Wyzak

by Layla Nash

  But he resisted. He held back. He waited until she seemed to reach the limits of her strength, leaning back against his still-raised knees, and panting with the effort. Wyzak watched her face as he pressed his thumb against the raised pearl above where they joined, and growled with lust as all of her jerked and a rush of desire coated his staff.

  He continued to coax her back into motion while still lifting his hips to fill her in steady thrusts. Gemma sighed and touched herself, her hands sliding up her sides to grip her breasts, and the sight nearly sent him into an uncontrollable climax. He barely held on, not wanting to rush her, and timed himself to her movements. Her muscles clutched at him, trying to drag him deeper and holding him close when he withdrew. The slow and steady back and forth, driving deeper with every thrust, built and built until Gemma cried out again and froze above him.

  The rippling of her channel milked him, and he lost control. He held her hips steady and thrust up to meet her, driving into her again and again as he growled and snarled in a mating lust. He watched her head tilt back and her face flush, the red rising from her full breasts all the way up her delicate throat, and it was as if a supernova occurred right in front of him, for his eyes alone. He’d never seen anything more beautiful than Gemma in the wild abandon of her orgasm.

  It made him desperate for more, like a man dying of thirst in the desert. She was the only water, the only sustenance, he would ever need. The thought terrified him.

  But there wasn’t time for that. There was only Gemma and him, the point of their joining, the divine urge to drive her down over the bulge at the base of his cock until they were locked together. He held her waist tighter, desperate, and as he lifted her up one more time, her slick heat coated him and suddenly he slid home.

  She groaned and shuddered around him as the bulb forced into her wet folds, and tremors ran through her as she whimpered and moaned and gripped his shoulders until her nails left tracks in his scales. The pressure around his cock intensified as another climax took her, and it threw him over the edge. Wyzak groaned as he held her again him and filled her with all of himself, holding her tight to his chest as he thrust and pumped into her.

  Gemma’s thighs tightened against his hips and then she relaxed, all the tension running out of her, with her head tucked under his chin.

  He almost blacked out from the power of it, and stars danced in his vision. He’d never felt anything like it. His cock remained buried in her, would stay there until the bulb relaxed, but there was nowhere else he wanted to be.

  She sighed and tried to move away, making a face as they remained joined, and Wyzak grumbled as he moved to his side but kept his hand at the small of her back so she would not injure herself trying to separate. “Not yet, nixtava.”

  Gemma grumbled but didn’t pull away, though she didn’t open her eyes, either. “Didn’t peg you for the cuddling type.”

  He wanted to laugh and shake her at the same time. He didn’t understand what game she played, but that was fine. He brushed her hair out of her face and listened to the hush-hush of her breathing.

  She exhaled and relaxed, lying limp and motionless on the bed while still braced against his chest. Wyzak watched her breathe and debated getting up to search for food. He needed to feed her. He clenched his jaw against the unexpected feelings, though his hearts still pounded with the overwhelming urge to protect her. Clearly it wasn’t just a single encounter. Gemma had done something to him.

  He had to admit that since the moment she walked up to him in that seedy bar, she’d created a gaping hole in his life he hadn’t known existed. He wanted her in his bed, living in his quarters, sharing his food. He wanted to take her back to Xarav so he could show her the way the suns rose over the desert. Wyzak didn’t want her to disappear into ungoverned space without him.

  It stopped him short and he held his breath as he watched her doze. He wanted to be wherever she was. If that meant on the Sraibur, then so be it. If it meant somewhere else... His scales rattled as he finally had to admit it to himself: he’d leave the Sraibur if she wanted to start life somewhere else.

  He stared into the half-darkness of his quarters for a long time, listening to Gemma breathe, and wrestled with the realization that she’d somehow become his guiding star.

