by A. G. Wilde
She didn’t know how she heard it but Ka’Cit’s voice was so measured, so sure, it cut through the noise.
“Whatever you do, ta’ii, don’t move.”
And then he was a blur.
One moment, he was standing in front of them, the next he’d let go of the brute’s wrist and he was gone.
The three remaining cronies charged forward but Ka’Cit wasn’t where they’d aimed for.
That split second was enough of a delay on their part and the first blast sounded in the room as Ka’Cit’s blaster fired.
He was above them.
Nia’s eyes widened as she watched him.
How the fuck did he get up there so fast?
His claws were dug into whatever material was in the roof and he held on with one hand, balancing with his legs on two beams.
One of the cronies went down with the first shot but it alerted them to his location.
Chaos erupted around them.
There was scrambling and noise as the other aliens in the room tried to hide and when the second shot went off, somebody let out a loud screech that bounced off the room’s walls.
Another shot went off and the third crony fell.
Nia’s heart was in her mouth. It all happened so fast she hardly had time to blink, but she remained unmoving, as he’d instructed.
As Ka’Cit fell from the ceiling to land on the counter, his gun arm extended and the muzzle was suddenly pointed in the face of the alien who was holding her.
The arm around her neck loosened immediately.
“Now,” Ka’Cit began, “let her go.”
The alien released her so quickly, she almost stumbled forward.
“Come behind me, ta’ii.”
He didn’t have to ask twice.
As he hopped down to the floor, Nia rushed over to his side.
She still had her gun gripped under her cloak with one hand but she hadn’t even had to take it out.
“I’d have broken your bones, every single one of them, for daring to touch her,” he said and the brute gaze flicked to her for only a moment. “But, I’m afraid I don’t have time for that. She’s about to have her dinner.”
At that moment, the bartender returned from wherever he’d gone with two steaming trays. He almost dropped them when he witnessed the carnage before him but he somehow managed to keep his face straight.
“Look, just in time. You almost spoiled her meal.” Ka’Cit took a step forward and the brute winced. “Are you sure you need to be here…at this station…right now?”
The brute shook his head. “N-no. I was just leaving.”
“Hm.”
The singular syllable seemed to confuse the brute and for a few moments, it felt as if time stood still.
Nia stared at the alien before her.
Ka’Cit was terrifying.
She hadn’t seen that side of him till this moment, not that she’d been around him a lot, but it was certainly eye-opening.
Was she scared?
No.
Was she interested?
…Maybe.
Ka’Cit pressed the muzzle into the alien’s head. “You’re still here.”
The alien rushed from the room and only when he was gone did Ka’Cit lower his weapon.
He seemed to ignore everyone and everything else in the room as he turned to face her and pulled her into him.
“I’m sorry. Are you okay?”
Nia nodded. “I am.”
“Phekking Hordreks,” he murmured before glancing at the bartender. “Get someone to clean this up.” He motioned to the bodies of the cronies. “I’ll pay.”
The bartender shook his head. “No need, Crusher. They’ve been causing trouble across the stations for the past few months. I’ll clean them up for free.
Ka’Cit jerked his head in a nod and Nia was mildly aware that the aliens who’d tried to hide and protect themselves were slowly returning to their seats.
Ka’Cit reached into his pocket and retrieved a coin. He slid it across the counter to the bartender who took one look at it and his eyes lit up.
“For the drinks, food, and,” Ka’Cit glanced at her, “a room.”
A room?
Why that made her heart thump in her chest, she didn’t know.
“Gladly.” The bartender snatched the coin as if he was scared Ka’Cit would change his mind. “I will send the meal in the chute up to your room.” He slid a square card to them.
Ka’Cit nodded and placed a gentle hand at her back.
“Let’s go.”
Nia glanced at him. “To our room?”
“The Hordreks aren’t the only idiots who frequent service satellites. You’ll be safer there and at least you can have a rest while our ship is fixed.”
Nia nodded but she wasn’t sure how she was going to have a rest after all that’s happened.
“Then we’ll find a way to get that package?”
Ka’Cit stiffened a little then nodded. “Then we’ll find a way to get that package.”
25
She was quiet.
Truth was, he had no idea how he was going to retrieve that package when the chance was already gone.
But that was not the only thing troubling his mind now.
As he led her from the bar and toward the lift, she didn’t say a word.
He was aware of every being in the room watching them as they left, aware of every sniffle, every movement, yet, he couldn’t care less about any single one of them.
All he could think about was what was going on in her mind.
His hand still rested against her back as they stepped into the lift and the moment the door closed, he expected her to pull away.
He hadn’t meant to kill in front of her.
For some reason, around her, he’d felt the urge to hide that side of him but the Hordreks had rubbed him the wrong way. When he’d seen the male grasp her neck, something old, something wild, something that appealed to his basic instinct had clawed its way to the surface.
