Having marked the pillar in his mind’s eye, he had a better sense of the area. He turned toward her and hurried forward. “What are you offering?”
She released a squeak, and her feet whispered over the sand in retreat. He knew he was closing in on her by the strength of her smell and the sound of her movement.
He knew he’d won when her laughter filled the air.
Arkon opened his eyes as he lunged forward. Her eyes were wide and bright, her smile radiant, and her scream brimmed with humor. Arkon threw his arms around her, and they fell together. He turned before they hit the ground, wrapping his tentacles around her and taking the brunt of the fall — which was softened by the sand — on his shoulders.
She shook with laughter, and her curls fell over his chest to tickle his skin.
“You’ve not told me my prize,” he said.
Aymee placed her hands on his shoulders and pushed herself up, grinning down at him. “What would you like?”
As he paused to consider — she’d left open too many possibilities for his imagination to adequately examine — he realized their current position. Her pelvis and breasts pressed against him, and his tentacles were coiled around her thighs and waist, his hands on her back. The salty-sweetness of her skin — laced with something more — delighted him. Quite suddenly, his self-control was in jeopardy.
She lifted a finger to touch his bottom lip, lowering her head. Her hair fell to either side of his face, curtaining them from the outside world. “Perhaps a kiss?”
His breath shallowed, and his skin blazed. Everything but he and Aymee was unimportant, faraway, forgotten.
Kraken didn’t kiss.
But Macy and Jax did. Often.
He could do little more than nod.
She smiled, holding his gaze as she eliminated the remaining space between them. Her warm breath danced on his skin, and his hearts raced. She touched her lips to his.
Arkon closed his eyes and tugged her closer. Her lips parted, and she applied more pressure, first at one corner of his mouth, then the other, and finally at the center.
Colors exploded behind his eyelids; he didn’t even have a name for most of them, but they stole his breath. She stole his breath.
Holding perfectly still apart from the trembling of his hands, he inhaled, taking Aymee into him until she filled his entire being. She cupped his jaw, fingers spreading on either side of his siphons as the press of her lips grew firmer. Another scent clouded his senses — that mysterious, alluring hint he’d tasted before, stronger now than ever. It settled over his mind in a maddening fog, pouring fire into his veins.
He curled his tentacles up along her legs, reaching for the source of the alluring aroma.
Aymee gasped and stilled.
For the second time, his conscious mind noticed their position — noticed her pelvis was settled over his slit, and only her body weight kept his throbbing shaft hidden. The slightest easing of pressure, and he’d extrude immediately.
Arkon opened his eyes to see Aymee staring down at him.
“I hope your reward was worth the risk,” she whispered. The dark pools of her eyes were filled with uncertainty and desire, mirroring his own emotions.
His nostrils flared as he released a slow, shaky breath; its speed was deliberate, but not its unsteadiness.
Calm. We were caught up in the moment, but the moment has passed, now… Regardless of how much I want it to continue.
“A thousand times over.”
His hearts thundered, and Aymee’s fingers were points of molten pleasure on his skin. Her entire body lay pressed against his, molded to him. How could he calm himself when she was touching him like this?
If she moved before he’d cooled off, how could he keep from extruding? How would she react if he did?
She smiled, but this smile was different. It was slower, almost self-satisfied, and it sparked a new light in her eyes. Her thumbs brushed along his cheekbones. “I’m glad.” She raised her head, lifting away her dark hair, and evening light flooded in to drag Arkon back to reality. “It’s getting late.”
Calm. I don’t need to embarrass myself any further or frighten her away.
“Is our time already coming to an end?”
She looked down at him, melancholy writ upon her features. “It is.”
The thumping of his hearts faded, giving way to the gentler sounds of wind and sea. “Shall we meet again tomorrow?”
