Drenched: Elemental Warriors (A Sci-Fi Alien Warrior Paranormal Romance)

by Ashley West

  "Come on," she said, tugging him in the direction of her favorite noodle place. "Let's get some food."

  Eating with Luther at the restaurant definitely helped wipe away most of her stress. She'd forgotten that the restaurant always had their Mega Bowl, which was five times the size of a normal bowl of ramen, and if someone could finish it, the meal was free.

  Luther had ordered it, not even knowing about the promotion, but had easily allowed himself to be sucked into the fanfare of it, demolishing the massive bowl of noodles, spicy broth, pork, and vegetables, and setting a new record for the restaurant.

  The servers and the chef had been astounded to see it happen so fast and so easily, and when Luther had burped after he'd finished off the last of the remaining broth, everyone had laughed.

  "That was delicious," he told them all, and they'd gotten their meal for free as well as complimentary desserts.

  The tempura cheesecake had baffled Luther until he'd eaten it, and Alanna's tempura banana had been amazingly good.

  From there they had walked back to the house to get her car, and then she took him to her favorite cafe for drinks and then to Pebbles.

  There was no way she could show him her favorite places without going there, of course. It was where she had made her art and where she had started making a name for herself.

  It was also a Saturday.

  They walked up to the pottery area, laughing as she explained the coffee drink Luther had ordered, and nearly walked right into Keith who was standing in the doorway.

  Keith.

  Alanna sucked in a sharp breath. She hadn't seen him when she'd come back here a few days before, and in fact, this was the first time she'd seen him since she'd been taken.

  "Alanna," he said, clearly surprised to see her. "You're here."

  "I'm here," she said, suddenly very on edge. "So are you."

  "It's a Saturday."

  "Right."

  They stared at each other for a long moment and then Keith moved so they could walk into the space. "I heard about your..." Keith made a vague hand gesture, not seeming to know what he wanted to say.

  "My breakdown," she said.

  He nodded. "Yeah. I uh. I was sorry to hear that it happened. You seemed so...I don't know. Happy. Before."

  "Yeah," Alanna said, shrugging. "It's one of those things, you know." Luther cleared his throat from behind her, and Alanna made a face. "Right. This is um. This is Luther."

  "Her boyfriend," Luther put in.

  Alanna turned to give him a look. "Luther, this is Keith. He's a painter."

  And the man she had been sleeping with most recently before she'd met Luther, and she wondered if she had told him enough about Keith for him to figure that out.

  Keith, for his part, looked startled. "It's nice to meet you," he said, nodding. He fixed Alanna with a look. "You had a nervous breakdown and then ended up with a boyfriend?"

  She sighed. "It's one of those things. Just happened."

  "I guess so. You know, next time you disappear, you might want to give your ex a heads up."

  "What do you mean?"

  "He came here, looking for you, right after you vanished. He thought we might know where you'd gone or that we had something to do with it. He didn't know who I was, which was good, considering."

  "Yeah. Considering."

  "Does he know you're back?" Keith wanted to know.

  "I called him."

  "Good. He seemed worried."

  "Right."

  "I was worried, too, you know. You...you just didn't come back, and I thought I'd done something to drive you away, at first."

  Alanna sucked in a breath. She didn't want to do this now, and she definitely didn't want to do it with Luther standing right there. He was walking around, looking at things, but she knew he was listening.

  "It definitely wasn't your fault, Keith," she said. "I just...there was a lot going on. And then Alex found out about...everything, and I just. I needed a break."

  "I understand," he said. "You have to look out for yourself. Take care of yourself. It just would've been nice to get a text or something, you know?"

  "I know."

  They stood there, not talking for a while, and then Keith sighed. "I was on my way to lunch. The burger place, you know?"

  Alanna smiled slightly. "Enjoy."

  "Yeah. See you around, I guess."

  She stood there, watching him leave, and then listening as he headed for the stairs. Only when there was no way that he was coming back did she let herself slump and sigh heavily.

