Seduced by the Alien Barbarian

by Ella Mansfield

  "Obviously you want me to touch you, and stay on top of you, or you would tell me your real name." He gave her a lopsided grin as he spoke, so happy to have her with him.

  "It's Roxanne," she said on a gasp as he thrust his hips against her again. "Everyone calls me Roxie."

  He rolled to her side, disappointed. "Roxanne is a beautiful name. I would have preferred to keep touching you while calling you Mary Ann, though."

  Roxie got to her feet quickly, brushing the dust from her body, wishing she could brush his touch from her just as quickly. "Don't call me anything. Just send me back to Earth."

  "You know you're my fated mate, and you still want to return to a planet that will marry you to a man you've never met?" He moved toward her, his hands going to either side of her waist as his lips descended to toy with her ear lobe. "Why?"

  Roxie struggled to find an answer, but it was difficult to think with his lips on her ear that way. "Please. It's not appropriate for a man to whom I'm not married to touch me this way."

  He raised his head, his eyes lit up, as he deliberately misunderstood her words. "You want to marry me? Let me call my brother!"

  "I didn't say that!"

  He frowned at her. "If I can't touch you unless we're married, then we should marry. I promise you, I will continue to touch you."

  She glared at him. "Even if we are fated mates, and that's still debatable, I should have some say in when and how you touch me. I haven't given you permission to touch me at all. Wouldn't your mate have the right to say no to you?" She wouldn't be with a man who gave her no rights as a human being, mate or no mate.

  "Of course she would! My mate would have every right in the universe!" Bnjmn hated the idea of how her world was, and how she could have been treated as a wife there. He knew women had no real rights before or after marriage. "My mate would be respected and cosseted, treated like a precious jewel."

  At that Roxie tilted her head to one side. "So if your mate had no desire to marry you, you wouldn't force her to do so? You wouldn't force her into your bed if she had no desire to be there?"

  "No, I wouldn't." How could she think otherwise?

  "Then understand now, I will not jump into bed with a man I met a few hours ago. I will not marry a man I just met. Even on Earth I would have run away before I would have let that happen to me."

  He frowned at her. "So you won't marry me?"

  "How about we make a compromise?" she suggested.

  "What's that?" Bnjmn wanted to make her happy, of course, but just being in the same room with her had him aching to make her his.

  "I'll give you some time to convince me that I want to marry you. If I decide I don't, you can take me somewhere where I can choose from any man I want. Obviously there's a shortage of women where you come from, or women wouldn't keep disappearing from our compound."

  "Keep?" he asked. "It's just you and Lela!"

  "And Maria! And Carissa, but she was brought back." Poor Carissa. She'd never have a real life on Earth now.

  "I do not know these people," he said with a frown. "My planet has not taken them."

  Roxie made a face at that. Why would he admit to Lela but deny Maria and Carissa? "Well, there are other men who need wives? You know where to find them?"

  He nodded reluctantly. There was no way he would ever watch his fated mate marry another man. "I do."

  "Then I will agree to spend two days with you, and see if I want to marry you. If not, you can take me to the place where I can choose my husband." She folded her arms over her chest, expecting him to deny her, thus proving he was just like the men of Earth. Doing what he wanted and caring nothing for the feelings of the women around him.

  "Two weeks," he insisted, getting into the bargaining. He knew he could make her fall for him. They were fated mates after all.

  "One week." She was surprised he would agree to her bargain at all, but relieved. Maybe he wasn't as bad as the men on Earth.

  He nodded. "Agreed." He reached for her and kissed her to seal their bargain.

  Her hands went to his chest to push him away. "We need to make rules about touching as well. I never said you could touch me."

  He frowned. "No touching? But how will I convince you?" He couldn't keep his hands off her for a full week. She had to let him touch her, at least a little!

  "You don't think you could make me fall in love with you without touching?"

  "How about we kiss, and I may touch you, but I may not make love to you without your permission?"

  She shook her head. "No, that's too much. You may kiss me, but not touch me anywhere else."

  "That's not enough. I may kiss you, and I may touch you only above the waist. My hands will not touch you anywhere else until you have agreed to marry me." He couldn't go for less than that. It would kill him to agree to that much.

  She thought about that for a moment before finally nodding. "But if I agree to marry you, you have to wait for the ceremony to take place before you can touch me anywhere else."

  He made a face at that, but finally agreed. "You seemed much taller on your planet."

  She shook her head. "What do you mean?"

  "When I was watching you on Earth, you seemed much taller." She'd towered over most of the other women.

  "You were watching me? Really? How long have you been watching me?" she asked, wanting to hit him over the head with something.

  "A few days." He shrugged. "I had to find the right one."

  "And how did you know I was the right one?" Roxie asked, getting angrier by the minute.

  "I watched, and I waited. There was another girl I thought was the one I wanted, but she didn't make me feel like you did. When I tried to get her to do what I said with my mind, it didn't work. I told her to stretch, and you did instead."

  "Show me how you saw us!"

  He waved a hand toward the screen he'd been watching until her arrival. It had shown the other girl the entire time she'd been there, and still showed the spot in the woods where she'd been. "Up there. I had both you and another girl up on the vid screen."