“No. It’s too soon.” Idly, she stroked her thumbs over his cheeks and jaw. “I don’t want to draw suspicion. The leader of the rangers…” Her brows knit, creating a small crease between them that he wanted to soothe. “I think he’s taken a liking to me.”
There was a sinking, twisting sensation in Arkon’s gut, and his breath stuck in his lungs for a few moments after he meant to exhale. His lingering arousal vanished that quickly, though his hearts didn’t slow, and his blood had scarcely cooled. Instinct urged him to tighten his hold on her. Demanded he not let go. The mere thought of her with another male stoked a rage in him he’d never known.
“You’re turning red,” Aymee said, awe in her voice. She returned her hands to his shoulders, propped herself up, and let her gaze wander over his face and torso.
He forced himself to take another slow, deep breath, but such feelings were not easily expelled. His skin reverted to normal, but not without effort. “When can we next meet, then?”
“In three days.”
“Two.”
She grinned. “Are you that eager, then?”
Eager enough that I’d consider coming tomorrow, just on the tiny chance you’ll be here.
“I enjoy our time together.”
“Me too. Two days it is.”
Arkon stared up at her, committing every tiny detail of her face to memory. The sea crashed into the land and receded, crashed and receded, and the sun continued its slow, downward trek.
Aymee laughed. “You’ll have to let me go sometime, Arkon.”
“Let you go?”
She wiggled her hips and thighs.
Were it not for his embarrassment, her movement might have rekindled his desires. He unraveled his limbs from around her, relinquishing the possessive hold he’d taken. “Apologies,” he muttered.
Aymee brushed her palm along his cheek, offered him a tender smile, and rose. She set about collecting her belongings. Arkon got up and helped shake out the blanket, fold it, and pack the basket.
“May the stars smile upon you tonight, Aymee,” he said when they’d finished.
She stood on her toes and pecked a kiss on his cheek. “And may your dreams be filled with color, Arkon.”
Cheek tingling, he watched her go. Each of her steps was a little more weight on his chest, but when she turned to look at him over her shoulder, a thrill coursed through him. Soon, she walked around the bend and out of sight.
Arkon pressed the pads of a finger to his lips and cheek, which still thrummed with the ghost of her kiss.
These were likely to be the longest two days of his life.
Chapter 5
The clinic creaked in the howling wind, and its windows rattled with each boom of thunder. The storm had come upon The Watch without warning in the middle of the night — not unusual during the wet season — and had raged throughout the day.
Aymee propped her chin on her hand, watching the rain batter the windowpanes. Enough water streamed down the glass that the building might as well have been standing in a riverbed.
Most people stayed indoors during such weather, which had made for a slow day at the clinic. It was just as well — Aymee was having a hard time focusing. Her father had departed an hour earlier to attend a bedridden mother-to-be and, left to her own devices as evening approached, she found herself uncharacteristically morose.
The change in her was astounding; a few days ago, she’d been content to wait patiently through an entire week just to chance a glimpse of Arkon. Now, every hour was a battle against her craving for his prese
nce.
She smiled, brushing a fingertip over her lips. She’d kissed him.
What had Macy felt, what had she thought, the first time she kissed Jax? Surprise? Shock? Had she been confused to feel something so powerful for something — someone — so different, so other?
When Aymee looked upon Arkon, she saw something…familiar. A kindred spirit. His physical differences were nothing to instill fear and disgust; she’d been awed and inspired by him from the first moment she looked upon him.
Her finger paused on her lower lip, and for an instant, she felt his mouth upon hers again. He’d gone so still, his muscles tense, eyes wide with astonishment, and she’d known he’d never been kissed before. A thrill coursed through her at the knowledge — the thrill of being the one to give him that experience. She’d wondered, as she lay atop him, his limbs coiled around her legs and waist, if kissing wasn’t the only thing he’d never done.
But how could that be? Arkon was powerful, agile, and intelligent — his people had to see that, too. Perhaps only kissing was new to him.
