Sex, Love, and Aliens, Volume 1 (7 page)

It was intriguing, he mused. Never before had he felt this sense of well-being. He’d been all about the best decisions for his people. Now that warred with his need to be with Gia.

He rose, unable to contain his smile. It was time to go home. Tonight he planned to woo her. Since her chat with Valerie, she’d seemed different. Changed. More open to any kind of connection between them.

Last night he’d kissed her and she’d welcomed his touch. His groin tightened at the memory.
What will tonight bring?

“Garret is searching for Gia.” Joruzan pinned Cedun with a harsh stare, and he controlled the surge of adrenaline. “He is not human, Cedun. He is an AWOL warrior from the
Galecian
Empire.”

“What?” Cedun turned around swiftly, needing to check that Joruzan wasn’t telling him a joke. But his long years of association reminded him that if Joruzan was saying this, it must be true.

The
Galecian
Empire was an acquisitive race, looking for both habited and uninhabited planets to annex. Earth would be right up their alley—rich with mineral resources and potential slaves.

“Why would he be seeking Gia in particular? This mess makes no sense.” Cedun pounded the table.

“No, it does not. But what it does do is explain the transmitter. They have their own technology, but I have managed to acquire their frequency waves. I might be able to pinpoint him using the tech-signature.”

Anger built, a raging hot inferno. “Do it. We need to find Garret before he can get to Gia, and I want to know more about his actions. Why a
Galecian
warrior is here and what their plans are.”

“Valerie and Gia?”

Cedun frowned. “We will need to ensure they are secured.”

Joruzan shoved something into his hand.

“What’s this?” Cedun asked.

“Personal Placement Locators. I have had some of our tech specialists working on this. They are subdermal, but using one of our matter transmitters, I believe they can be embedded with little or no trauma.”

Cedun turned it over in his hands. The tiny transmitters were less than a third of the space of his fingernail. “Excellent. Range?”

“Five thousand kilometers. We also managed to boost the signal so reinforced structures are not an issue.”

“Good. I am heading home. Give me the instructions and I will apply Gia’s tonight. You will do the same with Valerie?”

Joruzan nodded, his face a tight mask of worry. Cedun knew how he felt, his own fears could choke him if he let them. “I will not risk her. Or the child.”

Cedun left the room and transmitted into the kitchen where Gia sat, her laptop on the table. She rose as soon as she saw him, closing the lid of her computer. Her smile was welcoming, and his heart melted. Here was the one woman he wished to spend the rest of his life with. He took a single step in her direction.

A pink blush stole across her cheeks, and her eyes sparkled. “Good evening, Cedun. Won’t you sit down?”

The room was redolent with scents, and she scurried in the direction of the cold box, pulling a bottle from within. “I thought, maybe a glass of wine.” She cleared her throat, and he watched her movements.

“Is all well, Gia?”

She gave a short, nervous laugh. “Oh yes. Everything is dandy. I mean…”

“I know this phrase.” He stepped up behind her as she shoved the bottle back into the cooler. “Gia…” The words he wanted—needed—to say were stuck in his throat.

He settled his hands on her shoulders, felt the tension in them seep away.

She slowly turned in his embrace. “Cedun, I need to talk to you. I’m so nervous… I’m going to make a hash of this.” Her anxiety concerned him.

“Whatever it is, just tell me.” For a moment he feared she would say she was leaving. That whatever it was between them could never be, but when she looked at him, there was a heat in her eyes which scorched his soul.

“Gia…” He couldn’t contain himself any longer. He needed her. Needed to kiss her. He had to make her his. He dipped his head, his lips glancing hers, before she tugged away with a sigh.

“No. Not yet. I have to say my piece, Cedun. Please.” Her eyes glittered, and his heart shattered in his chest. He stepped back, ready to leave her, but she grabbed his hand. “No! Not that.”

She breathed deep and he watched as she settled herself, obviously finding her center.

Her chest rose and fell, and she tugged him to the table. “Please sit. I have to tell you… I…” The blush deepened and her fingers curled as if she were fighting herself. “Iloveyou.” She rushed the words in a single sound, breathing out as she said them. They stunned him.

Joy. A lightness of being. Completion. The emotions hammered at him, and all he could do was look at her.
She loves me!

