The craft landed with a thud that reverberated throughout the vessel. Diana looked around, desperate for something to defend herself with, but the stripped room she'd frantically searched earlier still contained a whole lot of nothing. Determined to at least try, though, she stood to the side of the door and waited, her palms slick with sweat. When Kil opened the door, Diana swung her clubbed hands at his head. To her surprise, he staggered, and she darted out the door. She took two steps before the steel vise grip of his hands closed around her arms and ribs, the strength in him enough to lift her off the floor. Diana wanted to scream in frustration, and she did when Kil chuckled maliciously in her ear. "There's nowhere to run, little Diana." Kil threw her hard over his shoulder, digging it painfully into her stomach. Diana cried, her silent tears running down her face, even as she pounded uselessly at his back. She heard the cranking of metal, followed by a hissing
Seeing his mate, his beautiful moonflower Diana, burst into tears caused a fluttery sensation in Kor's chest. Why does she cry? What ailed her? "I thought you were uninjured," he exclaimed, scooping her up and jogging back to the spacecraft he and Alphie had appropriated. "I am," she sniffled. "Then why the tears?" he asked, confused, slowing his pace as he came into sight of the waiting vessel. "I'm so happy you're back," she sobbed. "I didn't think I'd ever see you again. And I was so scared and lonely." Kor listened as she recited all of the things he'd found himself feeling too. He didn't understand it. Were these emotions normal with one's mate? "I'm back now, and Kil's gone. You don't need to be afraid anymore." Kor walked up the ramp to the ship and carried Diana straight into the decontamination center. Stripping her soiled clothes from her, he ran his hands over her body to reassure himself that she was unmarked. Of course, even
Lex stood in the bland transport and decontamination room, his naked body tense with anticipation as he waited for the Alpha 350 to teleport him to his intended's location. When nothing happened, he shifted from one foot to another. "Computer, is there a problem?" "You know, we've been travelling together for a few days now. Could you not call me by something less formal? Your friend Kor calls me Alphie," said a voice from seemingly nowhere. "You are a machine," Lex stated for the umpteenth time. "An intelligent one," said the shipboard computer with a sigh. Lex clenched his teeth. The AI unit on this vessel-artificial intelligence, his ass, more like pain in his ass-kept acting inappropriately. A machine that wants to be my friend. He almost snorted at the incongruity. Lex had already noted in the service log the need to service this model. "Please cease with the idle chatter and transport me to my intended mate that I might bond with her and return her
". . . George, who heard it from his cousin Juanita on the base, swears, this time, it's real. Aliens have landed, and they're not friendly." The word "alien" caught her attention. Maya turned to the petite Latina woman who spoke. "What's going on at the base?" Eager to tell her story again to a new avid listener, Marcia spoke quickly. "Apparently their radars didn't catch it, but this object, unknown object," she said with a wide-eyed whisper, "landed by the white sands. My cousin says the military sent out a detachment, and they found a circle like the ones you see in them crops. The dog unit was called in, and last I heard, they were chasing some giant alien, and he's heading toward us!" Several of the listeners crossed themselves, and excited babble broke out. Maya shook her head. She knew better than to listen to gossip. How often had so-and-so's cousin, sister, or uncle made the same claim, when the truth usually ended up being something benign? The last false a
Lex dreamt he kissed sweet lips while his body covered a luscious body made for pumping. It took him a moment of fuzzy bliss to realize this was no dream. The smart thing to do would have been to break off the passionate embrace with the human, but he didn't want it to stop. No longer confused, even though his shock at falling in that liquid pool had been great, he briefly wondered at his unexpected reaction to the woman underneath him, for there was no mistaking what he felt-desire-and it raged like a wild beast through his body. He might have lost consciousness, but he was definitely awake now, well, a certain hard part of him, that is. Sharp teeth bit his lip, and with an exclamation, he pulled back from the kiss. "Get off me," said a female voice that, even in irritation, lilted musically. Lex didn't move right away, his body reluctant to leave the soft haven it nestled on. The body under his thrashed, and a knee came perilously close to his male parts. Rolling of
What color indeed? Maya reached a hand up to smear what obviously had to be blue makeup, but his smooth skin did not change hue, and a tingle ran down her body at the touch of his smooth, beardless face. With the sun rising brightly, she could now see him more clearly, and if he wasn't an alien, then he wore a damned good disguise. His skin shone a beautiful dark blue, and his hair, cut short, was a startling white. He had strong masculine features, with hard lips and vivid violet eyes-eyes she remembered glowing before he'd kissed her. She stepped back and looked him over, the silvery material of his jumpsuit already dry and clinging to an obviously muscled frame. Well, alien or not, he's sexy. Even without the dip in the pool, her panties would have been wet. So why did I bite him when he kissed me? An even better question-is he the alien that has the military in an uproar? She hadn't forgotten the rumor circulating in the break room. "Who and what are you?" she asked.
