Alien's Innocent Bride: A Sci-Fi Alien Paranormal Shifter Romance (Mail Order Human Book 1)

by Sue Mercury

  “What’s wrong?”

  She hesitated. She didn’t know a polite way of asking if he was healthy. “Um, on Earth I avoided intimacy for a reason. Disease was rampant in the towns, and I feared catching something so I never had sex, never got close to anyone. Do you, um, have those kinds of diseases to worry about on Zaxxuma?”

  Understanding filled his gaze, and he gave a small shake of his head. “Since the plague, disease has been eradicated from my planet, Tara. You needn’t fear catching anything from me, or during our travels to the cities.”

  Relief rushed through her, chasing the coldness of her anxiety away.

  “Was that why you wanted to leave Earth?” he asked. “Because of disease?”

  “It was a big reason.” She wasn’t lying, but she wasn’t telling him the whole truth, either. She considered why she held back and came up empty. There was no reason to keep her secret anymore. She was millions of light years away from Earth. Magino’s men couldn’t touch her even if they knew of her location.

  “Tara, I don’t want there to be untruths between us, whether they are secrets kept or lies spoken.” He squeezed her hands and gazed at her imploringly. “Tell me what happened to you on Earth. Tell me why the sadness never leaves your eyes.”

  She breathed out quickly and considered her options. Logically, she knew there wasn’t a way back to Earth. Angeline had explained to a crying woman aboard the Starship Matchmaker that all arrangements were final, and once you signed your name, you became the responsibility of Mail Order Human to match as they saw fit in exchange for passage off Earth. There was no going back.

  “Tell me, Tara.”

  “My parents,” she whispered. “I saw them get murdered. There’s a violent group in my town known as the Magino gang, and I walked in my parents’ house as two of their men shot them. The men shouted for me to freeze, but I turned and ran. They fired shots at me but missed, and I have been in hiding ever since. I saw Mail Order Human as my only option. I had to get off Earth before they found me.”

  He stroked a hand up and down her arm, causing her shawl to fall away and drift to the floor. “I am sorry that happened to you, Tara. Why did they murder your parents?”

  “I suspect my parents borrowed money from Magino in order to keep their bakery open, and I suspect my parents weren’t able to pay him back in time. The Magino gang parades around my town like they are helpers. They do good deeds and like to make sure they are publicly recognized for them, but if someone finds out they aren’t living up to their public image, they silence that person.”

  “I am glad you made it off Earth before any harm came to you, Tara. Do not worry. There is no way they could track you to this planet, even if they wanted to. There is a protective shield around all of Zaxxuma, and only known traders, Zaxxumian protectors, and merchants like Mail Order Human are let inside. Our screening process is quite vigorous.” He continued rubbing her arm, creating a delicious friction of heat that spread all over her body. “But know that you are my mate, sweet Tara, and I will protect you with my life. Always.”

  Her throat burned and tears pricked in her eyes. She blinked rapidly, and then she found herself smiling for the first time in months. “Thank you,” she whispered. “I am so tired of being scared and having to look over my shoulder.”

  Sev smiled, and the warmth that filled his eyes made him appear younger, almost playful. Her grin broadened and she leaned into him, seeking his touch. Joy abounded within her. She ignored her lingering worries about Sev and their life together, telling herself that it would all work out. He hadn’t been cruel to her, and though he had paid a high price for her, his reasons for purchasing a mate made sense.

  “Try to put the fear behind you, Tara, and look to the future.” He rested his forehead against hers, and her head swam with the deliciousness of his masculine scent, so spicy and overwhelmingly male. “We have both suffered losses, but together we will build a happy future. I imagine it won’t be long before our children’s laughter fills the mountainside.”

  Her breath caught and her heart danced. He wanted a family too. She pushed the last of her fears aside and pressed her lips to his, then straddled his lap. His hardness poked up at her through his pants, and she quivered under her increasing need. He froze at first, and she giggled, suspecting her forwardness had shocked him.

