His teasing gaze slid across her bared skin and the tight uniform before settling on her scowling face. He sighed. “I guess I’m gonna have to settle for a drink. An Earth whiskey. No ice.”
Cimmaron nodded and turned to fix the pilot’s drink. After sliding the drink across the bar, she accepted the handful of credits he gave her. She moved on to the next customer, her mind still on the male she’d just served. He was much prettier than Tamaki, and he had music in his drawl. He hadn’t caused a single blip on her hormone radar while Tamaki— She broke off the thought to slam a flask of vroom on the bar, splashing a few drops over the shiny surface. It sizzled on contact before turning a milky white color then pink when the flash of lights caught it. “Sorry,” she said to the customer as she ran a cloth over the spill.
She moved to the next customer, ignored the attempts at flirting while she hummed along with the live band. Not bad for a change. The laughter became louder, more raucous as the night passed. She took her break and didn’t page Tamaki as he’d requested. Guilt assailed her briefly, but she shoved it away, telling herself she didn’t have time for a long break. They needed her back behind the bar because it was so busy. Time passed and, eventually, the punters started to leave in twos or threes, wobbling unsteadily through the door into the frigid Marchant morn.
Cimmaron swiped an errant lock of hair from her face and wearily started to restock the drinks behind the bar. On the other side, droids collected empty flasks and goblets, stacking them on the bar for washing.
“Have you seen Tamaki?” Rico asked.
“No.” She pushed aside the tiny bit of hurt that flashed through her. He hadn’t meant the friend thing. Friendship wasn’t possible, not since she was a Dlog. Dlog females didn’t have friends. They had mates.
“He’s not answering his page and we need him to sign off on the stock and send the transmission to head office.”
“Send security to get him.” Cimmaron scanned the remaining customers who were finishing off drinks. A curse echoed through the club. “Phrull, those idiots are gonna fight.”
Rico ran a hand through his hair, making it stand up in tufts. “I’d better help security. Go and get Tamaki. Remind him he needs to do the sign off.”
“Yeah. Okay.”
Rico grabbed her forearm as she passed. “Don’t go inside the room. Speak to Tamaki from the door.”
“Why can’t someone else go?” Cimmaron frantically searched for a way out. Avoidance was best. Every time she came within touching distance of the sexy male, she wanted more. She wanted taste as well as sight. She wanted…
Phrull!
“Go, Cimmaron,” Rico ordered, and before she could rally another argument, he leaped across the bar and waded into the skirmish.
A chair crashed over on its side. Hulk grabbed two beings by the scruffs of their necks and threw them toward the door.
Cimmaron dodged a groaning Vercops. His eyes bulged from their sockets—all six of them—while shrill distress calls from his mate filled the air. She ran up the stairs, her boots clunking noisily with each step. At the top of the spiral staircase, she turned to the left and hurried to the green room.
The microt she spied the privacy screen for the green room her heart started to pump faster. Something close to alarm prickled the hairs at the back of her neck. She halted outside the dense metal door. It was shut too. She reached for the door handle and hesitated. She wiped her moist palm on her shrinkton skirt and tried again.
“Phrull,” she whispered when her hand trembled violently. Each time she saw Tamaki, it was harder to resist his good-natured charm. And the longing… The longing grew stronger and stronger. She was a pilot, dammit. She threw her shoulders back and thrust open the door.
“Tamaki.” Cimmaron cleared her throat and repeated his name in a firmer voice. “Tamaki. Are you there?”
The fight downstairs was escalating. A loud crash echoed up the stairs. A male roared in his native tongue, the shrieks and clicks sounding fierce and furious.
Cimmaron peered around the corner. Someone was sprawled on the floor. All she could see was legs, but she thought it was Tamaki. “Tamaki?” No answer. Her brows drew together in a frown. She was going to have to go inside. Gingerly, she entered the room, holding her breath.
Tamaki was out cold, and for some reason, he’d ripped off all his clothes. She skimmed her hands over his naked body but could see nothing to indicate a wound. “Tamaki.” She shook him and he groaned.
