Chapter 11
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Something hard pressed against Jaz’s lower back. Her sleep-fogged brain registered the delicious, encompassing warmth that seemed to seep into her bones first. Then the arm around her waist, heavy and possessive. Then the slow, steady breath stirring the hair at her nape.
And then the very obvious, very firm pressure against her spine.
Oh.
Her eyes flew open, but she didn’t move. She couldn’t move, really, pinned as she was against Adjar’s chest with his tail curled over her ankles and his wing draped across them both like a scaled blanket.
That’s definitely what I think it is.
She should be panicking. She should be shoving him away and putting distance between herself and the massive alien male currently pressing an enormous erection against her back.
She’d never been comfortable with intimacy.
She’d actively avoided it for years, building her entire life around the principle that needing anyone was a weakness she couldn’t afford.
But lying here in the grey pre-dawn light of her habitat, with his warmth surrounding her and his heartbeat steady against her shoulder blades, she felt…
intrigued. When they’d kissed the previous day, it hadn’t made her uncomfortable or trapped.
It had made her feel alive, her whole body humming with sensations she’d almost forgotten she could experience.
And now, with the evidence of his desire unmistakable against her back, she didn’t feel fear. She felt wanted. He wanted her. Not because she’d saved his life, not out of gratitude or obligation, but with the primal, undeniable evidence of male arousal.
The realization should have horrified her. Instead, it sent a flush of heat through her body that had nothing to do with shared warmth and everything to do with the increasingly insistent pulse between her thighs.
He’s an alien, she reminded herself. An ancient Martian alien who doesn’t even speak my language properly.
But her body wasn’t listening to reason. Her body was noticing the hard planes of muscle beneath smooth scales, the way his arm fit perfectly in the dip of her waist, and the surprising softness of his breath against her neck.
And that… other hardness. Impossible to ignore, even if she’d wanted to.
She shifted slightly, deliberately pressing back against him. His breathing changed immediately—a sharp intake of breath followed by a low rumble that she felt more than heard. The arm around her waist tightened, pulling her more firmly against his chest.
His lips brushed the sensitive skin behind her ear. “Jaz.”
The way he said her name did things to her. His voice was deeper this morning, filled with a hunger that made her want to hear it say other, more explicit things.
One peek, she told herself as she turned over in his arms. Just to confirm what I’m dealing with.
“Good sleep?” he asked, the vibration of his voice traveling through her like an electric current.
Was he seriously making small talk right now?
“I… Yes.” Her voice came out embarrassingly breathless. “Did you sleep?”
“I watched.”
“All night?”
“Yes.”
She should pull away. She should put some distance between them and pretend this wasn’t happening, pretend she hadn’t been contemplating sneaking a look at his… whatever it was that male dragons had.
Instead, she heard herself ask: “Is that… normal? For you?”
His head tilted slightly. “Normal?”
“The, um.” She couldn’t believe she was doing this. “The…”
Just say it, coward.
“You’re aroused.”
The words came out in the clinical tone she used when discussing mineral compositions or equipment specifications and his eyes flickered with amusement.
“Yes,” he said simply. “This is normal.”
“Right. Okay.” She tried to sound casual and failed miserably. “Any particular reason, or is this just a… morning thing?”
“Because it is you.”
Her heart stuttered, then began racing at a pace that couldn’t possibly be healthy.
“When I am close to you, when I hold you…” He shifted slightly, and she felt that hardness press more firmly against her. “This is the response. It is normal.”
She waited for the panic to hit—the suffocating, desperate need to flee that had driven her from every relationship she’d ever attempted. It didn’t come. Instead, there was only that spreading warmth, pooling low in her belly, making her acutely aware of everywhere their bodies touched.
This is insane, she thought. I barely know him. He barely knows himself.
“How…” She had to stop and clear her throat. “How does this work? For your kind?”
The question escaped before she could stop it. His eyes darkened, the vertical pupils expanding, and his arm tightened around her waist.
“I do not remember all,” he admitted. “Memories are… broken. But I know there is a mating flight.”
“I don’t have wings,” she pointed out, fighting back an unexpected feeling of disappointment, but he only shrugged.
“Is not necessary. How does it work? For you?”
Her cheeks were burning again, as if she were a bashful schoolgirl rather than a fully grown woman.
“Well, it usually starts with kissing,” she managed.
“I like this kissing,” he agreed, and then he was kissing her and all of her embarrassment disappeared in the heat of his kiss.
She ran her hands over his shoulders and down his chest, just as she had the previous day, then hesitated, pulling back to look up at him.
“Is this… okay?” she asked, her voice husky.
“Yes,” he assured her. “Very okay.”
She smiled and ran her fingers down the center of his chest again. “You’re so warm. And your scales are so beautiful.”
“They are simply part of me.”
“A very nice part.” She traced the edge of one scale with her fingertip, and his whole body shivered. “Does that feel good?”
“Very good.” His voice had dropped to a rumble, and she could feel the vibration against her body. “More.”
She grinned, and finally gathered the courage to look down the length of his body. At first the scales appeared as smooth as ever, but then she noticed the huge bulge hidden beneath them. She pressed her palm flat against his stomach, just above that intriguing bulge, and his breath caught.
“How do you…?” She hesitated. “Is there something here?”
He covered her hand with his. “There can be.”
“Show me.”
He drew her hand further down his stomach, to the base of what she now realized was a thin slit in his scales, and showed her where to press. The slit separated, his heavy shaft springing free, and she gasped, her eyes widening as she took in the sight of him.
