“I have people for that, my Keiko. I wouldn’t subject you to my cooking skills. It wouldn’t be pleasant. I’ll come for you in four hours.”
“I’ll be waiting.”
“I promise to make it worth your wait. Come, I’ll walk with you and notify the council of my decision to stay.”
“I’m sure they’ll be thrilled.”
Entering the council chamber, Shar stood before them and waited for an invitation to speak. The council elder motioned him forward. “I’m to assume you have reevaluated our longstanding offer to relieve General Nedral?”
“Yes, councilperson. I’d accept the posting if it’s still available.”
A quick vote, and he was cemented into a transition period with the sitting general. Stopping to speak to Keiko at her floating desk, he reminded her gently, “I’ll return in four hours, and then you’ll be mine for the evening.”
“Whatever you say, big guy. I hope things will be wrapped up by then.”
Turning to leave, Shar noticed the elders were staring at him. “Big guy?”
Sighing, he explained, “Part of the human rituals of mating involves each party choosing a special name for their partner. It’s considered a sign of respect and affection.”
“I see. How charming. Now, go away. We have business to conduct.” The council members were a strange mixture of gruff and curious about human customs. It was a vast improvement, since before they’d mostly just been gruff.
Turning on his heel, Shar strolled out of the great chamber, leaving his intended to her duties. For once, he was confident in his ability to woo her properly.
Asking around, he found Emily in a huge atrium playing with the mimics. They were playing some game where they used their mimicking abilities to hide and she found them. The creatures seemed to be having a good time; they made a strange sound that he’d never heard them make. It was a low trilling noise that sounded vaguely like laughter. Shardon warriors stood guard, with good-humored expressions on their faces. Naturally, they snapped to attention when he entered.
Emily noticed him enter the room as well, and ran over to talk to him. “Are you and Keiko ready to leave already? I want to stay and play some more.”
“Keiko and I are staying on this world.”
“Yea, I suspected she might want to stay. They talked her into being a lawmaker.”
“Don’t worry; if we’re here that just means you have cause to visit regularly.”
Brightening, she smiled at him. “You’re right. I like that idea. Can I stay a few more days?”
“Koal was adamant that you return right away. You may stay overnight, but you must be on your way first thing in the morning.”
Shoving her hands in her colorful bug-covered form suit, she slumped her shoulders. “Fine, I guess. We wanted to go riding.”
Feeling bad for rushing her off, he offered, “Maybe we could all go for a short ride in the morning before you leave.”
Giving him a quick hug, she thanked him and skipped away. He stayed for a while and coached the guards on her propensity to slip away from supervision. They briefly played some game that involved one person sneaking around, trying to tap the others with a long stick. When he left, Elaine taught them a game that involved chanting words as they rhythmically clapped their hands together.
It was odd, but they seemed to enjoy themselves. It left him with the impression that something had gone wrong during the cloning process with the mimics. They seemed fully developed on the outside but were still quite youthful on the inside. They’d have to factor that into their training regimen.
Shar returned to his home and concentrated on making a special evening for his new bride. Knowing that he’d fallen down on the job of romancing her before, he’d take special care to ensure she understood her value to him moving forward.
Chapter 18
~ Keiko ~
Keiko’s Music Mix Eighteen
Sitting across from Shar Jalon, Keiko found herself floored by his opulent home. The spacious stone home would definitely qualify as a citadel on Earth. Having seen an aerial view of the sprawling metropolitan area, she knew of approximately four such lavish homes equally spaced throughout the city. Each was reserved for an important general or dignitary. She’d been offered such accommodations as a council member and had visited several council members at their homes.
The council members had been quite curious about her upon her arrival, so she’d thought it better to let them continue to believe she was spoken for until she could get her bearings. Keiko had always been a bit cautious about new people and places. As much as she loved the Shardon home world, it had proved a difficult habit to break.
“You have a beautiful home.”
