Giving in to the bestial force within him, Yuder puled free of his lover and turned her over onto her bely. He pinned her beneath, his larger cock homing in on that tighter passageway.
“Gently, Yuder.” Tara’s quiet voice somehow broke through the roar of lust filing his head. Just in time, he remembered he had never taken her this way before. With effort, he gathered his control once more.
“You wil grant me laxan? It is not offensive to you?”
She peered at him over her shoulder, her eyes bright with excitement. “I like the penetration of the smaler one there. Just be careful with me, al right?”
“Always,” he affirmed. He stroked up and down her back, kissed the nape of her neck tenderly. “Relax, my love. And tel me at once if it is too much.” The nearby table held a carved box of cleansing wipes. He paused long enough to use one on his smaler penis since it had already invaded her rear entrance. Moving slowly, tenderly, he cleaved to his beloved.
Tara caught her breath a couple of times, and he paused at each occurrence, asking if she was al right, if he should stop. Each time, she whispered, “No, no, it’s so good. I never imagined – don’t stop, Yuder. Please don’t stop.”
By the ancestors, he loved this woman with al his being.
When she had accepted al of him, when he was fuly enclosed within her tight warmth, Yuder leaned down to blanket her slight body with his. He lay there, kissing the tiny cup of her ear, his chest brushing her upper back and shoulders as she took long breaths. “I love you so much. Ask me for anything, and I wil find a way to give it to you.”
“I have al I could wish for. I want for nothing.”
Yuder closed his eyes with feeling. He had loved Irdis beyond reason, and her death had made him a terror to be around for two years afterward. But he had been clanned to her when he was young, and in the foly of youth he hadn’t fuly appreciated her. Now he was older and wiser from bitter experience. He knew how lucky he was to have found love again with Tara, and he was filed with gratitude.
I will never take her for granted, and may I be struck down if I do.
With that thought uppermost in his mind, Yuder made slow, tender love to Tara, feeling with every fiber of his being the sweet, warm fluids that escaped her, the trembling of her flesh surrounding his, the quickening of her breath as he drove her steadily to pleasure. Her sighs became whimpers, her whimpers grew to moans, her moans exploded into wild cries. He served her with al the care she deserved, insisting she climax thrice before finaly alowing his aching loins their release.
“My forever beloved. My Matara,” he whispered to his trembling mate when he was able to speak again.
j
An Improper Proposal
Lindsey was aware of her clan’s exchanged looks of amusement as she bounced impatiently in front of the closed hatch of their shuttle. They’d landed only moments before. Wel, the three men could make fun al they liked. She’d waited patiently for months to see her mother again, years for her sister Jessica. She wasn’t about to pretend she wasn’t excited, not for the sake of decorum, not for the sake of new in-laws both royal and not, not for any reason at al.
It was less than a second from the time her Dramok Bacoj hit the button to the time the hatch slid smoothly open. It felt like forever. But at last Lindsey was looking out across the docking bay of the Imperial Home.
Her first impression was of the long line of the red uniforms of the Royal Guard. In front of them stood the smal bunches of Kalquorian clans that included her mates’ parents, along with her mother standing with her boyfriend or mate or whatever they caled it here. Lindsey felt a smal pang to see Mom with another man not her father, but her thril to be with Tara again queled that quickly. Lastly, up front and grinning her head off was her sister Jessica. Standing before her clanmates and children, the youngest McInness was stunning in a long purple gown.
Even better was the fact Jessica was little concerned with appearances too. She came running towards the shuttle at ful speed, skirt flapping wildly behind her, screaming her sibling’s name in a long, drawn out shriek: “Liiiindseeeeey!”
And the elder sister, so not interested in descending regaly at Bacoj’s side with Japohn and Vax trailing after, flew out of the shuttle. Lindsey flung her arms wide as she screamed too, a wordless shout of triumph and joy. The women met in an almost violent colision. The air filed with their sobs and laughter, arms holding tight and lips peppering kisses on each others’ faces like lovers too long separated. Had either been able to see or hear anything beyond the woman before her, she would have noticed the sea of smiles and ripple of chuckles as the onlookers witnessed this happy and longed-for reunion. Even members of the Royal Guard, that group of stoic, deadly Nobeks ever poised to take a death blow for members of the Imperial Family, registered amusement at the wild display.
