Stranded in Space

by Rinelle Grey

  His body didn’t fail him. The jump launched them high enough, and his wings took over effortlessly, lifting them so quickly the ground, and all the humans gasping with surprise and delight, faded away quickly.

  This body was light and springy. He barely needed to flap at all to keep them airborne.

  “Are you all right?” he asked Amelie.

  She nodded. Twisting her head around, she stared down at the ground below them, then swallowed. “I’m sure I’ll get used to it quickly.”

  “Don’t look down,” Kugah advised. He jerked his head towards the mountains. “Watch our destination and you’ll feel better.”

  Amelie nodded, and twisted slightly in his arms to stare at the mountains ahead.

  The rocky stone outcropping rose above the forest, above their heads even at this height.

  Kugah beat his wings strongly, and they rose up the mountain, getting closer at the same time.

  The summit rose up in a craggy peak, no sign of a volcano caldera.

  Then again, Tyris would have been able to see that when they had flown over the area. Kugah frowned. Sending him and Amelie up here had been an excuse then.

  He remembered what everyone else was doing. Kerit and Folly heading to the beach, Tyris and Marlee to the plains. Everyone was checking out the bits they found interesting—with the ones they loved.

  It had been a hard few weeks on board the Resolution. Everyone needed a chance to blow off some steam, find something pleasant to do to relax. There was still plenty of work to be done before they made this place their home, but there was time for an afternoon off.

  After the last few months, they all needed it.

  He glided gently back down, checking the cliffs as he went.

  There, that’s what he was looking for. About a third of the way down the mountain was a ledge, more than wide enough for him to land on. And the shadow behind it indicated a possible cave. A perfect place to find Molly’s rock samples.

  Even though that wasn’t exactly what was on his mind. Once he was certain his wings would hold them, Kugah had become more and more aware of Amelie’s warm body pressed up against him. It was creating an urge that was fast becoming impossible to ignore.

  He set his feet gently down on the ledge, testing to see that it would hold both their weight before he folded his wings and set Amelie on her feet next to him. He didn’t let go of her waist though. The ledge was small, and he didn’t want to risk her falling off.

  Not that she seemed to be inclined to walk to the edge of the ledge, not even to see the view. Her eyes were locked on his face.

  “We should look for some rock samples,” she said, her voice breathless.

  “There are probably some around here,” Kugah agreed. His eyes didn’t leave her face.

  She smiled, but didn’t move.

  Kugah wanted to kiss her again. He’d enjoyed that earlier, but he wasn’t sure on the protocol. Did he just kiss her? Should he ask first?

  He figured he couldn’t go wrong with asking first. “Can I kiss you again?”

  She sucked in her breath, and her hands tightened around his neck. “Yes,” she breathed, and tilted her face up to his.

  The open invitation made his whole body ache with need. Hopefully Tyris didn’t expect them back any time soon, because he suspected this was going to take a while.

  He bent his head and brushed his lips across hers, lightly, as she’d done earlier.

  Her lips were so soft and warm, so inviting. The intimate contact felt amazing.

  They didn’t stay soft though. After a few moments, Amelie’s arms tightened around his neck, the pressure putting him closer. Her kisses grew more fevered. Hotter and harder.

  The change sent his pulse racing. He pulled back a for a moment to catch his breath, and her eyes were half closed, staring up at him.

  “Are you okay? I’m sorry, I don’t mean to do anything you don’t like.” A worried frown creased Amelie’s forehead.

  “It’s not that,” Kugah managed, his voice thick. “I like it lots. I just…” he glanced towards the edge of the ledge, then back behind him. “I think we need to get somewhere more comfortable.”

  Amelie’s eyes drifted towards the ledge, then snapped back to him and she nodded. “Yes, good idea. We wouldn’t want to fall off.”

  Behind them, the cliff opened up into a shallow depression. Not cavernous enough for anything to hide in, but deep enough to be safe and secure, and for some sand to collect in the depression. That would be better than lying on hard rock.

  Amelie had an even better plan. Kugah released her reluctantly as she pulled back and slipped off her backpack, pulling out a blanket. “I always have one with me,” she said with a wink. “You never know when someone’s going to go into shock.”

  Kugah nodded as if he knew what she meant.

  As if he cared.

  All he really cared about though, was not taking his eyes off her. He watched her as she spread out the rug, knelt down on it to dump her backpack in the corner, then turned and looked at him with a shy smile.

  That was all the invitation he needed. Kugah sank onto the rug beside her and pulled her onto his lap. “I don’t know much about human sex,” he said softly. “So you might have to show me.”

  “How about you show me?” Amelie asked. Her breath was hot on his cheek as she leaned in. “What do your people, the Sofana, like in bed?”

  Kugah hesitated. Would his customs seem strange to her? He’d read a little about human mating rituals, and they seemed simple enough. Kiss, cuddle, mate. The kiss had been better than he’d imagined from looking at pictures. Probably the rest would be too.

  Like all mating rituals, the delight was in the details.

