by Ashley West
She remembered what Combo and Kratos has said about her being brave, and she still didn't think that was what it was. It was just that she wanted to help.
When her parents called, after everything had gone down and Keith had filled them in on what had happened, they'd tried again to get her to come stay with them.
"You've been through an ordeal," her mother said, and her voice was still thick with tears. It was sad that it had taken her being kidnapped and mildly tortured for her parents to finally notice her for more than five minutes at a time, but Kirsten wasn't going to complain. "You need to rest."
"I don't want to rest, Mom," Kirstie said, and for once she did know exactly what she wanted to do. "I want to help people. So many people suffered worse than I did. I need to be here to help them. I'm fine, anyway."
Her mother had protested, but then Kirstie could hear her father gently taking the phone from her. "You do what you have to do, kiddo," he said. "We're proud of you."
Even now, months later, she still held those words close to her. They were proud of her, and even if they didn't really understand why she had to do this, they were accepting that she was going to do it.
It was definitely progress.
Honestly, more important than her parents' pride was the fact that she was finally proud of herself. She wasn't doing this for their attention or to get recognition. She wasn't even doing it because it had to be done and there was no one else to do it. This was something that she was doing for herself because she wanted to and because she believed in it. It was the right thing to do, and she was confident in her choice, even though everyone had expected her to go with The Kilan.
To be honest, she'd considered it. Leaving Earth behind and all the things it represented for her would have been easy. All she would have had to do was walk onto that ship and let them take her away. Sanaal still gave her a wide berth, but she'd have Kratos and Combo on her side, and even Milara seemed to like her well enough. She'd thought about becoming friends with the others who they called the underlings, and trying to find a place among the group.
In the end, though, she'd decided to remain on Earth. Being the only human in the group, the only one who couldn't fight and who didn't belong would be hard for her. She had wanted to find a place for herself and trying to squeeze in somewhere she didn't really belong wasn't the answer.
Kirsten remembered Combo's last words to her, his hands on her shoulders as he leaned in. "If there is no place for you, then you should make one. And then no one may take it from you."
It was good advice, and it was exactly what she was doing now. Combo had helped in his way, by striking a deal with someone to turn ownership of the building over to her. It needed repairs after all the fighting, but it was hers now. Eventually, she would get it up and running again as a place for people to pay rent to live in, but for now, it was still serving as a shelter. Offering warmth and safety for those who needed it.
People came and went by the day, and Kirsten had a smile and food and blankets for all of them.
Working kept her from dwelling on the things that were painful. Like how much she missed Kratos. They'd had their talk before he'd gone, and he'd promised that she'd always mean something to him, but it was hard to know where they stood.
Combo had given her a communication device powerful enough to talk to people on other planets, but she honestly spent more time talking to Combo than Kratos. She knew they were neck deep in another job, this one involving monks of some kind on a jungle planet, but when she pressed for more information, Combo just kept telling her to ask Kratos.
She would ask Kratos if he was ever available.
Honestly, it was probably for the best. Long distance relationships were hard in general, and she could only imagine that widening the distance to include several planets only made it harder.
Kirstie missed him, though. She'd gotten so used to him being a presence in her life. His height and bulk at her back, at her side, on top of her... Sometimes she still laid awake in her bed at night, one hand down her waistband as she thought about how they'd been together. Especially the way he'd said goodbye to her.
But it was fine. One day Kratos would officially break up with her, and then she'd find some nice human boy to be with and everything would be fine.
Of course, it didn't even feel right when she thought about it, but there was too much to do for her to spend time dwelling on it.
At the end of a long day, Kirsten was running herself a hot bath. Her muscles ached from pitching in to help move rubble and rebuild a school, and all she wanted was a pint of ice cream and bed.
First a bath, though, because she was covered head to toe in dust and dirt, and there was nothing like hot water for relaxing the muscles.
She brought her comm device with her, thinking she'd catch up with Combo while she soaked. Kirstie placed the call and then climbed into the water while she waited for it to connect. The water was bliss, and she sighed, sinking down lower, head tipped back to rest against the warm shower tiles, careful to hold the device above the water line.
There was a clicking sound as the call connected, and for a moment she was just looking at the empty cockpit of their ship before familiar swearing was heard.
"Kratos?"
It took a second for his face to come into view, and when it did, he was grinning. There was a long scratch down the side of one cheek, a token from some fight or other he'd been in since he'd left Earth.
"Hey there, sihan," he said, giving her a little salute.
"I was expecting Combo."
Kratos pouted. "Don't tell me you'd rather talk to Combo than me."
