Coto's Captive (4 page)

“Yes, Coto.” Gar backed away. “We will set up camp.”

Coto was protecting her. Lynn was grateful enough to glance up at him. He met her gaze.

“We will not harm you. There is nothing to fear. You are a woman alone without protection, but we are civilized.”

“Okay,” she got out. She had a feeling that was going to be a word she used often around these guys, since she had no idea what else to say.

He gave a sharp nod. “No one will bed you.”

Her eyes widened and she knew her mouth dropped open. “Excuse me?”

He frowned. “We will not strip you bare to make use of your body. That must be a concern of yours since you are a woman with so many men.” He released her and took a step back.

Shit!
“That concept never crossed my mind.”

It hadn’t. She was still trying to wrap her head around them being aliens and hoping they weren’t going to kill her. Her attention dropped to the front of his pants and then she stared into his eyes again. Was that even possible? They looked humanoid, amazingly so, even though there were obvious differences in their features. They were bigger than average men too, all of them tall and thickly muscled.

“When it does, have no fear. I will not allow anyone to harm you.” His nostrils flared as he inhaled and a soft growl came from his throat that the box either didn’t pick up or couldn’t translate. “You are very tempting, but right now our mission is to find our friend.”

Coto had sniffed at her. Lynn hesitated and sniffed back at him.
Maybe it’s a cultural thing with these aliens.
She inhaled the scent of something musky and pleasant. He responded by making another soft growl. He stepped close again.

The look in his eyes made her feel a little weak in the knees. She didn’t need a box to translate lust. He was foreign to her but still masculine and attractive. If he were human, she’d probably be panting after a guy built like him. And she loved the long hair. The fact that he was so tall was a turn-on too, since most of the men she knew were short.

She sure didn’t get prime stud muffins in Green Bend. She got idiots like Jimmy Morgan and his drug buddies or lazy, out-of-shape older guys like Mayor Morgan to choose from for potential dating candidates. Any guys half decent had been snatched up in high school and remained taken by other women.

He reached out and brushed a finger along her chin, then leaned in. He inhaled, making a low noise that wasn’t quite a growl but more of a rumble.

“What are you doing?” Her voice was barely a whisper.

“You are checking my scent.”

“You sniffed at me and I did it back.”

He let his hand drop away. “You are not initiating sexual contact with me?”

“Whoa, boy.” She was stunned. “Is that what…ah…leprechauns do to hit on each other? Is sniffing foreplay?”

Coto scowled. “I would never strike you. You threw your purse at me and I did not defend myself against your attack.”

The box translated the words in a dull, emotionless tone but Coto sounded furious and his expression reflected that. She’d insulted him or just pissed him off by what she’d said.

“‘Hit on’ doesn’t mean that. Hit on means flirting or initiating sex. It’s a saying.”

His features relaxed. “Our translator doesn’t know that. We need to speak clearly without your sayings so there are no miscommunications.”

“Our computer was damaged.” Holion shifted his stance, catching her attention. “We have a smaller translator if you’d allow us to put it inside your ear so we don’t have to use this portable unit from our shi—stuff. It is outdated technology.” An annoyed expression crossed his features. “With our computer not working, we had to pull these units out to communicate if we ran into your people.”

Her gaze shifted to Coto. He nodded. “It is safe.”

“You can give me an earpiece thingy.” She shrugged. It beat them holding a box out toward her while they spoke. She was obviously going to spend at least a little time with them until she could escape or they let her go. She hadn’t missed Holion’s slip. Aliens came with ships. She was pretty certain that’s what he’d almost said. “I guess that would be okay.”

The redhead, Gar, lifted the bag he held, pushed a hand inside, and then nodded to Coto before tossing a small ring-sized box at him. Coto’s reflexes were amazing for a guy with injuries as he caught it and removed a tiny object from inside.

“Turn and tilt your head. Please pull your hair out of the way.”

Lynn hesitated but then did as he asked. She shoved her blonde hair back and turned her head, warily watching Coto as he stepped forward, his gaze turning to her exposed ear. His thumb brushed the bottom of her earlobe as he pressed what felt like a cold bead into her ear canal.

