Sex, Love, and Aliens, Volume 1 (26 page)

This was going to be one of those nights where she stayed cold because any wood they would’ve gathered to make a fire was in the rain. She’d been cold before, of course. She didn’t like it then and she liked it even less now, but at least rain wasn’t pouring over them as she set her backpack down and pulled out a blanket, which was slightly damp. Niah followed suit, but when he sat down he gestured for her to sit next to him.

“What? You want me to sit there? By you?”

Niah patted the ground by his side.

“Uh, I don’t think so. I’ll be fine right here.”

And she sat down with her blanket wrapped around her shoulders. She couldn’t help the tiny shivers that took hold of her body. She heard Niah sigh and then watched through wide eyes as he rose, walked over to her, picked her up, and brought her back to his spot. When he sat down, she was on his lap and he was wrapping them both up in his blanket.

And now…well, now she felt too hot. Like a furnace had been lit deep inside. She was uncomfortable so she shifted, and when she did, she felt him. She froze, and her gaze shot straight to his. His green orbs were narrowed and trained on her lips, and she knew he was remembering their kiss because
she
was remembering their kiss and, oh…how she’d love to repeat it.

As if reading her thoughts, his head lowered. She didn’t even have the good sense to turn away because she wanted this. Lord help her, she didn’t want to turn him away this time. The attraction for this man consumed her, terrified her, and confused the hell out of her, but she could no longer deny it.

His mouth settled on hers and that was it. The world melted away. Her arms snaked around his neck to pull him into her as his lips moved gently over her own, warm and soft and hot. He reached out with his tongue to trace her bottom lip, and her mouth opened on a surprised sigh. He seized the moment and immediately deepened the kiss. His right hand slid up her back to tangle in her hair and hold her head still, tilting it just a little to deepen the kiss even further. It was a magical kiss, bathed in the thunderstorm raging around them as all thought and reason fled her mind. Her body went from chilled to burning hot under Niah’s tender ministrations. She was no longer conscious of who she was, where she was, or of right and wrong. She became an entity of feeling and she wanted more.

Niah moved both of his hands down to her bottom and rolled until he lay on top of her and his body nestled into the juncture between her thighs. She gasped as his arousal settled right in the heart where desire pooled in her body like hot silver. Then he moved his hips ever so slightly to rub himself into her through their clothing and she thought she would die from the kaleidoscope of pleasure. Breaking from his kiss, she threw her head back to revel in the sensation as his tongue moved down her throat. He nipped at the skin right at the base of her neck, and she moaned.

In a haze, she felt her shirt shifting to the side, revealing her shoulder. He pressed hot kisses against her skin, licking the moisture off. His fingers began unbuttoning her shirt, and she had a brief moment of clarity, that if she let this continue they were going to have sex. Did she want this? Was she
ready
for this? Her heart was racing like a skittish horse, and she tried to gulp in deep breaths to clear her head. She had to answer this very important question before things went too far.

Was she ready?

Niah pulled his lips off her shoulder to look into her eyes, and at that moment a flash of lightning illuminated the shelter. At that point in time, they were the only two people that existed, regardless of the fact that they were from two different species. Once they had been enemies, but Bree couldn’t think of him as such anymore. Now, they were just Bree and Niah.

Partners.

She nodded, giving her consent, and his mouth swooped down to cover hers again. As he kissed her, his free hand took off her shirt. She wore a tank underneath and their kiss broke as he helped her sweep it over her head. She lay bare under his gaze, her nipples beading from a combination of the chilled air and his intense stare. Her breasts weren’t very large and for that she’d always been grateful, but now she wondered if Niah preferred large breasts. Did the women of his race have large breasts? He was more or less built like a human male, probably a little bigger, so she assumed the women had to be the same.

He skimmed a finger over one turgid peak and she groaned. She arched her back, wanting more, and he obliged. She wanted him to devour every inch of her, to possess her completely, and the only way to make sure he understood was to give herself freely.

