by Julia Sexton
“For a long time, I thought I would never find a queen and that someone else in the Blacks would become the Ruler. When I saw you there in the hall, your hair pulled back in a bun and your shape covered by the white lab coat, I knew. I don’t know how I knew. When you were in Cherryvale and those men…I couldn’t let anything come between us…”
“Shhh,” Ac’ver whispered. “We’re together now.” She reached to draw a circle around his bandaged wound. “Does it hurt?”
“Of course, but just an ache.” He paused as his hand traveled from the space between her breasts to cup her round softness. “To put an end to Ri’son and his disruptive ways, to have you here with me, safe. It was worth it. Whenever I look at the scar I’ll think of how I won peace for Rama.”
“I am your queen,” Ac’ver said as she turned to him with a smile.
<<<<>>>>
Chained To The Alien
Julia Sexton
Copyright 2015 by Julia Sexton
All rights reserved.
No part of this publication may be reproduced
in any way whatsoever, without written permission
from the author, except in case of brief
quotations embodied in critical reviews
and articles.
This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to any
person, living or dead, is purely coincidental.
First edition, 2015
Table Of Contents
Chapter 1: Newbie Sandy
Chapter 2: Detained
Chapter 3: Gilded Cage
Chapter 4: Alien Abduction
Chapter 5: Tables Turn
Chapter 6: Bound Together
Chapter 7: Judgment Court
Chapter 8: Home Free
Chapter 9: Food From Heaven
Chapter 10: Room with a View
Chapter 1: Newbie Sandy
Sandy Wilson, tossed back the long cascades of jet black hair, as she pushed the button for the 20th floor of the Harrington Building. She was late for work, and she had only been working as Executive Administrator to Josh Harrington for three weeks.
In her short time here, she’d learned that working with him was more than difficult. Every wish was a command, not to be questioned. Mistakes, even the smallest weren’t tolerated. He’d fired three previous Administrators in the past six months. She was five minutes late. No small thing in his eyes.
Once on the top floor, she hurried in and discovered his office was empty. She put away her things and adjusted her suit over the curves of her breasts and hips. She started straightening the reception area where important clients waited, just briefly, to meet with young billionaire Josh Harrington.
She began with the pile of magazines on the coffee table. There on the glossy cover of Coast Business beamed the image of her new boss, Josh Harrington, all good looks and self-satisfaction. Southern California’s most eligible, the headline blared. Red hair with a hint of curls, strong jawline, and his shoulders so broad they didn’t fit on the cover. She imagined him tossing a long caber at the Scottish Games. She smiled thinking of a peek under his kilt as he strained against the heavy, long pole.
Get real, Sandy. He’s a self-important, arrogant…, she thought as she placed the journal on top of the others and straightened the edges. And where was the great Josh Harrington? Maybe he’d spent the night with a Beach Bunny.
She called them the tan-tummy blondies. Or, maybe he preferred dark and sultry. He’d definitely spent a long time yesterday afternoon behind closed doors with the exotic Persian Personal Banker. What did she care? She’d just do her job. She’d been a few minutes late and he still wasn’t here. He was usually in by 7 A.M. every morning. He was late.
“Hey, Miss Newbie,” a male voice interrupted her thoughts.
Sam Cole! Now there was a perfect example of Southern California arrogance. He gave her the male once over. Her breasts poked at her suit jacket and her long, tan legs stretched down to her slim ankles below her skirt. Let him look and suffer.
“Sam, good morning.” She smiled and tried not to let her irritation show. Her long, black eyelashes closed over her enormous blue eyes in an attempt to hide her dislike. Some women might think he was good looking. Give him a shag of that dark brown hair, take his shirt off and he could have been a model for a Romance cover. But he just didn’t do anything for her. Nothing happened inside, where it counted. “What are you doing here? Isn’t sales on the 19th floor?”
