by Karen Kelley
“Only sex,” she repeated.
“Yes,” he agreed, but she thought he was only partially paying attention. He seemed much more interested in running his hands over her breasts, down her abdomen, and lightly scraping through her curls.
She automatically raised her hips, wanting more. He didn’t disappoint as he tugged on the fleshy part of her sex, then slid farther down, dipping one finger inside. She cried out. He immediately backed off. She stopped his hand from moving farther away from her heat.
“No, I like that.”
“Most Symtarian women are passionate.”
“I’m not…” She bit her bottom lip. “I’m not a…a…” Hell, she couldn’t think straight. Not that she really wanted to think right now. No, she only wanted to feel. And what he was doing felt so damn good.
He nibbled her neck, and swirled his tongue inside her ear. “A pure blood?”
“Yeah, that’s it.”
“But you are still very passionate.”
“I haven’t had sex in a while.” She closed her eyes, moving her body to the rhythm of his finger.
“You’re damp with need.”
She bit back a groan, but couldn’t stop it when his mouth moved to her breast and sucked on her nipple, rolling it around on his tongue. She wanted to touch him, to explore all those delicious muscles, but she was quickly losing her ability to think, to do anything except lose herself in the exquisite pleasure of what he was doing to her body.
She was vaguely aware when he moved over her. “Protection,” she muttered.
“I’ve taken care of it,” he said.
She’d been so lost in the sensations flooding her body, she hadn’t noticed.
He entered her. Filled her. Then stroked her.
Slowly, he moved his body. She rose to meet him. Cried out for more. He increased the intensity. In and out. Deeper. A little harder.
She wrapped her legs around him, drawing him in tighter. Clenched her inner muscles. He sucked in a breath.
In and out.
He dragged a pillow over and placed it under her.
Deeper still.
Heat washed over her.
In and out.
Faster.
Plunging deeper.
In and out.
Filling her.
She closed her eyes, lost in the sensations spinning through her. He took her higher and higher until she felt as though she soared across the sky, and there was no fear. The world around her exploded into a million pieces of light.
She grabbed his shoulders. Her body quivered. She cried out, gasping for air.
He tightened, muscles straining as he came, growling from the force of his orgasm. Then he was falling into her, rolling them onto their sides, pulling her close.
Tears filled her eyes. She’d never felt such a connection. Never felt this much emotion flooding through her. Never felt this damned satisfied.
“What just happened?” she finally asked when she could catch a decent breath. “Is it always like this?”
He shook his head.
She leaned back, looking into his face. “Did you feel it, too?”
He nodded, pulling her close, burying his face in her hair, inhaling the scent of the shampoo she’d used.
He didn’t speak. Now he was worrying her. “What?”
“I think I have found my lifemate.”
Her forehead creased. “Who?”
He moved just enough so he could look at her. “You.”
Before she could question him more about this lifemate stuff, he doubled over, groaning.
Ohmygod, she’d killed him. Maybe Symtarians weren’t supposed to mate with people from Earth or something.
She quickly sat up. “Kristor, are you okay?”
A fog began to roll in. She looked around. What the hell was happening? She jumped out of bed, and bumped her knee on the chair. She grabbed the robe that was across the arm, and thrust her arms inside.
The fog was so thick that she couldn’t see. “Kristor?” She needed to find the phone and call for an ambulance or something. Oh, Lord, what would she tell them? She might have killed a man during sex?
She could feel the blood drain from her face. What if she had killed him? What if she never had sex like that again? She mentally shook her head to clear it. No, that was selfish thinking. She should be more worried about him.
The fog began to slowly fade away. She caught a glimpse of a black-tipped wing. Ria took a step back. The fog cleared.
There was a hawk on her bed.
His animal guide, Shintara said. Yum. Even better than the man. Look at that wingspan.
“Shut up,” she mumbled. Now what was she supposed to do? Better yet, it was late, and she was tired. Where the hell was she going to sleep? The sofa was too uncomfortable. She’d once fallen asleep there watching a tear-jerker movie and awoke with a crick in her neck. It had been very painful.
She stared at the hawk before making a decision. “Don’t hog the covers,” she finally said and lay down on her side of the bed, tucking the cover under her chin. She only hoped hawks didn’t snore. Hell, she was so tired, she didn’t really care at this point. It would’ve been much nicer snuggling, though.
Her sleep was fitful at best.
The next morning, Ria rolled over, stretched, and opened her eyes. Kristor watched her. His lips curled upward. Warm tingles spread over her body.
“Morning,” he said.
“You’re back.”
“It would seem so.”
She hadn’t dreamt last night. It had all happened. The lovemaking, his changing into a hawk. But right before he’d changed, Kristor had mentioned something about her being his lifemate. There was a sound of permanency to it. She wasn’t so sure she was ready for that, no matter how good the sex.
“What exactly does ‘lifemate’ mean?” she asked.
“Lifemate. It means we are meant to be together.”
Dread filled her. “For now, you mean. I mean, nothing long-term. Right?” Although, she didn’t care for the idea of his moving on to greener pastures for at least a few weeks.