The scuff of feet overhead made her jerk her head upward. A ceiling tile wasn’t on straight. She caught a flash of color. Someone was up there.
“Come down here, coward.”
A laugh resounded. Cimmaron froze. She knew that laugh.
“Not so smarti nowa, chica,” a voice sneered.
“Cimmaron, you shouldn’t be here,” Tamaki said in a groggy voice. He pushed to a sitting position. “Man, my head hurts. I heard a noise, but before I could turn around, someone zapped me with a stun gun. So hot in here.”
“You have no wounds,” Cimmaron said, staring into his beautiful blue eyes.
“I have a headache.”
They stared at each other for a long moment, and suddenly her uniform felt heavy and burdensome.
“God, you’re beautiful.”
“All Dlog are beautiful,” she countered. To cover her sudden confusion, she traced the whorls of his tattoo with her finger. Phrull, was that flirtatious tone her? She shook her head in an attempt to clear it, but all she could think of was Tamaki and how his cock felt buried deep inside her body.
Tamaki smiled and placed his hand on her thigh, running his fingers over the naked skin between her thigh-high boots and her skirt. His hand was warm and sent a shower of tingles surfing through her body.
Their gazes met and it seemed as if a gossamer cord drew them closer. She swallowed, the sound loud inside the quiet room. Tamaki’s fingers continued to stroke her thigh until a purr erupted from deep in her throat. They shouldn’t do this. She should leave. His fingers stroked across and up, edging to the plain regulation panties she wore. Her skin color deepened to a brilliant gold.
“We need to leave the room. Now. Before something happens.” Cimmaron thought about standing and leaving. She tensed for a scant microt, intending to move, then Tamaki’s finger slipped beneath the leg binding of her panties. It moved with unerring accuracy, stroking moist flesh and grazing across her clitoris. She sucked in a hasty breath, the ribbons of sensation making her body arch with pleasure.
“Do you want more?” Tamaki whispered, his breath warm against her ear. “I do.”
A sneering laugh rang out, jolting them both from the sensual web binding them together. They jumped to their feet and stared up at the ceiling. A fine mist showered down on their heads before the scurry of feet made it clear their watcher had retreated.
Cimmaron gulped, trying to retain the return to sanity, but Tamaki touched her. He trailed his hand across her bare belly. She shivered, losing the fight for reason and leaned into him so her breasts brushed his chest. Her nipples tightened to hard, achy points, and she stroked her hand down his cheek and chin.
“I want more.” A tiny voice at the back of her mind protested for an instant until Tamaki leaned in and kissed her, stealing her breath as he traced the curve of her lips with his tongue. She gasped at the jolt of sensation, and he took advantage, deepening their kiss. Slowly, he explored her mouth until pleasure coursed through her body. He tasted of spearmint tonight, of spicy heat and male. His muscles flexed beneath her questing hands, and the bulge at his groin pressed into her lower body.
Tamaki pulled away to glance down at her with a grin. “I believe I can give you more.” He tugged at the cloth covering her breasts, expertly removing it before she had time to blink. He let the blue strip drop the floor and traced the delicate veins visible beneath the surface of her skin. “You’re so beautiful.”
His fingers drifted across her collarbone and dropped to cup her b
reasts. He pinched one nipple until it turned a deeper gold. A sharp tug brought a corresponding pain. A good ache that made her cry out for more and arch her body into his touch. Between her legs, her moist folds grew wetter, her body needier. Her heart lurched painfully as the hard ridge of his cock pressed into her belly.
Without warning, he scooped her off her feet and carried her to the large bed. She bounced lightly before Tamaki covered her, his bulk preventing her from moving again.
“Kiss me, Tamaki. Touch me. Please.”
“Oh, I intend to,” he promised, and trailed his hands and mouth across her hipbone.
Cimmaron sucked in her breath at the tingle of teeth and the drag of roughened fingertips when he explored her body. She smelled his hot male scent and reveled in his touch. She parted her legs for him as he silently requested, her folds engorged and wet, so wet. “Tamaki.”
