The Quantar Trilogy - Book I

CHOSEN : THE CHRONICLES OF WINTER …He leaned in closer. I shut my eyes and savored his smell. Several tendrils of his ...

Author: Bacchi Laura

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CHOSEN : THE CHRONICLES OF WINTER

…He leaned in closer. I shut my eyes and savored his smell. Several tendrils of his long, dark hair caressed my cheek. His breath was hot on my neck and made my spine shiver with longing. I thought I would melt right then and there. His warm palm had made contact with my bottom, brushing off whatever was on my backside and shattering my reverie. “What the—” “Just repaying the favor.” Brogan returned his gaze to mine and raised an eyebrow. “Your bumper needed cleaning, too.” The last pass on my cheeks lingered in a soft caress. My whole body hummed, and I didn’t need a mirror to know my face was a blazing scarlet. He took a step back and playfully tilted his head. “You know, any woman in her right mind would have stomped off by now. Why are you still here?” I crossed my arms again and pondered what I should say. With a sheepish expression, I told him the truth. “I’ve become quite, um, attached to your truck.” He reached down and pulled at my dress. “Well, this could be a problem.” His green eyes burned through me. My mouth went dry. “If you’re not detached soon, I might end up ramming you from behind.”

ALSO BY LAURA BACCHI Chella’s Quest Lucky In Lust Relic Of The Heart

CHOSEN: THE CHRONICLES OF WINTER BY LAURA BACCHI

AMBER QUILL PRESS, LLC http://www.amberquill.com

CHOSEN : THE CHRONICLES OF WINTER AN AMBER QUILL PRESS BOOK This book is a work of fiction. All names, characters, locations, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination, or have been used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead, locales, or events is entirely coincidental. Amber Quill Press, LLC http://www.amberquill.com All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be transmitted or reproduced in any form, or by any means, without permission in writing from the publisher, with the exception of brief excerpts used for the purposes of review. Copyright © 2006 by Laura Bacchi ISBN 1-59279-494-7 Cover Art © 2006 Trace Edward Zaber

Layout and Formatting provided by: ElementalAlchemy.com

PUBLISHED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

To Gina Avalos, for your eyes and thoughtful feedback. And to my sister, Amy Richardson, for a shoulder to lean on.

CHOSEN: THE CHRONICLES OF WINTER

CHAPTER 1

“Can this guy go any slower?” Bailey strangled the steering wheel and rolled her eyes. A huge red Ford had blocked our path for the last fifteen miles, churning up dust left over from the dry Carolina summer. The monstrosity of a truck barely fit on the right side of the road and made it impossible for us to pass. “It’s just a barbecue at the Elks Lodge for Christ’s sake. They’ll still have plenty of food when we get there.” I chuckled. “And maybe we’ll see one of those aliens everyone’s been talking about on the way.” Bailey’s frown deepened and her eyes left the road to scan the trees on either side of her Jeep. I gave her a nudge. “You look like you actually believe the rumors.” When she didn’t answer, I nudged her again. “I’m waiting for my favorite skeptic to speak up. Don’t tell me you believe all that nonsense.” “It’s on film, Winter. Green balls of light followed a flying saucer1


like object down into the northern neck of the swamp. Cliff at the Herald took the pictures himself.” Bailey tightened her grip on the steering wheel. “And the National Enquirer was in town.” “The Enquirer, eh? That should be your first clue it wasn’t a UFO. Some people said it might be swamp gas.” I pressed on. “Did anyone from the government show up in black suits and sunglasses?” She took her gaze off the road again to glare at me. “No. They probably thought a bunch of drunk hicks made it all up as a prank.” “You think there’s something to it?” When she gave no response, I went back to the previous subject. “Any idea what the driver up ahead looks like?” I craned my neck to get a peek, but the dusty road made it impossible to tell if the driver was male or female. “Why? You wanna ID him after I beat him to a pulp for driving too damn slow? He’s going more than twenty miles below the speed limit.” She sighed in frustration and added, “You’d think he’d want to floor that bad-ass truck through these rough roads.” I arched a brow in her direction. “What makes you so sure the driver’s male?” Bailey narrowed her eyes. “Winter Anderson, you honestly think a woman would waste her money on that frivolous, alpha-male toy?” We hit a particularly bad patch of road, and sleek strands of blonde slid from her ponytail, framing her plump face. I offered an alternate theory. “As close as you are to the bumper— which by the way is probably why the driver keeps getting slower and slower—you should notice that the license plates spell out something we women joke about all the time.” “Huh?” Bailey leaned over the wheel to get a better look. I read out the letters in a teasing drawl. “S-Z-E-M-T-R-S. Size Matters.” “Well, size might matter to this jackass, but speed limits and gas 2


prices apparently don’t.” Bailey shook her head in disgust. The truck’s taillight flashed, announcing a right turn. Bailey’s Jeep followed. She eased up on the gas pedal and gave me a fearful look. “You don’t suppose they’re going to the Elks’, do you?” “I’m guessing they are. What else is back here besides good ol’ Lodge No. 45?” Then, realizing this was a plea for reassurance, I decided to torture her a little. “Hopefully, he or she won’t beat you to a pulp for riding their ass all the way there.” Bailey blew a lock of hair out of her line of vision, then stuck her tongue out at me. I grinned. “And if they’re going to the 45, we’ll get to meet the mystery driver.” Sure enough, the truck pulled onto the bumpy path leading to the lodge. The truck parked close to the entrance and far away from all the other vehicles. “Must be worried someone’s gonna hit his precious hunk of metal.” She refused to look at the driver when we passed. I spun around in my seat to see who it was. “It is a man. And he’s as massive as his vehicle. At least what I can see of him.” I giggled before facing front again. “And if he’s pissed that we were riding his ass, tell him I was driving.” Bailey frowned. “Why the hell would I do that?” I checked my lipstick in the rearview mirror. “So you can tell him that I deserve the same treatment I gave him.” Bailey laughed and slid into a spot close to the building. “If he’s that hot, I’ll take the blame.” I scanned the back seat of the Jeep. “Did you bring your camera?” “Of course. I’m the Elk historian.” She reached behind her seat to grab her bag of photo gear. “Why? Want a shot of yourself in that little black dress? You could use it when you sign up for Bobbie Joe and Bucky’s Dating Service.” 3


“Very funny.” I hopped out of the car dressed to kill. The snug black dress was way too sexy for a late Saturday afternoon get-together at the Elks. It screamed, “I’m finally free, take me!” Millie at the House of Curl had refused to dye my hair red this morning and instead had created a dramatic up-do that was holding up better than I thought given the October humidity. An ashy blonde ringlet dangled over my right eye, and more curls cascaded from the twist on top. The black fuck-me heels with thin cuffs at the ankles finished off the look. The usual suspects were there already, beers in hand. Bailey’s uncle had been cooking since dawn, but still waved cheerfully when we approached. Everyone knows everything in a small town, and word had spread quickly that my divorce was final. My neighbor Lilly looked up from cutting one of her world-famous pies. “Are you wearing that hot little get-up for a night on the town later on?” “Yep. I’m on a manhunt tonight. All you single men within earshot, consider yourselves warned.” I smiled, and everyone laughed. “Can anyone recommend a good bar in town?” This only made them laugh louder. There was only one bar in town. And my husband Josh—make that ex-husband—owned it. Big Jake was the first to reply. “Yeah, Big Jake’s got a reputation for giving the ladies a good time. Come on by.” He grinned up at me. Big Jake stood a good five inches shorter than me, and that was when I wasn’t wearing heels. I sauntered up to him and toyed with the collar of his shirt. “What are the house specials tonight?” The crowd took turns calling out suggestions. Very suggestive suggestions. “Sex on the beach.” This got a few groans and hoots. “And sex on the couch, the bed, and maybe even the kitchen table.” “That’s a helluva lot for a girl to take in one night, don’t you think?” My lips melted into a teasing curve as I pressed closer to him. 4


“Big Jake might not be all that big, but he’s got stamina.” The group of Elks laughed and hollered some more. “Then I guess I better eat up.” I gave him a wink and strolled off to find the food. While we were eating, my gaze kept drifting toward the truck. Bailey balled up her napkin and bounced it off my head. “Didn’t you get a good enough look earlier?” “I haven’t seen him since he parked. Since I know everyone here, I should be able to pick him out easily. Maybe he’s admiring the stuffed elk heads or something.” A sharp elbow made contact with my ribs. Making fun of the lodge mascot was a favorite pastime of mine, and it aggravated the hell out of Bailey. “Maybe this is a good time to do what I was thinking about earlier.” I grabbed our plates and tossed them into a nearby trashcan. “Hey! I wasn’t finished—” I ignored her and dragged her and the camera toward the truck. “Still got film?” “Yes.” “Anyone looking?” Bailey snickered. “Every red-blooded male in Hertford County.” “Very funny. How about now?” We had edged our way to the last vehicles near the lodge. Bailey scanned the crowd. “No. We’re free, I think.” “Okay. I want you to take some photos of me with the truck.” “Duh. I figured that one out already. May I ask why?” She propped a chubby hand on a full hip. “I’m going to send them to Josh.” “And tell him the truck belongs to your new boyfriend?” Bailey stopped when we reached the vehicle in question and powered up her camera. I threw her a saucy look before dropping to one knee at the front 5


bumper. Leaning down, I arched my back and stuck out my rear. Enough to be enticing but not too campy. Then I placed my hands on either side of the license plate as if to measure it. Bailey shut her eyes and groaned in disbelief. “Those divorce papers have gone to your head!” But best buddy that she was, she removed the lens cap and began to shoot. Click . Naughty smile. Another click. “I thought Josh would appreciate these. He was always so sensitive about his measurements.” Bailey snorted. “Apparently not enough to keep from testing the depth of every willing male asshole within a hundred-mile radius of his hometown.” I exhaled and tried to release some of the anger. “Thank God he wasn’t fucking me the last year of our marriage. And before that, he always insisted on wearing a condom. I guess I should count my blessings.” “You can say that again.” Bailey had stood by me throughout the whole ordeal. I pulled myself up and sat on the big shiny bumper. “More?” Bailey looked surprised. “How about this?” I lifted my dress and spread my thighs to reveal the plate. A quick glance to the picnic area assured me no one was looking our way. I grew bolder and inched the dress higher. The lace edging of each black thigh-high stocking came into view, followed by a sliver of skin from each leg. Then I tucked the back edge of the dress securely out of view to let the plate show and dipped forward to show some cleavage. Click. Wicked grin. Click. Tongue grazing the corner of my lips. Click. The crunch of approaching footfalls interrupted my fantasy of revenge. Several guys leaned out of the front window of the lodge and 6


whistled. A man’s voice called out, “Hey, Brogan! Someone’s buffing your truck with her pretty little ass!” “Oh shit.” I jerked upright and faced the large man who appeared from the entrance side of the lot. Beer in hand, he propped his elbow on the hood. I took a step backward and realized the hem of my dress was caught behind the plate. Since fleeing the scene was no longer an option, I backed up to the truck, crossed my arms, and hoped to appear confident as I turned to meet this man they called Brogan. “Hi there. Nice truck.” “Hi there, yourself.” He extended his hand. “I’m Brogan Di-Taur.” Any measure of calm, cool, collectedness high-tailed it out of my brain the instant he spoke. He had a deep, sensual baritone, the kind of earthy voice you want talking dirty to you during a good screw. And his emerald green eyes had a small halo of yellow around immense black pupils. Well, maybe scrap the word “halo.” There was nothing holy about this man and the gaze he had locked on me. I shook his hand. The silence stretched between us, making me more uncomfortable by the minute. And he knew it. His smile widened, and those green eyes traveled up and down every inch of my squirming body. My face was on fire with a full-blown lust flush, the kind that stopped mouths from functioning and hearts from beating. Then it dawned on me that Bailey could possibly save my ass. Kind, supportive Bailey who…was laughing her head off at a picnic table far away. He walked around to the other side of me. I seized the opportunity to tug on the dress. No dice. I spun to face him and caught him staring at my rear. “I must not have done a good job of cleaning my bumper this morning.” His drawl was seductive and strange at the same time. And his last name sounded European. He definitely wasn’t raised in this part 7


of North Carolina. I flashed him my brightest smile. “That’s what I thought too, with all the leaves and dust settling this time of year. So I decided to help you out.” I sounded like a complete idiot. He must have appreciated the humor because he let out a breathy chuckle. The scent of beer and a whiff of some incredible aftershave wafted my way. I gulped and tried to regain control of my senses. Then I shifted my stance and cringed. My panties were wet, the kind of wet you get from hours of good, solid foreplay. He leaned in closer. I shut my eyes and savored his smell. Several tendrils of his long, dark hair caressed my cheek. His breath was hot on my neck and made my spine shiver with longing. I thought I would melt right then and there. His warm palm had made contact with my bottom, brushing off whatever was on my backside and shattering my reverie. “What the—” “Just repaying the favor.” Brogan returned his gaze to mine and raised an eyebrow. “Your bumper needed cleaning, too.” The last pass on my cheeks lingered in a soft caress. My whole body hummed, and I didn’t need a mirror to know my face was a blazing scarlet. He took a step back and playfully tilted his head. “You know, any woman in her right mind would have stomped off by now. Why are you still here?” I crossed my arms again and pondered what I should say. With a sheepish expression, I told him the truth. “I’ve become quite, um, attached to your truck.” He reached down and pulled at my dress. “Well, this could be a problem.” His green eyes burned through me. My mouth went dry. “If you’re not detached soon, I might end up ramming you from behind.” He slid his thumb through a belt loop, daring me to respond. Somehow I kept my jaw from becoming completely unhinged. I put 8


my hands on my hips and retaliated with all the brazenness I could muster. “Sturdy gals like me can handle a little ramming from behind.” When I looked him up and down with a steamy leer, his face became unreadable. He changed the subject. “Does size matter?” “To me or to most women?” I needed to stall, to find some other ammunition to fire back at him. He certainly hadn’t been fazed by anything I had said thus far. “I’m asking you.” I tried to get my bearings, but the fire between my upper thighs made it damned hard to think. “Length is nice. Girth is better.” I decided to keep things direct and simple. Witty retorts weren’t exactly leaping off my tongue. Then I made the mistake of looking at the bulge in his jeans and lingering there. “And lucky for me, you seem to be blessed with both.” The words had bypassed my brain and run straight out of my mouth. His smile vanished. He leaned down to place a hand under my dress and grazed the inner curve of my thigh. Fingers explored both the lace and the skin, while his other hand checked out the hem caught behind the plate. When he lifted the front of my dress and held it with his thumb, the smell of my arousal filled the air between us, making it obvious I was horny as hell. “It’s a bit tangled. This could take a while.” He looked up to gauge my reaction with those gorgeous eyes as his palm swept higher on my thigh. My tongue darted over my lips in expectation. I had a good idea about what he was planning to do. And I could hardly wait. My eyes searched the lawn and building. Luckily everyone was out of sight, probably congregating around the kegs set up behind the lodge. I met his gaze, giving him permission to do whatever he wanted. My breathing accelerated when his thumb released the fabric. At 9


