Chapter 7
Damn that man for melting the first layer of defense around my heart
Melanie
Damn, that hulk of a man learned fast.
His lips moved against my own and what I intended to be just a peck evolved into a clash of open mouths, groans, peeking tongues and nibbling lips.
That single kiss made me feel more than most of my previous sex encounters. If he didn’t feel how hard my nipples had turned through the thin fabric covering them, I could very clearly feel the outline of what felt like a pretty monstrous and hard stick pressing against my belly.
I could never let that man fuck me, no matter how much my stupid, dripping wet pussy had ached for it the last few days. Throbbed in anticipation now.
No, no, no. I would not let another man control me with orgasms ever again. The last one had used my feelings and cravings for him and initiated the whole mess that brought me here. I’d never see the money I stole for him again, and now I was the one thousands of dollos in debt.
I knew I was weak. And I wouldn’t let myself fall for it again, no matter how much I wanted that green horned alien to pound into me with the massive thing I felt between his legs. I could not fall for him.
That would do some damage…It’s not worth it. You’ll have to be stronger than you ever were but come on, you can do it, Mel!
He groaned when I pulled back and I fucking whimpered like a desperate sex-starved woman. I turned my head to the side only to see his sister had joined the other Tauris that accompanied him—their family, she had said. They all looked at us with wide eyes and dropped jaws.
“Glad to see you guys clicked,” Maxwell said, clapping his hand once. “Alrighty, let’s go over the basics before I let you continue what you nearly started here and there, but hopefully in a more private place.”
Fuck…We did make quite a show, didn’t we? I tried to take a step back but his tail tightened around my waist, pulling me impossibly closer and his throat let out a low menacing rumble. Okay…Not moving, got it.
“According to our examination, Melanie will next be the most fertile in five days.” My eyes went so wide I worried they might fall.
Why was he telling people that? “The average cycle of humans lasts twenty-eight days, so if it doesn't take, make sure you’re most…active during these periods of time.”
I glared at him and his smile was nothing but satisfied.
He knew damn well I had no intention of holding my part of the deal and he made sure I knew he wasn’t going to stand by and watch me wreck this experiment for him.
Considering how my—husband had reacted to our kiss, I now doubted he’d let me go peacefully.
Of course he wouldn’t. How could I even think for one second that he’d give up on having the first natural child in decades? His reaction was only physical. I could give him what he wanted and that was the sole reason I was here.
If I didn’t succeed in escaping him, I guess I would have to consider it.
Two months. If I didn’t get away before two months, I’d give him what he wanted.
Because if I got pregnant too late, it would only delay my departure.
And I couldn’t let my grandmother fare for herself with absolutely no money for so long…
“Melanie.”
I jumped, suddenly pulled out of my scheming mind. Ghauro stared at me expectantly, both his hands placed firmly on my hips. My neck kinda hurt from tilting my head so far back just to look at his face—but what a handsome face it was.
Fuck, focus!
“Yes?”
“Your belongings,” he said, tilting his head to the side as his gaze absolutely pierced my soul. “Is this all there is?”
I looked at the small duffle bag in Zhari’s hand, containing the few possessions that I had—ninety percent of them provided by the space station when I arrived.
I nodded, forcing a smile. “I travel light.”
He stared at me some more, inspecting my eyes like they told him a story my lips weren’t.
His hand only hesitated a second before he cupped my jaw, angling my face up so I couldn’t look away.
“No more travel. You are Tauri now.” His touch burned and tingled at the same time.
My weak heart wanted to lean into it, but my brain still had the upper hand.
He made me tilt my head to the side and slid a finger over the spot where the translator had been inserted just before we met.
“See? Not red at all anymore. Like nothing happened,” I said.
He gently pressed on it and I flinched, making him frown.
“No—no, it doesn’t hurt, it’s just—it can be turned on and off if you press too hard and I had the issue yesterday and Zhari was talking and I couldn’t figure out how to turn it back on and we spent three whole hours trying to communicate and it’s been a nightmare and so stressful and if you deactivate it and we can’t turn it back on, I don’t want to spend I don’t know how long without—”
“Breathe.” I froze. His finger was now placed on my lips, shushing me. Rude. “How did you turn it back on?”
I blinked. “We pressed on it again.”
A hint of a smile stretched his lips. Was he making fun of me? “Then, if it happens, we will do that.”
Zhari came to stand next to us as Maxwell exchanged some words with another man I’d never seen before. Must be the ones on the human base here…They mentioned it in the shuttle.
“Here is her bag, brother. Make sure you find her some clothes, she does not have much and the few she has are not going to be comfortable for her here.” She paused, wiggling her eyebrows. “Or not. Maybe you will stay naked until her heat…”
Ghauro’s tail around my waist tensed and his eyes ignited. Nope. Not going to let that happen. No way. Escape. Two months. I couldn’t—
“So, this is where we part ways,” Maxwell said, walking back to us as the other man scurried away toward the edge of the forest. “We’ll see you two in a month for the report.”
My heart sank in my stomach. “A month?”
Oh, his smile said everything he wasn’t voicing. “We need to follow the advancement. Until the pregnancy is confirmed, we’ll see you two each month for blood testing and ultrasounds.”
Shit. If Ghauro were to go alone and confirm I had escaped at some point, the deal would be off. No debt erased. No potential extra money to give my grandmother…
“What blood testing?” Ghauro sneered.
Maxwell lifted his hands in surrender. “Just a way to check if a woman is pregnant and ensure the fetus is developing as it should.”
His lips pulled back revealing perfectly aligned and white teeth. “Are there not any other ways to check both these things?”
I couldn’t help but roll my eyes. “A needle and a few drops of blood taken out will not damage me. It won’t alter my value or whatever else you’re freaking out about.”
Maxwell winced and Ghauro’s family stood quiet as he slowly turned his face to me. Shit. Did I say something wrong? Was the amount of blood I had something that mattered here? What—
“Your value?” he clipped.
“Mel,” Zhari started, her voice soft. “What are you talking about?”
“I don’t know, what are you talking about?” I said defensively, trying to step away but still imprisoned by my husband's damn tail.
“I told you,” she said. “Mated pairs look after one another. Your health is his concern now, and the fact that strangers take blood from you or perform the unspeakable examinations they did back on the ship…it is not something we—Ghauro will accept.”
“What unspeakable ex—”
“Later,” she gritted out at him before returning soft eyes on me.
“Your value has nothing to do with all of this. If you are ever hurt or sick, you will not be worth less. You will only have a husband and most of his family fussing over you and forbidding any outsider from getting close until you are better.”
Oh. Oh.
So my husband was secretly a softy who didn’t like the fact that other people had their hands on me while I was vulnerable.
That explained his insistence on his sister staying by my side at all times. Why she had freaked out in his name about the—examinations I had been subjected to.
Damn that man for melting the first layer of defense around my heart…