Lex found himself swirling with a confusing mixture of emotions, the most prominent one being lust. The woman who'd rescued him looked nothing at all like his picture-perfect Amanda with her blonde locks. Yet this female, whose name he hadn't yet gotten, with her wild brown curls, smooth, tanned skin, and mouth-watering curves, made him want to forget the Oracle, forget his intended. He wanted this feisty beauty. In her soft, pillowy curves, a male could lose himself and never want to leave. He couldn't blame confusion on his near-death experience anymore either. He knew full well she wasn't his for the taking, and yet he wanted her with a desire that almost frightened him with its intensity. Could the Oracle have made an error? Had his ancestors not looked hard enough? And since when did he doubt his betters? Part of what made Lex a good warrior, and the reason he'd become eligible for a mate, was his unquestioning of orders. His superiors gave him a mission, and he did it. Sim
Maya looked at him strangely. "Ai, you must be alien to be so ignorant. I am human, or earthling, if you prefer, but my people are called Hispanic, or Latina. We tend to have dark hair"-she pointed to her halo of curls-"and tanned skin. Don't tell me everyone on your planet is blue like you?" And she wondered if the blue extended to all his body parts. "No, we have different shades depending on the purity of the bloodline and the occasional other color depending on the mixing of alien genes." Maya shook her head at the remark that skirted the edge of racism. "I'm not even going to touch that one," she said, shaking her head. "Now, it's time you explained exactly what you're doing here. And you'd better tell the truth, or I'll call the military police myself. You said something about marrying some human girl?" Actually Maya wouldn't turn him in. Somewhere between the hotel where she worked and her home, she'd begun to believe his strange tale-kind of hard not to when his eye
Reg watched his mate on her hands and knees examining the silken pink grass of the sentient planet they'd come back to visit. He never tired of watching her, and he'd even become used to her endless questions. He especially enjoyed her inquisitiveness in the bedroom, where she delighted in exploring his body over and over, as well as experimenting with techniques. Although he did draw the line at her taking notes during the act. He, instead, allowed her to videotape them, although he wasn't sure what value the videos had from a scholastic point of view, for, whenever she watched them, the result was the same. They both ended up naked and fucking wildly. Not that he was complaining. He didn't mind sacrificing himself for science. Ralph's voice crackled in his earpiece. "So, when are we upgrading to a bigger ship? I've got my eye on that new luxury model with the improved warp drive." "Bigger ship? What for?" Reg replied absently, smiling when Penny, with a giggle, threw hers
Penny awoke to a hand clasped over her mouth. The inside of the survival tent was dark, but she'd recognize those glowing violet eyes anywhere. Her husband had found her. I should have known I wouldn't get away that easily. Well, if he thinks I'm going to let him drag me back to his ship just so he can dump me, he's got another thing coming. She bit him. With a curse, he pulled his hand away. "Go away." "No," he said calmly, pulling her from the tent. She breathed in the fresh air of the sentient pink planet she'd chosen as a perfect place to hide and research while waiting for another alien vessel to pass by and hitch a ride on. When she'd first arrive, she'd sighed in relief when she hadn't convulsed at the first inhalation of the strange atmosphere. Her research had claimed the air wasn't harmful, but she'd had her doubts. With nothing more dangerous than four-eared bunnies, and with tantalizing reports that the planet itself was alive, she'd thought th
Reg regained consciousness on the command room floor, his head pillowed and his body covered in a blanket. With a curse, he jumped up. "Ralph, where's Penny?" The AI still wasn't replying, and Reg took off jogging to check the ship. It didn't take him long to determine Penny was gone. He returned to the ship's command center and paced the area in front of the view screen. She left me! He'd known she was upset, but to do something this drasticÉ Why couldn't she have waited? He now wished he'd told her immediately about the Oracle's permission for them to travel together. Not that Penny had even given him a chance. No matter, he'd find her. "Ralph? By the moons, computer, I know you must have helped her. Speak to me, dammit." Silence reigned, but across the view screen, words appeared. Penny disabled my auditory function so that I couldn't warn you of what she planned. That human is much too smart for her own good. She managed to override my controls a
