Alastor: Sci-Fi Alien Romance (A Hexonian Alien Romance Book 3)

by Charmaine Ross

  The breath rushed out of her and she wrapped her arms around the man she loved more than life itself. Lips found hers, a tongue traced the seam of her mouth and she opened for him. Their tongues intertwined, teeth clashed, lips sliding and caressing. She threaded her fingers through his hair, climbing up his body. This wasn’t enough. This would never be enough.

  “Well, well, well. Now this, I would never have guessed.”

  Chapter Thirty-One

  The amused expression beaming down at them was not what she was expecting. Gasping, she looked around. Unmoving Reptile bodies scattered the pathway. She cringed, folding herself more into Alastor’s comforting embrace.

  The screaming was subsiding, replaced with sobbing. The chaos of running was replaced with the fast pace of the Starlight’s soldiers. Uniformed men offered comfort to terrorised women. The Villagers wandered about, helping others.

  “Commander Striker? What? How?” Her exhausted mind refused to find reason.

  “We received a distress signal and came as fast as we could. From the looks of it, we made it just in time.” The commander’s hawk-like gaze scanned over them both.

  Marie looked about, barely comprehending what she saw. “It’s over?”

  Alastor leaned his forehead against hers, their breathing mingling. “Yes. It’s really over.”

  She’d reached the end of her endurance. If anything else happened now, she didn’t have the capacity to stop it. She planted her forehead against Alastor’s chest, rolling her head until Commander Striker was in her line of sight.

  “Are you sure you’re not a dream?”

  His lips twisted into a quick grin. He was always quick to smile. That was something she liked about him.

  “I assure you, this is all real. I’m glad to see that your reconnaissance mission has revealed everything we needed to discover, but I think you went a little overboard. I’m also glad to see that you found the human females,” Commander Striker said.

  “They’re safe?” She peered over Alastor’s shoulder to see people helping more women from their horrible cells. She shuddered when bodies of the women that didn’t make it were laid gently to the side.

  Striker moved in front of the heart-wrenching sight. “There are many more we were able to save, as well as the rest of the planet. I don’t know what you did, or how you did it, but the local inhabitants are mind-freed. You saved an entire planet.”

  “How did you find us?” Alastor asked.

  “After we detected the distress signal, the energy net around the planet was disabled, allowing us to approach planet-side,” Commander Striker said.

  “That was us. We made the call to the Starlight. Our technology is once again useable,” Seriat said.

  “Seriat!” Marie only had the energy to smile. A little face poked beneath Seriat’s. “Deseree!”

  “I am so glad you are safe, my friend,” Seriat said.

  “The locals met us and together we stormed this pyramid. Imagine our surprise at what we found. I just want to know how you were able to do all of this?” Striker asked.

  “The story is quite a long one, however Marie is at the end of her limit,” Alastor said.

  His hands had stilled on her chest. She felt the fatigue radiating from him.

  “I’m not the only one.”

  Commander Striker called, “We need a medic! Two to the Starlight, immediately.”

  There was no way she was being taken out on a stretcher. There was nothing wrong with her apart from some bruises and exhaustion. She peeled herself from Alastor’s very comfortable chest. “There’s plenty of time to rest. Right now, I’ll do anything to remind myself I’m alive, believe me.”

  Alastor’s quiet chuckle ignited hers. Together their chuckles became a full-out laugh. Marie ignored the commander and Seriat’s confused looks and together they slowly helped each other upright. Her body protested all the way and she relied heavily on Alastor’s firm grip. They stood and Alastor wrapped his arm around her.

  “Get yer mitts off me! How many times do I have to say I’m fine! Now leave me alone, mate. There are others here who need your help more than I do. Get going. Get!”

  It was the woman who’d roundhouse-kicked the Reptile off the pathway. She looked as though she could take care of herself, with her heavy, all-purpose boots, utilitarian bush pants and sleeveless tee that showed off sculpted, toned arms. If the clothing didn’t scream hardarse, then her shaved hairstyle surely did.