  Chapter 25

  Gemma

  Gemma dozed, half-awake, as Wyzak grumbled and growled in the bed next to her. She considered reaching for him to see if he was up for another round, but pushed the thought aside. It had taken quite a while for his massive cock to finally ease out of her, and she wasn’t ready to be linked to him for so long any time soon. They’d had enough fun, and she could move on. She just needed him to sleep so she could sneak out. She hated dealing with the awkwardness. And with him and all the possessive growling, she had no doubt it would be awkward.

  When he finally settled down and started snoring, she eased out of the bed and crept around the room to gather her clothes. Most of them had been tossed around and a few were ripped; she swallowed down the urge to mutter about inconsiderate pirates since she didn’t want to wake him up. No telling whether he had that crazy-good hearing of some of the other warrior races. She was mostly dressed by the time she disengaged the door lock and hopped into the hall, though she took the time to check it was empty before letting the door shut behind her. She didn’t want to confront the crew or that damn captain with her boobs out.

  Gemma worked her left shoulder as she strode down the corridor to where she was pretty sure her quarters were. Wyzak could take a punch, that was for certain; she’d felt the shock of driving her fist into his ribs all the way up her arm. At least he hadn’t tried to pull out some bullshit rules about her not using the mech arm during the fight. He’d just let her roll.

  Her steps slowed as she took a different corridor and debated turning around to sleep it off next to him. She shook herself and shoved the ridiculous urge to curl up next to him to the back of her mind. She didn’t have time to get attached or appreciate that the Xaravian knew his way around the bedroom. Her knees still wobbled a bit and her thighs trembled from the exertion. She hadn’t used those muscles in quite a while.

  Gemma clenched her jaw and fiddled with the half-broken panel outside her quarters. He hadn’t fought back in the gym, just let her pummel him until she started to feel better. That kind of acceptance, of being present and knowing what she needed to do... She hadn’t thought males knew how to do that. He’d freaked out a little as her emotions started to spiral, and there had been a moment back in his quarters, before she started stripping, when she’d almost thought he would refuse to go any further. Like he worried about her feelings and if she was totally on board with fucking. She wasn’t used to that, either.

  She’d expected him to jump on her, get his, and be done. It would have been easier, truly, if that’s how the afternoon played out. Instead...

  Gemma scowled at the malfunctioning door and used her left hand to pull the panel out of the wall. She pinched some of the wires together until it shorted out and the door slid open. Her no-strings-attached fuck with Wyzak had held an emotional depth she hadn’t been prepared for. There was just too much baggage around all of it, and with Wyzak. The way he looked at her made her deeply uncomfortable, though not for the usual reasons. He wasn’t some sleaze in a bar trying to ogle her tits or another bounty hunter speculating about whether she could be used to lure in targets. He looked at her like… he cared.

  She’d just stepped through the door when a calm voice said, “Neat trick. But now it won’t close.”

  Gemma turned, on her guard, but paused when she saw Violet behind her. She searched for an appropriate response, then gave up and shrugged. “I’ll figure it out.”

  “Clearly.” The other Earther nodded at the room. “Mind if I step inside for a moment?”

  Gemma struggled with her naturally suspicious nature, then stepped inside and waved to invite Violet in. “It’s more your ship than mine, so please.”

  Violet
’s mouth quirked up in what might have been a smile, though she turned most of her attention to studying the badly-damaged panel inside the room. She checked the corridor for any eavesdroppers, then folded her arms over her chest as she studied Gemma. “I’m not good at pleasantries, and I don’t think you’re the sort of person who appreciates bullshit. So I’ll cut to the chase.”

  Gemma eased to sit on the edge of the cot, eyebrows arched. That was refreshing. No falsely confessional girl talk or pretending they were fast friends. She could appreciate a professional approach. “By all means.”

  “Whatever this is with Wyzak, if you plan to leave this ship, you’d better cut it off quick.”

  Gemma’s eyes narrowed. She hadn’t expected the conversation to start that way, but whatever. She was a grown-ass adult and could handle another woman warning her off from a male. “Oh? Why’s that?”