  Roxie looked at the screen and saw a young girl whose name she didn't know. She was barely eighteen. "You were watching her too?"

  He shrugged. "I thought I wanted a quiet girl who was content to read books." He looked at her from her head to her toes. "I was wrong. I want someone like you. Someone who can flip me over her shoulder. Someone who can make me sweat."

  "And you knew I was the one you wanted, how?"

  "I told her through mind-link to put the book down and stretch. She didn't move. Instead, you stretched." He shrugged. It seemed incredibly simple to him.

  She glared at him. "I remember hearing a command to put a book down and stretch. You did that? And you were watching me?"

  He nodded slowly. "I was. And I enjoyed every single moment of it." He leaned close and whispered, "It made my cock hard to watch you."

  She would have stomped off out of the room if she'd known where to go. "Why do you think it's okay for you to just watch people? How would you like it if I did that to you?"

  He laughed. "I would be happy! I want you to want to watch me. And touch me."

  "You make everything about sex! Where will I stay on this ship?" She looked around, trying to find an exit.

  "Let me take you to your room. You can ready yourself for the space station there." As he spoke he walked down a hallway, stopping before a door.

  "Space station?" She watched as he opened the door and glanced around the room. It wasn't glamorous, but it was certainly nicer than the dorm rooms in the compound.

  He nodded. "Lela didn't find the food on Mcy palatable. She chose Earth food and took it home with her. I assume you'll want to do the same."

  Roxie nodded. "That sounds good. How well do you know Lela? Will I get to see her?"

  "She is my sister-in-law. Marry me, and you'll be able to see her anytime you want to."

  Roxie closed the door in his face.

  Chapter Three

/>   Bnjmn stood for a moment outside of Roxie's room, staring at the closed door before he started chuckling. His mate was going to be a handful, but he couldn't wait for the challenge. She was perfect, and he wanted her to stay just as she was.

  Walking through the ship, he found his brother on the bridge. "Take us to the space station."

  Kvn looked at him with surprise. "You finally chose the one you want?"

  "I chose my fated mate," he said with a grin. Never had any of them dreamed they would find their fated mates, now that they lived on a planet with only their family, which meant no females at all. The slave trader Lvn was their only source of females until his brother had tried Earth.

  At first, Bnjmn hadn't believed his brother when he claimed Lela was his fated mate, but then he'd watched them together. And he believed.

  Kvn grinned. "This bodes well for my future."

  "I believe it bodes well for all Mcys. Finding our fated mates is a dream come true!" Bnjmn sighed. "It would be nice if my fated mate were a bit less—stubborn."

  "Why do you say that?"

  "She won't marry me. She won't let me touch her. She made me agree that I would take her somewhere she would have her choice of men if I could not convince her to marry me within one week. And I must do so without sex."

  Kvn burst out laughing. "The meek little girl reading the book by the stream? She didn't look like she would be so difficult!"

  "She was not my mate. The tall blonde was." Bnjmn shrugged. "Sometimes the fates laugh at us."

  Kvn shook his head, letting out a low whistle. "I do not envy you that one, brother."

  "I take what I get. She is perfect for me, or she would not be my mate."

  "If you say so!"

  *****

  Roxie explored her room as soon as she shut the door in Bnjmn's face. The man needed to learn how to treat a lady. So far, he was digging a hole he'd never get out of.

  The room was utilitarian, nothing extra at all in it. She would be comfortable, but it wasn't something she expected from alien technology. She would have thought an alien ship would have so many more luxuries!

  She opened the door to the bathroom, and her eyes widened. The bathtub was a work of art. She knelt down beside it, stroking her hand along the bottom. If she understood the odd alien controls, she'd be in there in a heartbeat. And once she was in there, she may never get out.

  At the compound, they'd mostly had use of showers, and occasionally, as a treat, they'd been allowed to bathe. It had been glorious when she'd done something deserving of a bath. Now, she could take one whenever she wanted! Well, for as long as it took to get to his planet anyway. Surely if the baths were this nice on a space ship, the ones on their home planet would be even more luxurious.

  Thinking of Bnjmn made her angry and excited all at once. She wanted him to start touching her and never stop almost as badly as she wanted to kick his teeth in. The man was a pig, but he was a beautiful, sexy pig that she wanted to take to her bed. It was hard to admit it even to herself, but she wanted him like she'd never wanted anything.

  Why, she'd give up her black belt for a chance to mate with the man. And she could have that chance at any moment. She needed to make him sweat, though. No one deserved it like he did.

  A knock at her door had her leaving the bathroom. "What?" she asked, her voice full of hostility.

  "May I come in, my love?"

  She groaned. He was playing her like a fiddle. "Yes."

  When he opened the door, he found her standing beside her bed, still fully clothed, her arms folded across her chest. She was the very picture of hostility. "We have reached the space station. Let me take you down, and you may choose your food. There isn't a huge range of choices, but from what Lela says, it's much better than eating 'that crap Mcys call food.'"

  Roxie laughed. "That sounds just like Lela." She shook her head, forcing her face back to its angry expression. She didn't want to laugh around him. Ever. "Let's go."

