Her heart was pulling her in a different direction than that, but that was her cross to bear. Vivian was innocent, unlike her. She was the one who deserved to be happy.
The younger woman burst into her room without knocking. “Holy shit, you look gorgeous.”
Lenora turned and saw she had makeup on that looked expertly applied. Her eyes were darkly lined and huge. Her lips were a demure rose color, and the rest of her face had a matte satin finish. She wondered how Vivian got herself made-up so fast.
Vivian went to her with a canister of white salve. “Smear this shit all over your face. It’s like instant make-up. Lips, eyes, cheeks, everything!”
“Really?”
Lenora was dubious, but accepted it. In moments she too looked like she’d spent an hour in a make-up chair. She couldn’t believe this gorgeous face belonged to her.
“Wow. You look so hot. Lysanter’s going to freak. You two are really getting into each other, huh? I saw the way you touch each other.”
Lenora scowled at her reflection. “I’m not getting into him, Vivian.”
“Bullshit.”
She turned to her. “No. I’m grateful for how he helped us, but I don’t want to marry him.”
Vivian’s happy expression evaporated. “Are you kidding me?”
“Vivian—I want you to marry him.”
“What? But that was already screwed up.”
“No. If you win the game you get to go free. You won’t have to go with Nayjoor. Once that creep no longer has a right to you I want you to give yourself to Lysanter. Then you can live here. You can have a nice husband. Your life would be set.”
She expected joy from her friend. The girl’s face remained disappointed. “What about you?”
“I’m going free. Back to the woods on Earth.”
“By yourself?”
“Surviving by myself was what I wanted from the beginning. I won’t have to worry about keeping you alive.”
Vivian shook her head. “Nuh-uh. Lysanter’s totally into you. He doesn’t want me.”
“Make him want you. That’s why I asked him to let you come with us. This is your chance to win him over.”
“Fuck that. He’s hot, but he’s too old. What is he, like 35? You and him are perfect together. You marry him and just let me stay here somewhere with the llamas.”
Lenora closed her eyes. “Vivian. This isn’t just about you. He was kind to us. He’s one of the good Dak-Hiliah, as impossible as that sounds. He deserves better than me.”
“What? Now you’re just being a fucking idiot.”
Lenora spun on her. “Shut up! You don’t know everything about me. You have no fucking idea who I really am. I’m not happy in my own skin! You think I could be happy with this guy? With any guy? Forget it! It’s not going to work. Stop being so selfish and just take this gift I’m giving you.”
“Oh for fuck’s sake.” Vivian stormed away from her. “I’m not throwing myself at him. You’re the one he’s going to marry. Not me!” She left and slammed the door.
Lenora remained planted before the mirror. She clenched both her fists.
Damn moronic brat.
Now she would have to work twice as hard to make her plan succeed. It was already going to be hard enough fighting the feelings she was developing for Lysanter.
***
Lysanter beheld a vision of beauty coming down the staircase. He hadn’t any hope of hiding his awe. His mouth went partly agape and his eyes widened. Lenora hesitated only halfway down.
“My gods…Lenora, you look stunning.”
She scoffed and looked away from him. “Stop it.”
“Forgive me, I can’t.” He went to the bottom step and reached for her hand. “You should have warned me. I wasn’t prepared to be so taken aback. You’re lovely without any enhancements. Amplifying your beauty almost seems a crime.”
She descended the rest of the way and took his hand. “You’re embarrassing me.”
He continued staring. “I’m honored you went to such trouble.”
“Smearing gunk on my face and putting a dress on?”
“Is that all? It looks as if you spent an eternity preparing.”
Vivian bounded down the stairs wearing a tight blouse and flowing long skirt. “Hey, can we go to that festival me and Hester saw on the other side of the river?”
“I think a meal should be our first priority,” Lysanter said.
“Yeah, get some food in her.” She went past them to the front door. “She’s skinny as a twig.”
Lysanter eyed the mouthy girl as she went by.
