Chapter 20 Julie
I flopped onto the hotel bed. Now that it was only me, it felt much too big.
They’d called it a California king, and it was a little longer than a normal bed, so less of Grtirr’s legs hung off the edge.
Without him, it was just too big. What the hell was I supposed to do with all the leftover space?
And Tatertot was gone too, so there wasn’t even anything cute for me to talk to and play with.
The talks with Vossell Industries had wrapped up smoothly. They’d arrive at Ellaston in a fortnight for the first of many ore shipments. In return, we’d be compensated well enough to kickstart all the infrastructure projects we’d been dreaming of.
Safety and security would benefit too, because Vossell Industries wasn’t about to let anything happen to their new trade partner, not when Nova Vita had been overcharging them for the same ore for years. This trade deal would take us one step toward being recognized as an official colony.
I’d recorded everything, organized my notes, and planned on prepping the data into a comprehensible presentation during the trip back to Vokira. I needed time for all the details to solidify first.
The rest of the evening had been a blur of celebration, which included a massive dinner with the crew with enough food to feed a small army.
Afterward, Annabel had dragged Igor and me for a walk through the station’s park, insisting I join them.
I felt very much like a third wheel, but she’d waved off my protests.
Then she’d shown me the drone she’d recovered earlier as Igor insisted on checking the hallways one last time.
It was the very drone that had tried to hunt Grtirr and me down.
Even if the idiots it had belonged to weren’t currently in lockup, they wouldn’t dare claim it.
They’d deliberately ditched the drone into the bushes to hide the evidence that they’d been flying the drone illegally to begin with.
“Is it just me, or are you using me as a shield between you and Igor?” I asked when we were alone. “Do you need help turning him down gently?”
“I’m not sure I want to turn him down, and that’s the problem.”
“What do you mean?”
Annabel’s face turned red. “I mean, I think I like him too. But it’s not right. I am, for the lack of a better word, his mechanic. You heard those guards earlier; they called me his handler. It doesn’t feel right for us to… you know.”
Aww, Annabel was so innocent. She couldn’t even talk about sex without turning bright red. “I feel like I’m taking advantage of him or something.”
“You? Take advantage of him? Have you seen the size of him? And it’s not like he doesn’t know how to make his wants and needs known very clearly. Remember today? He was very clear that he wouldn’t mind and that his equipment works.”
Annabel’s face was as red as the raspberry puree I’d had earlier. “I know. But I still feel like some people will judge.”
“We are surrounded by interspecies couples. No one’s going to judge.”
“It’s not the same. There’s a power dynamic, and…”
“But is there, though?” I asked honestly. “Is there really? Lemme ask you this: Is he smart enough to make his own decisions?”
“Yes.”
“Is he an adult?”
“Yes. But—”
“Then I don’t see the problem. Now that he isn’t controlled by Exotech, he’s grown into his own person.
I understand it was a problem in the beginning, when he felt like he had to do everything he was told, but it’s not like that anymore.
He has his own brain, and he uses it. You should know that best of all.
It’s not fair to treat him as anything less.
If some idiots think it’s not proper because they’re too prejudiced to think he has his own agency, that’s on them, not you. ”
She nodded, clearly with a lot to think about. “Thanks, Julie.”
We made plans to visit the market one last time tomorrow, and I returned to my room a few doors down. So here I was, bored as fuck. And worse yet? I couldn’t believe I was actually missing Grtirr.
I would even welcome him telling me to remember to take my vitamins.
And yup, those reminders have been coming daily, even here on Halcyon Station.
Yesterday, after I’d received one, I stomped over to him and asked him to stop the auto-reminders.
Grtirr had shrugged and asked if I’d taken my supplements yet.
I groaned, rolling onto my stomach. This was ridiculous. I’d spent years perfectly content on my own, and now, after a few days with him, I was pining like some lovesick teenager.
Stupid mate bond.
I got up and got ready for bed, rinsing my mouth extra well before changing into my favorite sleep dress and tucking my pretty hairpin into the front compartment of my bag.
I hadn’t been sure I wanted to bring it along this trip because I was afraid of losing it, but I wanted something familiar to remind me of home.
And by home, I no longer meant Nova Vita.
That hadn’t been home for years; I meant the stronghold.
Every time I looked at it, it reminded me of laying down the base of the swimming pond with Clara.
It was the moment I started feeling like I truly belonged.
I tried to fall asleep, but it was difficult.
The bed was too soft, not supportive enough.
The sheets were not the ultra-silky, temperature-regulating fabric the Vokirens made that kept me cool at home.
And the damn station never shut up. It was the constant whirr of the ventilation systems and the occasional clank of maintenance bots rolling past in the hallway.