“Okay, I’m a total idiot.” Tears sparkled in her eyes as she rose, but his grip on her hand refused to let her retreat.

“You are no idiot. You are the woman I love.
My Deandara
.”

A single tear tracked down her face and confusion welled again.

“What have I said?
Deandara
? Tell me and I will make it right.”

“That’s just it, Cedun. Even though I’ve been foolish and lost in my own self-absorption, you’ve been there, waiting and making things right. Instead of telling you my feelings, I worried and questioned everything. I’m such an idiot!” She covered her eyes with a shaking hand, and for the first time he smiled.

“You are no idiot. You are a measured and careful woman. I love you for that too.”

She gave a wet snort. “Right.” She breathed deeply again and dropped her hand. “I really don’t deserve you.”

Unable to wait any longer, he advanced and pulled her close against him. “Now, let me show you how much I love you.” Their lips met and clung as raging hunger swept through him.

* * * *

His hands roamed over her body and she wanted them. She burned for him. Cedun. Her clothes melted away as tingles spread through every part of her. He kissed her neck, and she shivered as his breath whispered over sensitized skin.

When his hand cupped her breast, she arched, hungry for more of his exquisite torment.

Her fingers tangled in his hair, holding him against her, telling him wordlessly of her own need. She dropped them to his shoulder, glorying in the sensation of hard muscle hidden only by cloth.

He shuddered when she found his buttons and began unfastening his shirt. “Bedroom,
Deandara
.”

She giggled as they shuffled up the hall, stopping short of the doorway when the need became too much. The kiss was scorching, breath stealing. “More… Don’t… Oh God! Don’t stop!”

Her shirt fluttered in the fragrant evening breeze, and as it whispered over naked flesh, her nipples furled into tight buds of sensual starvation. When his lips closed over them, her body coiled tight, the molten lava in her belly rising to flash point.

She tore what remained of his clothes away, breathing in hard, rapid pants.

His hands tugged at her coverings until finally they were both naked. The cataclysm was too close. Surely her body would ignite as the flames licked at her? Every move and breath fanning them hotter and brighter.

He shoved her up against the wall, sandwiched with his body, and lifted, the slide of flesh on walls barely even impinging on her senses. Her legs wound around his waist, holding him close. His chest heaved in time with hers, his eyes glittering in the darkness.

“I can’t wait. Not now.” The growl rumbled through his chest, abrading her distended nipples. The touch of his hard erection scalded her.

Then slowly, with exquisite care he slid within her body. The tender friction filling every part of her until she couldn’t tell where she stopped and he began. Tears leaked from between her tightly closed eyes. “Cedun! I love you!”

“
Sert Bana Opta Quiot
!”

He moved, slow undulations that sparked off tongues of fire within her. Gia gasped, her body now stiff as her mind warned that she was close to total meltdown.

Then her orgasm filled her senses, sending her blind.

Her fingers dug tight, seeking to drag him closer, to share the sensations that flashed in her. “Love… Love… You.” The words were a mindless chant, and he answered with a ravenous kiss that stole what was left of her soul.

Cedun joined her, holding himself deeply within her as he jetted his seed into her core.

When it was done, he held her still.

“It has never been like that. Never before. Only with you.” His eyes shone with such intensity, and now that she’d finally told him of her love, a great weight of concern fell away. After tonight, nothing could ever be the same again. Yet it felt right.

Her heart melted a little further, and she brushed a finger through his hair. “Never for me either. Nothing could mean as much to me as you do.” She kissed him, desperate to make him understand, and when he responded in kind, the searing flash of arousal licked at her again. “I don’t think I’m ready…”

Her legs dropped to the floor, floppy and boneless, and he grinned. “To be honest, neither am I. Come, we need a rest.”

Her muffled snicker filled the quiet as they made their way to the bedroom, leaving the trail of discarded clothing behind.

* * * *

Cedun woke slowly, such a feeling of well-being filled him. “Gia?”

His hands moved along the sheet. It was still warm. She was probably in the bathroom.

He folded his arms behind his head, reliving the moment she’d made the declaration. “
Deandara
?”

She didn’t answer, and this time disquiet fluttered in the back of his mind. Why wasn’t she answering? It was likely nothing serious, but still, he’d feel better knowing where she was. Especially as they hadn’t caught Garret.