Harrington, Ltd. occupied the entire 20 floors of The Harrington Building. Harrington everything, that was Josh Harrington. But, hey, she worked here and she liked the perks. The floor to ceiling windows looked out on the harbor of San Diego Bay.
And, Josh Harrington was easy on the eyes. Sailboats came and went on the sparkling water. It was a catch for a job after a year of play time in Barcelona. Whew! No more talented but starving boyish musicians for her. What a mistake. She wanted a solid, responsible man.
“Oh, Miss Sandy Newbie,” Sam condescended. “No one told you about the third Friday?”
“No. What are you talking about? Big deal. I know about the end-of-the-month reports. I’m spending today getting one ready. What’s the big deal with the third Friday?” OK, she did feel new but she wouldn’t give Sam even a hint of her ignorance.
“Josh won’t be in today. Didn’t he tell you?” More condescension. She downright despised this jerk. And now she was angry at Josh Harrington for forgetting to tell her. She was his Executive Administrator. How could he forget? Josh, he was the one who had put her in this embarrassing clash with Mr. Hot Stuff, Sam Cole. She had to get a grip on her temper and get rid of Sam.
“Every third Friday, every month, Josh is out of the office,” Sam smirked at getting one over on her.
“OK,” she gave him a fake beamy smile showing her perfectly even white teeth behind her lush lips. “So why are you here?” Give him just a little word jab.
“I go through the mail, check the phone messages, make sure nothing important gets overlooked when he’s out.”
Oh, God, every third Friday she’d have to put up with God’s gift to women as he invaded her territory. She would definitely work on taking over that task. “I see. Well, there’s the office.”
Sandy pointed to the carved teak doors. Behind those doors, the expansive corner office looked out through towering floor to ceiling windows at the San Diego skyline on one side, and more of the Bay on the other.
He was in the office less than 20 minutes, gave her another look, up and down, as he passed her desk and went to the elevators with a condescending, “Cheerio.”
***
Sandy thought Friday evening would never come. Then she got busy doing research, getting the reports ready and was lost in work. When she looked up, evening was on the Bay. Lights twinkled in the harbor. It was time to go. She saved her report and shut down the computer. And glanced at her outbox. A file folder. Josh Harrington had left the file for his Monday meeting and he was leaving for Denver on Sunday. He’d walked out yesterday with that sultry Personal Banker and left the file.
Drat and damn! She’d have to run it up to his place in La Jolla after dinner. That’s what an Executive Administrator did. Secretaries left. An Executive Administrator got the job done no matter what. So much for her evening clubbing with Jenna and Lacey. Girl’s night was canceled. OK, home to Ocean Beach, a quick bite, and then up the highway to La Jolla.
At her little apartment in OB, she decided to take a quick shower and get casual. He’d just have to deal. She pulled on her red lace underwear. Even when she wore jeans she wore sexy underwear. She loved the soft cling against her skin. She felt sexy underneath. It was her secret from the world. Always just a little bit on.
She grabbed a pair of jeans that showed off her long legs and tossed on a slinky red T-shirt made out of some silky fabric, not cotton. She’d be casual but not sloppy. She slipped on her little sandals with the jeweled straps, fluffed her hair, grabbed the file fol
der, stuffed it in a portfolio, and was out the door.
The evening was warm. She rolled down the windows of her little Toyota and let the ocean breeze flow over her as she drove up the coast. Lights sparkled in the beach towns and the ocean waves, whispered. What a great night. She could be out having fun, not running errands for a forgetful, spoiled, billionaire.
After driving up amongst the hills and then down again toward the ocean, her mobile phone told her she had arrived. Mansion didn’t begin to describe Josh Harrington’s home. It was huge. Open air balconies enclosed by archways protruded from every floor at different angles. Tall palms swayed over lush gardens. Even though it was night, she could tell the ocean view was fantastic.
The gates to the property were open so she drove in and parked in the stone courtyard. She smoothed her hair from the breezy drive and grabbed the portfolio with the file. The imposing double oak entrance doors hung open in invitation. Was he waiting for someone? The only sound she heard was the ocean and a faint whispering like a large electrical motor somewhere. She knocked. Nothing.