  In a flash of movement, he lifted her from him and stood up, then tossed her over his shoulder so quickly her shoes fell off. Before she could protest his highhandedness, he growled and carried her up a steep set of curving stairs.

  Upon reaching a bedroom, all her bravado faded. She’d just experienced her first kiss, at twenty-seven freaking years old, and now she was going to have sex for the first time too. That was a lot of firsts for one day, and uncertainty crept into her mind. Would it hurt? She worried he might shove his cock inside her without any thought to her comfort, and she started struggling and pounding on his back in an effort to escape.

  Did Zaxxumians know about foreplay? Not that she knew much about it, but still…he was huge, and knowing her luck, his cock would be in proportion to the rest of him. That didn’t do anything to calm the butterflies flitting around in her tummy.

  She cried out in frustration, and to her relief, he finally put her down.

  On the bed.

  Her hands brushed over the soft covers as she stared up at him, feeling her face heat. Oh God, this was it.

  *

  Desire thrummed through Sev. His cock ached and pushed against his pants, seeking relief. His heart felt open and raw, his spirit ready to claim this sweet little human as his for all time. She trembled upon the bed, peering up at him with large blue eyes that incited his need to flame hotter. He burned for her, and he couldn’t wait to see her marked as his, the visible proof of her belonging to him on her body come morning.

  He had to remind himself she was untouched, lest he give way to impatience, rip her clothing off, and take her too soon and too roughly. The animal in him roared to life, and another growl emitted from his throat. His skin prickled, all his senses alive. His nostrils flared and his breath came faster.

  Sweltering in the confines of his clothing, he pulled his boots off and tossed them against the wall. Next, he stripped off his pants, letting them fall to the ground in a careless heap. The whole time he undressed, he kept his gaze trained on Tara.

  He eyed the buttons on the front of her thin dress, and his hands itched with the urge to rip the garment from her. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes for a moment. When he opened them, he said, “Remove your dress, Tara. Now.”

  Her eyes widened and she shook her head. “I…I can’t.”

  “Consider it an order. Take. Off. Your. Dress.”

  She crossed her arms and shook her head. “You can’t just order me to get naked and expect me to obey you!” Even as she denied him, her face flushed with arousal, and he detected the pungent yet sweet aroma of the moisture flowing between her legs. Ah, the little human wanted him, but she held to her stubbornness and kept glaring at him, refusing to take off her dress.

  He crawled onto the bed, coming atop her and pinning her hands down on either side of her head. Grinning, he said, “Why not? You can order me to get naked and obey you any time you wish, Tara, and I promise I won’t argue.”

  Her face went redder still and she sputtered. “You! You…you…I can’t believe…”

  The sound of fabric ripping and buttons flying to the floor silenced her. He finished tearing the garment from her body, taking her bra and panties with it, and hurled it across the room. She continued sputtering her outrage, but he silenced her with a kiss, growling as he delved his tongue into her mouth, tasting her once again and thrilling in her responsiveness. For several moments she resisted, but it wasn’t long before she was kissing him back and rubbing her center against his leg. His cock throbbed against her thigh, growing harder and harder with each brush of her soft flesh against his stiffness.

  When he broke away fro
m her, she gasped in air, then met his eyes with an endearing blush tinting her cheeks. She looked uncertain, but no longer filled with indignation. “You know I’ve never done this before, right?”

  He grinned down at her. “Is my little virgin mate nervous?”

  Her blush deepened and she gave a slight nod.

  Reaching between her legs, he found her sweetness and stroked his fingers through her immense moisture. “You’re dripping wet for me already, Tara. That is good. Your body is preparing for my entrance,” he explained.

  “Yes, but you’re so, um, large,” she said, her eyes flickering to his cock. “Are you sure humans and Zaxxumians are compatible?”

