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“Hey there, little…thing,” she whispered on a croak, her voice strained from disuse. Two bat-like ears came into view on its long face. The animal was furry, kind of, but its fur was wiry, and each strand was tipped with a glowing blue light as if it weren’t hair at all but millions of strands of blue fiberoptic threads. “Thank you for the water. I think you saved my life.”
Wilson!!
The creature shuffled farther in, and she studied its features. It had a stretched, flexible nose, sort of like a fluffy trunk. Its long arms, legs, and tail reminded her of a spider monkey, but the webbing under its armpits was more flying squirrel than anything.
Before long, the creature had returned with another cup of water and some slimy, wriggling insects.
Alex lifted the fat bug between pinched fingers and waited for her wave of nausea to pass before slurping it down. She contained her wince and forced a grin, then nodded toward her little friend. “Slimy, yet satisfying.”
Alex peered down at its sleeping form, curled into a tight ball in her lap, and stroked its thick yet surprisingly soft fur. Each time she ran her hand over it, its illuminated hair would light up in a wave behind her moving fingers. The faint scent of pineapple wafted off the creature and made her smile.
“You need a name, friend,” she whispered.
“You’re the only thing keeping me sane, little one.” The creature rolled under her palm in what she’d learned was an affectionate snuggle. Alex grinned. “How about Wilson? You aren’t exactly a volleyball, but we’ll ignore that.”
The black material of his suit folded away until the most handsome man she’d ever seen crowded her. The suit coalesced into a small square of fabric stuck to his shoulder. A faint shimmer glinted all around them as if they were standing in a giant bubble.
His golden-blond hair was tied into a knot somewhere behind his head, and his light-green eyes flicked over her face as she studied him.
A short-sleeved maroon uniform top spanned his broad chest. It was tucked into black pants at his narrow waist.
Thin iridescent tattoos curled and twisted upward, enhancing the perfection of his arm, until they disappeared under the edge of his thick shirt. A long, sheathed blade was strapped just below his shoulder, and a damp spot of purple blood seeped through the sheath fabric and marred his smooth, pale skin.
Before she could guard her ears against the attack, the man had flattened his palms on either side of her face. She glanced up at him and saw the shadow of a wince. She lifted her own hands to cover his ears. His eyes widened briefly, the flecks of gold in his irises seeming to gleam. They stood like that until the shriek ended, awkwardly clutching each other’s faces instead of their own.
He peered at her hand, then at her eyes, his dark-blond brows raised in confusion. Not knowing what the hell had come over her, she rose to her toes and kissed him. It was quick, and she didn’t wait for him to kiss her back before moving away.
“What’s your name?” she asked as the flashing around them picked up speed. Taking a few steps back without tearing his gaze from her, he answered, “Auzed.” “Try not to die, Auzed.”
there she was. Alejandra. And upon their first meeting, she’d pressed her mouth to his. Why in the name of the Goddess had she done that right before he’d jumped into a fray? Had she been trying to get them both killed by distracting him so?
She’d kissed him. Had performed that odd mouth play that humans seemed to enjoy with their partners. As he skidded past the sefa, mind focused on the kiss, its tail shot out, wrapping around his ankle and pulling his legs out from under him.
A faint gasp sounded from the treetops. Did she really think he couldn’t best this animal? Is that why she’d kissed him? As a parting gift meant to be of comfort in his last moments of life? It was an affront.
you’re deemed to be a citizen of Sauven, they’ll force you into a temporary marriage with someone you don’t know. If you live in Tremanta, you’ll be around other humans and have the option of marrying or not.
Pinche pendejo.
Fucking asshole
“Tueys are native to this planet and have some psychic gifts. They’re solitary unless they’re looking to reproduce, but occasionally they choose to bond to a creature they feel connected with. As long as you treat her,” Relli said pointedly, “well, she’ll remain loyal to you forever and only leave your side to find a mate before she returns to you. She’ll be able to sense when you’re in trouble or when you’re happy.”
Honey. She’d called him that before too. The term translated as a food that was sweet and thick. The byproduct of an insect, but the way she said it in a purr sent chills down his spine. He didn’t like it.
Her gaze remained caught on his upper arms. On instinct he tensed, flexing the muscle for a more impressive display. Heat rose on his neck at the immature response. But then a different kind of hunger briefly lit in her eyes, and his embarrassment vanished.
But my dumb ass got us into trouble, of course. We fell into the river and got separated.” It suddenly occurred to Zed that he hadn’t yet seen her ass, but if it fit with the rest of her body, it would be far from dumb.
