Chapter 27
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
Dangerous cargo requires additional safety measures
Garrison
WE DIDN’T leave the bed all morning except to get water from the bathroom.
Languid, post-sex Shohari was almost as open as drunk Shohari, and the morning passed far too quickly in a haze of touching, sucking, coming, and talking.
In a lull as we lay, sated, on the bed, I trailed a finger over the soft curves of her stomach. “Why did you help us, anyway?” Her muscles tensed under my hand. “I know it was because you realised you had to have me in your bed, but it’s okay. You can tell me the reason you tell yourself.”
She rumbled a laugh, the one that sounded almost like a cheetah’s purr.
“Impudent male.” God, I shouldn’t like that as much as I did.
“The other male told me how you were taken by the Reserve. I suppose I had a degree of empathy.” Her soft tone went back to business.
“He didn’t tell me how you ended up in that mess in the first place.
Whatever were you doing? Not that they need a good reason to detain anybody. ”
It was easy to share her bitterness about the military group. “We got caught up in a riot. The Reserve rounded up everyone and only sorted it once we were light years away from home.” I realised this was a story I’d never told, and one I’d probably tell several times in the years to come.
“A riot? Where?”
“Tathar Refuge.” And now, I supposed, we were the Tathar refugees.
“I’m not familiar with that place. What is it?”
“The nearest space station to the Sol system. It was a weekend away.” It had only been a month, but it felt like a lifetime ago. “We wanted to see something new and, well, even though humans aren’t allowed out of the system, people always find a way, don’t they? Some pirates gave us passage.”
“Was it worth it?”
I didn’t have to consider for long. I caressed her, hands trailing up to her breasts. “Definitely.”
“Flatterer.” She batted my hand away. “I am trying to be serious and you are distracting me with bed sport.”
I couldn’t resist touching her again. “Is it working?”
She growled, but I took in everything, from her soft curves, to her hard spines, and the face I’d once thought monstrous.
Lose everything to gain a few days with her?
“Yes, of course it was worth it.” I gave her a squeeze.
“But I can’t speak for my friends. I’ve always wanted to explore the galaxy.
To travel. The outer territories aren’t the best place to live, and I’ve always dreamed of being among the stars.
” And while it hadn’t happened in any of the ways I’d imagined, here I was.
“Tathar Refuge was… like Draim and Aurora Five had a giant baby with some space junk and gave it to a wannabe neon artist to dress it.”
Shohari lifted her head off the pillow and gave me an incredulous look, headspines twisting in emphasis. “Skyk me.”
I grinned. “Quite. You said you had empathy. Does that mean you have history with the Reserve?”
“Skykking ulth-brained shit suckers.”
I hid a snort. “I’ll take that as a yes? I told you mine, you tell me yours.”
“Fine. It was when I was much younger. My parents insisted I pick up a shipment. How was I supposed to know the location was in some kind of turmoil? Everybody else knew because it was all over the news, but we didn’t read the news because we were Orithian, and it was only seemly to consume Orithian media.
” Her upper lip warped in a sneer. “My old crew were very traditional. We were captured because we looked suspicious, and interrogated. And those fools thought they were back on Orith and tried to bribe the soldiers, which made it worse.” Distress coloured her voice, and she took a steadying breath.
“It was only my talking that got us out of there, and even then it wasn’t pleasant. ”
I knew full well how unpleasant Galactic Reserve interrogation could be. “I’m glad you got out. Are the Reserve always that bad?”
She swung her head against the pillow. “Only if they think they have cause—which happens more than it should. You shouldn’t have to fear them, but people like you and me are understandably wary. I freely admit my reaction to them is excessive.”
“Excessive to others, maybe. Not to us.” I ran a hand through her headspines and dropped a kiss on her lips. “Is that how you ended up with your current crew?”
“Yes. After the ship was nearly confiscated, I managed to convince my parents I needed different crew, that their picks were a liability. And I presented them with impeccable references.”
