“How about I challenge you? In the only way that seems fair. Clearly, we do not match in physicality, so a duel is out of the question,” I say. He doesn’t seem to be offended by this, probably because he knows I’m right. “The only way that seems fair,” he says, “is by a battle of wits.”
I didn’t think about wits being another option. This is where my co-pilot, Traz, would have come in handy. But I didn’t have Traz here, and I would have to do my best to think how he would have. I look over at Becca, and I can sense that her mind is already working on something. She catches my eye, and gives me a subtle wink. I guess this is a good sign, not only for our relationship, but also for this situation we’re stuck in.
“I’d like to propose new terms,” I tell Mezzias, who seems immediately intrigued.
“Go on,” he says, eyebrows raised. I know the king can’t resist a challenge, especially when he feels confident enough that he’s going to win.
“Double or nothing,” I say. “You win, you keep Becca and the riches that you’ve given me…and I’ll go back to bringing you mates. But if I win, I get Becca and my paycheck, and I won’t tell anybody that your own delivery boy was smarter than you. Does that seem fair?” I wait for his response. He thinks again.
“I win,” he says, “and you don’t bring me mates. Instead, you’ll be immediately sentenced to death for attacking the King’s star ship.” I can feel the tension in the room, and in Becca’s eyes as they widen at me. It’s terrifying, of course. But then again, we have a plan.
“Alright, I agree,” I say, “But because the lady is a guest, and therefore unfamiliar of our ways, she should be allowed to pick the challenge. Something she’s familiar with on her planet.” The King agrees, and, luckily, Becca chooses exactly what I am thinking about.
Three cups are brought into the room on a long tray, along with a colorful marble. A servant sets them on a platform in front of Mezzias and me. Becca stands in front of the cups, watching the both of us.
“Best two out of three. The king should go first, naturally,” she says, facing him. “Watch carefully,” she says, placing the marble under a cup and swirling them in a circle around one another on the tray. Mezzias’s eyes trail after each of the cups, the marble clattering as it hits against the cup. The cups scrape gently against the platform.
After shuffling them, Becca steps back.
“Where is the marble?” She asks the king. Mezzias points to one of the cups. Becca picks it up; the marble is sitting right underneath. Mezzias smiles, quite pleased with himself.
“This is too easy,” he chides. Becca tries again.
“Falax, you’re next,” she says, shuffling them, but giving me a quick look before she does. I know she wouldn’t want to make this too easy, or the King would of course suspect something.
I follow the cups, but I purposely choose one that doesn’t have a marble in it. The King looks over at me, pretty sure of himself that he’s about to win.
“Best two, I believe,” he says, a little too excited as Becca shuffles the cups again. The king points to one, declaring his prize. He’s instantly met with an empty cup, and his smile vanishes.
“What? Impossible!” He shouts. “I was sure this was the one!”
Becca looks over at me, wrinkling her nose ever so slightly, to give me a hint. I choose, and by our plan, the marble is under the cup, making Mezzias and I one for one. Mezzias tenses, as he takes his final turn, only to find another empty cup.
“It’s all up to Falax now,” Becca says.
“This one is for the win. If he can guess correctly of course,” she says as the cups shuffle a final time, the marble rolling ominously underneath. If Becca can just pull this off, we’ll be out of here. I can feel sweat dripping down my brow, as the cups come to a stop. I reach out and point to the one in the middle. Becca lifts it, revealing the marble underneath.
The whole room gasps in awe. The King immediately throws the cups to the side, startling Becca.
“What a sham!” He screams, his arms flailing wildly. “It’s a simple game, really,” Becca assures him. The King paces wildly around the room. “You did say that you could find another Earth girl…” She reminds him. He throws a menacing glare at her. “Get out of here,” he says. He scowls, like a pouting child.
He shoos us away, and the crowd of crewmembers and guards part to make room for us as we walk past them. Becca picks up the marble from the floor and shows it off to the crowd, a devilish grin spread across her face.