“I was gifted with this estate in gratitude for my service. It’s a little-known fact that our world has fourteen continents and we evenly distribute ourselves in an effort to limit the negative impact to our environment. We limit our cities to thirty-eight percent of each continent.”
“That’s fascinating. I knew you were good stewards of your natural resources.”
“I’m pleased as it will mean we have a clean and modern environment to offer our brides.”
“Well, this bride is thrilled with both the planet and its people.”
“I suppose the council overruled my decision to keep the human brides for our Sylon settlement.”
“You knew we would, so no whining. We have diverted over a thousand for the Shardon home world and I’ve requested some mature brides for the council members.”
“Good luck with that plan. They’re too grumpy and used to getting their own way to subject beautiful females to, no matter their age.”
“I’ll mention that to Murik.”
“Don’t poison the council elder against me. He will be the one responsible for presenting most of my professional requests to the council.”
“He’s first generation Jalon. Did you know that?”
“Since he stopped using his batch designation about a hundred years ago, no I wasn’t aware.”
“Your batch is just a remixed upgraded version of his. I think they kept the grumpy gene intact.”
Finally catching her humor, he couldn’t help but to smile. “I see where you’re going with that, my Keiko. I must say, I don’t appreciate being teased by you.”
“Yes, you do. You’re smiling.”
Pointing to his face, he deadpanned back, “This is what a clone’s face looks like when he’s starving.”
Another male voice interceded, “Calm yourself, sir. I wanted everything to be perfect for your new bride.”
“The new bride’s name is Keiko and she appreciates it.”
Looking embarrassed, the man blushed a deeper shade of blue. “Apologies, Council member Keiko, I meant no offense.”
“None taken and you can just call me Keiko. We’ll probably be seeing a lot of each other.”
Shar sighed. “I don’t like you being overly friendly with my staff. It angers me.”
“Well, since you’re being totally unreasonable, you’ll just have to stay angry. Besides, that’s not anger you’re feeling, it’s jealousy. Remember? It’s that thing that prompted me to leave you.”
Looking stunned, he stared at her for a brief moment. “You were jealous of Maiko? You have no cause to be.”
“Nor do you. Even if I meet a million men, I’ll only ever want you.”
Smiling broadly, even as he looked a little skeptical, he asked, “Are you certain about that?”
“Yes, I’m certain. You couldn’t get rid of me if you wanted to.”
Placing plates of food in front of them, his assistant murmured, “You two are sweet together.”
Shar cleared his throat. “That will be all, Darn. Thank you for your keen observation.”
Keiko giggled. “Stop harassing the poor man. You’re as grumpy as the first gen of your line.”
“I love you, my Keiko. Having you by my side completes me in a way I never thought p
ossible.”
Nibbling a bite from the end of her pinchers, she beamed at him. “I love you too, Shar. So, are we getting naked after dinner?”
Sputtering his drink back into the glass, he tried not to choke. “Keiko! I wasn’t expecting you to say that.”
Laughing again, she smirked at him. “You’ll need to stay on your toes with me and learn to always expect the unexpected.”
“You impress me in so many ways. Females are a rare and delightful luxury in the verse, but there are now words to describe one such as you.”
“Aww, that’s sweet. Let’s eat. I don’t want the dining to crowd out all the sex tonight.”
“We must eat faster and you should stop talking about intimacy.”
Leaning over the table slightly, she asked, “Is all the sexy talk provoking an uncomfortable bodily response?”
“I believe you already know the answer to that question.”
Keiko felt a little hot and bothered herself. Remembering Shar kneeling before her and touching her mound, suddenly shifted her priority from eating to sexy time. “Let me see if I can get this straight. You don’t want me to remind you of that time we were in the shower and I stroked your big, thick…”
“Keiko! You’re being a naughty female.”
Without missing a beat, she responded, “On my home world, if women are naughty, their husbands strip the bare and spank their bottoms.”
Jerking back, Shar responded sharply, “We don’t harm females, ever.”