‘a lo hecho, pecho.’”
It just means, what’s done is done. Gotta deal with the consequences now.”
“We need to talk about this. We broke the law. You have to take it seriously. What happens if we do leave in a week and they find out we never married? Because they know the Queen is lying to help us, they won’t accept us not marrying well. They’ll see it as a slap in the face.”
“What would’ve happened if I hadn’t lied?” she asked without accusation. “Wouldn’t you have been in a similar situation? You’d have lost your job and all that for breaking the law and killing the sefa. And I’d be stuck here.”
“Maybe. But that wasn’t your choice to make.”
“What can I do, then? Should I make the lie real? I’ll do it. I’ll marry you.” Her vision grew glassy as she tried to hold his stare.
“You’d marry me?” “Is that what you want?” she asked, her voice thick. “Then it won’t really be a lie, and you won’t get caught.”
“Really?” he rumbled. His gaze slid down her body, lingering at her bare upper chest. She shivered. Anger thinned his lips. “I don’t like being toyed with, Alejandra. If I married you, it wouldn’t be to get out of a lie. And it wouldn’t be because you pity me or feel indebted or because you’re desperate. Don’t offer it again.” He grabbed a light-green bottle near her elbow and pushed it into her chest. “When you’re ready to actually deal with this, let me know.”
Standing, he held out a hand to help her up. When her soft palm slid into his, electricity crackled under his skin.
“Aren’t you supposed to say you love a girl with a big appetite?” He shifted from foot to foot again and tilted his head. “Why would your appetite affect my affection for you?”
As she licked her lips to make sure the crumbs were gone, his gaze focused on the movement. His voice was a bit raspy when he said, “Is it because human males like to watch your mouth as you eat?”
“Do you like to watch my mouth?” Alex had no idea where that had come from, and she felt her face immediately flamed.
But to her surprise, rather than stiffening and hastily changing the conversation, he rumbled, “Unfortunately, I do.”
“Why are we following all these rules, though, anyway? Everyone knows I’m not Clecanian. Won’t they assume I’m going to act differently? Humans touch their partners. I’m not going to start sucking on your neck at the mall or anything. I don’t like that much PDA, but surely me touching your arm isn’t going to be the end of the world.”
He growled and abruptly steered their platform out of sight behind a low-hanging branch laden with leaves the size of hula hoops. She was about to ask what he was doing when he moved behind her. Stepping close, he placed his right hand on her stomach and pulled her back against him.
She could feel something large and hard pressing into her back. “This is why,” he breathed into her hair. “Touching may be normal for you, but it isn’t for me.”
She held back a whimper when he replaced his hand on her belly with his forearm and plastered her more tightly against him. He took a step to the side, bracing his feet apart, and let go of the handle altogether. He swept her hair off her neck and dipped his head. His warm breath brushed over her ear as he rumbled, “How do you expect me to concentrate when you talk about sucking on my neck?”
He ran his large palm down her arm, and she shivered. “When a Clecanian female touches someone like this and calls them sexy, it means she’s looking to be pleasured. Is that what you want?”
At the brush of his lips against her ear, she moaned aloud. The sound seemed to rouse him, however, and she immediately clamped her mouth shut.
The Traxian in him was raging that he hadn’t pushed for more on that platform. She’d wanted him, he knew it, and if he’d worked her up, used his mouth on her neck, he felt she would’ve let him take her right there.
Auzed wanted to bellow with satisfaction when she stepped back toward him, seeking his comfort and showing everyone watching whom she wanted near her.
It cut at his insides to see the weary tightness around her eyes when she thought no one was looking. None of the people attempting to speak with her actually cared to hear what she had to say; they only wanted to get close enough to induce recognition.
chismosas.
Gossips
She’d never needed a man to take care of her that way, but she sure as hell liked when Auzed did it.
“Even if we make it back to Tremanta without incident, Sauven may still call for my resignation as a sort of punishment.” He locked eyes with her. “You see, the head guard isn’t allowed to be considered for marriage. They could claim that if we were planning on getting married, I would’ve already begun my search for a replacement.
She couldn’t stand to look at him anymore. Not after hearing about how his whole life had been building to this prestigious position, only to be destroyed by her effort to help.
Each and every time Maxu had become eligible for participation in the ceremony, he’d carefully broken the law. Only enough to be deemed unfit for marriage, but still, Maxu had a way of working around a problem that Auzed found both distasteful and impressive.