We’re ushered away towards my escape pod, where I carefully hoist Becca into the co-pilot seat. I don’t want to spend another moment in this wretched system, so I set coordinates for a new location.
“Where are we going?” Becca asks. I have so many things I want to say, but first, I need the right setting. I press the hyper jump button on the console, and the stars whiz past us as we jet off into the inky blackness of space.
I take her to Boralis, landing the ship carefully on the top of a sparkling mountain. It’s known for it’s beautiful scenery, and rainbow-patterned lights that stretch far across the sky, a.k.a., the perfect place to make an apology. I open up the ship, throw a coat from the back over Becca’s shoulders and take her to a clear spot on the rocks to look out at the sky. We sit silently for a while, both of us waiting for someone to say something.
“I’m so-“
“I shouldn’t have-“
We both speak at once, and it actually breaks the tension between us. We laugh at the blunder of talking over each other.
“You go first,” she says. I feel my hands shake, and I scoot closer to her. She bunches up my jacket around the fragile robe she’s wearing. I wish I had more clothes to give her. Then again, I’m not complaining. Both of the views here are marvelous. I feel myself getting distracted, and I don’t want to upset her. For once, I don’t want to have to improvise.
“I’m sorry, really, for what happened on Gemma Six,” I begin. Her face softens, and I already feel a hint of relief. I’m still nervous, but I manage to continue. “I really wanted to get out of there, with you of course, but I guess I was just too afraid of what would happen. I didn’t think we’d make it out of there alive. I was honestly still thinking about the money. I know that’s horrible, but I just really wanted to fulfill that dream I used to have. The one I failed on my own…”
I check to make sure she’s still with me. She keeps looking down at her feet, her knees brought up to her chest now. I press on, “…but after we slept together on that last night, something changed. I’ve never felt anything like that before, and I guess I was too scared to feel that because I was worried about completing the mission. I know that sounds like a cowardly way to live though.”
“You still hurt me pretty badly,” Becca says quietly after a moment. “I mean, I had already told you I’d gone through a bad breakup. And how you talked to me before you handed me over to that…freak of a king…it really messed me up. I guess, when we slept together, I had never felt anything like that, and for you to just throw it away the next day really made me feel horrible.”
I take in all her words, kicking at a rock awkwardly. I really feel like a dick for saying what I had to say to her earlier.
“I hope you can understand,” I say, “I really wanted to try to save us, I just didn’t know how…but after I sat in that escape pod, looking over at that empty seat next to me, I realized that none of it was worth it. We had a crazy adventure together, and even though it was the most terrifying and exhausting…and kind of annoying,” I look at her cautiously after saying this, but she smirks a bit. “I still had the best time of my life. And I could never give up something like that. That’s why…well, that’s why I came back for you. I really was going to give up all that money for you.”
Waiting for her to respond is the most terrifying part of this day.
“I really hated you, you know,” she says, and I almost panic, except I can see that she’s actually smiling at this point.
/> “I’m not surprised,” I tell her, playfully nudging her.
“But the times you were the least annoying,” she continues, “you were actually very sweet. I thought you were just a hard-hearted smuggler, especially when you turned me over. But I knew there was something good about you.”
She takes my cheek, pulling my face closer to hers. “Thanks for coming back for me,” she says quietly, very sweetly, and I take that as a sign that she forgives me.
I reach down and caress one of her legs, feeling the hint of her skin through the cape barely covering her thighs. Her hand finds my chest, moving up to my neck to pull me into her kiss more. Her warm lips press against mine so softly, it takes everything in me not to take her right here on this cliff.
She kisses me harder, hunger on her lips. I reach around and grab her waist, pulling her closer into me. One shoulder of the jacket slips off of her shoulder, and I go ahead and take the whole thing off, tossing it to the side. She moans, so faintly that it drives me wild. I kiss her neck, daring to bite it a couple of times just to hear her moan again. I grab her thighs firmly as I pull her onto my lap, my lips moving down her neck and onto her chest. I just feel her breasts softly rubbing against my mouth, and it’s enough to send me into a frenzy. I want more of her, just like last night.
