the firelight. “Well, if you ever want to go foraging again, I’d be happy to accompany you.”
There’s a flirtatious lilt to his voice, and I shake my head, about to tell him that it won’t be necessary—that I already know who I would ask. But before I can say anything, Axen stands with a snarl and lunges for Kaide, knocking him backward off the log and onto the ground. I leap out of the way, my eyes wide as I watch Axen throw a punch hard enough to snap Kaide’s head to one side. The two men go rolling as Kaide growls and kicks Axen hard in the stomach.
Worry rises up in me, for both of them—Axen, because he’s still very much wounded and could reopen his stitches, and Kaide because, well, I’ve seen Axen fight. And I know for a fact that he’s not in control of his emotions right now.
It takes Droth, Jaro, and Strome to tear Axen off Kaide, while two other Voxerans hold Kaide back and help him to his feet. Kaide wipes below his nose, smearing blue blood, and glares at Axen as the larger warrior snarls and shows his teeth.
“What in the name of the gods was that for?” Kaide demands.
“You need to learn to keep your slanching hands to yourself,” Axen snarls back, fighting with all his might against the three other men.
The look in his eyes is murderous, enough that Kaide’s eyes widen, and he takes a step back. He holds his hands up, visibly confused and angry but clearly knowing he has no chance against Axen, who is so much larger and angrier than him.
“You need to calm down,” Droth tells Axen, his voice so heavy with authority that makes even me want to bow my head.
Axen won’t even meet his eyes. It’s such a stark change from how he normally addresses Droth that it sends a shiver down my spine. But still, the massive Voxeran obeys his prince, slowly abandoning his struggles against the men holding him back. At a nod from Droth, they release him.
Kaide takes a step closer, trying to return to the fire, and Axen’s warning growl is deep enough that it feels like the ground shakes.
Fuck. I know he’ll lunge for Kaide again, and I know exactly why.
I drop my food and grab Axen’s arm. Jaro rumbles with alarm, but Axen immediately freezes when I touch him. I dig my nails in and level him with my best ‘scolding doctor’ glare.
“Come with me. Now.” Without waiting for a response, I turn and pull him away from the fire toward his hut.
He stumbles after me, obviously a bit weakened from the fight. When we reach his dwelling, I shove the door open and haul him inside, a little surprised that he doesn’t resist. He comes to a halt in the center of the room as I slam the door shut behind us.
Our gazes lock, and I cross my arms over my chest, trying to keep my tumultuous emotions under control.
“Axen,” I say harshly, shaking my head. “You can’t do things like that.”
16
Axen
Rage.
Rage.
That’s all I feel.
I can’t help myself. There’s no way to regain control over my emotions. After being so close to my mate in the woods, denied her, reminded of my own weakness, and then to watch Kaide sitting beside her, touching her, making her laugh and smile…
I would never force her. I would rather die. But I’ll kill anyone who lays a hand on her. She’s mine.
I can’t speak, to even begin to articulate any of that in a way that wouldn’t send her running for the hills. I’m still quivering with rage, and for a moment, we just stare at each other in loaded silence. Then she sighs, some of the tension bleeding from her as she gestures to the bed.
“Sit down. With your luck you opened your stitches up, again.”
I obey, wincing at the tug on my side as she follows me. She cups my face where Kaide managed to get a punch in. There’s a tiny cut at the corner of my eye, and she brushes her thumb over it, her lower lip caught between her teeth.
It doesn’t hurt. It’s barely more than a scratch. I don’t feel it at all. I feel her.
My body responds immediately and unconsciously. I’m helpless to fight it. My cock hardens, and I bare my teeth as she gingerly presses on the bruising around the small cut.
“Do you want Kaide?” I ask, my fists clenching by my sides.
She straightens, blinking at me in surprise. “What?” Then she laughs, which does nothing to calm me, and shakes her head. “No, of course not.”
I stare at her, and she runs a hand through her hair, tangling her fingers in the ends of the strands. She blows out a breath, puffing her cheeks slightly.
“I told you already—the whole bonding thing, mating, it’s just not in the cards for me. I’m not ready for any of it. It’s not… it’s not because I want someone else, Axen, it’s just that I’m not ready for it.”
I nod, trying to let her words soothe me. She doesn’t want Kaide. She doesn’t want me. She doesn’t want anyone.
It doesn’t really help.
She sighs and sits on the bed beside me, checking my side—it’s fine, just sore—and then returning her attention to my eye. Her fingers are gentle and attentive, and I enjoy the feeling of her touching me, even if it just reminds me that I can’t touch her back. My cock aches from her touch, her scent, her heat, so close to me and yet forbidden.
