Alien Prince: (Bride of Qetesh) An Alien SciFi Romance (49 page)

It was panic, not despair, that wrought my tears: there was an immediate part of me that loved the idea of having a baby. And with a man like Odrik, so strong, calm, and capable. But then the other part of me didn
’
t know what kind of baby it was that was growing inside me, and I couldn
’
t help but picture something grotesquely alien that ripped through my stomach and ate my flesh for nutrients. Maybe it was absurd, but then, so was my entire situation. I was grasping at anything to cling to, anything my mind could latch onto as steady, stable truth. And all that I found was that I loved Odrik. I loved him, and I wanted to stay with him and have a family with him. But that was insane: no one wants to stay on a cruel alien planet and push out a brood of alien babies. No normal person wants that.

“
I
’
m here,
”
he whispered into my hair.
“
I
’
m here, my lady.
”
And I turned my face toward his to catch his mouth in a kiss. My lips were slicked with saltwater tears, and I could taste them on his tongue as he kissed me, his hands untying the belt of my robe and cupping my ample breasts. He gathered me into his lap and slid the robe from my arms until I was naked once more, and I kissed him with a desperate sort of urgency that startled me. With my hands flat against his chest, I pushed him back until he was lying prone on the thick white carpeting. I unlaced his breeches and freed his already turgid cock, bending over him to take as much of it into my mouth as I could. I lapped at the head of his manhood, a gesture that elicited grunts of gratitude from Odrik, but my ministrations were more perfunctory than anything else. After a few moments, I climbed on top of him, eager to feel him deep within me, hungry for the type of distraction his body could afford me. I directed him to the wet cleft between my thighs and lowered myself down, gasping as he filled me, the ease with which he slid inside of me bespeaking how urgently I needed him.

I rocked my hips back and forth, his hands traveling up the slope of my thighs to rest on my hips. He moved me faster, and our breath quickened with the effort of it, but he was not satisfied. In one deft movement, he encircled my waist with his arm and pulled me around so that it was I who was lying on the carpeting. I brought my legs up to wrap around him as he thrust into me. I let out a cry; he grunted with his efforts.

Odrik gripped one of my breasts in his hand and bent himself forward so that he could press a series of kisses to my neck. But the kisses turned to bites as he let his savagery out, and I dug my nails into his back and opened myself to him. I could feel my orgasm beginning to build, and I was surprised by how quickly I had started to climax. My orgasm broke like waves against the rocks, and I quivered in his arms even as the muscles inside of me clamped down around his cock. He shuddered soon thereafter and released into me, and I thought about the baby we
’
d made this way, and what it might be like someday to meet it.

After a few moments, he rolled off of me and lay on his side next to me, trailing his fingers up my legs and over my pubic mound. I could feel his hot seed dripping down my thighs, and he wanted to feel it, too, so he slid his fingers into my dripping orifice.
“
Stay with me,
”
he murmured, his cheek pressed against my shoulder.
“
Stay with me.
”
He began to rub at my clitoris with his thumb, prolonging the pulse of my orgasm as he did so. I trembled; I smiled.

The door whooshed open then without any hint of a warning, and I scrambled away from Odrik, tugging my abandoned robe around my body and standing up as quickly as I could move. Odrik didn
’
t seem to care and rose slowly to his feet, not bothering to conceal himself, or the size of his cock, from view. It was Tymer who had walked in, and he had a stack of folded clothing in his hands.

“
I
…
I
’
m sorry,
”
he stammered, averting his eyes.
“
I brought you both some clothes. But I can see you are not presently in need of any.
”
He looked up at me then, and his expression was one of pure disgust.
“
Forgive me,
”
he said.

“
It
’
s fine,
”
I managed to eke out, and averted my gaze.

“
We will be dining on the sixteenth floor in an hour
’
s time, at which point we shall outline the rules and regulations for tomorrow
’
s battle.
”
He looked at Odrik then and smirked.
“
I believe this one will be a fight to the death.
”

“
So much the better,
”
Odrik said, propping his hands up on his hips, his cock twitching as it began to harden.
“
I won
’
t have to worry about Fegar trying to usurp me again in the future.
”

“
I wouldn
’
t be overconfident, Mr. Nuh
’
ar,
”
Tymer said, setting the clothes in a neat stack by the door.
“
I believe my mother will grant Fegar Gael the right to choose the weapons. Tell me, have you ever fired a gun?
”

Odrik blinked, and I wasn
’
t entirely sure that he even knew what a gun was. Tymer grinned.
“
No matter,
”
he continued,
“
I
’
m sure you
’
re a quick study.
”
He smiled at me then.
“
I
’
ll see you at supper, Ms. Bryce.
”
I nodded mutely.
“
Until then.
”
And he was gone as quickly as he
’
d arrived.

I sighed and allowed the robe to puddle at my feet as soon as Tymer was gone. Rubbing at my eyes, I padded across the carpeting and into the bathroom, with Odrik close on my heels.

