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Her hands stilled at the unexpected reaction. Warmth from his scalp drove the chill from her fingers, and his long hair swayed on the wind, caressing the sensitive skin of her inner wrists. She’d never experienced hair like his on a man before. It was far too soft and full, propping up her cologne model theory.
Whatever product he used, she wanted to get some for herself.
Adria ignored his masculine sounds of encouragement and continued her search of his skull. She found nothing to indicate he’d been hurt, but she was no doctor. He could have some kind of internal damage for all she knew, leaving the hospital the best option.
She moved away to shut the car door, but he stopped her, grabbing her wrist so fast she didn’t see it coming. He tugged her down so that her face was near his own, then slid his fingers into her hair as she’d done with him only a moment ago.
“I was just checking to see if you were hurt,” she explained as she would to a small child. “We need to get you to a hospital. ”
The explanation didn’t seem to reach him. Nor did he stop what he was doing.
Merciful heaven, that felt good. His grip quivered with restrained power, moving with purposeful intent. Searing points of heat flowed along her scalp, circling and massaging away the rest of the universe. Nothing mattered but those ten points of contact and the radiant pleasure sliding into her.
A look of contentment painted his sooty face. Muscles lining his broad jaw relaxed. The furrow between his brows smoothed. His eyes didn’t look so blue anymore, but he shut them before she could figure out what made them seem so odd.
The comforter fell open without his clutching grip, revealing a narrow view of his contoured chest leading down into mysterious shadows hiding flesh she ached to see. It wasn’t right for her to go all lecherous with an accident victim, but faced with a rare sight like him, she couldn’t help herself. Even dirty and brain damaged, he was still more man than she’d ever had within her reach.
His fingers tightened against her scalp, sending delicious streamers of pleasure sliding over her skin. She hadn’t been touched by a man in a long time—not since William’s death—and despite his being brain-scrambled and accident prone, this stranger’s touch still felt like distilled heaven.
He opened his mouth and fluid words poured out like liquid, bathing her in the most beautiful language she’d ever heard. Of course she had no clue what he said, but as the seconds ticked by, she was content to simply close her eyes and listen.
A heavy lethargy fell over her, weighing her down, blurring her thoughts until she couldn’t remember what she’d been about to do. It had been important.
Work? Maybe. Probably. But whatever it was, she couldn’t recall her exact task, nor did she care. A sense of peace seeped into her, burning away all worry until all that remained was the stranger’s touch on her skin and his beautiful voice driving the rest of the world away.
Chapter Two
The human woman thought he was an idiot—some kind of bumbling fool or child who accidentally toppled into a hole large enough to house a small family.
Toren was no fool. Nor was he guilty of the crime that had landed him here on this prison world—on Obliterra.
Rage burned low and hot within him, smoldering and useless. Already he could feel his powers fading. He had not been here long, and yet the dampening effect of this world was already sucking the life from him.
He had to get back home and make things right. His sister’s death could not go unpunished.
This small human woman was the key to his escape, and he was going to use her as such. As keys went, she was a delightful one—so open and concerned. Gaining her trust would be a simple matter.
She sagged in his grip as he pulled from her the basic information he needed to survive. Communication was vital, so her language came first. It was choppy and needlessly complicated by the lack of magic to aid understanding. Still, he absorbed all of it he could, unsure of which pieces he might need.
He found her name and practiced the sound aloud. “Adreeahbenwah. ”
She let out a soft noise of recognition, and it stroked over him like the lightest touch, making him aware of just how lovely his self-proclaimed rescuer was.
Her skin was darker than his, with a warm glow his kind could never achieve under their sun. He splayed his fingers along the side of her face, marveling at the contrast. Even the feel of her skin was strange—softer than his own, pliant and supple under his touch. She molded to him, absorbing his heat as easily as the slight pressure of his fingertips. That softness made her vulnerable, but he could not stop himself from enjoying it all the same.
Her body was lush, with sweeping curves that reminded him of tendrils of steam curling over a heated pool. The contours of her waist and hips called to him, making his fingers tighten against the need to see if he was right.
She was small, with delicate limbs. Lacking the natural power that his people took for granted, he had no idea how she had survived to become an adult. Surely even a small predatory animal could have killed her with ease.
From childhood, Toren had heard stories of the beautiful, helpless humans who thrived in the prison planet of Obliterra, but until now, he had never believed them.
An entire race of fragile beings who lived without magic? It was a ridiculous notion. There had to be more to the story of her survival than what was on the surface, albeit an alluring, intriguing surface.
Her eyes fluttered open. The black fringe of lashes was an extravagant tease, shadowing her expression. He tried to gauge her mood by the color of her eyes, but they were the same dark brown color as before. He had never seen eyes so dark. She did not seem to be aroused, but his body was reading the signs as it had been taught to do.