  A uniformed young Hexonian approached her, palms outstretched in a universal placating manner. “I’m here to help, ma’am. You’ve been through a trauma.”

  “I’ll be the judge of that. Keep away from me,” the woman said.

  Her aura radiated a mix of fear and confusion, along with a healthy dose of no-shit. If the man didn’t back off, this woman was likely to lash out.

  “Stop. Let her be,” Marie said.

  The woman glanced at her. “Too right. Listen to that chick.”

  The young man turned to the commander, a helpless look on his face.

  “It’s okay, Conzon. Let her be for the moment. It’s a lot to take in,” Striker said.

  “May I ask, who are you?” Alastor asked, clearly a question to diffuse the rising tension.

  “You can call me Wonder Woman for all I’m gonna tell ya. Who the hell are you?” She sized Striker up with a tilt of her chin. Marie had to admire the front she put on, because she knew on the inside the woman was trembling so hard she was breaking apart.

  “I’m Commander Striker, representing the Hexonian species of the Inter-planetary Council United against the Reptile invasion. We are here to help you,” Striker said.

  “And clearly deluded. Look, it’s been a blast, but I have to go and get off whatever someone obviously spiked me rum and coke with. See ya later.” The woman backed away from the soldiers surrounding her, clearly on edge and flighty.

  “Stand back!” Alastor roared. “Just give her some space.”

  A crack of thunder resonated throughout the amphitheatre. Clouds billowed behind the woman, appearing from nowhere and completely surrounding her in an instant.

  “What the..?”

  Two Reptiles appeared from within the clouds. They looked slightly different than the uniformed Reptiles that lay dead at their feet. Tougher. Intelligent. Ropes of ammunition slung around their chests and around their waists. One had a metallic contraption around its head and over one eye that flashed red. The other wore metal plating over its shoulders.

  Their claws dug into the woman’s shoulders. She didn’t have time to utter a sound before the clouds, the Reptiles, and the woman all disappeared. She was gone. Totally gone.

  Several more clouds opened up around the chamber, snatching women at random. It was all over in a matter of seconds. Marie watched dumbstruck as Alastor and the guards rushed over to where the woman once stood.

  “Marie. Can you sense her?” Alastor asked.

  Marie quickly tried to tune in, but there was absolutely nothing. “Black Feather?” She whispered into her mind.

  “You called so soon?’ Black Feather’s reassuring presence was instantaneous. Not wanting to waste time, Marie played out what had just happened in her mind. “Can you trace her?”

  Black Feather blinked out. A moment later he was back. “It doesn’t look good.”

  Dread filled Marie’s heart. “What is it?” she whispered into her mind.

  “They’ve been taken into a parallel universe. Marie, these people, any of you, you won’t be able to go there,” Black Feather said.

  “Then how did those Reptiles get there?” Marie asked.

  “I’ll have to find out. For now, the doorway is closed. No one can come out, but no one can get in, either.”

  “What about those poor women?” Marie asked.

  “We’ll find a way to help them, Marie,” Black Feather said. “Put your faith in us and we will work out a way.”

  “I always put my faith in you,” Marie said sof
tly.

  “And I, you. Go now and rest. It looks like there will be more work to be done.” Black Feather retreated from her mind until there was nothing but silence. Marie opened her eyes to see everyone’s attention trained on her. Her exhaustion escalated.

  They’d done all they could here. Had saved the women and freed an entire planet, and still more had been taken.

  With a broken voice, she repeated what Black Feather had told her. Her heart broke and her body felt as though it was going to quickly follow. Strong arms supported her shoulders and swept her off her feet. She turned into Alastor’s chest, seeking his warmth and comfort.

  He kissed the crown of her head, bringing tears to her eyes. “You have done everything you can, Marie. We will return to the Starlight. And you will recover.”

  She clutched his shirt, scrunching it in her hand. “And we will have each other.”

  “Yes, Marie. We will have each other. For the rest of our lives,” Alastor said.

