Alien Prince: (Bride of Qetesh) An Alien SciFi Romance (44 page)

“
Yes,
”
I shouted, without meaning to.
“
I-I m-mean,
”
I stammered,
“
I just
…
I
— ”

“
No, Nova. Promise me you won
’
t do anything stupid, like throw your life away because of me. I would never forgive you.
”
My heart was a railroad spike hammered into the hard earth of my chest, and all I could do was nod my head. I wanted to be with him with a desperate sort of clarity that came altogether too late. I wanted him, I wanted Odrik. But I didn
’
t know if I had the strength of character to die with him, and it shamed me utterly.

“
So, this
…
law
,
”
I murmured.
“
Qeteshi law. We
’
re
— ”

“
Bound together,
”
he said.
“
Yes. Legally.
”

I smirked.
“
So, what, you just
…
fuck someone on this planet and suddenly you
’
re married?
”

“
It
’
s about intention. When two consenting adults come together for the purposes of procreation, it
’
s
— ”

“
Is that what we did?
”

“
I thought it was.
”
He paused, and I thought maybe I saw him trembling, either from the cold or from the force of what he was feeling.
“
Come to me now, Nova,
”
he whispered.
“
Please.
”
But I was stuck in place, worried that if I so much as moved a single muscle that I would burst into tears. And I needed to be strong for him now.
“
You wouldn
’
t deny a dying man,
”
he asked, his voice full of sadness,
“
would you?
”

“
Oh, Odrik.
”
And I went to him, flung myself into his arms and threw my arms about his neck, hugging him close and tight and hoping beyond hope that he would never let me go. He gathered me up close to him and ran his hands up along the line of my thighs, over the curve of my bottom, taking the hem of my dress up as he went. He reached between us then and freed his cock, already rigid with expectation, and I could feel his insistent head push against my dripping wet opening. But he didn
’
t plunge into me right away as I expected him to. Instead, he bent his head forward and kissed me with a startling sort of urgency, tangling his fingers in my hair as he did. He leaned back against the cold, metal wall of our prison and I situated myself so that I was sitting in his lap with my legs on either side of his hips. I reached down then and curled my fingers around his shaft, wanting to guide him home, but he stopped me.

“
Novalyn.
”
I looked up in time to see a tear streak saltwater down his cheek, but he was smiling.
“
I love you.
”
He gripped me by the hips then and tugged me down onto his cock, and I gave out a cry as he entered me, all at once filling me up. I rode him at a moderate rhythm, but it was not fast enough to satisfy my Odrik, who, after a time, wrapped his arm around me and lifted me up, only to lay me on the cold floor of the cell. He plowed powerfully into me, fucking me like he wanted us to become one, and perhaps he did. Perhaps he wanted to lose himself in me; I wanted to take him as deeply into myself as I could and keep him with me always.

He pawed at my dress, wanting access to my swollen nipples, and tore the front of it slightly in his frenzy. We smiled and he bent forward to suck on my nipple as he undulated his hips, stroking deeper and deeper into me with each thrust. I moaned, my cries echoing off the metal of the room around us.

“
I will have you more than once this winternight,
”
he growled and thrust once more, finally, into me, releasing himself deep inside my wanting orifice. He collapsed on top of me and we both tried to catch our breath. After a time, he pulled away and got up on his knees in front of me. He spread my legs then and peered down, and I found myself blushing.

“
What are you doing?
”
I asked shyly.

“
Watching my seed spill out of you,
”
he said plainly.
“
It is a glorious sight.
”
We laughed a little together and he trailed his fingertips gently over the sensitive pink flesh of my sex.
“
I wanted you to bear my children, Novalyn,
”
he murmured and slid two fingers into my cunt, lubricated from his emissions.
“
I still do.
”
He worked his fingers in and out, using his come-hither gesture to hit my G-spot as he fingered me. After a time, he bent forward and pressed the tip of his tongue against my clit, sending a jolt of electricity down my spine. I arched my back, tilting my hips to more easily accommodate his ministrations, and for a time, everything else fell away. We weren
’
t in a jail cell in the belly of an old ship; we weren
’
t awaiting a morning execution. We were simply Odrik and Novalyn, the unlikely pair that had fallen in love.

And I thought of what it might be like to grow round with his progeny, and I found the idea titillating.
“
Let me feel your release, sweet lady,
”
he cooed, and I pressed my hand to the back of his head to let him know that I thought his tongue was better used in other ways.

I bucked my hips when he began to lap at the pith of my desire once more, feeling the wave of my orgasm begin to crest. My muscles tensed, and I cried out, my entire body shuddering with the force of it even as the muscles inside of me pulsed around his probing fingers. I breathed a sigh and the world came back: we were in a jail cell. Odrik would die tomorrow. I curled up onto my side as he retracted his fingers and came to lie beside me. He stretched out his arm so we both could rest our heads on it and snuggled me close, spooning me, and sharing his body heat.

“
We would have had a nice family,
”
I whispered in the darkness as he slid his other arm around me.

“
Mm,
”
he murmured.