He watched her in the silence as the lift went even higher, glad that she was so much shorter that he could observe her freely.
The rooms were on the level above the lounge and the lift opened a few seconds later.
Nee-ya stepped out and paused, her gaze moving from one end of the corridor in front of them to the next.
“Down here,” he said.
He couldn’t see her face, the hood was over her head once more, and he wished he could.
It was wreaking havoc with his mind wondering what was going through hers.
He stopped in front of one of the doors and flashed the card he’d been given. The door slid open immediately and the light switched on.
Ka’Cit stepped in, his eyes scanning the small space before he gestured for her to come in.
Nee-ya stepped in and the door slid closed behind her. She walked till she stood in the center of the room, her footsteps so light they made no sound.
She was so silent, and only after she looked around the room for a few seconds did she turn, take the hood from over her head, and look back at him.
Ka’Cit found he was holding his breath.
Nothing terrified him more than this woman and in the strangest of ways. He couldn’t describe it.
He was nervous around her.
“About before…” he began.
“What about before?” Her gaze flicked away from him and she began moving around the room.
It was sparsely decorated.
A sleeping slab was in the center and a wooden table in the corner.
That was about it.
Service satellites weren’t known for being the best place to have a stay.
But the bedding was clean and the food was good.
“About those Hordreks…I’m sorry you had to see that.”
Her head snapped to him then and her eyebrows rose a little.
“You’re…apologizing? For what? Don’t apologize. Those bastards deserved it and if you didn�
�t do it, I would have.”
Ka’Cit blinked. That…that wasn’t the response he’d expected.
“You were a total badass.”
Huh?
Ka’Cit glanced behind him.
What was bad about his ass?
Nee-ya’s giggle made his ears perk up from the sides of his head and he turned to see her covering her mouth to prevent herself from laughing.
“Sorry, I mean, you kicked ass.”
He was even more confused now. He hadn’t kicked anyone.
Nee-ya giggled again and the sound made something tingle inside him.
“You were great,” she finished and Ka’Cit felt his body relax a little.
He jerked his chin in acceptance and set the blaster on the table before moving over to a transparent door set into the wall. With a slight push, the pane slid inward to reveal a small washing area and a waste chute.
“You can wash in here. I’ll keep your food warm for you.”
As if on cue, there was a sound of suction and the food appeared in the wall on the other side of the room.
There was an inlet there and Ka’Cit moved over to it, removed the transparent cover, and took out the meals.
The scent of perfectly cooked Zeregga meals filled his nostrils.
“Wash? You mean like my hands?”
He turned to see her peeking into the washing area.
“No, I assumed you wanted to get clean. It was hot in the underbelly of the ship. You go first. I’ll wash after you do.”
Even with her sweet colored skin, he could see that her cheeks grew darker.
“You want me to bathe…in there?” She gestured to the washing area and he followed her gaze. “It’s…the door is transparent.”
Oh yes, that it was. He hadn’t considered that.
“You’ll see me.”
Ka’Cit blinked at her. They probably had laws around seeing nakedness on her planet?
“I can look this way.” He pointed at the wall and she snickered a little.
“I am clammy. It would be nice to have a shower.”
Thoughts of water sluicing down her nakedness filled his mind immediately and his cock became engorged. He had to clear his throat and turn away from her, pretending to focus on the meals.
“Wash. I will wait.”
She didn’t answer but he soon heard when she entered the stall.
For a few moments, she fiddled around with the controls before he heard the water running and Ka’Cit settled on the floor on the other side of the bed, staring at the wall and trying to imagine the most horrible scenes to keep himself from growing harder.
“Oh God, this feels good,” he heard her moan and his cock surged in his trousers.
Maybe telling her to wash while he was in the room hadn’t been the best of ideas?
Phek.
“So…what are we going to do? If we can’t get the package what will happen to those humans?”
Ka’Cit cleared his throat again. “They will find a way to help them. The brothers of the Restitution do not give up.”
“The what?”
He could hear the water beating against the floor and it wasn’t helping the visuals in his head. He didn’t even have to turn around. He had a clear image of her in his mind.
“Ka’Cit?”
“Mm?” Had she asked him something?
“What’s the Restitution?”
“Some people think they’re a myth but they’re our only hope against the beings that took you from your planet.”
“So, they’re like soldiers or something?”
“You could call them that.”
There were a few moments of silence as more water hit the floor and Nee-ya released a sigh. All he could imagine was her throwing her head back and allowing the water to run down her face, her neck…down those mounds he’d felt when she’d pressed against him, and straight to her center.
“Thank you,” she said, snapping his mind from wherever it was going.
He turned his head slightly but didn’t look over his shoulder.
“For what?”
“For everything. I can’t imagine how I’d have gotten out of this without your help. You’re…awesome.”
