by Kate Rudolph
How would Doryan fit in?
Well, from the looks of it, just fine. Something settled within her at seeing him in her space.
He dropped his bag near the couch and looked around. Amy wondered what he saw. She’d lived alone her entire adult life, never once feeling the urge to invite any of her former partners to stay long term.
And now there was Doryan. She could imagine lazy mornings spent in bed. Late nights… also in bed. Her bed featured in a lot of her imaginings, but it wasn’t the only thing. Their chemistry might have been off the charts, might have been the thing that first bound them together. But it wasn’t all, and she wanted to get to know him in every way.
She wanted the time. And she hoped she’d managed to steal it for them.
“I’ll show you where the shower is. I think we can both do with the clean up.” She hadn’t meant anything by it, but when Doryan’s eyes flashed red she realized how else he could hear that.
Well… no need to disappoint.
She grabbed his hand and pulled him into her room. The bathroom was what had sold her on this place. The shower was big enough for two people and the water pressure was divine. And her mouth watered to imagine what Doryan would look like under the spray.
But she wouldn’t be imagining for long.
“You can put your clothes in the basket so I can wash them.” She pointed.
Doryan grimaced. “I think the pants are a loss.”
She hated the reminder that he’d been hurt, but Doryan without pants was a sight she wouldn’t get tired of seeing.
Doryan stripped with practiced efficiency, exposing himself with a casual confidence that stole her breath. She wanted to touch every inch of him, taste all of him, and then do it again.
“Denya,” Doryan groaned, and she watched in fascination as his cock twitched, plumping under her gaze. She couldn’t tear her eyes away. She’d already felt how it was different from a human cock, but now she could see it in the lights of her bedroom and she liked what she saw.
“Mate.” She smiled. She’d never imagined that there was anyone out there that could fit her like this, but now that she had Doryan, she wanted to revel in it. She pulled off her own clothes and left them in the pile beside Doryan’s. They could do laundry later. Now it was time to get clean… and dirty.
She led him into the bathroom and turned on the shower until the water steamed up around them. She encouraged Doryan to step under the spray. Though they’d been in the car for hours, he still had a bit of mud on him from his fight with the lieutenant and Amy wanted it gone. She reached for her soap and lathered up, running her hands over Doryan’s body and appreciating his muscles, letting her fingers linger when he groaned.
She loved the noises he made and wanted him to make more. And when her fingers found his cock, he did, arching into her and gasping out her name like a prayer.
Hot damn.
He thrust into her hand, but something impish possessed Amy to move on. They weren’t done yet, not by a long shot.
Doryan moved in close, burying his head against her neck and kissing her, teasing his lips and teeth against her skin until she knew he’d marked her. It sent a thrill through her, the thought of being branded by this man. Her own fingers curled, one digging into his thigh, though probably not quite hard enough to bruise. She wanted him wearing her marks as well, wanted everyone to know that he was her mate and they couldn’t have him.
The wave of possession was almost enough to stagger her. She’d never been like this before. But everything was different with Doryan, and she was determined to enjoy it all.
Doryan rinsed off and then it was her turn under the spray, his fingers teasing her with soapy caresses. His thoroughness was enough to leave her trembling and writhing against him, and when his lips found hers Amy surrendered to the kiss, to him.
His fingers found her entrance, toying with her, stroking her until her hips jerked against his hand, seeking out more contact. He caressed the nub of her sex, and she moaned, long and loud and perfect.
She wanted him inside her, wanted the fullness that he’d given her before, but the shower wasn’t quite big enough, and she was distantly worried about slipping on the wet tile. Whether Doryan shared her concern or could just read her body, he didn’t push for more, instead stroking and stroking until she came apart in his arms, shuddering against him.
And when she was recovered, or at least sure she would collapse into a puddle of satisfied woman, she wrapped her fingers around his thick length, memorizing the feel of his alien ridges and dips, and stroked, tight and fast, until he shot against her, the evidence of his release coating her belly until it washed away.