Looking at him over the glass, she smiled. “It’s not that kind of spanking, more like light and playful, not hard and bruising.”
The look on his face told her he was suddenly interested. “After the spanking, what happens?”
Nibbling something that resembled a piece of bread, she responded, “Sometimes, the male places her hands and knees and takes her from behind. Other times, the female climbs on top and rides him. There are lots of positions that humans use for intimacy. Do you have a preference?”
“All of them. I want to try them all.”
“In one night?” She couldn’t even get her head around that.
“Until you’re too exhausted to continue. Is that permissible?”
Nodding slowly, she stood. Shar Jalon held out one hand, indicating that she should come with him. Instead of taking to the back part of his home like she’d been expecting, he took her outside, into a garden with lots of vegetation and a high retaining wall. “I have made a place for us.”
He stopped at a small area with lots of hanging vegetation. Her breath caught in her throat when she saw that he’d created a sleeping area with a huge round bed draped in some type of dark netting to keep the insects away. It was beautiful, thoughtful, and softly lit with glowing balls tossed around the area.
Bringing her hands to her face, she whispered, “Shar, it’s absolutely perfect.”
Sounding relieved, he responded softly, “I hoped you’d say that.”
Turning her gently towards him, his hands deftly removed her clothing.
Before he could move her to the bed, Keiko stilled his hands in hers. “My turn.”
Her eager hands moved over him, quickly plucking open the magnetic seams holding his clothing together. In the blink of an eye, the last of it slid from his body. Taking the hint, Shar stepped out of his boots and pulled her close.
“Since the very first time your lips touched mine, making the human kiss with you is always on my mind.”
Smiling at him, her hands wandered over his body, taking in every delicious bump and bulge. “I like kissing you too, big guy.”
“I’m eager to make the human kiss with you here.” His hand cupped her mound, as his gaze turned even more heated. “Will you permit this?”
“My sweet, sexy clone, human women absolutely love that.”
Gathering her up in his arms, he deposited her on her back in the luxuriously soft bed. “I have researched this technique for many species. Though human females weren’t in our database, I feel confident…”
Placing two fingers over his lips, she whispered, “I’m sure you’ll be phenomenal. You don’t need to talk me through every move. I trust you.”
She could feel him relax a little as he got into exploring her body. “This is my first time being with another person. I find that having you here in my home… in my bed, pulls out every possessive instinct I have as a male.”
His big, dusky-blue hands smoothed over her body. She could feel the tiny imperfections and callouses. His touch was masculine and all so perfect. Pulling her legs apart, he kissed her before his tongue snaked out to slip between her tender folds. Learning all her womanly secrets proved to be embarrassingly easy for the large clone. Sifting her fingers through his hair as he pleasured her, gave her hands something to hold onto when the sharp waves of pleasure became intense.
When his hands joined forces with his mouth, she totally lost control, shouting his name as endless waves of pleasure crashed over her. Catching her breath, she looked down to find a smug expression stamped on his handsome face.
“I did that.”
The announcement took her by surprise. Giggling, she pulled him up over her, wrapping her legs around his waist. “You sure did, big guy, and it was absolutely fabulous. Now it’s your turn.” Looking down between them, she noticed a prominent bulge sitting right on top of his rod. Cupping it with her hand, she looked up questioningly at him.
Placing his hand over hers, he rubbed her hand roughly over the bulge and she could feel it was semi-soft and pliable with a ridge running vertically straight up the middle. “My testes. I believe it was used to impact a sensitive part of the Shardon female anatomy. If you don’t like it, I’ll be certain to refrain from making contact with your body with it.”
Guiding him down, she rubbed herself against him. Throwing her head back when her sensitive bud slid down the ridge, she couldn’t help the small sound of pleasure that escaped her lips. Biting his bottom lip, he undulated his hips in sharp, shallow punches, driving her totally insane.