Soon he urged her to take off her shoes and pants, and he helped, pulling them down her legs and free from her body. He kissed and licked his way over every inch, leaving her panting and yearning for him. When he went to remove his own clothing, she watched through wide eyes as he bared his magnificent body for her. She didn’t even have time to get cold before he was back on top of her, fitting between her legs.

Licking and kissing his way down, he settled in the spot that was dripping with need. His first lap brought her body off the ground in a moan of desire. Releasing her arms, he pulled her legs apart as he thrust his tongue into her sex. She thrashed her head back and forth and thought she would die from the unbelievable pleasure. She felt a tightness coil in her belly and wanted to beg for something, though she didn’t know for what.

Over and over his mouth fed on her until, suddenly, the tightly wound coil burst and she unraveled in a violent shudder of release. Stars burst under her closed eyelids as her body melted. She wasn’t aware that Niah had removed his mouth from her or that he’d moved between her thighs. She slowly became aware of him, of his arousal still burning hot and heavy and clearly unrequited in climax. She opened her eyes as he moved over her and settled between her legs, propping himself up to keep his weight from crushing her. He moved one hand down between their bodies and guided the tip of his shaft to her entrance. With their eyes locked on each other, he surged forward.

She knew there’d be pain, her mother had warned her of that, but his girth stretched her so tightly she didn’t think he’d be able to fit. Tears stung her eyes, and he murmured something soft and endearing, or at least it sounded like that. He waited, holding himself still as she adjusted to his invasion. His free arm reached back to move her legs to encircle him, and when she did, he moved, setting the pace. In and out, again and again, deeper and harder. He rode her and she hung on, meeting every thrust with a moan or a sigh. They moved to a pinnacle that she was only just learning but they stared at each other, every breath a benediction to their mutual desire. And when they reached the top together, she knew that her heart belonged to him.

After their breathing returned to normal, Niah made them a bed and bundled her into his arms. He kissed her temple and she fell asleep, feeling complete for the first time in her life.

Chapter 8

The next morning there was a playfulness about Niah as he continuously found new and clever ways to kiss her. They ate food from his pack and continued their journey. He would murmur things to her, and although Bree didn’t know what they meant, she figured they were terms of endearment since his tone brought thoughts of naughtiness to mind.

If she wondered why he was still with her or what would happen once she found what she was looking for, she pushed it to the back of her mind. Perhaps it was foolish of her, but she wanted to be foolish. She liked this intimacy with Niah, liked that he kept touching her.

After a couple of hours, they reached a plateau that had lots of wildflowers growing all over the place. The view was breathtaking, and she sat down to admire the world spread out before her. Perhaps this was the place her father meant, and a surreal feeling overcame her.

Tears welled up in her eyes. She hadn’t realized how much she needed this, how much she had needed to let go of him in order for her to continue on. Niah came over and sat next to her, not touching her but simply lending his quiet strength.

“I thought that I’d be alone the rest of my life,” she said, breaking the silence. “I didn’t think I’d find anyone I wanted to be with, but you followed me without hesitation. An invader. Sometimes I can’t quite wrap my brain around that, but…I’m learning. I’m learning that it’s okay to…love you. I hope you don’t leave me, Niah. I hope Niah will stay.”

He cocked his head as he looked at her.

“Niah stay,” he said.

She smiled. “Niah. Bree. Stay.”

She put her hands together.

Then suddenly the moment was shattered as they heard crashing coming from the bank of trees off to the right. They both surged to their feet, and Niah grabbed her hand and ran to the other side of the glade where the underbrush thickened and trees bathed the area in shadows.

“Bree stay,” Niah said, and pulled his laser gun from his backpack.

Before she could say anything he was gone, traversing the area through the cover of the tree line. She pulled her knife out of its sheath and quickly followed him. No way was she going to leave him by himself to face whatever danger was out there. When she lost sight of him she decided to follow where she’d first heard the noise and soon she pushed through to find a whole company of invaders.

