Wicked Beloved (10 page)

“
Uh… it means… beloved.”
He glanced at her, up from under his brows, his eyes wider than
normal, as if he were nervous or something. Then his gaze darted
away. “But I just like the sound of it,” he added so fast that the
words jumbled together.

“
I like the sound of it,
too. No, I’ve got it.” She took the towel and climbed off the
mattress. It didn’t take too long to hang it up, wash herself, and
prepare for bed, but nonetheless, he was already asleep when she
returned.

He looked so open and unguarded sleeping.
Awake there was always a dangerous edge to his mouth and a hard
darkness in the depths of his eyes, even when he tried to hide it
from her. Gazing at him asleep, she felt rather protective toward
him.

She wondered what his life was like. What
had happened to him that made him different from the others? Did he
have friends besides that horrible Lagi? Probably. She hadn’t known
he had a girlfriend until she showed up, which reminded her he
seemed singularly indifferent to their breakup. So in some ways he
was cruel-normal for this planet.

But he possessed the ability to be kind. He
saw compassion as a viable behavioral choice when others couldn’t.
Maybe it was a mental illness thing and he was his planet’s version
of a psycho. That would be kinda ironic, actually.

She continued to watch him
sleep. He was more attractive than a mortal had any right to be
and
damn
when
they had been…

Warmth surged through her at the memory. She
hadn’t figured on enjoying anything when she entered his bedroom.
Just wanted to make sure he did. If he took pleasure in her, he’d
want to keep her, and that was her main objective.

It hadn’t struck her that, as an alien, he
might be… differently constructed until she’d started to crawl up
the bed toward him. The bottom dropped out of her stomach as fear
of the unknown overwhelmed her. What if he had some crazy,
alien…like tentacles or something? But she’d already committed
herself to this. She could make it work. She had to. And he alone
of all the men on this planet was worth it.

Luckily, when she climbed
on top of him, he’d felt normal and when she’d pulled down the
sheet… Oh, yes, definitely familiar—although on the
ohmygodhuge
side of
human.

She had concentrated on watching his face,
monitoring his reactions, so she’d know what he liked and what she
needed to do more. For that reason she had ridden him staring into
his eyes. And the way he’d looked up at her… her insides fluttered
and constricted. His pupils had been wide open, black swallowing
the olive green of his irises, and his expression pulled at
something inside her like nothing she had ever witnessed.

He gazed at her like he was seeing the soul
inside her, like she was the only female in the universe, and his
eyes held an oddly tender mix of lust and wonder. A little vertical
crease had cut between his furrowed brows and when her pace
quickened his lips parted, showing a glint of white front
teeth.

When the intensity grew, that little furrow
deepened and his eyes rolled back as his lids slid closed. His hips
thrust with unrelenting force while his iron grip on her thighs
felt like it would bruise. He was mumbling things, endearments,
desires; her collar couldn’t follow it all but the timbre of his
voice made her melt.

Moving with him, harder and faster, that
tingling itch started within her. And when he let go, when he
abandoned his control and wholeheartedly gave up his release to
her, the strenuous ecstasy written on his face… She sighed happily,
the memory of her orgasm zinging exquisite quivers through her.

If she had to be here indefinitely, well,
there were definitely worse places to be. Wait, no, she mustn’t
think like that. Even on Earth some people didn’t understand that
pets were for life. What if it was worse here? He might enjoy her
for a few years and then dump her in an alley. She couldn’t allow
herself the luxury of liking him. The sinking feeling that
overwhelmed her at those thoughts was too much to bear.

Swiping at her eyes before the first
stinging tears could wholly form, she chastised herself for
allowing her emotions to run rampant. All these ridiculous highs
and lows—since when had she become a schoolgirl in love? On a
planet that didn’t seem to recognize—let alone value—love, she’d
never survive if she kept acting this way.

She turned and tiptoed to the doorway. Time
for her to retire to her cushioned closet. Technically, she
supposed she should wake him and ask his permission to leave the
room. But he seemed so comfortable. And his face was bordering on
angelic.