She looked so innocent, I laughed. “Dare I ask if these references were legitimate?”
She smiled beatifically. “Regardless, that is how I came to have an Orkri’ian crew.”
“Well, they’re great.”
“They are.” Weariness crept into her voice. “They make this whole situation bearable.”
I pulled her into a hug. Seeing how funny and insightful Shohari was just served to reinforce how hard she must have worked to create her gruff, spiky exterior, and how much her situation had taken from her. She sounded far more jaded than her twenty-eight years, and I ached to ease her anguish.
Once her barriers were down, they were down, I realised. Or maybe that was just because she was sex-drunk. We both were.
Was this what falling in love felt like?
We had to pause our detailed discussion on anatomy every time we needed to physically demonstrate something.
Once I learned her cum came from underneath her hood, I had to examine it—for science, of course.
And when I’d mentioned other ways humans have sex, and she’d learned about the prostate?
I agreed to let her try to find mine, as long as I could see if she had one too—which she insisted she didn’t.
A porn site on the galaxy’s version of the internet showed me a suhla and what it did. Why couldn’t my body could do that for her? I hated that I couldn’t be everything she needed, that one day she might find someone else, someone kri’ith, anyone who wasn’t me.
Shohari’s hands wandered over my arse. “What if I fucked your hole instead?”
My well-used dick twitched with enthusiasm. “We can try it, sweetheart.” Though I’d only ever topped before, I wanted to try everything with her—to explore all the ways our bodies could complement and fit.
If only we had enough time to do that. If we did, maybe we’d have enough time to make the rest of it fit, too.
I didn’t say any of it. I didn’t dare burst this fragile, tender bubble we’d created.
The rumbling of our stomachs became too much to ignore. After a quick shower each, Shohari threw a robe-type garment at me, and we headed for the mess hall in what I could only describe as oversized caftans.
Imani and Fenn sat at the wide, metal table, hot drinks cupped in their hands, and they greeted us with knowing grins.
Damn. They’d been in the next berth.
I ran the drinks machine on autopilot, making a strong, sweet chrya for Shohari, the same for me, then making two more—I’d drain my first one straight away, and Sho chain drank the stuff like she needed it to live.
“Did you both sleep okay?” I said.
“Yes, thanks,” Imani said. “Though Fenn snores.” She nudged their arm with her elbow. “But we didn’t kick each other once, so it’s all good.”
“The bed is massive,” added Fenn, then turned to Shohari, busy making a huge pile of flatcakes, and back to me. “Or, you know, just the right size.”
Fenn wasn’t much taller than Imani, and average build, and if their bed was the same size as Shohari’s, it would be palatial for the two of them. Pretty comfy, too. I hoped their new place wouldn’t be as spartan as the beds on Aurora Five had looked. Nope. Not thinking about our next destination.
I glanced at the hint of Shohari’s arse under the flow of her robe. “Hope we didn’t disturb you.” I rubbed my hand over my hair, heat creeping into my cheeks.
“Nah, you’re good,” Fenn said.
Imani sipped her drink. “We got up for breakfast hours ago and just hung out in here. As long as we kept talking we couldn’t really hear you.” She smiled. “I’m happy you’re spending time together.” Then she mouthed, “have you talked?”
“Soundproofing is heavy,” Shohari called out from the other side of the room. “And the Dorimisa isn’t the fastest anyway. So not much is private on a ship.”
I shook my head at Imani, pursing my lips. She had a point, but I wasn’t ready for reality to intrude.
Shohari put food in front of all of us and leaned over to hiss in my ear. “I was being quiet.”
“I think we need to check the translator got that word right,” I teased, and she punched my shoulder, which I was realising was a standard, if mildly-bruising-to-humans, friendly kri’ith gesture.
“You two are really cute together,” Imani said. “Thank you for the food, Captain. And for transporting us. It’s very kind of you. Fenn and I are looking forward to settling on Vadias.” She looked at me. “Do you still want to come with us, Garrison? Or do you have other plans now?”
