“A reflection of you.”
“Exactly.”
“Will I always have to wear the red and the gold?”
“You don’t like the color?”
“It’s beautiful,” she murmured, watching as he shook out the simply designed dress. Of course, these old-fashioned men would garb their women in something flowing and feminine — and in a dress, never pants. The last time she’d worn a dress had been on Christmas when she’d been seven. That brought up bittersweet memories of both her parents, who had long since passed, and her sister back on Earth. A wave of homesickness swept through her.
“When on the ship and in all official functions, you’ll wear my colors,” he explained, as though sensing her upset. “It is traditional and expected, but other times the choice will be yours. I think green the same shade as your beautiful eyes would suit you best.”
“Thank you,” she said, her voice soft and hesitant, not knowing what else to say. Everything was new and different, and coming at her so very fast.
“You seem distressed.”
She shook her head, feeling emotional and not really wanting to discuss it.
“Let me help you.” He removed her wet towel and tossed it aside. “Arms up,” he directed and lifted the garment, guiding her head and her arms through the holes before letting the gauzy fabric fall over her body. Turning her, he began to tie the laces in back that molded the material to her upper body. “It fits perfectly.”
“Something is missing, isn’t it?”
“Yes. I almost forgot. Come.” He led her by the hand into the bedroom and to a full length mirror. When he left her there to retrieve what had to be panties, she caught sight of herself in the gown. It was stunning. In a material similar to chiffon, the Greek goddess design draped from one shoulder, nipping in at the waist due to the laces which from the front looked like an intricate wide mesh belt. From there it hung in a full skirt that draped in deep folds to the floor. In the beautiful gown, she looked ready to dine with royalty or heads of state.
“The dress is gorgeous, Kerr, but surely your women don’t wear something like this every day.”
“Well, no, nothing this formal, but something similar.”
Her eyes shifted to his image in the mirror as he stepped in close behind her. When he raised his hands to her head, she noticed he held more gold mesh.
“What is that?”
“It’s for your hair. All mated females wear their hair up in public.”
“Is that another rule?”
“No, Eva, it is a tradition, and our women wear it proudly because it proclaims to
one and all that they are mated.”
Well, didn’t that make her feel like a real shit? She angled her head and gazed at his reflection curiously. “Do the males also wear something to show that they are mated?”
He looked startled. “No, that their woman wears a symbol to proclaim the bond is enough.”
Why didn’t that surprise her?
He picked up a brush from a nearby table and began to pull it through her long hair. “The color is remarkable. No one on Primaria will have ever seen its like. They won’t be able to keep their eyes off of you.”
She watched in the mirror as he expertly brushed out the wet tangles, her eyes drawn to the thick, silky mass of his own dark hair, long and straight, gleaming in the light, the locks falling well past his shoulders. As he settled the gold head piece over her head, he aligned the filigree bands across the top of her head until they met at her nape.
“Tilt your head forward.”
He hooked the bands together, then twisted and wound the loose curls into an updo at the crown of her head, the mass gathered and pinned in such a way that it fell freely, the ends not reaching quite to her neck, leaving it exposed except for a few loose tendrils curling down the sides. His adept and agile fingers worked quickly, and in no time he was done. His skill surpassed her own; she usually opted for an easy pony tail or boring twist.
He picked up a glossy wave and coiled it around his finger. The light brush of his fingers sent shivers racing through her so that goose bumps rose up on her arms. At the same time, her nipples tightened almost painfully, standing out firmly against the thin fabric. She crossed her arms to hide them, surreptitiously rubbing the ache away. Her neck had become a new erogenous zone and, naturally, Kerr gravitated toward it.
“Look how beautiful you are,” he said, as he gave her a head to toe scan in the mirror. His hands curved around her bare shoulders, his breath on her damp nape caused another tingle to shoot along her nerve endings.
Her eyes met his in the mirror. “It is lovely,” she whispered. “But the something missing I was referring to wasn’t for my hair.”
“Shoes? I have those in the other room.”
“No, I meant—” She cleared her throat, embarrassed. “I’m naked underneath, Kerr.”
His eyes flashed hotly before sweeping down her body, lingering on her breasts, then dipping to her hips. “You are very well covered, sprite.”
“Maybe, but I’m not used to going around without…” She didn’t want to use the word panties, never liking it personally. She sought a substitute. “Briefs. You know, undergarments like the loin cloth you wore in the jungle.”
“Unnecessary, unless it’s your monthly courses — which I know it is not.”
She ignored that comment, refusing to talk about that with him. “I can’t walk around exposed.”
“You are completely covered and look beautiful. Besides, you’d have to wait and have undergarments custom made for you at home. It is not a common item, particularly among bonded females, and something not available aboard ship. The clothing replicator was already on overload just making the necessary clothing for eight of you.”
“Why?”
“Eight gowns and day dresses used considerable resources, and took time.”
“No, I mean, why no undergarments? It’s very disconcerting. What if there is a strong wind, or an accident? I could trip and fall, and show… everything.”