Kirsten shrugged. "I don't know. I've gotten used to our chats. And I was hoping he'd fill me in on your latest job since you've been so busy." She was trying very hard not to sound petulant, but it probably wasn't working. It was just...she'd missed him, and she was sure that he didn't feel the same way. Maybe he'd gone back to his old ways. Maybe he'd already replaced her with a bevy of hot alien women who could bend in ways Kirstie could only imagine.
"Wait," Kratos said, eyes narrowed as he peered at her. "You're naked."
"So?" Kirstie asked, fighting the urge to blush.
"Are you usually naked when you talk to Combo?"
His tone made her roll her eyes and laugh, in spite of herself. "No," she said. "I'm in the bath, and I thought I'd just check in before I go to bed. It's been a long day. And anyway, what's it to you if I do talk to Combo naked? Jealous?"
Kratos tipped his head to one side. "You're upset with me."
"No," she said.
"You are."
"I'm just...I don't know, Kratos. You're never around, and I'm trying not to be clingy and pathetic about it, but I miss you, and I feel like you're already over me."
They were both quiet in the wake of her confession, and honestly, she wanted nothing more than to take it back and have never said anything at all. If she was trying not to be clingy and pathetic, then she was clearly doing a poor job of it by admitting to it.
If anything, she was probably pushing Kratos away faster.
"Kirstie," he said softly, and she wrinkled her nose, glancing away from the screen. "Look at me."
It wasn't fair that he had her up on the massive windshield screen in the command center of the ship, while she had her little handheld device that was basically the size of a small tablet. He had such a better view of her than she did of him, and so she knew he could see how stupid she looked just then.
"Why?" she grumbled.
"Because I need to tell you something."
That made her glance up, and she huffed. "What?"
"Well, two things, actually. First thing is I love you."
If he said the second thing, then she missed it because her brain was stuck on the first thing, and she didn't think she could be blamed for that. "You what?" she gasped, eyes wide.
Kratos looked confused. "I'm coming to visit?" he said. "If...you want me to, I guess."
"Kirsten, I need you to breathe," Kratos said, teasing her. "What are you having trouble with?"
"Start at the beginning, please?"
He laughed warmly. "I love you. I do. It's...weird, because I don't think I've ever actually loved anyone before, but I know this is what it is, so. Combo called me an idiot when I asked him and then said I don't even deserve you. Which is probably true.
Kirstie pressed a hand over her heart and laughed softly, trying not to cry. "I love you, too," she said. "You big idiot. What was the second thing?"
"You're mean," Kratos said, but he was grinning. "I'm coming to visit. Been a while since I've had a vacation, you know? Combo says they'll be fine without me for a few weeks. If you'll have me."
The irritation she’d felt at not hearing from him was evaporating rapidly now, and she was smiling at him unreservedly. “I’ll have you,” she said. “You’ve been missed around here.”
“By all my many fans?”
She snorted. “Yeah, them. And, you know, me. I’ve missed you a lot.”
Kratos looked at her, and she didn’t think she’d seen that soft look on his face before. “I’ve missed you, too. Everyone has, I think. Even Sanaal said you’d have been smarter than me when it came to that job we were doing. That’s high praise.”
Kirsten giggled at that. “I like how it’s Sanaal’s approval I’m working for now.”
“Well, the rest of us already like you. And then some.”
“And then some.”
“Anyway, I need to get going, but I’ll see you in a bit, alright?”
She found she couldn’t wait.
Of course, work continued to keep her busy, so it wasn’t hard to wile away the days until Kratos came. She had people to speak with, organizations to run, fundraisers to coordinate, and a dinner with her parents to attend. Kratos hadn’t given her a concrete time that he was going to show up, so she just kept working and waiting.
True to his nature, though, when he arrived, he did it in style.
Someone outside the building screamed, and Kirstie came running. Lowering down into the parking lot was a small shuttle in the shape of a sphere, and she frowned, not sure what to make of it.
“Not again,” someone said. “Please not again.”
“Wait,” Kirsten said, holding up her hand. “I think we’re going to like this visitor.”
The sphere cracked open down the middle about halfway and then one side of it folded accordion style to reveal empty space and Kratos standing there with a huge grin on his face. “Calm down,” he said, lifting his hands up in a gesture of peace. “It’s only me.”
That broke any fear that there was that this might be another attack, and he climbed down and out of his flying sphere of all things to shake hands with the gathered throng and accept greetings.
Kirsten kept herself to the back, leaning against the building with her arms folded. It was Kratos’ signature posture, and it made her smile to think about how many times she’d seen him standing like that. As much as she wanted to throw herself on him and greet him properly, she waited, watching him be admired.
Finally, he looked up and met her eyes.
The wide grin softened into something much more tender, and she returned it, giving a little wave. Carefully, he extracted himself from the admirers and made his way over to her. “Well, hello there,” he said. “I come in peace.”