“Do Voxerans…” She clears her throat, and I look at her from the corner of my eye. “Do you guys ever just… date? Casually? Or is it always mate bonds or bust?”
I huff a breath. “Some young Voxerans have dalliances with others while waiting for the mate bond. I simply never did, back on Vox.” She lets out a quiet, curious sound, and I shrug. “My parents died when I was young, and then I dedicated my life to raising Vendar and serving the king—the true king, not Drokar. Some females caught my eye, but I always wanted to wait for my mate. The person I could truly call mine, who I could give myself to completely.”
Elizabeth’s hands drop away from my face. She blinks at me, looking startled and almost confused. Then her gaze softens, something passing through her gray eyes.
“So… you’ve never had sex?” she whispers. “Never been with a woman in any way?”
I grit my teeth and shake my head. Slanch it all. Maybe she would want me more if I had experience, if I knew what I was doing. She certainly seemed to enjoy my touch in the forest, but perhaps I was so caught up in the pleasure of exploring her that I only imagined the strength of her response. If I can’t satisfy her, then that’s just another strike against me.
Her head tilts to one side, and she darts her tongue out to wet her lips, considering me for another quiet moment. Then, in a move that takes me by complete surprise, she slides off the bed, dropping to her knees at my feet. My eyes widen, my heart stuttering in my chest. She puts her hands on my knees and spreads them, looking up at me through her lashes as my breath catches and my heart starts to race.
She smiles softly, her hands sliding up my thighs toward my loincloth. I go completely rigid as she holds my gaze, giving me a hungry look.
“Elizabeth?”
The word chokes off in a rasp as she reaches beneath my loincloth and wraps her hand around my hard cock, her fingers tight and warm and slanching perfect.
She starts to stroke me, and my breath catches again, hard enough that I feel like I’ve been punched.
17
Elizabeth
I have no idea what I’m doing.
Of course, I understand the basic mechanics of giving someone a handjob, I’m obviously not a virgin, but I have no idea what I’m actually doing, in the emotional and metaphorical sense.
But the idea that Axen hasn’t ever known the touch of a woman struck me deeply, and I just want to feel him.
I want to give him pleasure. He made me feel so good in the woods, and just like before, the hunger to see his satisfaction rises up in me. I want to make him feel good. I want to do this for him—I want him to know what it feels like, how good I can make him feel, with a passion and fierceness that warms my entire body.
It’s not smart, and it’s not logical, and I know it’s just going to confuse both of us more, but my heart and my body don’t care about that right now. This thing between us is powerful and irrational, and it makes me feel like I’d do anything to give him even half as much pleasure as he gave me.
The one-night stand I had before my trip on the Foreigner II was more about the thrill of doing something reckless and daring, a forbidden indulgence before I went on a mission I might never come back from. This isn’t like that.
This is all about Axen.
He’s a beast, beautiful and strong even when wounded. He’s complex and animalistic and sweet and protective, and I want to touch him more than I’ve wanted anything else.
I wrap my fingers around his cock beneath the loincloth, testing how he’s made since I’ve never gotten a good look at Voxeran anatomy before. My curious fingers explore the shape of him, mapping all the ways he’s the same and all the ways he’s different than a human man. A small ridge runs along the length of his cock, meeting up with a node that sits at the base. I remember feeling similar bumps along his spine, and the choked-off growl he lets out when I brush my fingertips over it is similar to the sounds he made when I touched the nodes on his back.
He snarls, nostrils flaring and pupils wide as I caress the node at the base of his cock. I meet his eyes, feeling my core clench, trembling with desire from the look he gives me. He looks primal like this, almost unhinged, and it’s the hottest thing I’ve ever seen in my life.
I watch him watch me, his desire making his stomach and arms twitch, muscles bulging as he curls his fingers into the side of his bed and grips tight. I bite my lower lip, arousal rising up inside me like a beast, that same feedback loop building and building between us.
Holding my breath, I push his loincloth to one side, finally getting a look at the thickness of his cock as it arcs up proudly from between his legs. It’s fucking gorgeous, even with the anatomical differences, and my toes curl at the thought of taking that much inside me. Fuck, I know it would feel good. That ridge would rub my g-spot perfectly, and the node at the base would bring delicious friction to my clit with every deep thrust.
He’s perfectly formed, this apex predator, to fight and fuck his way to the top, to cement his alpha status.