“Don’t let her annoy you,” Lenora said. “She’s still a kid. She’ll mellow as she gets older.”
He guided her to the door. “Hester is coming with us to keep her out of our way.”
“Oh. I thought you and her might get to know each other better.”
“You’re the only one I’m interested in, Lenora. Stop trying to divert me.”
As they waited for his flying limousine Lysanter grew lost in thought. Her dressing up had encouraged him at first, but apparently it was nothing to her. Then she continued with her quest to have him switch to Vivian. It made his chest ache for her to do this. Weren’t they getting on well? Lysanter thought so. He’d proven himself trustworthy throughout the games. He’d already started to feel a poignant connection to her, and he could swear—swear—Lenora reciprocated this to some degree.
So why did she still push him away?
He recalled their uncomfortable conversation about anatomical differences. That matter still hadn’t been resolved. He’d been avoiding addressing such a crass myth.
If he wanted to be with her he had to endure the awkwardness of settling that matter.
***
Hester and Vivian prattled without pause during the flight to the restaurant. Since Lenora didn’t speak Dornovonian she found it easy to tone them out. She focused on the view outside the window. The city streets were immaculate and the buildings looked new. She saw none of the usual indications of poverty.
Vivian and Hester burst into laughter simultaneously.
“I’m amazed that beings from two different worlds can connect so easily,” Lysanter said.
Lenora looked at them. “Vivian would be very happy here.”
“I agree.” He caressed her hand with the back of his fingers. “So will you.”
She met his eyes briefly. He wore his usual soft smile.
“Isn’t it silly to think the first woman you’ve ever met is the right one for you?”
“No, Lenora. This was fate. The druid in the holiest seat chose you for me.”
“What?”
“He knew you’d suffered. He wanted someone kind to provide you a better life. Is it a coincidence that the games were assigned to my world, where I’d stayed unmarried despite numerous chances to take a bride?”
“Yes it’s a coincidence. What the Hell else can it be?”
Lysanter smiled again. “I already told you. Fate.”
They stopped at a small restaurant in a faintly pink dome. The wait staff stood in two rows to flank them as they strode down the center aisle. All had their heads bowed in reverence to Lysanter.
“Wow,” Vivian said. “He’s the king of the llamas.”
“Impressive,” Lenora said, with one brow raised.
“Hester told them they didn’t have to do this when the reservation was made. They’re just honored that I came to eat here. I rarely dine out.”
“How are we supposed to go to a festival with you?” Lenora said.
“The Dornovonians won’t pester us. They have great class and restraint. I feel most at ease within a Dornovonian throng. They’re completely non-violent.” He pulled out her chair for her.
“You have a non-violent race raising Dak-Hiliah children?”
“That’s good, don’t you agree?”
She sat. “I do, actually.”
After lunch Lysanter brought them to the festival beside the r
iver. He ordered Hester to separate from them with Vivian. Lenora grumbled. He placed his hands on her shoulders and had her face him.
“Lenora. Vivian may stay on Dornovonia if she wishes once she’s won the games. I have no doubt Elentinus will agree to this. You don’t have to worry about her trying to survive in the woods on Earth. You don’t need to sacrifice yourself for her. You can both be happy.”
Lenora had a stern glare.
“What about you, Lysanter? Don’t you want to be happy?” Emotion strained her last sentence. She had to look away from him.
Lysanter became plaintive. “I don’t understand you. I’m trying hard, Lenora. I truly am.”
She chewed her bottom lip a moment. Her feelings were a tangled ball of pain and pride within her. She considered herself reasonably smart, but when it came to expressing this—how could she do it? How could anyone understand the mess inside her soul?
She drew a long breath. “Some things are better left unsaid.”
Lysanter took her hand. “Can you put aside your misgivings for a few hours? We have a beautiful day to spend in each other’s company. I want so much to enjoy it with you.”
Lenora swallowed down the lump in her throat and nodded.