She gasped, her hand shooting up to cover it a second later. Whatever it was, it moved, seeming to tunnel inward toward her brain. Pain hit next and almost took her to her knees. She would have collapsed if Coto hadn’t lunged, wrapping both his arms around her waist to keep her upright. A snarl tore from his parted lips.

“This hurts her. Why?”

The discomfort was bad and tears filled her eyes. She whimpered as needle-sharp agony attacked her eardrum. She opened her mouth but the pain was too bad for her to even cry out.

“No one told me this would harm her.” Coto’s voice was deep and no longer mechanical. “Make it stop now, Gar. Help her!”

“It is just seconds of pain. It will pass. The implant is taking hold and it is integrating into her system.”

Coto adjusted his hold on her and bent. He scooped her into his arms, cradling her against his chest. He walked over to a fallen tree and sat with her on his lap.

The sharp pain inside her ear stopped as suddenly as it had started.

“If you allow her to be harmed again, I will hurt you, Gar,” Coto warned.

She stared up at him as he lowered his chin. He really looked furious as they eyed each other. “It’s better.”

“I am sorry it hurt. I never would have allowed it if I had known it would harm you in any way.”

His mouth moved and there were actual words. The translator not only worked but it was translating emotion, and gave the alien a unique voice. There was no time delay anymore either. The lip movement to sound was a little off, assuring her he was probably still growling, but she could understand him as if he were actually speaking English.

“Are you well now?” Coto shifted his hold on her, still cradling her in his arms, but freeing one hand to reach up and gently cup her face. He lowered his head so they were a breath from being mouth to mouth, their eyes so close she could see the silver specks with amazing clarity even in the blue light from the ground. “Nothing will harm you again—or I will harm it much worse.”

“Your voice. I can hear it.”

He took a deep breath, making her realize she was pressed against his naked, broad chest. It was an intimate position with his arms around her, her ass on his lap.

“We have the technology to translate our language.”

“That’s…” She struggled to find words. “Cool. Really advanced.”

His body tensed. “We come from very far away, where things are different than they are here.”

She nodded. “I can totally believe that.”

“I told you she would be fine.” Gar sounded irritated. “You threatened me without cause.”

Lynn turned her head to stare at the redheaded alien. He spun around and she noticed the backpack he wore as he stalked to the center of the small clearing. He removed it and threw it down. They began to set up camp. Coto gently lifted her off his lap but placed her next to him on the fallen tree. She didn’t move, too afraid one of the other men might decide to ignore what Coto had ordered. He was the only one who seemed to want to keep her alive.

They had all kinds of stuff she’d never seen before as one of them dropped another backpack-like bag onto the ground and bent, pressing his finger into a hole on the side of it. In seconds, a hiss sounded and the entire thing started to inflate. She watched in astonished fascination while it continued to increase in size, taking the shape of a large dome. By the time it stopped it was at least twelve feet high in the center and a good twenty feet in diameter. It looked more like a dark igloo created from a strange fabric than it did any tent she’d ever seen.

Gar opened his pack and handed out dark-brown packets. He gave two of them to Coto, who hesitated before placing one on his thigh and gripping the other with both hands.

“Are you hungry, Lynn?”

“You remembered my name.”

He nodded. “I was able to fully understand you. I already have an implant that translates your language.”

“It didn’t hurt you?”

“No. I am used to pain.”

She let that one go, deciding to return to his original question. “I’m starving. I haven’t eaten anything since lunch.” She glanced at what he held in his hands. “Is that food?”

“Yes.” He tore the side seam of the bag and placed his hands under it.

Lynn nearly fell off the log when the bag practically exploded, going from near flat to being balloon-like in size. Coto’s quick reflexes stopped her fall. His hand shot out to grip her thigh, pushing down to pin her where she sat.

Amusement had his eyes sparkling when he smiled at her. “I’m sorry for finding that humorous but you are afraid of food? You bite it, it will not bite you.”

“The thing just blew up like a puffer fish. I didn’t expect that.”

He chuckled again, released her thigh, and turned the bag to show her the open side. “Oxygen activated.”

“That’s…” The smell of something wonderful teased her nose. She sniffed and reached for it. “That smells really good.”