At the same instant, Lindsey and Jessica realized one important ingredient was missing. They searched their mother out. “Mom!” came the chorus, and Tara’s smile spread wider across her elfin face even as tears poured from her eyes. She went to them and was absorbed into the ecstatic embrace. Spontaneous applause broke out from the rest of the assembled, excepting the Royal Guard.
For Lindsey, an emptiness in her heart was filed at last. Now she had her clan and was restored to the sister and mother she had missed so greatly. Only the absence of her father, dead from a crash on Earth, kept the reunion from being perfect. Somehow she thought perhaps he was able to see them al together like this, and the thought made her smile harder and laugh louder.
At last the three women settled down enough for their men to approach. Lindsey’s clan bowed deeply to Jessica’s. “It is our honor to greet the Emperors and Empress of Kalquor,” Bacoj said for the rest, his long wavy hair swinging forward for an instant to cover his striking face. His sensuous lips trembled and his wide eyes were bright, betraying contained laughter.
Emperor Clajak gave him an unguarded smile. From the many communications she and Jessica had shared, Lindsey knew that at least two of her sister’s mates, Clajak and Bevau, didn’t worry too much about ceremony.
The Imperial Dramok underscored that assessment with his words. “And it is an honor to meet our brothers, whose bravery saved many a life on Earth, including our beloved Empress’ mother and sister.
This is the last formal greeting we wil exchange, Bacoj, Vax, and Japohn. From now on, we are family. Welcome home, my brothers. And welcome home, my sister Lindsey.” Lindsey grinned at him, pretending not to notice her mates’ furiously blushing faces. They had indeed been heroes on her home planet, to Earther and Kalquorian alike, but al three men were too modest to be comfortable with the praise.
“Hi Clajak, Bevau, Egilka. So nice to see you in person finaly. Is this my niece and nephew?”
A boy stepped forward. He was smal when one compared him to the Kalquorian adults surrounding him, but by Earther standards he was long and lanky for a three year old. “Helo Aunt Lindsey,” he lisped, looking up at her through rumpled black curls. “You recognized me!”
She laughed at his obvious pleasure and knelt to look him eye-to-eye. “Of course I did, Wayne. I spoke to you just last night on the vid.”
“You’re bigger than the other girls from Earth,” he said, his purple eyes wide. His coloring was pure Kalquorian, and his hair reached his shoulders. His features were finer than any Kalquorian Lindsey had ever met though, no doubt influenced by his pixyish mother.
“I am taler than your mother and grandmother Tara,” Lindsey acknowledged. She was shorter by far than her clanmates, but beyond the chestnut hair she shared with Tara and Jessica, she looked nothing like the other women of her family. She was larger boned, like her father, with her face rounder and stronger featured.
“You’re not as tal as Grandmother Doxin,” Wayne said, taking her measure.
Lindsey remembered Bevau was the only male member of the Imperial Clan to stil have a living mother. Native females were so incredibly scarce on Kalquor.
<
br /> “And here is your niece,” a roling voice said. Lindsey looked up to see Bevau holding little Noele out to her.
Over a year old now, Noele was also bigger than the Earther norm. She strained Lindsey’s arms like a large toddler might, but the proud aunt was able to cradle her anyway. She looked into the child’s grape-hued eyes, marveling at the thick head of steel-colored hair. “Hi Noele. Remember me?”
“Aunt Lin-nee,” the child burbled.
Her four parents and Tara applauded. “Good girl!” Jessica congratulated the smiling tot. “We’ve been working on that for weeks,” she told Lindsey.
“What a wonderful gift,” Lindsey whispered with feeling. “Thank you.”
Apparently done with ‘Aunt Lin-nee’, Noele held her chubby arms out towards her clustered parents. It was smiling Egilka who accepted the invitation, plucking her from Lindsey’s arms as he let his guard down and gave her a wink. “Welcome home, my sister,” he said with a little bow.
Next Yuder came forward to stand at Tara’s side. “Welcome to Kalquor, Lindsey,” he intoned, his voice shivering deep. “I apologize on behalf of my clanmates for not coming to greet you.”