“That’s good to know,” Kirsten said with a grin. “We’ve had a real problem with aliens in this part of the country, you know. They cause all kinds of issues, and we just can’t keep them out.”
“Out of what, your bedrooms?” Kratos teased, and she punched him in the arm.
He looked good. Tanned, tanner than when she’d seen him last, and his hair was a bit longer than before, curling a bit over his collar. There were new scars on his face and arms, tokens from whatever jobs The Kilan had been doing while they were gone. Still just as tall and muscled, though, and when he grabbed her wrist and pulled her to him, she folded against his chest happily.
He wrapped his arms around her, not too tight, but tight enough that she could feel that he meant it. That he was happy to have her in his arms. Warm lips pressed to the top of her head, and he hummed softly.
"Hi."
Kirsten grinned and snuggled closer. "Hey. Long time no see."
Kratos laughed. "That's an understatement. This is long distance dating like I've never seen before."
"So we're pioneers," Kirstie replied, shrugging a shoulder. "We can make it work. Do you wanna come in?"
"Just a second." He held out a small device and clicked it twice. The sphere beeped, much like a car alarm would and then shot back up into the air to hover. "Just in case."
"You're so excessive," she teased, and led him inside.
"Rude. Combo and Milara send their love, by the way. Well. The best approximation of it."
Kirsten smiled. "We can talk about them later."
There was a reunion once they got in, against the door, against the wall, on the couch, that was now probably in need of being repaired because she was pretty sure that she'd heard something crack when she'd been draped over the back of the couch, Kratos thrusting into her hard.
There had been another reunion in her shower, the two of them pressed close together, Kirstie's fingers gripping against his muscles as she let her legs wrap around his waist and rode his cock.
In the weeks that he'd been gone, there had been no substitute for that thick shaft inside of her, and none of her toys had satisfied her like he could. Now that she had it again, she remembered how much she loved being filled up to the brim with his cock, her body conforming around it.
Kratos had whispered things in her ear as he took her. Words about how much he had missed her, how there was nothing in any galaxy that compared to how beautiful she was when she was taking his cock, how he wanted to keep her this close all the time.
If there had been any doubts in her mind about how he felt about her, they were gone now. Kratos was clearly a person who those three little words meant something to, and she didn't think he would have said them if he didn't mean them. She especially didn't think that he could fake the way his breath hitched when she murmured them to him as she came and the way he said them back, trembling a little before he set her back on her feet.
The way he kissed her echoed the sentiment, and he made her weak in the knees as he devoured her mouth with his own, lips and teeth and tongue working together to make her light headed and dazed.
He ended up carrying her out of the shower and to bed.
It was still funny to see him spread out on her bed because his feet hung over the edge, and his head was propped up on pillows and the headboard, but he didn't complain. Kratos seemed to be content to be there among her things, and he didn't stop smiling as she dried off and then slipped into bed beside him to curl up at his side.
His arm went around her instantly, and Kirstie loved how she just fit there, despite their differences in size.
"It's nice to be back here," Kratos said softly.
"Yeah? Just because of the sex or because you missed Earth?"
He snorted and poked her gently. "Not just because of the sex. Though, actually, the sex was pretty amazing."
"Just 'pretty' amazing?" she asked. "Clearly I need to do a better job, then."
"You know what I meant."
"I do."
They laid there in silence for a long moment, and then Kirstie spoke again. "Sihan," she said. It was something she'd been wondering about since he'd said it that last time, but with everything that had been going on, she hadn't had a chance to ask yet.
"Ah, I wondered if you remembered that," Kratos said. "You still want to know what it means?"
"Of course I do."
Kratos smiled and pressed his lips to her head. "It's a term of endearment. My parents used to use it all the time before ev
erything got bad. It's like...beloved, I guess, is the closest I can translate it. Part of my heart? Something like that."
"Oh," she said softly. It was touching, and more feelsy than she had expected from him. "Sihan," she said, trying it out again. "I like it."
"Good," Kratos replied. "I'm glad."
And they held each other for the rest of the night.
He’d have to leave again, of course, like he’d told her before, he wasn’t one for settling in one place, but Kirstie believed that now he considered where she was a place he could come back to. Somewhere he could orient himself around. She was significant to him, and so was her home, and honestly that was perfect.
About the Author
Ashley West was raised in a small Midwest town. She has always been a big fan of science fiction and paranormal books and movies. Her all-time favorite movies are the first three Star Wars movies. She started writing at a young age and has not looked back since. Ashley brings her worlds to life with vivid details and likeable characters.
On her spare time, she enjoys painting, jogging, and curling up next to her favorite books. If you enjoy Ashley’s titles and wish to receive a free paranormal romance, stay updated on all her new releases and book giveaways, please visit her website and submit your email.
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