“Indeed,” Udi agreed. There was no trace of her usual bright smile. She was as frosty as a winter’s day, and Lindsey was glad the mild Matara’s cold gaze wasn’t on her. “What kind of man tries to lure the Matara of another clan away? Not a very ethical one, in my opinion. And you, an elected councilman, supposedly with a higher moral bent.” Nenap fairly crackled with fury, but she weighed in with a lot more control than Lindsey had credited her with having. “Shameful. Utterly shameful. And on top of it al, you made Lindsey cry. She is like my very own daughter, and to watch her weep made me want to send my Nobek after you. How dare you use her love for her clan to harm her!” Diltan backed slowly away, as if he thought the three women would begin physicaly pounding on him at any second. “I had no idea. I would not cause Matara Lindsey any pain, not knowingly. I swear, Mataras, my intentions were quite the opposite. I was only thinking with her rank she deserved a clan that was established and accomplished—” Felac’s eyes flashed. “My son is very accomplished, Dramok. His whole clan is worthy of the honor of having Lindsey for Matara. They saved the Imperial Mother and Sister. They saved dozens of lives, Earther and Kalquorian alike, when Tragooms attacked. Bacoj developed the searcher drone that has brought so many more to safety, the very thing that you wil invest in and make a great profit from, undeserving as you are.”
Udi gave him a disappointed expression that would have made Lindsey cringe had it been directed at her. “And my child, who freely admits his greatest joy is his Matara, his second to create foods for other Earther Mataras so that they wil not be so homesick for al they’ve lost. You put a price on such things, Dramok? You would deny al those poor refugee Earther women who have suffered so much?”
“And Japohn spoke so highly of you,” Nenap scowled. “My son is not one to be easily impressed with anyone. Yet in you he saw a man of worth, of vision, of substance. How disappointed he wil be to discover you are no more than a slimy lusgo worm, damaging al in its path just to benefit itself.”
Lindsey stood back quietly, watching as the mothers berated Diltan. The embattled man seemed to shrink smaler and smaler in his own skin. She actualy began to feel sorry for the hapless Dramok in the face of such censure.
Kalquorian moms were tough.
At last he held his hands up for silence. “Please, Mataras. Please!”
They quieted, the expressions on their faces teling him they only did so out of magnanimity, not because they felt he deserved any respect.
Diltan’s head hung down. “I have committed a great disservice to the clan of Bacoj. I see that now. I have offended and am most heartily sorry for doing so. I retract my il-advised offer to Matara Lindsey.”
“And the funding?” Nenap folded her muscular arms across her chest, her eyes blazing a warning.
“Acadi is most enthusiastic to pursue investment in the projects. They are indeed with great merit, so I too shal extend my financial support. The contracts wil be sent to Bacoj’s clan this afternoon.” Only now did Diltan dare to look at Lindsey. “Wil you please accept my apologies for the insult I gave to you and your clan, Imperial Sister?” Lindsey was doing cartwheels in her heart to know her clan would get their chance. Somehow, she managed to keep her elation to herself. “Yes, Dramok Diltan. We’l chalk it up to a misunderstanding.”
“I have no right to make this request, but do you think we can keep the details of this to ourselves?” This to al four women, his eyes darting from one to another.
The mothers exchanged looks, their lips pursed as if unconvinced. Diltan began to fidget like the naughty schoolboy they’d reduced him to, and Lindsey decided it was time to let him off the hook.
“For the sake of my clan and the Imperial Family, I think it would be best if this discussion was kept secret. We wil behave as if it never happened.” Diltan bowed deeply, relief suffusing his features. “You are indeed a generous woman, Matara Lindsey. I am indebted to you for alowing me to save face.” With that, the meeting was over. The Dramok escaped, his shoulders hunched. After the door closed behind him and several seconds had passed for him to get far enough out of hearing, Lindsey and her in-laws burst into merry laughter.
“How can I ever thank you?” she asked the elder women.
The usualy remote Felac surprised her by stepping forward and wrapping her arms around Lindsey in a gentle embrace. “It is you I feel deserves gratitude. You trusted us to help you with this matter, making sure our sons were not denied the opportunities they deserve.” She stepped back and smiled at Lindsey. “I had thought Bacoj’s need for his mother was wel past. I am glad to know I can stil contribute to my child’s life.”