She pushed open the doors and saw a large entry hall paved with intricately designed tiles. The hall opened onto a great room with tall windows looking over the ocean. She heard nothing. Where was he? The huge mansion seemed empty.
“Mr. Harrington? Josh?” The sound of her voice was swallowed by rich carpets the led away down corridors and other rooms. Where was he? Upstairs in bed with a sporty beach bunny? But where? She couldn’t wander around the entire mansion. She decided she would leave the file with a note on the table in the great room.
Her sandaled feet sank into the carpet as she walked into the immense room. The fibers were soft against her toes. She briefly imagined rolling in the soft luxury with Josh Harrington. For an instant, she imagined his strong hands caressing her shoulders. Stop it, Sandy! Business. She sat in a large leather armchair and dug in her bag for a pen to write a note on the file.
The sound. The sound that she thought was an electric motor. It sounded like voices. Well, almost voices. She heard indistinct hisses and growls. Like animals holding a conversation. But animals don’t talk, and they definitely don’t have conversations. This is weird, she thought.
Sandy walked down a corridor toward the sound. The closer she came, the more otherworldly the sounds grew. She walked passed door after closed door. The hissing conversation came from the end of the hallway.
Sandy felt her heart start to quicken. What was she doing? This was Josh Harrington’s mansion. She was an intruder.
She walked through the open door at the end of the hall. Josh Harrington sat at the head of a large, dark table. His muscular shoulders filled the back of the high-backed chair. His powerful hands rested on the table. His chiseled face was deep in concentration as he spoke. But he was not speaking words. He was surrounded by beings, creatures. They vaguely resembled human form, but each was distorted by pale, pale skin and long hairless heads. Sandy’s heart beat so hard she was sure he would hear. She was sure all the other creatures, they were creatures, sitting around the table would hear her fear, too.
What was this? Who was Josh Harrington? No! What was Josh Harrington?
“Miss Wilson! Sandy!” he exclaimed as he looked up.
Sandy stammered, “Wha…Wha..What? Who?”
Josh Harrington focused a mesmerizing look at Sandy’s startled face. As he stared, the table and the other participants, the creatures, disappeared. Sandy’s heart pounded. She felt little short gasps escape from her lips.
Josh Harrington strode on his long, strong legs and grabbed Sandy’s waist. She felt strength flowing from his arms as they encircled her body.
“You’ve made the biggest mistake of your life!” he murmured in her ear. His arms swooped Sandy off her feet and up into his arms.
But Sandy felt nothing. Her mind was black and blank.
Chapter 2: Detained
Butterflies. Soft. Smooth. Not butterflies. Sheets. Sheets! Sandy opened her eyes.
“No. No, no, no!”
Josh Harrington sat next to her bed in a soft flower print upholstered chair, head down staring at the floor. Bed! What was happening? Why was she in bed?
“What?” Sandy murmured, still half-awake.
“Ah, you. You made the mistake of your life,” Josh muttered angrily as he jerked up his head.
“What was that? Did I see what I thought I saw? Why am I in bed? How did I get in bed?” Sandy was awake now. Fully awake. The questions tumbled out. She looked at the soft sheet covering her body, her naked body.
“How dare you,” she sputtered.
“Sandy, Sandy. I don’t know what to do with you,” Josh growled. He put his hand out. She felt a frisson of excitement, inside.
“Don’t touch me!”
She put out her hand to stop him and the soft sheet slipped down to reveal the top of her breast. He looked, then looked seriously at her face, the full lips about to tremble, the blue eyes wide in anger, the dark hair cascading around her cheeks.
“It’s much worse than you think. This is not about you’re being naked in bed. This is about something bigger than that. You don’t understand.”
“You bet, I don’t understand. Start with the naked in bed part.” Sandy pulled up the sheet and rearranged the luxurious pillows behind her. She was ready to revolt at this imperious man. How dare he. How dare he!