  “See these?” he picked her hand up, and ran her fingers over the yellow swirls on his skin. “They’re really sensitive.”

  Amelie picked it up immediately, her fingers brushing across, following the line of each swirl on the side of his face, and down his neck, stopping where they disappeared under his shirt. “Like this?”

  The warm swirl continued, even though her fingers didn’t, sending heat flooding through his whole body. He didn’t trust his voice to speak, just nodded, his eyes not leaving her face.

  She bit her lips, using both hands to touch each swirl, her fingers tracking paths of heat down his face and neck. The paths of fire seemed to continue down under the shirt, where she couldn’t reach, leaving him aching with want.

  He reached for the buttons down the front of the shirt, fumbling to get them undone. Amelie pushed the shirt off his shoulders, a little further as he released each button, her fingers tracing each swirl as it was uncovered.

  Kugah trembled in anticipation, the need building in him faster than he expected. If she kept going, if she went any further down, he wouldn’t have the patience to discover what she wanted.

  He caught her hands, stopping the movement.

  Her eyes flew to his. “Was that wrong?”

  Kugah shook his head vehemently. “No, perfect. Too good. I want to touch you the way you like before we go too far. Where is sensitive for you?”

  That brought a smile to her face. She held his hands and brought them up to either side of her breasts. “Here,” she whispered.

  Kugah gently cupped her breasts, enjoying the feel of their round fullness. They fitted perfectly in his hands, and when he stroked the skin through her clothes with his thumbs, her breathing hitched.

  This time, his fingers were more sure as he undid the buttons on her shirt. Each button exposed a little more of the skin. Amelie pushed his hands away, even though he’d been doing a fine job of opening her shirt, and did it herself, much more quickly.

  That left his hands free to gently stroke the exposed skin. Under the shirt was another garment, and this one was made of silky soft material and black lace. Kugah slid his fingers under it, searching for more skin.

  Amelie reached behind her back, and that garment fell away too.

  K
ugah focused on touching, running his fingers over her soft skin. His eyes went to her face, looking for signs that he was getting it right.

  Her lips were parted and her breathing short. Eyes dark with desire looked back at him, and her head moved forwards, her lips finding his.

  They were hot and demanding, and he found his hands increasing their pressure and speed in response. That seemed to be working, because Amelie groaned. Her lips slid sideways off his, kissing across his cheek and down his neck.

  Then she licked one of his swirls.

  Kugah’s breath escaped in a sharp gasp. Her tongue felt amazing, setting his skin on fire, burning a path down his body straight to his core.

  Amelie paused long enough to look up at him and grin, then she ran her tongue along the next, and the next. Each lick was a delicious torment that made it hard for him to concentrate on anything other than the feelings coursing through him.

  If she kept going on like this then he was never going to have the chance to tease her in return. Yet he didn’t have the strength to even attempt to make her stop.

  *****

  Amelie traced the next swirl on Kugah’s neck, the smooth skin under her tongue fascinating. She hadn’t expected the yellow swirls to actually feel different. Nor was she prepared for the fact that they tasted sweet, like vanilla. Like vanilla, but strange and exotic at the same time.

  She couldn’t get enough of the taste of him.

  Did the taste change as she went further down his body?

  She skipped to one of the swirls on his chest to check. The sweet taste was like a nectar. A tantalising, addictive, indescribable nectar.

  Kugah groaned, and his hand tangled in her hair. “I want to tease you,” he groaned. But he didn’t try to stop her.

  And she didn’t want to stop. As though the taste of him was burning itself into her soul, she just couldn’t get enough. Her tongue slipped lower, brushing across his stomach. The taste drove her wild.

  A thought occurred to her, and she pulled back, lifting her lips to his, and kissed him again. This time, she let her tongue slipped between his lips, tasting him. The taste was the same, a sweet, vanilla nectar, faint, but there.

  In comparison, she must taste dull, nothing more than a little salty.

  Her heart sank. He was so wonderful and different and exotic, and she was just so ordinary. He would be disappointed.

  She pulled back a little, biting her lip.

  Kugah’s eyes flicked open and focused on her face. “What’s wrong?”

  “I…” In the face of the intense desire in his eyes, her fears seemed silly. But they wouldn’t be silenced. “You’re… you taste so good, and you’re so amazing. I don’t know why you’re interested in me.”

  She looked down, afraid to meet his eyes, half afraid he’d admit that he wasn’t interested.

  Kugah put a finger under her chin and tilted her face up, and she looked up at him unwillingly.

  His eyes were full of love and desire. “I only want you, Amelie. You look beautiful to me.” He ran his fingers through her hair and cupped her face. “When you first touched me, do you remember, back in the cargo bay?”

  Amelie frowned. Then the image came to her. She’d been sure he was running to his ship to leave. But he’d stopped, as soon as she’d touched him. She nodded.

  He smiled. “It had been so long since I’d felt anyone touch me. The armour was designed for me not to feel it, but you were so gentle that somehow you broke through that. It was the most amazing thing I’d ever felt. And it still is.”

