Chapter 11
Maya
Maya hurried after Commander Chaos as he led them down a narrow corridor that twisted and turned this way and that, and the sound of water grew stronger with every turn. Finally, he ducked through a half-opened set of doors.
It was dark, except for the soft glow of bioluminescent plants clinging to the walls.
“Stay right there,” Ranek said. “I see the controls. They should still be working.”
There was the sound of his footsteps behind her, followed by that of a large switch sliding into place. The lights turned on, and she covered her eyes momentarily at the sudden change in illumination. Then the lights dimmed ever so slightly, and her eyes adjusted.
She gasped at the magical scene before her.
It wasn’t like the public baths at Reka 5 with its manmade pools where one could choose the temperature and scents.
This was a natural hot spring, the pool spanning almost the entire room.
The ones who’d come before them had strung up what Maya recognized as Tallean work lights across the ceiling, the warm glow of them crisscrossing over the bubbling water.
Warm curls of steam greeted them, along with a scent of damp stone mixed with a mineral note. The air shimmered faintly above the water, the heat rising in soft waves that made the cavern feel like a hidden sanctuary.
The pool itself was a generous size and sat in a natural hollow, its smooth surface occasionally broken by tiny bubbles. A faint glow emanated from beneath the water, as if the minerals were catching and reflecting the artificial light strung along the cavern's ceiling.
There was no rotten-egg smell, so this was not a sulfur spring.
Warmth emanated from the pool, and she wondered if it was still safe to use.
There were several benches scattered around the pool, and old signs reminding miners who once used this natural wonder to take all their belongings.
They must’ve used it to soak away their pains and soreness after a long shift.
Maya loved the baths at Reka 5. Sure, she had been self-conscious about being naked in front of everyone at first, but you know the saying, when in Rome.
It helped that both Tallean men and women had a healthy appreciation for all types of bodies, because here was the thing: she was curvy, but she was the wrong type of curvy for Earth media.
She didn’t have an itty-bitty waist with voluptuous hips.
She didn’t have the type of ass musicians waxed poetic about.
No. She was boobalicious. And big breasts usually also meant big backs, rolls, and a poochy belly.
Sure, she had a nice ass too, pert and rounded, but she didn’t have that waist-to-hip ratio that somehow made it into chart-topping songs once a decade.
She used to be self-conscious about it. But that had mostly disappeared after living at Reka 5.
Sure, there were biological reasons for the waist-to-hip ratio preference, but most of the hype was societal, and Talleans just didn’t have the socially engineered preference between types of curvy.
It wasn’t just the alien men either, but the women as well.
They thought her as beautiful as she was. And that made all the difference.
It could also be that they had much freer sexual beliefs. There was none of this silly idea that a man who had a lot of notches on his bedpost was a stud and a woman was run through. Instead, both sexes were expected to get out there and test for compatibility until they found “the one.”
Of course, some of the transplanted humans at Reka 5 still held onto Old Earth beliefs. It was easy to ignore them.
There was a loud splash as Commander Chaos leapt in.
“Chaos! No!”
She worried that the spring would be too hot or dangerous. But the dragus pup just paddled away, looking ridiculously happy, his close call with the toothy alien Tribbles forgotten.
She sighed and rubbed her temple, reminding herself that she had been a puppy trainer at a chain pet store, not an alien species expert, and that his behavior was in no way a reflection of her.
Back on Earth, she had recommended clicker training for all the puppies that had difficulty following commands normally.
But she’d learned early on that clicker training simply did not work for dragus.
They had to want to do what they wanted to do, or else the clicker would just get ignored, no matter how much they wanted the food or the praise that came after it.
Well, at least he was in the pool and not running down a random tunnel.
She sure hoped that there wasn’t anything dangerous in the water.
And she didn’t mean large predators, because the pool was small enough that she doubted anything large could survive in it, but she didn’t want to be dealing with any unknown alien bacterium or parasites come morning.
Ranek was already kneeling by the pool, his comm unit in his hand.
“What are you doing?” she asked.
“Testing water safety.”
She stepped closer and saw that there was a small attachment to his comm that he’d dripped some water onto.
“There,” he said after a beep, “it is not only safe to use but filled with minerals that are good for our health.”
“Really? So I can take a soak?” she asked hopefully. After the day she’d had, she really needed one.
“I will secure the area,” Ranek said with a grin, clearly just as excited as she was to join the dragus pup in the pool.
It wasn’t long before Ranek returned, his clothes coming off and giving her a show of his sexy body even as he stepped into view. She grinned, stripping off her still slightly damp clothes as well.
“Last one in is a rotten egg!”
She was just kicking her pants off when she suddenly found herself swept up off her feet and pressed against Ranek’s muscular chest. Not expecting it, she let out a squeal and threw her arms around his neck. Then Ranek was stepping into the steaming water with her in his arms.
