Chapter 12
Leah
Water—real, unlimited water, not the sonic cleansers and paltry spray of a spaceship shower—was the most simple luxury, and I took my time in the shower, washing away the sweet ache of overused muscles and the sticky evidence of last night’s adventure.
Blue-tinged rivulets swirled around my feet before disappearing down the drain—Aano’s cum, unmistakable in its alien hue.
I smiled, tracing my fingers over the light bruises forming on my hips where his large hands had gripped me.
A week ago, I couldn’t have imagined being sandwiched between two gorgeous alien men, begging for more as they filled me completely.
And watching them fuck each other had been sexier than I would have ever imagined. Now, I couldn’t imagine wanting anything else.
“Fuck,” I whispered, laughing softly as I scrubbed at a particularly stubborn stain on my inner thigh.
Aano’s cum marked his lovers with a faint blue sheen, and I smiled as I thought about Yahn and me matching, both looking like we’d been recently fucked by a Tholkon.
The memory of how it got there sent a pulse of renewed desire through my core.
I turned off the water and stepped onto the heated floor tiles.
My reflection in the mirror was barely visible through the steam, but I could make out the flush in my cheeks that had nothing to do with the hot shower.
Bruises and bite marks decorated my neck and breasts—Yahn had been particularly attentive there, his sharp teeth grazing my skin with precisely the right pressure.
The sight sent another ripple of arousal through me, but I pushed it aside.
We had plans to explore the famous Araced pleasure gardens today, and I wasn’t about to suggest a change in itinerary just because my body hadn’t had enough of them yet.
I grabbed one of the plush towels and dried off, then slipped into a light sundress that would be appropriate for the tropical climate of Arec’s main continent.
The fabric clung to my still-damp skin as I ran a comb through my wet hair, mentally planning our day.
Maybe we’d grab breakfast first at that little café Yahn had mentioned, then head to the gardens.
The thought of watching these two gorgeous aliens react to Arec’s famous aphrodisiac flowers made me smile.
I grabbed one of the plush towels and dried off, wrapping a towel around myself as I glanced towards the door, wondering what the guys were doing.
Something felt different this morning—a new intimacy beyond the physical.
Last night, between rounds of frankly incredible sex, we’d talked.
Really talked, not just the surface-level flirtations we’d exchanged aboard the Nova.
Aano had described his childhood on Thol, and the weight of responsibility he felt for his siblings after their parents died.
Yahn had been quieter, but he’d shared stories about the pranks he and his brother Ruhn used to play in school.
For the first time since inviting them aboard my ship, I felt like I was seeing the men beneath the bravado and flirtation.
It was... nice. More than nice. It made the sex even hotter, knowing there was something deeper developing.
I combed out my wet hair, then headed for the bedroom to find something to wear.
The door slid open with a soft hiss, releasing a cloud of steam into the cooler air beyond.
I took two steps, then froze in the doorway.
”—no warning at all?” Aano was saying, his usual easygoing demeanor replaced by something harder, more focused. “That doesn’t track with standard Ducal protocol.”
“No warning, but we had coms off.” Yahn’s voice was tight, controlled in a way I hadn’t heard before. His tail, usually so expressive, lay still beside him on the bed. “The message was coded through three different relay points. They didn’t want it traced.”
“Fuck.” Aano ran a hand over his face. “This complicates everything. We need to move the evidence before—“
“I know.” Yahn’s shoulders tensed under Aano’s touch. “But a kidnapping changes the timeline. My brother—”
“We’ll get him back.” Aano cut him off, squeezing his shoulder. “But we need to be smart about this.”
Kidnapping? Evidence? Mission? The words hit me like a physical blow, each one driving the air from my lungs a little more completely. I pressed myself against the wall beside the door, heart thundering in my chest. My skin went cold despite the lingering heat from the shower.
“We need to find a secure comm terminal,” Yahn continued, oblivious to my presence. “Somewhere off the main networks. I have contacts who might help, but I can’t use any of my regular channels.”
“Once we deliver the package to the IUC, this whole thing is over.”
My fingers pressed against the wall so hard they went numb. IUC—Interplanetary Unity Council. The governing body for cross-species relations. What the fuck did two maintenance workers have to do with the IUC?
“I don’t like lying to her,” Aano said, his voice softer.
Yahn’s laugh was bitter, nothing like the warm, rich sound I’d grown to crave. “We’ve been lying to her since the moment we met. What’s a few more days?”
A strange, distant buzzing filled my ears, making it hard to focus on their words.
Construction maintenance workers. That’s what they’d told me when I’d picked them up at that space station.
Just two guys looking for passage to the next system over, happy to pay with what little credits they had.
Except I’d refused their money, charmed by Aano’s easy smile and Yahn’s quiet intensity.
Had everything been a lie? The attraction, the connection, the way Aano had looked at me last night as he moved inside me, like I was precious and desired and—
Stupid. Fucking stupid, naive little rich girl, so desperate for something real that I’d fallen for the first pretty story wrapped in a pretty package.
My stomach lurched. I pressed a hand to my mouth, willing myself not to make a sound. Not to vomit right there in the hallway.
Yahn moved to a small bag on the dresser and pulled out something that looked like a standard data chip. “The Ducal Syndicate wants what’s on here badly enough to take Ruhn. We need to make sure it gets to the Council before they realize we still have it.”
Ducal Syndicate. The name tickled at my memory—something I’d heard on a news broadcast, maybe? A criminal organization on Thol.
Jesus, how blind had I been? These weren’t the easygoing maintenance workers who’d charmed their way onto my ship and into my bed. These were men with secrets—dangerous ones, from the sound of it.
And I was just a convenient means to an end.
The sudden sharp clarity hurt worse than the lies.
For the last few weeks, I’d been floating on a cloud of new sexual experiences and budding feelings.
I’d been considering extending our journey together, finding excuses to keep them aboard the Nova longer.
Meanwhile, they’d been using me, laughing at my naivety behind my back.
Betrayal tasted like copper on my tongue. I’d opened myself to them completely—my ship, my body, my growing feelings—while they’d given me carefully constructed facades.
I’d spent my life surrounded by people who wanted something from me.
My wealth, my connections, my access to places they couldn’t go.
I’d thought Aano and Yahn were different.
They hadn’t seemed impressed by my money or status.
But now I realized they’d simply wanted different things—my ship, my lack of connections to authorities, my blind trust.
My hands trembled as I backed away from the hall, and my hand landed on the room’s doorknob. I needed space to think, to process. To figure out what the hell I was going to do. The warm afterglow of our night together had vanished, replaced by a cold knot of fear and anger in my stomach.
Whatever trouble they were in, it was serious enough to involve kidnapping. Serious enough that they’d been running from the beginning. And now I was caught in the middle of it, a convenient shield they could discard when they no longer needed me.
I slipped on my sandals, opened the door, thankful for the quiet slide of the mechanical operation moving silently on the plush carpet, which muffled my retreat as I put distance between myself and the men I’d foolishly believed cared for me.