They stayed longer, relaxing in the heat until the water began to run cold. Amy nuzzled against him for another moment before turning off the spray and reaching for towels. She handed one to Doryan with a kiss and a smile and couldn’t tear her eyes away as he wiped himself down.
Already she wanted him again, but her body was getting heavy, sated with pleasure and ready to drop from exhaustion. The day had already been too long, no matter what her bedside clock would say. She just wanted to sleep, wrapped up around her mate, and let all the world’s problems melt away.
But Doryan stiffened beside her and his head snapped towards the door. “Someone’s out there,” he whispered, his claws flashing out. “Do you think NaMasee followed us?”
Amy had engaged the alarm, and since it wasn’t going off she had a good idea of who was outside. She braced herself. “I’m pretty sure it’s my brothers.”
Chapter Fifteen
AMY KNEW THEY HAD ABOUT thirty seconds before her brothers burst into her room. The steam from the shower would have heated the rest of the apartment and they’d probably heard the water shut off. Normal people would have given her time to get dressed.
Normal people would have knocked.
She should have never keyed her brothers into the security system.
“Come on,” she told Doryan. “We’ve got to get dressed.”
Her mate seemed to hesitate. He looked towards the door where her brothers had to be impatiently waiting. “My bag is out there. With my clothes.”
Shit. The pants he’d worn from the settlement would raise more questions, what with the dirt and claw marks, and Amy didn’t want this to take longer than it needed. But it wasn’t like she had to hide Doryan. She was a full grown woman, and if her brothers didn’t like that she was with her boyfriend they could shove it.
“I’ll get it for you,” she promised. She threw on her own clothes and had just thrown open the bedroom door when Luis got his hand on the knob. “Step back,” she told him, “or we’re going to have words.”
He got an eyeful of Doryan and opened his mouth, but Amy pushed past him and didn’t let him talk. She scooped up Doryan’s bag and marched back to the room. Her mate waited in the doorway and laid a gentle kiss on her before taking his things. “I’m going to call the others, let them know we made it back safely,” he said.
She nodded. It was probably better that she faced her brothers on her own.
Cris and Luis stood uncomfortably in her living room. At any other time they would have plopped down on her couch and turned on her holoplayer. They both had homes and families of their own, but somehow her house was more entertaining. At least when they wanted to be annoyances.
Now they looked unsure, caught between wanting to flee and ignore the evidence that their younger sister had sex, and wanting to storm into her bedroom and warn Doryan against hurting her.
“Sit down before you do something stupid,” she told them, pointing to the couch. “What the hell are you doing here?” Everyone knew she was supposed to be out of town for the weekend. “Please tell me you didn’t come here just to hang out when I’m away.”
Cris took a seat first while Luis seemed unable to look away from the door to her bedroom. “Kyla called Angela. Angela called me. I called Luis. We were concerned. But you seem… fine?”
> Was her little sister about to burst through the door? Amy hoped not. Two siblings was enough for one day. “And what did Kyla tell you?” It had taken years, but she’d learned not to give away anything to her brothers until she had an idea of where they stood. Otherwise things got… difficult.
Luis crossed the room but didn’t sit, and his arms were crossed so tightly across his chest she was a little afraid he might pull something. “She said you’d lost your head over a guy and abandoned a job. She wanted us to talk sense into you.”
For a moment hurt stabbed through Amy’s chest, but then she was reminding herself of who was talking. Luis had a way of making everything sound terrible.
Cris cleared his throat. “She said you left the site of your last job and left her in charge because you were protecting someone.” That sounded better. “And that you might have lost perspective.”
Well fuck her.
Okay, that was mean. But she and her business partner were going to have words when this was all over.
“No perspective lost,” Amy promised. “Yes, Doryan and I are seeing each other. Yes, it’s been a bit of a whirlwind, but it’s completely fine.” Even whirlwind might not have been strong enough to describe what had happened between them.
