The Alien Pirates' Treasure (Star Pirates Book 1)

by Charity Wells

  Ah, the benefits of being captain.

  A short while later, we’re in the belly of the ship where the cargo is stored. Kuma laughs when I order him to move the crates from our quarters down to storage, but Messa jokingly asks for a raise, then rolls her eyes at me after I tell her she isn’t getting one. I pay my team more than enough already. Va’naar goes out to help bring in the last of the crates that need loading.

  “Uh, I hope you have more storage than this,” my mate says, then giggles. Her beautiful green eyes stare wide in wonder at all our spoils.

  Crates and boxes stand open everywhere, with contents spilling onto the floor and walkways. One side of the hold is crammed with medical equipment and medication taken from the Viktoid ship. The other side is filled with luxury items we liberated from a star cruiser a half cycle before we ran across the Viktoids. The star liners are easy pickings, tourist ships filled with snobby rich aliens who can’t comprehend that we are taking their shiny, expensive toys from them.

  “We have had a good run,” I say proudly, eyeing the crowded space. “But there is a second storage bay in the aft deck.”

  “Then why is everything spilled everywhere?” she asks, deflating some of my satisfaction.

  “We do tend to load in a hurry, then we try to inventory everything before we get home and unload,” I answer in a semi-flat tone.

  She giggles at my expression. “You need to organize a little better,” she chides, wagging a finger in front of him. “Maybe I can help with that after the babies are born. Now, let’s see what kind of goodies there are.”

  Strolling through the crowded aisles, she runs her hands over silky fabrics and sifts through boxes of jewelry. She stops here and there to look at decorations and fixtures made of precious metals and expensive stones until she disappears around a corner. I hear her rummaging through something, but I can’t see exactly what. When Polly reappears moments later, she has a huge grin on her face and a small decorative box in her hands. It’s covered in gold inlay and tiny, brightly colored stones.

  “What have you found that makes you smile so beautifully, my heart?” I ask, stepping forward to help her over a pile of spilled bedding.

  Holding up the fancy box, she giggles like an excited pup. “It’s a music box!” She presses the latch and pops the lid open. A light melody plays and my ears perk forward as I listen. I’ve never heard the song before.

  “It’s lovely, though I’m afraid I’m not familiar with the tune,” I admit.

  “I’m not either, but it’s sweet and relaxing so I don’t care. It reminds me of a lullaby my mom used to sing when I was little. I want it for the babies.” Polly closes the lid and hugs the box to her chest.

  “This is the first time you’ve mentioned your dam. She must be worried about you. Do you want to try to contact your family again? Or your friends?” I offer. Her happiness fades a bit and I curse at myself for my thoughtless words.

  “My mom died when I was a teenager, she was the only family I had, and I only have a couple close friends. Honestly, I don’t think anybody except Carissa would have even noticed I was missing other than my landlord. I’m not sure I want to know. I did send Carissa a message, but...,” she says with a slow shrug.

  “It doesn’t matter. You have family now. You have us. And you have friends here as well. Messa has been so much happier with another female on the crew. She loves your morning girl chats at breakfast,” I tell her.

  “Yeah?” A smile returns to her sweet face.

  “Yes. Duresh tells me she’s more mellow during the day, she hums while she works, and he says you gave her some rather interesting ideas for their bedroom,” I say, cocking an eyebrow at my mate’s muffled snort. “Duresh was very relaxed that day,” I add, only for her snort to turn into a full on guffaw of laughter. “You will have to share the advice you gave.”

  “Oh, absolutely,” she assures me, laughing still and bumps me with her hip.

  Sneaky fingers run down my lower back, tickling the base of my tail. I yelp, jumping away from my naughty mate. I try to look stern but her amusement is infectious and I snort under my breath.

  Va’naar and our other crew members walk in carrying more boxes. The intrusion interrupts our playful interlude. I scowl at them in irritation. Seeing my expression and Polly’s all too innocent smile, he eyes her suspiciously. Unable to maintain her facade, she covers her pink face with her hand to hide her guilty little smirk.