“Oh. Wow, “ she whispered, cautiously running her fingers along the glistening length.
“You’re not… human-shaped,” she added, her scientific curiosity apparently still functioning. His shaft was longer and more flexible than a human male’s, despite the girth, with a series of ridges along its length and a broader head that flared near the base.
“No,” he agreed. “Is that… acceptable?”
She heard the hint of doubt in his voice and smiled up at him. “Acceptable? Adjar, you’re incredible.”
She wrapped her hand around as much of him as she could, and he hissed with pleasure.
“Is this okay?” she asked again.
“Perfect,” he growled. “More than perfect.”
She began to move her hand, finding a rhythm that made his breath catch.
“You’re so responsive,” she murmured, her free hand reaching over to stroke his tail in the same rhythm. “I can feel every little twitch, every time you like something.”
“I like everything,” he gasped, his hips shifting slightly to meet her strokes, but when her thumb brushed over the sensitive head of his shaft, a low growl rumbled from his chest.
“I think you like that more.”
She did it again, deliberately this time, and his whole body arched into her hand.
“Tell me what else you like,” she said, dropping her voice to a husky whisper..
“Here.” He gently guided her other hand from his tail to the base of his shaft and the ridge that marked the transition from shaft to body. “Here feels good too.”
When she combined the touch at his base with the strokes along his length, his control finally snapped.
“I can’t… I’m going to…”
“Yes,” she encouraged, increasing her tempo. “Show me. Show me how much you like this.”
With a roar that she felt in her bones, he came. The heated jets of golden seed splashed over her hands and his scales, his whole body shuddering. As the aftershocks subsided, he gathered her close, his wings folding around them both, and he buried his face against her neck.
“That was perfect,” he murmured against her skin, and she smiled, a sense of feminine satisfaction she’d never felt before warming her from the inside out.
“So are you, you know.”
He raised his head to look at her, and the expression in his eyes made her breath catch.
“I want to give you pleasure,” he said. “Like you gave me.”
Her heart skipped a beat. “You don’t have to—”
“I want to,” he interrupted firmly. “Please.”
How could she say no to that?
“Okay,” she whispered. “Just… I haven’t done this in a while, so be patient with me.”
“I will be very patient,” he promised, his hand already sliding up her body to the fastening of her coverall. “And then I will make you very loud.”
She laughed, the sound breathless with anticipation as he undressed her with surprising dexterity, his large fingers nimble and sure as they unfastened her coverall and pulled it down her body.
Her clothing hit the floor, and then she was naked in his arms, his scales warm against her skin.
She waited for her nerves to kick in, the usual discomfort that made her turn stiff and uncomfortable, but his gaze traveled over her with such obvious appreciation that any lingering embarrassment vanished.
He was looking at her like she was the most fascinating discovery he’d ever made.
“You should never wear that ugly clothing again,” he said firmly, and she laughed.
“I need it to keep warm.”
“Then I will keep you warm instead,” he murmured, running his hands down her arms, across her shoulders, and then finally, hesitantly, cupping her breasts.
She gasped as his palms brushed her nipples. The scales there were smooth but slightly textured, creating a delicious friction as he explored.
“Is this pleasing?” he asked, watching her face intently.
“Very pleasing,” she assured him, arching into his touch. “More, please.”
He obliged, his thumbs circling her nipples in maddeningly slow sweeps. The sensation sent sparks of pleasure shooting through her, and she found herself clutching his shoulders, her nails scratching against his scales.
“Harder,” she demanded, and he complied, pinching the sensitive buds gently. She cried out, her hips bucking involuntarily against him.
“You like this?” he asked, his voice low and dark with satisfaction.
“Yes. Don’t stop.”
His tail slipped between them as he continued to tease her breasts. The flexible spines were surprisingly soft against her skin as he trailed it down her stomach and between her thighs.
“Here?” he asked, his tail brushing lightly against her curls. “You like this too?”
She was so wet that the light touch sent a shock of pleasure through her. “Yes. Please.”
He obliged, his tail parting her folds and stroking up and down her slit with the perfect amount of pressure. Each pass grazed her clit, making her whimper with need.
“I need more,” she gasped, her hands sliding up to tangle in his hair.
“Show me,” he said, his voice rough with desire. “Show me how to please you.”
She blushed, but she guided his hand, replacing his tail with his fingers, showing him the rhythm and pressure she needed. He learned quickly, his eyes locked on her face as he brought her closer and closer to the edge.
When she finally came, it was with his name on her lips, her body shuddering against his as waves of pleasure washed over her.
He held her through it, his free arm supporting her as she trembled.
When she finally collapsed against him, he cradled her close, his wings enveloping them both in a private, scented cocoon.
“That was amazing,” she whispered, her mind still floating in post-orgasmic bliss. “I’ve never…”
“Never what?”
Never trusted anyone enough to let go like that before. But she couldn’t quite bring herself to say that. “Never enjoyed myself that much before.”
“You should always enjoy yourself that much.” His lips brushed her forehead. “You are the most beautiful, incredible creature I have ever seen.”
She laughed softly, feeling more content than she had in years. “But you don’t remember everything you’ve seen, do you?”
“No,” he admitted, but she could hear the smile in his voice. “But I know this is right. You and me.”
“Yeah,” she agreed, snuggling closer. “This feels right too.”
As she drifted back to sleep in his arms, she had the distant thought that she should probably be freaking out about how quickly this had all happened, but the warmth of his body and the steady beat of his heart lulled her into peaceful rest.
She would deal with the implications later.