least that would cover what was happening should someone get close. Then I braced myself with the hand still on the hood and parted my legs. As his fingers touched black satin, the air rushed out of my lungs and a spasm of pleasure shot through my pussy. His breaths came quick and hot through the thin crepe of my dress, scorching the same thigh he had caressed moments ago. He stroked the crotch of my panties, probably encouraged by the fact they were completely soaked. A soft moan escaped me, and I fought to remain standing. My body rocked with every subtle movement of his hand. When he made his way to the edge of my panties, I grabbed a fistful of his thick hair. I needed to scream and writhe and show him exactly how much I wanted him. Why did we have to be in a public place? A finger crept under elastic and played in the slickness beneath before tracing my inner lips. Then he explored the center of me, whitehot and molten, slipping the finger in and out as if he had all day to coat the whole of my cunt with the wetness he had created. His hand finally picked up speed, coiling inside my pussy until I almost begged him to slam me against the truck and fuck me blind. Without warning, he pulled out, and I whimpered in response. But I forgave him with a soft gasp when the pad of his fingertip found my clit. He circled it and teased it until my knees buckled. Chuckling, he wrapped his free arm around me for support. He continued to probe the swollen stripe of flesh, searching for the perfect spot to make me scream. He must have sensed that I was ready to explode, because he cruelly whisked his hand away. I wanted to throttle him. My eyes flew open, and I yanked the hair threaded through my fingers. “Don’t stop.” His expression offered some sympathy. “If you come right here, I have a strong suspicion that it’s not going to be too subtle.” He let go of the dress, and the back of it was free. “If it’s any 10


consolation, I’m close to bursting myself. Tell your friend I’m taking you home.” It wasn’t a request. I pushed away from the vehicle. One thigh pressed against the other in an effort to steady myself and clamp down on the floodgates above. Brogan put his finger between his lips and sucked. That’s all it took. I clenched my sex to stop the first wave of pleasure that rolled through me. Holding back only heightened the sensation, and the lips on my face quivered like the ones below, unleashing a torrent of sensations. My womb rocked and shuddered as each blissful jolt pounded in my clit. The intensity of the climax took its sweet time subsiding. Slowly, the sounds of the picnic registered in my ears. I expected to see a smirk or some other sign of self-satisfaction on his face. His features displayed shock and remorse instead, like he was beating himself up over what he had done to me. “Get in the truck, Aly-enna.” He startled me with his gruffness and whatever the hell he’d just called me. I couldn’t move. “Now.” The command came through gritted teeth. For some stupid reason I got in the truck.

11


CHAPTER 2

We rode in silence. He wouldn’t even glance at me. After about ten minutes, he slipped a CD in the player. The music was strange, almost trancelike. Harmony and dissonance merged in ways I had never imagined. I ventured my best guess. “Brian Eno?” He wrinkled his brow at the name. Guess not. “You wouldn’t know them,” he mumbled. I strained to hear him over the vocals and percussion that dominated the track. It was mesmerizing; I drifted off to sleep more than once before we reached the cabin. Maybe cabin wasn’t the right word for the little shack that lay hidden in the swampy woods. Years back, it was probably home to some crazy moonshiners like the ones I talked about with my seventh grade class this week. I studied my driver as we parked, and I wondered what lay ahead 12


for me. He didn’t seem too interested in sex anymore. In fact, he looked quite tired. Hopefully he was too exhausted to cut me up into tiny pieces after the night was over. Then again, if I died tonight, I wouldn’t have to face my bratty students come Monday. He rubbed his face and climbed out of the truck. Wet sucking sounds met his shoes when he climbed down. The slurping reminded me of what happened earlier, and I cringed. “Wait a sec. It’s a mess out here,” he yelled. Kind of like my underwear. Maybe he didn’t want my shoes to get muddy because they’d provide a clue to homicide detectives once my body was finally found. Or maybe he was simply being gallant. He opened my door and slid me close before slinging me over his shoulder. This was definitely not how I expected to be carried by a man who had recently sent me into the stratosphere. I held tight to him while he squished his way to the shack. He set me down gently at the front stoop and fumbled with the ancient lock on the cabin door. It opened into a small room containing some shabby furniture, a large-screen TV, and a tiny kitchen area. And there was Max. Well, maybe not Max since he was here with this man named Brogan. A huge mongrel with strange features, this dog had made himself at home in the shed behind my double-wide during the last few weeks. He greeted me as usual, happy tail and, I swear, something very close to a smile. “Hi, Max.” I beamed at the creature. Brogan didn’t argue with my name for the mutt. He slung his keys onto the kitchen table and left the room. Max didn’t seem too concerned about his master. The couch appeared clean enough so I made myself at home. Max hopped up and crammed as much of his body into my lap as he could. I petted him the way he liked and inhaled his familiar scent. I should have known 13


someone was taking care of him. He wasn’t scrawny, and he always smelled clean. Brogan must not let him outdoors much. There were no muddy paw prints anywhere. Bare feet trod across the worn floorboards. Brogan settled into a raggedy lounger facing us. He was shirtless. He was beautiful. His chest rippled with muscles kissed bronze by the sun. Thick silver rings pierced his dark nipples, and I twisted in the cushions, feeling the lust from earlier in the day return in full force. An exquisite band of color encircled each of his upper arms. Tattoos? It was too dark to tell. If they were tattoos, they were unlike any I’d seen before. The colors seemed luminous even in the dark, and the skin appeared raised like a brand or scar. Max batted my hand with his paw. I had stopped petting him in mid-stroke while imagining how his master’s skin would feel under my hands. The weight of my canine buddy kept me from squirming again. Brogan picked up a candy bar from a small table at his side. I ignored him and concentrated on the dog. A chunk of chocolate zipped by, hit Max in the ribs, and thumped onto a coffee table made of two cinder blocks and a piece of plywood. “Dogs can’t eat chocolate.” I snatched it away with a scowl. “And pelting him with stuff isn’t nice.” “He can handle it.” Brogan broke off another piece. “I’m not kidding. There’s a chemical in the chocolate that can—” Another piece whizzed by and landed on the floor out of my reach. Max bounced down to beat me to it, and when I leaned forward to grab it, I noticed something peculiar about Max’s legs. They became hairless right before my eyes. And larger. The bones of his feet changed shape in one swift, effortless motion. Dark fur grew back into his flesh. My eyes traveled upward and nearly bulged out of their sockets. Max wasn’t a dog. He was a man. A very naked man. And when he 14


turned to the side sporting a huge grin on his face, he also proved to be a very well-endowed man. “Get dressed, Juroo.” Brogan’s tone was dismissive. He sent another hunk of candy his way, and the man caught it in mid-air before laughing his way to a back room. “I don’t recall you giving me a drink today.” The initial shock was wearing off, and I had found my tongue. “Are you thirsty?” “Nope. Just wondering if I’m under the influence of some very bizarre drugs.” He chuckled almost bitterly. “You may want some before all this is through.” My heart beat in triplicate. I hadn’t gone back to tell Bailey where I was going. I was stuck here, alone in some creepy cabin with two strange men. I took solace in the fact that they hadn’t padlocked me to a tree or worse. At least not yet. Brogan wouldn’t talk, but he sure looked like there was something he needed to say. For starters, he should explain my stray pooch’s magical transformation. Something on the TV caught his attention. An ad for the U.S. Navy asked viewers if they wanted to travel to exotic places and sign up for adventure. “How would you like to travel to exotic places, Aly-enna? Are you up for some adventure?” “My name is Winter.” “I know it is. Answer the question.” His tone was frosty. He balled up the candy wrapper and squeezed it in his fist. I had never told him my name. Maybe the guys at the lodge had mentioned it. A chill ran through me, numbing my feet and hands. My fear meshed with disappointment; I had never thought myself the type to freeze up in a harrowing situation. He continued to hold out on me. Between commercial breaks, I 15


picked up on voices in the back room. A woman’s voice. Someone I knew. Relief swept through me. We could get out of this together. Whatever this is. The interchange between Max and the female seemed to be a discussion but a cordial one. My mind swung back to his question. Josh had left me saddled with $50,000 in credit card bills and unpaid loans for the bar. The settlement wasn’t fair, but I wanted him out. He kept twice that much debt for himself. It was fairly honorable since he could have run off to Bora Bora with one of his boy toys and stuck me with all of it. Plus I hated my job. Teaching is a noble profession, but I hadn’t been feeling very noble lately. And classes had just begun. I told myself this wasn’t a good way to start off the school year, but the pep talk did little to change my attitude. The kids’ behavior got more outrageous every fall. No one would stand up to them or the parents whose “little angels” were always in the right. And if you did (as I had last March—not pleasant), our administration wouldn’t back you up. The whole school environment was out of control. If it hadn’t been for the debt, I would have gone back to college and changed careers. To be honest, a little adventure sounded fine to me. “I’ll bite.” I leaned my head back and tried to relax. “Aly-enna means Chosen One.” He searched my face for a reaction. I was getting squeamish again. “Are you one of those D & D freaks?” “Not unless you want me to be.” He leered at me, and I frowned in confusion. “D & D, that’s the chains and spanking stuff, right?” I shook my head. “No. Those would be other letters of the alphabet.” I shifted in the sofa and tried not to think of doing things like that with him. “Dungeons and Dragons. The role-playing game with creatures and warriors and priests.” “Sounds like real life to me.” 16


Before he could explain further, the back bedroom door opened. I jerked my head around to see whose familiar voice I had heard. Clarice Binchez emerged from the dimly lit room. I knew that voice all right. It screeched at me on a daily basis. She was the nurse at the middle school where I taught. Hopefully she didn’t know it was me who gave her the nickname Nurse Bitches. If this adventure involved her, you could count me out. Then again, it could be her evil twin since her voice actually sounded pleasant tonight. She stood by the couch and flattened her chest with crossed arms. Maybe something about me set her off. She certainly seemed nice enough talking to my pup, Juroo. Her eyes bored into me with contempt. So much for getting help from her. My best guess was that she offered me in exchange for her own freedom. “You going or not?” Ebony corkscrew curls glinted in the poorly lit room. She had gorgeous hair. The light reflected off the sheen of her deep red lips and the peach of her dress. I had never seen her wear anything but white. A delicate necklace twinkled at her collar and mimicked the stones dangling from her ears. Apart from her annoyance at me, she looked happy—happier than I had ever known her to be in the five years we’d worked together. “Am I going where?” Clarice cut her eyes at Brogan. “When are you planning to tell her?” “It’s not the easiest thing to explain.” She turned back to me. “I’ll tell it to you straight. These men are from outer space. The guy who sent them is Ichori, the High Commander, and he’s chosen you to be his woman. With me this far?” “Sure.” I pasted a tight smile on my mouth and played along. Brogan watched my every move with an expression that betrayed no emotion. I scanned the room for a phone. They must have used all the drugs on Clarice. I had thought for a moment that she could get us out of 17


here, but counting on her to help me out of this situation was no longer an option. I needed to come up with Plan B. “These two are hunters. They are paid to search for people like criminals and kidnapped women and stuff.” “But they want to kidnap me?” This was ridiculous. “Not exactly.” Her curls danced as she shook her head. “Not exactly?” I planted an elbow on the edge of the sofa and set my chin on my knuckles to keep my jaw in place. “You can choose not to go.” The look on her face told me that’s what she was hoping. She paused, and her features softened. “But the way they describe this place will make you want to go.” I brushed that comment aside for the moment. “How do you know this Ichori guy will like me?” Brogan’s deep baritone chimed in. “He chose you for his life-mate.” “But he hasn’t met me.” This was going to take a while. I kicked off my heels and tucked my legs under me. My dress crept up my legs, exposing a good portion of the thighs he had touched earlier in the day. His eyes darted to my hose-covered skin, and his fingers dug deep into arms of his chair. He cleared his throat. “It’s difficult to explain. When he saw your photograph, it was as if he knew you.” “What photograph?” This was getting creepier by the minute. “The one you put on the Cassini-Huygens probe. It was intercepted by our border patrol.” He smirked, adding, “By the way, your planet wastes a lot of time and money sending stuff to the wrong places. A portal to our planetary system lies between Jupiter and Saturn. Ichori’s men took everything from the device and sent it back out. Inside was a picture of you at a ceremony. And lucky for us, you listed your location on the back of the photo.” The image he described flashed through my brain. Me and Bailey at graduation. The probe for Saturn was being launched that summer, and 18


we sent in our photo as a lark. We called it “Blondes in Space.” I took a deep breath and analyzed everything said thus far. Either Bailey was carrying out an elaborate hoax or this hot man was telling the truth. Juroo’s trick had been pretty convincing. “Does the High Commander look anything like you?” I could wish. He glared at me and shook his head. Most guys would be flattered. “I need some time to think it over.” Too bad this Ichori guy wasn’t Brogan. I would have packed in a heartbeat. “We leave before noon tomorrow. We’re already way behind schedule.” Juroo snorted. “If we can leave at all.” Then he grabbed Clarice’s hand and took her back into a bedroom. Brogan hissed at him with words I couldn’t understand. It was a sensual language, and his sexy voice complemented the sounds well. Rising slowly, he gestured to the back rooms. “I’ll sleep with Juroo. You can share a bed with Clarice.” I tried to hide my disappointment. After what he did to me at his truck, I was still wet and ready for more. “But I have a lot of questions.” He began making his way past me, and when he did I sprang from the couch and started to put a hand on his forearm. He caught my arms above the elbows to keep my touch at bay. “You can ask Clarice,” he said. “We aren’t exactly on the best of terms.” Scanning his chest, I focused on a nipple. It hardened under my gaze. A quick glance to the other told me it wanted some attention, too. I imagined licking the dark nubs with my tongue and tugging lightly on the metal rings that rose and fell with the rhythm of his breathing. Brogan put a few more inches between us. I ignored his stern look and let my eyes go south to assess what was happening below his belt. The low light of the room kept his body’s reaction to me a secret. “You’re not making this easy for me, Winter.” He let out an 19


exasperated chuckle. “In fact, you’re making it quite hard.” “I was hoping to return the favor you did me this afternoon.” “About this afternoon…” His smile vanished, and his fingers tightened their grip. “That was a mistake. It won’t happen again.” “Not if I can help it.” He changed the subject. “I’m waiting for your questions, Winter.” I gave it my best shot. “Got any condoms?” “No. Next question.” I ran my tongue over my bottom lip. “Can we go get some?” “No. Three more questions.” That caught me off guard. “Wait a minute. You never told me I could only ask five. When did that become a rule?” “Now you’re down to two.” He was trying not to grin. One corner of his mouth rose, and the stony expression in his eyes softened. “If I didn’t put a limit on your inquiries, we’d be here all night.” “And that’s a bad thing? Oops—” My hand flew toward my mouth, but couldn’t reach it because of the hold he had on my arms. “Don’t answer that.” His look turned mischievous, and my knees turned to mush. Questions whizzed through my mind—there were a ton. “Okay, how do you know English so well?” “Your satellites send out signals which we deflect back to our planets. American television is huge on my base planet, Xerres. For the final episode of Friends, Ichori declared a weeklong national holiday.” “That explains a lot, I guess.” I paused for a moment to come up with my final question of the night. “No more questions?” He loosened his grip. “What’s Ichori’s favorite show?” He laughed and released my arms. “Iron Chef.” I laughed, too. “And what’s yours?” “I believe you’re over your limit.” He scolded me with a half-smile. “Indulge me.” 20


Brogan raised an eyebrow. “I indulged you this afternoon.” He turned toward the other side of the cabin. “I don’t watch much television.” Clarice emerged from the bedroom, then disappeared behind another door. As he left me alone to question my sanity, I heard him mutter under his breath, “But I’m hoping that what I’ve seen on Junkyard Wars will help us leave tomorrow.”