Lindsey’s grin stretched fit to make her jaws ache. “He is a lucky man to have you in his corner.”
“A mother never ceases wanting to care for her children,” Udi agreed.
“And speaking of motherhood,” Nenap said, her brow arching at her daughter-in-law, “when do you plan to begin your family?” Uh oh, Lindsey thought.
* * * *
After a delicious lunch with the elder Mataras, Lindsey returned to her clan’s quarters. She no sooner walked in the door when Bacoj swept her up off the ground and twirled her in the air.
“They offered us funding! Acadi and Diltan are investing in our projects!”
“When did this happen? You were supposed to cal me,” Lindsey scolded.
Vax grabbed her next, planting a loud smooch on her lips. “We wanted to tel you in person! Can you believe it?”
“Of course I can.” Lindsey wondered at her ability to lie so effortlessly. Did that make her a bad person? “You more than deserve it. I am so happy for you.” Then it was Japohn’s turn, and he tossed her in the air like she was a toddler in her father’s arms. She squealed though she knew he’d never in a milion years let her fal to the floor. “Stop, you oversized Nobek!”
He was laughing, the expression turning his fierce face into something beautiful enough to steal her breath away. “You are behind this, Lindsey!” Her heart seemed to stutter in her chest. “What are you talking about?”
Japohn puled her close so that she could feel his happiness pressing hard against her. “Everything we do, we do to make you proud. To give you the clan you deserve. I would not have tried so hard to impress Acadi and Diltan if not for you.”
Tears stung Lindsey’s eyes. “Thank you, Japohn. But you deserve to work hard on your own behalf, you know. I believe in you. In al of my clan. I want you to believe in yourselves as wel.”
“You are always the inspiration, my Matara,” Vax said, embracing her from behind.
“No matter our accomplishments, they are nothing without you,” Bacoj added, joining them.
Without another word, the true celebration began. Clothes went flying in a flurry of fabric, leaving them al naked in the middle of the greeting room.
“Let me show you how proud I am of you,” Lindsey breathed, looking at the three sets of glorious cocks. She sank to her knees on the thick rug, wrapping her two smal hands around Vax and Japohn’s larger appendages, and her lips around Bacoj’s.
She found them al slick and hot, the men’s natural lubrication easing her efforts. Bacoj’s sweetish-spicy flavor filed her senses, and she moaned with enjoyment of his taste. She took him deep, relaxing her throat to accept as much of her Dramok as she could. His smooth, bulet-shaped cock was velvet steel against her tongue.
Serving her men in this manner always made her eager, and her thighs were soon slick with her own juices. Lindsey soon went to playing what she caled ‘musical cocks’, sucking on one rigid penis, then another, then the next, her hands working the swolen members not enjoying the warmth of her mouth at that moment. The air filed with the delighted groans of her mates.
“Her turn,” Bacoj said after they’d enjoyed her attentions for several minutes.
The three men knelt around her and settled her on her back. Japohn and Vax lay on either side of Lindsey, each of them pinning her arms over her head and catching up her thighs to
hold her open for Bacoj, who knelt between them.
He didn’t go straight for her slick pussy. Instead, Bacoj’s hands curled over her shoulders, and he swept down her torso, rubbing her breasts, ribs, waist, and mound. Lindsey moaned and arched under the heavy warmth of his touch.
He did it again and again. The fourth time, he paused at her breasts, squeezing the mounds gently. Then he circled her nipples with his thumbs, making the already stiff peaks harder and redder. He pinched them, zinging sensation to make her gasp. Al three men’s gazes were dark as they looked down at her.
“No better reward than you, my Matara,” Bacoj growled.
He moved down, pausing just below her ribs to tickle her, grinning like the devil he was as she shrieked, held down helplessly by the other two. Then one of Bacoj’s palms rested on her softly furred mound. He slowly moved his hand in a circle, rubbing as Vax’s head bent to her breast and Japohn’s mouth covered hers.
Lindsey made herself go lax, knowing her complete submission was wanted. It wasn’t easy when their touches made her want to writhe, when she wanted to put her mouth and hands al over them, to press her body to theirs. But she knew her men wel enough that any assertion of her wil would result in punishment. And while discipline at the hands of her clan was enjoyable in its own right, they were very much feeling their triumph and preferred her total acquiescence at this time.