  “What are you up to?” he asks, grinning.

  “Nothing,” she replies in a squeak.

  “I find that hard to believe considering Ca’lek’s rather obvious discomfort and your sneaky little smile,” Kuma comments with shameless enthusiasm, pointing out my erection.

  The grumbling under my breath sets off Polly’s amusement again.

  “Our mate has promised to show us something new later,” I tell Va’naar, blatantly ignoring Kuma’s teasing.

  “If it’s anything like what she did yesterday, I look forward to it,” he says with an eager wave of his tail.

  Polly groans in embarrassment, hiding her face even further.

  Kuma’s posture perks up in interest. “What did she do yesterday? Hey! What was that for?” he snaps at Messa after she smacks him on the back of his head.

  “Mind your own business you big, golden skinned pervert,” she says, with an amused shake of her head.

  Wave them away, I send them off to their other duties. We can’t all be fraternizing, someone’s gotta be running the ship.

  “The last of the crates are in the loading bay and the doors are closed. We can take off whenever you want and move them in here later,” Va’naar tells me, placing his boxes in a bare spot. He digs through the top of one and pulls out the hanging beads Polly had admired at the market, holding them up for her.

  “You got the sun catcher I wanted!” she squeals, rushing over to him.

  He holds them just out of her reach, raising them ever so slightly higher when she tries to take them. She pouts at his teasing, planting her hands on her hips and frowning at him.

  “A sun catcher?” he repeats, staring at the item in confusion. “Why do you call it a sun catcher? It is simply colored beads on string.”

  “Sun catcher is just an earth term for something shiny that reflects the sunlight, silly,” she replies, poking him in the ribs when she fails to take it out of his quick hands again. “Now, gimme.”

  “For a kiss, my mate,” Va’naar teases again.

  “Oh really? You want a kiss? Isn’t that extortion?”

  “As you have previously pointed out, I am a pirate,” he says with a smug grin, thinking he’s bested her.

  When Polly turns to wink mischievously at me from over her shoulder, I know Va’naar is in for a surprise. She leans in as if to kiss him and he tilts his head to receive it.

  Suddenly, he yelps loudly and his whole body folds forward. Polly plucks her prize from his hand with a triumphant laugh and pecks a quick kiss on his shocked cheek. Spinning round to hurry away, she squeals when his arms wrap around her from behind, then he pulls her against his chest, boldly nipping her shoulder.

  Watching Va’naar gently wrestle Polly onto her hands and knees is erotic. I look around to make sure we are alone. She moans under Va’naar’s hands as he caresses under her dress, readying her for his cock. Her cries distract me, making me forget what I was doing and drawing my attention back to the sight of my mate on the floor. I unfasten my pants and lower the zipper to pull my dick out, roughly stroking my pulsing flesh as I watch.

  Va’naar flips her skirt up over her back, rips her panties open, then leans down to lick her slit. Polly gasps in shocked pleasure. Another long lick leaves her trembling almost violently and he moves back up, covering her body with his own, then thrusts inside her. He growls as he plunges into her with fast, hard jerks. Whatever she did to him has destroyed his self control, but she appears to be loving every second of it.

  Her loud and encouraging moans fil
l the room, spurring my secondary on as he fucks her from behind. My mate’s eyes catch mine and hold my attention. I watch every subtle contortion of her face while she gasps in pleasure with each slap of Va’naar’s hips against her ass. Reaching for me, she pulls me down to my knees. Her fingers work quick to shove my pants down even more, before she sucks me into her mouth. It’s warm and hot, and the swirling of her tongue against my shaft has me growling for release. She bobs on my cock, licking and humming like I’m the sweetest dessert she’s ever tasted.

  “Gods above...yes! Oh, fuck yes,” I manage to choke out, my hands fisting her hair while I let my head fall back.

  Thinking of nothing but the exquisite torture of her mouth on my cock, I almost don’t feel it when she slips a hand between my thighs. Her fingers press firmly upwards, finding a bundle of nerves just behind my balls. The sudden spasm hits me and causes my hips to jerk, forcing more of my dick to slip past her lips. She swallows around me, the sensation massages my hard flesh and makes me jerk again.

