Alien Mate 2 (6 page)

“I’m Lieutenant Beckworth,” said the blonde who looked even cuter and perkier in person.

Maya, feeling big and ungainly in front of this slim, graceful woman, slumped into the chair set in the middle of the room.

Shuffling some notes with smooth hands that had obviously never worn rubber gloves for eight hours straight, Lieutenant Beckworth surveyed Maya with unfriendly blue eyes. “You are Maya Romero?” 33

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“Sí, senorita.”

Maya answered the basic questions posed of her—date of birth, place of residence, occupation, and then they got to the crux of the meeting.

“You were on duty until 5 a.m. according to the time card?” Maya just nodded.

“Did you see anyone or anything out of the ordinary?”
Hmm, like a big blue alien?
“No, senorita.”

“Do you drive?”

Maya nodded, trying to avoid speaking as much as possible, not wanting to expose her nervousness to this sharp-eyed questioner.
And to think Lex
wants to mate with her. Ai, she looks more like the type to wear his cojones around her
neck as a prize. I don’t see her going willingly with him, or any man. Dios, but she’s a cold
one.

“You park your car on the other side of the swimming pool area, do you not?”

“Sí.” A bead of sweat rolled down Maya’s spine.

Cool blue eyes stared into hers, and it took all Maya’s willpower not to squirm under that scrutiny. “Did you take your usual shortcut through the gate yesterday?”

How did she know? Maya debated lying, but this woman obviously had information. Maya needed to tread very carefully.

“Yes, I did, senora. But it was very dark outside. I did not see anything.” Pale, perfectly manicured fingers tapped against the sheaf of paper in her lap. “Did you hear anything?”

Maya smiled eagerly, and the lieutenant leaned forward. “Yes. I heard dogs. They were barking a lot.”

Lex’s intended mate questioned her for several minutes more, but Maya stuck to her story. Finally the interview came to an end, and Maya, on impulse, asked a question of her own. “I hear you’re looking for an alien. A big lizard one,” she threw in for good measure. “What will you do if you find him?” asked Maya.

Lieutenant Beckworth smiled, a tight-lipped smile that didn’t reach her eyes, and that chilled Maya to the core. “Nobody ever said anything about an alien, but if such a thing were found, it would be apprehended and kept in government custody.”

“Even if they came in peace?”

“Beings who come in peace don’t hide like criminals. Now if you don’t mind, I don’t have time to gossip about baseless rumors. Please tell the officer outside to escort your next coworker in.” 34

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Maya scooted out before her tongue got her in trouble. Mind, it was nothing compared to the trouble Lex would have. Somehow Maya didn’t get the impression Lieutenant Beckworth would be agreeable to becoming Lex’s mate. But if she told Lex that, would he believe her or accuse her of being jealous and trying to sabotage something he obviously wanted?

Maya still didn’t know what to do when Andre told her to take the rest of the night and next few days off. The military had kicked out all the guests after rigorously questioning them, and there was no telling when they’d decamp.

That suited Maya fine. She had one big blue alien to help.

But it seemed like forces were working against her, for a mile and a half or so from her house, her car, that rusted piece of mierdo, died with a choke and a rattle.

Maya leaned her forehead on the steering wheel and cursed colorfully in Spanish for a few minutes. Of all the times for her car to die, this had to be the worst. However, sitting here and moaning over it would get her nowhere.

Sighing, she grabbed her bag, and leaving the keys in the ignition in the hopes someone would steal the damn thing, she began walking by the faint illumination of the small houses that lined the road.

When the first thug in ripped jeans stepped out in front of her, Maya wasn’t worried. She had a can of mace clutched in the hand that hid in her purse. But the rancid, unwashed smell signaling the presence of the second guy behind, well, that wasn’t so good.

Where is a hero when you need one?

* * * *

Lex was bored out of his mind. He’d finally stopped masturbating—not an easy task. He’d, through trial and error, figured out how to turn on the vid screen, but the odd programming confused him. Who was this Seinfeld, and why did everyone find him so amusing?

