by Bethany Aan
They must be exhausted, Sean sent her mentally.
You are tired, as well. Her brow furrowed in worry. You are hurt?
I will be okay, sweet Arianna, he assured her. I am simply exhausted, drained from today’s little drama. Jace promises that I will not even have a scar to mar the ‘washboard abs’ you seem to admire so much when I’m not looking.
He offered her a teasing smile as she fought back a sputter of indignation and glared at him. He grinned at her efforts. Neither of them wished to wake Hunter or Jace.
Besides, he sent her, It would take more than one puny laser blast to keep me down for long. I am a Thorsani warrior!
She finally grinned at his scoffing mental tone. Good! I would not want my babies’ uncle to die from weariness, just for saving me.
You are my brothers’ mate, Sean sent her, sobering. I would die for you.
Her eyes went incredibly soft. He could sense her fighting the growing admiration she held for him, and it did his heart good.
You are… not what I thought you were the first night you got here, are you? she asked, her mental voice gentle, curious. Sean shook his head, grinning.
I am. But I am much more, I think, than you give me credit for.
I know how that is, she laughed mentally, the sound even lovelier in his head than it was in the physical world. In his head, the brightness of her spirit added sweet chiming, almost like tiny bells or crystals ringing. He had missed this, being on the same world as her, instead of just talking through space.
Rest, my sweet Ri, Sean urged her, feeling her energy waning. Too much mental effort like this can tire you out quickly. There will be time for us. Soon.
She nodded, watching him until her eyes closed on a smile and her fingers laced with Jace’s over her tummy. As Sean watched, Jace stirred but didn’t wake, moving closer to her, his face nuzzling into her neck before he sighed and fell back into slumber. Hunter, sensing the change even in sleep, leaned toward her, resting his head near her shoulder on the bed. Sean’s heart melted for his brothers and the obvious love they had for the small Earth woman. A love that he now understood and shared. More than anything, he wanted to see those big green eyes of hers turned to him with the same joy and love that she gave to his brothers.
Arianna Hunter-Jace needed her rest and time to recover from the day’s events. She also needed time, to get used to the idea of Sean being part of their family and to get used to the expanded family itself. She carried his brothers’ children, though that didn’t detract from her beauty or her sexual attractiveness in any way. If anything, she was even more sensual and enticing with the glow of pregnancy on her. Sean’s body hardened and he fought to keep a self-deprecating chuckle from escaping his throat. Calming himself, he closed his eyes and thought back to the moments in the bathroom, the glimpse of her soul that he’d managed to catch.
There were shadows on her heart and in her soul, chambers in her mind that held secrets she was hiding, some of them from herself. He wanted to get into those chambers, see from whence the shadows crept, and find a way to dispel them. He had a feeling that some of those rooms would only give up their secrets to him, because of his special abilities. But he could handle them. He would wrestle her demons and banish them with her.
There was much to do, a lot of work to be done within the colony and within their family, and most of all, within Ri herself.
As he drifted off to sleep once more, Sean vowed to himself that one day, very soon, he would be welcomed into the loving circle of Arianna’s arms.
** *
The End
( for now…)
Ri, Hunter, Jace, and Sean’s story has only just begun…
Keep reading for a preview of Storms of Ishira,
Book Two in the Hearts of Ishira series,
coming fall/winter of 2014.
Keep a watch on her Facebook page or her blog for Ishira news and upcoming releases not from the Ishira universe.
Dear Reader,
I hope you’ve enjoyed this book, the first in an epic space saga that will sweep galaxies and dimensions.
It was amazing to watch it come to life, from my head into a novel, and fulfilled a life-long dream. I still can’t believe it’s real!
The Thorsani are not the only alien species that you’ll meet in the Ishira universe…
Watch for more books in the upcoming years with shapeshifters, other paranormals, and maybe even some more Earth women.
Who knows what’s in store? It’s an adventure!
Sincerely,
Bethany
Bethany LOVES hearing from readers and fans…
You can contact Bethany Aan in several different ways:
E-mail:
[email protected]
Facebook:
Bethany Aan Author
Facebook Author Page:
www.facebook.com/BethanyAan
And she has a goodreads page:
https://www.goodreads.com/BethanyAan
And a regular website, though it’s still a work in progress:
www.bethanyaan.com
There’s Twitter, though she’ll be the first to admit she doesn’t check that very often (bad author! No coffee!):
Page: https://twitter.com/BethanyAan
Tweet: @BethanyAan
And finally, she has a blog that she randomly updates with teasers, chapters, news, life musings, writing musings, and book reviews:
http://bethanyaan.blogspot.com
She absolutely loves to hear from her readers! Feel free to bug her on Facebook or drop a note by e-mail.
And if you loved Hearts of Ishira, please consider leaving a review and help others discover Ishira and its hot, hot alien men.
Because this is still a work in progress, these might not be the exact, finished chapters. But please enjoy them as they are.. Nothing significant will change, except perhaps where the chapter breaks are. You’re probably getting chapter three here, as well!