“An alien, Amy? Really?” Luis scowled and started to pace in front of the couch. “There are billions of humans. Why did you have to—”
“I don’t think you should finish that sentence,” she cut him off. Luis had always taken a harsher view to the alien presence on Earth, but he was getting close to outright bigotry and she didn’t want that in her house, especially not with her mate in the next room. “Doryan is my ma… man… friend. Boyfriend.” She stumbled, not wanting to drop the mate word, and given the way Cris and Luis looked at her, they sensed blood in the water. She needed to get them out quickly. “It’s been a very long couple of days and I need to sleep. Can we continue this inquisition later? When I’m not about to drop?”
“And yet you had enough time to—”
“Lu, shut the fuck up.” That was it. “I am nearly forty years old. I can make my own decisions. And Doryan is one of them. You don’t have to fucking like it, but you don’t get to come into my house and drop this bullshit on me. Got it?”
Luis looked ready to fight, but Cris stood. “Don’t,” he told their brother, holding a hand up. Then he turned back to Amy. “Kyla is concerned. She knows you. We know you. And we want to make sure that everything is alright. That’s all.”
“It is,” Amy promised. “Things are a little up in the air, but I’m sure of this, of him, down to my bones.”
Cris opened his mouth as if he had more to say, then closed it.
“I’m okay,” she said again.
“Can we meet him? Doryan?” Cris asked. Luis scoffed.
“When I’m sure you’ll be on your best behavior. Not today. I don’t want you scaring him away.” Not that she thought he’d run, but the full force of the Dalisay family could be a bit much. There were going to be uncomfortable questions and observations and she wanted time to prep her mate before it got out of hand.
“Family dinner?” Cris suggested.
“We’ll see.” Doryan was going to have to meet the family some time. She only hoped it didn’t end in bloodshed.
DEKE DIDN’T ANSWER his comm, so Doryan tried his twin, relieved when Brax immediately picked up. The younger man looked harried, and it must have been a hectic few hours since Doryan and Amy left.
“You made good time,” Brax said.
Doryan stood near the bedroom door and tried to make out what Amy’s brothers were saying to her. The sounds were muffled, which was probably for the best if he was going to give his full attention to Brax. “Any updates?” Doryan asked. He didn’t want to waste time chatting.
Brax sighed. “Things have moved fast. They found Linda Marino at a nearby transport depot and took her into custody. The sheriff’s men haven’t told us anything, but I think they’re satisfied that she did it. NaMasee tried to start something up, but Kyla shut him down. He made noises about wanting to take off, but the police still need to talk to him. If I were a betting man—” there was a quickly whispered conversation on the other end of the line, though Doryan couldn’t see who Brax was talking to. When he smiled, it was clear it was Vita. “Which I’m not,” he added with a pointed look to his mate, “I’d guess that he’s going to come after you soon.”
“That’s not surprising.” It was too much to hope that leaving the settlement would take care of matters. “Is Amy in any trouble?”
Brax shook his head. “The sheriff wasn’t happy, but he’s too busy to get too upset.”
Good. That was good. Doryan didn’t want his mate getting in trouble for him. “Deke was going to get some information for me…”
“About the not-so-soulless warriors?” Brax asked. He smiled. “Congratulations, by the way. I didn’t know it was possible, but you deserve all the happiness. Especially after…”
“I don’t want to talk about that.” His abduction had been terrible, but at least the horror was blunted by the cloud of soulless memory.
Brax nodded. “Of course. But we’ll want to meet her properly. Introduce her to your family.”
It caught Doryan off guard. Family. The Legion was supposed to be his family, but they’d abandoned him long before he was left in space. They saw the soulless as tools, not people. But the NaZades had taken him in, even when he felt nothing, acted like nothing, and they’d accepted him for who he was. Doryan couldn’t find the words. Not then, so he just nodded.
