His Naughty Little Mate (2 page)

“The world remembers them, Carmen,” he said gently. “The world remembers all those who were lost on the Gallant X.”

“I know. NASA has had me placing the wreath in front of the Gallant memorial during the annual remembrance ceremony since I was three years old. I’ve never missed a year.”
Until now
.

Carmen blinked rapidly and tried to focus on the debris floating behind Erik. For a second, she thought she saw a strange movement, as if a large black object were passing through. She shook her head, deciding the reflections from the sun must be playing tricks on her eyes.

“What’s wrong?” Erik asked.

“Nothing. I thought I saw something, but—”

A flash of radiant white blasted into her vision, and Carmen slipped into blackness.

* * *

The sound of footsteps and light clattering noises permeated Carmen’s consciousness as she struggled to wake up. A sense of urgency that she didn’t understand beckoned her to sit up and take action, but her arms and legs were too heavy, and falling back asleep was a strong temptation. She listened for voices but heard none. Perhaps Erik was about to settle into the bunk atop hers. Tomorrow they would be another day closer to Mars. Her thoughts were muddled, as if a thick fog filled her brain and she couldn’t think clearly enough to focus on something important, something that nagged in the back of her mind.

The footsteps grew louder and terrifying memories descended upon her, causing her to gasp and jolt upright. The Dastok 22 and the asteroid. The spacewalk. Her foot, stuck. Then Erik. An explosion. Floating.

A flash of light.

She blinked, trying to focus on her strange surroundings. Wasn’t she supposed to be dead? Or at least still floating in space? What had caused the blinding white flash before she’d lost consciousness, and where the hell was Erik?

Worry crashed upon her. She hoped he was all right. He’d dislodged her foot from the asteroid and then diverted half of his oxygen to her pack. Despite their many differences in opinion, it seemed he was always looking out for her.

Her thoughts of Erik faded as she gazed upon her surroundings. She was in a small room that looked very much like a nursery. Pastel colors lined the walls in a soothing striped pattern. Odd shapes decorated the walls, many of them glittering and moving slightly, mechanically. She was in a soft bed with lots of colorful blankets. The bed was pushed into a corner, but the front and side of it were blocked by a tall railing. Like a cage. No, like a crib. She stood up and peered over the side. She could easily crawl out.

She hesitated and glanced out the window behind her. Flowering trees stretched to a blue sky, and the vegetation appeared tropical. Too tropical.

Alien.

Where the hell was she? If she’d been rescued from the accident, why wasn’t she on a ship? She racked her brain for a possibility to explain her current circumstances. Clearly she wasn’t on Earth. The strange birds swooping down upon the trees confirmed it. Sunlight reflected on their brilliant purple feathers. And though the sky was blue, it was too blue. Too perfect. Had she fallen asleep for years and woken up on the terraformed Mars?

No. That theory didn’t explain the purple birds.

Her gaze swept around the room again. She spotted a small table with four chairs, and beyond that what appeared to be a hospital bed with medical instruments on a shelf nearby. A lamp and several other gadgets hung from the ceiling above the bed. Memories struggled to resurface as she stared at the hospital bed. Tall shadows stood above her, holding her down while a light shined in her face. She was poked and prodded until every last part of her body was thoroughly explored, even her pussy and her bottom hole. She closed her eyes and shook her head, trying to vanquish the memories of being restrained and examined by strangers that left her flushing despite herself.

Continuing her observation of her surroundings, she looked down at herself. She was wearing what appeared to be a nightie. It was white with pink ruffles adorning the bottom, and it only reached mid-thigh. She felt along the curves of her body, searching for an injury or any other clues that might shed light upon her predicament. When she touched her bottom, the bulk of something beneath her nightie startled her. Lifting up the fabric, she inspected what she hoped was underwear, only to discover she was wearing what appeared to be a cloth diaper.

She started to tear it off, then stopped. Better to keep it on for modesty’s sake until she had more appropriate attire. Gazing across the room, she spotted a door. She gripped the edge of the crib and hoisted one leg over, intending to crawl out. Whoever—or whatever—was keeping her here was obviously crazy. She needed to escape and find Erik.