21


CHAPTER 3

The scent of vanilla slammed me in the face when I opened the door to the cramped bedroom. Clarice perched on the edge of the bed, ignoring my entrance. I stared into the battered mirror, watched her rub lotion onto her deep brown skin, and waited for her to look up. When she didn’t, I flung myself onto the small squeaky bed and made her jump. “Why do you hate me, Clarice?” She still refused to look at me, but grunted in response to my question. I sighed and thought about undressing. Sleeping in a bra didn’t appeal to me. I forced my body to stand and went to ask Brogan for a T-shirt. I certainly wasn’t going to ask Clarice for any favors. His door wasn’t completely shut. The light in the room revealed the shadow of a man in his prime. The shadow slid along the wall and took off its underwear. I eased the door open for a peek at the real thing. 22


My heart did a double take. He was magnificent. Every line of his body created a landscape of male perfection. His ass was a light tan, the same color as the rest of him, and tight enough to bounce a dime on. Juroo lay balled up in a heap of pillows. He looked straight at me and interrupted my peeping with a soft whine. When Brogan turned to acknowledge Juroo, the front of him took my breath away. His cock hung heavy and thick against two plump balls. The shaft was sinewy and rippled. Ridges swirled along the length of him without any discernable pattern. The head dangling at the end was enormous. I had never seen anything like it. “What do you want, Winter?” He was failing miserably at looking nonchalant. His package throbbed, and he tried to shield it from me with the pair of briefs. “You really don’t want me to answer that.” I leaned against the doorjamb and felt the steam blur my vision. I wondered what he would taste like in my mouth. But since we had little privacy, I decided to behave myself. “Do you have a shirt I can sleep in?” He reached over to open dresser drawer, fished one out, and tossed it to me. I walked in and gave Juroo a scratch behind his ears. “I take it Juroo prefers a dog’s life.” “He says his senses are more alert that way.” I snickered. “Clarice never struck me as a doggy-style kinda girl.” Clarice’s voice boomed through the paper-thin walls. “I heard that.” Several muffled words followed, but luckily I couldn’t make them out. My eyes traveled back to his crotch. The briefs lifted slightly. His feet shifted on the creaky floorboards, but his gaze stayed locked on mine in challenge. “Maybe Juroo would prefer to sleep with Nurse Bi”—I barely caught myself in time—“Nurse Binchez.” 23


Juroo stood and started to switch forms. Brogan uttered a sharp command in that foreign tongue, halting any further change. Juroo whimpered and dove back into the pillows. “Nice try, woman. Good night.” I gave a little pout and pushed away from the doorway. When I got back to my room, Clarice was already in bed. I undressed by the light of one small lamp. Although it was pointless, I decided to ask anyway. “Can I borrow a toothbrush and toothpaste?” “Hell no.” Settling into the lumpy bed, I tried to ignore her and began weighing the pros and cons of boldly going where no Hertford County resident had gone before. But she kept wiggling and yanking the covers away from my side. We needed to talk this out if we were going to get to the far reaches of the galaxy without killing each other. “Why do you hate me, Clarice?” “You gave me that nickname.” She knew. I sat up. “Look, when you came on board, I tried to befriend you for months. And after all your icy stares and repeated snubs, that name slipped out in the teacher’s lounge one day. It wasn’t deliberate. Everyone laughed, and it stuck. I’m sorry.” She didn’t respond. “What gives Clarice?” “I’ve known plenty of white girls like you in small towns like this. You want that token black girlfriend to pal around with at work, but in the end I’m not one of your kind. Get it?” I touched her on the shoulder. “I’m not like that.” She shrugged off my hand. “Yeah, right. It’s like this in every southern town I’ve lived in. Sweet and friendly until your son wants to date one of us.” “Really Clarice—” 24


“We have a long trip tomorrow. Shut up and go to sleep.” I could sense her form rigid and tense against the mattress. Exhausted, I flopped back on the mattress and tried to drift off to sleep. Whatever issues she had with me weren’t going to go away with one discussion. I would have to earn her trust with something more than words. Faces floated through my head. Bailey, my best friend. My relatives. My students—well, the good ones. That stray cat that lived under my deck each year when the weather grew cold. What if I didn’t like the High Commander? What if he didn’t like me? And what all should I pack? “Should I go?” My words came out in a whispered rush. That got her attention. The sheet rustled as she turned my way. “It’s really up to you.” I detected a hint of sympathy in her voice. “You just got divorced, right?” “Yeah.” “What about your family?” She knew my dad had passed away last year; she didn’t know about Mom. “My mom died when I was young.” I did my best not to conjure up a mental picture of her. If I started crying, I wouldn’t be able to stop. “I’m an only child. My closest relative is an aunt down in Florida.” “Any friends?” That comment almost got her a heel in the shin. “Of course. Bailey McCoy.” I could hop on a flying saucer tomorrow and say goodbye to everything and everyone I knew with the exception of her. An image of Bailey—a very angry Bailey—flashed before my eyes. I hadn’t called her tonight. She must be worried sick. I tossed the covers aside and sat up. “Can I use your cell phone?” “Battery died this afternoon. I left my charger at my apartment since it won’t work where we’re going.” I heard her burrow deeper into the covers. 25


“I take it there’s no phone in this shack.” “Nope.” Clarice’s tone became almost motherly. “Call her in the morning from your house and see what she thinks. Brogan’s going to take you back to your place to get some stuff.” “You know the whole plan, don’t you?” “I know enough.” I choked back my frustration and tried the diplomatic approach. “Can you please share some of it with me?” When she stayed silent, I pressed on. “It will help me make a decision.” Deep down inside, Clarice must have found some pity for me. “I met Juroo in the grocery store three weeks ago. Lust turned into love, and then he dropped the bomb on me that he was from some place called Xerres in a galaxy named Quantar 219. I thought he was out of his mind.” We both laughed. “He told me he was here to get a blonde chick. I refused to believe him, then he showed me his trick. After picking my jaw off the floor, I told myself it must be true.” I giggled, imagining Clarice with bugged-out eyes. “Well, you have to admit it’s pretty compelling evidence.” “He told me about you and the High Commander. He told me all about the place he lived. Don’t joke me, but I’m a closet Trekkie. I’d be a fool to pass this up.” I guess she was right, but I still had reservations. “What if I don’t like it there or if my spaceman fiancé doesn’t like me?” “You’ll have to talk to Brogan about that.” Then she gave me her back and took the covers with her. The old Clarice was back, but I considered myself lucky that she gave me as much information as she did. Her breathing slowed, and a tiny snore came from her side of the bed. My limbs relaxed, and I snuggled deeper into the blankets wondering what the constellations would look like as I zipped past them at warp speed. 26


CHAPTER 4

Clarice was a morning person. She hummed and darted all over the room, making me miserable in the process. I would have clocked her with a pillow had I been alert enough to move. Instead I pulled the sheets up over my head and rolled into a fetal position. Brogan’s voice called from the other side of the door. “Is she up?” Clarice’s pillow landed on my head. “Oh yeah. She’s ready to go.” I glared at her through the covers before flinging them aside. My feet hit the chilly wood floor and I stood, wincing at the pain in my calves. Hopefully women wore flats on Xerres. Breakfast smells drifted into the bedroom. I quickly changed into yesterday’s clothes and ran a hand through my tangled locks. Clarice stared at me from across the room, with bright eyes and an unwrinkled dress. I resisted the urge to stick out my tongue at her, grabbed my shoes, and padded barefoot to the beat-up dinette for some breakfast. 27


Brogan stood at the stove, shirtless with loose pants gathered at the waist. The garment had an interesting sheen that changed colors in the light as he moved. I walked up beside him. “Neat pants. What are they made of?” He wouldn’t even glance at me. Probably a good thing considering my wild morning look. “Hanjeeri. It’s like your silk.” “May I touch it?” I’d use any excuse to get my hands on him. He looked up to the ceiling as if seeking permission from a higher power. “Sure.” The material was lush. And the flesh of his thigh beneath it was firm and warm. He shook his leg. “Are you ticklish?” He grinned into the pan of eggs on the stove. “Yes.” His smile disappeared and his elbow brushed me aside. Juroo and Clarice barged into the room and headed out a side door. I watched them leave. Brogan spoke to the frying pan. “They’re getting settled on the ship. We don’t have much time.” “What’s the rush?” “We, um, borrowed a few things from the junkyard up the road. And I need to get the truck back.” I laughed so hard I could barely stand. “You took Clarence’s truck?” Clarence Wiggins owned the junkyard that backed up to the swamp. Rumor had it he’d bought a truck a year ago but refused to drive it anywhere. He continued to use his ’56 Ford pickup and kept the new vehicle locked up in a shed on his property. “Did he simply hand you the keys?” He leaned closer to me. Almost close enough to kiss. “No, and when he refused to give it to us, we sucked his brains out.” 28


“Very funny.” Brogan chuckled. “When we first landed, I overheard him in the grocery store talking about a hunting trip. We followed him home and, lucky for us, he had plenty of scrap metal we could borrow to repair a few things. He’ll be back tonight.” Clarence Wiggins was a mean old bastard. When kids would wander onto his property, he’d set his dogs loose to drive them away. I would love to see the look on his face when he noticed the odometer was higher than he thought. I recovered from my laughing fit and waited for Juroo and Clarice to come back to the cabin. When they didn’t, I decided this was as good a time as any to ask. “He doesn’t expect a virgin, does he?” The question had popped into my head this morning, and I needed to know the answer before we left. He avoided my eyes. “Yes.” “Then there’s a slight problem.” Maybe I could get out of this after all. “He said you were untouched.” He stopped cooking and turned to search my face and body. As if he could tell one way or the other from merely looking at me. “Untouched by him maybe. But I am definitely not untouched.” My mind kept drifting to what it would be like to be touched by those broad hands of his. How his lips would feel on various parts of my body. His steely gaze halted my runaway thoughts. Yesterday he was ready to bang me up against a truck. Today he wanted nothing to do with me. “No. Ichori was sure no man had touched his Aly-enna in that way. He could tell from the photo.” “I hate to break it to you, but by the time that photo had been taken, I had been touched several times.” 29


Brogan ran his fingers through his hair. The tension in his body was almost painful to watch. Was he upset I wasn’t a virgin for his commander? Or for himself? I stepped closer and traced a feathery line along his jaw. The muscle above it began to tic. “Will that be a problem?” My tone was playful, but the question was sincere; I didn’t want to get beheaded or worse for not saving myself for an alien I’d never met. He swallowed visibly, and I got a naughty thrill from the effect my closeness had on him. I glanced down, obvious in my intentions. The loose hanjeeri pants had grown tight in the crotch. A thick bulge strained against the soft fabric in a huge display of cock. I wanted to pull it free of the pants and feel it in my hand. I imagined myself suckling the flared tip before taking the whole of it into my mouth. I wondered how much would fit. Brogan seemed entranced with my reaction to his condition. Sweat shimmered on his skin. I pressed my palm to his frantic heart. His discomfort must have reached a breaking point, and I watched the struggle on his face with both empathy and glee. When he didn’t reply, I took his chin in hand and forced him to look at me. “I asked if this is a problem.” His reply was barely audible. “Only for me.” The intimacy of the moment vanished when Juroo bounded through the door on two legs. Brogan slapped an omelet onto a plate and offered it to me. I was starving. A cup of juice waited on the table. I gulped it down while Brogan inhaled his breakfast. When Juroo started washing dishes, Brogan slipped on a T-shirt, then nodded toward the front door. He remained silent throughout the ride to my house. Tears threatened to spill when we rode up the muddy drive of my modest double-wide. My aunt had offered me the place after Josh and I finally 30


separated. I thought of how to explain why I wouldn’t be living there anymore. Maybe I would catch her answering machine and avoid her questions—questions for which I probably had no answers. Brogan got out with me, mumbling something about helping me choose the right things to pack. I had left my purse in Bailey’s car yesterday, so I lifted the welcome mat and picked up the key hidden underneath. I let us in. Brogan studied the contents of my cozy home. “Make yourself comfortable.” He took a seat by the sliding glass door that faced the woods out back. When I turned into the hallway, he called out, “Don’t pack too much. You can buy anything you need in the capital city of Darvon.” I grabbed two duffle bags from the hall closet and entered my room. The door closed behind me, and a soft hand covered my mouth from behind. I reared around to face a very angry Bailey. “Where the hell have you been?” Her voice was a weird mix of whisper and shriek. My heart slammed against my rib cage. “You scared the crap out of me!” “Same here!” “It’s a long story.” She planted her palms on her hips and tapped one foot. “I’ve got plenty of time.” “I don’t.” I turned away and began shifting through the contents of my dresser drawers. What would she think? She was like my sister, my only real family except for my aunt. I would miss her terribly. I talked while I undressed. “That strange light in the swamp? The possible UFO?” “Yeah?” She folded her arms across her generous chest. I slid into some faded jeans and a simple cotton shirt. “It was a UFO. And the men on it came here to transport me to another galaxy to 31


meet my life-mate.” The whole crazy story tumbled out in one rushed sentence. Bailey didn’t say a word. “I need to pack and tie up a few loose ends.” After jotting down phone numbers for my principal and my aunt, I debated whether to have Bailey call Josh. Having creditors track him down would be fitting, but I decided to take the high road. I shoved the paper into her hand and waited for some response. She shuffled through her purse and found her cell phone. I exhaled in relief when I heard the familiar beeps; she wasn’t dialing 911 or the county mental hospital. I dug out two boxes of photos and a scrapbook from the back of my messy closet. Then I found a few of my favorite outfits and piled them on the bed. I would’ve made the calls myself if I hadn’t been pressed for time. I sighed with both regret and relief when I heard her talking to my aunt’s answering machine. Telling Aunt Deb I was leaving forever would have hurt way too much. When I trotted to the bathroom to gather up my make-up, I heard her muffled voice leave a message for her boss. And then her estranged father. I saw my wet, red eyes in the mirror and held back a small sob. She was coming with me. When I returned to my room, I could see the question forming in her eyes. I brushed away a tear. “Care to join me on the adventure of a lifetime?” She sniffled through a smile. “I thought you’d never ask.” She handed me the phone. I left a message at the school and another on Josh’s voicemail. After I crammed all my stuff into the bags, we dragged them into the living room. Brogan’s eyes darted from mine to Bailey’s. “I take it we have a stowaway.” “She’s my best friend.” “I know—the photo.” He rubbed his temples. “How much time do 32


you need to pack, stowaway?” “Fifteen minutes.” He stood and pulled out his keys. “Then let’s go.” *