A woman with eyes that dark would take what she wanted from a man if he did not simply offer it. And yet this woman did not appear to be interested in doing anything of the kind.
She blinked at him in confusion, a sleepy lethargy slurring her words. “What did you do to me?”
“Adreeahbenwah,” he said, enjoying the strange feel of her name on his tongue. There were other parts of her he would like to taste, but his first job had to be finding his way free of this unjust imprisonment.
“Adria,” she said, cutting her name short. “And you didn’t answer my question. ”
Toren had no idea how he was going to explain how he had learned from her. She had no experience with magic. The only trace of knowledge he had seen had been surrounded by a firm, unyielding disbelief. There was no foundation on which he could build. It was best to ignore her question and move on to what was truly important. “I need your help. ”
The sluggishness she had suffered at his absorption of her language was fading fast. He watched as she gathered herself. First her long, curling lashes swept up, her dark eyes widening with realization that he was supporting most of her weight. She straightened her knees and shifted her stance so that she was no longer depending on him to stay upright. Her teeth caught and held her bottom lip, daring him to kiss her and suck it from that stinging bite. Before he could, she stepped as far away from him as his grip would allow.
He was not yet ready to let go of her. He liked the delicate feel of her limbs encircled by his hands. It reminded him to be careful with her and to treat her as he would a rare flower.
But those eyes… those dark eyes of hers were tempting him, making his body heat in response to a woman in need. Those eyes did not ask for delicate treatment—they begged for the hard, fast relief of climax, over and over.
The urge to ease her was nearly as overwhelming as it was untimely.
Her throat moved as she swallowed nervously. “Let go of me and I’ll get you to a hospital. ”
Toren searched for the meaning of the word, seeing fleeting images of sickness and pain associated with it. Adria had suffered in such a place. They had tortured her and taken something important from her. He was not abou
t to allow her to take him there. “No. ”
“What do you mean no? No to letting me go or no to the hospital?”
He didn’t want to do either, but he sensed her growing agitation at his nearness, and decided that it was best to do as she requested and release her.
As soon as his hands left her body, cold air stole her warmth from him. Irritation grated just under his skin, but he hid it. “I have requirements. ”
One dark eyebrow lifted as she stared at him with some kind of expectation he could not translate. Her voice was quiet, but the tone of contempt running through it confused him. “Requirements? You crash my first vacation in years and you have requirements?”
Perhaps that was the wrong word. It certainly seemed to be the wrong one. “Needs?” he asked, hoping for her approval.
She still appeared skeptical. “What kind of needs?”
Toren opened his mouth to answer, but found he had no words she would understand for what he required. He could have shown her, but touching her again was likely not the wisest course of action. Making this woman trust him was of the utmost importance for his return home.
He finally settled on, “Food,” hoping that a shared meal would help ease her mistrust of him.
Sympathy drew her brows together, and her lovely lips parted on a soft sound of offered comfort. The dent left by her teeth kept drawing his attention, urging him to lick away the mark.
“I didn’t even stop to think how long you might have been trapped in that hole,” she said. “Were you even conscious the whole time? Come inside and we’ll get you what you need. ”
Her acceptance drove back some of his anger at being cast out of his home world unjustly. She seemed willing to help, and right now, his options were few. He had no clothes, no food, no family or friends, and very little magic left within him. If he was going to make it out of this prison and back to where he belonged, he was going to need this fragile human’s aid.
“Have you already killed the food?” he asked her.
She looked at him as though puzzled by his question. “Uh. No. ”
“I will do it for you,” he offered. He had no weapons, but he was strong. Surely any world where a creature as delicate as Adreeahbenwah could survive would not have predators too dangerous to kill with his bare hands.
She opened a hidden metal compartment in a large wheeled box, and pulled from it several sacks. “Just carry in a couple of bags and keep yourself covered. That’s all the help I need. No killing required. ”
He took the sacks she handed him and clutched the blanket closed as requested. Trailing behind her like a pet was not something he was used to doing. His lineage was noble, his bloodline powerful. Crowds parted to allow him to pass. And yet as he watched her move, he could not help but enjoy the way her sweetly rounded hips swayed slightly as she walked. If he had to slink along behind someone, he was glad it was a creature as captivating as Adreeahbenwah.
The small home was dark, but smelled of soap and fruit. She moved twigs protruding from the wall as she passed, causing lamps to ignite in the ceiling.
The walls were rough logs, ornamented with images of wild seas and mountains. A colorful rug filled the center of the room, separating a cold hearth filled with logs from a narrow bed and several padded chairs. All of the furniture was wrapped in brightly colored fabric. Perhaps skin as supple as hers needed such padding to prevent damage.
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