Awesome he was not but he didn’t correct her.
“I will find some way to repay you,” she whispered but he caught the words anyway.
No, ta’ii.
He didn’t need repayment for anything.
These few moments were turning out to be the best in his life. That was payment enough.
26
The food was like eating chewy meat. It took quite a bit of grinding her teeth together to get it soft enough to swallow, but the taste wasn’t bad.
Ka’Cit, on the other hand, had no trouble tearing through the pieces with his fangs and while she struggled, he finished his plate.
He sat cross-legged watching her.
She wasn’t sure if he was aware of it, but his tail was dancing lazily in the air behind him.
She’d never seen it like that before. Riv didn’t have a tail and Sohut seemed more in control of his. Ka’Cit, on the other hand, seemed unaware of what his tail was doing when he was completely relaxed.
And she assumed he was completely relaxed. She could see it in the way he sat.
His muscles didn’t hold any tension and he appeared at ease.
Her gaze flicked back to his tail and she tried not to stare at it.
It was long and thick and it looked quite powerful, like he could slap someone with it and hurt them.
From the way he’d moved earlier, jumping from the floor to the ceiling and managing to hold on up there, she could only assume his people evolved from some kind of cat-ape hybrid.
It was a question she wasn’t sure would be offensive, so she didn’t ask about it. Not if he evolved from cats and apes but what his origins were. He was from a different culture, after all. The last thing she wanted to do was piss him off by asking something stupid.
Ka’Cit reached forward and his hand hovered over her meal.
“Don’t worry, I cleaned my hands,” he started. “I can cut those for you.”
Nia’s gaze dropped to the food.
It was already in small bits. She’d noticed he’d been cutting the food while she’d showered but apparently he’d overestimated the power of her bite.
“Thanks.” She nodded and Ka’Cit pulled the dish toward him.
Again his tail waved in the air behind him like a lazy flag.
“Ka’Cit?”
He froze.
“You aren’t a farmer, are you?”
“I am.”
Nia gave him a look. “Right.”
Ka’Cit glanced her way before continuing to cut her food.
He was using his claws and she stared at them.
They were wickedly pointy and sharp-looking.
“What kind of crops do you sow then?”
He shifted on the floor.
He wasn’t wearing his mask now and she could see a bit of the emotion pass over his features.
“I don’t sow. I harvest…” he paused, “…information.”
His answer made her chuckle and she could see some of the tension leave his shoulders at the sound.
He slid her meal back to her and as she took a piece of the meat in hand and brought it to her lips, he watched her every movement.
The way he watched her made a little tingle go down her spine and Nia had to focus on actually chewing just so she wouldn’t choke and die.
“You mean, you’re a bounty hunter.”
He looked genuinely surprised at that. “No. I don’t get paid for what I do. I don’t do it for credits.”
“What do you do it for then?”
She watched as his gaze moved up the wall behind her, though he was looking at nothing in front of him.
“A purpose,” he finally said.
That wasn’t what she’d thought he’d say and she paused mid-chew. “A purpose?”
�
�I…” He trailed off.
For a few moments, he said nothing and she didn’t want to press him about it.
Whatever pushed him to do what he did for a living must be something life-altering. To put himself in danger so much and to do it for free…
“This job…” she finally said. “You said you’d find a way. But…it’s almost impossible, isn’t it?”
Ka’Cit’s gaze met hers but he didn’t answer.
She could see the response in his gaze though.
The answer was yes.
There was no way they were going to help those other humans.
“If I could change it…if I could go back and do something different… You’re going to miss this chance because you came after me. If—”
“And I’d do it again.” He cut her off. “You asked why I did this…”
Nia nodded.
“I told you I did it for a purpose…”
She nodded again.
“What I meant was…I do it to find some purpose. And…I may have finally found it.” His gaze met hers and a feeling she’d never felt before began growing within her.
The intensity of his gaze was scorching and it felt like her insides were going to melt underneath his stare.
A strange look came over his eyes, one of pain, one of need, and one of torment. He made as if he wanted to come closer to her and then stopped himself.
Nia’s heart skipped a beat.
She couldn’t move, knowing that she wanted him to come closer, to close the distance between them, and the realization that she wanted it too held her still for a few seconds.
And then she moved.
Ka’Cit’s eyes widened only a fraction before she pressed her lips against his.
The contact was electrifying.
His moan made her shudder as he pulled her against him, opening his lips against hers.
“You don’t have to pretend to be my mate in here,” he grated out.
“Who says I’m pretending?”
He stiffened against her as a groan ripped through him.
This kiss was different from the last one.
This time, there was no hesitation, no holding back.
Ka’Cit gripped her and lifted her into his arms, a groan rumbling through his chest as his tongue darted against hers and she was vaguely aware that they were moving.
When her back hit the bed, she opened her eyes to meet his.