“Is Imperial Father Zarl not feeling wel?” Lindsey knew Yuder’s Dramok had major health issues.
“He tires easily and is in a great deal of pain much of the time. However, we do hope your clan wil join us for dinner later after you have had time to settle in.” After a quick look at Bacoj, who was the clan leader after al and chief decision maker, Lindsey passed along the answer his nod gave. “We would be honored, Imperial Father.” The greetings went on with people she’d already met via frequent communications, first during the year her clan had been on assignment on Earth then during the nine month trip to Kalquor. Lindsey greeted her clan’s parents, al eleven of them. Bacoj’s Dramok father had died when he was stil young, so his was the only incomplete parent clan. She found it amusing how much Vax and Japohn were like their mothers in looks and temperaments. Vax’s mother Udi was as sweet natured and gentle as her Imdiko son, with soft waves of hair and finer features than most Kalquorians. Japohn’s handsome mother Nenap, al six feet seven inches of Amazonian muscle with a head ful of long, spiraling curls, seemed to glower suspiciously at everyone. Had Lindsey not gotten to know Nenap over the long-distance coms, discovering she was just as fair minded and loyal as Lindsey’s Nobek mate, she would have been terribly intimidated by the Matara. However it was Nenap who eschewed the Kalquorian mother-daughter greeting of pressing cheek to cheek. Instead, she swept Lindsey off her feet for a delighted hug. To the amused group she loud proclaimed, “Forget Kalquorian custom! My daughter is finaly home!” Bacoj’s mother Felac, whom Lindsey suspected was of the jealous mom type, was more reserved. Her expression was friendly enough, but she lacked not only Nenap’s unbridled enthusiasm but also Udi’s quiet warmth. Attractive with almond-shaped eyes and generous lips, her long black hair arranged in a tidy updo, she gave Lindsey a sedate greeting, briefly pressing cheeks on one side then the other.
“I’m so glad you’re here,” Felac said. Then she turned back to Bacoj, stroking his hair and clinging tight to her only child. He looked a little embarrassed, but he put up with it with the patience Lindsey had grown used to.
As soon as the last greetings were exchanged, Jessica bounced impatiently. “Everyone to the Imperial quarters, please. We’ve set up a nice reception where we can al sit and catch up. Plenty of food and drink.”
That received approving sounds from everyone, and the group trooped to the transports. The transports were similar to elevators that not only went up and down, but from side to side to access the whole cliff in which the extended Royal Family resided. Lindsey had gotten used to them on board the ship that had brought her clan from Earth to Kalquor.
There was some confusion as to who would ride with whom. Bacoj, his handsome face wreathed in a smile, was the one to sort it out. “My clan wil separate and ride with their blood kin. After nine months of constant contact in our cramped quarters, I think we can stand being apart for the few seconds it wil take to reach the Imperial suite!” That earned laughter al around, especialy when Bevau said, “You have come to agree with the Earther saying, ‘absence makes the heart grow fonder?’” Bacoj caught Lindsey’s eye and gave her a wink. She grinned back, knowing ful wel neither of them nor Vax and Japohn would feel right until they were in each others’ presences again.
That feeling was verified when she, Jessica, and Tara were alone in the transport. As happy as she was to see her sister and mother again, Lindsey felt strangely alone without her clan.
Get used to it, she advised herself. At some point soon we’ll all be pursuing our careers, and that means leaving each other for hours at a time like we did on Earth.
“I can’t believe you’re finaly here!” Jessica squealed. She hugged Lindsey again, even as the door opened to an empty room. “Here, step forward real quick.” Lindsey did so, facing another door. “Now what?”
“Just a sec. Scan and recognize Imperial Sister Lindsey, Matara of Clan Bacoj. Ful access approved.”
There was a beep. A robotic voice said, “Scan complete. Imperial Sister Matara Lindsey logged into system. Ful access granted.” The door slid open. Jessica pushed Lindsey forward into a large room. “There, now you can just walk on in anytime you wish to visit.”
“But cal first before dropping in,” Tara laughingly advised. “The emperors keep your sister … busy … when they’re home.”
“Like you’re one to talk, Mom!” Jessica said. To Lindsey she divulged, “That’s how I found out she was carrying on with Father Yuder. I didn’t see anything, but I heard plenty!”