I reach up and pull apart the folds in her cape, feeling over her soft, warm tits as I squeeze them closer together. They’re practically bursting out of her bikini top, and I decide I’m going to take that off too, along with the cape. I reach up again to feel her naked breasts, so smooth and delicate. I rub my thumbs against her nipples as I bring my mouth to them again, kissing them softly. She moans even more as she reaches down to unbutton my pants. Her hand slips under the fabric, grabbing at the pulsing bulge that she’s given me. She gently squeezes my cock between her fingers, and I feel myself overcome with want.
I kiss her again, just as hungrily as she does, and she reaches further in and pulls out my cock, completely rock solid. Her hands glide softly up and down my shaft. It’s too much. I want her now. I move her bottoms to the side and gently lower her onto me, sliding my cock slowly inside of her warm wet pussy until I’m finally all the way in. She cries out, but it doesn’t matter out here in the middle of nowhere. She grinds carefully into me, her lips gradually swallowing me up, getting wet as I slip in and out of her.
I reach around, slipping my hands under the fabric of the bottoms to grab her ass. It’s pillowy and perfect as I pull her in closer with each thrust. My rod is throbbing, just aching to be more and more inside of her.
“Oh, Falax,” she moans leaning back as she rides me harder, so wet that she’s dripping over my shaft. I pick her up, her legs wrapping firmly around my waist as she holds onto my neck. I rock her up and down, holding onto her ass to keep her up.
“Let’s get more comfortable,” she whispers in between kisses and thrusts. This cliff is no place for me to do what I want to do to her. I carry her, with my cock still inside her as we enter the nearby escape pod. I close the hatch and clear off one of the navigation panels and throw her onto it, her back shoved against the wall. I fuck her harder, her legs wrapping back around me so I can get deeper. She leans back, enjoying every second of it.
I pull her down, turning her around and bending her over the nearby pilot seat. She holds onto the top as I ram her from behind. She’s moaning louder now, and I grab a hold of her neck.
“You like that cock?” I ask.
“Yes,” she exclaims, “you feel incredible.” I want to make her cum so hard, and I quicken my thrusts, pounding her until I can feel myself almost about to go over. Becca’s practically falling into the pilot’s seat, but I don’t stop. “I’m so close,” she says, which fuels me even more. She’s breathing so heavily, and her bottom is absolutely soaked. I keep thrusting, deeper into her, reaching around and feeling for her clit. She almost laughs from the pleasure, which turns into a louder cry as she practically screams, “I’m going to cum!” I can feel her contracting inside me as she cries out my name while she finishes. Warmth pours down around my shaft, and it’s enough to send me over the edge. I flip her around, and take out my cock, ejaculating onto her bouncing tits.
We both sigh with satisfaction as I pull away from her, finding something to clean ourselves off with. “That was one hell of an apology,” she says, catching her breath. I look over at her and wink. That was even better than last night.
After she cleans herself off I embrace her, just holding her for a moment, smelling her soft hair. Her body melts perfectly into mine and I sigh with a mix of relief and pleasure. It’s even better knowing that I can keep her this time, that I’ll never have to let her go again.
EPILOGUE
BECCA
I clutch the steering handles of the drop-ship, tapping my fingers on the ends as I keep a watchful eye on the outside of an old lit-up warehouse on Canux. I hope to the gods this goes well. Usually it does, but I always get nervous when we’re about to do a job. Falax says to just think of it as something exciting, but it’s kind of hard to get excited when either of us could get killed during one of our “dates,” as we’ve liked to jokingly call them.
Static comes on over the communicator on my wrist.
“Hey, I’m going to need a pick up pretty soon here, Bec,” Falax says, his voice occasionally cutting out. When we pick up this load, we better be getting an upgrade on our communication systems.