*

*

I envied Bailey’s efficient life. Even the tampons under her sink were lined up like little soldiers ready for their monthly combat. We were in and out of her tidy apartment in ten minutes. We talked Brogan into a grocery store run to pick up some things for the trip. I wondered if they had pizza on this planet he called Xerres. Brogan rolled his eyes every time we tossed something into the cart. “We do have food on the ship. And on Xerres.” Bailey grabbed a box of chocolate donuts and added it to the pile. “But do you have chocolate?” “Yes.” He turned to me, his gaze lingering on my breasts. “Very addictive.” With one look, the man had me ready to drag him to the back room of the store and tear off his clothes. My grip loosened on the bag of chips I held, and I heard them crash to the floor. We both bent to reach for the chips, but he got them first. He returned to standing, and I couldn’t help but gawk at the flowing pants that grew snug under my attention. Bailey had forged on ahead of us, and we stood alone in the aisle. He slouched over the cart and looked away. Frustration welled up inside me once again, and I clamped my mouth shut to keep from saying something I’d regret. When he loaded the groceries in the bed of the truck, I had a moment alone with Bailey. “When I told you in one very short sentence what was going on, why did you believe me? Didn’t you think—even for a split second—that I was on crack or something?” She hesitated with her answer, eyes searching the parking lot and 33


then the sky before replying. She seemed unsure of herself. This was definitely not the Bailey I knew. Her lips began to form words, then stopped short of telling me anything. Finally she spoke. “I had a dream the other night.” She paused as if to gauge my reaction. “You and I were going to another planet. A man’s voice reassured me that everything would be all right.” Chills beaded on the skin of my limbs and neck. “A voice? Like God or death or something?” She grinned. “Actually the man had a very sexy voice. And there were some other details in the dream I’m keeping to myself.” She blushed. “It definitely wasn’t God.” I studied her face. Logical, practical Bailey believed in dreams now? This had truly been the weirdest weekend of my entire life. Brogan got into the truck and started the engine. I wanted to ask— and tell—her a bunch of things, but didn’t want him listening to our conversation. I wondered how much privacy we’d have on the ship. I did need to let her know about the two other passengers. “Five of us are going.” “Who else?” “You know that nurse I told you about who hates everybody at school?” She giggled. “Lucky you.” “Yeah.” I turned to Brogan. “And I’ll let him explain Juroo.” He laughed. “I think I’ll let Juroo explain Juroo.”

34


CHAPTER 5

Sunlight pierced the canopy of trees guarding the swamp and bounced off the surface of the spaceship. Oval in shape, the craft sat on top several rods which seemed too flimsy to hold the weight of the ship. The vessel must have had a rough trip through the galaxies; dents and rust patches covered its silver exterior, and an antenna was held together with what appeared to be duct tape. Bailey and I exchanged looks. Bailey snorted. “Are you insured?” “No, are you?” He didn’t face her, but I caught his teasing smile as he opened a door to the craft. Then she scanned the swamp. “Is it a good idea to take off in broad daylight?” “The explosion at take-off is easier to see in the dark. And if someone sees the ship, we’ll be gone before they can do anything about it,” Brogan explained while he waited for us to ascend the stairs. Each 35


creak and groan from the metal below our feet gave me pause. The only thing that kept me moving forward was the broad, warm palm on my shoulder guiding me through. When we got the grand tour, things looked no better. Wires hung from the ceiling, the control panel gleamed with duct tape, and a large hole in the floor revealed part of the engine. My leap of faith was fast becoming a leap of folly. Bailey picked up on my anxiety. She patted my arm and whispered that everything would be okay. This unnerved me even more. Like Juroo, Bailey was turning into a different person right before my eyes. I waited for her to harp about the clutter piled in the eating area or criticize the hazardous conditions of the ship. She surprised me by finding her tiny room, kicking off her shoes, and closing the door. Brogan escorted me to my sleeping quarters, and I unpacked some essentials. The room featured a small closet and drawers built into the wall. What didn’t fit stayed in the duffel bag, which I shoved under the narrow bed attached to the wall. Thank God I wasn’t claustrophobic. Brogan passed my room several times, but avoided looking inside. No one was in the mood to talk, and my pre-flight jitters were getting worse by the minute. I wanted someone to talk to, to joke with and reassure me that this whole crazy trip wasn’t a bad idea. When I couldn’t stand it any longer, I went in search of another human being. Or shape shifter, if Juroo was willing. A speaker in the ceiling crackled. Brogan’s voice announced that we would be taking off in fifteen minutes, and I took a quick look around the ship while I had the chance. A large room in the middle of the vessel housed a kitchen and eating area. A few comfy chairs circled a table. It sat higher than a coffee table and had a checkerboard pattern inlaid on its surface. A box holding multi-colored stones lay on top. A large board with photos of people filled the wall behind the chairs. Images of kids, mostly between the ages of two and five, took up almost half the space. A smaller area displayed faces of young 36


women. The largest part of the board held images that gave me goose bumps. Row after row of guys you wouldn’t want to meet in a dark alley lined up in columns. The thought of Brogan dealing with such seedy characters gave me the creeps. Clarice and Juroo lodged in the farthest room from mine, probably at her request. The room was large and sported a spacious bed for two, but they weren’t inside when I walked by. In a way I was glad they wouldn’t be close to me—I’d rather not hear their sounds of wild monkey love when I’d be sleeping alone. A soft tone echoed through the ship’s intercom followed by the voice that made my body hum. Brogan announced our departure and asked everyone to return to their rooms and strap up. I returned to my room and slipped off my jeans for comfort’s sake. When I turned to get on the bed, Brogan stood at the door, eyeing my exposed skin with obvious interest. “Lie on the bed.” “As you wish.” I took my sweet time climbing onto the mattress and offered up my backside for his viewing pleasure. When I flipped right-side up and scooted toward the top of the bed, the waistband of my panties slid down. His eyes feasted on the tiny stretch of elastic and the hip above it. He closed my door and made his way to my bed. His erection grazed the arm dangling from the edge of the mattress. I twisted into its heat and relished the rock-solid feel of it against my forearm. He leaned over me to tug my panties back into place, pressing his cock harder into my flesh. His fingers lingered at my waist long enough to tell me what I already knew—he wanted me. And he could have me. Why did he have to be so damned stubborn? Then it hit me. I was going on this trip for all the wrong reasons, to escape my small town roots and the emotional baggage of my marriage. 37


And most importantly, to screw an alien named Brogan. He may be attracted to me, but inside he must think I’m a slut. Against my better judgment, I decided to keep playing the role he saw me in. My hand cupped his prick. The breath rushed from his lungs, hitting my side in a wave of warmth. I waited for him to pull away, and when he didn’t, I began my assault. I found every ridge, every vein, and let my fingers glide along the silk barrier. His body shook. “Kiss me, Brogan.” He didn’t, and frosty determination replaced the glazed look in his eyes, as if he would wrench away from my touch at any moment. But his cock remained in my grip. I expanded my search and massaged the generous balls nestled deep in the tent of his pants. He shook his head, an anguished look blanketing his features. “Please. I can’t.” The small spot of fluid darkening the hanjeeri told me that he could. I rolled the fabric down, and his cock sprang free. I rubbed the velvet of his shaft slowly, as if I had all day. His hips moved in time with my wrist, and seconds later he tore himself away and grabbed a T-shirt from a drawer. He kept his back to me, and with a grunt and a final thrust, he trembled, filling my tee with his cum. “Sorry,” he whispered. I laughed. “I never liked that one much anyway.” “I didn’t mean the shirt.” He bundled it up and secured his pants. I sighed as the tight, meaty ass disappeared beneath the silk. “I shouldn’t have lost control like that. For that, I apologize to both you and Ichori.” From there, it was all business. Six strong buckles clicked into a large circle at my waist. He tested his handiwork, locked the door in an open position, and disappeared, shirt in hand. Remorse coursed through me only to be replaced moments later by a feeling of triumph. I could blame the divorce, but, truthfully, I was 38


ready for a new me, a new life. The opinions and actions I had held in check throughout my adulthood refused to stay locked up, wasting away and slowly killing off the part of me I shared only with Bailey. I wanted this man. And I wanted him for more than sex. When he entered the room, my entire being went on alert. My brain wanted to talk with him, my body to be near him. I vowed then and there to do everything in my power to make him mine. Lights dimmed, and I balled up the coverlet under me with my fists, soaking the material with the sweat from my palms. “Ready, Winter?” Bailey’s voice squeaked through the hallway. “Yeah. How about you?” “Yep. Blondes in space for real this time.” I opened my mouth to respond. To tell her I loved her, that she was my best friend, and that I was glad I wasn’t doing this alone. But the engine roared, and we were thrust upward with such force that my bladder felt like it would burst from the pressure. What seemed like half an hour probably lasted only five minutes, but when it was over and relief washed through my bones, I almost cried. A feeling of weightlessness overtook me for a few minutes before a loud vibration rocked the ship. Brogan’s voice announced that the gravity field was online and we could unbelt ourselves. I padded softly to Bailey’s door. Her snore surprised me. Although she had waited up all night for me to return home, I found it hard to believe that anyone could sleep through what we’d experienced moments ago. I headed down the corridor to Juroo and Clarice’s room. The quiet talk of lovers made me turn back to find Brogan. He sat in what looked like a cockpit, trying to fix another part of the control panel. With duct tape. The muscles of his back rippled with each movement of his arms as he made the repair. I caught his scent, enticing and earthy, like a forest after a spring rain mixed with man. Somehow I managed to resist the 39


urge to caress the broad planes of his back. “My confidence in this ship has dropped another notch or two.” Part of me had hoped we would never leave the ground. Now that we were hurtling through space—and on our way to meet this Ichori guy—I was edgier than ever. He didn’t respond. “I have a question.” He glanced up at my reflection in the glass. Stars zipped past our spaceship at an alarming speed, and I focused on the image of his face to settle the growing queasiness in my stomach. “If you knew I was someone else’s woman, why did you do those things to me at the lodge? Why did you let happen what took place a few minutes ago?” I needed to know how he felt about me. Not the part about guilt and regret. I wanted to know if this was simply a physical attraction. “I couldn’t help myself.” He went back to his repairs while he spoke. “There’s something about you that draws me. Something I plan to keep in check for the days to come.” “You want me.” He snapped to attention, his eyes burning through me and his nostrils widening with either passion or anger. “Yet you’re going to deliver me to another man. That’s pretty stupid.” He clenched his jaw. “Ichori contracted me to find you and bring you to him. It’s a great honor to be chosen for this. I catch criminals and runaways all the time, but never a Chosen One for someone in a position of power. Breaking my word is not an option.” “Did you promise not to touch me?” I asked. He fiddled with the tape some more. “No, but it is understood.” I was never one for finding loopholes, but the roll of tape sitting on the chair taunted me. Picking it up casually, I pulled about two feet off and tore. His head twisted at the noise. Catching one wrist with the sticky stuff, I bound it to the other behind him and pressed kisses into the contours of his back. 40


“Sorry,” I whispered. He didn’t struggle, but tested the strength of his restraints. His body tensed as if he hoped to repel whatever lusty attack I would launch next. “If you’re sorry, then why don’t you stop?” Brogan pushed his words through gritted teeth. I couldn’t tell if he was angry or trying to maintain his self-control. Or both. “I’m not sorry for what I’m about to do. I’m sorry that it’s going to hurt when I pull the tape off.” I spun him to face me. “And if Ichori finds out, you can tell him that it was all my fault. That I forced you.” I brought my hands and mouth to his chest, loving and laving every inch of his warm flesh. My tongue moistened one nipple, then the other before curling around a ring. I tugged steadily on the hoop until he groaned. His breathing quickened, and the erection pulsing to life at my hip told me he was as addicted to me as I was to him. A rushed orgasm in a parking lot and a quick hand job wouldn’t satisfy either one of us for long. We needed to be alone, to do this thing right, with him inside me. To squelch what he started the day before. “Look at me, Winter.” His heavy-lidded eyes mesmerized me with deep pools of unreal green I could drown in for all eternity. A corner of his mouth lifted, charming me into thinking he wanted this, too. “Do you know why the ship is banged up?” I shook my head. “I fell asleep, and we hit an asteroid field. That same field is coming up soon.” I looked past his arm to see for myself. Nothing seemed unusual about the view, but I didn’t want to crash and burn in a fiery intergalactic collision. I took a step back. He kissed my forehead. “We’ll play later. I promise.” 41


I nodded reluctantly. He smiled, and a wave of heat unfurled between my legs. I had been waiting to see this side of him, the unrestrained desire that I saw in his face when we first met. “There’s a cutter in the tool bin. Please get it.” I sighed and went to find it. Shaped like scissors, the cutter slid through the tape with ease. Removing the tape from his skin proved much tougher, and in the end he had two hairless paths around his wrists to match the bands on his upper arms. “Oops.” I gave him a sheepish grin. He tried to be a good sport about it, rubbing his wrists and looking at me like a father would an errant child. “When are you off-duty?” I wasn’t letting him off the hook. If we didn’t do the deed soon, I would go out of my mind. “In five hours when Juroo takes over. I’ll come to your room.” “Promise?” “Promise.” The deep chuckle that followed his oath had me wet already.

