“I was invisible, of course.”
Erin drummed her fingers on the wooden table. Greg was late, as usual. Didn’t he think she had better things to do with her time?
She stirred the ginger ale in her glass with her straw. Okay, well, maybe she was a little grumpy. It didn’t help that in the several days she hadn’t seen Drakor, she started feeling drained and unnerved. What was it about him? Whenever he stood within a few feet of her she turned into some promiscuous harlot with raging hormones. And now that she had gone the rest of the week without seeing, hearing, or speaking to him, she felt like total crap.
“Sorry I’m late.” Greg dropped into the chair opposite hers. “Hey, you didn’t order the Crunchy Rings. We always get that.”
Erin took a sip of her soda. “They didn’t sound very appetizing to me right now. What took you so long, anyway?”
“Had to drop off Ankra.”
Something bloomed in Erin’s chest, like a tulip opening to the sun. She knew why. Drakor. Why couldn’t she forget him?
“So you guys are doing great, huh?”
Her brother’s cheeks colored. “Yeah, she’s really special.” He grabbed her soda and swallowed a few gulps.
“Um, could you ask next time?”
He ignored her and looked around for the waiter.
“I told him to bring a beer when he saw you here, so don’t worry it’ll be coming.”
“Thanks. I could use one.”
“What’s the latest? Anymore ideas about what’s going on at Invasion Shield?”
Greg sighed and sank back in his chair. “I don’t know what to do. I’ve done some research and it seems that the software that I’ve sent off for a patent is exactly the same as one developed by Securicon.”
“Securicon? Who are they?”
He seemed to shrivel in his seat. “A competitor. A very important one.”
Erin tucked a stray hair behind her ear. “So, did someone from Invasion Shield sell the technology to Securicon?”
The waiter came over and placed the beer in front of Greg. “Any dinner for the two of you?” he asked.
Erin didn’t quite feel in the mood but she would eat if Greg ordered something. Fortunately, he shook his head. “Can you just bring out the Crunchy Rings with the special sauce? And I’ll probably need another beer soon.”
“Anything for you, madam?”
“No, thank you. Just some water with lemon.”
The waiter left and Greg took a long pull on his beer. When he came up for fresh air, he wiped the bottle across his forehead.
“I could be in some deep shit, Erin.”
“It’s not your fault if someone sold information to another company.”
“That isn’t what happened.”
“What do you mean?”
“Securicon had this technology first. They applied for their patent on it well before us.”
Erin shifted in her seat. This wasn’t sounding good. “Maybe they were just faster.”
Greg leaned forward, elbows on the table, head in his hands. “No, Erin, somebody stole that information from them and we’ve claimed it’s our own. That’s called Patent Infringement.”
Her churning stomach froze. “What are you saying exactly?”
“Someone from my company took Securicon’s information and used it to build our software.”
“Who would do that?”
“I don’t know but I have a guess.”
There had to be a way to figure this out. “Greg, did anyone in your company work for Securicon before Invasion Shield?”
“Not that I remember.”
She would fix this for him. She had to. “Let’s meet soon. Your house or mine, it doesn’t matter. But bring your employee files and we’ll go through them with a microscope.”
His blue eyes pleaded with her. She had never seen him so distraught, not since their parents died. “I hope we can find something, ‘cause Invasion Shield is in a whole lot of trouble and I’m the one responsible.”
“I have another one and they won’t stop itching.”
Drakor winced as Sitora’s whine cut through his fog of pain. He’d not heard from Erin since leaving her apartment that day.
He and Sitora took nightly walks to ease their boredom, and now she complained of red bumps on her skin. He tried to look it up in a manual but all that was mentioned was hives, rashes, and the occasional insect bite.
“Last time you scratched so hard you made it bleed,” he told her, pressing a damp cloth across his face.
“I can’t help it.”
“What did Ankra say about it? Did she ask Greg for you?”
“She keeps forgetting.” He felt Sitora climb up on the bed next to him. “Please, can’t you do something? Mother and Father would have done something for me.”
He moved the cloth and propped up on one elbow. She would be underhanded enough to use their dead parents against him. “You have something you want me do.”
She gave a shrug, her eyes wide with innocence. “You could ask Erin.”
He dropped his head down again. “So that’s what this is about. You want to see Erin again.”
“I don’t have to go.” She lay next to him and reached her pudgy arm across his chest. She smelled like soap and cookies. “I’ll stay here and you can just go over and ask her.”
“Sitora…” What could he say to his sister? He didn’t know why Erin stopped coming by to visit. But he did know that he couldn’t stop thinking about her. The scent of her hair and softness of her skin haunted him each night. He could not forget her smooth shoulders and creamy white thighs. Especially since he now slept in his parents’ room, upon this very bed.
“You’ll go, won’t you?” his sister asked, then pressed a kiss on his cheek. “Tell her I wanted you to.”
The poor girl had enough disappointment already. “I’ll go. Let me just make sure Brundor will stay here this time.”
Drakor just reversed the coordinates on the Transmitter and landed behind a clump of trees near Erin’s building. He would have preferred to Transfer directly into her home, but it would probably frighten her and give her more fuel for her story.
