by Lily Thomas
“You thought my talking would bring the Hennians? A fire would bring them quicker.” She waited for him to argue with her.
“You’re assuming they’re in the area to see the fire.”
She shrugged. If he wanted to risk it, that was fine by her. She always enjoyed watching the flames flicker around logs. There was something calming about a fire. And if she didn’t die tonight, there was always tomorrow. At least there was one good thing about the Hennian’s hunting planets. She would live every day like her last.
“How’d you get caught by the Hennians?” Everyone seemed to have the same story when it came to being taken, but there was always the hope someone would have a more entertaining version for her to sink her teeth into.
“They attacked the ship I was on, and my crew was captured.” Bruyx supplied to her surprise. She figured he would’ve given her the silent treatment some more.
“Where are they?”
He shrugged. “After they took us aboard their ship, we were drugged. The next thing I knew I was awake here on the planet. Alone.”
“Will you search for them?” Jessica asked.
“No.”
“Any reason?” It hadn’t been the answer she’d been expecting. She figured a crew meant that he was close to them… and care about them.
Bruyx finished laying the logs slightly upright in the fire pit. He grabbed a pack and dug through it until he produced some flint. With a couple of sure strikes, a small flame slowly grew, catching the bigger stuff around it.
“If they can’t survive on their own, they don’t deserve to get off the planet.”
Jessica pursed her lips, as she studied the man across from her. “Seems a bit cruel.”
“They are full grown adults. They can take care of themselves.” Bruyx leaned back, studied the fire, and then untied the rodent from his belt. Grabbing a thin round stick, he stuck it through the animal and let it roast above the flames.
Mmm. Fresh meat. It’d been so long. Jessica had been surviving off the nutritional bars the Hennians dropped for their prey every once in a while. It was strange that they looked after their prey so well before slaughtering them, but how was she supposed to know what those crazy aliens were thinking?
“You going to share that?” Jessica asked as she scooted closer.
“No.”
“Why not?” She did her best to keep the sadness from entering her voice.
“Catch your own.”
She bit her bottom lip with her teeth, as she watched the fat sizzle on the rodent as the tips of the flames got dangerously close to the meat. He was the cruelest person on this planet. The scent of roasting meat filled the air around them, yet he wasn’t even going to give her a single bite.
As he tended to the roasting animal, Jessica thought about the upcoming night and tried to get her mind of the delectable smell that made her mouth water with saliva. She didn’t think she’d get much sleep. She was positive he would slip away the moment she closed her eyes, so she’d have to remain awake.
Bruyx pulled the rodent off the fire and dug in. Her eyes were glued to the sight before her. It might be considered rude to stare, but he was the one munching away in front of her, so she figured she was owed some stares.
She licked her lips as she watched his teeth close down around a bite. Then she watched as his jaw tightened, and he chewed his bit of the alien rodent.
His brown eyes glanced up briefly, and a frown marred his lips for a couple of seconds before he dug right back into the rodent. He really didn’t plan on sharing.
Jessica used her hands to scoot on her butt until her back was pressed firmly against the rock wall behind her and folded her arms in front of her chest. She’d thought they might have had a little bonding earlier today when she helped him get his rope back, but she’d been wrong.
Her stomach chose that moment to growl as loudly as possible, filling the air around them with a grumble of desperation.
Jessica’s eyes went wide.
A smirk spread across Bruyx’s lips.
Great. Now there was no chance he’d share his meal with her. Hearing her suffer had to be pleasing him to no end.
He opened his mouth, raised the meat to his lips, paused, rolled his eyes with a huff, and then motioned her towards him with a crooked finger. “Come have some.”
Jessica almost couldn’t believe her ears. Getting herself into gear, she launched herself to his side before he changed his mind.
Bruyx handed her the spitted rodent, and she grabbed onto it eagerly. Her mouth slipped around it and for the first time in a long time she enjoyed the hit of fresh meat on her tongue. It was weird, but she kind of wanted to lick off the grease.
“This is lip-smacking delicious,” Jessica announced over a mouthful of food.
His grin broadened as he leaned back against a tree trunk and watched her with his deep brown eyes. She wasn’t sure what he was thinking as he stared at her, but she hoped it was good. She didn’t need him planning his getaway.
“What?” She laughed as she wiped some grease off her chin.
“You aren’t shy about digging in.”
She shrugged. “Not like there is an eligible man around to impress.” She arched a brow in his direction. “Just you.”
The smile slipped from his lips as his brown eyes went a shade darker. Hey, she wasn’t the one who’d started this. She’d wanted to be friends when they first met, and he’d just pushed her away.
She turned her attention back to the rodent in her hands. In no time, she’d gobbled the rest of the rodent. She threw the bones into the fire, and then licked her fingers. No need to waste any of the delicious meal he’d been kind enough to share.
“Ah. That really hit the spot.” She patted her stomach. It grumbled slightly in agreement.
Jessica watched as Bruyx rose and then started to examine the trees around them.
“What are you doing?” Maybe Bruyx was crazier than she thought.