He brushed her hair away from her face, tucking it behind her ear. “Forever. Once a Symtarian finds his lifemate, then they are together forever.”
“But we only had sex.”
“Sometimes a male Symtarian knows the very first time.”
“I barely know you.” That sounded really slutty since they’d had mindblowing sex last night. “I mean, maybe I don’t feel the same way.”
“You will be very frustrated when you can’t reach the same heights as we climbed last night. The only way to experience this kind of fulfillment is with your lifemate.”
She scooted away from him and off the bed, pulling the robe she’d put on last night closer to her. She’d known deep down inside that nothing good would come from their making love, but had she listened? Noooo…
She took a deep breath and looked at him. Big mistake. My God, he looked delicious lying on her bed completely exposed. She dragged her gaze away.
“I’m going to put some coffee on,” she said before hurrying from the room. It was too much to take in all at once. She stumbled, slapping her hand on the wall for support when it hit her again. She was part alien. Her ancestors were full-blood aliens.
But she didn’t want to be an alien.
Kristor swung his legs over the side of the bed. He felt more alive than he’d felt in a long time.
And what will happen if you can’t convince her to leave with you? Labrinon asked.
I will.
But if you don’t. Symtarians have been known to go crazy if they can’t be with their lifemate. I don’t particularly like the idea that one of us would be a drooling idiot.
She will leave with me.
The truth was, Kristor didn’t want to think of what might happen if Rianna didn’t leave with him. Yes, he had heard all the stories of Symtarians losing their minds.
But he would convince her. He ha
d no choice.
Or you could throw her over your shoulder, Labrinon reminded Kristor.
Yes, there is always that.
He stood, went to the bathroom and took a quick shower. Not as refreshing as standing under a waterfall, but definitely warmer.
You’re getting soft.
He almost told Labrinon to be silent, but it never seemed to do any good. He spoke what he wanted, and had the right to do so. His guide had been true and faithful. Labrinon had saved his life more than once by telling Kristor when the enemy drew close. A hawk had superior visual acuity. No, Kristor wouldn’t tell Labrinon to be silent.
This time.
He stepped from the shower, dried off, then knotted a towel around his waist. When he came out of the smaller room, his clothes had been laid neatly across the bed. He walked past them and went to the kitchen. Rianna was drinking coffee at the table.
It must be an Earth custom because the people who’d raised her did the same thing each morning. Kristor had tried the drink, but didn’t find it to his liking.
“Do you have orange juice?” he asked.
She jumped, looked up, then choked. “I laid your clothes on the bed,” she said.
“I prefer fewer clothes in the morning.” At home, he rarely wore clothes. It gave him more freedom.
“And you run around my parents’ home like this every morning?”
“No, I wear what you call ‘pajamas.’ Just like your father.” He went to her refrigerator, opened the door, and spotted a carton of orange drink and brought it out.
“Just make yourself at home.”
“Thank you.” He brought a glass down from the cabinet and poured some juice into it.
“You seem to know a lot about Earth.”
He sat across from her. “I studied. That, and Rogar explained a lot of things to me.”
“Rogar?”
“My brother.”
“What did he tell you?”
He frowned. “Don’t use something called a microwave.” He downed the juice. “This is very good. We don’t have oranges on New Symtaria.”
“Ria, are you up yet?” Carly called out.
Rianna’s face lost some of its color.
“Oh, no.” Her gaze flew to Kristor. “It’s Carly.”
The woman Rianna had called Carly stepped into the room, then came to an abrupt stop, her mouth dropping open to her chin when she saw him.
Chapter 11
“I’m sorry,” Carly sputtered. “I thought you’d be alone.”
Ria couldn’t believe this was happening. She would swear Carly to silence.
Oh, Lord, what if her mother found out? Not after Ria had complained so loudly about Kristor’s staying with them. Besides, last night had been just about sex. It wasn’t as though they were going to become an item or anything. And she certainly wasn’t going to become his lifemate. Just wasn’t going to happen.
But the sex had been fantastic.
Kristor came to his feet. Carly’s eyes almost popped out of her head as her gaze very slowly took in every inch of Kristor’s exposed skin, and there was a lot of it exposed.
A flutter of irritation swept over Ria, but just as quickly disappeared as her gaze fixed on Kristor. The man was downright, mouthwatering sexy.
“I’ll get dressed.” As he left the room, the towel parted down one side exposing a good expanse of his muscled thigh, and the towel was snug enough that it outlined his butt.
Ria couldn’t look away. She couldn’t move, couldn’t breathe, as the blood rushed to her head. She watched him as he went down the hall, then turned into the bedroom. For the first time since she had known Carly, she wished her friend hadn’t stopped by.
Carly hurried over to the coffeepot and poured some coffee into a cup, before joining Ria at the kitchen table. “Oh…my…God! How the hell did you get so freakin’ lucky?”
Ria nervously took a drink of her coffee, then set the cup back on the saucer. She bit her bottom lip and wondered how exactly to tell Carly. Finally, she just blurted it out. “He’s the alien.”
“You slept with the alien? What do you mean you slept with him? You mean you had”—she leaned forward—“sex?” she whispered.