Prologue
Western Mountain Range
Ishira
The stasis gel did its job admirably. When something jolted the spacecraft she was being held in, Stormy barely felt it. Lights flickered. Fires broke out and were quickly suppressed. Frantic movements from the various creatures beyond the clear tube that had been her home for far too long made her wonder what was happening.
She watched, eyes wide, as the spacecraft seemed to separate from its other half. The other section blasted away as though it had never been. Stormy’s heart thundered as she fought to scream one word.
No!
She had friends in that other section. Women who had become sister through their ordeal, though most of them would never remember it.
She wished she could be so lucky.
As the ship seemed to whirl through a vortex of angry green and purple clouds with violent lightning streaking painfully against her eyes, Stormy could only silently mourn the loss of those friends, sisters… and more. She felt tears escape her eyes but they were instantly absorbed by whatever odd gel entombed her body. Had she been in control of her muscles, she would have beat on the glass, or whatever it was.
But she was forced to remain still, her limbs lax as her body drifted in the gel.
The bodies of her captors were ripped from the vessel, their terror touching her though she could not see their faces. A few used their insect-like limbs to grasp pipes or other equipment, holding on for dear life. Electric bolts splintered through the huge compartment, sparking along the tops of various stasis units. Stormy felt the short-lived confusion and horror as some of those units released their captives, spewing the girls out into the maelstrom that was the main stasis chamber.
All Stormy could do was watch as more friends were ripped away from her, sucked from the whirling wreckage to land gods only knew where. In what seemed like eternity but was really less than a minute, the ship slammed into something. The impact was hard enough to jolt Stormy, even in the gel.
More units were dislodged or damaged. More girls expelled onto the mangled floor of the ship. Some screamed as the lightning-heated metal beneath them burned their flesh. Too weak from their long captivity in the stasis gel, the girls couldn’t lift themselves. And the creatures who had held them were no help. The moment the ship stopped moving, those who were still alive had rushed from the craft, their alien thoughts jumbled and frantic.
One by one, the wounded girls either died or managed to crawl out of the ship. One by one, the lights on some of the stasis tubes blinked from the blue of normal conditions to the orange that Stormy knew meant the woman inside was dead.
Within her mind, she heard the thoughts of the dying, the weak cries of the injured, the terrified prayers of those who had survived and were searching for shelter, as far away from the ship as they could get.
And Stormy knew when even those girls were outnumbered by the carnivorous creatures somewhere out there, creatures who had never tasted human blood but were eager to try.
Her tears flowed until she was dry, when she realized that she was alone with her own thoughts once more.
And her memories.
Because of all the women who’d been taken from Earth so many years ago, she was the only one who’d been allowed to retain consciousness the whole time. While her body might have been put into stasis on a regular schedule, her mind was alert and aware any time she wasn’t sleeping or drugged for a procedure.
As the seasons changed before her eyes, Stormy waited. And watched. And learned from the minds of the sentient creatures who visited the strange craft.
She was trapped in the stasis chamber, but she was by no means helpless.
If or when she found a way out of the tube, she’d be ready. She would not meet the same fate as her friends.
She would learn, she would pay attention, and just as she had on Earth, Stormy would not only survive, but thrive.
Chapter One
Ishira Colony
10.7 AC - .5 THIA
-Years Ishira, AC (after colonization)
-Five Months, THIA (Thorsani/Human Integration and Adaptation)
Arianna Hunter-Jace woke to the very pleasant sensation of being made love to, with one of her mates nibbling on her thigh and the other nibbling on her lips to make sure she was awake her for the fun. Murmuring approval at their methods, she sighed sleepily, rolled onto her back, and stretched. Muscles lengthened and pulled, aches and bruises reminded her that she was still recovering from an attempt on her life. But that was secondary to the palpable intensity of her mates, waiting patiently for her to finish stretching so they could devour her.
“Good morning, little warrior,” Hunter said, rising to one elbow to look down at her. She gave him a sweet smile and wrapped her arms around his neck as he lowered his head to kiss her. Only a thin, soft sheet covered her. It was slowly pulled down her body, the incredibly luxuriant material sliding over her breasts, her belly, and her thighs, as her other mate, Jace, bared her to the pre-dawn light for his delectation.
“Open for me, love,” he urged from his place by her hips, his voice husky with desire. She sensed the need in him, the hunger that he reveled in when he had her in his arms. He loved the taste of her, loved the noises she made, her responsiveness to his caresses. And she loved that he loved it.
Ri willingly allowed her legs to fall open, then sucked in a breath around Hunter’s tongue as Jace’s mouth began worshiping her in the way he most enjoyed. Her body bowed away from the mattress when Jace tongued her clit and tortured it with tiny bites, but Hunter was there to steady her, his big hand on her swollen belly, sliding up to her breast.
She watched him breathlessly as he plumped her flesh in his hand. He stared at her nipple as it gathered and tightened in anticipation of his loving. Ri gasped and wiggled as Jace adjusted himself so that he was lying between her legs, his face buried between them, his tongue, teeth, and fingers doing things that made her want to fly out of her skin. A soft, shuddering cry escaped her as Jace penetrated her with his fingers at the same moment Hunter took her nipple between his teeth.
