Her Alien Prince

by Presley Hall

  “Oh, wow,” I murmur, staring up at the dark ceiling breathlessly. “That was…”

  I trail off, not sure how to finish that sentence. Droth chuckles, his breath warming my skin. I know he can hear the hazy satisfaction in my voice, and I take a little pride in the fact that he seems almost as dazed as I am.

  “Seriously.” I shake my head slightly. “I know this is insane. That it makes no sense. But I don’t regret it.”

  He can’t understand my words, but whatever he hears in the tone of my voice seems to please him. I can feel him smile against my skin, and I smile too.

  As I drift off to sleep, I let myself relax completely into his arms. I haven’t felt this content since… well, ever.

  And a small, secret part of me wishes it could last.

  20

  Droth

  I usually rise with the sun, but that isn’t the case today. Charlotte thoroughly wore me out last night, and I don’t find myself fully awake until after the sun has risen.

  Ah, well. The men will be fine without me stalking the camp for the morning.

  My people are more than capable, and Axen rolls his eyes when he sees my overprotectiveness sometimes. These men are all warriors. They fought by my side in our rebellion, and if it hadn’t been for my brother’s betrayal, we would have succeeded. I owe them all, and even on this desolate prison planet, I am determined to take care of them.

  Just as I will care for my mate.

  Charlotte is still asleep beside me. Given everything she went through yesterday, I’m not surprised. She needs rest.

  Her dark hair is splayed around her head, and I don’t stop myself from burying my nose in the silky tendrils for a long inhale. Her scent is everywhere. In the air, on my furs, on me. I don’t ever want that scent to fade.

  She hasn’t left my sight since we met, and yet I know that I will be lost without her around. She’s like the most remarkable addiction, and all I want is more of her. More of her smiles, her bravery, her nonsensical words, her lyrical voice, the smell of her skin, the feeling of her arms around my shoulders, the feeling of my cock buried deep inside her.

  I want to know what she’s saying.

  I want to know what she’s thinking.

  Every thought in her head.

  If only we had more time. Then we could find a way to communicate, and I would be able to know her mind.

  My teeth ache, and I belatedly realize that I’m clenching my jaw too hard. I promised her that she could go home—that I would take her back to her ship and help her find a way. I may not have said those words exactly, and she wouldn’t have been able to understand me even if I had, but it’s what I meant. Despite my own selfish desires, I won’t go back on my promise, even an unspoken one.

  She looked so happy at the thought of home. How can I deprive her of that?

  Still, there’s a chance that whatever escape pods were once attached to the ship will be gone. I saw that the ship had split into two, and there’s no telling how much damage each piece sustained when they crashed. Truthfully, it’s a wonder that Charlotte survived it at all.

  If there are no escape pods, then there’s no way for her to leave. Besides, even if she did leave, the solar council that monitors every outgoing ship on Nuthora may notice an unauthorized vessel departing the surface and try to stop her. This planet is, after all, a prison. Murderers, thieves, outlaws, bandits—those are the sorts of people kept under surveillance here.

  Those sorts, and exiles like us.

  We who dared stand up against a leader who sought bloodshed and control, a leader who dethroned my mother, a leader who turned my very own brother against me.

  I shake away the memories. This is not the time to fall into memories of the past. My brother Kardax’s betrayal will always sting, but there are more important things for me to focus on now. He’s far away on Vox, and I’ll likely never see him again. It is Charlotte who is here with me now.

  It’s wrong of me to wish that the escape pods may have been destroyed, I know that. If we do find a pod in working order, then it might be possible to barter for the materials to create a cloaking device in one of the cities. I would do what I can to make certain that the solar council never finds out about Charlotte’s escape.

  Because above all, I want this woman to be safe and happy. Whatever it takes. Even at the expense of my own heart.

  As if summoned from sleep by my thoughts of her, Charlotte makes a soft sound and rolls toward me, snuggling up to my chest and tossing her leg over my hip. I bend my head and kiss her cheek, and she stirs awake with a contented sigh. When her green eyes open completely, I claim her lips.

  I can only work with what the gods give me. They will either make sure that Charlotte stays, or they will make sure she goes, but I must trust in that whatever happens is meant to be. That’s all I can do.

  Charlotte stretches her arms high above her head, and her pert little breasts arch against me. My cock hardens, ready to sink into her tight channel once more, and I don’t hesitate to roll my mate onto her back and settle myself between her legs. She gives me a lazy, happy smile, and I gaze down at her, trying to cement this image in my mind.

  I will hold on to the memory of her like this. I will never forget what she looks like in this moment.

  My beautiful mate.

  We eventually crawl out of bed, though it is a few hours later.

  Charlotte is excited to be underway. I can see it in the way her green eyes shine brightly, and in the energetic lilt of her voice as she talks.

  Even though I’m dragging my feet, I’m still dressed and out the door far earlier than she is. I use that time to tell Axen to gather some men together for an expedition toward Charlotte’s ship. By the time I get back to my home, my mate is trying to tie one of the pelts from my bed around her chest.

  I chuckle at the sight, and she scowls at me.

  “Yer nout ahloed too laf.”