She looked out into the dark, toward the
closet. That would be a long, unlit stumble. She glanced back at
the bed. It was a cozy bed.

Returning, she trailed her
fingers over the mattress. The sheets felt crisp and clean. And
there was room enough for two. If she stuck to the edge of her
side…
Her
side?
What was she thinking? The
other
side. If she stuck to the edge of the other side,
he’d never know she was there, not the way he was
sleeping.

She eased herself onto the mattress and
crawled under the sheet. Holding her body stiff, afraid she might
awaken him, she listened to his steady, regular breathing and
thought about the way he had smiled when he asked her name. He’d
never smiled like that before. A surge of warm pride filled her at
the thought. She’d put that expression on his face.

Then worry—what if it was a one-off, what if
she couldn’t repeat her performance—wriggled in the back of her
brain. She shoved the troubling notion aside and tried to focus on
sleep. Sweet, elusive sleep.

* * *

She woke up with her cheek pillowed on his
bare arm. And she had drooled on him.

Bolting upright and wiping her mouth with
her hand, she looked to see if he was awake. He was. He lay on his
back watching her, the corners of his eyes crinkled as a grin
played on his lips.

Embarrassment burned her cheeks. “I’m so
sorry, Master. I didn’t mean to…”

“
You stayed.” His low
voice rumbled like a purr.

“
Yeah. Was that okay? I
didn’t know…”

“
Certainly. I’ve never
slept so well.” His eyebrows twitched in a frown and for a moment
he seemed disconcerted. “I ordinarily cannot sleep with…” He
trailed off, lost in his thoughts.

After a minute or two, she figured his
continuing silence meant she was dismissed. Time to start the
bala-maker. That stuff was as easy to get addicted to as coffee.
She began to climb off the mattress, but he grabbed her arm.

“
I did nothing for you
last night.”

She giggled, her cheeks getting hot. “Yes,
actually, you did.”

Never releasing her arm, he sat up. His eyes
were hard now, piercing, but not in a way that frightened her. He
tilted his head, his mouth slanting down to hers, and kissed her.
Despite the ferocity in his eyes, his lips caressed hers softly,
gently, his kiss almost chaste.

It reduced her insides to pudding
nonetheless. Clutching her knees for support, she leaned into him,
inexorably drawn as if trapped by magnetism. Varying his subtle
kisses with delicate nips and licks, he gradually sought entrance
to her mouth.

Just as she opened to him, he broke the kiss
and pulled back. She failed to stop her whimper of dismay. An odd
light sparkled in his eyes as his gaze roamed her face. Uncertain
what to make of his intense perusal, she looked down at the
sheets.

His hand ran up her arm, over her shoulder,
to her neck and slowly stroked her throat, encouraging her to tilt
her head back. Knowing men on this planet liked gestures of
submission, she obeyed, closing her eyes and stretching the line of
her neck to expose her vulnerable throat to him. His hand closed
about her neck. She swallowed, feeling the firm pressure of his
palm against her collar.

She had no doubt he could crush her windpipe
if he so chose. She also had no doubt that he never would. His
other hand buried itself in her hair, grasping a tight fistful that
caused her to yelp before rapidly relaxing his grip.

He nuzzled her temple. “You’re so
deliciously fragile.”

“
Am not. Well, I could be
delicious. But I’m not fragile.”

He kissed her nose. “My mistake.” He kissed
her chin. “The things I want to do to you…”

A growl rumbled deep in his throat and
suddenly she was on her back on the bed with him on top of her,
lying between her parted legs. His weight landing on her punched
the air out of her lungs. She gasped and his mouth seized her
parted lips, his tongue delving inside.

It was less a kiss than a claiming. He
barely let her breathe and just when the pressure started to
overcome her, he broke the kiss, his breath whistling through
gritted teeth.

Her lips tingled. She was beginning to
rethink the whole fragile thing. Not that she would have admitted
it.