  “Then I am finally home,” Marie whispered.

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  “I’m not made of glass.”

  Alastor’s responding deep chuckle sent tingles right through her body and poured liquid heat to her core. He carefully laid her on his bed as though she was the most precious thing in the universe. The way he did it, she might actually believe that she was.

  She clutched his biceps, tugging him down onto her. He didn’t resist. The pressure of his weight on her body sent another thrill through her. Her body pulsed with an urgent need.

  There would be no more waiting. There was no more mission. They were back onboard the Starlight. Safe. They’d been checked out by the medical staff and Marie had happily fled with Alastor as soon as the medic deemed her healthy, if not a little dehydrated.

  She would look after that little problem... right after she looked after another need that had gone untapped for far too long.

  He settled over her, propping himself on his elbows so she didn’t take his full weight, but enough that she felt the evidence of his own need pressing against her abdomen.

  She welcomed it, tilting her hips to send a delicious flurry of sensation rippling through her. Alastor groaned, dropping his forehead to rest against hers. “Female. Marie. What you do to me.”

  “It’s what I want you to do to me that I’m interested in,” she said.

  “The medic said you must rest.”

  “He also said you must rest. And we will... After.”

  Alastor drew back slightly, a little furrow between his brows. He was utterly gorgeous. Handsome. Rugged. Masculine. And she was so deeply in love with him, she almost couldn’t think straight. “After what?”

  She placed her palms either side of his head and drew him close. “This.”

  She claimed his lips as she intended to claim his body. Her lips stroked his before her tongue delved into his hot, wet mouth. His flavour exploded on her tongue, anticipation racing as hard as her heart. She never thought a kiss could be like this. So fulfilling on one hand, but also leaving her unfulfilled on the other. A prelude to more pleasure, more intimacy. Just more.

  She angled her head to deepen their kiss and was rewarded when Alastor’s tongue swept against hers in a low, slow slide. He’d just taken over the kiss and she was glad to let him. She’d give him anything he wanted.

  He pulled back fractionally. “Are you sure you can do this, Marie?’ His voice was gravelly with need.

  Her fingers entwined in his hair at the back of his head. “I’m going to combust if we don’t.”

  His fingers swept gently into her hair and he cradled her head with his large hands. She’d never felt safer. “Gods, Marie. I never thought I’d get to do this. I thought…” His breath escaped in a rush.

  She was used to seeing past the physical life. Had spent most of her own life living in both worlds, but she had to remember that this was new for Alastor. Hell, it had been scary for her too, but at least she understood. It must have been strange to see past the veil when you had no idea one existed in the first place.

  “It’s over now, Alastor. That can’t happen again. I don’t know how an entity like that could escape its own dimension. Even Black Feather doesn’t know.”

  His thumb traced the line of her cheek. “It’s not only that…” He looked pained for a moment, before he said, “You saw Keira. You know what she was to me. Marie… I want you to know you are just as important. I love you as much. More… This is coming out all wrong, but you have to know… you’re not a replacement for Keira. I loved Keira, but I’m in love with you.”

  There were no doubts. They were two halves of the same soul and he had to know how she felt about him. “You had a life before you met me. I’m not going to begrudge you that! It’s made you into the man—male—you are today. It’s time to make our own life. Together. You’ve had a miracle happen. You’ve had a proper chance to say goodbye. That’s something people don’t get, and you know that you’ll see her again and that she is, in fact, alive and well. She gave you her blessing.”

  “She did. I’m glad she did. Marie… I almost went with her…”

  Marie grasped his face so that he had to look at her. “You didn’t go. You stayed. For me.” Her voice cracked. It must have been so hard stepping away from the call of finally going home. The love. The rightness was almost impossible to ignore. Yet he’d done that. “You felt that, and yet you still came back. I’m so, so grateful.”

  A half smile lifted his full lips. “I can’t step away from a life with you by my side.”

  A breath eased out of her. “I’m glad you chose me, and I choose you back.”