“I believe you’ll greatly enjoy what I have to offer as a male. You can’t imagine what a relief it is to discover that.”
Grabbing his shoulders, she gasped. “Less talk, more sex.”
“Fear not, my beautiful Keiko. I’ll give you what you need, every single day for the rest of your long life.”
Sinking into her warm soft body, he moaned his pleasure. It felt unbelievably nice to know he enjoyed their mating as much as she did. One thing was for certain, the well-endowed clone hit all the right spots. Scratching her long nails gently down his back heightened his arousal. She could tell because his mouth was all over her, kissing her neck, licking along her collarbone and down to her breasts. Drawing each pert little nipple into his mouth, he teased and tormented her as he rode her, careful to keep most of his weight off her.
He’d mentioned that clones had good stamina for sex and the man hadn’t been joking. Pushing her into one orgasm after another, he seemed to come into his own as a lover. Finally, when she didn’t think she could take another stroke, he stilled inside her, filling her with his seed. She could feel his thickness throbbing like it had a heartbeat of its own. Something about that triggered yet another orgasm and as her body clenched around his, he howled his pleasure followed by several short, shallow thrusts.
Gathering him in her arms, she pulled him down on top of her. Not caring that he was heavy, she wanted him close. Gliding her fingertips up and down his spine, they both tried to catch their breath.
He whispered one sentence, “I never knew.”
Shoving his hair back out of his face, she looked into his dark eyes. Though he was totally spent, she could see amazement, tenderness, and most of all, love. Kissing him gently on the lips, she whispered, “I never knew it could be like that either, my sweet.”
They lay curled together as a cool breeze dried the sweat from their bodies. “Nothing could be more perfect than this, Shar.”
“Th
en we’ll do this every night until the first blue snow.”
Keiko snuggled closer to her big warrior and fell asleep wondering if blue snow was at all similar to white snow.
Chapter 19
~ Keiko ~
Keiko’s Music Mix Nineteen
Keiko woke the next morning with nothing but a thin fabric draped over her naked body. Reaching out her hand, she discovered that Shar was no longer in bed.
A masculine voice sounded off, “Mistress, you must wake. The young ones will be here soon.”
Bolting up, she snatched the fabric up around her body. “What, where, who are you?”
“Calm yourself, mistress. Remember me from last night. I’m Shar’s assistant. My name is Darn. I have prepared you a warm shower and Shar sent clothing for you.”
Shaking her head, she asked tentatively, “Where is Shar?”
“He got up early to shower and arrange dragon transport for the young ones.”
Sighing heavily, she looked around. “I must still be sleeping. It sounded like you just said dragon transport.”
“Wake yourself, sweet princess. Miss Emily and the mimics are coming for a ride today. I’m certain you don’t want them to find you naked and smelling of love.”
“Whoa, you need to ease up out of my business. Where is this shower?”
Gesturing with his shoulder to the left, she noticed a lovely shiny silver waterfall-type showerhead. He must have turned it on; it was spouting warm water in the cool morning air, creating a slight mist. It looked inviting. Standing, she walked over and put one hand under the water. It felt heavenly. Turning to ask him to leave, she found she was already alone. Dropping the thin fabric, she stepped under the cascade of water.
Draped around the showerhead was a squeeze bottle of what could only be a cleansing product. It smelled like grass, but she used it anyways. Drying on the thin fabric, she quickly squirmed into the form suit Shar had sent for her. It fit perfectly. Finger combing her hair, she looked around for her bag. Finding it sitting near the bed, she made herself presentable for the day and went in search of Shar.
Seeing him sitting in the great room, she blushed to remember all the intimate things they’d done the night before. Then she got embarrassed all over again for feeling some kind of way about it. He was her intended and they were both mature, consenting adults. He apparently enjoyed giving her orgasms and she was thrilled to get them. There was nothing to feel strange about.
Celestial Mates Complete Series Box Set (Books 1-5) (Alien SciFi Romance) Page 53