  "So that was the guy?" Luther asked, coming to stand next to her.

  "That was him," Alanna replied.

  "And do you still—”

  "Luther," she said, cutting him off. "Seriously? I'm not about to run off with him, if that's what you think. It's different now. Alex was...Alex was a great guy, but he wasn't for me. We didn't have anything in common, and most of the time I felt like he wasn't listening to me. You're not like that. I don't need anything else when I have you."

  Neither of them brought up the point that it was unknown how much longer she would have him, since he had to go back to Lin-Vayel one day, and Alanna was grateful to not have to talk about it.

  Luther smiled and leaned down to kiss her lightly before taking her hand once more. "Come show me what's yours here," he said, tugging her over to the rows of finished pieces.

  They headed back to Alanna's house after that. It had been nice to be out, but Alanna needed a break, and Luther needed to check his messages. There was only one, a message from the queen saying that they were beginning to investigate who could be the traitor. It put Luther in a low mood for the rest of the evening, and Alanna supposed she couldn’t blame him for being upset that one of his fellows was a traitor. This was someone he’d probably fought beside, someone he’d trusted. Alanna could only imagine that she would have felt similarly in his situation.

  After nearly two hours of watching him, well, mope, she decided to intervene.

  "Let's take a break from all this depressing stuff," Alanna suggested, flopping down into Luther's lap. "It's not like it's going anywhere, right?"

  Luther tipped his head to the side. "I suppose you have a point, yes. And what would you have us do instead?"

  "It'll need to be something really distracting," she said, grinning at him. "Something that will take your mind off of things completely."

  He snorted, clearly taking her meaning. "You are incorrigible."

  "Do you have a problem with that?" she wanted to know.

  "You know I don't."

  She did know that, and she liked that he liked these things about her. "Good," she said. "Then come here." And she leaned up to kiss him.

  It was chaste, compared to some of the other kisses they had shared over the course of their relationship, but no less full of feeling. Alanna felt the weight of words unsaid between them in that kiss, but she pushed it to the side. No use dragging up more drama when they didn't need to, of course. Declarations were for people who were going to be together, and they weren't.

  Alanna gave herself a mental slap and poured her attention into the kiss, the way their lips brushed and pressed together, the soft flick of Luther's tongue against her mouth, asking her to open for him.

  And she always did. She opened for him beautifully, because she loved having him inside of her.

  Of course, it wasn't always beautiful and lovely with the two of them. Sometimes it was him pushing her over the dining room table in the corner and pulling her pants and underwear down.

  It was him fingering her efficiently, two fingers pushing into her body with firm strokes that made her shake and shudder under him. His free hand held her down over the table, pressing into her back with casual strength that she couldn't fight even if she wanted to.

  "You wanted a distraction," Luther said, and his voice had slipped into that lower register that made her want to come for him on the spot. It was rough and deep and so very masculine,
like every other part of him.

  "A distraction for you," Alanna panted, squirming as his fingers brushed past the spot inside of her that craved his touch.

  "Oh," he said, voice radiating pleasure and smug satisfaction. "I am thoroughly distracted." He pulled his fingers free of her body, leaving her slick with her own wetness from his attentions. He pushed his hips forward so she could feel the thick hardness of him against her entrance, hot and throbbing with his need.

  "Oh," she echoed. "Luther, please."

  He laughed, and it was low and wonderful. "Please what?"

  "Please, I want you. I want you so bad, Luther, please."

  She definitely wasn't above begging if it got her what she wanted, and she knew that Luther wanted it just as badly as she did.

  He proved her point by wasting no more time in pushing into her with one smooth stroke.

  "Oh," she said again, this time tremulous and edged with pleasure. "Yes. God. Luther."

  He chuckled and held onto her hips, giving her what she wanted. He was so good at that, and he always managed to make her feel like she never had before.

  The pleasure was building in her as they moved together, and she knew it would only be a matter of time before she was spilling for him.