  A shudder ran through him. “When you touch me like that… lick me… it drives me wild.”

  She felt her face burning. “Really?”

  He nodded. “Really. I want to touch every part of your body, and work out what drives you wild in response. I just can’t concentrate when you’re licking me like that!” he scolded. His eyes twinkled though.

  Her fears reassured, Amelie laid back on the rug and put her hands behind her head. “Your turn then.”

  It was hard not to stop him, as he bent over her body and began to kiss, slowly at first, then with more confidence. By the time his tongue reached her nipples, and he suckled on one gently, she gave up on keeping her hands away, and tangled them in his hair, her body arching up to meet him.

  “Kugah,” she breathed.

  He looked up, his tongue still circling her nipple, and grinned. “Yes?”

  She couldn’t find the words to explain what she wanted. She was pretty sure he knew. She tangled her hands in his hair and pulled his lips up to hers.

  He crawled up to her, his lips finding hers, his body lying on top of her, pressing her into the blanket. That helped satisfy the ache she was feeling, but it wasn’t enough.

  How did his people make love? Because there was one thing she wanted right now, and she wasn’t sure she knew how to explain it to him.

  Somehow, he knew. Kugah pulled back long enough to remove the jeans he was wearing, and Amelie took the opportunity to pull off her own. She watched him, enjoying the exotic look of his body, wanting to taste the rest of him, to see if it was even sweeter. Those swirls went all the way down. She reached out a hand to stroke them, and Kugah gave a groan.

  “Amelie,” he growled, and before she could reply, his body covered hers and his lips were on hers.

  There would be time to taste him later. Right now, she wanted more. She couldn’t wait for more.

  Kugah didn’t make her wait. He slipped between her thighs, sliding into her.

  Amelie let out a sigh of satisfaction. This was what she had been waiting for. What her whole body had been crying out for far too long.

  He was gentle at first, sliding in and out with an almost agonising slowness. Amelie let the intensity build up in her, until she was certain it was going to boil over. Then she reached out to stroke the swirls around his neck.

  Kugah groaned, and drove into her, his passion unrestrained.

  “What are you doing?” he gasped. “How can I be gentle while you do that?”

  “Lovemaking isn’t about being gentle,” Amelie panted. “It’s about letting all our passion and desire out.”

  Kugah stared down at her, his eyes wide for a moment.

  Amelie rocked her hips against him, and he groaned. He held out for a few minutes, then he relaxed, and thrust into her, filling her with his full length.

  It was Amelie’s turn to gasp. She’d never felt anything this intense before. It was like swirls of heat sliding through her, setting her whole body on fire.

  Once he was past his reluctance, Kugah embraced the unrestrained with abandon. He thrust into her, harder and faster, and Amelie urged him on. His lips brushed hers, and his body shone with sweat.

  “Amelie,” he gasped out, and thrust into her desperately.

  “Kugah,” she breathed, the intensity rising up like a wave and catching her unawares, carrying her over the crest with him. She clung to him, half afraid she was going to fall.

  Her eyes met his, gentle and full of love, and realised that she wasn’t ever going to fall again. Somehow, she knew that even if she did, he’d be there to catch her.

  And an alien with wings would always be able to catch her.

  “I love you, Kugah,” she said.

  “I love you too, Amelie.”

  I hope you enjoyed the conclusion to the Worlds Apart story.

  If you enjoyed my writing, you can check out my other series. I also write paranormal romance and fantasy romance.

  He's just an ordinary dragon shifter, she's a small town librarian. Together they could end a 300 year war, but only if they don't fall in love

  Grab your copy now

  A powerful mage and heir to the throne of Isla de Magi, Lyall could have his pick of women, but it’s not until he meets a simple serving woman while on a covert mission to the mainland, that he loses his heart. But Brianna has a secret. An ancient law compels her to marry the same man as her sister.

  And her sister
is already married.

  Grab your copy now

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  About the Author

  If you read a Rinelle Grey story, you can trust in a happy ending. Love will always triumph, even if it seems impossible…

  Rinelle Grey writes feel-good romance usually in science fiction or fantasy settings. Her heroines are independent and headstrong, and her stories are hard to put down.

  She grew up in a remote area of Australia, without power, hot water, or a phone, but now lives with all of those and her (happily ever after) husband, daughter, chooks, ducks and veggie garden.

  She loves to receive e-mails at rinelle@rinellegrey.com, or follow her on facebook or twitter.

  More by this Author

  A powerful mage and heir to the throne of Isla de Magi, Lyall could have his pick of women, but it’s not until he meets a simple serving woman while on a covert mission to the mainland, that he loses his heart. But Brianna has a secret. An ancient law compels her to marry the same man as her sister.

  And her sister is already married.

  Grab your copy now

  He's just an ordinary dragon shifter, she's a small town librarian. Together they could end a 300 year war, but only if they don't fall in love

  Grab your copy now