My heart pounds so hard I can feel it thudding against my breastbone as I lean in closer. Flattening my tongue, I drag it up the length of his hard shaft. He growls, clenching his jaw tightly as I part my lips and suck the broad head of his cock into my mouth. I tease my tongue along every inch of him, finding out where all his sensitive spots are. I learn what makes his breath catch, what makes him choke on his own helpless growls, what makes his thighs tense up and his knuckles turn pale.
“Elizabeth,” he moans, his voice a hoarse rasp.
It’s too much for me to handle. The sound of him coming undone makes me feel desperate, wild, almost unhinged.
Sliding a hand down between my legs under my skirt, I rub myself with my fingers, teasing my clit with every upward stroke. Axen already made me come once not too long ago, but my body seems to have forgotten about that. Desperate need is building inside me, making every nerve-ending tingle.
I groan softly as I take him deeper into my mouth and slide my fingers over my clit, circling in a slow rhythm as I start to move my head up and down, still gripping the base of his cock with my free hand. He gasps, pulsing in my mouth with every flick of my tongue.
God, the noises he makes could make me come just on their own. I’ve never particularly loved giving blowjobs, and I honestly don’t have a lot of experience with them. But Axen’s reaction to my touch is making me feel like some kind of sex goddess. He’s almost comically still, vibrating in place as he tries to hold himself back.
I moan in encouragement when he loses the fight with himself, sliding his fingers into my hair and gripping tightly. I let his cock go and curl my hand under his thigh, coaxing him to start thrusting. He grunts, growling out several unintelligible words as his hips lift. His cock slides deeper into my mouth before jerking back in harsh, unsteady thrusts. His inexperience shows here, but it just makes me hotter, because it means it’s all instinct.
He finds a rhythm he likes soon enough, and I close my eyes and relax my jaw, letting him fuck my mouth with slow, powerful rolls of his hips, my fingers working over my clit to the same rhythm. I know I’m making noises of my own, but they’re lost under the rush of blood in my ears, and Axen’s soft snarls and harsh moans that sound like they’re being clawed from his chest.
I sink two fingers inside myself and put my other hand between my legs, rubbing my clit faster and grinding against my hands as he uses my mouth. I let him control the pace and gag a little when he pushes deep. I tremble and moan when he freezes, trying to draw back, and chase him, taking him back in to let him know it’s okay.
He groans as a string of curses, both translatable and not, fall from his lips. His cock pulses in my mouth, thickening a little. I whimper, so close to coming from my own touch, his grip in my hair, and the way my lips are growing swollen and sensitive from the friction of his cock. I lick over the crown again and shudder when he lets out another rough sound.
He grunts again and bends forward, curling over me, his free hand trailing down my arm as he kisses my shoulder. I close my eyes as he comes, losing myself entirely in this moment. His hot release hits the back of my tongue, and I swallow it al
l, continuing to suck as his cock pulses and jerks.
The sounds of his pleasure send me over the edge too, and I finally release him from my mouth, panting against his thigh as my fingers circle my clit hard and fast.
“Fuck. Oh… oh, God!” My orgasm hits me in a rush, a wave of sensation that nearly overwhelms me.
For a moment, neither of us move. I’m not sure either of us can. My head is still resting on his leg, and I feel almost lightheaded from the rush of ecstasy.
“Elizabeth…” Axen whispers my name, taking my chin in his hand.
I meet his eyes, still breathing hard. His gaze is wild, amber eyes shining. He tugs my hands out from under my skirt and pulls me up onto his lap, wrapping his arms around me and kissing me with fierce hunger.
I sink my fingers into his hair, kissing him back just as passionately as I grind down on his barely softened cock, lost in how good it feels to have given in to the bond, just this once.
“Elizabeth,” he murmurs again, nuzzling me and kissing me, his lips tracing every bit of skin they can reach. “My kira, my beautiful mate, I want you so badly. You make me feel invincible.”
His mouth roams over my jaw, my neck, and the curve of my shoulder as I gasp and cling to him tightly. I’m not even sure he’s aware that he’s speaking, but words keep spilling from his lips, low and fervent.
“I want you. Akhi, I want to be inside you. I’ll fill you with my children. I’ll protect you and all of them, I swear…”
Children.
The word makes me freeze, tensing up in his arms.
No, he can’t fill me with children, because I’m already full of a child, and it’s not his.
And he won’t want me once he finds that out.
18
Elizabeth
Axen falls silent as he notices how stiff and unresponsive I’ve gone.