  Luther seemed to know it, too, and he encouraged her with his words, with his cock moving inside of her. It didn't take her long, and he followed soon after, a cry of her name on his lips.

  Later, they laid in her bed together, both on their backs, looking at the ceiling.

  "Luther?" Alanna murmured.

  "Hm?"

  "Things are going to be okay, right?" She had successfully distracted them both with sex and then dinner, but in the quiet of the night, it was easy to let those thoughts creep back in.

  "They will," he said. "We will figure out what is happening."

  She nodded and curled up closer to him, wishing she could figure out what was happening with her. Being here it was...it didn't feel right. Being with Luther felt right, and she couldn't help but wonder what was going to happen when he had to leave. She would be here alone, and would she be able to handle that?

  Her old life didn't seem to fit anymore, like she had become a different person while she'd been on Lin-Vayel, and Alanna was beginning to think that she liked that person better.

  Chapter Ten: Betrayal and Battle

  When Luther woke in the morning, there was a heavy feeling of dread in his chest. It was strange, considering the sun was shining and he had Alanna tucked against him, breathing softly, the sun lighting up her curls where they fell against the pillow and his shoulder.

  If anything, he'd thought he'd be more content than he had been previously, but that was not so.

  Something was about to happen. He couldn't say how he knew that, but he just felt it in his bones, in his heart, that something was going to happen and it wasn't going to be good.

  "Mmph," Alanna mumbled into his arm where she was curled against him with her face pressed to his skin. "Why are you awake?"

  That, at least, brought a smile to his face. "Why are you?" he asked, deflecting her question so he wouldn't have to explain the worried feeling. He could tell that this whole thing was taking a toll on Alanna. She seemed quiet and a little withdrawn sometimes, usually when she didn't think he was going to notice, and he wanted to ask her what she was so concerned about, but he didn't think he could do that without revealing how lost he was himself.

  "Dunno," she replied, snuggling closer to him with a yawn. "I think I had a dream, but I can't remember it."

  "A bad one?"

  She hummed thoughtfully. "I don't remember."

  She didn't seem distressed, so he was going to take that as a good sign. Instead of dwelling on whatever was making him feel so unsettled, he wrapped an arm around her and pulled her closer, dropping a kiss to the top of her head.

  "What do you want to do today?" he asked.

  Alanna sighed softly. "I'm not sure. I really should probably get some work done. I have bills to pay and all, and I haven't made anything to sell since I've been back."

  Her words were devoid of the excitement that Luther had come to associate with her talking about her work, and he frowned. "Is everything alright?"

  "Yeah," she said. "Yeah, it's fine. It's just that lately it's been...I don't know. Harder to get excited about—”

  She was cut off by the sound of his communicator buzzing on the nightstand. Luther glanced at it and then down at Alanna. "I should answer that."

  "Probably."

  "I'll make it quick."

  Alanna slipped off to the bathroom to wash her face and handle her morning ablutions, and Luther sighed. He did hope this would actually end up being quick, but he wasn't going to hold his breath. The feeling in his chest never lied.

  When he answered the call, the orange man was there on his screen, smiling thinly and looking entirely too pleased with himself.

  "Hello, Luther," he said, voice as annoyingly smug as it had been the first time Luther had heard him talk.

  "You," Luther replied. "How did you get this frequency?"

  The man waved a hand. "I have my sources. Did you know that my employer rewarded me handsomely for finding someone who could help us? He was very proud of what I accomplished."

  "Congratulations," Luther said. "Is there something I can do for you?"

  "There is, in fact. One of our agents, I believe you know him, actually, is in your area now, and we would love to set up a meeting."

  "Why should I meet with him?"

  "Well, I assumed you wanted to know who had betrayed you. And he's dying to gloat a little, you see. He's terribly pleased with himself, and since he's done good work so far, we're inclined to indulge him."

