The Alien Reindeer’s Bounty (A Winter Starr Book 6)

by Nancey Cummings

  “Hey, I miss you.” She bumped him with her shoulder.

  “I miss you too,” he said, draping an arm over her shoulder. She shouldn’t read too much into this—driving during the night to see her, skipping work, defying his dad, breaking into her room—but she sighed and leaned into his familiar warmth.

  “How are you so warm?” she asked.

  “Dude magic. You should feed me now. I want to see if the cafeteria is really as bad as you claim.”

  Odessa stuck her head out the door to make sure the hallway was empty. She wouldn’t be the first resident of the girls-only dorm to sneak a guy out in the morning, but she’d rather avoid the knowing looks and smirks. They took the stairs to avoid the elevator and nearly made it out the door until, “Muller! Looks like you had a good morning. A very good morning.”

  “Ha ha,” Odessa replied, dryly.

  “I want to meet your friend,” Mads said, twisting around as she shoved him out the door.

  With the cafeteria mostly empty at the early hour, Odessa grumbled into her latte and waited for the caffeine to wake her up. She knew she looked like a mess with her barely brushed hair and the shapeless fleece hoodie she wore. Super attractive. Mads looked like he stepped out of an advertisement for milk: wholesome, handsome and just a hint of a milk mustache.

  He chugged the glass and grinned.

  “You’re ridiculous,” she said, wiping the mustache off with a napkin.

  “I’m trying really hard to impress you, college girl.”

  She rolled her eyes. “How? You gonna burp the alphabet? We’re not ten anymore.”

  The open, playful expression shuttered, and his grin vanished. “I know.”

  She poked at her bowl of oatmeal, finding it hard to rally enthusiasm for the lumpy mess or the super awkward tension between them. “You don’t have to impress me.”

  “I know.” He opened his mouth, wanting to confess why he really drove all the way out to see her, but he said, “You should eat your banana. We’ll need the energy today.”

  “What makes you so sure I’m going to skip class and play hooky with you?” She shoved a spoonful of oatmeal in her mouth, wishing she had added more brown sugar or blueberries. He hadn’t even asked if she wanted to tag along with his adventure—she would, duh, but a girl wanted to be asked.

  “Odessa—” He turned his pale blue eyes on her, the dark lashes making them seem all the more striking.

  “Not the puppy eyes.”

  “Please? Will you play with me?” He batted his lashes, blinking slowly and sweetly.

  “Stop that. Your flagrant manipulation is disgusting.” It really wasn’t and her heart beat faster.

  Fifteen minutes later, she pulled herself into Mads’ truck. He leaned over the bench and double-checked the fastener. It was… sweet? A little insulting, like she didn’t know how seatbelts worked, but sweet that he wanted to make sure she was safe. He tugged on the shoulder strap, his hand nearly brushing her boob.

  “What’s going on?” she breathed.

  “Nothing.”

  “This isn’t nothing.” The air hummed between them. This felt big. Important.

  He shrugged and turned over the ignition. “Let’s go to Devil’s Knob. We can get back before the roads are too bad.”

  “Oh, Devil’s Knob.” The steep hill had the perfect slope for sledding. Devil’s Knob was not the hill’s proper name—that would be the Devil’s Knee—but a centuries-long dick joke couldn’t be denied.

  Twenty minutes later, they parked at the bottom of the hill and trudged upward, each carrying a snow tube.

  Odessa huffed and grew too warm from the climb. She unzipped her jacket. “This sucks. You suck. We could be fighting crime in Hero City.”

  “Fresh air is good for you,” he said, not sweating or panting.

  “My fire blaster is almost level fifty. That’s pretty important to me.” She and Mads spent hours in the online game, blasting their way through street crime in a fictional city and taking down alien invaders. They used to play on laptops in her bedroom, shouting out orders for a fight and cursing when their tactics went wrong. It was the best. Now they played online via voice chat, if she didn’t have to study and if he didn’t have to work late.