  “Don’t get defensive.” Violet leaned against the wall and studied her with an unnerving intensity. “I don’t give a shit who you sleep with. There’s no judgment here. But I know enough about Xaravians to know that he’s... getting attached. His behavior indicates he’s probably more interested in you than you are in him, and it’s difficult for them to admit they won’t get what they want.”

  Gemma’s heart jumped and plummeted at the same time. She couldn’t be implying that Wyzak actually wanted more than just an afternoon of naked wrestling?

  Violet went on, still as matter-of-fact as she had been while discussing the plan to defeat the Tyboli. “So unless you want a lovesick Xaravian following you through uncharted space for the rest of your life, it’s best if you end things.”

  She snorted and shook her head. “I hardly think ‘lovesick’ could describe...”

  “He’s marked you, as far as the rest of the crew is concerned,” Violet said. Her tone took on an edge that Gemma didn’t understand. “He’s fed you from his own plate and let you drink from his glass. He’s warned the other males away. All of that means—he’s interested in more than just a quick fuck. Whether he knows it or not, I don’t know. He’s never struck me as very emotionally aware, although none of them can really... Well. They’re not known for subtlety. When he figures it out, it’ll hit him like an asteroid.”

  “He can’t stop me from leaving,” Gemma said. She folded her arms over her chest, mimicking the other woman’s posture, and refused to admit that something hopeful kindled in her chest. “And he’s sure as fuck not going to hold me hostage because of some misguided lust that—”

  “They mate for life, the Xaravians.” Violet took a deep breath, glancing once more into the corridor, then eased a few steps closer so she could sit on the low table across from the bunk where Gemma waited. “It’s... overwhelming. We don’t have anything like it on Earth, and I haven’t seen much else like it after quite a few tours through governed space. For his sake and yours, I recommend you consider carefully whether you want a clean break or... something more.”

  And something about the way she looked at her made Gemma realize that perhaps Violet understood. Wyzak offered—the whole ship offered—a new start and a place to belong. If that was what was happening. She didn’t want to get her hopes up that the grumpy Xaravian actually felt that way, since it would crush what remained of her heart if it was just a quick infatuation. Not that she even knew if she wanted to hang around him and a bunch of pirates.

  Gemma cleared her throat when she realized that the silence had stretched too long. “My plans do not include a long-term relationship.”

  It was the safest response. Definitely. Even if it doused that spark of possibility. Too much had changed. She’d lost her ship, her partner, her job... She couldn’t just jump into bed with the first handsome face that kidnapped her and expect it to all work out perfectly. It was better for everyone if she untangled herself from Wyzak and the Sraibur.

  From the way Violet arched her eyebrow though, Gemma figured she hadn’t been convincing. But Violet just inclined her head. “If you have questions about the Xaravians or the ship or... whatever, feel free to ask. I’ll be frank—I’m still sorting out what this all ... is. Faros and I got off to a rocky start, and there are still times when I want to strand him on an asteroid, but overall, I do not regret the choices I’ve made.”

  “That’s good to know.” Gemma nodded and tucked that information away for later. Not that she’d be around long enough to come up with a bunch of questions. She studied her mech arm and watched the code filter through the metal so she had something else to concentrate on. “Was there any resolution on the plan?”

  Violet nodded and switched into a different mode, even more businesslike after concluding the touchy-feely bits. The Earther’s eyes glinted as she tapped her nails against her teeth. “The neutral port you mentioned—Proxima One-Zero—is within reasonable distance for your ship to get there after the altercation. The engineers can make a few repairs to your ship to make sure the life support systems will sustain you. You fly into Proxima, dock, and let the community start to make assumptions. You stagger off and make your way to the nearest bar to lick your wounds, and mention what went wrong. You blame the Tyboli, of course. You can even say that the Sraibur caught up with you after the Tyboli double-crossed you, and your ship was too damaged to escape. Do you think the rest of the bounty hunters will accept that?”