  He was being toyed with. That much was obvious. There was a gleam of amusement in the orange man's eyes, and it was clear that he was delighted that Luther didn't know who had betrayed them. It was also clear that he knew that Luther wasn't going to refuse this meeting. He wanted to, oh yes, he wanted to tell this orange monstrosity to take his meeting and shove it somewhere uncomfortable, but he didn't.

  He knew that this was important, and if Queen Varen found out that he had turned down a chance to get to the bottom of this, she would use his head for decoration in the palace when he got back.

  Not literally, but he knew that whatever she did do to him would be terrible.

  So he sighed and lifted his chin, looking as defiant as he could manage. "I will agree to this meeting," he said.

  Infuriatingly, the orange man just smiled. "I thought you might. I will send you the location coordinates and you two can have a lovely chat."

  The man waved his fingers, and then the screen went blank.

  "Well?" Alanna asked, coming back into the room from the bathroom. "What did the queen have to say?"

  "What makes you think it was her?"

  "She's the only one who ever calls you. Except for Clio, I guess. Was it Clio?"

  Luther shook his head. "No. And it wasn't Her Majesty, either."

  Alanna frowned at him. "Then who?"

  He filled her in while he got out of bed and hunted for his clothes. What did someone wear to a meeting with a traitor? A weapon, most likely, but Luther didn't want to walk into this already geared up for a fight.

  "He's a bold little creep, isn't he?" Alanna said once she had the full scope of what was going on.

  "Yes," Luther agreed. "But I cannot deny him. Queen Varen will want to know who has betrayed us, and I can't deny I'm curious, as well."

  Alanna started pulling her clothes on, too. "Can't blame you for that. So what's the plan? We just show up and start asking questions? Are we trying to capture this person and take him back to the queen or what?"

  Luther froze in pulling on his belt, looking at her. "'We'?"

  "Well, yeah. I was going to go with you."

  "Alanna, no," he said. "You can't come with me."

  "And why not?"

  "Because it wil
l be dangerous. I don't know who this traitor is, but I just have a feeling that this isn't going to end well."

  "Oh, well, if you have a feeling," she snapped, annoyance flashing in her dark eyes. "Luther, I know things are different where you're from, and I know you can take care of yourself just fine, but even you have to know how dangerous it is to go do this alone. What if it's a trap?"

  "I've already considered that. I can handle it."

  “This is ridiculous,” Alanna said. “You can’t just—”

  “Alanna, you cannot come with me,” Luther said, voice sharp and short. “Stay here.”

  She glared up at him for a moment and then huffed, flopping onto the bed. “Fine,” she grumbled. “But if you mess around and get yourself killed, I’m going to go back to Lin-Vayel, get Clio to help me invent something to bring you back, and then kill you myself.”

  Luther’s lips twitched in a smile. “Consider me warned,” he said. He leaned in to kiss her, relieved somewhat when Alanna kissed him back. “I will be back soon.”

  They hadn’t set up a specific time for the meeting, but Luther knew he wouldn’t have to wait long. There had been too much gloating over that call, and he knew that they would want to do this as soon as possible.

  He found his way to the meeting spot (an out of the way thicket of woodland, up on a hill and away from most of the noise of the city), and only waited for about two hours before the telltale sounds of shuttle thrusters alerted him to the arrival of the person he was there to meet. He drew himself up tall and kept his expression shuttered, waiting for it to land.

  When it did, another few minutes went by before the doors hissed and then lowered down into a staircase, letting the traitor walk out.

  Luther was actually underwhelmed when Jalal came stepping out of the craft. On the short list of people who he'd assumed could turn traitor, Jalal had been near the top of it.

  It was clear that he was waiting for some kind of reaction, so Luther kept his face impassive. For a traitor, he didn't even know how to disguise his emotions, and Luther was filled with a sense of peace. It would have been much worse if someone competent had been behind all of this, but it was Jalal. Luther could kill Jalal without having to think too much about it or even really break a sweat.