  “Your blaster will be there tomorrow,” he said.

  At the top of the hill, bright cloth caught her attention. It looked like they weren’t the only ones playing hooky. “How many people do you think have the same idea?”

  “No one.” He chewed his bottom lip with an annoyed scowl on his face.

  “Could be the local hooligans.”

  “I thought we were the local hooligans.”

  “Then we must defend our street cred from these interlopers,” she said with forced bravado.

  He snorted and Odessa puffed up with pride, knowing she could make him laugh. Handsome and popular, many kids at school had wondered why they were friends. And they were right to wonder. Back when she was the girl who loved to explore the woods and he was the kid wearing antler headbands, proximity made them friends. They were neighbors. Of course, they were friends.

  Their friendship shifted somehow when they reached high school. Odessa grew awkward in crowds and Mads flourished. His smile still made her feel like the most important person in the universe, but jealousy gnawed at her when he shared that smile with others.

  College brought another shift to their friendship, with him still back in their hometown. The distance wasn’t easy. She missed him desperately for the first few weeks.

  It’s not like they were boyfriend and girlfriend. They weren’t dating. She had no reason to be jealous or to miss him so much it made her chest ache with emptiness. They were just friends, and wasn’t that the bitterest pill to swallow? Her crush intensified and he remained as oblivious as ever.

  Or he knew and feigned ignorance to spare her feelings.

  Yeah, there was no good way of looking at the situation.

  Her arms and calves ached by the time she reached the empty summit of the hill. The only bright color she saw was an empty chip bag caught in the bramble. The snow tube landed on the ground and she tossed herself down, ass bouncing in the tube. “I’m not doing this again. One and done.”

  “Ready?” Mads loomed over her, grinning, then placed his hands on the tube.

  “No. I’m not ready!”

  “You look ready.” He pushed, sending her down the slope facing the wrong way.

  “Sommerfeldt!”

  His laughter rang through the cold air as she watched him grow smaller and smaller as she rushed down backward, clutching the snow tube. Throwing one hand over the side, her gloved fingers plowed through the snow and twisted her around to face the correct direction.

  Surprise drifted into laughter when her tube slowed and hit a snowbank. Mads launched his down the hill, whooping all the way down. He came to a stop not far from her.

  “That was a mean trick,” she said and tossed a handful of snow at Mads.

  “Again!”

  “I’m not walking up there again.” She flopped back down in the snow tube and crossed her arms. Lazy? Absolutely.

  “Come on.” He grabbed her hand and pulled Odessa to her feet.

  Nose to nose, their breath hung in the cold air. The scent of pine needles and smoke clouded her senses. He tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and leaned in, breath hot on the shell of her ear and she shivered. He whispered, “I’ll make it worth your while.”

  Ten minutes later, Odessa stood at the top of the hill. Taking the knit hat off her head, she wiped the sweat from her brow like a sweaty snow bunny. Super sexy, right?

  “Hey,” Mads said, stepping closer. Now he was a sexy snow bunny. Hat lost in the last run down the hill, his dark hair stuck up in every direction. Instead of making him look like a disheveled vagrant, he looked like he tumbled out of bed after a fun romp. His cheeks were pink from the cold and his lips were an inviting raspberry.

  “Hey,” she replied.

&n
bsp; He wore a thin jacket, which hung open over a faded black T-shirt, no scarf, no gloves, well-worn jeans that hung on his hips, and hiking boots.

  “How are you not freezing?” Odessa tugged the jacket closed and zipped it up. The act felt intimate and familiar, like they routinely dressed—and hopefully undressed—each other.

  “You keep me warm,” he said. His arms wrapped around her, pulling her forward until their chests touched.

  She looked up at him, blushing furiously and desperately trying to remember how to breathe.

  His head dipped down, his lips pressing against hers in the softest, sweetest suggestion of a kiss. Her first kiss—their first kiss. She gasped and their breaths mingled, breathing as one. His forehead rested against hers.