  “I know several Zaxxumians who have taken human mates, many who have had children together. I assure you, we are quite compatible. Do not be afraid, Tara. I will strive to be gentle with you.” His voice became raspy. “At least this first time.”

  He released her wrists and trailed kisses down her neck, until he reached her breasts. She moaned underneath him as he paid each of her nipples equal attention, suckling them and drawing them into stiff peaks. All the while, he kept one hand between her legs, exploring her womanhood. He parted her pussy lips and stroked her inner wetness, even slipping one finger into her core. She bucked against his hand and cried out, and a thrill jolted through him when his probing finger met with her virginal resistance.

  So sweet, so innocent, and all his.

  He kissed his way down her body, teasing her with his touch, until his mouth came to her swollen center. Her pussy lips were puffed up with her arousal, so plump and beautiful, and ripe for his taking.

  “Sev, what are you…oh my!” She jumped as his tongue darted out to circle her clit. Humans and Zaxxumian females were anatomically similar, and he knew just how to bring her pleasure.

  He applied pressure with his tongue as he circled her sensitive bud, and he pumped two fingers into her with shallow but quick thrusts, careful not to tear through her virginal resistance, which he planned to save for when he finally pushed his cock into her.

  “Come apart for me,” he murmured against her sweetness, and seconds later she undulated and cried his name, her movements not ceasing until she finished riding the wave of her pleasure. “Good girl.”

  Panting, she remained underneath him, looking utterly exhausted. But her passage was wet and ready for him, and he knew her pain would be less if he claimed her now. He situated himself overtop her and forced her gaze to his. “This will only hurt for a moment, Tara.”

  She inhaled deeply and nodded, and he surged forward and all the way into her tightness, pushing past her resistance and claiming her as his. She groaned, opened her legs wider, and dug her nails into his back. Though he longed to begin a rapid pace of thrusting in and out of her, he remained still inside her, allowing her to adjust to his size and catch her breath.

  “Are you all right, Tara?”

  “Mm. I’m good.”

  He almost chuckled at her dreamlike response. Her eyes appeared glazed over, as if she was in a trance. It boosted his ego that he’d brought her to this erotic induced state, and he was glad the pain hadn’t been too much for her to bear. Withdrawing from her tightness ever so slightly, he drove back inside her, then repeated the movement several times, painfully slowly. She accepted his intrusion, keeping her legs spread wide as she rewarded him with the sweetest, keening moans of pleasure.

  Driven by her responses, he gripped her hips and plunged into her faster and harder. Deep growls ripped from his throat, the animal in him taking over. He fought back the beast, not wanting to frighten Tara. If she hadn’t watched the information tablets about his world, she didn’t know about his shifting abilities. He planned to save that revelation for tomorrow. For now, he was content to love her, to bring her to the heights of pleasure again. She cried out as another release washed over her, and her inner muscles contracting around his cock prompted his own release. He came inside her with a roar, pumping his hardness into her and filling her with his seed.

  Later, as she drifted to sleep in his arms, he noticed the markings of his ownership on her arms transpiring. He kissed the intricate designs and hugged her tighter, reveling in her closeness. His awareness of her deepened, and he could distinctly hear each faint breath she took, and the steady thumps of her heart beating.

  Best of all, before she’d drifted to sleep, she had smiled at him, contentment brimming in her eyes without a hint of her prior sadness. He hoped to never see the sorrow in her gaze again. In the coming days, he would get to know his little human mate better. He planned to show her around the mountain range and take her to the cities to visit his friends and family members.

  He glanced at her one last time before falling to sleep beside her, holding her snug against his chest, his animal calm and his spirit content for the first time in ages.

  Chapter Four

  Tara awoke to the sound of birds chirping. She opened her eyes and realized Sev still held her to his chest. Careful not to wake him, she extracted herself from his embrace and sat up in the bed. Morning light poured into one of the windows, and she smiled at the sight of the sun rising over the distant mountains. The sunrise spilled through the trees in an array of gold, orange, and pink waves. She couldn’t recall having ever witnessed anything so beautiful.