The door opened and Carmen froze with one leg dangling out of the crib. A tall, regal-looking creature walked inside. Not human. Holy shit. Not human! The alien appeared very humanlike though, with two legs and two arms. Clearly a female, with long, blue-streaked brown hair and large breasts that were encased within her white gown. Her eyes were larger than a human’s though, and set wider apart in her face.

“Who are you?” Carmen demanded. She tried to move her other leg over the crib, but the woman swatted her diaper-clad bottom and shook her head. Rage and disbelief combined, and Carmen felt her face redden. “I said who are you? And where is Erik?”

The alien woman scowled at her, shook her head again, and pointed at the mattress. Carmen knew the woman wanted her to get back into bed, but that wasn’t going to happen. Not without a fight. She pretended like she was about to lie down, then once the sternness on the woman’s face disappeared, Carmen jumped over the edge of the crib with the swiftness and skill of a practiced runner leaping over a hurdle.

Heart pounding in her ears, she headed for the door, and collided with it. She pounded on the solid surface, trying to get the blasted thing to open. There was no handle or any buttons, and before she could attempt to pry it open, strong hands gripped her shoulders and spun her around. The sternness had returned to the alien woman’s face. After another shake of her head, the woman turned Carmen to her side and bent her over slightly, then delivered several sharp swats to her diaper-covered bottom. Continued struggles only earned her some even sharper swats to the backs of her unprotected thighs.

Carmen cursed and wrenched out of the woman’s strong hold, putting space between them before turning around to stare at the alien. What the hell was going on? Nothing made sense. Perhaps she was still floating in space, delusional from a lack of oxygen. A pinch to her arm didn’t rouse her, and she backed against the wall as the young, attractive alien approached.

“Please tell me where Erik is.”

The alien cocked her head and narrowed her startling blue eyes, and with a sinking heart Carmen realized they didn’t share a language. She peered out the nearest window. The purple birds continued to swoop up and down atop the trees. The whiteness of the clouds against the blue sky appeared more vibrant than on Earth. A rectangular aircraft hovered in the distance, and as she walked closer to the window, the clouds parted to reveal twin suns beaming down across the lush landscape.

She pinched herself again. And again. A frustrated scream built in her throat, but she swallowed it and turned to the alien woman, a woman who appeared to be the same age as Carmen. Well, judging by human standards. Human standards weren’t the norm here though. The blue streaks in the alien woman’s hair contrasted with the lighter blue of her eyes. She had smooth porcelain skin, long legs and long, slender arms with five fingers on each hand, and thin lips that were pursed at the moment.

Blue obviously wasn’t happy with Carmen. Not that she cared. She only cared about escape. Finding Erik. Perhaps the pieces of this crazy puzzle would fall into place once she spoke with him. Worry shadowed her thoughts as she once again wondered about his location and safety. Was he being held captive in a similar room?

Another alien entered, a male carrying a tray of brightly colored food. Exotic. Everything about this place was exotic, yet somehow soothing because of the pastels in the room. Exhaustion tugged at Carmen and she glanced back at the bed. No, the crib. That’s what it was, as unnerving as it was to accept. She cupped her bottom, still stinging from the spanking Blue had administered.

Her stomach rumbled as the male with cropped blond hair placed the tray on a table. He left the room without a word, only nodding at Blue as he slipped through the door, which zipped shut the moment he exited. She frowned, figuring it was automatic and programed not to allow her escape. She’d have to figure out a way to force her way outside.

Blue gestured at the table, and Carmen’s stomach rumbled again. She hesitantly approached, taking the seat farthest from Blue, but the woman sat next to her anyway. Before Carmen could scoot away, her wrist was grasped as Blue pressed a spoonful of dark green goo into her mouth. It tasted bland at first, but after resting on her tongue for a few seconds, rich flavors exploded. Fruity, yet with a hint of nuts. Like the almonds she used to devour by the bag as she worked on a research proposal late at night. Whether it was due to surprise or hunger, Carmen allowed Blue to feed her several more bites before she slowly reached for the spoon.