Ri shivered a gasp, her head arching back into the pillow with Hunter’s delicate bite. Jace’s tongue licked a path down her slit, lodging in her center and diving in to taste her there. He slid his hands down and under her thighs, gripping her rounded bottom and lifting her hips from the bed, giving him better access.
“You are so very sweet in the morning,” Hunter murmured around her nipple, his tongue snaking out to taste the taut, small bud, lapping at it then blowing on it, letting the crisp morning air chill her skin. “So warm and soft from sleep.”
“So good,” Jace agreed, rising up and positioning himself to take her. “I can’t wait. Ri….”
Hunter nodded to his brother, then sheathed his teeth and bit Ri’s nipple with a roughness that she wouldn’t have been able to tolerate at first. She was so very sensitive. At the same moment, Jace slid easily into her warm, slick depths, seating himself fully within her for a breathless minute. She throbbed around his cock, her core eagerly latching onto him, desperate for the pleasure he brought.
They all paused, allowing Jace and Arianna to enjoy the moment of possession before Hunter groaned and went back to ravishing her nipple with his mouth as his hand slipped down to torture her clit. Jace began withdrawing and thrusting in the tempo that he knew would drive Ri out of her mind, his hands still holding her up for the right angle of attack.
When her body arched in helpless reaction, Hunter’s other arm slipped beneath it, bowing her back and effectively raising her breasts higher for his enjoyment. He switched his attention to her other nipple while his fingers danced on her clit, pulling and twisting, tickling and teasing. Using their mental connection, he played her like a master pianist, his fingers pulling every nuance of sensation from her body. Her breathing increased, as did the intensity of her gasps and cries. Jace picked up his pace, taking his cues from her sweet noises.
Feeling the tightening of her body that signaled imminent release, Jace held her hips between his big hands and thrust harder, deeper, drawing low moans, pleas for completion from her throat. Hunter, sensing she was close to her peak, suckled on her nipple, hard, dragging a shivering, gasping cry from her.
“Come, little one,” Jace said through gritted teeth, hunching his body over hers and taking her mouth as his hips ground against her body.
Hunter slid from between them, giving them this precious moment to themselves. Jace fell above her, his hands on either side of her shoulders, his mouth attacking her full breasts. She wrapped her arms around his head, her legs around his waist, and clutched him to her as she plummeted over that peak. Her body shook and shivered with her climax, her hips jerking against Jace, her body nearly bent in half with the power of her orgasm. His body tightened at the feeling of her spasms, and he thrust one last time, falling to her and kissing her ravenously as he came inside her. Her core clenched around him with muscular contractions that milked him almost to the point of pain. He threw back his head and cried out at the exquisite sensations roiling through him, gritting his teeth against the onslaught.
Ri’s body was still shuddering when Jace slid from her, panting, and fell to her side. He slid up enough to kiss her as Hunter immediately took his place between her thighs and, hitching them up around his ribs, lifted her butt in his big hands and thrust powerfully into her slick depths. She was still trembling from her first completion, but with Hunter’s penetration, energy speared through them both, rushing outward from their joined bodies and shimmering with each thrust, building with their passion. Hunter held onto her, pumping into her body with the strength and determination of the warrior that he was… his mind, heart, and soul attuned to her every need.
Jace, knowing what was to come, backed reluctantly away for just a moment.
Arianna was weeping with the need to come again, begging incoherently for her mates to finish her. Hunter angled his hips perfectly, long months of making love
to his woman having taught him just where she needed him most, how to attack her ‘g-spot’ for the most devastating effect. His eyes were feral and his face tight with need as he hungrily watched her breasts bounce with his thrusts. The difference between her soft, pale body and his muscular, hard form was intoxicating. She was breathtaking in her passion, and it made him feel like a god. His hard grin widened as he felt the quick spasms in her thighs, the uncontrollable shifting of her body against his, her desire to reach that precious pinnacle with him. Gods, he loved this woman! His eyes locked to her shifting breasts, as though mesmerized by their stiff tips and the tight little puckers that surrounded them.
Jace, calmed a bit from his bout with their mate, took charge of those plump beauties, leaning over to do his share of nipping, suckling, plucking and pulling. Hunter slid one hand up from beneath her, his thumb finding and pressing on her clit with exquisite precision.
Ri’s eyes popped open at the multiple assaults on her senses, her body thrashing beneath her lovers.
“Hunter,” she whimpered, pleading. “Now!”
“Fly, little warrior,” he murmured, dragging her body up against his in one powerful move as he sat back on his heels. She was completely surrounding him, her body fully open to his, her arms around his neck. Her head fell forward, resting on his shoulder, her mouth against the sensitive skin below his ear. He was seated as far inside her as he could go and they both pulsed in breathless splendor at the feeling. Using the peculiar rings of muscle that no human man possessed, he moved his cock deep inside of her as he held still. Contracting the ridges of muscle ringing his shaft, Hunter concentrated on dragging those hard bumps over her G-spot. Ri felt as though her body shimmered with each exquisite spasm, the tightness growing until ecstasy burst within her and she fell apart in his arms with a broken cry of joy, her head back.