  On Earth, she’d rarely had time to observe what little beauty remained around her. She had stayed indoors during the day as much as possible, in an effort to stay hidden from Magino’s men. The houses she cleaned were on the more prominent side of town, and she slipped in and out of those houses through the servants entrances, always with her cloak pulled over her head. Once she had completed her cleaning duties, she waited until nighttime to gather and chop firewood for extra money, always dressing like a man and hiding her hair underneath a hat while she worked at this more masculine endeavor.

  A woman chopping wood in the middle of the night would’ve drawn attention, but as a man no one batted an eye. Once a week, she smudged her face, drew her hair under the hat, and dressed as a man while she delivered the firewood to her customers.

  She wondered if anyone would miss her. She doubted it. All of her childhood friends had succumbed to illnesses or childbirth complications, and because of this she had felt alone even before her parents’ death.

  She glanced over at Sev’s massive sleeping form. He snored lowly, occasionally growling in his sleep. The growls had startled her at first, but now she found them sexy. Her center pulsed hot with need each time he growled, the inhuman noise stirring her desires.

  Shifting on the bed, she evaluated her soreness. Her muscles ached, but not terribly. Her womanhood felt tender, but not abused. True to his word, Sev had been gentle with her and considerate of her inexperience. She flushed. He had brought her to orgasm twice, once with his mouth pressed to her center, his tongue working magic, and the second time with his cock pounding in and out of her.

  Sunlight crept across the bedcovers, and she brought her arm up to shield her eyes from the glare. But she stopped in the middle of her movements and stared down at her arms. Strange markings covered both her arms, from her wrists up to her shoulders.

  She moved from the bed, searching for the tattered remains of her dress. Sev had lied to her. He had told her disease had been eradicated from his planet, but he had obviously given her something. There was no other explanation for the strange markings on her arms. Her heart pounded with terror.

  As a child, she had lost several friends to a disease that caused body parts to become black, wither up, and fall off. Had she caught something similar from Sev?

  She had to get away from him. Not only was he a liar, but there was no telling what other sorts of diseases she might contract if she stuck around. She had already accepted that she would never return to Earth, but maybe she could find her way to one of the cities he had mentioned. She had to make her way down the mountain before he awoke.

  She slipped into her dress and tiptoed downstairs, where sh
e tied her shawl around her waist to keep her dress from opening to reveal her breasts. She found her shoes and opened the front door slowly, deciding to leave her backpack behind so she could make a faster getaway. Once she made it outside and shut the door behind her, she breathed a sigh of relief. Then she rushed down the mountain as if she were being chased.

  She stumbled and scraped her hands and knees a few times, but luckily there was a worn path that contained wooden steps during the most treacherous parts of her journey. She would have to leave the path Sev had obviously created soon, and once the mountain’s steepness lessened, she did just that, veering off into the trees and zigzagging through the woods that covered the base of Sev’s mountain.

  Her heart ached. How could he have lied to her? For the first time in her life, she had dared to trust a man, dared to believe he might want more from her than sex, only to have her heart broken into infinite pieces.

  She would never have the loving husband and family she had dreamed off. She would never have a marriage even half as happy as her parents’. She cried as she ran, and her terror increased when she noticed the markings on her arms sparkled in the sunlight. Oh God, was she going to die?

  She reached the bottom of the mountain, breathless and with scratches all over her body. Her hair blew wildly in the wind, and she felt frantic as she looked around, trying to decide which direction to run. The tall grasses or the huge, exotic forest she had ventured into yesterday evening?

  The forest would provide more cover, she reasoned, and she set off, running at full speed and hoping Sev never found her. Perhaps if she made it all the way through the forest, she would find herself in a grand alien city. Maybe she could seek medical assistance and find a job. Did rich Zaxxumians employ housekeepers? She pushed thoughts of her future aside and focused on her present circumstances. If she slowed down, Sev might catch her.