“That’s easy. Giulia got you undressed.”
“Giulia? Who is she?”
“Giulia runs the house and is the best cook outside of Italy. She’ll take care of you while you’re here.”
“I’ll be here as long as it takes for you to leave the room, for me to get my clothes on and walk out the door. You won’t be bothered by me again, Mr. Josh Harrington. Leave, please, so I can get dressed.”
“Sandy, stop. What did you see last night?”
“You were…,” she searched for words as vague images—pale blue skin, unintelligible sounds—flashed through her mind. She was uncertain. “There were things. Things! Creatures, I don’t know. And sounds. Not human sounds. I think. Then everything…disappeared.”
“That’s why I can’t let you go.”
“Oh, yes, you will.”
“No, you must stay here. I can’t have you reveal my secret. Not to anyone. Not to the world.”
“What secret? Those things were real? You talk to them?” This gorgeous man was telling her he talked to…things. Otherworldly things. She looked at his chiseled face, his shoulders, caught a whiff of his manly scent, not cologne, just him. It didn’t compute.
Josh put out his hand again and touched her hand. There, she felt it again, that little twinge like a spark in her body.
“I am one of those…things.”
She drew her hand back and stared at him. Square jaw, piercing eyes, curling red hair, strong fingers, shapely arms. He looked so…human.
“But, you can’t…You look…You look like one of us. Oh my God, what am I saying? I don’t believe this.”
“I’ve been genetically altered. I am human and yet a citizen of Zinka. I am the son of the ruler. My mission, since conception when I was genetically altered, was to come to earth. But, I am not a warrior like you people on earth tell in your science fiction. I am a scientist.”
“Zinka! I’ve never heard of Zinka. What is it?” She was curious and at the same time bewildered. Her thoughts swirled. Was she going to faint again? She’d never fainted in her life. Now this.
“Yes. You would not have heard of it. We’re a citizen planet, in a galaxy so far away it is barely discernible by your telescopes, even the most sophisticated.”
“I’m trying to understand. A scientist prince? Why are you here? What are you doing?” Her heart raced as he touched her hand again. Damn, he was virility embodied. Was that part of his genetic makeup?
Josh took his hand away and studied her again.
“We discovered that there was life here on earth. Life very much like ours. My mission is to s
tudy how humans…well…how the are. How they make decisions. The extent of their…your…rationality. For instance, we don’t understand why you have wars when you could live peaceably, as we do on our entire planet.”
“A scientist.” Sandy was overwhelmed. Life from another planet. And, that life was Josh Harrington.
Josh sat back in the flowered tapestry chair. His shoulders topped the back of the distinctly feminine seat. His strong thighs filled the seat and his legs seemed too long to fit. His knees stuck up.
“Why do you think Harrington projects have been so successful? Our scientific knowledge is far beyond what is here on earth, what you humans call advancement. It’s the perfect cover for our exploration. That’s why you have to stay here. We can’t lose everything now. We’ve come so far. Once a month I meet with other leaders from Zinka to report on our findings. That’s what you saw last night.”
“I’m a prisoner?” Sandy, was lost. Things like this only happened in movies. Movies about barbarians. Women just weren’t held in captivity in the modern world.
Josh stood up and walked toward a window.
“Everything in this wing is yours. It will be your own home. There are rooms. Two porticoed terraces and a small swimming pool. It’s much better than that tiny apartment you’re in now.”
“But it’s my apartment. My tiny apartment. I don’t want your otherworldly world. I want my life back.”
Josh stared out the window. His entire body was outlined by the sunny, blue sky. His tall frame, the shoulders tapering to his trim waist. His long legs silhouetted against the blue. There it was again, that spark. Sandy touched her wrist. Her pulse was racing. Was it him? Was it being held captive? She took in a long, deep breath.
“That is not an option,” Josh commanded. He turned and strode toward the bed.