She let him lead her away to a circle of stages with different performers creating a cacophony of sight and sound. The language still remained alien, but she found herself dazzled by the bright costumes, acrobatics, and special effects of light. One stage had a clown-like Dornovonian recite a joke that made Lysanter laugh. Seeing him happy made her want to be happy. Eventually the tightness in her shoulders dissipated. She screamed and laughed when a performer playfully threatened to spray her with water. Lysanter bought her a creamy hot ball on a pastry stick. It was sweet and gooey. He took a bite right where she’d placed her own mouth. Then he licked a bit of cream from his lip with a delighted smile. Then they played idiotic games on the classy Dornovonian midway. Where ever they went a crowd followed, but at a distance. All the llamas gushed at their viceroy and his strange-looking new girlfriend.
Near dusk Lysanter brought her to a ride that looked suspiciously like a Ferris Wheel. They sat close together as the seat lifted them high above the glittering city. He placed his arm around her, and, without thinking, she let her head rest on his shoulder.
They met Hester and Vivian by the exit after this. The shameless girl had Hester carrying some of the bags of things she’d bought in the festival marketplace. She had a manic grin.
“Looks like you guys had fun,” Vivian said.
Lenora realized Lysanter’s arm was still around her. It felt so natural she hadn’t been aware. She gave Vivian a grudging smile.
“Yes. I had fun.”
“I’m happy to hear that,” Lysanter said.
It was dark when they returned home. Hester parted from them on the first floor to go to his own dwelling. Vivian yawned and ran up the stairs to her room. Lenora moved slower since Lysanter’s arm was still around her.
“Are you tired?” he said.
“I’m exhilarated, but I’m sure the tiredness will hit me when I get into bed.”
He separated from her in the open lobby area at the top of the stairs. “Would you come to my room for a moment before turning in? I’d like to show you something.”
He asked this with his back to her. Lenora became dubious. “Show me what?”
Lysanter hesitated. He still refused to look at her. “My…manhood.”
Heat stung her face. “Oh.” Her heart rate sped up. The poor man seemed hideously embarrassed. She could have declined him and explained the Russian woman had already quelled her fears. But then…she was curious.
“You’re just going to show it to me? Nothing else?”
Now Lysanter turned to her. “I swear I won’t touch you. I’ll stand on one side of the bed and you can remain on the other. I’ll fold my hands behind my back. It’s…it’s just to reassure you, Lenora. I’m not trying to be obscene.”
She nodded. “No, I understand. I appreciate it.”
Lysanter’s room was through the largest door across the lobby. He had massive quarters with a fountain in the middle and tastefully laid out furniture. He led her to the bed in a circular alcove. Lenora went to one side and he went to the other. He began to take off the adornments on his shoulders.
“It seems less obscene to strip in full, rather than to just—expose that one part.”
Lenora shrugged like it didn’t matter to her. Her heart went even faster at the thought of seeing him naked. She’d noticed the well-chiseled body beneath his tight woven uniform a few times. This, along with his handsome face, was something she pretended not to notice. She knew she’d been assigned one of the most handsome grooms.
Lysanter’s muscular chest with sensual perked nipples and tightly packed abdominal muscles was revealed. She tried not to stare, but such a view required more than just a cursory glance. His arms looked strong. That appealed to her on some deep subconscious level. Lysanter looked like he could hold her and protect her from any of the dangers she perceived. Part of her longed to be held in those arms.
He tucked his thumbs into the top of his pants. “I’m going to expose myself now, Lenora.”
She nodded.
After a moment’s hesitation he did just that. She got a fast glimpse of the organ before he blocked it by bending over to remove his pants and boots in full. Then he stood and she was able to see it. Her eyes widened. The thing hung so long it was partially hidden by the bed he stood behind. It was thick, also—thicker than her wrist. And this is when he was flaccid? Horror struck like a hot slap to her face. She turned away.
“Oh my God.”
“Lenora?”
“This was supposed to squash my fears? You’re gigantic. You would tear me to bits.”
Lysanter became aghast. “You…you truly think this?”