A thin ring of glowing olive green circled
his wide, dark pupils before he lowered his head and nipped her
neck, again and again. Sudden sharp suction on the front of her
throat heralded another mark. She whimpered as the pangs
intensified but stayed as still as possible, unresisting.

He grabbed her hips, his movements rough
with arousal. Next he was hitching up her nightshirt. She arched,
trying to help him. Then she was lost in the flurry of sensations
as his hands slid down her back, his strong fingers dug into her
flesh and squeezed her bottom.

“
Legs apart.”

She obeyed and he positioned himself on his
knees between her thighs. She giggled as he kissed circles around
her ticklish navel, but a twinge of embarrassment hit her when his
head dipped lower.

“
I’m sorry. My belly fat
never,
ever
goes
away.”

“
I like your belly,” he
murmured, kissing the curve of her stomach. “It’s soft.” Another
kiss. “And it jiggles.” He tried to kiss her belly again but she
was already twisting, attempting to extricate herself. Grabbing her
hips, he kept her in place. “What have I done?”

He sounded genuinely perplexed. Too
humiliated to meet his gaze, she cleared her throat. “Aren’t you
making fun of me?”

“
No. Why? Was that not a
proper compliment?” Before she could answer, he kissed one closed
eyelid, then the other, with such gentle pressure she might have
been formed from the thinnest glass. “I shall endeavor to improve,
Ahno’ee.”

His lips returned to her belly, trailing
kisses to the top of her hip, then down to the curve of her leg. He
kissed the tender inside of her thigh and she shivered. She was
particularly sensitive there, and her sensitivity only increased at
the thought of how vulnerable she was right now, splayed open
before him.

This wasn’t something she’d done a whole
lot. She’d never had a serious, long-term boyfriend. In fact… it
struck her that she was the perfect target for slaving aliens. No
family. No boyfriend. Her closest friends were on the Internet, not
down the street. Currently no pets. And no dependents. Only her
library job to miss her, and even if they called for an
investigation, aliens had nothing to fear from Earth police.

“
You need not hide from
me.”

She coughed. “I’m…I’m not…” She was totally
on display here. How could he think she was hiding?

“
You’re going somewhere
else in your mind. Don’t.”

Her inhale was a series of shaky hitches.
“Right. Sorry. I’m just…”

“
Perfect,” he said. “Like
I knew you would be.”

She felt the slight scratch of stubble from
his cheek against her inner thigh, then his lips, soothing and
caressing. He grazed his teeth lightly across her skin and she
moaned softly as the sensation shattered her.

“
I think you’ll like
this.” His fingers brushed up and down the inside of her thigh,
gradually getting closer and closer to his target.

She giggled nervously. “Oh, yeah, I believe
it, but… I mean… Will you?”

“
Enjoy it?
Immensely.”

“
Yeah?”

“
Yes.” His fingers gently
petted her hair. “Allow me, Ahno’ee.” He swallowed. “Please.” He
spoke the word with the mild awkwardness of long disuse.

She’d never had
any
man
beg
to…and this
commanding man clearly didn’t beg for anything, ever. It was
surreal. She thought the point of the slave thing was its one-sided
nature; her giving
him
pleasure. She hadn’t expected him to be so
reciprocal.

“
Okay.” She swallowed as a
new rush of wetness came in response to his fingertips repeatedly
ghosting over her entrance.

“
I’ve never tasted
Tellurian before.” He kissed the hollow where her inner thigh met
her body. “Your scent is extremely enticing.”

He was preparing to open her heated body to
the shock of cool air. She could no longer tell if she was nervous
or excited but her every nerve ached for him. She struggled to
remain still as his lips and tongue explored her. It was
impossible.

“
What’s your verdict?” she
asked, unable to control the tremor in her voice.

“
You are delicious.
Definitely my favorite food group.”

She laughed, certain her short-circuited
brain was misinterpreting the collar translator.

Enthusiastic yet controlled, patient, his
licking and sucking slowly took her apart. And the beautiful little
noises he made. Happy. Appreciative. He could make her come from
those sounds alone.