  Gemma leaned back and exhaled, trying to focus on the matter at hand instead of whether or not Wyzak had woken up and found her gone. Would he be mad? Disappointed? Relieved to not deal with the awkwardness of saying “thanks but bye”?

  “It’s possible they’ll put the pieces together. The damage to the Memphis will be the key part. No bounty hunter would ever let their ship be destroyed just to make a point.”

  The other Earther nodded. “As I suspected. The Sraibur will stay out of range so there is no chance of the bounty hunters connecting us to you.”

  Gemma almost asked how she would get back to the Sraibur, if the plan ended with her destroyed ship docked at Proxima and Gemma drunk in a bar, but swallowed the question back immediately. She wasn’t planning to return to the Sraibur. There wasn’t any reason to wonder about how they’d meet up again. “Good. I can find a new gig on Proxima. Better if we part ways after the engineers repair the Memphis a bit, and I can sell her for scrap.”

  “Well, we thought perhaps—”

  “Clean break,” Gemma said. She leveled her best “I don’t give a shit” look at Violet. “Put me in my ship and let me go. I’ll consider our business concluded and the score even. I can signal you when I’m reasonably sure the message has been received and most bounty hunters are put off from coming after you. Good enough?”

  Violet nodded. “Good enough for me.”

  Gemma didn’t have to use her imagination to figure there was someone else on the ship who it might not be “good enough” for. But all the more reason for her to push Wyzak away so they didn’t have to deal with messy things like getting her back on the Sraibur. She pushed to her feet and gestured at the door. “Then let’s get to engineering and figure out how to get my ship flying.”

  She didn’t want to think about seeing the damage done to the Memphis, or walking past the spot where the Tyboli killed Milo. It was all in the past. It wasn’t going to change with wishing or hoping, and there wasn’t anything she could do about it except walk by and move on with her life.

  Violet rose smoothly and led the way through the ship without another word, leaving Gemma to struggle with her own thoughts. Gemma kept her mind on the next step. Get the Memphis repaired. Get to Proxima. Find a new crew. No regrets, no looking back. She squared her shoulders as she stepped into the loading bay and got ready to face her damaged ship.

  No regrets. No looking back.

  Chapter 26

  Wyzak

  Wyzak awoke in a bad mood, and didn’t know why until he realized that Gemma had disappeared. His arm moved over the sheets and pillows and found... nothing. Not even the warmth of where she’d lain. He sc
owled and sat up with a single-minded focus: find her. Find out where she went and why she left. Immediately.

  Nothing else, not even the ping on his communicator that indicated Faros wanted his attention, could distract him from finding Gemma. He stormed into the corridor and nearly took the head off the first warrior who crossed his path. He followed her scent—since there was nothing else like it on the ship—back to her quarters.

  The mangled wall panel and broken door betrayed she’d been there, but she hadn’t stayed. Someone else had distracted her, taken her somewhere on the ship. Wyzak growled to himself and clenched his fists, refusing to let fury and concern swallow him up. One afternoon with the female and he was acting like a jealous mate. Aside from the bruised ego that she wanted to leave his bed without waking him, he couldn’t shake the feeling that she might be in danger. If he wasn’t there, there was no telling what Faros would ask her to do. He might threaten her. The captain might have stranded her somewhere because the blasted female refused to listen to reason and do as she was told.

  It took far too long to find her, even following her scent and listening for her voice. At least the Sraibur was a small ship and there were only so many places she could have ended up. And he shouldn’t have been surprised when he found her in the loading bay, listening to the engineer talk about how to repair some of her ship.

  Wyzak clenched his jaw until his teeth creaked, wanting to immediately pummel Nokx and Harzt into nothingness for being in the same room as her. At least the other Earther, the captain’s mate, stood near Gemma. It would have been far worse if only the other males were there. Even though Wyzak trusted Nokx and Harzt with his life, Gemma was another matter entirely.