29. Chapter 29
Chapter twenty-nine
-Bryce-
T he alpha roared as he charged at us, but Kitari held his ground, not moving from his protective stance. Then, at the last moment, Kitari neatly stepped forward and leaned to the right. The tip of the spear slid past his shoulder; he grabbed the shaft, quick as lightning. He shifted, and, using the alpha’s momentum, swung him around and sent him flying into the wall next to us. The alpha met it face first with a crack and crumpled.
Now the other alphas were approaching. I raised my fists, shaking them free of the too-large sleeves of the cloak, and got ready to fight. But before they reached us, a shout from behind drew my attention. Guards in the square behind us, pointing and shouting. Kitari had been right, they were looking for us and we’d managed to attract their attention. I cursed as Kitari spotted them, too, and a panicked look crossed his face.
The time for being covert had passed. He picked me up by the waist and threw me over his shoulder.
“Whoa.”
And then he was running, dodging through the alphas blocking our way like a Galactic Football pro player, through the arch, past the last of the buildings, and into the row of trees.
The sound of shouting followed us, and I saw them giving chase as I bumped against Kitari’s back.
Branches and leaves whipped us as he sprinted headlong into the jungle, vaulting over logs and weaving between trees. One big jump jolted the air out of my lungs, and I got a great view of Kitari’s ass bouncing beneath me.
“Are you alright, Bryce?” he asked.
“Uh, yeah, fine,” I said, trying to make my voice sound steady as I bumped off his back with every step. His shoulder dug into my crotch. I closed my eyes and tried not to think about how warm and firm it was. God, he smelled so good. Now really wasn’t the time, but I couldn’t stop my mind from reeling, prompted by the pheromones and the adrenaline coursing through me.
Kitari was going to a hell of a lot of effort for me. But why? We’d had chemistry in the jungle for sure, and then there was that kiss. But was that just the pheromones doing their job? Or was it something more?
Seriously, you’re thinking about this now? While being actively pursued by aliens who want to throw you back in jail…or worse?
I checked on our pursuers again. They were starting to fall behind, but there was a lot of noise back the way we’d come, probably attracting more guards. Kitari didn’t slow his pace though, and eventually the last few alphas chasing us disappeared.
And still, he didn’t slow down.
“I think we’ve lost them,” I said. “You can probably slow down a bit now.”
Kitari grunted and, after a few more strides, slowed to a more reasonable jog. He shifted his hold on me, bringing me around against his body in a bridal carry. I tried not to think about how warm and hard his chest was. And how great he smelled. I shifted against him, trying to get down, but he kept on gripping me tightly. It didn’t seem like he wanted to let me go just yet. I hung there for a few more minutes, breathing steadily and trying to get my pulse to slow down, even though I hadn’t been the one doing any of the running.
“Wanna put me down now, buddy?” I asked awkwardly. Buddy? “I think we’re in the clear. And I can run on my own.”
He grunted. Slowly, reluctantly, he loosened his grip on me and carefully set me on my feet again, making sure I was entirely stable before he let go completely. His hands lingered on my ribs, and my skin tingled where he touched me.
I swallowed as our eyes met and held, before he blinked, shaking his head a little.
“We need to keep moving.”
“Right.”
I fell into step behind him, blaming my spinning head on a sudden rush of blood to my legs and nothing more.