Drakor sucked in a deep breath and knocked on Erin’s door.
A strong smell filtered out from one of the closed doors, making his mouth water. The odor was strong, pungent, but not necessarily unpleasant. Was he starting to yearn for the Earth food? Had he started to transform into a human?
Great Sun, he needed to get off this planet, even if it meant returning home as an Unmhar.
The door opened and his gaze fell upon Erin’s surprised face. Her light hair was scattered in all directions, her skin paler than normal and eyes underlined with a lavender hue. She looked unwell, almost as if she somehow had contracted the illness that plagued his father.
He took a step inside the door and the heat from her body enveloped him, immediately easing his suffering. But seeing her distress, sensing her weakened state, Drakor felt a trickle of ice slither through his veins. Similar to the frenzied rush that overtook him when he wanted to protect Erin, this cold sensation connected him to her.
His Mharai.
No. These feelings, desires, sensations were nothing more than a trick of being on a strange planet. The pull he felt in meeting his first human female. No Elliacians ever found a Mharai anywhere but Elliac.
“What’s going on?”
Drakor took a step toward her. “Sitora…” He wanted to tell her the reason he was here, why he came all this way. But the words wouldn’t form in his mouth. He couldn’t concentrate on anything but her, on having her nestled in his arms.
Her face softened and he watched her lips move as she spoke. “Is she ill? What’s happened?”
“It’s nothing really. Small bumps on her skin that itch.”
She raised her eyebrows. “Rash?”
Drakor shrugged.
“Are they large or small? The bumps.”
He hedged closer to her, desp
erately wanting to run his fingertips along her silky hair. His tongue burned to taste her. “They–they are large. On her arms and legs. Everywhere.”
Erin smiled and the tension in his body eased a bit.
“Are they like this?” She lifted her leg and put her foot on the couch’s armrest. She pointed to a swollen, red lump.
The sight of her firm calf and curved ankle made him swallow. But his throat was thick and dry. He nodded.
“What about this?” This time she slid the waistband down on her shorts slightly to reveal her hip. Another bump like Sitora’s rested on her velvety skin. She scratched it.
Again, he nodded, unable to speak.
Erin pushed a few strands of hair behind her ear and leaned against the armrest. “It sounds like she has mosquito bites.”
“Mosquito?” he croaked.
“Common in summer. They love the taste of blood.”
“They are-are insects?”
Erin cocked her head. “Is something wrong? Why can’t you talk?”
“I–I don’t know. My mouth feels…strange.” He tried to swallow but his throat closed up on him again.
“Maybe you need something to drink.”
She brushed past him and disappeared into the kitchen. He heard the tinkle of glass and the rush of water. Then she emerged holding a white cup with a handle.
“Drink this. It should help.”
He took the cup from her and stared into it. The liquid inside was clear, like the stream behind the house. Water. There was plenty of it on Elliac, it was just difficult to get to. Long ago, his ancestors built viaducts and pipelines to bring the water in. But most was used for sanitation and bathing. Once weaned onto the capsules, there wasn’t a need for drinking liquid.
Erin came up to him and pushed his hand up to his face. Her contact on his skin warmed the ice still trickling in his veins. “Bring it to your lips and drink it.”
She lifted up on her toes and helped to guide the cup to his mouth. He let the cold water wash over his tongue and slowly swallowed it down his closed throat. A cool tickling sensation swam into his stomach. Drakor took another sip, feeling the sides of his mouth and his tongue reawaken.
“Ah, that’s it,” she crooned, stirring his blood. “You must be feeling better.”
Drakor finished the cup and handed it back to her. She put it away then leaned against the doorway. “Are the bumps the only reason you came over?”
“Are the mosquito bites a problem?” he asked, ignoring her question.
Her mouth twitched. “They can be in extreme cases. Mosquitoes can carry diseases, but most likely they’ll just cause a lot of annoying itching.”
He wanted to touch her but shoved his hands in his pockets instead. “Tell me how to stop the itching.”
“How can I get you to tell me why you’re really here?”
“I told you, to find out about Sitora’s bumps.”
Her sky-colored eyes narrowed. “You could have found that information out other ways. You didn’t have to just show up at my door.”
“Sitora asked me to come and see you.”
“You want to know about your friend, don’t you?”
Helta, yes, that was true. But he came mostly because he couldn’t stand to be away from her anymore. The wave of sensations flooded his system. The cool taste of the water, the enticing scent of Erin, and the hot rush of blood to his groin.
Drakor pulled his hands from his pocket and leaned forward, trapping her against the wall. “I came because I couldn’t stand being away from you anymore.”
Chapter Twenty-One
Erin’s breath caught. She wanted to think clearly, but she couldn’t do it. “No. Don’t. I have to tell you something.”
But those predatory eyes never moved. Solid walls of muscle held her trapped against the wall. That raw, male power radiated from his stance, burned through her hesitation, flooded her body with instant warmth.
His lips moved closer.
“No, I have to tell you something…”
Oh God, she didn’t want to. She didn’t want to stop this sensual buzz inside her. And she didn’t want to give him the news she had.