“I didn’t need to know that,” Lindsey groaned. Sure, Tara looked beautiful and was by no means ready to be put out to pasture sexualy speaking, but thinking of her mother that way was not something Lindsey wanted to do.
She looked around the room, goggling at the finery that surrounded her. Had she not known she was in a cliff, she’d have thought she’d walked into a palace.
“The greeting room,” Jessica said. “For public functions, along with a big dining room. See? We’re ready for your reception.”
“Wow.” As the emperors, children, and Yuder arrived, she took a look around.
Light emitted from the ceiling, showing off golden beige wals and matching marble floor. Conversation areas made of oversized plush seating and polished tables were scattered throughout the large room.
There were dozens of platters of hors d’ oeuvres and glasses filed with a blue liquid. Lindsey couldn’t identify a single thing on the food trays. She found herself wishing for wings and beer.
A woven rug, its intricate design that of the Kalquorian seaside, looked too beautiful to be stepped on though al who were arriving did. A tapestry also depicting a seascape hung on one wal, and a painting hung on another. Lindsey gaped at the stunning landscape of mountains behind a rainbow-hued forest, the artwork so detailed she felt she might be able to step into it and explore.
“Is that an Amelia Ryan painting?” she asked. Lindsey had always appreciated art, and she’d enjoyed the vast library on the transport that had brought her from Earth to Kalquor. Artist Amelia Ryan was notable not just for her amazing paintings but because she was the first Earther Matara claimed by a Kalquorian clan.
“Beautiful, isn’t it? Wait until you see Clajak’s private art colection.”
The door opened behind them and Vax’s voice made Lindsey smile. She turned to see her Imdiko clanmate walk in with his parents. He beamed brightly at her before his eyes widened to see the grand greeting room.
Lindsey went to him. “You’l have to tel me what I want to eat,” she whispered to him, nodding at a nearby table with its offerings of edibles and drink.
The handsome Imdiko looked over the spread. “None of the green wrapped pastries. They’re filed with bywes, which you say tastes like rat turds.” Lindsey flushed to hear him repeat that in front of his parents, but he�
�d spoken in English, which none of them understood. “And the drink?” Vax smiled, more than a little deviously. “Leshela from Plasius, I think. Drink al of that you want.” She eyed her Imdiko suspiciously. “Wil it get me drunk?”
“Relaxed. No over hang.”
“You mean hangover?”
“Right. Here, alow me.” He fetched her a glass, as wel as one for his mother. “Rik dug. Ino dug,” he said to both, bowing. Drink well. Live well. His fathers Batris, Graler, and Ondej echoed his words, adding their own bows to the women before grabbing glasses for themselves.
Lindsey took a cautious sip, then a healthier swalow. Leshela was very good, like a smooth, buttery wine.
“Careful with that. You’l go through a bottle before you realize it, and it’l make you want to leave the reception early,” Jessica whispered in her ear. “Which may be what your Imdiko is hoping for.”
“What do you mean?” Lindsey whispered back. She was startled to see she’d drunk half the glass already.
“It’s got some aphrodisiacal properties. Not as heady as a Kalquorian’s bite, but it gets your motor running just the same.” Jessica tittered and wagged an admonishing finger at Vax. He grinned, completely unrepentant.
“I should have known,” Lindsey said, scowling at her naughty mate.
“Ah! Leshela,” Bacoj said happily, he and his parents joining the group. “Let me get you another glass, Lindsey.”
“Yep. That’s Kalquorian men for you,” Jessica snorted. She suddenly got squeaky-voiced excited. “Oh Bacoj, I have news for you! Someone wants to invest in your clan.” Lindsey’s Dramok blinked. “Invest in us, my empress? I don’t understand.”
“That’s right,” Clajak said, joining them. Lindsey shivered. His voice was honey-smooth, the kind of voice that could negotiate treaties, calm a fight, or talk a reluctant Earther into joining his clan. As he had her sister. “Councilmen Diltan and Acadi were very impressed with the remote search drones you invented. Word from Earth is your three prototypes have already discovered almost six hundred isolated Earther encampments, alowing us to save many lives. Diltan and Acadi want to finance the mass production of the drones and get them out there as fast as possible.”
Alien Interludes Page 20