“
I
’
ve never fired a gun,
”
he remarked.

“
I
’
d wager that Fegar hasn
’
t either, then,
”
I said and turned on the faucet to the Jacuzzi tub.

“
I may die,
”
he remarked, stunned, as though this were the first time the possibility had really presented itself. For my part, I said nothing.
“
If I do not die, will you stay?
”

I looked up at him and was startled by how young he looked in that moment, how plain his desperation was. He wanted me, he must care for me a great deal, he
—

“
I love you,
”
he said plainly.
“
Stay with me.
”

The air between us filled with steam until his edges blurred, and so did mine. Could I stay? Could I make a life with this strange creature? And if I left, what would I go back to? My heart rebelled against the constructs of my mind until all I could do was lean up on tiptoes and give him a kiss, a kiss that neither promised nor denied. And when we broke apart, the steam was so thick that I could not see the disappointment on his face.

“
Get in the water with me,
”
I murmured and climbed in, sighing as the tension went out of my muscles. He sloshed in with me, and his bulk made the Jacuzzi tub seem almost small. I realized then that there was no one I would rather be crammed up against, or thrown in jail with, or traipsing through an inhospitable wilderness alongside. Yes, yes, I would stay. If he lived, I would stay. So then why couldn
’
t I make him the promise?

Part Six

Before having dinner aboard the
Atria
, the fanciest meal I’d ever attended was during my senior year of college, when the graduating class was invited to have supper at the president’s house. But even that didn’t compare to this experience. Mireena was looking strikingly elegant in a blood-red gown that swung low over her shoulders and opened into belled sleeves. It would have been solemn, priestly almost, if the bodice hadn’t hugged her every curve down to where the dress flared into a fishtail at her calves. Rebecca Quimby, the human ambassador, was wearing something sleek in black satin with a chunky belt at the level of an empire waist. Ro Petathera, the Qeteshi ambassador, looked like a warrior king in dark leathers; Tymer was wearing a tuxedo. And Fegar, Odrik, and I were all clad in what essentially amounted to black track suits — though admittedly Odrik pulled it off more effectively than Fegar or I.

But it wasn
’
t our outfits that made the evening: it was the decor. We were in a sweeping two-story ballroom with the same picture windows that Odrik and I had in our room, except that these windows were on three of four sides. Hanging from the ceiling was a silver-and-crystal chandelier that cast everything in a cool, glimmering light; directly underneath it was a long table set for eight, candelabra sending shadows to dance over the china place settings. Odrik and I glanced nervously between ourselves before we entered the space, traipsing the considerable distance between the elevator door and the table before we found our names calligraphed on little cards at assigned seats. No
—
this wasn
’
t paper and ink. This was a small screen, no larger than a business card, and our names
—
in neat black script
—
glowed slightly around the edges. Mireena gestured grandly, and we all sat, the seven of us. The final place setting remained empty.
“
I do so hate uneven dinner parties,
”
Mireena said by way of explanation. I quirked a brow; had she forgotten that we were there to discuss a fight to the death?

“
Our meal will be four simple courses, I
’
m afraid,
”
Tymer said after pulling a chair out for his mother.

“
Is that all?
”
I quipped dryly.

“
Mm,
”
Mireena confirmed, apparently not catching my sarcasm. Rebecca did; she smirked.
“
We
’
ll begin with a
Kiyani
bisque with lemon capers and boiled
lotishi
. Then, a simple green salad with goat cheese, dried cranberry and pickled
talozin.
”
I wondered absently if I could actually even
eat
any of this stuff; I decided it was better not to ask what they were and to just eat them and if I died, well, I
’
d had a good run.
“
Our main course will be pheasant and Harborberry gravy, a side of mashed
roldono
roots and asparagus. And finally, a simple dark chocolate mousse.
”
Oh, good. Chocolate mousse
—
that
, I recognized.
“
With
parteri
nuts and
konga
bark.
”
Great.

The guards that had stood vigil in our earlier meeting now served our food, putting bowls of soup a sort of bubblegum pink in front of us. I furrowed my brow and stared down into it.

“
We should probably get straight down to business,
”
I said, rather put off by the color of my soup. I had never willingly eaten anything of that color that wasn
’
t from a candy dispenser.

“
All in good time, Ms. Bryce,
”
Mireena said.
“
But first, why don
’
t we let these two men enjoy their meal? For one of them, it will be the last they
’
ll ever have.
”
She glanced between Fegar and Odrik, utterly unfazed by the reality she
’
d just put forth.
“
I spared no expense,
”
she said.
“
Though I had hoped to offer slightly more luxurious fare. Unfortunately, I had to make do with what we had on hand
—
it
’
s been
weeks
since our last supply run, you understand.
”

“
It looks wonderful, Mother,
”
Tymer offered.