“Looking for the perfect tree.” He placed a hand against a trunk and looked up at the branches high above his head.
She frowned. Maybe the Sri’thaens were starting a war with the humans because they were all insane. The perfect tree? Who cared about a perfect tree when they were on a hunting planet?
“If you think me weird, you should take a look at yourself.” She muttered.
Bruyx chuckled. “Never underestimate what the perfect tree can do for you.”
“I’m not good at puzzles. You’ll have to explain the meaning of that to me.”
“You’ll learn soon enough.” He promised.
“I’ll take your word for it.” Jessica rolled her eyes behind his back.
“Found it!” He announced. Then he walked over to the fire and kicked dirt onto it smothering it.
Quickly, Jessica gathered her supplies and jumped up to her feet, ready to follow after him if he tried to bolt on her.
He grabbed his things and then walked over to the ‘perfect’ tree. She watched from a couple of feet away not knowing exactly what to expect from Bruyx.
Even in the waning light, she could see two black lines running down each side of his spine from the base of his skull down under the collar of his shirt. So, not only did they have double pointed ears, but they had a couple of black lines running down their spines. She was curious how far those lines went.
Her eyes lowered to his tapered waist and good-looking butt. Too bad that butt was hidden by pants and part of an irritable man.
He leaped up and hooked an arm around a branch.
“What are you doing?” Jessica took a step forward before pausing as she watched him climb the tree one branch at a time before he was gone into the dark of the foliage above her.
Jessica didn’t know how long she stood there just staring up at the branches before she glanced around. She wasn’t sure if she should leave. Taking a moment to look around the quiet forest around her, she wondered what she should do. She glanced up at the branches, but they
were too high for her even if she jumped.
She bit her bottom lip again, not sure on what the right move was. She could wait here at the base until morning, but if he was this skilled with climbing, she was sure he’d be able to get to another tree and disappear on her.
Damn.
She’d really been hoping to join forces with him.
After waiting a few minutes and not hearing or seeing him, she shrugged with a frown. She could take a hint. She wasn’t wanted or needed.
Jessica supposed she could head back to her old camp and see what supplies had been left there. The Hennians would’ve moved on by now, meaning the area would be safe enough she supposed. Then again, it could be dangerous. There was no way for her to predict how the Hennians would patrol the immediate area.
She kicked a stick across the ground in frustration and then started walking further into the trees.
“Where are you going?” A deep voice asked from behind her.
Jessica froze mid-step before turning slightly to glance over her shoulder. “I didn’t even hear you come down.”
Shivers spread out over her skin as she took him in. He might tower over her, but he was silent as a ghost, and it was disturbing. There he was standing at the base of the tree, and she hadn’t heard a single crunch or snap when the forest floor was littered with branches and dry leaves.
“Where are you going?” He repeated.
“Leaving.” Jessica pointed in the direction she’d been headed.
“Here you made such a fuss about staying with me. Now I find you leaving after all that I put up with?” Bruyx raised an eyebrow in the dark.
“Really?” She spun the rest of her body around to confront him. “You were the one who disappeared up there,” she pointed to the branches overhead, “so I thought you were telling me to get lost.”
“I’ve been telling you to get lost all day… you’re telling me all I had to do was climb a tree to get rid of you?”
She frowned. “Thanks.” He was making her feel so special.
“Come here.” Bruyx motioned her forward with a wave of his hand.
Her eyes narrowed, but she began to walk towards him.
“But,” he warned her with a raised finger, “you should learn how to not speak, or I might just leave you on your own.”
Jessica rolled her eyes. It was going to be harder than that. She loved to speak, and when her life was in danger, she tended to talk even more. It was a coping mechanism. There was nothing she could do about it.
“Come over here and climb on my back,” Bruyx instructed her.
“Excuse me?” She placed her hands on her hips and studied him as she leaned back. She wasn’t entirely sure she’d heard him correctly.
Bruyx bent down on the ground his knees landing in the leaves below him. “Unless you can reach the branches on this tree and climb all the way up on your own, you will need to get on my back.”
Jessica wasn’t sure about that. One of her eyebrows arched. “Wouldn’t that be awkward?”
His head slumped with exasperation, and she got a slightly better view of the black lines running down each side of his spine. “Either you can get on my back and let me help you, or you can rot down here on the forest floor like everything else on this planet.”
“Okay, okay.” She walked over to him, looked down at him kneeling in the dirt and wrapped her arms around his neck. “No need to be such a charmer to get me to ride you.”
“I’m sure I wouldn’t need to do much charming to get you to ride me.” He tossed back.
Jessica paused, wondering if he’d meant that sexually or not.
He stood lifting her right off the ground without another word. She was going to guess he hadn’t meant it sexually then.
“Now wrap your legs around my waist.” Bruyx directed her.
Jessica complied with his request and immediately felt weird being draped over his back. She hadn’t done something like this since she was six at an alien zoo with her father. But unlike her father, she was wrapped around a formidable alien who was slightly appealing. A bit rough around the edges but very appealing. There was a leathery scent that kept bombarding her nose, and all she wanted to do was lean in and sniff him.