He paced the confines of Maya’s home waiting for her to come back, and it was while he walked back and forth that the uneasiness set in, a niggling feeling that something was amiss. Lex tried to ignore it, leaving the safety of her home would be unwise, but the lingering sense of wrongness—
Maya is in
danger!—
grew. Unable to take it anymore, Lex cursed and looked for something to disguise him. He found, buried in a closet, a hat with a brim on one side. Placing the strange hat on his head and pulling the narrow brim low over his eyes, he left the confines of her house.

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Thick darkness blanketed the road and surrounding houses. Lex thanked the clouds that covered the moon, only a night away from its fullness and the end to his mission one way or another. He scanned the darkness, unsure of which way to go.

A faint cry sounded, and Lex took off running. He didn’t question his instinct, nor did he care who saw him. Maya faced danger. She needed him, and he would not fail her.

His long-legged stride soon brought him in sight of a struggling trio, the gleaming white of Maya’s clothing a beacon in the darkness.

Bellowing in rage when he saw her struck and pushed to her knees, he added a burst of speed and, with a soaring leap, tackled the assailant who dared touch Maya.

They hit the ground hard, but Lex barely noticed the impact, his fist already drawing back and then connecting with a satisfying crunch. The body under him went limp. Lex jumped up, the blood rushing through his body as he breathed heavily through his nose and regarded the other attacker, who had foolishly remained and balanced a puny excuse for a knife in one hand.

Lex grinned, not a nice smile for sure, and he saw the idiot with the knife freeze for a moment, then even more stupidly advance. Lex beckoned him on, the rage coursing through him needing an outlet.

Maya gasped behind him, but Lex was busy. His hands moved lightning fast as he blocked and evaded the knife-wielding miscreant. Lex had been taught by the best, and with a grab of the foul-smelling human’s arm and a twist, he had him on his knees. The sound of a knife clattering became the only sound other than their harsh breathing.

Movement beside him made him turn his head, and he saw Maya come to stand next to him. She placed a hand on his arm. “Are you okay?” she asked, concern in her brown eyes.

“Me?” Lex twisted the arm of the thug he still held and made him cry out. “Are you? I saw these villains attack you. Shall I kill them for you?” Maya’s eyes widened. “Uh, no. That won’t be necessary. Thank you, Lex.”

Her soft words did strange things to him, but one need rose above the rest. Letting go of the downed human, he swept Maya into his arms and, with a long stride, carried her back to her house.

Her laughter sounded. “I can walk, Lex.”

“Quiet, woman,” he growled. Lex wasn’t working on logic anymore, but pure emotion. He didn’t understand what he felt, but knew he needed to hold her close.

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Even when they reached her house, he didn’t put her down. He kicked the door closed with his foot and kissed her, hard.

Despite that morning’s declaration of never touching him again, she responded eagerly and frantically to his embrace. Her wet, sinuous tongue met his in a fiery clash that had him fit to burst in his pants. Turning her and pressing her back up against the wall, he guided her legs around his waist. He continued to plunder her mouth even as he tugged up her shirt and slid his hands under it to stroke her soft skin.

The skirt she wore hitched around her waist, and her molten core, covered by the barest scrap of material, pulsed against him. Lex rubbed his covered erection against it, and she moaned in his mouth.

“Tell me what you want,” he said in a husky voice.

“You. I want you inside me. Por favor.”

Her “please” at the end almost tore away what was left of his control.

Using one hand, he tore the impeding fabric from her crotch and pressed his hand against the moistness of her desire. She mewled in his arms, her fingers clutching tightly at his shoulders. He slid his fingers inside her wetness and stroked her, finding that sensitive spot and rubbing it. She keened and wiggled in his grip as her pleasure built.

“Don’t stop,” she gasped. But he did, pulling his fingers out of her moist sex. She wailed and pressed herself against him, her passion a thing of beauty to behold.

Fumbling with the button to the pants he wore, he freed his erection, its hard length popping out and slapping against her cunt.