Even the air smelled wrong. There was something natural but clean that permeated the air back at the stronghold. Here, everything was just this side of stale.
I flopped onto my side, punching the pillow into submission with the side of my face, but it didn’t help.
My brain was stuck on one very specific Kadrixan warrior.
A sexy-as-fuck warrior with red skin, majestic horns, and that hard look that made my stomach do somersaults like it was trying out for the circus.
I might complain about him being overprotective, but I liked egging him on. I liked missing my vitamins just to spite him. I liked doing something just because he told me I couldn’t, just to see the look on his face.
I groaned and rolled onto my back, staring at the ceiling again. Sleep wasn’t happening. Not when every time I closed my eyes, I saw Grtirr’s golden gaze locked onto mine, like he was two seconds away from pinning me against the nearest wall and—
I exhaled sharply, my fingers already drifting down my body.
I knew just the right thing to help me sleep.
I was always sleepy after an orgasm. It would never be as good as the ones I’d had last night, but it would have to do.
The station’s hum faded into the background as my thoughts zeroed in on one infuriating Kadrixan.
Grtirr’s face filled my mind. His sharp jaw, those golden eyes locked onto me with something raw and possessive. The way his voice got rough when he said my name.
A shiver ran through me, and I slipped my fingers beneath my waistband, dipping two into my wet pussy before bringing them back up to my clit.
I bit my lip, imagining it was his rough, callused fingers teasing me, his breath hot against my ear as he growled something filthy in that sexy, low voice of his.
The ache inside me coiled tighter as I imagined him pinning me down, his weight pressing me into the mattress, as he told me exactly what he was going to do to me. My fingers moved faster, my body tensing as the pressure built.
A soft moan escaped me as I pictured his mouth on mine, his hands gripping my hips, his cock—
The orgasm arrived in little waves, pulsing and throbbing. It was nothing like those screamers I had yesterday with my demon alien, but it did its job. My muscles relaxed, my mind finally quieting as the last of the tension drained away.
I pulled my hand free, my body heavy with satisfied exhaustion. The station’s hum faded into a distant murmur as sleep crept in.
***
A sharp, possessive growl jolted me awake. Before I could react, Grtirr rolled me onto my back, his massive body looming over me in the dim light I’d left on in the facilities. My breath caught, but his name died on my lips when I saw the hunger in his golden eyes.
Damn, he was hot!
"Julie." His voice was rough, almost feral.
He didn’t wait for an answer. His hands gripped my thighs, spreading them apart with ease.
His tail flicked as he settled himself between my legs, the vibrations already making me gasp.
I barely had time to process what was happening before he tore my underwear off, the fabric shredding like paper in his claws.
“Grtirr.”
“You smell of release. My mate. It is my job to give you everything you need. It is my job to make you come.” He sounded almost angry, but right now I was too turned on to care.
He shoved the sleep dress up over my breasts, and then his mouth was on me, hot and demanding.
He nipped me with his teeth and I hissed, arching my back.
I reached for him, my fingers tangling in his thick, wiry hair as his mouth closed over my nipple.
He wasn’t gentle. His teeth grazed the sensitive peak, sending a jolt straight to my core.
His tail moved down, the flat tip rolling up into a thick point. I cried out when he thrust it inside me, and he swallowed the sound with his mouth. His tail worked me relentlessly, the vibrations intensifying as it pumped in and out of me.
"You’re so fucking wet," he growled, his voice thick with need.
I whimpered, my hips bucking against his tail. "Don’t stop."
I didn’t know how he did it, but he flipped me onto my belly without ever removing his tail.
Then he yanked my hips up until I was on my knees.
When he withdrew his tail, it was replaced with the thick head of his cock.
I screamed into the pillow as he shoved the entire thing in, twisted ridges and all, with one thrust.
Each stroke was deep and possessive, filling me so completely that there was no room left even for air.
His hands gripped my hips, holding me in place as he set a brutal pace.
His tail, wrapped around my leg, snuck closer and closer to my clit.
I buried my face in the pillow, muffling my moans as his cock hit that perfect spot inside me.
His breath was hot against my ear, his voice a low growl. "Take it, Julie. Take all of me."
When his tail found my little nub, the vibrations felt so intense that I could hardly breathe. I shattered. My pussy clenched around him as the orgasm ripped through me, my vision going white. Grtirr groaned, his hips slamming into me one last time before he came, his cock pulsing deep inside me.
He collapsed onto the bed, pulling me with him, his arms wrapping around me like he never planned to let go. His tail still curled around my leg, the vibrations slowing to a gentle hum as he cuddled me in his arms.