42


CHAPTER 6

When I woke the next morning, I was alone. I remembered putting on my favorite camisole and matching panties before climbing into bed. And I recalled getting comfortable under the covers to wait. I wondered if he found me sleeping and didn’t want to wake me. Certainly he wouldn’t have stood me up. I threw on some clothes and hurried to the kitchen. He sat with all the others, a huge grin on his face and, as usual, nothing on his delicious chest. A smirk twitched on his lips. “Good morning, Winter.” I glared at him. “Morning all.” Everyone mumbled the same to me while I grabbed some fruit and cheese from the center of the table. Clarice and Juroo finished their breakfast and wandered back to their quarters. A pang of jealousy registered in my gut. My mind drifted to what Brogan and I could do in a bed as large as theirs. I wanted to feel his smooth body against mine 43


when we tangled in a sea of spun hanjeeri. Bailey’s voice startled me out of my daydream. “Are these the people you’re hunting?” She pointed to the board I had noticed yesterday. “Yes. Some are wanted by families. Others by our law enforcement.” The photos of the kids bothered me. “I guess kidnapping isn’t only an Earth problem.” “Unfortunately not. The underground market for children is flourishing. Our planets are home to many species of beings, and not all of them can interbreed. Juroo and Clarice, for example, can never have offspring of their own. If a couple is wealthy, they can go to a place like your sperm bank to have a child created for them.” Bailey shook her head in disgust. “So someone steals kids and sells them to the highest bidder?” “Exactly. The family of the missing child posts a reward, and my job is to find them.” “And the women?” “When women go missing, things are more complicated. Most cases involve star-crossed lovers who elope against the wishes of their parents. The people of one territory hate those of another, but somehow a man and a woman meet and fall in love.” “And you bring the women back to their families and the patriarchal system that robs a woman of her choice to choose whom she marries?” She crossed her arms and set her jaw, ready to do battle. I braced myself for the onslaught of feminist rhetoric she would unleash on Brogan, blaming him for all the injustices of his planet. He held up his hands in surrender. “When we find them, the couples usually pay us what their family is offering as a reward. This way I’m compensated, and the two lovers aren’t torn apart.” “But what if the woman has been taken against her will?” I asked. 44


“Juroo spies for me. Within a day or two, we can tell if the relationship is consensual or not. If it is consensual, we tell the family that we’ve done all we can. Their daughter has simply vanished.” The tension in Bailey’s body eased up a bit, and I relaxed, too. I didn’t know how he would react to one of her diatribes about male dominance. I had better things to do than listen to a debate, and cornering Brogan was first on my list. Brogan continued. “If she’s been taken against her will, we return her to her homeland. If she’s there by choice, usually time and a baby or two will mend any ill will between the families.” Bailey moved on to the next group of faces. “And the men on the board? Criminals?” “Every single one. The police don’t pay as well as families, but these are the people I love to catch. Many of them operate child theft rings, taking kids from poorer, urban territories on warm nights when windows are open and the sounds of the city mask their intentions.” I suppressed a shudder. “What’s your success rate?” “Surprisingly good,” he replied. “Children raised in rough cities know how to fend for themselves. I had one thief spot me and immediately abandon the twins he had kidnapped the week before. The exhaustion in his features said it all.” I stood and walked to the board for a closer look at the men and their tattoos. “Why the black bands?” “Every male child born in Quantar 219 carries a genetic marker. A doctor inserts a sliver of metal into the bones of a boy’s arms.” He paused when Bailey’s face turned angry. “Don’t worry. It’s about as painful as an inoculation. As he ages, his genetic code appears as a patterned band on each arm. It’s a kind of fingerprint, but one that identifies family lineage as well.” “Do they cover it with a tattoo or a brand?” I asked. “They find a slicer, someone willing to extract the metal for a fee. 45


In a few weeks, the pattern dies. The men are harder to identify, and they show great dishonor to their family.” Bailey scanned the men’s pictures again. “A few still have theirs.” “Those men belong to powerful underground families. Like the tenors.” I wrinkled my forehead, and Bailey began to laugh. Finally, she was able to correct him. “You mean the Sopranos.” He laughed, too, when he realized his mistake. The lack of women on that side of the board surprised me. “What about female criminals?” “Females aren’t usually capable of serious crimes.” Bailey grunted. “Exactly how chauvinistic is this place we’re going?” “Things will be very different there.” He leaned back in his chair to study the ceiling. “I should have told you more before letting you come. But if you find Xerres really unbearable, I’ll bring you back.” “What about me?” Would he bring me back, too? “That would be difficult, Winter. Very difficult.” He stood and started for his room. I followed him. He couldn’t get rid of me that easily. The door began to close, and I stepped into his room. He faced the wall and ignored me. All this unrelieved sexual tension was making me cranky as hell. I slammed the door. “Either last night wasn’t particularly memorable or you stood me up.” He looked over his shoulder. “You were asleep. I didn’t want to wake you.” “Liar.” I have never been an aggressive lover. My style is lazy, and I prefer to have someone turn me on, to do things to me while I watch. But Brogan made me crazy. Every footfall sounding his weight on the floor 46


of the ship, each whiff of air that carried his scent, and anytime his eyes met mine—these things were driving me out of my mind. When I’d undressed last night, I’d peeled off yet another pair of damp panties and crawled into bed thinking last night would be the night. I remembered gripping the sheets, holding back the urge to touch the persistent throb in my clit because I was saving it up for him. I’d had enough. A pile of shiny metal cuffs on his dresser caught my attention. “What are those?” He turned to face me and ran his hand through his tousled hair. “Hunter’s cuffs” “Like handcuffs?” The possibilities were endless. “Yes.” I walked over and picked a set up. “How do they work?” Sweat beaded on his forehead. I had to be getting to him. Stepping closer, I brushed his upper arm lightly with my breast. He shot me a glare of warning and backed away. I tried every femme fatale trick in the book until he was pressed against the far wall. The man was in agony—I could tell by the action in the crotch of his pants—but I refused to show any sympathy. If he would stop being so damned noble, we’d both be enjoying ourselves and forgetting about all this tension. I held out my wrists. He chuckled nervously. “Not a good idea.” “You have the keys, right?” Brogan pointed to the top drawer of his dresser, and as he did I clanked a cuff around his wrist. I hooked my ankle behind his, and with a gentle shove to the chest, he landed on the bed. I straddled him, and when he braced his weight on his elbows, I clamped metal around the other wrist. An adjustable light above his bed made a perfect catch for the long chain that dangled from cuff to cuff. “Looks like that self-defense class came in handy.” “Winter, I believe what you just did is considered offense not 47


defense.” My lips hovered above his. I nibbled his lush bottom lip and felt his erection sear the crotch of my jeans. “On a scale of one to ten, exactly how consensual is this?” I didn’t want to be brought up on charges of rape after arriving on Xerres. He exhaled and shut his eyes. “Come here.” My mouth met his, and I devoured his lips like a starving woman. He drove his tongue deep into my mouth, then broke the kiss to point to the dresser. I hesitated. “This isn’t some kind of trick, is it? I’m not going to unlock you, and you send me off to my room —” He swung his arms up over the lamp and undid the laces of his pants. I raced to the drawer and tossed out shirts and socks until I found the keys. “Condoms, too.” My hand hit cardboard, and I pulled out a box covered with strange writing and a picture of a smiling man. I jumped back on the bed and unlocked the cuffs. Shirts and pants flew through the air in a frenzy. When all the clothes lay in a heap on the floor, he slowed things down, savoring the sway of my belly and the curves of my inner thighs with warm palms as my back met the cool wispy covers of his bed. The slow burn he created had me sweating and twisting in the silky sheets. More than once I went straight for his balls or the head of his cock only to be restrained by a firm grip. “I want to take my time.” I whimpered, and he gave me some relief by branding my nipple with his mouth. He circled it with his tongue and sucked the whole of it while I worked a hand down my stomach to find my clit. “So impatient. So eager.” He laughed, the soft, seductive kind that marked him as a playful lover. I would have been satisfied with a quick, hard bang, but this was much better. 48


I took a deep breath and forced myself to hold back. It was hell. Finally, he made his way back to my lips and kissed me with such force that I felt the corners of my mouth pull and sting. He inched his leg up between my thighs and grabbed my waist. I was ready for him, and the slickness of my sex rode the hairy muscles of his thigh until the moans started in the back of my throat. He withdrew his leg and made quick work of the condom at the edge of the bed. I watched him roll the thin sleeve over the ridges of his shaft and shuddered in anticipation. Then he parted the lips of my pussy and pressed the tip of himself between them. He held my hips in place and surged forward with each ripple of flesh on his prick coiling against the walls of my pussy. His cock looked like some exquisite toy, an ingenious dildo, created by a woman to please a woman. He twisted out slowly only to plunge back deeper, and I choked out his name. Brogan responded with words I couldn’t understand, but they were sweetly erotic and came out hot against my neck. He left a steamy trail of kisses and licks along my collarbone, then threaded his thick fingers through the hair of my pussy and sought my clit. When he hit that perfect spot, I rewarded him with thrashes and sweat and panting. He covered my mouth with his own, and we sang into each other’s lungs. Then his cock plunged once more and kissed the tip of my cervix. I came apart, splitting into a million pieces of perfect bliss. He joined me seconds later, teeth in my shoulder and a fist caught in my hair. He dropped all his weight on me for a moment before rolling to his side and taking me with him. As we untangled our legs, his cock slipped out of my pussy and throbbed in time with our breathing. He stood and carefully grasped the top of the condom. “Be right back.” When he returned to the bed damp with our sweat, I got under the covers and opened them to him. He pulled me into his warmth. My 49


knotted hair spilled over his chest, and I listened to the thud of his heart until I drifted off to sleep.

50


CHAPTER 7

Clarice’s giggling crackled over the intercom. I wriggled beneath Brogan’s thick arm and held him tightly when he tried to sit up. “Get your lazy butt out of bed, Brogan. Juroo’s tired, and she can’t be all that.” Brogan groaned, then slid from the bed. I hopped out of the bed, threw on my clothes, and stomped out of the room. I entered the cockpit, hands on hips and heat in my cheeks. Clarice sat in Juroo’s lap, trying unsuccessfully to stifle a laugh. “Do you have any idea how long it’s been since I’ve had a good screw?” “Brogan couldn’t rise to the occasion?” She laughed, and Juroo joined in. “He rose just fine, thank you very much. But that doesn’t mean I want my business broadcasted throughout the ship. Can you respect that?” For all I knew Ichori could listen in on our internal 51


communications. The smirk left her face. “When the joke’s on you, you get pissed—” “I got the point.” Back to square one. My hands slid from my hipbones. “Any other potshots you wanna take while I’m here?” Her smirk returned, but it was softer. “Nope. We’re even.” “Are you sure?” “Yeah. Besides, the way Brogan’s been sniffing after your panties, you must be all that.” I couldn’t help but grin. She wasn’t done though, and in a quiet voice she added, “And I’d like a friend when we get to Quantar. When Juroo goes out to capture some criminal, I’ll be alone for weeks. Believe it or not, I’m a people person.” I found that hard to believe, but took her at her word and tried to keep my jaw in place. “What about Bailey? You could pal around with her.” “That girl keeps to herself too much. I can’t get to know her if she’s always locked away in her room.” “Yeah.” I had forgotten all about Bailey. Here she was, giving up her life to go across the galaxy with me, and I’d been too busy chasing after Brogan to spend any time with her. I turned to go find her, and Brogan entered the room yawning. “Want some coffee?” I asked. “I’ll put a pot on for everybody.” He brushed one of my wild curls off my face. “I’d like that.” *

*

*

Cinnamon hazelnut. Bailey must have smelled her favorite flavor. She padded into the dining area in her fuzzy slippers, her hair as wild as mine. I poured her a cup. “What’s up?” Her eyes contemplated the mug I held out, but she remained silent. “Are you sorry you came along?” It was weird, not being able to read her. She had always been an open book with me—and painfully 52


blunt with almost everyone else. Finally she spoke. “What if this doesn’t turn out like you planned? What if you come all this way and things don’t work out between you and Ichori?” “I’ll survive.” I gave her a weak smile. “I’ll have you.” And hopefully Brogan. We walked to her room, and she sat stiffly on her tiny bed. I joined her. “We’ll meet aliens and see things we’ve never dreamed of. Think of all the men out there waiting to meet women from Earth.” That got a giggle from her, but I still worried that I should have made her stay behind. Something about this adventure didn’t sit well with her. A strand of blonde fell forward and covered one of her eyes. I pushed it aside. “Do you regret coming along?” She emptied her mug and cradled it in her hands. “What if I don’t like the men there? Or they don’t like me?” Bailey looked like she would cry any minute now. I fought a tear, too. Despite my efforts at matchmaking, she had never dated anyone more than twice. Engrossed in her studies or charity work for the Elks, she avoided men in any one-on-one situation. Sometimes I wondered if she had made herself look tough on the outside as if to say “back off” to any man who might be interested. Her father had left the house at an early age, and she never spoke of a male relative. To make matters worse, she remained self-conscious about her weight all through college which amazed me given her feminist mindset. She refused to believe any man would find her attractive. I even took her to D.C. to see a Rubens exhibit in the hopes that she would realize beauty comes in all shapes and sizes. She hadn’t been convinced. “You don’t need a man to make you happy,” I said. “I know that. But for once in my life, I wished I’d had a serious 53


relationship with a guy.” She stared at the wall. “Or at least some serious sex.” I put my arm around her and squeezed her tight. “I have a feeling you’ll get lucky one day soon.” “I’m probably the only woman on Earth who has to leave the planet to get laid.” We both laughed. “Do you reckon men on Xerres have special alien dicks?” An image of Brogan’s cock filled my mind. “I wouldn’t be surprised.” I gave her another hug, and added, “And I’m sure you’ll find someone special, a nice guy who’ll be patient and, ah, obedient, when we get there. Give it some time.” I made a mental note to ask Brogan about Xerrian men. I knew Bailey would want someone who treated her as an equal and respected her feminist outlook on life. She cocked an eyebrow my way. “Who says I want a nice guy?” Bailey continued to be full of surprises. “Um, what kind of man did you have in mind?” Her gaze dropped to the floor. “Don’t freak out, but I’ve always fantasized about a take-charge kind of guy. The type of man to make decisions for me, to come on strong.” I didn’t know what to say. When my wits returned, I asked incredulously, “Bailey McCoy wants an alpha male?” “Crazy, isn’t it?” Pink flooded her cheeks. “Deep inside, there’s a woman who wants to be told what to do in the bedroom, to give in to a man’s every demand.” I cleared my throat. “It’s not crazy at all. Lots of women feel this way.” I never would have seen this coming, never in a million years. “Betcha they didn’t major in Women’s Studies.” “Who cares?” I patted her on the leg. “As long as it makes you happy. You know you can talk to me about anything, anytime. Even extraterrestrial cocks.” We both laughed, but within seconds her eyes glazed over, and I 54


took that as my cue to leave. She’d open up to me when she was ready. I closed her door. I wandered down the narrow corridor to find Brogan. He heard me approach and swiveled in his chair. “Aren’t you tired, Winter? You can go back to bed if you want.” I wanted to crawl into his lap and rest my body against his. But space travel wreaked havoc on my senses, and I nodded. I shuffled back to his room, got undressed, and crawled into bed. I hated sleeping in the big bed alone, but Brogan’s scent—our scent—remained in the sheets. Nestling deeper into the covers was no match for the heat of his body, but it would have to do until his shift ended. As I curled into a ball and started to fill the hanjeeri with my warmth, the ship lurched and shimmied. Keys and condoms hit the floor while I struggled to stay in the bed. My panic accelerated when an alarm blared and lights flickered. I threw on some pants of Brogan’s and a bra before rushing out into the hall to find the others. Clarice and Bailey huddled together in the entrance of the cockpit. Juroo and Brogan monitored the flight console with expressions that looked more like chagrin and aggravation than terror. I exhaled and knew we’d be okay. Finally, Juroo spoke. “We’re almost out of fuel. Lucky for us we’re close to Karoon.” Brogan glared at his co-pilot. “Guess I’ll call Mom and let her know we’re on our way.” Juroo slipped out of the small room, grabbing Clarice’s hand in the process. Bailey hugged me with relief, then retreated to her room. I tried to read Brogan’s body language. He paced the floor, his shoulders hunched while he picked at a fingernail. “I take it there are some issues at home?” My hands found his shoulders and stopped his gait. He tensed at first, then relaxed against 55


my palms. “Not really.” I continued to knead his muscles and waited. If he wanted me to know what was going on inside his head, he’d tell me when he was ready. It didn’t take long for him to open up to me. “We had enough fuel to get us to Xerres. Juroo conveniently sold too much off to a rover ship during his last shift.” He grinned at my obvious confusion, looking more boy than man. “He’s playing matchmaker.” He seemed pleased with the idea of spending more time with me, and that knowledge thrilled me to the core. Reality, however, loomed in the back of my mind, and I worried about his contract with the High Commander. “What will you tell Ichori?” “That the ship needs a minor repair.” His expression became guarded. He lifted my face and looked sternly into my eyes. “Only a day or two, Winter. No more.” A day or two more with him was not enough, but I had to take what I could get. “And I get to meet your mom?” “Yes. And trust me, she’s a bigger threat to Ichori than I am.” I made for his lips. He enveloped my mouth in his and offered me a taste of his tongue. When he broke off the kiss, I found his ear and gave it a nip. “I hope she likes me.” He brought my fingertips to his lips then to his chest. “You’re wonderful, Winter. How could she not?” He pressed my hand tight against the rhythm beating beneath flesh and bone, and I wondered what that heart of his was feeling for me at this moment. “And I think you’ll like her, too.” With that, he twirled me toward the door. “Go back to sleep, Alyenna.” 56


I glanced back at him, ready to tell him never to call me that name again. But his eyes told me all that I needed to know. That I was a Chosen One. Chosen for him. Only one question remained. It hung between us thick and charged like an unbreakable force field I didn’t have the power to destroy, and he didn’t have the will to dispel. “I’m your Aly-enna. What do you intend to do about that?” When he didn’t answer, I returned to my room to think about what to say to the woman whose son had stolen my heart.