So Lindsey surrendered herself to them, giving them mastery over her rather than forcing them to take it. The sense of vulnerability and the perfect security this offered made her even more eager for them.
Her mouth was Japohn’s to feast on, and he kissed her deeply and thoroughly. Vax’s mouth drew hard on one breast, the sting of his teeth scraping her skin adding to her delight. The heel of Bacoj’s hand brushed her clit rhythmicaly as he rubbed steady circles over her mound. Her insides were going bubbly liquid under their firm attention.
When Bacoj pressed two fingers into her vagina and pumped hard in and out of her, Lindsey cried out into Japohn’s mouth. He and Vax stil held her open, keeping her defenseless against Bacoj’s sweet assault. Bacoj’s fingers curled within the sheath, searching for the bundle of nerves inside that would render her senseless with pleasure. He found it very quickly, and she arched as thick, hot, ticklish ecstasy clapped like thunder within.
“Who do you belong to, Lindsey?” Bacoj asked.
Japohn released the almost bruising kiss to alow her to answer. “To my clan.”
“And is this your body, my Matara?”
“No. It is yours. And Vax’s. And Japohn’s.”
His fingers worked her harder, faster. “Do you have any say over what we do with this body?”
She gasped as the pleasure built higher. “No, my Dramok.”
“When wil you climax?”
Right now, Lindsey wanted to scream. The orgasm was looming, building higher and higher like a tidal wave eclipsing the sky. But that wasn’t the correct answer. “I wil climax when my clan says I may.”
“We say yes. Climax, Lindsey.”
With relief she stopped fighting for control, and gorgeous release swept over her. Japohn and Vax held her stil, watching her face with rapt attention as Bacoj continued to drive his fingers in and out.
Another orgasm folowed swiftly on the heels of the first, and Lindsey’s body strained, her mouth wide open in a silent scream. Then there was another.
At last the powerful surges abated, leaving Lindsey limp and gasping. Vax grinned at Bacoj. “You’re getting rather good at this.” The Dramok snorted as Japohn laughed. Lindsey softly giggled.
The foreplay had been delicious, and the sex would have her asleep from exhaustion before dinner time. But better than al that was the knowledge that her clan was happy and being a part of it. Forever.
Sins of the Past
“Excuse me. Are you Imdiko Krijero’s Matara?”
The cool, smooth tones took Daniele Watson’s attention from the lovely wooden chest she contemplated in the cluttered Joshadan shop. She looked up at the Kalquorian stranger looming over her, surprised as always at how silent the aliens could be.
He was striking. Not exactly handsome but not bad to look at, Dani thought. A huge ox of a man, swolen with so much muscle she wondered if he could bend his arms up high enough to scratch his own shoulder. Good heavens, he was bulky. His sleeveless formsuit with blue trim strained mightily to contain him.
His features were as broad as the rest of him, his eyes set apart, his nostrils wide, his lips generous. He smiled at her now, crinkling the corners of his blue-purple eyes pleasantly. It was such a charming smile that even the naturaly suspicious Dani couldn’t help but return it.
“Yes, I am Krijero’s Matara. My name is Dani,” she responded. Almost six feet tal herself, she didn’t have to look too far up to meet the man’s sharp gaze. She self-consciously smoothed her copper hair, the frizzy locks carefuly braided in an effort to tame them. She racked her brain, trying to put a name to the unfamiliar face. She’d thought her clan had introduced her to al their friends, most of who belonged to Kalquor’s police force like themselves. Her Dramok Gelan was a negotiator, Nobek Wynhod a sniper, and Krijero a criminal psychologist. That Dani, who’d often thumbed her nose at authority, had ended up the Matara of a trio of law enforcement officers was always a source of amusement to her.
The unknown man bowed respectfuly before her. “Greetings, Matara Dani. I am Dramok Pertak.”
The name was familiar, and after a moment Dani remembered where she’d heard it. The smile was wiped off her face in an instant. She stepped back. “What do you want?” she asked in her most unfriendly voice, not caring she was being rude.
Thank goodness the males of her clan were in another craftsman’s shop half a mile away. Gelan might take this man’s head off. Wynhod most definitely would.