At first, the spring was a tiny bit too warm, but she got used to it quickly, and by the time Commander Chaos was doggy paddling over to say hi, she had already decided that it was perfect.
“Hold your breath,” he said.
She did as he lowered them under the surface, letting the water cover her head to toe. If she’d thought the cleansing unit was good earlier, then this was heavenly. The heat and the minerals soaked into her body, making her immediately relaxed… well, almost.
She was still fully aware of the sexy Tallean pressed against her body.
Ranek stood back up, bringing her with him.
It was nearly impossible to ignore the way the water sluiced off his shoulders, highlighting every single muscle.
She swallowed hard as he waded to one of the rocks that had been carved into a Tallean-sized seat and released her into it before sitting down next to her.
He sighed, the decadent sound tickling her belly and making her think of him sighing for a more carnal reason.
Before Ranek could pull her in close to him, Commander Chaos decided he wanted some attention from the Tallean male, and Maya was grateful for the pup’s unintended distraction.
She sank into the waters, hoping that under the surface, Ranek wouldn’t be able to scent her arousal and the way her body reacted to his.
She focused on the water and let the mineral-rich liquid soak away all the worries that had plagued her day.
This was exactly what she needed. But this deep sense of relaxation didn’t last long, because soon she became abundantly aware that Ranek was right next to her, equally naked and looking way too sexy for his own good.
His presence felt even hotter than the water around them, and it was nearly impossible to ignore him. She had to remind herself that unless she wanted to be disappointed that he could never form a mate bond with her, she had to stay away.
She gritted her teeth and closed her eyes, trying her best to ignore him and failing.
What should have been a relaxing time in a natural spring ended up being torture, making her second-guess her own decisions.
Would it be so bad to have a little fling with a sexy merchant?
It would be just the one time. That wasn’t enough for her to fall in love, was it?
She was a big girl; she could handle a fling. Right?
She was suddenly pulled up into Ranek’s lap. Her eyes popped open. Commander Chaos had climbed out of the water and was curled up and half asleep, exhausted after his impromptu adventure.
“Feeling better?” he asked.
Her breath caught at the feel of his firm thighs under her ass. She wasn’t the only one affected by their closeness and the warm water surrounding them, because his cock nudged against the back of her legs.
“Yes.” It was supposed to be a normal reply, but the single word came out so needy, she hardly recognized it as hers.
“Good, me too. Especially now that you’re here,” he growled into her ear, his low, rumbling voice vibrating through her body. His lips brushed the shell of her ear, chasing a ripple of need that coursed through her.
“Fuck!” he gritted out. “You smell so good. I would like to experience the human mouth-mating again. Would you deny me?”
Deny him? Gods! More like she couldn’t deny herself! Screw being responsible. She’d had a fucking tough day. She wanted release, and she wanted it now! It wasn’t like she was going to fall in love with Ranek after one time, even if it was in a magical hot spring.
Instead of answering with words, she covered his mouth with hers.
His lips were demanding and hungry, leaving her no room to think.
Her fingers tightened on his brawny shoulder, nails scraping over wet skin.
She shifted against him, and the hard ridge of his arousal pressed against her sensitive pussy, sending need rushing to her belly.
“Stars, female, the things you do to me.” His voice was rough and possessive, and sounded just as needy as she felt. It was a turn-on knowing that little old her made this big, sexy Tallean male feel this way.
His hand slid down her curves, like he was trying to memorize her, before guiding her hips to move against him. Her own slickness added to the slip of the water, and she hissed as his length slid through her slit and the thick head bumped up against her opening.
The growl that followed was pure male satisfaction. “Does that feel good, my sweet?”
“Mm-hmm,” she managed to get out.
“Good. I’m going to make you feel even better.”
He gripped her hips and rolled her against him hard, and the motion had his cock rubbing against her clit.
Then he did it again, and again. And she was rubbing against him, each glide of his cock pulling her insides tighter.
Her movements became wilder, and she bit down against his shoulder to stop from crying out as the tension broke, and the pulsing started deep in her pussy.
Wow! She’d come just from dry-humping him. Or was that wet-humping since they were in a hot spring?
Ranek was lining them up, one hand holding his cock and the other gripping her firmly by the hips and pushing her down. One moment she was pulsing around nothing, and the next she was so full she couldn’t breathe. The last bit of air left in her lungs came out in a shrill scream.
But it had been a long time since she’d had something this substantial in her, and she was so tight it felt like he’d never fit.
“Just a little more, little Maya. I know you can take all of me.”
The water sloshed around them as he thrust up into her again, filling her with yet another thick, hard inch.
She bit back a whimper, not wanting him to mistake the sound and stop.
Every thrust of his hips and squeeze of his hands on her flesh was a claim on her, possessive and firm, and she welcomed it. She howled when he pressed a thumb to her clit and rocked them in short, quick, forceful bursts, until he was fully impaled in her.
He stilled, letting her get used to him. Her whole body shook from how utterly full she was.
And then, he started to move.