57


CHAPTER 8

He was right. His mother, Eratha, was a dream. Although I was eleven when Mom died, the memories of her seem strangely vague to me now, as if she was a ghost all along. I know she loved me, but when someone is dying of cancer, there are only so many memories they can make before they go. I remembered her smile, laced with pain yet serene. The paleness of her thin face coloring slightly when she could manage a laugh. The coolness of her hand as she tried to convey eleven years of care and some extra to last when she was gone. I felt cheated. And then I felt guilty as hell and berated myself for thinking that what Mom gave to me wasn’t enough. In the weeks before she died, we spoke of dating and college, jobs and marriage. She did her best to tell me everything she had learned, all she had hoped for me. But in the end, after long bouts of tears that kept our cheeks wet for days, all she could say was a part of her was inside me. Growing as I grew. Loving when I loved. I wondered how Mom was feeling now as I 58


drenched my pillow, missing her like mad and falling in love with a man I couldn’t have. At some point, I stopped feeling sorry for myself and strained to hear the conversation in the gathering room. Only Brogan and Eratha spoke—eavesdropping was pointless. Still, I listened to the lilting speech of two people who cared for each other and took guesses at their meaning. They raised their voices in amusement and lowered them in serious, hushed tones that made me wonder if they were talking about me. I drifted in and out of sleep until Brogan’s weight pressed down into the bed. He slid under the covers, wrapping himself around my limbs and kissing my chin. “I like your mom.” His lips found the curve of my neck. “She likes you, too. She joked about calling Ichori herself in order to keep you here.” I pushed his words from my mind and focused on my first morning in Karoon’s capital city of Parma. When we ventured into the market district earlier today, I could barely contain myself. Brogan gave me plenty of Quant-coins to fritter away on whatever caught my eye. Bailey stayed with us for twenty minutes tops before asking Brogan about the beautiful cluster of buildings in the center of town. To her, window shopping is what you do when you need a new window. I sent them on their own tour and concentrated on the business at hand. Eratha referred to shopping in her halting English as barter, beg, and bribe. We filled spacious linen totes while I told her about yard sales and online auctions. Decorated lengths of hanjeeri fluttered in open booths, each one a painting in motion. Musical instruments made of wood and metal, tiny boxes carved from variegated stone, and jewelry that dazzled in the noon light—the entire marketplace offered a myriad of treasures waiting to be explored. When our bags were full, we stopped at a baker’s stall to sample 59


fruit pastries and little cakes no larger than my thumb. Thankfully, Eratha’s home was only a few blocks away, and people on Karoon believed in midday naps. Brogan interrupted my thoughts with a kiss and a question. “What was your favorite thing about today?” “Besides the shopping?” “Besides the shopping.” “The tiny cakes. I think the one with red fruit and cream was the tastiest. What’s your favorite sweet?” He edged down and licked a nipple. “My favorite thing to eat”—his teeth nipped below my belly button—“is called Winter’s Delight.” “Hmm. What’s it taste like?” His hand slipped into my panties. He eased a finger inside the moistness he had stirred up in me the moment he entered the room. Then he trailed my dampness in a long, meandering line to the lips of my face. “Kind of earthy with a hint of salt. Like a liquor we have called ‘Woman’s Cup.’” I sucked the digit like I wanted to suck his cock. His naked erection warmed my thigh. I nudged it with my leg, then took a second finger into my lips. He pulled his hand away, and put his mouth on mine. I yanked off my panties and grabbed his hips to position him inside me. “Left the condoms on the ship.” “Not a problem.” I spun around in the narrow bed of his youth until I faced my favorite new toy. A bead of pre-cum had surfaced. I rubbed it in small circles around the opening of his prick until he squirmed in the sheets and rasped out my name. “I wonder what ‘Man’s Cup’ tastes like.” I brought the finger to my tongue. “A little salty?” he asked. “A bit. Not as salty as other guys —” 60


He pulled my thigh across his massive chest, allowing me to straddle him and give his cock my full attention. “I really don’t want to hear about you and other guys.” “Sorry.” I glanced behind me. “Looks like I’m too short to make this work.” The places on my body begging for his tongue were a good four inches from his face. His hands cupped my ass. “Then I’ll just enjoy the view.” He prodded my backside forward and gently pinched and tugged at my clit. I turned back to the nine inches of man in front of me. I opened my mouth to him and suckled the tip with the occasional twirl of the tongue around the head. It throbbed against me when I took more inside, moving on it like I savored every pore. And I did—a woman can’t give a decent blow job if she doesn’t enjoy doing it. I loved the taste of cock, its velvety skin drawn taut along a rigid shaft, and the scent of balls with the tickle of rough dark hairs that shot out from a guy’s sac. When it became obvious that Josh had no interest in sex with me, I could’ve gone out and picked up a man whenever I’d wanted. But a public school teacher in a small town doesn’t have that kind of freedom. I bought a few dildos over the Internet. They weren’t cheap, but they were no match for the real thing. “I’m going to come.” He tried to wiggle away. “You don’t—” I hated to stop, but he seemed to need reassurance. “I can handle it. I like to swallow.” He relaxed and thrust his cock farther into my mouth. His knees came up and he opened his thighs to me. I heard his rough heels digging into the sheets, felt his ass clenching tight to meet my face as he pumped his cock into my mouth. Every gasp he released teased my cunt, warming it with a rush of air, then cooling it with a deep intake of breath. There’s something about pleasing a man with your mouth, welcoming him to spray himself down your throat, promising to drink 61


every drop. He came at that very moment. In buckets. I managed to swallow most of it before giving up. The remainder passed back through my lips and onto the head of his prick, but he didn’t seem to mind. Then the laughing began. His. I wiped my mouth with the back of my hand before twisting around to glare at him. “‘I can handle it. I like to swallow.’” The falsetto barely made it through his gulps for air. I crawled back to his waning cock and licked off every bit I had spat out. Then I returned to kiss him for spite. He met my lips willingly and helped me straddle him again. When he broke the kiss, Brogan worked his body down the bed until my pussy hovered over his face. His tongue leisurely ran along one side of my clit while his fingertips trailed down to capture the curved lips of my cunt. He stretched the pair, taunting them thoroughly before sliding both thumbs inside me. The sounds of him eating me made my spine go liquid. My upper body fell forward, my palms catching my weight at the last moment. The orgasm rolled through me, starting at the top of my womb. Sensations ran through the small bundle of nerves pressed tight against his tongue. My legs trembled above him, and he caught my ass when my muscles gave out. With each spasm that followed, I moaned and ground my sex into his stubble, praying that the walls in this tiny home were soundproof.

62


CHAPTER 9

They weren’t. At first I thought his mother was happy to see me. But after the third time she made eye contact with me and blushed, I groaned inwardly, knowing for certain that I must have sounded like a crazy woman last night. “I trust you two slept well,” she said. Brogan grinned in reply and tucked a stray curl behind my ear. I opened my mouth to answer, but he led me toward the front door. “I want to walk with you, show you all the places where I played as a boy.” I waved good-bye to his mom and scooted out the door behind him. A path behind the tan, earth-stone house led to a hidden stream. Trees blocked our view of the side street where Eratha lived, and after hiking upstream for a few minutes, his hand found mine. “This is my secret childhood hideaway.” 63


I squeezed his hand. “Looks like I’m a secret, too.” He wrapped his arms around me. “I wish you weren’t.” He kissed me chastely and whispered, “I wish you were mine.” “Then fight for me.” He held me tighter. “I don’t want you to think you’re not worth fighting for.” “That’s exactly what I think.” His laughed bitterly. “Juroo always says I lead a simple life. You’ve complicated everything, Winter.” He avoided my eyes and focused on the landscape surrounding us. “I used to catch fish here, swim, you name it. I even kissed my first girl behind that Turma tree over there.” He pointed to what looked like a weeping willow tree, its thick trunk smooth and patchy like a crepe myrtle’s. I watched the sunlight pierce the leaves and dapple the earth as he backed me against the silky wood. His mouth captured mine, and I savored the taste of him in this tiny piece of paradise. When we came up for air, I imagined him climbing on the rocks with a cup full of juicy worms. My father taught me to fish; it was one of my most cherished memories of him. Suddenly, I realized that Brogan had never spoken of his father. “You never talk about your dad.” “There’s not much to tell.” “Hmm. I gather that’s a touchy subject.” I rubbed his shoulders, and his muscles relaxed under my hands. “He’s not a bad person or anything. In fact, he’s one of the best hunters Quantar has ever known. My pata’s just never around when you need him.” “But you’re all grown up now. It’s not like you’re a kid who needs his daddy to be there all the time.” “I need him now more than ever.” “Why?” I asked. 64


“To talk.” Men are the same, no matter which galaxy they hail from. I wanted to shake him. Tell him to swallow his pride and make the first move. “Then call him up, or whatever it is you do on this planet.” “It’s not the same as talking face to face. Pata’s a man of few words.” I traced his lips with a fingertip. “Sounds like someone I know.” “But he says a lot with his expressions, his body.” “You do, too.” I thought of last night, and a blissful little shiver ran up my spine. “What about me? You can talk to me whenever you need to.” “I can’t talk to you about you.” “No, apparently you can’t.” I drew away from him. The misery of these past few days wore on me and spread my patience thin. I wanted him to open up to me and tell me how he really felt. Good thing I wasn’t holding my breath while waiting for some kind of heartfelt revelation—I would have been dead by now. “Talk to your mother then.” His left cheek twitched. “She’s made herself clear on the issue.” “And what’s her take on this ‘issue’?” I knew perfectly well how Eratha felt. He ran a hand through his hair. “She’s a little upset with me.” “In a way, I am, too.” “Ah, women. There’s no pleasing them.” “You please me, Brogan. More than you know.” He opened his mouth to respond as the communicator on his wrist beeped, signaling an incoming call. I narrowed my eyes and shook my head. “We haven’t finished this conversation.” “I’ll be quick.” He pressed a button, and a male voice came through. Although they spoke in Quantari, Brogan addressed the man 65


as Ichori. I fell back against the slick Turma bark and debated whether to grab his arm and spill the beans to Ichori. The conversation was over before I could decide. “That was quick.” “He’s worried about you.” I snorted. “He should be.” I was losing my heart to another man. My backbone became steel. “Call him back.” “What do you want me to say?” he asked. “What do you want to say?” “It doesn’t matter what I say. We have no choice in this.” “You give up too easy.” “I care about you, Winter. But this won’t work. It’s not like we can run off to some other galaxy and create a new life for ourselves.” “I believe I was capable of doing that a few days ago. Why can’t we?” “My mother.” “She could come with us.” He stepped away from me. “That’s pretty selfish, Winter. You want to whisk her off to a new world and make her leave everything and everyone she’s ever known. All because we’re good in bed together.” My throat closed in. Speaking became impossible. “We’ve known each other, what, three days? Think about what you’re asking me to do.” I swallowed hard, trying to remove the lump growing in my esophagus. “I guess these past few days meant a lot more to me than to you.” He cupped my chin in his hands. “That’s not true. I merely have more to lose if I run away. You chose to do this.” He was right—on all counts. I stupidly blew off my earthly existence because I didn’t want to face my own problems. I could have 66


found a new job. The divorce was barely a day old, and I hadn’t given myself time to start dating again. What the hell was I thinking? His arms embraced me again. “This is my fault. I should never have touched you that first day. And I should have given you more time to decide before we left Earth.” I closed my eyes and tried not to cry. “No, Brogan. The blame is all mine.”