Niah stood in the middle of them.

She waited in the shallow grove of trees, watching Niah laughing and talking to his fellow aliens. Something inside her shifted and broke, and she knew she had only herself to blame. She had to be colossally stupid for falling for him. A tear spilled down her cheek and she wiped it away impatiently. What did she think could possibly happen? She was human, he was alien. They weren’t ever going to fit into each other’s world, and her meeting his friends would be nothing short of a disaster.

It was time to say goodbye. She’d found what she needed to find. This mountain didn’t have the winter shelter she’d been looking for, but it did hold a piece of her father’s spirit that she had needed to let go. And now Niah was part of this place, a memory to let go of as well. It was time to harden her silly heart. She should’ve walked away all those days ago, just left him alone and not bothered to splint his broken leg. Maybe one day she’d be able to think of him with fondness, but today wasn’t that day. Today her heart hurt.

“Bree,” Niah called out in his usual deep, commanding tone. “Bree!”

He was calling for her. Did he want to turn her over to them? Had that been his plan all along, knowing she was heading in this direction? Had he stayed just to lure her into a trap?

It shattered everything inside her, and she couldn’t contain her sob. She turned, knowing that her movement had to have been spotted, and ran. Niah yelled in his native language, and she heard some type of response, something that sounded like an affirmation, but she didn’t stick around to see what was happening. She was fast and small, and she knew how to hide.

Had…had he just given the orders to kill her? But why? Why now? He could’ve killed her a hundred times over the past few days. Was this all for show in front of his buddies? With her heart pounding in her ears, she ran as hard and fast as she could through the dense thicket.

“Bree!”

She heard him calling out to her, but fuck that. She pushed on and ignored the ache centering in her heart, focusing instead on getting as far away from the invaders as possible.

Niah was her enemy again.

It was just how things were.

Chapter 9

“Stop! Bree, stop, please! You don’t understand.”

The words came to her and at first she ignored them, until she realized he was speaking her language. Bree halted and turned to face him, her eyes wide in disbelief.

“You speak my language now?”

He sighed. “I’ve always spoken your language.”

She couldn’t believe what she was hearing. She’d told him things, things about her life. Private, personal things that she never would’ve told another soul…and he understood every word? Betrayal burned through her stomach, and she felt like throwing up.

“What do you mean you speak my language? You liar!”

“There are things about me, Bree, things you don’t know.”

“And so you were going to give me to your friends? Turn me in?” She hit his chest, although it was like hitting a stone, he was so immovable. “I saved your life!”

“It’s not like that,” he argued.

“Then tell me what it is like,” she demanded, trying very hard to keep her tears at bay. She didn’t want to cry in front of him and show her weakness of loving him.

“Bree…I was human once.”

That scattered all her thoughts. “What?”

“Those men back there, they’re just like me. I was the first.”

“The first what?”

He ran a hand through his hair, clearly agitated. “The first successful human hybrid experiment. I was number seventy-four, which means there were seventy-three failures.”

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” she said. “That stuff doesn’t happen. They didn’t grow you in a lab!”

“No, not like you’re thinking.” He took a deep, steady breath. “Remember the beasts when we first met? They were the prototypes. The aliens have the technology to graft their DNA onto a human, to fuse us together. They thought I’d be a better warrior, that I would understand humans better. That I’d fight them better. They failed to understand that human emotions are still inside me, that they can’t wipe them away. I can’t fight against humans because I’m still part human.”

“But those settlers—”

“I didn’t kill the settlers,” he interrupted. “They were our first patrol mission, our first test. The true blood aliens came with us to make sure we got the job done. But we fought against them. We fought
for
the humans, we made sure to fire wide, giving them enough time to escape. The aliens figured out what we were doing and tried to annihilate us. The other men like me scattered, running to our prearranged meeting location, but my leg broke. The rest you know.”

She just stared at him, trying to digest his fantastical story. Was it true? Was he really part human?