“Secure?”
She nodded and then realized he wouldn’t be able to see that. “Yep.”
Bruyx jumped, hooked his hands around a branch and pulled them up. She glanced down at the ground to find it far below. He leaped for another branch, and she squeezed her eyes shut tight. She didn’t want to see the fall coming if he missed a branch.
Higher they climbed, and she wondered if they’d ever reach the top.
Then he stopped.
“You can get off my back now.”
Jessica slipped off his back, careful not to let go of him until she had sure footing on the thick tree branch he was standing on. Then she backed away until she could rest a hand against the trunk for balance.
He walked away, and in the last rays of the evening light, she saw why he carried massive amounts of rope. He’d wrapped the rope tightly around a few branches to create a sort of rope cradle.
“Wow.” She had no other words for it.
Bruyx turned around and tossed her a smile. “Impressed?”
“Yeah. This… this is ingenious.” She forgot about how high they were off the ground and walked over to him. Cautiously, she took a step onto the rope, and a smile spread across her face. “This will make surviving on this planet that much easier.”
He nodded. “I’ve never had the Hennians climb after me, so either they don’t realize I do it or they don’t bother.”
“Just wow. I don’t have any other words.” She sat down on the bed of tight rope and grinned like an idiot. The branches the rope was wrapped around even provided them with sides so they wouldn’t roll off in the night. “This is perfect.”
Bruyx laid down beside her on the rope. “We should get some shut eye.” Then he rolled over giving her his back.
He was right. They should get some sleep. There was no telling what problems the next day would bring.
Chapter 5
Jessica’s dreams started out being strictly about what foods she would eat first when she got off this planet, but slowly those dreams took on a sexier note.
She dreamt she was in bed with a man, and boy had it been a long time since she’d enjoyed something this good. She rolled over in her dream and reached out a hand to find the man lying next to her hard and ready to go. Her fingers wrapped around the length of his cock. He was more than ready to fill and satisfy her.
A purr of satisfaction rolled up her throat. “I’ve waited so long to enjoy this again.” She murmured.
“You won’t have to wait much longer.” He promised his voice sending thrills to the tips of her toes.
Slowly, Jessica’s eyes opened, and there was Bruyx’s face. Oh yeah. Her mind was so sleep muddled, but he was so sexy. Those double pointed ears of his called to her, and she reached out a hand. Her fingertips skimmed over the double point.
“I love these.”
One corner of his lips turned up as he grinned down at her through the darkness that surrounded them this high up in the leafy branches of the tree.
“They’re nothing special.” Bruyx leaned down and placed a kiss at the juncture of her neck and shoulder.
“Maybe to you.” Jessica’s fingers skimmed over his ear a second time.
“Here I thought you were more interested in something else.” Bruyx thrust his cock against her leg, and although they were both clothed, she easily felt the bulge in his pants.
“I’ve definitely been thinking about that.” She purred as she shifted her hips and rubbed her leg against the unyielding bulge.
“Then let’s do more than think about it.”
His hands worked her shirt up and over her head. Then he worked on her bra and easily got the material off her body. Then his hands landed on her breast, hot and ready to please her.
After
a quick massage of her ample breasts, he moved on to the zipper on her pants.
“Lift your ass,” Bruyx instructed her.
Jessica placed her hands by her side and lifted her butt into the air. He whipped off her pants and underwear in one swift moment. She let herself fall back onto the ropes under her, and she felt the rough material scratch at her skin.
“My turn.” Jessica breathed eagerly.
She’d been stuck on this planet for so long just dreaming of the next opportunity she would have to share an intimate moment like this with someone. If the Hennians killed her tomorrow, she would be just fine, because this moment she was going to share with Bruyx would be everything she needed. This was something she missed from the life the Hennians had snatched her from. Contact with another person.
Jessica’s eager fingers latched onto the hem of his shirt as she sat up on her knees and she yanked it up and over his head. Then her eyes fell onto the six-pack of all six-packs. She trailed her fingertips from his shoulder to his pecs and then raked her fingernails down those lickable abs.
Now there was an idea.
Bending down, she used the tip of her tongue to lick down his abs until she encountered the waistband of his pants. Her fingers did quick work of the metal buttons on his pants, and then she ripped the pants down his legs to his knees.
Turning her gaze back to his cock, she watched as it bobbed in front of her. Reaching out a hand, she gripped his cock firmly and loved the heat she could feel radiating off the thick member. Her fingertips moved to the tip of his cock and slowly skimmed over the edge of his cock before exploring the bulbous head.
Jessica licked her lips. “I can’t wait to have this inside me.” She purred. He wouldn’t have much work ahead of him, because she could feel that she was already slick with her desire.
Bruyx’s hands fell on her shoulders, and he shoved her back, his cock slipping from her grasp as she bounced back on the ropes. Her mouth popped open in surprise until she saw the heat burning in his brown eyes.
Bruyx wasn’t completely sure what he was doing, but he was hard, and she was wet, and they both needed satisfaction. What they shared tonight would be nothing more than two adults seeking pleasure on a planet that could kill them at any moment.