“Eva, there is no wind; we’re on board a ship. And you won’t fall if you take my arm. Further,” he said, grinning. “There are numerous benefits to being bare underneath. Let me demonstrate one.”
Gathering the folds of her gown in his large hands, he drew it up her legs. Meeting her gaze in the mirror, Kerr pulled her skirt above the curves of her hips, exposing her fully as he leaned into her. Still naked, his solid length slid along her cleft, coming to rest snugly between her legs. At the same time, his hands came around her, moving in between her thighs, his fingers grazing her lips in front.
Her mouth fell open and the air rushed out of her suddenly tight chest. He couldn’t possibly mean to take her again. “Don’t you think it’s a bit barbaric to keep your women bare so you can toss up their skirts and fuck them willy-nilly?”
The playfulness left him as his face darkened. “Bend forward.”
“Why?”
“I told you I didn’t like that word, and that you’re not to use it again. You did, so you will be spanked.”
She gasped. “You’re not serious.”
“Very much so.” He put his hand between her shoulder blades and the other at her belly, guiding her down. Eva’s hands came up against the mirror, her cheek pressing to the cold glass as he bent her double.
“But Kerr, that’s not fair. You said fu—” She stopped as his hand, big enough to cover one entire cheek, gripped her flesh and squeezed in warning. She quickly rephrased. “You said the f-word yourself. It’s not fair to punish me for something you did as well.”
“No, it isn’t, but then I make the rules as I deem fit. To you they might not always seem fair, but they have a purpose. In this case, it is to teach you to obey me. Besides, I don’t recall saying such a thing. You are mistaken.”
“No. You were teasing me and I clearly recall you saying it under your breath.”
His hand paused in the rubbing and he tilted his head. “Ah yes
, I remember now that I said faex — which isn’t the same.”
“Faex, fuck. What’s the difference?”
“My f-word, as you call it, means… never mind what it means. It’s an expletive, but for an entirely different thing, while yours refers to mating — which we Primarians take very seriously. Still, I shall try to curb my oaths around you.”
“As shall I.”
“Good plan, but you said it again, and as such, your punishment will be doubled.”
Then, every bit of air rushed out of her lungs as his hand connected firmly with her bare ass cheek. She squealed, although the blow didn’t smart as much as before.
“Kerr!”
“I also recall telling you that you were mine, and that if you obeyed me, I would bring you, time and again, to unbelievable heights of pleasure. I’ll forego the punishment for swearing since I was remiss myself.” He brought his hand down again on the other cheek. “But I insist you obey me, Eva, and that means doing what I say, when I say, even if I want to take you — willy-nilly as you say — wherever I have the notion. If I want to breed you in the corridor, I will — and you shall not deny me. If I want to bend you over in front of a mirror and watch your face as I first spank you to arousal, then drive into you until you come apart in my hands, so be it. You will take what I choose to give you. Is that understood?”
His hand came down twice more, lower across the center of her bottom cheek, sending a jolt of sensation straight to her clit. A surge of wetness drenched her pussy — seemly her perpetual state while in his presence. It was another valid reason to wear panties around the man.
“I require an answer,” Kerr prompted as he slid two long fingers into her, taking up an unhurried, possessive pumping motion deep within her.
“Yes… I understand.” What else could she say when he was driving her mad with sexual excitement?
Damn him!
“Good girl. Know that I will always protect you, sprite. If I toss up your skirt in a corridor, it will be where only my eyes can see. If I take you there, or in front of a mirror, mutual pleasure will be my goal. And if I spank you, for enjoyment or in punishment, never will you come to harm. Is that also understood?”
“Yes, but Kerr?”
His fingers slipped between her folds, finding her clit before he answered. “Yes, Eva?”
“Can you forego the lecture for right now, too? I’m about to explode and your fingers are not helping. I need you to either faex me, spank me, or both, because words are only white noise at the moment.”
As she’d expected, his hand came down swiftly across her ass at her tart words.
“Deliberate defiance falls into another category all together, little one. I know that was a tease, but make it the last time I hear that vulgar word from your beautiful lips.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Very good. Now spread your thighs wider for me. It’s one of those ‘willy-nilly’ times.” His order, said in his low, resonant tone, sent desire rippling through her. She moaned, thinking his voice at that moment could make her come all by itself.
But he had more planned.
His fingers sank back into her as his thumb located her clit. He circled it, gliding over the hard point continuously as he thrust inside. At the same time, his free hand made firm contact with her taut cheeks. His spanking for pleasure while he touched her intimately was stirring, somewhat naughty, and extremely hot, and she couldn’t think anymore. She rose up on her toes, canting her hips forward so her bottom arched high and her pussy pushed toward him, wantonly offering herself for more of his wildly arousing attention.
“Don’t climax,” he directed. “I want you to wait until your body is pulsing with need, until my touch, the sound of my voice, my will, are all that you can focus on. Only then, when I take you, plunging deep and filling your tight, wet, gripping channel, will you succumb to your body’s desire. Do you understand?”