  She crosses her arms over her chest, and I step forward to unwrap the soft pelt from around her breasts. She’s made her torn dress into a pretty skirt, but it seems that she likes her chest covered as well. Fine with me. My men wouldn’t dare disrespect my mate by ogling her, but it would also be very difficult for them not to look and think about her later. The idea makes me bristle. I must make her something, then.

  There is a small collection of clean loincloths by the bed, so I snatch one up and wrap her chest with it as best as I can. It works well. By the time I’m done with her, she looks like a proper queen.

  My queen.

  Charlotte lifts her skirt, then casts a glance up at me through her eyelashes. I tilt my head, a rare smirk pulling at my lips. For a moment, I think she’s trying to tempt me back between her legs, and my cock twitches eagerly in response.

  But then I notice the flimsy purple material that still lies on the floor of my hut. If memory serves, that thing covered her entrance. Using a smaller length of cloth, I make her another wrap and roll it around her hips and between her legs.

  She seems satisfied with my work, and when she slips on her soft shoes and goes to look at herself in the burnished piece of metal that’s propped against one wall of my bedroom, she laughs at her reflection. It’s such a beautiful melody, like delicate bells brushing against each other. I love that sound more than any other sound in the universe.

  Before I know it, I’m behind her, leaning over her shoulder and pressing my lips to hers. She melts against me, open and eager. Our tongues tangle as her back rests against my chest, my arms banded around her waist.

  My cock twitches, forever eager to bury itself inside her.

  But this time, I tamp down the urge to claim my mate, straightening up and clearing my throat. We need to be on our way soon. I don’t want to see her go, but I know the men are waiting on us and I don’t want to dishonor them by forcing them to wait while I slake my hunger.

  Charlotte smiles at me and grabs my hand, twining our fingers together. I can’t help but follow her beautiful sm
ile out the door, even though I’d love nothing more than to lock us inside.

  When we step into the sunlight, sure enough, eight of my men are waiting right outside my door. Most are standing erect, but a couple of them are leaning on spears absently. As soon as they catch sight of me and Charlotte though, all eight of them snap to attention. I ball a fist and thump it against my chest, and they do the same.

  We eat a quick meal of roasted gicnuk and salja root. Charlotte pokes at the food warily before taking her first bite, looking pleased and surprised as she chews. Watching her eat, I wonder if she knows that the meat she’s feasting on came from the bird that attacked her yesterday. I decide even if I could speak her language, I wouldn’t tell her. I wouldn’t want to ruin her enjoyment of the meal.

  Once we’ve all eaten our fill, we make our way as a unit through the settlement. Charlotte and I take the lead as Jaro and Axen take point behind us, while Kaide and Bohrir bring up the rear.

  The closer we get to the gates, the clearer it becomes that quite a large group has come to see us off.

  I catch sight of Ochar, Xevar, and the twins, none of them looking too happy to be left out—although with Xevar’s injuries from the vines still healing, he surely understands why it’s best for him to remain behind. Strome and Orin are on our other side, peering at Charlotte with expressions full of curiosity. Talik, Vael, and Rhesk are likewise trying to get a better look at the lot of us.

  We pass silently through the village gates, skirting the area where Xevar encountered the stinging vines yesterday. I can smell the lingering hint of smoke from where my men burned the vines, and I resolve to send out a team to do another sweep of the forest soon. If any other patches of the vines have sprung up in the area, we can take care of them.

  With that fresh reminder of how dangerous Nuthora can be, I stick close to Charlotte throughout the journey.

  Every time she tries to wander off, I clasp her hand and shake my head. It would bring me great joy to watch her explore this world, but as beautiful as the wilderness can appear, there are things lurking in the brush and shadows that would love nothing more than to swallow her whole.

  My men and I are used to those threats, and our senses are always straining to pick up the slightest change in the wind or the quietest sound. Even something as innocent as a swarm of nutbugs could be a sign of dead prey nearby, which is always a sign of a living predator.

  Still, Charlotte explores with her eyes, and it makes me smile to watch her take it all in. Sometimes her eyes will go round, sometimes her mouth will part in wonder, and sometimes her nose will scrunch up.

  Her reactions lessen with the movement of the sun, and by the time dusk arrives, she’s dragging her feet a little.

  “Droth, should we stop?” Axen asks from behind me.

  I draw up short. It’s as good a time as any. Soon enough, we won’t be able to see through the darkness, and I am in no great hurry to reach our ultimate destination. With each hour that ticks by, I am even less certain that I can let my mate go.

  “Good idea.”

  With a nod, I signal to the rest of our party, and four men unload their packs before setting up. While we wait, I sit on the ground and fold my legs under me. I tug Charlotte down, and she makes herself comfortable on my lap, fitting so perfectly that it’s like she is made for me.

  That thought hits me in the chest like a boulder, and my arms wrap around her unconsciously, pulling her closer.

  She is made for me.

  And if the gods permit her leaving, then she will take my heart with her.

  21

  Charlotte

  For the second night in a row, I sleep in Droth’s arms, and when the gray early morning light begins to creep across the sky, I don’t want to get up.

  So I don’t.