Smack!
Cradling her stinging hand, she glared at the alien as fury built in her chest. Her blood boiled. The crib was annoying. The diaper insulting and embarrassing. Spoon feeding crossed the line. Why the hell wouldn’t Blue at least try to talk to her, or communicate in some other way? Humans had theorized about alien life for thousands of years, and while Carmen had never thought intelligent alien life would be discovered during her lifetime, she’d always thought the aliens would at least be smart enough to figure out how to communicate with them if such a meeting occurred.

Instead, Blue was treating Carmen as if she couldn’t complete the simplest of tasks. Anger simmered as her sense of helplessness increased. She refused to eat another bite, despite the continued rumbling of her stomach. Disapproval shone on Blue’s face, and Carmen glanced down at the dark green, red, and orange goo on the tray, impulsively deciding that her new alien friend could use a bit of color on her stern face.

With a quick flick of her hand, she sent the plate flying upward with a satisfying splat. But before she could try to make her escape, she found herself on Blue’s lap. Bottom up. Nightie pushed up, and diaper pulled down.

She kicked her feet, trying to flail off the woman’s lap, but a flurry of spanks stung her bare flesh. She grabbed onto the table and lifted her head, a cry ripping from her throat as the pain built and built. A noise by the door caught her attention, and Carmen froze over the stern woman’s lap, unable to move as she stared up at the new visitor who’d showed up just in time to witness her humiliation.

Erik stood in front of her, tall and perfectly healthy looking, wearing a pair of dark slacks and a simple white tunic. He folded his arms across his chest and his lips curled with amusement. The same male alien who’d delivered her tray stood at his side, only a few inches taller than the smirking human man.

“Don’t just stand there, you bastard! Help me!” she yelled at Erik.

Blue continued to thrash her bare bottom, even swatting the tops of her thighs. Frustratingly, the woman’s strength surpassed hers, and Carmen had no choice but to accept her punishment.

Erik’s amusement deepened, a smug smile breaking across his face. “Judging by the food covering your nurse’s face, I’d say you richly deserve the spanking you’re getting, Carmen. Looks to me like you’ve been a very naughty little girl.”

Chapter Two

Blue tugged Carmen’s diaper back into place and stood her up, giving her a censuring look. Food still covered the alien’s face, and a smidge of guilt nagged at Carmen as she surveyed the mess she’d made on the table. She’d been angry. Was still angry. She stared from Blue to Erik to the male alien, wishing the floor would open up and swallow her whole.

After another tense moment, Blue and the male alien, Blondie, began cleaning up the splattered food. She backed away from the mess and stiffened when Erik approached, leading her toward the crib.

“I see you’re up to your old tricks.” He smirked at her, and she resisted the urge to push him into the crib. How the hell could he joke around at a time like this?

“Where are we?” she hissed, glancing at the aliens and keeping her voice low.

“In a galaxy far, far away.” He chuckled as he brushed a strand of hair behind her ear.

She jerked away from his hand. “I’m serious, Erik. I just woke up a few minutes ago. Have any of
them
talked to you?”

Shaking his head, he placed his hands on her shoulders. His expression gentled and she calmed under his touch. “I’ve been awake for a few hours. None of them have spoken to me. In fact, I haven’t overheard them speaking to each other, yet they seem to be a highly intelligent species, judging by our surroundings. I’ve seen high tech ships in the sky and they used some pretty crazy-looking instruments to give me a medical examination earlier. Anyway, I’m guessing they are telepaths.”

A shiver rippled down her back, and excitement clenched her pussy as she recalled her own medical examination. She was starting to remember more and more of it, particularly the part where they spread her pussy lips wide and inserted some sort of cool device that despite its chilled temperature had only made her hotter. They’d inspected her breasts, tweaking her nipples until her center became wet from the constant tugging and pinching. Her bottom hole had been penetrated by something the size of a finger, and whatever it was had been lubricated, because it had been twisted around in her hole for several long moments as she gasped and panted on the hospital-like bed. Her physical reaction to being violated shamed her, and she hoped Erik didn’t notice her face flushing. Finally, she regained her senses and asked, “If they are telepaths, why can’t we hear them in our heads?”