  His expression turned playful, then slowly grew into more. “I’m going to show you how grateful I am you said that.”

  He caught her in a deep kiss. There were no more words, and in this, actions spoke louder. He tilted his hips, lightly thrusting in sync with his tongue. Marie locked him in the cradle of her thighs and tilted her hips for a delicious drag on that most delicate part of her body. Even through layers of clothing, the friction was amazing. She moaned into his kiss. His arms tightened around her.

  He pulled back, his breathing ragged and made his way down her body, kissing her jaw, her neck and trailing the tip of his tongue down the centre of her collarbone. “This has to go.”

  Deftly, he ripped open her jacket and the opening of her shirt. Cool air caressed bare skin as he parted her clothing like he would a precious gift. Her heart pounded as his gaze sliced over her naked torso. “Gods, Marie. You are beautiful.”

  She had no time to respond before he bent down. His mouth latched onto a turgid nipple and she gasped out loud. His tongue lapped at the sensitive peak as he sucked her breast into his mouth. She arched off the bed, throwing her head back as pure sensation zipped through her body to swirl in her core. Her body tingled. Delicious pressure built.

  Alastor let go of her breast, swapping for the other. As he suckled, his free hand traced down her waist. Goosebumps broke out over her flesh as his fingertips slid so softly over her bare skin. A large, firm thigh was leveraged between her legs. His touch trailed over the waistband of her trousers, his fingers dipping into the dip of her cleft. She bucked as sensation zapped up her spine.

  He ran his fingers up and down, a slow, sensual rhythm. She found herself panting, the tension ratcheting upwards. “Alastor!”

  His mouth left her breast as he unlatched the clasp of her pants. His fingers dipped lower, sliding through her heated slickness. He captured her mouth as his finger entered her. One finger was soon replaced by two. His tongue in her mouth mimicked his fingers down below. Her inner muscles fluttered, contracting. His thumb found the bundle of nerves above her slit, circled, and pressed.

  The tension in her body stretched tight and snapped. She exploded as a golden wash of sensation overpowered her. She barely managed to draw a breath before he slid her pants off her legs and his mouth found her most sensitive of places. He licked the length of her slit befo
re latching on to her clit. His long finger entered her again as he suckled.

  Her body drew tight again, a second orgasm rolling on top of the first. Her lungs seized. She was helpless but to ride the tide of pure sensation. He rode out her orgasm, prolonging it with his clever mouth, tongue, and fingers.

  She drew back to her senses, every cell in her body sensitive and twitching. He looked up at her from between her parted thighs, the tip of his tongue still laving her clit.

  “Alastor. Please.” She nearly sobbed with need. She needed more. She needed him. All of him.

  The mattress dipped as he slowly made his way up the length of her body. She tugged at his clothing. She needed to see him naked, feel his skin against hers. Feel him inside her. “Take this off. Now.” She hardly recognised her voice it was so low and husky.

  Kneeling above her, he reached behind his neck and drew his top over his head, throwing it to the side before he quickly divested himself of his pants. His erection bobbed against his abdomen. Hard. Thick. Long. Marie’s mouth dried as another delicious thrill thrummed through her. She went to reach for him, but he knelt over her, arms either side of her shoulders, knees between her thighs. “You can touch, but later. Now, all I want to do is sink into you and join with you physically, as well as on our soul level.”

  “I want that too.” There would be many, many more opportunities to learn his body. But for now, they’d waited long enough.

  She parted her thighs wide to accommodate his hips as he settled in the crux of her body. His erection nudged her entrance. She tilted her hips, angling herself so that he could slide in.

  Inch by slow inch, he slid inside. Ecstasy washed over his face. He worked in and out of her slickness, until the nerves at the top of her womb fluttered when the tip reached as far as it could go.

  The feeling of him inside her was indescribable. He stilled, letting them both adjust. Both of their breathing ran ragged. Marie tucked her legs around him, opening herself as far as she could. Her fingers flexed on his arms.