Cedun shoved the bed clothes aside, noting the dark green jacket. He frowned. It wasn’t his, and Gia had been wearing a pair of jeans and light shirt when he’d arrived home.

“
Gustran!
” Panic assailed him as he chewed out the curse word. He shoved the bathroom door open but it was empty, a towel lying discarded on the floor.

Now he raced down the hallway. She wasn’t in the kitchen, and the panic became greasy waves that lurched deep in his gut. He backtracked, finding his pants where they’d stripped in the hallway. His hand found a small container. The subdermal tracker.

Nausea rose, but he beat it back. Now wasn’t the time to lose any trace of sense. He searched for and located his communicator. “Joruzan? He is… I think he has Gia.” His voice wobbled as did his legs, and he thrust a palm against the wall.

“And Valerie too.” Joruzan’s voice was cold. Distant. Dangerous.

“We will find them. But, Joruzan? I did not get an opportunity to tag Gia.” The truth was, right now she could be anywhere and the thought lanced him, sharp like a scalpel, carving at his heart.

“I got to Valerie. She has her tracker. I was just about to contact you.”

Cedun looked down at his pants, pooled on the floor. Without conscious thought he scooped them up and started dressing. “Come to me. We will find Garret, and this time, he will pay.”

Joruzan materialized beside him. “I have got the tracker live, it is currently searching.”

A small device the size of a cellphone sat in Joruzan’s palm. Cedun watched as it flashed slowly. The rein on his temper wore thin before the machine beeped.

“Got them! Location of subdermal tracker?” Cedun’s heart beat a little faster.

“Subdermal tracker is located twenty-seven point four six seven nine degrees south by one hundred and fifty-three point zero two seven eight degrees east. Distance, approximately sixty-nine point six kilometers via road.” The robotic tones echoed through the tense silence. So far away.

“Can you pinpoint the exact location?” Cedun leaned closer to the tiny diagnostic device.

“Location is accurate to one hundred and fifty meters.”

“Joruzan, can we link the location via our transmitters?”

Joruzan nodded and set to work, tweaking the parameters of his personal unit then doing the same with Cedun’s. “That should work.”

Cedun held up a hand. “Let me grab my stunner from the kitchen, then I am ready.”

They’d worked together before, so Joruzan was already attuned to the way Cedun worked. He waited the minute it took Cedun to collect his small weapon then rejoined him. “Ready?”

Cedun nodded, and together they depressed the transmission buttons and the world melted away.

Chapter 5

The room was small—tiny really. Valerie lay on the bed, her mouth, hands, and feet bound tightly. Her eyes were dagger points of blue fire, and Gia was pleased they weren’t aimed at her. Gia wanted to comfort her and get away, but she too was firmly tied to a chair. Only her mouth was free.

“It’s okay, Valerie. I’m sure Joruzan and Cedun will come looking for us.”

Valerie blinked furiously at her and muffled something.

“That’s exactly what I was hoping for.” The door before her had opened while she’d been trying to settle her mother.

“Why? Why, Garret? I mean, you had me before and Cedun’s presence never seemed to bother you. You were the one that took off with Floss.”

He leered and her stomach rolled at the foul smell that emanated from his mouth. He laughed into her face, and she shrank away. “It was never really about you, baby cakes. You were just the sexy icing on top. Every time I used your luscious little body I was slamming it home to the
Ba’Tua
. See, Lover Boy was always bad at hiding his emotions. He wanted you and I had you. It was just unfortunate things came to a head earlier than I planned.” Garret shrugged, and Gia’s mouth dried a little more.

“What do you mean? Did you know Cedun before?” But Cedun had never mentioned him. Another layer of confusion piled up.

“The
Turaa
would never know me. I’m just a lackey. A half
Galecian
lackey at that. Less than the dirt beneath his feet. I grew up on
Dirustandi
, the son of a human whore, who sold herself to a
Ba’Tua
after she stole me from my father. He’d found her in a slave market. All he wanted was that she pay for her way with her body. She ran away with a
Ba’Tuan
freighter crew. But I knew and remembered. My roots were always
Galecian
. When the time came, I made contact and they took me home. Trained me. Gave me purpose. Then they set me free.” The far-away look in his eyes wasn’t sane, she didn’t think. It froze the marrow in her bones.