Erin ducked under his arms and dashed into the kitchen. Gripping the back of a kitchen chair, she inhaled deep breaths of Drakor-free air. She had to clear her mind. Damn it, she had to find a way to tell him this information without setting off the anger she’d witnessed a few days ago.
Sighing, Erin tried to calm her galloping heart, but then she heard him walk up behind her. She could more than hear him, she could sense him, she could smell him.
Erin stiffened to stave off the impending torrent of desire but Drakor pressed himself against her back.
“What do you think you’re—?”
Her words died away as his lips found the curve of her neck. Willpower slipping, she closed her eyes and sank back toward him. His tongue traced a damp line along her shoulder and she felt his fingers move her shirt and bra strap out of his way.
“No…” Her weak protest served no purpose as his other hand reached under the front of her shirt and cupped her breast.
His erection pressed against her lower back. Quivers raced down to her toes. Awareness shivered over every nerve ending. Fire sparked in every blood cell.
The thoughts and emotions of a few minutes ago eluded her grasp. Now there was nothing but her and Drakor. There was nothing but lust surging into every pore.
Through the haze she felt her shorts and panties fall to her ankles. Then there was contact of his bare skin against her.
His large hands lifted her hips, pulling her up on her toes. She fell forward toward the table and caught herself with her hands, scrunching and scattering papers.
One hard plunge and he was inside. That familiar balloon expanded, reaching, widening for release. With each thrust, each groan, the balloon stretched, rising until it pressed tightly against her nipples.
Drakor gripped her hips, holding her steady while he continued to drive himself deeply inside. Her pulse matched his rapid breathing. Another deep lunge and he moaned near her ear. The taut balloon burst with a shower of sparkles, tickling her skin, leaving her gasping.
He withdrew and backed away. Without turning, she knew he leaned against the counter, waiting for his breathing to slow. But she didn’t want to wait. Now that he was away from her, her head started to clear.
Erin yanked her clothes back on and hurried into the bathroom. What had she just done? She was like a horny rabbit when he was around. Is that why he came over to see her, because he knew she would give it up whenever he reached for her? No wonder he didn’t need Rita’s big breasts and overt seduction. All he had to do was come within a foot of Erin and she turned into his sex slave.
Erin cleaned herself up and splashed water on her face. She looked like hell warmed over. No make-up, pale face, messy hair.
She found him standing over the kitchen table trying to read her notes.
“What are you doing? Get out of my stuff.”
“It’s about me,” he replied without looking up. “But don’t worry, I can barely read what it says.”
So she had messy handwriting, it caused her enough bad grades in school. She didn’t need to be scolded for it now. Erin snatched the paper out of his hands. “Then don’t bother trying.”
He glanced over at her and his steamy dark eyes threatened to melt her again. “Why don’t you read it to me, then? Weren’t you looking for something earlier?”
She was. Before he came up behind her and took advantage of her weakness. Erin cleared her throat and flipped through a few loose sheets then sucked in a deep breath. “You know what, maybe you should just go.”
Instead, Drakor dropped into the chair next to her. “Wait…what’s wrong?”
She crossed her arms and glanced away. She’d better tell him now, just get it out of the way. “Your friend, you know, my John Doe, I looked into getting his body released. I said a relative had been found.”
> Drakor rose to his feet. “When can I get him?”
Erin closed her eyes for a moment. Shit. He wasn’t going to like this. “You can’t.”
“Erin—”
“No, Drakor.” She stared at him, at those mysterious eyes that haunted her dreams. “You can’t get him because he’s no longer there.”
“I’ll go to wherever he has gone.”
Erin shook her head. “He’s gone for good. His body has been taken away.”
His faced bloomed scarlet. “He has been buried in the ground here?”
No, worse. She wouldn’t tell him. If she told him the truth, he’d be gone from this planet tonight. And…and she didn’t have all the information she needed for her article. He couldn’t go yet.
A little lie at this moment wouldn’t be such a bad thing. “All I know is that he’s been moved from the facility to an undisclosed location.”
Drakor slumped back into the chair and dropped his head into his hands.
Erin stood there, unmoving. She wanted to comfort him, to ease his sadness. So much had happened for him in these last few weeks, with the death of his parents and all. Now he bore the responsibility of his family and she was setting out to destroy them.
An ache rippled in her heart. She’d never felt so torn, so uncertain as to what to do. This was the break she’d been searching for, the very thing to blow away her mistakes of the past. And, yet, she’d never felt so alive since she’d met Drakor. She’d never embraced such passion.
Oh God, what if she was falling in love with him?
She had to make him leave. His constant presence agonized her, threatened everything she knew about herself. They had no future together. Why waste the biggest thing in her life over something that would only last a few more weeks, at most?
Erin had to end it. Once and for all.
She tapped him on the shoulder. Her heart twisted at the look of despondency in his eyes. “I’m sorry, Drakor, but you have to go.”
“I don’t understand.”
A sob lodged in her throat but she gulped the salty taste. She could do this. She had to do this. No more sex. No more contentment in his arms.
The Price of Discovery Page 19