  “Fuck!” I curse, shuddering. Another spasm from the massage of her fingers and I roar, cumming in her mouth. I pull free before I can knot. My seed sprays uselessly on the ground as I fall forward, almost onto her.

  At the same time, Va’naar stiffens with a grunt and cums as well. He rocks against her and she squeals her own release while his knot swells inside her cunt.

  Breathless and panting, we all collapse in a heap in the middle of the cargo bay. Anyone could walk in on us at this point, but I’m too spent to care.

  I. Just. Need. A. Moment.

  “What in Vren’s name did you do to me?” Va’naar mutters into her shoulder.

  Her face pulls into a teasing grin. “That might have been the trick I shared with Messa.”

  “What have we done to deserve such torture?” I grunt jokingly, trying to catch my breath. “You will be the death of us if you keep milking us like this.”

  “Yeah, you guys aren’t half bad yourselves.” She flashes us a quick wink.

  “Half bad?” Va’naar whines. “What do you mean half bad?”

  Just then, the cargo bay doors whoosh open.

  “OUT!” I scramble to my feet, roaring at the intruder. To my relief, they leave just as quickly as they arrived. “Female, you make us lose all sense,” I say while righting my clothes.

  Knowing it will be a moment or two before my bonded mates can right themselves, I stalk over to the door and lock it. I should have done that first, but my mate and her naughty hands are rather distracting.

  ∞∞∞

  Va’naar

  “Select a few things you like, so we can have it brought up. You can decorate your new den however you want,” I say proudly, watching her sift through more boxes like an excited pup who has received their whelping gifts early.

  Her hair flips over her shoulder when she turns to face me. “Den?”

  “Yes, the private area you share with your mates.”

  “What he means to say is that you are permanently relocating to a new cabin.”

  “Not just any.” Ca’lek stalks over to me, poking me in the chest with his claw and growls. “Don’t be giving her the idea that she may just pick any cabin. She is to have the best. Mine.”

  “You mean ours,” I say, rolling my eyes at him.

  Ca’lek snorts through his nose at me, not ready to admit that I’m right. Polly waddles over with a slight frown on her face and pulls my primary in for a hug. Her fingers softly comb through his mane softly while she speaks to him in that lovely voice of hers.

  “Why are you such a grumpy butt? You think I’d move into just any cabin? Of course I know yours is the best. It's got the biggest bed.”

  His arms wrap around her and squeeze gently before he disengages and kneels on the floor, apologizing quietly to our pups.

  Walking over, I place one hand on his shoulder and one behind her back. “As primary, he is naturally more protective, and now that we are mated, his instincts are kicking into overdrive. Pay no mind to his fussiness. He will calm down eventually,” I say, kissing her cheek.

  “I am not fussy!” Ca’lek protests.

  I look down, giving him an affectionate and condescending look that causes him to frown.

  A giggle erupts from Polly’s mouth. “No hunny, of course you’re not at all fussy.”

  Just as Ca’lek opens his mouth to say something, an unearthly gurgle rumbles from her belly, startling him as he stares at the curve of her stomach with apprehension.

  “What was that?” he asks in a quiet voice, like he’s afraid if he talks too loud something will pounce on him. Polly covers a laugh with her hands.

  “It’s nothing,” she answers once she has her composure. “I’m just a little hungry.”

  “A little hungry? It sounds like you wish to eat our entire food supply,” I jest with her, placing my hand on the small of her back. “Come. Let’s get you something to eat.”

  “Food sounds great—”

  Ca’lek steals her lips for a quick kiss. “I have things I must attend to, but I will meet you there soon.”

  “Don’t be too long,” she says as I guide her out of the cargo hold and into the lift.

  “I wouldn’t worry too much. I bet whatever he needs to have done he’ll just pass it off to Kuma. He’s too preoccupied with you to do much of anything, not that I blame him,” I explain.