Maya cried out and gyrated her hips. He wrapped an arm around her waist securely and used his other hand to guide himself into her.

He almost came at the contact. Wet, tight, and oh so hot, her channel wrapped around his shaft snugly. By the silvery moons, she fit him perfectly.

Placing both hands just under her buttocks, he moved her back and forth on his cock. She whimpered, her head thrown back as she undulated against him in wild abandon. He claimed her lips, his hips pistoning faster, a speed she welcomed with clenching muscles.

When she cried out his name and her pussy convulsed around his rod, Lex could hold on no longer. He poured himself into her, digging his fingers into her plump ass cheeks.

Spent, he stumbled, still holding her, to the couch, where he collapsed with her on his lap. She snuggled into his chest, and Lex stroked her hair.

Sadness tinged the moment, for no matter how wonderful and shattering the moment they’d just shared, Lex still had to do his damned duty.

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“I wish they’d chosen you for my mate,” he whispered against her hair, the wet tears that soaked his shirt making him angry at the tradition that not so long ago he had held so dear.

How could the Oracle have chosen so wrong? And why can I not, for once in my life,
forget protocol and follow what I know is right?

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Maya couldn’t help the tears—stupid girly emotions. However, she just didn’t understand. If he wanted her, then why couldn’t he have her? “Aren’t you allowed a say in who you choose to spend your life with?” He continued to stroke her hair and sighed. “I guess it might seem strange to a society that doesn’t deal in arranged bondings. But there is a reason for the way we do things. Would you care for a history lesson so that you can better understand?”

“Por favor,” she said, needing a reason as to why, even with the strong connection between them, he could not buck tradition.

“The planet I come from is called Xaanda. It is larger than your planet, with two suns and three moons. We’ve been space-farers for quite some time now, and our explorations brought us in contact with a planet of beings who thought to conquer us. They released a deadly virus on our world, one that killed almost all of our females, and many of those that survived ended up barren. Our numbers dwindled drastically, especially after we took our revenge, our race heading towards sure extinction, for we did not have enough women left to mate with, not to mention the violence and fighting that went on over who would breed with the survivors.” Maya listened in horrified fascination. The concept of killing on that kind of scale shocked her, and yet, look at Lex. He had warrior written over every inch of him.

Lex continued. “The Oracle, the wisest being in the universe, or so we believe, made a proclamation. She claimed the spirits of our departed clan members had offered to help us rebuild our society by going forth into the galaxy and finding us suitable alien mates. The mates they chose would be a perfect match in temperament and physical bearing to ensure successful mating and, in turn, procreation of our species.”

“But how could they know if you’d love who they chose?” she interrupted.

“Love?” Lex sounded puzzled. “I’ve heard of this term, which translates to a very strong affection for one person. But in my world, affection has nothing to do with bonding. Males and females mate so as to reproduce and provide our society with healthy Xamians.”

“Then you don’t know what you’re missing out on,” she mumbled.

Louder she said, “So, you let some long-dead ghost decide who you should spend your life with?”

“Yes.”

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“And what if you hate that person or they hate you?” Lex didn’t answer immediately. “I don’t know. I’ve never heard of it happening before. I know occasionally, an alien chosen for bonding will fight against her destiny, but in the end, once the first child is born, they all seem to come around.”

He spoke of marrying someone so clinically, coldly. It appalled her that they entrusted their future and happiness to someone else’s, make that a ghost’s, suggestion. Maya didn’t like it. Of course, that could have to do with the fact that they hadn’t chosen her. She loved Lex and . . .

¡Dios mío
. When had that happened? It made no sense. He didn’t want her. She barely knew him, but in spite of that, Maya couldn’t imagine a life without him. And yet, she was about to help him get the other woman.

“So, even though you are not sure of their choice, you will obey?” He turned her on his lap to face him, his fingers stroking the tears that ran down her cheeks. Lightly he kissed her. “It’s my people, Maya. What I feel with you . . . I can’t describe how it feels, but my duty must come first. I am so sorry. If I had any other choice—”