“Anyway, Deke is trying to set up a meeting. We’ll let you know when and where, but it should happen soon. Will you be alright until then? We can come to you. We’re leaving the settlement today, anyway.” Brax looked so serious that Doryan wanted to smile.
“I’m fine. Good. We’ll be prepared if the lieutenant shows up, or if a contingent from the Legion knocks on our door. I’m not sure what happens next, but I have hope. For the first time in a long time.” His face hurt from smiling so much, the muscles not used to the action.
He and Brax disconnected and Doryan tried to hear what Amy and her brothers were discussing again. Still muffled.
He wasn’t sure if she wanted him out there. If he had any thought that she was in danger he’d leave the room in a flash, but she’d seemed mildly annoyed by their presence, not worried. And though he was still reacquainting himself with the nuances of emotion, he knew his presence could tip her brothers into stupidity.
So he gave her time. If everything worked as it should, they’d have years yet for him to get to know her family. And whether they had a good or bad first impression, he wasn’t going anywhere.
Not by choice.
But the Legion wasn’t something that either he or Amy could fight. They were trained, armed, and ready to take down any threat to the Detyen people. Would they say that Doryan was one of those threats? Could he pin his hopes on NaFeen and NaDetya to come through for him?
He didn’t know. He shouldn’t hope. But he’d spent so long unable to do so that the emotion burbled up in him and he couldn’t tamp it down. He wanted decades with his mate, wanted to know her and love her exactly as a Detyen should. Her presence in his life was a gift he had never expected to receive, and he couldn’t let it be taken away.
But he didn’t know how to make sure they could be together when forces stronger than either of them were going to come for him.
Maybe he should have reported right back to the Legion as soon as he’d arrived on Earth, but if he’d done that he would have never been at the settlement to meet Amy. And though it turned out they’d lived in the same city for months, he wasn’t sure fate would have brought them together any other way.
It was going to be okay, it had to.
The muffled voices rose and then a door slammed. Doryan was stepping toward the bedroom door before he could consciously decide to move, but then the door opened and Amy appeared, her expression wry.
“The coast is clear,” she said, but she stepped into the room instead of inviting him out. “Brothers,” she sighed and sank down onto her bed.
“I wouldn’t know.” Then again, Brax had said he was family. Did that make Shayn, Deke, and Brax his brothers? He didn’t think they were that close, but they were something. Doryan lay back on the bed beside his mate and pulled her into his arms.
She snuggled close. “Any family?” she asked.
“My parents weren’t mates,” he said. It was a common occurrence in the Legion. “They died when I was young. I barely remember them.” He’d been raised communally, another common practice. It gave him close ties to his fellow soldiers. Or it should have. Those ties had dissolved when he’d lost his soul.
Amy laced their fingers together. “Well I’ve got a big ass family who’s going to adopt you, whether they like it or not. But I get to keep you to myself a little first. Sleep and you, that’s what I love right now.”
Doryan’s heart beat fast and he wanted to ask Amy if she meant it. But she gave a long sigh and surrendered to her first love, sleep, before he could make sense of her words.
There’d be time tomorrow, and Doryan let sleep take him. He had his mate with him, they’d solve everything eventually. For now he was going to enjoy the soft feel of her pressed against him, her scent enveloping him.
Nothing better.
Chapter Sixteen
DORYAN HAD NEVER APPRECIATED a full night’s sleep more, and waking only made it better. He and Amy slowly made love, worshiping each other’s bodies until they were too sated to move. And when it was time to finally get out of bed, he couldn’t stop touching his denya. And from the way she grinned at him, she knew.
They spent a lazy morning in her apartment. There wasn’t much to do until Deke came through with the meeting, and going outside could easily lead to Doryan being spotted by someone in the Legion. He didn’t mind staying inside for now, but he could already feel a restlessness beginning to prick beneath his skin. If they were stuck here for long, he might begin to chafe at it.