  “Poor Kuma,” she mutters, then smiles. “I feel kind of bad that he’s getting so much more work now that we’ve mated.”

  I continue observing her radiant face long after her smile dies down. I’ve never realized how intriguingly beautiful humans were until I met Polly, but maybe she’s the exception. On our home world Mephida, people place value on the coloring and thickness of our furs. It is a sign of beauty, but my mate does not need a single tuft of fur to be beautiful. Her bare skin is soft and warm. I love touching it.

  I take in her soft mane of hair. It enhances her appeal, but she doesn’t even need that to be beautiful. Reverently, I curl a few strands of her locks around my finger. It’s like thick silk across my skin and I love the feel of it, but even if she had none, I would still find myself lost to her.

  “What are you thinking about?” she asks, rubbing her small fingers up the length of my arm and into my fur.

  “Just how much of a treasure you are.”

  Her stomach rumbles again and she chuckles. “You two are quite hungry today, aren’t you,” she coos affectionately, rubbing her belly.

  The lift opens and I once again place my hand on the small of her back, guiding her towards the mess hall. We pass Kuma along the way, who has a slight frown on his face, but as soon as he spots us, the frown disappears.

  “Thanks so much for the help today. I hope Ca’lek isn’t giving you too much of a hard time, but if he is, let me know and I’ll whip him into shape for you,” Polly says, smiling sweetly.

  The smile Kuma gives Polly makes me want to tear his face off, but I recognize the protective instinct for what it is, and let it go.

  “Oh, I have no doubt that you will lead these two around by their...tails,” Kuma replies with a wink. Something about the way he clears his throat on the last word has Polly laughing, but I miss the humor and tilt my head at my mate. She sees my questioning glance and snorts into her hand.

  “Will you be joining us for cards this evening?” I ask, distracting him away from my mate. He nods, then thanks Polly for her kind words, and continues on his way.

  My comm vibrates in my pocket. The message is from Ca’lek asking me to stall for just a few minutes while he prepares something. I’m intrigued. He never plans anything at the last minute. He’s more of a long term planner, always ready and often setting things in motion far in advance of whatever he needs it for. It is very odd for him to not be ready.

  Restraining my desire to dash into the mess hall now to see what he’s doing, I take her for a short walk around the deck. Even though I know she’s hungry, I want Ca’lek to feel
like I gave him the time he needed. She may be pregnant, but Ha’dir did mention regular walks are healthy for both her and the pups. A few extra steps to the mess hall won’t hurt.

  “Va’narr, you goof, we’ve passed the mess hall three times already,” Polly protests when I attempt to lead her past it again.

  “Alright, you caught me. I confess. I just wanted to spend a few extra minutes alone with you before Ca’lek whisks you out my arms again.”

  Her soft fingers graze my cheek. “You know that I’m just as much yours as I am his, right?”

  I grip the back of her neck and pull her sweet lips against mine. She’s so soft and yielding. Even though I just had her, I want her again. Now, I fully understand what the elders say about the constant desire to mate with a new bond.

  My comm vibrates again and pulls us both out of the moment. Ca’lek is ready and waiting for us to join him.

  “And we, just as equally, are yours. Come, let’s get you some food.”

  The mess hall doors slide open and Messa comes running out, smiling as she gives Polly a wink on her way by. We pass the threshold of the door and my sensitive hearing picks up the sound of Ca’lek muttering curses beneath his breath. Hearing us, his ears flatten tightly against his head before he straightens out his ruffled mane and comes to greet us.

  “And here I thought you actually had important business you needed to tend to,” Polly says in a light tone, reaching up and running her fingers over a spot he missed on the top of his head.

  “Caring for you, is important business,” he replies, then places a kiss on the back of her hand.

  “You smooth talker you. Funny how only a few days ago I thought you were just a hard ass.”

  “I am a hard ass to everyone else,” he announces with pride.

  She smirks, then reaches up to twirl a strand of his mane around her fingers. “You know, I could braid some of those beads into your manes. It would look so good on you. All pirate-y and badass.”