  "Before we go down, I want to make sure you stay close to me. The Mcys have a feud going with another planet called Htfld. Lela was almost stolen from Drrrl, and I don't want anything to happen to you."

  "Why not? Then you could just go get another mate. One who might be more agreeable to what you have in mind."

  "It doesn't work that way," Bnjmn explained patiently. "We are given one chance at a fated mate. I will never get another if you are lost to me. I would never want another." He stepped closer and kissed her softly. "I hope you know you are special to me."

  She walked around him and out of the room, ignoring his words. He was finding it too easy to mold her to his will, even if she hadn't let him see it yet. She would stay with him as necessary, but she wouldn't act as if she liked it!

  Their business on the space station was concluded quickly, and they were back on the ship. He stocked the kitchen with the food she'd requested, and then turned to her. "Would you like to watch Gilligan's Island with me? We can watch the one where they almost get off the island." He threw his head back and laughed at a joke she didn't quite understand.

  She thought about it for a moment before nodding. She didn't particularly want to watch the vid with him, but she had said she'd give him a chance to convince her to marry him. She had to spend time with him to make that happen. A vid seemed like an innocent enough way to do it.

  He led her to a room that was made for entertainment. He took a seat on a piece of furniture that resembled a couch, but seemed to mold to fit him better. Catching her hand, he pulled her down beside him, slipping an arm around her.

  She tried to push away to sit up straight, but he pointed out that he wasn't breaking the rules. "I suppose not, but I don't like it."

  "You don't like my touch?" he asked. "Do you want me to prove differently?"

  Roxie shook her head emphatically. She knew he could prove it with little effort. Why was she so attracted to the man?

  "Let's just watch the vid." She waited while he pushed a few buttons, and a short song came played. Something about a shipwreck and some people taking a three hour tour.

  She found herself relaxing into him as they watched the silly show about a group of seven people trying to get off an island. She was flattered when she saw Mary Ann and realized that he'd associated her with the character. "You want to be Gilligan?" she asked. "Really?"

  "If it means I get to be close to my Mary Ann, I do."

  She just shook her head and kept watching the show. They watched six episodes, and in every one of them, the castaways tried to get off the island. She finally understood why he'd laughed. They were always trying to get off the island, and they always almost did it.

  "Do you like it?" he asked, his eyes lit up with happiness that she'd watched it with him.

  "It's rather stupid, but amusing," she said, not willing to give him any more than that. He was too heavy handed with her.

  "You'll watch more with me?" he asked.

  "Perhaps later. I'm hungry."

  Bnjmn stood up, holding a hand down to help her to her feet. "I should have thought of that sooner. What are those white things Earth people like to eat while watching movies? Little white puffs?"

  "Popcorn?" she asked. She'd never eaten popcorn while watching a movie, but she'd heard about it. It was something the people of old did before theocracy.

  "Yes, that's it. Did we get some at the space station?"

  She shook her head. "No. I didn't buy anything for snacks. Just meal foods."

  He sighed. "That's a pity. I would have enjoyed trying it."

  "Next time we'll get popcorn," she told him, wondering why he looked so excited at her words.

  He led her to the kitchen and dialed up meals for both of them. He ate a putrid looking green gelatinous substance he called massacrater. "You should try it. If you don't like it, you'll never have to eat it again."

  Roxie looked at it, shaking her head. "I believe I would throw it up. I'll just stick to my Earth food."

  He sighed and sho
ok his head. "Lela did throw it up. That's why we went to the Earth station when she was with us."

  "I really don't blame her."

  Bnjmn shrugged. "It's a nutritious food, giving us everything we need to make it through the day."

  "Nutritious or not, it looks disgusting. Thanks for the offer, though."

  He didn't know how she'd be able to bear healthy children without eating massacrater, but he said nothing. Surely she'd come around eventually.

  After their meal, he walked her to her room. "I'm certain you're getting tired, so I'll leave you. Unless you want to spend some time kissing and getting to know one another better?" His thumb traced her bottom lip as he made the suggestion, making her wish she was someone else. Someone who could just agree to what he wanted with no consequences.

  "I don't think that's a good idea," she told him. "I will kiss you good night, though."

  "I'll take what I can get." He gathered her against him, his arms going tightly around her. He was careful to keep his hands above her waist as they stroked her through her thick garments. His mouth went to hers, and he nipped her lower lip, kissing her as if his life depended on it. "Marry me, Mary Ann."

  She sighed against his lips. "I don't know you well enough to marry you."

  "I have a way we can get to know each other much better, my dear." Bnjmn's hands went to the fastening at the front of her uniform.

  She shook her head, moving his hands away. "Good night, Bnjmn. Today has been—interesting."

  When she dreamed, she dreamt of him on one side of her, and little Lacey on the other. They both needed her. Both begged her to come to them. She couldn't choose.

  Chapter Four

  Bnjmn rose bright and early, determined to make the most of his time to convince Roxie that she should marry him. His favorite time with her had been watching the vid screen together as they laughed at the shenanigans the castaways on Gilligan's Island had gotten up to. Maybe he could talk her into watching it again—with no clothes on.