  That was it? Soft and sweet was all right, but in no way did it satisfy the fire burning in her.

  “I want a do-over.” Odessa grabbed the lapel of the jacket and pulled him down, slamming her mouth onto his. Her tongue licked the seam of his lips and he opened to her. She poured every ounce of longing, every restless night spent dreaming about him, and every bit of frustration when they sat together, watching a movie but not touching.

  Stretching up onto her tiptoes, she gave him everything in her heart because it belonged to him. It always had, since the first day the girl in the forest found the boy with antlers. He was her best friend and she wouldn’t go through this life without him. He had to know. It was obvious.

  He growled, low and rumbling, like thunder, and electricity zipped through her. His arms tightened and they stepped back. She didn’t care, as long as he never let go and never stopped kissing her.

  Her step faltered, slipped, and they tumbled backward. A sharp tooth nicked her lip and the taste of copper flooded her mouth.

  “Are you okay?” He arranged her on his lap, sparing her from sitting in the snow.

  “You bit me.” She pressed the back of her gloved hand to her busted lip.

  “Let me see.” He ran his thumb over her lip. “Should I kiss it and make it better?”

  “Yes. Yes, you really should.”

  Another kiss—their third, but who was keeping track?—and his tongue swept across her lips. Odessa wasn’t sure what to do with her hands. Her fingers flexed, fluttering at her side before settling on the back of his neck. The brushed nylon created an unacceptable barrier. She needed skin on skin. With a shake, the gloves tumbled to the snowy ground and her fingers dug into his dark hair.

  He growled, nipping at her bottom lip, and pulled away. “You’re dangerous, Odessa Muller.” Another kiss. His teeth caught her bottom lip again as he pulled away. “I have to head back before my dad comes home.”

  Just like that, Mads sent her back to campus. During the drive, she kept touching her lips and replaying the kiss. Multiple kisses. Were they dating now? She needed to put on her big girl panties and just ask, especially if it led to more kissing.

  The truck idled outside her dorm. “You okay?” he asked.

  “Yeah. I’m great. Thanks for today.”

  “Listen, I’m going out of town.”

  “What?”

  “I have mandatory military service in my home… country,” he said.

  “Norway? I guess I knew that.” Maybe? She couldn’t say if the national service requirement applied to people with dual citizenship.

  “I won’t be able to communicate but I want you to know that you’re my favorite human on Earth.”

  He was always saying weird stuff like that but Odessa replied, “You’re my favorite human too.”

  A tired smile spread across his face and holy hell if it wasn’t sexier than his usual up-to-no-good smile.

  They held each other’s gaze, the moment stretching out between them like caramel, warm and sweet. What was he waiting for? Should she invite him up? She should invite him up. She cleared her throat and he said, hurriedly, “I should go.”

  “Yeah, sure. Drive safely.” Had she known she wouldn’t see him again for twelve years, she wouldn’t have let him get away so easily.

  Chapter 2

  Mads

  He had been warned.

  His father warned him not to get too close to the human female but Mads refused to listen.

  It did not matter how the male threatened him, Odessa called to him. She had always done so, since the very beginning when she stumbled across him in the woods, no more than a child unable to control his shift. She was light and color in a dull, flat universe. Being near her sparked his soul, but he had never touched.

  Until today.

  Some of the old bull’s warnings must have permeated Mads’ thick skull but he’d never admit it to his father.

  The taste of copper, bright and earthy, lingered on his lips. Odessa’s blood.

  His mate’s blood.

  His accidental bite started the mating bond. A moment’s clumsiness on a patch of ice tied them together, and he was glad of it. He would always choose Odessa.

  Besides, he did not believe one nip of his fangs and bit of blood would create a mating bond. Those were rare and the reason Uncle Karl dragged them to Earth in the first place. The hormonal glands responsible for creating the mating bond had been stunted for the last few generations on Reilen. No one knew why. Without the mating bond, birthrates had fallen. Desperate to maintain the population, algorithms paired breeding-aged couples together to produce their mandated two children.