She shifted restlessly as he tested her readiness, his thumb teasing the sensitive nub nestled at her core. A jolt of pleasurable excitement made her breath catch.
Tamaki laughed softly. His invasive fingers drove her higher as they pumped deep inside her. They brushed and teased her clit. Fire whipped her sensitized body. He slipped his hands beneath her buttocks, lifting her to his mouth. His tongue teased her swollen flesh, flailing her clit and driving the sensations in her impossibly higher. She sucked in a deep breath, releasing it on a moan. By the goddess, his touch felt good. He delved between her legs, stoking her need higher, but not giving her enough pressure for release.
“Tamaki, please.” Phrull, she never begged, but she wanted to right now.
“You’re wet and swollen for me. Your skin glows gold and gleams for my possession.” He sounded smug, and she sensed rather than saw his grin. He pressed a kiss to her inner thigh, the stubble on his lean cheeks rasping against her soft skin. His tongue journeyed the length of her cleft, making her shudder with helpless need.
“Yes,” she whispered, a purr rumbling deep in her throat.
With one final lap of her clit, Tamaki moved up her body. He kissed her lips and she could taste her essence on his tongue. Desperate to have her pussy filled, she pushed him onto his back and impaled herself on his cock, increment by increment. She groaned and rode him, driving them both closer to fulfillment. His cock seemed to grow larger with each lazy swivel of her hips until he crammed her impossibly full.
He reached out to capture her breast with his hands before taking her in his mouth, drawing sweet circles around her nipple with his tongue. His eyes were a deep, dark blue and they caressed each part of her as she swayed above him. He made her feel beautiful. He made her feel powerful. Tamaki made her feel like a woman—a woman worthy of him.
As desire flared between them, her pace quickened. Tamaki rose to meet each downward stroke. Sensation grew, tingles spreading outward until she convulsed, coming with hard pulses of her pussy. Deep in her womb, she felt the spurt of his seed. She heard his groan of completion and fell forward until she rested against his chest, panting to regain her breath. Tamaki’s arms came around her, holding her so close she was aware of the thunder of his heart.
Cimmaron soaked up the novelty of being close to a male and the sense of rightness at being with this male. She didn’t want to move.
* * * * *
“Oh my God. You two have been at it again.” Rico hovered in the doorway, strain darkening his face.
Cimmaron let out a squeak, one that had no business coming from her throat. She scowled at the un-pilot-like sound and attempted to hide her naked body behind Tamaki’s greater bulk. He merely chuckled and drew her close so her breasts squished against his chest.
Then he stretched, looking like a lazy cat, supremely at ease with his nakedness. “Yeah. Life is good.”
Rico raked his hand through his dark hair. “That’s three times.”
“Four actually.” No mistaking the smug tone in his voice.
The sensual fog was starting to clear from her mind. Cimmaron stiffened and her eyes narrowed.
“Thrice a mate,” Rico said.
Cimmaron let out a screech that made Rico wince. Mated? They were phrullin’ mated? She thumped Tamaki over the shoulder, but the lazy lug merely grinned.
“Great, isn’t it?” He pressed a kiss to her bare shoulder and eyed her heaving breasts with interest.
“But I’ve been taking pills.” The words came out as a wail of horror. All her currency spent to keep her free of a male, to help her resist Tamaki. She was mated, mated to the smug male, despite all her careful steps to remain free. She wanted to qualify as a pilot, not act the slave for some bossy male. Phrull, the idea of popping out offspring every solar annum made her want to upchuck.
“No!” She yanked from Tamaki’s grip. The instant they were no longer touching, she felt a physical wrench in her gut. She took several steps away from the bed, aware of the pull to return to his side intensifying. The desperate need to touch him and reassure herself brought a scowl. They couldn’t be mated. They couldn’t.
“I’m so sorry, Cimmaron,” Rico said, his voice edged with painful sympathy. “There’s nothing you can do. You and Tamaki are mated for life.”
It was the quiet pain in his voice that made her accept the truth. Cimmaron turned to the male she’d mated with, part of her hating him even as the mating bonds writhed through her blood, tempting her to touch him. For a few seconds, she thought of how much she liked him and spending time with him, the way he pushed her, teased her in a way no other male had ever done before. She shoved the traitorous thoughts aside.