“
I would have liked it, too, I mean,
”
I went on, not sure what compelled me to speak.
“
I realized that I would rather be in this prison cell with you, halfway freezing, and facing death, than
…
on a date with some smarmy hipster from Williamsburg who only ever talks about IPAs and wants me to listen to his band
’
s EP.
”

Odrik chuckled lightly in my ear and pressed a kiss to the back of my head.
“
I have no idea what any of that means,
”
he said. A stretch of silence lapsed between us and I thought perhaps he had fallen asleep. But then he broke the silence, his voice small and distant, even though his body was pressed up against mine.
“
Promise me you won
’
t forget about me,
”
he whispered,
“
no matter what happens.
”

“
I could never forget about you, Odrik,
”
I said.
“
Never in a million years.
”

“
Take the belt with you, when you go off planet,
”
he went on.
“
Keep it. All right? Will you?
”

“
Yes.
”
I turned over onto my other side so that I could face him.
“
Yes.
”
And I pressed my lips to his in the kind of kiss that is born of a hunger that feeds on itself. And by the time morning came, our lips were red and raw from the expression of our desperate love.

I do not believe we slept at all, not really, though I know we dipped in and out of consciousness, grasping at precious moments of slumber, from which we were jolted awake by the power of our shivering. The metal was like sleeping on ice, and neither one of us could get comfortable for more than a moment at a time. Just when I thought the cold would lull us into a hypothermic state, I saw the starlight start to rise, glinting in from the tiny window just below the ceiling.

Though day brought me no relief, as I was groggy, bleary, and had conceived of no plan to escape the looming execution. Even then, when I knew that I would be burned upon a pyre, my priority was to ensure Novalyn
’
s safety. I knew that if Yorn got his hands on her, she could look forward to of a lifetime to being his slave, just as Fegar
’
s mate had become an ornament, and a tool of satisfaction. Perhaps one day, after she had given him sons, she would move up in value to him, but I would not have staked my life on it.

I heard the footsteps above us, and they roused me to full alertness. I sat up and gathered Novalyn into my arms, pressing her fiercely to me.
“
Listen to me,
”
I said, feeling anxious, urgent.
“
They will ask me if I have any last words, and I shall give them
…
I do not know
…
something
. Anything at all, to give you time to get away. All of their eyes will be on me: my death is a long time coming, according to Fegar and his followers. So, when I speak, that is when you must go. Do you understand?
”

She shook her head frantically from side to side, and I heard the footsteps of the guards grow closer. Soon, they would wrench her from my arms, and I would never feel her skin against mine again. I clung to her.
“
Tell me you understand. I will speak, and you will run. Promise me.
”

“
No, Odrik
— ”

“
Promise me
.
”

The guards came and threw open the bars to the cell, walking in and beginning to rip us from one another. But we held fast, and I said to her,
“
Please. Do this for me. I cannot go to my death knowing you will simply stand there and watch it happen.
”

The color drained from her beautiful face and she gave a nod of her head.
“
Yes, all right,
”
she said.
“
I promise.
”

We kissed like we had never tasted lips before, when finally the guards succeeded in pulling us apart. To their credit, they seemed to take no pleasure in their task. But had they been bigger men, perhaps they would have turned a blind eye as we slipped together out of the village entirely. No such luck, I am afraid.

They marched us up the steps and out of the spire, into the harsh light of day and toward the center of the marketplace. A scaffolding had been constructed, with the kindling they would need to burn me alive for the pleasure of a live audience. I felt the bile of denial rising from my stomach and burning hot in the back of my throat. I willed myself to hold it down.

A crowd of three or four dozen had gathered to watch the goings on, faces I recognized, people who whispered my name as I passed. They marched me up the ladder to the top of the scaffold, and held me by the elbows. But I would not run, so long as I thought my Nova could make a clean break.

Yorn was there, in the back of the crowd, and Fegar was in the front. This time, he had left his little pet at home, it would seem, for she was not kneeling dutifully at his side. I kept my eyes on Novalyn, for hers were the only eyes that could calm my roiling soul. But she was not looking at me. Why was she not looking at me in these final precious moments? Why was she looking at the sky?

I heard it then, an engine that roared and drowned out any other noise. And finally, I looked up at the sky and saw it: a ship, a great ship, three times the size of the spire, floating overhead and hovering amongst the clouds like a miracle. Nova caught my eye then and smiled, something bright and genuine.
Good
, I thought,
at least now I know she will be safe
.

Part Five

I remember the first time I saw an airplane. I was very little, five or six maybe, and growing up on a farm in Nebraska meant that I rarely saw much of anything at all, outside of tractors and barrels, livestock and pickup trucks that were five times as old as I was. But eventually my grandmother got too old to do much around the house, let alone tend to the farm single-handedly. So, eventually, she paid to have her fields crop dusted. A man came in a little prop plane, painted yellow with red stars on its nose, and it swooped low over my grandmother’s cornfields, spraying a trail of pesticides behind it. And I stood just past the steps that led up to the front porch and marveled, my jaw hanging slack as I craned my neck to watch the plane arch up high and turn around and come back again.