I loved Imani but I could have killed her. She was about as subtle as a kri’ith orgasm.
I’d never wanted to go to Vadias. It was just the least unattractive option. The longer I spent with Shohari, the more I wanted to stay with her. But I couldn’t pressure her, and her family situation complicated things.
Imani thought it was as simple as just asking her if I could stay, but it wasn’t. Was it?
“I guess Vadias will be fine,” I said, then took a breath and turned to Shohari. “But I want to help rescue your brother. I meant what I said last night.”
Shohari stared at her plate, poking at a part-eaten flatcake. “I do not know when that will be.”
“Okay.” I’ll be here as long as you need. Just ask me to stay.
She only ate her food, and we sat in silence until Fenn towed Imani away.
Eventually, Shohari spoke. “I wish we had more time together.”
My heart squeezed, as much joy as it was pain. “Imani thinks it should be as simple as me telling you I want to stay, and you letting me,” I said, hoping the direct approach was good advice.
“You want to stay?” The glimmer in her crystalline eyes was hopeful and wistful all at once.
“You know I do.” I entwined my fingers with hers, stroking my smooth thumbs over her ridged ones. “Whatever this is between us, it’s more than just great sex. I want to see what else it could become.”
She held my gaze until a grimace twisted the hope from her face. “I wish we could. I hate feeling so trapped. I hate that I’m not free to say yes, to trust that things will work out.” She went very still. “Things have never worked out for me before.”
“I know, sweetheart.”
She gripped my hands so tight it hurt but turned her head away. “I can’t let this last long enough to risk… feelings.”
My mouth went dry.
“If my parents win…” Her headspines pulsed and went flat. “It is partly why I never locked anyone before you. I cannot risk bonding to someone, only to have it ripped away.”
Bonding?
She whipped her head back round, the crystals of her eyes staring frantically into mine, and her thumb caressed my lip. “You’d be so easy to love, Garrison.”
I couldn’t breathe.
It was too intense, too soon, too right; I couldn’t let this knife edge we were on slice us apart. Not yet.
“Let me take you back to bed, Shohari.” I cupped her cheeks in my hands, letting my fingers memorise the angles of her face. “If one more day is all we have, I want to spend the rest of it showing you how amazing you are, how much goodness you deserve.”
Her jaw shook, and from her throat came a low, sustained lament.
“Shohari, are you crying?”
She coughed, trying to dislodge the sound. “No. I do not cry.” But her sad howl echoed round the mess hall, starting up every time she tried to stop it. “Frustrating human. Stop saying beautiful things.”
She coughed again and growled, batting my hands away. “This is supposed to be just sex. Tell me filthy things. Make me scream instead.”
I pushed down the ache in my chest, and focused on her. My instincts urged me to be gentle, but I didn’t have a human lover. My exquisite Shohari was all alien, one for whom sex was a battle as much as it was a bond.
I shoved her away.
I spun her, threw her against the wall, trapped her with the length of my body.
“Filthy things like how hard I’m going to fuck this tight cunt as soon as I drag you back to your room?
” I yanked up her robe, rubbed my hand roughly over her soaked pussy, dragging my palm over her stiff clit, pulling my fingers down either side in a V until she whimpered.
“Look at you, so wet for me. You want more of my cum, Captain?”
She growled, twisting her body, a fistful of my robe in one hand, the steel bar of my dick in the other. “Or maybe I’m going to fuck you and lock you again, make you so sensitive you’re begging me to let you go.”
My dick jerked in her hand. I didn’t understand how she could turn the tables so easily or why I loved it so much, but I did.
I really did.
She gave me a lazy pump, and I shuddered. “You’re going to lie there and take whatever I give you. How many loads of cum can you fill me with, human?”
Fuck.
I twisted one of her nipples between my thumb and finger until she gave a pained gasp. “How many can you take?”
“Try me,” she rumbled, and dragged me by the cock to her room.