67


CHAPTER 10

“I already miss your mom.” “She’ll miss you, too, Winter.” It had been a teary goodbye. Brogan slumped against the captain’s chair. His face seemed leaner, perhaps from exhaustion or, maybe, as I desperately hoped, from his stress over our doomed relationship. I needed to think of something else, anything to keep my mind away from the future. “Space travel doesn’t seem to agree with you, Brogan. Why do you do this kind of work?” “I like hunting. Worlds along the inner ring of planets around Xerres are only a few hours away. The outer rings maybe a day or two at most.” He stretched and opened his mouth for a big yawn. “Most hunting is done on land. That part I love.” My hands rested on his shoulders. “Want a massage?” He smiled and shook his head. Even with the smile, his reflection in the star-filled viewer remained somber. The expression on his face 68


matched the heaviness in my chest. I sighed and rubbed his temples. “You look like you want something.” Brogan pressed a few buttons on the arm of his chair. The door to the cockpit closed, the chair lowered about a foot, and the lights overhead went black. But there was still enough light for me to see something wicked dance in his eyes. “I want to touch the back of your throat with my cock.” Who was I to argue with that? The seat reclined slightly, and he reached overhead to anchor both hands behind the top of the chair. I braced my hands on the torn leather of the seat and started with his lips. They didn’t respond. I reared back to see what was wrong. His teeth gleamed in the dim room when he spoke. “That’s not my cock.” I folded my arms across my chest. “I was getting to that.” “Not fast enough.” He eyed me up and down, waiting. I held onto his knees and went down on mine. When I started for the opening of his pants, the blur of his hand grabbed my wrist and pulled it away. I was baffled but played along. He sat up and threaded his fingers through my hair. “I think it’s time you learned what men like on Xerres. Undress.” His voice was almost cold. Sensing my uncertainty, he planted a kiss on the tip of my nose. “You want to train me to please another man?” The stupid words were out of my mouth before I had a chance to think them through. Hurt filled his features. He released my hair and looked out to the stars. “We’ll be there in less than a day, Winter.” I smiled in apology and tried to lighten the mood. “All the more reason to teach me how to do things properly on Xerres.” “I’m not in the mood anymore.” 69


I wasn’t about to pass up an opportunity to touch him. We had hardly any time left. I began to calculate how many times we could fuck in sixteen hours and went straight for his cock. It had lost its enthusiasm during our conversation but twitched after several persuasive strokes. He repositioned his hands behind the chair as I dropped down to my knees again. A mocking tsk tsk left his lips. “Didn’t I ask you to undress?” “I wanted to hear you ask twice.” I yanked my shirt over my head and undid my bra. He leaned down until his fingers found my nipples. He tugged on them roughly, using them to guide me closer to him. My hands sought his shoulders and slid on the silky fabric of his tunic. He held my waist and kept my lips from touching his. I hated not kissing him. “Jeans off.” I eased the zipper down and took my time slipping them over my hips. When I unknotted the ties of his pants, he stood, and the hanjeeri wisped down to unleash his erection. He sat back down, and I settled onto my knees for the third time that night, licking and pumping him until the chair was slick with his sweat. He groaned, and I watched with pride as he choked the arms of his seat in agony. When his cum hit hot against my throat, I was ready to drown in it. I wrenched from him every spasm, every ounce without losing a drop. He took a minute to recover, then pulled me into his lap. When I brought his hand to my pussy, he didn’t cooperate. Part of the game, I assumed. My teeth nipped his earlobe. “That was fun.” “I guess that’s good.” He lowered his voice and turned my face toward him. “That’s how Ichori likes it.” I considered his words. “Every time?” “Most Xerrian men prefer to be in control. I’m not sure what he’ll 70


think of you.” “Maybe he won’t like me. Maybe he’ll give me back to you when he finds out what I’m like.” “He mentioned that you would be fiery. Spirited. He said he was looking forward to that.” He pulled me closer to him. “On Cronith, in the outer ring, there is a small tenacious creature like your pit bull dog called the besemi. Ichori called you that.” “I wouldn’t describe myself that way. More like an impulsive, clumsy lab always slamming into walls when she tries to catch a toy.” He laughed at my description. “You’ve been like a besemi after me, biting my heels at every turn to get inside my pants.” “It paid off, didn’t it? And maybe if I disappoint him, he’ll cast me off. I could pretend to have too much spirit or none at all. He wouldn’t want me then.” I was getting desperate; I’d do anything to stay by Brogan’s side if I thought it would work. “Don’t try to irritate him. I don’t want you to get in trouble.” He lightly pinched a nipple and kissed my forehead. “But if he rejects you, I’ll be waiting.” “Speaking of waiting…” I placed his hand on my mound once again. He slipped two fingers between the fur of my pussy. Stars whizzed by. I shut my eyes to them while my own supernova flashed behind closed eyelids. Nothing else existed. No Ichori or Xerres. Just the fingers of a man whose name I called out as they pulsed between my thighs on our last night together.

71


CHAPTER 11

I overslept. I had tossed and turned all night, dreading the arrival of morning. Brogan woke me and refused to let me hide under the covers. My head throbbed, but I got to my feet and picked out some clothes. After washing up, I dressed and found Bailey. She was applying lipstick. I nearly fainted. She saw my look of shock in the mirror and turned away. “New world. New look,” she explained. Her hair shimmered in a thick plait across the crown of her head, and long strands cascaded down her back. I touched the braid in disbelief. “Clarice helped,” she said. I nodded my approval. As if on cue, Clarice bounded into the room, perfume and make-up kit in hand. I stepped out of the way and watched while Clarice transformed my earth-mother feminist friend into a glowing beauty. When Clarice had finished, she gathered up the remaining strands of 72


Bailey’s tresses and created an elaborate up-do of interwoven braids. I watched with envy in my wrinkled pantsuit. Clarice looked crisp and ready for anything. I looked like a train wreck. “Um, can you do me, too?” I asked. “Sure, girl. But first find a comb. And use it.” I made a face at her in the mirror. She stuck her tongue out at me and sent a comb from the dresser whizzing across the room. When all the tangles were conquered, she parted my hair. “I’m not gonna do too much. You’ll probably get pampered some more before your wedding.” Within minutes, a simple French braid flanked the sides of my head and came together at my nape. I admired my reflection. “Looks great. Thanks.” “No problem.” She rummaged around in her bag for some make-up and started on my eyelids. Her timing was perfect; Juroo announced that docking would begin. She finished working her magic, and I returned to my room, stuffing everything into my bags with a vengeance. The three of us from Earth waited for the door of the craft to lift. Muted pink light greeted us, bathing us in something akin a sunset on Earth. An unmanned vehicle sped over to meet us and opened its doors when it reached our ship. We piled in and zipped through a maze of tidy streets lined with miniature trees and buildings covered in glass. The shuttle slowed and headed for a fortress of mica-flecked stone. Two guards nodded to our vehicle and pulled open an ornate metal gate. Lush vegetation and bright flowers formed a border around the main building. Brogan searched my face, probably curious to see how felt about my new home. I leaned into him. “It’s nice. But not half as beautiful as your hideaway.” He stiffened at my remark. Tension filled the air of the tiny taxi, 73


and Juroo twisted in his seat to stare at Brogan. Before either one could speak, our driverless car screeched to a halt, and an entourage of one met us at the door. I expected more of a welcome considering Ichori’s status. The woman smiled when Brogan stepped out. He helped me exit, then forced me forward, his hand at the small of my back. “I’m Tarja.” She extended her hand and I clasped it. Tarja regarded the others, her gaze lingering on Clarice. I hoped this place accepted her. She lifted her chin slightly as if to assert her right to be here, to be treated like an equal. Tarja cautiously nodded to her. Bailey cowered behind Juroo. I got her attention and motioned for her to come with me, but she waved me off. “Please come with me.” I did as Tarja asked, her scrutiny unnerving me as we walked. “You look very different from your photograph.” Her English was clipped, an exotic mix of precise vowels and rolling consonants. “That photo was taken years ago. And I’m wearing a lot more make-up.” She laughed softly and led me to a generous room where a petite woman stood armed and ready to do battle with my hair. I sank down in the chair beside her, defeated and willing to take whatever punishment she had to give. I deserved it—Ichori had no idea of the whore he was getting. After the hair torture, I soaked in a tub. Fragrant white blossoms the maid called laana scented the warm water. The smell of the bath soothed me for the moment, helping to clear my head and prepare me mentally for the event to come. But it didn’t take away the heavy feeling in the middle of my chest. Jewels waited on the dresser when I reentered the bed chamber. Tarja had told me I’d be spoiled on a daily basis, and that was 74


something I could get used to. I just hoped I could get used to missing Brogan.

75


CHAPTER 12

This was it. My palms were slick, and my stomach churned with acid. I didn’t want this powerful man named Ichori. I wanted Brogan. A gentle tap on the door broke my train of thought. It was the little maid who had done my hair earlier. She carried a green gown in her arms and carefully spread it out on the bed. “Would you like me to help you get dressed?” She appeared a lot happier than I did. I shook my head. A second maid entered the chamber and placed a pair of shoes and something else beside the shapeless dress. She noticed my questioning look. “It’s for your head, Aly-enna.” I thanked them and waited for them to leave. When they did, I reached for the headdress. It was a mortar board like the one in our photo, only this one didn’t have Thanks Dad on the top spelled out in gold glitter. I could see now that the dress was a graduation robe. Ichori must have thought a cap and gown was worn for all special ceremonies 76


on Earth. Guess he didn’t watch as much television as I thought. Perhaps he wanted me to look like I had in the photo. Or maybe he hoped to make me feel at home here on Xerres. Tears wet my eyes. When I was a young girl, I never imagined that my parents wouldn’t be able to attend my wedding. Maybe way out here in Quantar 219 I was a little bit closer to heaven. I put the robe on over my slip. The shoes were a perfect fit and fairly comfortable. The mortar board, however, would be difficult to keep attached to the piles of curls on the top of my head. Thankfully, two strings were attached. I tied them under my quivering chin before catching my reflection in the mirror. I looked like an idiot. A noise at the door startled me before I had a chance to cry. It was Brogan. He looked fantastic; a crisp white shirt disappeared into black leather pants that held his form as tightly as I had all through the journey here. His matching boots gleamed in the low light of the room. “I’d like to escort you to him.” His tone was distant, as if performing this duty with no emotion would make it easier on both of us. He wanted to give me away. How could he deliver me to another man after what we’d been through? He allowed me to pass, then lightly gripped my upper arm. We walked through the empty corridor until we reached the Hall of Presentation Tarja had shown me on our way to my room. Brogan held my chin in his hand and bent down for one last kiss. I went at him like a woman on the brink of starvation. After a few short seconds, he pushed me away and repaired my lipstick. Then before he could be tempted again, he knocked on a side door. I had talked to Tarja about letting Bailey be present as my Maid of Honor, and Ichori had reluctantly agreed. Bailey opened the door to join us and gave me a big hug. 77


Brogan grabbed the handle of the main door and pulled. Everyone cheered when the door swung open. A booming voice attempted to quiet the crowd. I glanced at Bailey for support, and she urged me ahead. The eyes of the man I loved, however, no longer met mine. The three of us walked up the aisle and stopped in the center of the room. Gathering all my courage, I looked upon the face of the man I would be pledged to for the rest of my life. He was built like Brogan, but with longer hair and dark brown eyes. They could’ve been brothers. Not bad. But not Brogan. Ichori’s brow furrowed. He whispered something to a man on his right, and I wondered if he was displeased with me already. Brogan forced me forward at the elbow. We slowly approached the raised platform and waited for whatever came next. The glare he shot Brogan had me quivering. Did he know what we had done all through the journey here? Brogan set his jaw and clenched my upper arm tighter. I whimpered, and he relaxed his grip. Ichori descended the dais, stopping mere inches from Brogan’s face. Then he laughed, and the people of the hall nervously laughed with him. He slapped my lover on the shoulder. “Always one for a prank, Brogan Di’taur.” The High Commander looked right through me while his hands carefully removed the mortar board from my head. He left us both staring at each other’s molars in shock. Ichori passed us and placed the hat on Bailey’s blonde curls before dropping to his knees. She didn’t seem surprised when he took her hands in his. Then he spoke soft words to her in English about life and love and children. When he finished, the crowd roared in approval. All the tears I had kept in check today came streaming out, and Brogan brought me closer to his body. Bailey’s face glowed. Had she known all along? And if she had, why hadn’t she told me and put an end to my misery, especially since she knew how I felt about Brogan? 78


Then it dawned on me. She had kept it a secret because she wasn’t sure she was the one he had chosen. A sexy man came to her in a dream, and Bailey had been afraid it was just that—a dream. For a woman who exuded strength and fire and confidence in every other part of her life, she was completely unsure of herself when it came to men. I chuckled to myself. Poor Ichori. Once she got past her insecurities, she was going to rock his world. Brogan dipped his head closer to mine. “It would appear that I’m not as good a hunter as I thought.” “I think you’re a great hunter. You found me.” “And now that I know you’re mine, there are several things I need to do.” I ran my hand over his chest. “With me, I hope.” “Definitely with you.” He kissed the top of my head. “And to you.” I could barely wait.

79


CHAPTER 13

After the feast and toasts, people clustered into small groups. Some people said their good-byes and left. Brogan and I got the happy couple’s attention and gave them our blessings. I nabbed Bailey and took her to a quiet corner. “You knew from the beginning, didn’t you?” “Yes and no.” She grabbed my arm. “Are you mad?” I gave her a huge hug. “I couldn’t be happier. For both of us.” She looked happy, but within seconds the smile wavered. “Since you and Brogan have been going at it like rabbits, give me some advice about tonight.” I thought back to the time Brogan tried to prepare me for sex Xerrian style. “Relax and be yourself. I’m sure Ichori will be glad to offer plenty of instruction.” I put my mouth to her ear. “I hear he’s a take-charge kind of guy.” Red blazed on her cheeks, and she turned to seek out Ichori in the 80


throng of well-wishers. His eyes bored into hers from across the room. When a naughty grin spread across his handsome face, she turned back to me wide-eyed and smiling. I patted her on the back and waved goodbye to Clarice and Juroo. Brogan tugged my sleeve and led me to his room. He locked the door and began unbuttoning his shirt. “Take off the gown.” It hit the floor in one second flat. He stepped toward me, and I offered him a coy smile while walking backward to the bed. When I reached for my bra, he grabbed my hands, then dropped to his knees. I closed my eyes and waited for him to slide my panties down and put his mouth on me. His words interrupted my reverie—the same words Ichori had spoken to Bailey for all to hear. “I choose you, Winter Anderson of Earth, if you will have me. To share my life, my love, my dreams. With you, there will never be another.” I felt my mouth form a small o, and for a moment he looked shattered. I wanted to tell him “yes,” to accept the promise he had offered, but the sounds couldn’t make it past my throat. I bobbed my head frantically. “I don’t believe I’ve ever seen you speechless before.” He rose and moved his hands to my face, stroking me gently as if for the very first time. I found my voice. “You left out the line about children.” “We’ll have to see if we can have them together. Do you want children?” “Maybe. Like you say, we’ll have to see.” A low growl rumbled in his throat. “At least we’ll have fun trying.” Without warning he pushed me back onto the bed. I reached up to loop my finger in his waistband, but he brushed my hand away. 81


“I believe I said earlier that there were some things I needed to do to you.” He backed away and opened a drawer of a tall wooden dresser. Metal clanked, and when I saw his hunter’s cuffs, my sex clenched with anticipation. He neared, and I worked my way to the headboard, grabbed each end, and waited for him to secure my wrists. “You’re too eager. Too quick to comply.” He tried to sound stern, but I knew he liked me ready and willing. I gave him my best come hither look. The cuffs hit the floor in a noisy crash. He bent over me. “Cuffs will make it too easy for you.” One warm finger slid into my bra. I hardened instantly against his touch, and when he pulled the lace aside to reveal my nipple, I brought a hand up to expose the other breast. “Hand back on the bed.” I rolled my eyes in protest. “There’s no way—” “Do it.” He withdrew his touch. I threaded both wrists through the ironwork of the bed and held tight to a bar running parallel to the mattress. As a reward, he captured a nipple between his lips. “You’re not going to keep this pace all night, are you?” He stopped and put his face an inch from mine. “I intend to worship every pore of your skin. You belong to me now. And I want to take my time in claiming what is mine.” His nose edged along mine in an almost childish display of intimacy. I tried to meet his lips, but he refused them, taking instead the space below my nose. His tongue traced the indention then moved to my chin. A finger outlined circles around one nipple, and his mouth returned to the other, swollen and begging for attention. His teeth caught it gently while his tongue flicked against it again and again. My palms grew slick, and I strained to maintain my grip as instructed. He glanced at my arms with a grin. “You’re being very cruel.” 82


