Chapter 8 #2
She meant to lie down on the bed, to put some distance between them.
But her body had other ideas. She found herself sliding down the wall to sit beside him, Robbie still cradled against her chest. Her head came to rest against the firm muscles of his shoulder, warmer than she had expected, and her eyes drifted closed before she could stop them.
She felt him pick her up and set her on his lap, careful not to jostle the baby. Felt his tail curl protectively around both of them, a gentle pressure that should have felt constraining but instead felt safe.
This is a terrible idea, she thought hazily.
And then she was asleep.
She woke to the sound of Robbie’s normal, healthy cry. For a moment, she didn’t understand where she was. The surface beneath her was warm and solid—not the thin mattress of the bed, but something that rose and fell with a steady rhythm. She was half-lying across…
Becsul.
She sat up so quickly that she nearly dropped the baby. Robbie protested loudly, his cry shifting from “hungry” to “what are you doing, Mama?” She gathered him close, her heart pounding, and looked down at the alien male she had apparently spent the entire night sleeping on.
He blinked up at her, and for a moment, his expression was unguarded, soft and warm and achingly tender. Then it smoothed into something more controlled, though his tail stayed curled around her waist.
“Good morning.”
“I—” She felt heat rising in her cheeks. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to fall asleep on you like that.”
“I didn’t mind.”
Of course he didn’t. She could see it in the way he was looking at her, in the gentle pressure of his tail, in the careful way he had positioned himself to support her weight without crowding her. He had stayed awake all night, watching over her and her son, and he didn’t even seem tired.
“Robbie’s fever?” she asked.
“Broke about three hours ago. He’s been sleeping peacefully since then.”
“And you just… sat there?”
“Where else would I go?”
That simple question again. She was beginning to realize it wasn’t rhetorical.
Robbie’s cries were getting more insistent. She quickly adjusted her clothing to let him nurse. The relief was immediate—both the physical easing of pressure and the emotional comfort of her son healthy enough to feed.
Becsul watched them with an expression she couldn’t quite read. Not lust, though there was something warm in his gaze. More like… wonder.
“Thank you,” she said quietly. “For everything. I don’t know what I would have done if you hadn’t been here.”
“You would have found a way. You’re stronger than you know.”
“Maybe.” She looked down at Robbie’s dark head, at his small hand pressed against her breast. “But I didn’t have to do it alone. That matters.”
The silence between them felt different now. Charged, somehow. She thought about the kiss she had given him the night before—the surprise of his mouth against hers, the way his whole body had responded. She had told herself it was just gratitude, just a moment of weakness.
She was starting to suspect it was more than that.
When Robbie finished nursing, she burped him gently and settled him back into the crib. He cooed up at her, his dark eyes bright and alert, all traces of fever gone. She stroked his cheek with one finger and felt something tight in her chest loosen.
Then she turned back to Becsul.
He had risen to his feet at some point, standing near the door as if preparing to leave. His expression was carefully neutral, but his tail was still reaching towards her, curling and uncurling in what she was beginning to recognize as agitation.
“You don’t have to go,” she said.
“I should. You need time with your son, and I have—”
She crossed the space between them in three quick steps, reached up, and pulled his head down to hers.
The kiss was different this time. Not a quick thank-you, not a moment of impulse. She kissed him deliberately, thoroughly, putting all of her gratitude and confusion and unexpected wanting into the press of her lips against his.
He made that sound again—the growl-groan that vibrated through her whole body—and his arms closed around her. One hand splayed across her back, pulling her closer. The other cradled the back of her head, tilting her face to deepen the kiss.
His mouth was strange and wonderful. His lips were slightly cooler than hers, and firmer, with a texture like supple leather. But he kissed like he meant it, like she was the only thing in the universe worth focusing on.
His tail wrapped around her waist, her thigh, pulling her body flush against his. She could feel the hard planes of his chest through the fabric of his uniform and the way his whole body seemed to curve around her protectively.
This is insane, she thought. He’s an alien. He’s one of your captors. This is—
He nipped gently at her lower lip, and all coherent thought fled.
She heard herself moan—a soft, needy sound that she didn’t recognize—and felt his response in the tightening of his arms, the increased pressure of his tail, the low rumble that built in his chest. One of his hands slid down her back, over the curve of her hip, pulling her even closer.
“Melissa,” he breathed against her mouth. “I want—”
The door hissed open.
They sprang apart—or tried to. His tail was still wrapped around her, and it took him a moment to uncoil it, a moment in which they stood frozen like guilty teenagers caught by their parents.
The guard in the doorway was one of the small grey ones. He looked at them without expression and then focused on her.
“The female will come for an examination.”
“Now?” Becsul asked sharply. “She was up all night with a sick child. She needs rest.”
“The schedule does not change because of the child’s weakness. The female will come.”
His whole body tensed beside her. His hands had curled into fists, and his tail lashed angrily,
“It’s okay,” she said, putting a hand on his arm. “I’ll go.”
“Melissa—”
“Robbie’s asleep. He should be fine for a little while.” She met his eyes, trying to communicate something she didn’t have words for. “Stay with him?”
The conflict played across his face. She could see the fact that he wanted to go with her in every line of his body. But he also understood why she didn’t want to leave Robbie alone.
“I’ll be here when you get back,” he said finally.
She nodded and turned to follow the guard, acutely aware of Becsul’s gaze on her back, of the warmth still lingering on her lips, and the fear coiling in her stomach.
The door slid shut behind her, and she was on her own once more.