  Instead, I stare at Droth as he sleeps, tracing the sharp contours of his face and the soft line of his mouth.

  Even though I’m thrilled to be heading back to the ship, I feel strangely conflicted about it too.

  I want to find the others, of course I do, but thinking about leaving this place and this man… it makes my chest ache so acutely that it’s hard to breathe.

  None of this makes sense. I don’t know why he feels so right. Even when I try to think logically and pragmatically, considering the facts and nothing else, he still feels right.

  He’s kind, he’s honorable, and patient. He’s a good leader, and he’s more fierce and brave than anyone I’ve ever known. Droth is everything I used to dream of finding in a man.

  When I found out about Joseph’s infidelity and the lies he had told me throughout our entire marriage, I promised myself I would start paying attention to what people did, not what they said. If I’d done that in the first place, maybe I would’ve noticed the way Joseph looked at the server on our first date, or the way he rarely initiated sex and seemed to treat it almost as an obligation.

  I don’t care that he’s gay. I care enough about him to want him to be happy, and I hate that he feels like he needs to hide who he is. I just wish he had told me. I should have been able to choose whether I wanted to live without touch, or desire, or confidence in my husband’s love for me.

  But I didn’t pay attention. I brushed off the signs as my own paranoia or overactive imagination. I let Joseph’s words speak louder than his actions. My husband is a politician, and a good one too. He never would’ve made it as far as he did if he wasn’t good at convincing people he was who they wanted him to be.

  Droth, though? He’s done all the right things. His actions are loud, and his words are… well, I don’t know what they are, but they’re probably all the right things too.

  He’s not pretending.

  My fingers trail down the line of his jaw, over the blue-tinted skin of his throat, and across his chest. They stop just over his left pectoral, and I rest my palm against his warm skin, feeling the slow and steady thud of his heart beneath my hand.

  Our hearts are in the same place.

  No matter what differences might exist between us, or between our species, there are some ways in which we’re exactly the same.

  Droth stirs under my touch, and I look up to see his deep blue eyes blinking open. They’re hazy with sleep, warm and happy looking. He rests his hand over mine, and instead of speaking words neither of us will understand, we just gaze at each other in silence for several long moments, so many unspoken things passing between us.

  It doesn’t take long before the rest of the camp begins to wake up. As noises and low voices fill the air around us, I pull my gaze from Droth’s with effort. He leans down and presses a kiss to my hair, and when I roll away from him to stand, he pops to his feet beside me and stretches.

  I bite back a grin, feeling almost giddy as we smile at each other. He’s so full of energy. I don’t know how old he is, but he can’t be any older than thirty.

  The men pack up quickly, and then we set off into the early morning. Just like he did yesterday, Droth keeps me close and points to the different plants we come across, speaking in his language as if he’s describing them all to me.

  I wish I understood what he’s saying. But even though I can’t, I like to hear him speak. There’s something in his voice that seems to resonate in my chest, making me feel happy and at ease. And even without knowing his exact words, I can often pick up the broad strokes of his meaning—whether something is good or bad, funny or serious.

  Once or twice, I see a pretty flower that I want to check out, or the movement of a small animal draws my attention, but Droth steers me away each time with a grave expression on his face. Apparently, there are a lot of things that will gladly kill me out here, even something as small and inconspicuous as an alien chipmunk.

  By midday, the group comes to a consensus that it’s time for a rest. I haven’t quite figured out how long the days are on this planet. It was hard to judge yesterday, since so much happened that the day felt like it lasted a week. But now that I’m not quite as distracted and
overwhelmed, I’ve been paying more attention. If my internal clock is anywhere near accurate, I think the days are just slightly longer here than they are on Earth.

  “Charlotte. Lengeta tung ek binani fortho swat.” Catching my gaze, Droth gestures for me to come with him, eyes shining.

  None of those words are familiar to me, but I don’t hesitate to follow him. The amount of trust that’s built up between us in a short time is astounding, but I truly have no doubts anymore that this man means me no harm.

  That he’ll protect me no matter what.

  Taking his offered hand, I trail behind him as we wander away from the path we’ve been taking. The rest of our party follows behind us as Droth leads me through the foliage for a dozen yards or so.

  When the thick forest opens up on a stream, I let out a happy gasp. I haven’t had a bath since… well, it’s been a while.

  The men throw down their packs and kneel on the bank, splashing their faces and drinking from their palms. I glance over at them, biting my lip. I’m not going to strip down in front of all these men, obviously, but I notice a little inlet farther downstream. It isn’t particularly big, but it looks deep enough, so I head toward it and toe off my shoes, then step into the water until I’m submerged up to my ribs. Droth wades in right behind me and stands with his arms crossed, blocking me from the others with a very serious expression.

  It’s kind of fucking adorable.

  I dunk my head beneath the clear surface of the water and scrub at my hair, my face, and my body until I run out of breath. When I come back up and slick my dark hair back with my hands, Droth is studying me.

  “So serious.”

  Grinning up at him, I swipe my hand across the water, splashing him right in the face. He looks shocked for a moment, but then his eyes gleam as a small, challenging grin spreads across his face.