“You could…uh…call it that.” She looked down into the dark liquid inside her cup. Last night had been so much more than sex.
“I thought you wanted to turn everyone against him so your parents would kick him out?”
That had been her plan, hadn’t it? Wow, that idea had quickly gotten lost in the shuffle.
“And what’s all that stuff you told me about him being an alien?”
She looked at her friend and knew she wasn’t ready to tell Carly all that had happened. “I…uh…guess I did misunderstand him. He’s from another country. He’s an alien to the United States. I mean, this is his first trip here.”
“And the hawk?”
She shrugged. “Coincidence.”
Carly took a drink, then nodded. “Has he got a brother?”
Ria relaxed. “Yes, but did you know Neil is sweet on you?”
Carly blushed. “Neil?” She snorted. “I doubt that. I mean, look at the guy. He’s got the wow factor.”
“Don’t sell yourself short. Neil really does like you.”
Carly shrugged. “A lot of people like me. I mean, I practically grew up here. Everyone knows me. You probably misunderstood.”
Ria shook her head. “No, he was pretty straightforward. He asked if I would test the waters.”
Carly smiled. “Really?”
Ria nodded. “Yes, really, and give yourself a little more credit. You’re a beautiful woman. You just come from a big family and they sort of swallow you up.”
“He really asked you to test the waters.”
“Yes, so tell me, what should I tell Neil? No swimming allowed? Or come on in, the water’s fine?”
Carly leaned back in her chair, both hands hugging her coffee. “I like him, too. I have since he socked Ben Dansworth for pulling my chair out from under me in the sixth grade. When everyone started to laugh, he gave them a look that almost peeled the paint off the walls.” She sighed. “Then he helped me up.”
Ria sat forward. “A true southern gentleman.”
“And he’s interested in me?”
“Yes.”
“Then, yeah, but remember you’ll always be my best friend.” She blushed. “Not that anything will ever happen between Neil and me.”
Ria laughed. “You can have more than one friend.”
“Yeah, but you’re different. I don’t know what I would do if you stopped being there for me.”
“As if that will ever happen.”
“I guess you’re right. No one could ever keep us apart.” Carly glanced at the clock on the wall. “Gotta run, I’m opening the office this morning.”
“My new assistant is opening for me,” Ria told her.
“How’s she working out?”
“Katie?”
Carly nodded.
“The girl has been a miracle. Of course, she hasn’t had to groom Sukie, yet.”
“The demon dog?”
Ria nodded. “If she can make it through that, and the grooming business continues as it has been, I’ll put her on full-time.”
Carly glanced toward the bedroom. “Call me later when we have more time to talk.”
Ria walked her out, then watched as she drove away. A little niggle of guilt stabbed her. She hadn’t told Carly that aliens do exist. What could she have said? “Oh, and by the way, Carly, I’m part alien. Isn’t that just the darnedest thing?”
How could she tell her best friend anything, when she didn’t fully comprehend it herself? No, she needed to get a lot more comfortable with it herself before she tried to explain it to anyone else.
She grimaced. Her mom and dad would have coronaries. How did one break the news to her parents that their daughter was part alien? Hmmm, something to think about.
She started back to the kitchen just a
s Kristor stepped out of the bedroom. Damn, the guy looked totally awesome, even dressed. Her body tingled to awareness.
“You have the look of a woman who wants to mate,” he said, stepping closer.
She drew in a deep breath, trying to clear those thoughts. What did she know about Kristor? He was an alien. A warrior. She needed to put the brakes on their relationship. “And I have the checking account of a woman who needs to go to work.”
“I’ll go with you.”
It was a tempting idea. “Not this time. I’m going to be really busy.” And she was. She had to supervise Katie. She bit her bottom lip, knowing she lied to herself. “We can meet for lunch.”
He smiled, as if he had known he would have victory. Men: Everything was a competition to them. She shook her head and scooted into the bedroom to get her purse.
“Stay here as long as you want.” She didn’t look at him again as she hurried to her car. She was afraid if she did, she might call in sick this morning. Kristor had some seriously good moves when it came to making love.
She started her car and backed out of the driveway. When she saw her neighbor on the front porch, Ria’s hand froze on the steering wheel. Maybe because the neighbor’s attention had moved from Ria to Kristor, who was standing on the porch. He smiled and waved at the neighbor. She waved back, then practically tripped over her own feet as she hurried back inside. Not good. It would be all over town that Kristor had spent the night with Ria.
Her life was quickly going to hell in a handbag. She put the car in drive and hurried to the shop. As soon as Ria parked at the side, she grabbed her phone and speed dialed her mom.
“Hi, Mom,” she said as soon as Maggie answered.
“Good morning, dear.” Then: “Is everything all right?”
“Fine, fine.” She hunkered down in the seat. “I just wanted to tell you that Kristor spent the night with me last night.” She squenched her eyes closed waiting for her mother to say something.
“Yes, I know, dear.”
She shot back up in the seat. “You know? Already?” She frowned. “Did Mrs. Wilton call you?”
“No, dear, your father and I were out driving last night and saw Kristor’s motorcycle parked in your driveway. Then when he didn’t come home, we assumed he’d stayed at your place.”