“Phrull,” she croaked as she took a step toward the bed. “I’m stranded.” Her voice held pain, bitterness, frustration and deep disappointment. “Stranded for life.”
Chapter Eight
“No!” Tamaki watched his mate pull on her clothes with quick, efficient movements. He had feelings for her. From the moment they’d met, the yearning to make her his had crept up on him, growing stronger with each passing microt. While his mind had told him he shouldn’t do this—it was against the rules—his heart had overruled him every time. He’d never wanted another female like this. He… Hell, he loved her. She belonged to him, with him. And somehow he’d prove it to her. This wasn’t just about the mating. He’d felt the longing even before they’d slept together for the third date.
Tamaki watched the flash of bare butt as she hurriedly dressed and her long, luscious legs as she thrust her feet into her boots. He watched the angry swish of her hips when she strode across the room and winced at the strident tap-tap of her heels as she departed. Despite it all, he couldn’t restrain a grin. His mate was a babe.
“Take that damn smirk off your face,” Rico snapped.
Tamaki sat up on the bed and stretched lazily before scratching his belly. His muscles felt well used but he couldn’t wait for another go round with his mate.
“Did you hear me? You’ve broken the no-fraternization rule. You’ll lose your job, man!”
Tamaki smirked and stood. “I don’t think so. Don’t dither at the door like a chaperone, Rico. I believe it’s safe to enter now.”
“No thanks,” Rico said with heartfelt sentiment. “I’m not stepping foot in this room until I know for sure it’s safe.”
“There was someone in the roof. I believe they’ve been misting a version of Earth’s Spanish Fly drug into the air—just enough to make the occupants of the room desperate for sex.”
“But Spanish Fly makes you keep going and going like that advertisement on Earth television claims about its batteries. You know—the one with the bunny rabbit.” Rico stopped when he saw Tamaki’s rising brows. “Or so I’ve heard.”
“I believe this is the version discovered on the planet Talon. You know, the newly discovered planet?”
Rico glanced at his timepiece. “Shit, I came up here to remind you about the reports for head office. They’re late. The window for transmission communication is almost closed.”
“Hell.” Tamaki bound off the bed
and hurriedly scrambled into his clothes. “Why didn’t you say so?” He sprinted from the room, down the corridor, and literally flew down the spiral staircase. At the base of the stairs, he came to an abrupt halt, and Rico barreled into him from behind. The main bar and seating area was a mess with chairs lying drunkenly on the floor, upturned tables and broken goblets strewn across the room. A security guard lay flat out on the floor with one of the barmaids squatting beside him. She dabbed at splotches of purple blood on his face and glanced up with a worried expression when they hurried past.
“What happened?”
“There was a fight,” Rico said. “Never mind that. We handled it. Get the figures through to HO before the transmission window closes. We don’t want an auditor droid landing here. They have no sense of humor.”
Tamaki gave a terse nod before striding through to his office. Luckily the figures were completed and ready to go. He plugged his code into a keypad to hook up with the satellite, and after checking the files were in the send box, he hit the transmit button.
The transfer process started smoothly, and he leaned back in his chair while he considered his problems. Or blessings, he thought with a sudden chuckle. Having Cimmaron as his mate was worth any aggravation he might suffer in his future. He sobered. How the hell was he going to get past the company strictures about fraternization? There were very clear guidelines as Rico had reminded him several times. After the scandal and lawsuit on Mars, all managers and senior staff had to sign the no-fraternization clause. He loved his job and didn’t want to give it up, but he had a mate now, for better or worse. They were a team for life.
A done deal.
Tamaki tilted his chair back on two legs, closed his eyes and concentrated. There must be a way.
His keyboard beeped and he punched in another code, an added security feature. This shunted the information through the final stage. While the figures were finishing transmitting, Tamaki continued to puzzle about Cimmaron. He liked her very much. He liked being with her and was happy with being mated. Okay. He loved her, dammit. A grin broke out. Hell yeah.
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