Aymee straightened in her chair and looked down at the desk. The papers spread over its surface were covered in sketches of Arkon’s hands in varying poses. She traced her finger along one of the many lines — the webbing between forefinger and thumb — and recalled the feel of his hands. Heat sparked inside her.
She’d desired other men, but what Arkon made her feel with a simple glance was beyond comparison — and beyond her understanding.
With a sigh, Aymee gathered the papers, slipped them into her leather satchel, and closed the flap. There was no point sitting in the clinic alone watching the rain fall. Though the night ahead seemed impossibly long, tomorrow would come.
She just hoped the storm would pass by then.
After ensuring everything was clean and the supplies were stored, she turned off the lights and made her way into the front room. She looped the satchel strap over her shoulder, pulled her coat on over it, and stepped out into the downpour.
Cold wind pelted her with stinging rain, soaking the bottom of her skirt before she’d managed ten steps. She paused in the middle of the square, shielded her eyes with a hand, and glanced toward the promontory, where the lighthouse’s signal blazed in the gloom — danger, danger, seek out shelter.
Lightning streaked across the sky, illuminating the pale cylinder of the lighthouse. A deafening crack of thunder followed.
“It’s really not safe to be out here in this storm,” someone said behind her, their raised voice muted by the howling wind and torrential rain.
Aymee started and spun to see Randall Laster standing a few feet away, water streaming from his dark green poncho. “You should come into the town hall until the lightning lets up, at least.”
Her gaze shifted to the warm glow spilling from the windows and open doorway behind him.
“The lightning could last all night,” she said.
“Wouldn’t hurt to give it a little more time, would it? Warm up and have a few drinks.” Randall glanced over his shoulder. He and his rangers were sleeping on cots in the town hall’s back room while they were in town — not necessarily the sort of company she was eager to keep. She had no wish to find herself in another heated discussion with him.
“My home isn’t far.” Aymee glanced up as another bolt of lightning divided the sky, followed immediately by an earth-shaking boom.
“If it’s not far, why not have a drink with me? Then I can escort you home and make sure you get in safely.”
Aymee frowned. “I don’t—”
“Please,” he said, stepping closer. “Just as two people looking to unwind, not as a ranger and a doctor.”
Blinking against the rain, she searched his face. It wouldn’t kill her to be kind to him, to mend whatever discord existed between them. It could even curb her impatience. Sitting at home and staring at the walls wouldn’t make tomorrow come any faster, so why not seek a brief distraction?
“Okay.”
He smiled and stepped aside, gesturing her onward. “After you.”
She hurried across the square and entered the building. Heat settled over her as she removed her coat and hung it on a peg near the door. When she walked into the common room, the townsfolk within greeted her with smiles and waves. She’d expected a few familiar faces, but at least a dozen locals were seated at the bar and tables, chatting and drinking.
“Hello Aiden,” she said to one of the men at a table near the bar. The gray streaks at his temples seemed a little more pronounced every few days.
He twisted around in his chair and grinned when his eyes met hers. “Aymee! What a pleasant surprise. What are you doing out in this storm?”
“I was just leaving the clinic.”
“Closing early?”
“No one wants to brave this weather.”
“Except Miss Rhodes, apparently,” Randall said from beside her.
“Is that so?” Aiden chuckled. His gaze dipped to her skirt, which was dripping enough to have formed a small puddle on the floor beneath her.
“Sorry. Randall caught me while I was walking home.” She seated herself on a stool at the bar.
Randall sat next to her, leaning forward with his forearms atop the bar. “How about a couple mugs of that mulled cider?”
“Sure, just a few minutes,” Aiden said, giving them his back.
“It rains like this back in Fort Culver during the wet season, too. The river that runs nearby always floods and washes out the bridge,” Randall said.
“Every time?”
“They’ve had to rebuild it almost every dry season for as long as I can remember. They make it a little higher each time. I think it’ll get to a point where they build it so high, it’ll just tips over on its own, without any flooding necessary.”