  That was exactly the population-sustaining romance that produced Mads. Shortly after his birth, his mother left his father to raise Mads on his own.

  A reilendeer and human could not form a mate bond. Humans were primitive, less evolved and inferior, or so Mads had been told since the moment they arrived on the planet. If bonding with a primitive human was impossible, Mads did not know why his father had been so adamant to prevent him from forming any friendship with humans.

  Then again, Uncle Karl had taken a human female—Shelly—as a mate. Mads had fuzzy memories of the female, mostly that she had a powdery scent and made Karl laugh.

  Mads couldn’t recall the last time his uncle laughed.

  His father said it was unnatural, like fucking the family pet. He called Karl a pervert and they argued.

  Then Shelly vanished. No one discussed what happened or where she went but Karl never took another mate.

  Bonding with a human must be possible, no matter what his father claimed.

  Could he feel her now?

  Mads ran his tongue over his lips, savoring the taste.

  He should not have given in to temptation and kissed her but could not find it in himself to regret those actions. Let his father scream about perversion. Let his uncle frown with concern and disapproval. What could they do, send him away as punishment?

  Tomorrow, he would journey to Reilen. He did not want to go but he could see no way around his obligations. He’d return to Odessa when fate allowed.

  Mads wanted to shout with frustration. Problems were simpler in his four-legged form. He’d gore his adversary with his antlers. Problem solved. This was more complex. Obligations pulled him back to the planet of his birth and he had yet to reach the age of adulthood in the eyes of Reilen and thus still subjected to his father’s whims. Brute force could not resolve those issues.

  When Mads returned to the cabin he shared with his father, Arne stood in the driveway, arms folded over his chest and a disapproving frown on his face. “So, you came back. I expected you to run away and hide like a coward.”

  Mads’ hand curled into a fist, but he kept his expression blank. Brute force would not work against his father, who had years of training and experience in the art of violence. Understanding and compassion wouldn’t solve his problems, either. Only patience to wait out his exile would succeed.

  “Was hiding really an option?” Arne would hunt Mads down and wouldn’t rest until he found his wayward progeny. Mads suspected that his father would have merely beaten him and not killed him for the hassle, but he did not wish to take that risk. Arn
e had a temper and little control.

  How many nights had Arne drank too much and stumbled into Mads’ bedroom, his fetid breath wafting over the sleeping child, and whisper that if Mads stepped out of line, he would kill his own son? Too many to count. The declining birth rate meant that every reilendeer child should be considered a precious commodity—precious to everyone but Arne—and a suspicious death, even one on a far-flung primitive planet, would be investigated. If Mads obeyed, Arne would not end him.

  That was the nature of his relationship with his father.

  A faint shimmer in his peripheral vision informed him that a craft had landed on the lawn. Human tech had yet to attain the necessary levels of advancement to track spacecraft entering and leaving the atmosphere and cloaking technology kept the ships hidden in plain sight.

  Soldiers with bored expressions milled about the lawn.

  “Where is Uncle Karl?”

  “He refuses to leave,” Arne said with a sneer.

  Years ago, Karl had been sent to Earth to research a cure for the hormonal abnormalities plaguing the reilendeer. Only a few days ago did they learn that Karl’s research had been declared a dead end and the scientist, along with Arne who provided security, were ordered to return to Reilen. Karl had been more devastated at the news than Mads.

  Arne cocked his head to one side and narrowed his eyes at Mads. “Something’s different about you, whelp.”

  Mads held his breath. Impossible. A mate bond would be undetectable at this early stage, even if forming a bond with a human was possible. Which it was not. Everyone agreed.

  “You stink of that female. Couldn’t stay away, could you?” Arne stepped closer, crowding Mads, almost challenging him to back away.

  “I wanted to say farewell.” Mads refused to surrender to the old bull, even if Arne was his sire. His peculiar Uncle Karl cared more for Mads than Arne ever did. Odessa’s father had been more of a father-figure than this bully of a male.