"We should be arriving home within three full cycles. I will drop off the human as per custom and then, with your permission, I will return to space to complete my remaining missions." Reg said the words to the Oracle with a heavy heart. After last night's long talk with Penny, where, for once, her loquaciousness hadn't driven him nuts, it occurred to him to take Penny along with him as she wanted. But policy with alien females was very clear. They needed to be brought planetside for their own safety, something he could understand after the terror he'd felt when he'd seen her in danger and knowing now just how delicate she was. The thought of her coming to harm made his blood run cold with dread. "I realize that usually it's protocol for females to reside her at home. However, we have great need of you in space. I also have a confession to make. Penny was chosen long ago to be your mate." Reg stared at the screen and the veiled Oracle. "What do you mean? I told you I had no
Penny awoke with a smile, her body sensitized from the all-night lovemaking. She'd orgasmed more times than she would have ever thought humanly possible. She hoped she'd also managed to change Reg's outdated ideas on women's roles. She'd lectured him at length on the advance of women's rights back on Earth in between bouts, and he'd listened to her, even if his gaze tended to stray to her naked body parts. She was pretty sure she'd managed to make him understand logically the reasons why they should stay together in space, and then to add sugar to sweeten the deal, she'd shown him physically. I can't believe he expected me to become some kind of Suzie Homemaker popping out babies. My research on the effects of space travel on pregnancy and children, rare as those cases seem to be, doesn't lead me to believe there's any reason why we can't continue on to travel the galaxy, which is where I know Reg wants to be. Speaking of whom, where was her sexy blue husband? She dressed a
At Penny's cry of pain, Reg found himself submerged in remorse. While he'd meant to punish her, he'd not intended to cause her lasting harm. It would seem, though, that his Earthling wife was of a more delicate constitution than he'd realized. He dumped her onto the bed on her stomach and, naked, jogged to the infirmary to retrieve a jar of lotion to ease her abused buttocks. He returned to the bedroom and found her watching him when he strode in. She gave him a half-smile that made his heart stutter oddly. He'd have to run himself through a medical later on and see what was the matter with him, for he'd suffered these heart palpitations since he'd met Penny. While he'd balked at marriage, now, suddenly wed to his exotic human, he realized he wanted a long life with her. But forget his funny heart problems, he could now see the brightness of her ass, and his chagrin grew. "I'm so sorry," he apologized, sitting beside her on the bed and opening the jar. "I didn't mean to pun
Penny squealed at the first spank on her bottom. Fiery pain shot through her, and she struggled in earnest on Reg's lap. But his muscles were more than just hot to look at. They also contained strength. He held her bent over his lap effortlessly and proceeded to paddle her bottom, turning deaf ears to her pleas and tears. "You meanie," she railed. "Stop it right now!" When threats didn't work, including a rather inventive one about what she'd do to him and his manparts with a beaker of acid, she resorted to bribes. "I'll be a good girl. I promise. Let me prove myself." She proceeded to recount in embarrassing detail what she would do to his cock, and while said rod poked her ribs solidly, he didn't falter. "I'm doing this for your own good." Penny wanted to retort, but deep down-really deep where she would never admit it-she knew she deserved it. Funny how getting spanked forced her to reconsider her decision to flout his command. In the end, he was right
"Get us out of here, Ralph," Reg said, breathing hard. He threw himself into the command chair and, with lightning-quick taps, pulled up the defense systems for the ship. The sound of the docking clamps releasing sounded faintly, and with a slight shudder, the ship lifted. Reg drummed his fingers, waiting for signs of pursuit. Only after they'd reached the edge of that particular solar system with no alarms or signs of other crafts did his tension leave him. Another tightness took its place, though, as he thought of what had almost happened to Penny, his wife. "Ralph, I'm off to see to my mate. Notify me immediately if there's trouble." Reg stalked to the decontamination chamber, his body taut with anger. He wasn't furious at having been tricked into getting mated-which surprised him-but he was livid that Penny had disobeyed him and put herself in so much danger. She could have died. When he didn't find her in the cleansing room, he went to the bedroom nex
The dark blood that spurted from the slaver's neck made Penny blanch. She'd never seen or experienced violence firsthand. And apparently, she wouldn't have the time to come to terms with it, for Reg pushed her toward the door at the back of the dais. She stumbled along, hearing numbly the roar at her back as the bidders expressed their displeasure at the turn of events. She still couldn't believe Reg had arrived to save her, and in the nick of time, too. And he'd married her! An event she'd love to analyze when he stopped dragging her through the maze of corridors. "Ralph," he barked aloud. "Prepare the ship for immediate departure." Penny didn't hear a reply and assumed Reg wore some kind of transmitter. "Are we close?" she whispered loudly. "More or less, but I expect we'll have to fight our way on board." "Why not teleport?" she asked as he tucked her behind him to peer around a corner. "The whole asteroid is shielded against it," he replied, tugg