When Dani had met Krijero, he’d been incapable of trusting her. It had taken years for Gelan and Wynhod to convince him to join their clan because he’d been hurt so badly.
By no other than this man.
“I guess Krijero has mentioned me,” the big lummox said. His eyes dropped in seeming shame.
“Yeah. I guess he did.” Dani scowled. “You made him think you were going to clan him, then you clanned some other Imdiko without warning. That makes you a pretty big jerk in my book.” She didn’t care how large Pertak loomed over her, that her frame was as lean as his was big. Wel, she was lean if you didn’t count the ample hips that balooned her into a pear shape.
The Dramok blinked at her abrupt words and his mouth dropped open a little. “I – I knew he took it hard. I was young and stupid when it happened.”
“You bet you were. Krijero is the best Imdiko anyone could ask for.” Dani folded her arms over her teacup-sized breasts and glared. She knew she was being childish, but she couldn’t help but throw in one last jab. “The one good thing about the way you treated him is he got the Dramok he deserved.”
“You’re not afraid to speak your mind, are you Matara?”
Dani knew she needed to stop shooting her mouth off. Hip size notwithstanding, Pertak was much bigger than her and her clan was elsewhere. She drew a deep breath, made herself calm down. “I know I’m being rude, but Krijero stil feels hurt by your actions. I don’t like seeing my Imdiko suffer.”
“I’m sorry to hear it stil bothers him after al this time.” For a wonder, Pertak smiled. “You’re right. He did get the better Dramok, the man who was worthy of him. Where is Krijero right now? I’d like to talk to him.”
Dani snorted, an unlovely sound that made her wince. “He’s over in the metal smith’s shop. But you’d better stay away. Gelan and Wynhod are twice as mad over what happened. They might not be as cordial as I am.”
The big Dramok blew out a breath. “Damn it. I need to tel him—”
He stopped and raked fingers through his shoulder-length hair. He seemed at a loss and Dani frowned at his agitation.
Despite wanting to kick him, she offer
ed, “I suppose I could pass along a message. If I like what I hear, that is.” Pertak turned haunted eyes to her. “That’s the best I can hope for, isn’t it?”
She nodded slowly. “If you go anywhere near Krijero, Wynhod wil hand you your head. We won’t discuss the parts Gelan wil tear off you. Trust me on that.” The man bit his lip. Took a deep breath. Blew it out with the force of a hurricane. His mighty shoulders sagged, a defeated look. “Then I wil ask you to extend my heartfelt and long overdue apologies to Krijero for me. I never thought for a second he would stil be bruised over my crude treatment of him. It was so long ago. If I’d known—” He shut his mouth with such force Dani heard his teeth click together. Pertak bowed to her and left the shop with an abruptness that left her staring after him.
She snorted after a moment. “Wel, that was uncomfortable as hel.”
Dani noticed the ruby-furred Joshadan watching her from the corner of its shop and wondered if it understood English. Even if it didn’t, the tension between her and Pertak must have been obvious.
Joshadans were polite to a fault, however. This one gave her a friendly smile, batted its coal black eyes, and burbled a questioning sound as if the encounter had never occurred.
“This one,” she said, pointing at the beautifuly carved chest she’d been looking over when Pertak surprised her. It was much less expensive than she’d hoped for.
She paid for it and made the arrangements for it to be shipped back to her clan’s home on Kalquor. Then Dani went outside and took a deep breath.
The Joshadan air was cool, crisp, and smeled like a delicate perfume infused it. It was a beautiful planet, peopled by a race of kind-natured and brightly furred farmers and craftsmen. This was Dani’s second visit to Kalquor’s neighbor, and while she preferred being near places that offered shows, dancing, fine restaurants, and a little excitement, she had to admit she found the peace of Joshada a delightful respite.
The vilage lay near a plain of tal red grass fields with smal wooded areas in the not-so-far distance. Each home had a smal farming plot, and many had workshops where the talented Joshadans created works of art in the form of furniture, clothing, jewelry and the like, most of it made by hand. The Joshadans were not big on technology, preferring lives of simplicity and hard work. Kalquor, which had once enslaved the gentle population, now kept watch over its neighbor, maintaining security and offering aide when Joshada required it.
Alien Interludes Page 24