“Yes. If it stayed the way it is now that would be fine. That’s huge, but not impossible. But you’re just flaccid. Once you get hard…”
“I don’t know what you mean by flaccid. There’s only one state for Dak-Hiliah men. This is it.”
Her brow furrowed. He was hard now? It looked loose and floppy. How could he penetrate her? She leaned an arm onto the bed.
“Can I touch it?”
Lysanter grimaced. “Yes.” He picked up the end so that it rested on the bed.
She crept over to him. It was making a soft curve where part of it was on the bed. Lenora felt sure he was flaccid. She met his eyes briefly, and then touched his shaft with a finger. The warm flesh felt spongy.
“Would you just be honest?” she said. “You’re flaccid. There’s no way you could penetrate me like this. The real thing I’m going to have to deal with is probably twice this size.”
He groaned. “Lenora, I wouldn’t lie to you. I don’t know anything about organs that grow or shrink. That’s not how Dak-Hiliah members work.”
“How would you ever get something this soft inside me?”
He groaned again. Lenora realized his face was blazoning crimson. His cock suddenly lifted off the bed. She jolted back. It rose out straight and stiff before him.
Lenora’s eyes widened (and sparkled). “It’s prehensile?”
“Yes.”
He moved it up and down, side to side. He made it take an S curve and then coil like a screw.
“Wow!” She grabbed it with both hands. This was even better than the shows at the festival.
“Gah!”
She squeezed up and down its length thoroughly with both hands. It had turned to a stiff muscle.
“Lenora—!”
She was too mesmerized to register his distress. “You’re right. This wouldn’t be so bad. It’s…amazing.” She pressed her finger over the length of his slit.
“Ahh!” Lysanter broke free and fell down behind the bed.
Lenora gasped. “I’m sorry!” What the Hell was she thinking? He’d gone to such a great length to reassure her and she’d acted li
ke an idiotic child.
“Leave.” His voice was strained.
“Lysanter—I’m sorry.”
“Just leave!”
Tears welled up behind her eyes. She couldn’t force herself to go. “Are you in pain?”
He gave a constricted grunt. “Painfully…aroused.”
Her face crumbled. This was the last thing she’d wanted. She’d gotten him worked up carelessly—without any regard to him. She couldn’t leave him like this. If he was suffering due to arousal then sex would make it right. It wouldn’t be any great trial for her to allow it to happen. She was attracted to him, and he’d proven himself honorable. It was all too easy for her to become resolute.
“I’m not leaving, Lysanter.”
His hand thudded onto the bed. He lifted himself enough for his auburn eyes to glare at her.
“You can touch me.”
Now his eyes bulged, but he didn’t come near her. Lenora took down the sleeves of her dress, exposing her breasts, and then pulled it the rest of the way off. She’d worn nothing beneath it, since the only undergarments available to her would have made the fabric bunch. She kept her eyes locked with his.
He looked over her with his eyes still wide. “You’re…giving yourself to me?”
She nodded.
“Are you certain?”
She beckoned him to her with a hand. “Come on.”
Lysanter stood. She could see he was trembling. He dimmed the light behind him and then crept onto the bed. With a slow, hesitant crawl he climbed above her. His hand smoothed her hair. His face was still questioning her, as if giving her a chance to push him away.
She swallowed. He was much larger than her, but rather than trepidation she felt a warmth inside. He was being careful, despite his discomfort. She truly felt that she could trust him.
“Do…Dak-Hiliah kiss?”
His lips quivered. “I’ve been…dying to kiss you, Lenora.”
Lysanter enclosed his mouth over hers to make a moist warm seal. He pulled back while still trembling. She could see him battling for restraint. Lenora leaned up and rejoined their lips. Then his hands closed tightly around her. His body pressed against hers and he crushed her mouth beneath his own. He cradled her with both strong arms while ravishing her lips. His passion had her stomach clenching. He was powerful and yet still careful not to harm her.
Bride Games: (Alien's Bride) Page 7