He mimicked my pout and continued to lovingly torture my breasts. A hand moved to the curve of my belly, then slipped into my panties. When he eased the lacy undergarment down in increasingly small increments, I worked my backside away from his hand to speed the process. He caught on to my intentions and stopped me with his palm. There was no rushing him, and I bit my lip to keep frustration at bay. Brogan undressed and climbed on the bed to straddle my waist. His erection burned into my stomach. I waited for him to taste my other nipple, but he only gave it light strokes while roughly thumbing the first. The contrast was maddening. I squirmed beneath him in agony and in revenge, hoping to torture him a bit in return. He slid down my body, his cock a heavy brand searing a path to my ankles. When he reached my feet, he removed the damp sliver of white covering my pussy. Then he spread me wide and tunneled his thick tongue deep into the core of me, thrashing it back and forth until I moaned out his name. He turned his head to the side and captured the entire length of my clit with lips curled over teeth. The sensation overwhelmed me, and I stopped writhing against his face long enough to let the pleasure course through me. Two fingers entered my sex. They coiled inside me, thrusting hard and furious with the rhythm of his arm. The disappointment I felt when he withdrew them was replaced with surprise as one slick fingertip trailed further down to find the hole below. I braced myself for whatever would come next, and he spoke against my cunt. “I want to claim all of you. Even there.” I went limp. He teased me with a light touch until I was ready. In one swift motion, his finger breached the entrance to my ass and waited for the inner ring of muscles to become pliant. My pussy contracted in ecstasy, and he pushed inward. The pressure of this invasion softened into something exquisite, and I relaxed against his hand, heady for 83


more. “Do you think you can handle that, Winter? Can you take most of my cock in that tight space?” The thought of him inside me there, working his prick in and out, made my cunt shudder again. It was almost enough to bring me to the edge of orgasm. When Josh finally came out to me, I expected to be sickened by his revelation. Instead it fascinated me, made me wish he’d tried backdoor sex at least once with me. I craned my neck to see him face-to-face. “I’m a sturdy girl, remember?” “Yeah,” he answered. “You can handle a little ramming from behind.” He left the bed and returned with a bottle. “You won’t be disappointed if I can’t handle it, will you?” I asked. He shook his head. I watched the lubricant stretch from the mouth of the bottle to his finger. I could almost feel the steam building behind his pupils. One glance to his crotch told me that he wanted this bad. He was harder than I’d ever seen him. “Is this a routine thing here on Xerres?” “Like on Earth, it’s an acquired taste. Something to sample on special occasions.” He took his time oiling up his finger and then his massive erection. Finally he dribbled a generous amount between my cheeks. I gasped when the thick, cool fluid hit my skin. A warm finger coated me with it, then pressed against the opening now loaded with the lubricant. I exhaled, giving him entrance, and a finger burrowed into the closefitting walls of my ass. A second finger joined the first, stretching the compact passage wider. Brogan twisted them in and out with care, and the burning gave way to pleasure. My inhibitions withered, and I met his hand to plead for more. 84


He rolled me to my side, and brought the leg on top to my chest. His cock touched my ass then filled me. I imagined him watching his length disappear into the most taboo part of me. My ass tingled, and an overload of sensation crashed through me. His steady gliding accelerated into pumping. His groin slapped against my backside, and when I couldn’t stand it any longer, I let go of the bed to finger my clit. His hands slid from my waist to my tits, holding on for dear life while he ground himself into me. My clit exploded, rocking me body and soul. Each wave of my orgasm gripped him until he screamed my name, emptied himself inside me, and collapsed against the cool hanjeeri sheets.

85


CHAPTER 14

The next morning, I woke up to an empty bed. Brogan’s warm body had been replaced by a note and a single laana blossom. I’m meeting my mother at the port. Didn’t want to wake you. I twirled the flower between my fingers and took in its sweet scent. A single whiff took me back twenty-plus years and billions of light years away to a small Carolina backyard where Mom stood over me, her slim form blocking out the sun. She crouched down to me, and I inhaled a mixture of White Shoulders, fresh laundry, and Sunday fried chicken. Her thin fingers delicately slid the stamen from a honeysuckle, its bead of pale yellow juice so tiny yet so powerful. And then she let me try. “Careful now, Winter. One day you’ll want to show this to your daughter.” The moistness melted on my tongue as her kiss pressed into my cheek. This was my earliest memory of her, and it pulled from me drops of saltiness that flooded my pillow. I brought the wetness to my 86


tongue, hoping it would taste of spring and butterflies and honeybees. When it didn’t, I cried in earnest. A small sound at the door made me jump. Brogan waited with a guarded expression on his face. He closed the door softly behind him. “Having second thoughts?” I threw back the covers and went to him. My body sought his heat, and he held me loosely as if he was bracing himself against whatever it was I needed to tell him. “Not about us.” I sniffed. “I wish my parents could be here.” “I know.” He tightened his embrace. “Your parents have a good excuse. My father, however…” “I’m sorry, Brogan. But your mom will be here for us. She has enough heart for four people.” His face lit up, and he gave me a light tap on the butt. “Hurry and get dressed. I’m ready for my pledging night.” I untangled myself from his arms, swaying my hips while I backed away. He groaned. “Clothes. Now.” Clothes. I stopped and looked at the small dresser that held my things. “I don’t have anything to wear.” He smiled, looking quite pleased with himself. “Throw on some jeans. A dress is waiting for you at the hall.” *

*

*

When he opened the door to a small chamber skirting the Hall, I squealed like a teenager who’d just won a shopping spree at the mall. Brogan had thought of everything. “Fifteen minutes, Winter.” He shut the door, and I undressed before the gown hanging from a hook on the wall. A note in Brogan’s script lay on a table. I picked up the delicate paper scented with laana and ran a finger over his words. It was my mother’s dress and her mother’s also. She would be honored if you wore it today. I reached for the dress. Tiny stitches swirled over the pale gold bodice. Up close, the design looked irregular. From arm’s length, 87


however, the embroidery looped into circular patterns that shimmered when held to the light. Two stockings of the sheerest gold lay on the table, and a pair of matching slippers waited on the floor below. The stockings wisped up each leg and stopped at mid-thigh. Two strips of elastic-like material hung loose at the top edge of the hose. I tied them securely and hoped they wouldn’t come undone during the ceremony. The gown slipped over my head, and I tightened the lacings along the front of the stiff torso. My sweat-soaked palms somehow managed to tie the two strips of hanjeeri together to form a bow at the waist of the dress. The shoes fit perfectly, and I turned my attention to the riot of hair on my head. A comb and brush were nowhere to be found. I did the best I could with my fingers and glanced at my reflection in the mirror. “You look radiant. Like the golden sun of Karoon.” I spun to face the hunk peeking at me from behind the door. “Don’t you know it’s bad luck for the groom to see the bride before the wedding?” Brogan beamed at me. “This isn’t Earth. And you’re already my life-mate.” He stepped through the doorway and lowered his voice. “I could carry you to the Hall naked if I wanted to.” “You’d better not. Especially if your mom is out there.” He beckoned me with his hand. I followed his shadow and stepped into the dark corridor. Brogan scanned my body with such heat that my nipples peaked beneath the gown. He licked his lips and began digging around in his pocket for something. His fingers teased a golden necklace from its hiding place. It flashed in the low light with warmth and promise, and I lifted the hair from my shoulders to accept the gift. The metal wove around itself in a pattern of knots that reminded me of Celtic jewelry. A large oval hoop dropped from the center of the necklace and rested below the hollow of my neck. 88


After securing the clasp, he traced his finger along the curves of gold adorning my neck. Then that same finger trailed down to the top of the bodice. The pad of his fingertip found the chubby bud beneath and caressed it until my knees became spoon pudding. His lips came next, warming me with an intensity that threatened to make me moan. Brogan heeded the sounds gathering in my throat and pulled away. “Subtlety isn’t a strength of yours, is it?” “If it was, I wouldn’t be standing here with you today.” He bent back down to kiss me again. then walked me to the Hall. *

*

*

I expected the Hall to be filled with bodies as it had been on the day of Ichori and Bailey’s pledging. Today the room echoed with the sounds of only five people: Juroo, Clarice, Eratha, and two priests. Juroo grinned at us, and Eratha beamed with the pride every mother feels when her son finds the right woman to marry. Even Clarice seemed happy to see me. A figure came out from the shadows. I squeezed Brogan’s hand and watched his features light up as his father joined the others. And when he linked his arm with Eratha’s, the hand in mine squeezed back. The ceremony took less than ten minutes. As a courtesy to his mother’s halting English, Brogan asked two priests be present to speak both languages. I lost myself in the rolling sounds of Quantari. When Brogan used his native tongue, our lovemaking became exotic and sent shivers along my skin. I wondered how long it would take me to learn it. Brogan faced me. As he had last night, he held my hands and dropped to his knees. In a few short sentences, he was mine. Every inch of him, every hair on his head. I smiled and repeated the words to him as best I could in Quantari. His mouth dropped, then came back up in a huge smile. He stood and extended his hand to Juroo who laid a crystal on Brogan’s waiting palm. The faceted stone hooked onto the circle of 89


my necklace and dangled cool against my skin. When all the hugs and hand shakes were through, Brogan pulled me toward a door and escorted me to the portside exit of the complex. “We’re leaving?” He nodded. “Right now?” All my things still sat in the bedroom where I assumed we’d spend our honeymoon. I struggled to match his pace. “But I don’t have anything with me. No clothes—” “Where we’re going, you won’t need any clothes.” Brogan flashed our ID’s and paid the exit fee to an official stationed near our ship. The official waved us through. Brogan lifted me into the newly repaired craft and shut the hatch. “And where exactly will we be spending out honeymoon?” He unbuttoned his shirt and headed for the cockpit. “A resort called the Pod.”

90


CHAPTER 15

Las Vegas needs a place like the Pod. I conjured up a vision of me pitching the idea to a roomful of West Coast hotel moguls on a return visit to Earth. We had slipped into our own private docking bay—a good thing since Brogan had stripped me bare five minutes after takeoff—and opened the door to an erotic paradise on the far side of Xerres. My senses went into overdrive. Jets of air scented with flowers and tropical fruit warmed my naked body when we entered. Large vines tangled and twisted from ceiling to floor. The walls of our pod, obscured by the flora, reflected the colors of an Earth sunset and bathed the room in rich purples and vibrant reds. My toes dug into the floor as I took it all in; the floor responded by swelling up around the edges of my feet, buoying me upward and then back down like a giant waterbed. Brogan stood watching me, gauging my reaction to his choice of accommodations for all of our post-pledging activities. 91


“Amazing. It’s as if the whole place is alive.” I turned to see how he took my admiration. “Don’t freak out. It is alive.” He bent low and stroked a vine in our path. It cooed and coiled affectionately around his forearm. One eyebrow shot up. “This doesn’t violate any laws of nature, does it?” He simply grinned. I bent down and gave it a try. The vine remained limp under my hand. “Must not like my touch.” “I programmed everything to respond to my command.” The vegetation parted, and he led me deeper into the forest. With a word from him, the plants gathered closer, and dozens of vines caressed my body. They curled around my legs like the sleek tails of a hundred cats. The stalks then lifted me off the floor, their leaves grazing my flesh while they spread my limbs wide. Another plant glided up my leg and brushed the hair of my pussy with the lightest touch. “I asked if you were up for some adventure a few days ago.” His fingers tweaked my left nipple. “How adventurous are you, Winter?” “I’ll do anything with you. Anything you say.” His mouth covered my tit. He held the plump bud in his teeth, biting lightly until I gasped. A second vine snaked over my clit then entered my sex. I waited for a third. It glided from behind, secreted something moist against my skin, and entered my ass like I’d hoped. My green lover pumped faster inside me. Brogan dropped to his knees and clutched the hair on either side of my pussy, exposing my naked cunt to his face. He worshipped the whole of me with his mouth, then lapped at my clit. The action inside my pussy and ass became frenzied. I moaned, and the plants responded by gagging me with their thick stems. I didn’t just come. I pounded. I left my body. The plants cooed when I shuddered. Every quake of my body shook the trees above as my orgasm rolled through the dense thicket of flora. 92


When it was over, the vines lifted my legs higher. I was completely open to Brogan; any hole he wanted was his. He stood and slammed his cock into my pussy. I took every inch of him with both vines still inside me, thrashing like crazy and doing things to my lower half I’d never imagined. The greenery rocked me back and forth to ride his cock, and on his last stroke he fell against me, his cum scorching my walls like liquid fire. The plants eased me to the floor and retreated. He joined me, burying his face in my hair. “I’ll miss this when you go off hunting for bad guys and missing kids,” I whispered. “I’ve been thinking…” He propped himself up on an elbow and met my eyes. “As a child, I always wanted to be like my pata. Now I’m not so sure.” “He’s a great hunter, a legend.” I pushed his sweaty bangs from his forehead. “And you will be too, one day.” “I’d rather stay home with you and not do what my father did to my mom.” I smiled and snuggled closer to him. “That’s fine by me.” “I thought maybe I’d open an Earth school.” He paused for my reaction. “Teach English. Prepare others for contact.” I sighed. “Then I guess you’d have to teach them about racism and bigotry and nuclear warfare.” “Quantar is far from perfect, Winter. We have wars and crime and racism, too.” A spear of pain pricked my heart. I thought of Clarice and her quest for a colorblind place to be, to belong. I made a mental note to check in with her as soon as we returned. “Whatever you want to do is fine by me. I’ll be glad to help, if you want.” I tugged on the nipple ring closest to me. “I am a teacher, you know.” 93


“You mean that?” “You bet I do. Just please, please tell me the kids on Xerres are better behaved than the ones on Earth.” “We’d be teaching adults, at least at first.” I raised my eyebrows. “Hmm. Sounds like you’ve got a plan. Have you been thinking about this for a while?” He gave me a sheepish grin. “Yeah. And we wouldn’t make a lot of money.” I put a finger to his lips. “I traveled across the cosmos to be with my Chosen One, for richer or poorer, for better or worse.” “For a woman, you are, as they say, very low maintenance.” “Except when it comes to sex. I’m pretty high maintenance in that department.” He nuzzled my neck. “I think I can accommodate you.” “You do more than accommodate me. You complete me.” He brushed his hip against my side, and his cock twitched back to life. “I think I’m ready to complete you again.” “Be my guest.” I opened my thighs to him, and he kissed me, a soul-searing kiss that marked me forever as his. And that suited me just fine.

94

LAURA BACCHI

Laura Bacchi writes romance, erotica, and everything in between. Her science-fiction erotic romance, The Heart of a Hunter, placed second in Phaze.com’s Phaze One Writing Challenge, and her romantic short stories appear regularly in Sun Magazine. A librarian by day, Laura lives in the Southeast with her daughter and a super-supportive husband who is always willing to read her latest work-in-progress and assist with any “research.” Readers are always welcome to drop her a line at [email protected]. For more about Laura and her work, please visit her website at http://www.laurabacchi.com. *

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