“Yes, Kerr, but can you hurry? I’m about to succumb right now!”
His husky chuckle didn’t help the situation, nor did his hand delivering a half dozen more quick sensual swats. As she was crying out her need, he filled her, surging fast until her moaning became begging pleas. But he didn’t let up, holding her there, hovering on a precipice for long, breathtaking, feverish moments, until at last he gave the order she’d been waiting for.
“Come for me, Eva, my beautiful mate.”
And she did, flying apart in a stunning release as he splashed his hot seed inside her.
Chapter 8
She had righted her gown and was tucking several loose strands of hair back into place when she saw Kerr’s reflection join hers in the mirror.
“I have something else for you before we go.” He opened an ornate box and revealed a gold choker studded with gleaming green stones woven into the intricate metal work. At first she thought they might be emeralds, but these were a shade darker.
“It’s beautiful. What are the stones?”
“Uladite, which is one of Primaria’s most valuable natural resources. It drives our economy as well as our technology. Not only do we use it as a source of power to light our cities and fuel our ships, but we also sell it off world for a considerable profit.”
“It’s hard to believe something so pretty can power a ship.”
“Until a few decades ago, it couldn’t either. They were merely aesthetically pleasing crystals, so abundant they had little value. That all changed when a massive meteor shower struck our planet. The heat and radiation from the huge flaming rocks greatly altered the properties of uladite.”
She recoiled, pulling her hand away from the choker so fast it could have been a poisonous snake. “Radiation?”
“Yes, but do not fear, we have a way of containing it safely. Besides, this piece is very old, made long before the disaster.”
“The design is familiar.”
“That is because you have seen it on me.”
Her eyes rose to where his hair was tied back neatly. “It is identical to the marking on your neck.”
“Yes. This was made specifically for my mother, a gift from my father. I am happy to pass it on to you, Eva. I think she would have approved.”
From the shadow of pain that came into his eyes, Eva knew without asking that she was gone. “I’m sorry, Kerr. What happened to her?”
“She, as well as half of our females, were killed during the meteor storm. Some died instantly, or during the chaos of the days that followed.”
“How awful.”
“Yes, my father was beside himself at the loss of so many. He blamed himself.”
“He couldn’t possibly be responsible for such an event.”
He inclined his head. “You couldn’t convince him of that. Our scientists had been tracking an enormous asteroid for some time, and despite our best weapons, we were unable to destroy it. Our best option at the time was to break it up and hope for the best.”
“Your technology couldn’t give you projections to help you prepare?”
“Yes, it could, and our people were in the process of doing so when more tragedy struck. One of the weapons that hadn’t detonated earlier — presumably due to a malfunction in its triggering mechanism — suddenly discharged. It blew the Maker bedamned asteroid apart, and huge pieces began hurtling towards us — faster and sooner than we expected. Before we could bring our people to safety, the worst happened, and our losses were devastating.”
“Ok, Kerr, that is a tragedy. To lose so many, and your mother…”
“Also, my father. He died shortly after, during a cave-in while trying to dig out some survivors.”
Her hands flew to her mouth. To have lost them both, so close together, and during such a calamity when he surely needed them most…
“Twenty years ago… you couldn’t have been more than a baby.”
“It happened twenty-three years ago, when I was seven.”
Her heart ached for him.
“The loss of so many of our females was deva
stating, but it didn’t end there. The radiation exposure sickened many of the survivors and it also had long-term effects, making some of those who survived infertile.”
“Oh, Kerr.”
“For reasons we still can’t explain, the sterility only affected the women. Those that were in the cities near the capital — which is surrounded by a mountain range — were shielded, but the result was we were left with very few females capable of bearing children. Now, over twenty years later, we are only beginning to see a slight uptick in births, but male children are being born at a ratio of six to one, which is inexplicable to our best physics. At this pace, we have no hope for repopulation for generations, without help. Further, our males need mates, so we had no choice except to look beyond Primaria for a solution.” His hand came up to her face and stroked along her jaw lightly. “In all this time, we have found few other worlds with beings similar to our own. The ones that appeared promising, we approached, but negotiations and civil discourse often led to bartering and greedy demands from their leaders, especially once they learned of our wealth of resources.”
Eva frowned, seeing that exact thing possible if the Primarians approached Earth’s desperate leaders.
“It became tedious and time-consuming just to get to the testing phase. In the end, it was greatly disappointing — not to mention costly — only to find time and again that the species we were hopeful of joining with were not compatible.” He tipped her chin up and searched her eyes as he continued. “Then, one day while hunting, we came across a group of alien females, small, beautiful, and so similar to our own people. It was as though they were put there specifically for us to find. We decided to take what we needed, choosing expediency and opportunity over civility. It is not usually our way and it has weighed heavily upon me ever since. But at the time, my sweet Earthling, you and your friends were ripe for the picking, and a simple solution to our problem. Though sadly, only in very small measure.”
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