“You eat meat?” He stared into her eyes.

“Yes.”

He passed it over to her and she was flabbergasted at the warmth coming from the bag. He arched his eyebrows at her gasp.

“It heats the food and expands it when oxygen is introduced after the seal is broken. We do not have to cook our meals and they are easier to carry compressed…while we vacation.”

She accepted the warm bag, peeking inside it to see what looked like meat strips, and then looked back at him. “That’s amazing.”

He shrugged and turned a little away from her, looking down to open his own food. This time she expected it as the bag rapidly expanded. He reached inside with his finger and thumb, pulled out a strip of dark meat, and lifted it to his mouth. Lynn watched his generous lips part, those sharp fangs of his flashing in the blue light for a second before the meat disappeared into his mouth when he closed his lips around his fingers, sucking on them. His eyes closed and an expression of sheer pleasure gripped his features as a soft groan came from him.

There was just something extremely sexy about the guy as he chewed his food, his eyes closed as he enjoyed every second of the taste until he swallowed. Amazingly blue eyes slowly opened and their gazes locked. He stared back at her until Lynn realized what she was doing. She jerked her attention to the food bag she held on her palm.

She reached inside, her fingertip testing the texture of the meat that was warm but not hot. It did smell appetizing and it looked similar to steak. She pulled out a strip and stared at it before slowly lifting it to her mouth. She sniffed it again, deciding it even smelled like her favorite food, and then hesitantly opened her mouth. She barely touched it to her tongue first, taking a tiny taste, and then a small bite. Flavor exploded in her mouth, a rich, wonderful taste of perhaps filet mignon. She groaned and took a bigger bite. She finished the strip and reached for another.

“You enjoy it?”

Coto’s voice was husky and as she turned her head to look at him, she nearly gasped as he reached for her face. That tone in his voice did something to her. It was sexy as hell, kind of gruff and deep but soft at the same time. His thumb brushed just under her lip, the slightly rough pad of it tracing from the bottom of her chin to her lower lip, giving her good chills. His gaze followed his thumb until it paused at her lips before he pulled it away.

“Juice dripped.”

“Thank you,” she got out around the lump that formed in her throat.

Lynn knew they were staring at each other again. She could hear the noises going on around them as his alien friends set up camp but she only had eyes for him. He was closer since he’d leaned toward her a little and her heart rate accelerated. There was just something appealing about him, from his beautiful eyes to his strong, masculine features. And that silvery, long hair was tempting to touch, just to see if it felt as silky as it appeared.

He lifted his thumb and licked the juice from it. He still watched her raptly. Memories of touching that raspy tongue of his were instant and she wondered what it would feel like against her own. He inched forward, bending down a little so their faces drew closer.

Was he going to kiss her? Her tongue darted out to wet her lips, drawing his attention as his focus lowered to her mouth. The attraction between them was sudden, hot, and Lynn took a shaky breath. Part of her really wanted to know what it would be like if he did touch his mouth to hers, how he would taste, and if he kissed the way she did. A soft growl came from his throat and the sound made Lynn pull back, realizing just how close she actually was to finding out if Coto would lip lock with her.

“What is it with you?”

He froze. “I don’t understand the question.”

She inched back again, putting a little more space between them. “You smell good, and I stop thinking rationally every time you stare at me or touch me.” She grew suspicious. “Is it some freaky hormone thing? You know, do you give off a certain scent to make a woman have crazy thoughts about jumping you?”

His eyebrows rose and he appeared confused. “I don’t understand.”

“You’re different.” She tried to find words that he’d comprehend. “You and I are not the same. I don’t know you, but I’m attracted to you when you get really close to me. Do you put off crazy pheromones that draw a woman to you? I’m an animal control officer and I study them in my free time so I know some can draw the opposite sex with their scent.” She paused. “You’ve got animal traits like your teeth and you growl, so I’m wondering if you have other traits that aren’t visible.”

He said nothing for long seconds. “You think my scent arouses you?”

“Whoa!” She inched farther along the log away from him. “I didn’t say anything about being turned on. I said attracted, which is not the same.”

His nostrils flared. “You scent good to me as well.”

“You didn’t answer my question.”