“How soon do you need it?” I ask him. I get my answer as a giant explosion bursts from the side of the warehouse; the shadowy shape of Falax just ahead of it as he rolls across the pavement. A large case tumbles out as well, clattering right next to him. He shuffles for the box as a group of masked warehouse workers jump out of the hole in the side of their workspace. They curse, running for Falax.
“Open the hatch, please!” He shouts, while picking up the crate, and sprinting for the drop-ship.
I press the button to release the escape hatch. It hisses open and a ramp falls down to catch Falax and our cargo.
“Uh, got a snag here,” he says.
“What is it?” I ask. I swivel around, and looking out at the gaping hole from behind the ship, I see that one of the workers has grabbed him by the ankle. Falax is holding on to the bar of the hatch for dear life. Guess I have to take matters into my own hands.
I reach down under the seat, rolling my eyes at Falax. Letting himself get caught when we’ve went over the plan dozens of times! I grab onto my trusty softball bat, now decorated in scratches and dings from our previous missions. I step out of the co-pilot’s seat and walk to the back of the ship, swinging my bat.
“Here’s the backup, honey,” I smile at Falax, before jumping onto a nearby warehouse henchman. Falax kicks at the face of the guard holding him, knocking him back onto the ground. He slides the crate of cargo into the back of the ship before joining me in the fight.
I only partially fought alongside Falax when we first met, but now we’ve trained each other to be perfect combat partners over the past year or so. My favorite is when he picks me up and swings me around his shoulders, so I can knock enemies out of our way. I want to get him a matching softball bat, but that’ll have to wait until we make our next trip back to earth. Until then, we resort to passing the bat back and forth whenever we need it, another skill that took an enormous amount of training.
We’ve taken most of them down, but the henchmen call for backup. A loud alarm blares around us, and I can feel Falax grabbing my arm, pulling me towards our ship, in a rush.
“Let’s make our graceful exit,” he announces as we tumble onto the drop ship, pressing the button to close the doors. He takes the pilot seat, and I jump in and buckle myself back into the co-pilot’s spot.
“You want to drive, or do you want me to?” I ask him. He looks over at me with a playful smirk, and he presses a button.
“Co-pilot, activated,” Chimes a robotic voice on the main console. I take the handles and rear the ship up with a roar
ing crash of the engines.
The ship blasts off towards the atmosphere, and I can feel myself sinking further back into my seat from the sheer amount of force it takes to propel us into the black nothingness of the galaxy. The stars streak towards us, suddenly stopping and returning to their speck-like forms. This part is always my favorite. After all the commotion of whatever crazy adventure we’re on, we always return to the calm serenity of space. It definitely beats anything than what I’ve seen through my telescope back on Earth.
“So, we got it all?” I ask Falax, kissing him on the cheek to congratulate a successful mission. Falax reaches in the back, opening up the crate, to reveal hundreds of vials filled with green liquid.
“This is for the client.” he says, “This is probably the finest fuel processed on Canux, and definitely the most expensive. Of course, I factored in a couple that we could have for ourselves.”
“Wow, what a genius,” I tease. I push aside the packaging, finding something small underneath the vials. A tiny packaged is wedged in between the crevices.
“What’s this?” I inquire. Falax gives a shy smile as he reaches for it.
“Oh, uh, that’s for you. I was hoping you wouldn’t see that,” he says, a little embarrassed.
“Well, what is it?” I ask him. He runs his hand over his head, clearly nervous.
“Autopilot,” the ship chimes as Falax takes the box and slides out of his seat.
“Wait, what are you doing?” I ask him.
“I heard this was a popular custom on Earth,” he explains, and my heart pounds almost out of my chest. “You see, Canux is not only known for fuel. They’re also extremely proud of their precious stones,” he adds.
He opens up the box. A beautiful white shimmering gem rests in the middle of a band. I gasp, completely surprised at how lovely it is. Honestly he could have given me a pebble on any other planet, but he did an excellent job with this one.
Forbidden Delivery (Galaxy Smugglers Book 1) Page 6