Aymee laughed, and Randall smiled; the expression touched his eyes and lit up his face.
Why hadn’t she reacted to him the same way she did Arkon? He was a physically attractive man and seemed to be a decent person, once she looked past his wanting to hunt her friends, but she felt only a flicker of interest that dissipated as quickly as the smoke from a freshly extinguished candle.
“Why don’t they build a floating bridge?” she asked.
“There was a pre-fab bridge placed there during the colonization. Was supposed to be sturdy enough to last until production facilities were up and going and something permanent could be constructed.” He shook his head. “That’s most of the stuff on this world, right? It wasn’t meant to last this long. So, when that original bridge collapsed into the river, the people built the best replacement they could. Didn’t have the parts to make anything like the dock you have here.”
“Here you go!” Aiden set two steaming mugs in front of them and moved off to speak with someone else.
Aymee wrapped her chilled hands around the cup and slid it closer. “Do you think it was always the plan to drop us off with this stuff and abandon us here?”
Randall lifted his mug and sipped at it, wincing. “Always burn my mouth on the first drink, but this stuff is so damned good.”
Aymee chuckled.
He lowered his drink and stared into the steam. “I don’t think that was the plan at all. Something happened here on Halora, and something happened out there — a war, I think — and it all just kind of fell apart. They forgot about us after that.”
“I’ve always found it strange that we know so little about that history. Like this place. Why is it called The Watch? What were they watching for? I always assumed it was because of the lookouts at the lighthouse watching for storms, but that doesn’t feel like the right answer.”
“Your guess is as good as mine on that. All I really know is that Fort Culver was a military base, originally, and when everything went bad, my ancestors received a final order: defend the remaining humans against anything that comes, to the last man.”
Aymee raised her mug and blew away the steam before taking a careful sip. The pairing of heat and s
weetness was almost overwhelming. “So, you’ve been trained from birth to be a ranger?”
“Yeah. My father’s in charge back home, and the tradition of it is considered a big deal.” He shifted his voice to a deeper timbre. “For three hundred and sixty-one years, every member of our family has served the people of Halora in this capacity, and you will, too.”
She arched a brow. “Must have been pretty intimidating to hear that growing up.”
Randall chuckled and took another sip of cider. “It was. I resented him for it, you know? But I understand. Sometimes it seems like everything on this planet is designed to kill us, even the damned plants. So we’re the ones who go out and kill it first. It’s not glamourous work, but it’s important.”
So we’re the ones who go out and kill it first.
Aymee dropped her gaze to her drink; it was cooling but retained a comforting warmth that she focused on to ground her thoughts. Their conversation didn’t need to continue down that path.
“Do you have any other family, Randall?”
“Yeah, I have a sister. Larkin. Everyone calls her Elle.”
“Is she a ranger, too?”
“She is. It was pretty hard on her, growing up. She had a soft spot for animals since she was little.” The fondness in his voice was unmistakable.
Aymee smiled. “You two are close?”
“We are. Our father tends to keep her nearby when he sends me out, though. He thinks we soften each other up too much to be effective, or some krullshit like that.” He frowned and glanced at Aymee. “Sorry. Rangers don’t usually mind their language.”
“It’s all right. I’ve heard a lot worse treating injuries in town.”
“How about you, Aymee? You have a brother, right?”
The leather strap of her satchel bit into her neck, rubbing uncomfortably against her skin. After adjusting it and finding little relief, she finally lifted the bag over her head and laid it on the bar. “Yes, Andrew. We’re not close. My parents had difficulty after he was born, some complications, miscarriages. He was already nine by the time they had me.”
“I’m surprised I haven’t met him yet. I’ve been talking to as many people as I can since I got here.”
The Kraken Series Boxset: A Sci-fi Alien Romance Series Books 1-3 with Bonus Exclusive Short Story Page 36