Alien's Reluctant Bride: A Sci-Fi Alien Romance (Mail Order Human Book 3) (3 page)

Ally dropped her gaze to the ground, afraid she might burst into tears if she as much as glanced at Naad. No matter how handsome he was or how delicious he smelled, he was a brute, and she once again entertained the idea of escape.

His people went on raids to other planets. To steal women.

She looked up as a giant bird soared atop the trees. Was life really better on Earth? Or just a different kind of horrible? Even if it were possible to return, she couldn’t return to the same village where her father and Heath had died.

Was there a safe place anywhere on Earth? She had been cut off from the world and honestly had no idea. All she knew were the rumors, rumors that claimed the whole world had plunged into madness and that no governments stood anywhere, in any country.

At least on New Protemeda she wasn’t constantly looking over her shoulder for fear of being followed by one of Hanz’s men. In fact, the constant nervousness in her stomach from this particular terror had lessened during her weeks aboard the
Starship Matchmaker
. But now a new fear was growing inside her. All her life, she’d wanted a say in her future, even knowing her father would choose a suitor for her. She’d hoped to sway his opinion when the time came and have some measure of power, a few little freedoms.

She didn’t feel free as she walked next to Naad. Though he hadn’t mistreated her—yet—she felt very much his prisoner in this unfamiliar alien wilderness.

Please, God, tell me what I should do
.

Chapter Three

Naad escorted Ally under the white stone arch. Several of his people, including his father, stood at the entrances of their caves, watching as he officially made Ally his bride. Of course, the poor thing didn’t know what walking under the arch meant. He’d kept silent about the significance of passing under it, fearing she would put up a fight and wake up those who had already gone to sleep.

She had been quiet for much of their journey, hardly speaking even as they stopped for a quick meal of dried
veshina
and berries. Each time he glanced at her, he discerned she was deep in thought. Her brows were perpetually narrowed, her unfocused eyes appearing leagues away. No doubt she was thinking of the kidnapped women.

Naad had grown restless in his waiting for Ally, and her reluctance to accept his people’s way of life unnerved him. Who was she to judge his people for trying to rebuild their civilization after losing millions of lives, including every last Protemeian female? He had hoped to find her more understanding of Protemeian ways, especially considering the hardship she’d known on Earth.

A bell sounded and reverberated through the mountainside, and Ally drew closer to him, her body shaking. He tightened his hold on her and peered down at his new wife. “It’s all right.” He hesitated, then decided on honesty. “It’s the marriage bell. It signals that we’ve become man and wife.”

“We have?”

“We walked under the white stone arch that was blessed by our ancestors. We are mates now in the eyes of my people, husband and wife, only to be parted by death.” The fierce possessiveness he’d felt for her the moment he’d first laid eyes on her increased and burned hot through his insides. He exhaled with a low growl, his primal instinct to claim her awakening.

As the echoes of the bell faded, all those who’d come to witness their marriage vanished into their caves. Protemeians were a private people. No one would bother them until they ventured outside their cave and onto the mountainside paths. His closest friends would leave gifts at the entrance of his cave, but none would call out or enter. Naad planned to keep his little human bride sequestered in his domicile until she came to her senses and no longer held thoughts of escape.

Sweat trickled down his temples and his muscles tensed. His cock throbbed in his pants, and his balls drew up tight as a quiver raced up his inner thighs. He growled again, unable to stop the noise that he suspected frightened his human bride. She flinched each time he growled, but said nothing, though her gaze darted all around, as if she were looking for an escape or a friendly face to rescue her from impending doom.

Though she wasn’t resisting, he picked her up and threw her over his shoulder, needing to get her inside his cave as soon as possible. Her little human legs weren’t moving fast enough. He was ready to rip her dress off and make her his, ready to kiss and lick and bite her all over, until she writhed beneath him and shuddered with a release.

He would give her pleasure again and again, and he would take his pleasure of her as well, as many times as he could manage before collapsing under exhaustion. Ally belonged to him, and he couldn’t wait to see her stomach swelling with their first child together. All of the human females who’d arrived through Mail Order Human had had no difficulty becoming pregnant, and visions of their future danced in his head, causing his blood to heat further as his desire to thrust into her had him growling again.

“Put me down, Naad!” She wriggled around, but he already had her inside his cave. He entered the code on the security pad to activate the invisible barrier at the mouth of the cave. They could stand at the entrance and look upon the mountainside, but no one could see inside with the seal activated. He explained this to Ally but wasn’t certain if she heard him over her protests.

“Be still, little human.” He carried her to the large bed against the back wall. Additional bedrooms would be carved into the stone once they started a family, but for now the cave consisted of one massive room.

“You can’t do this!” She pounded his back and clawed at his flesh with her nails. He hissed through the pain and tossed her, as gently as possible, onto the bed. She landed with a bounce atop the thick, fur coverings.

“Ally, listen to me. Try to understand. My family dreamed of a future for me. My uncles and father met to decide which one of us, me or one of my male cousins, would procure a female from Earth. It was decided that I was the strongest and most intelligent, and they combined their gold to secure a bride for me with Mail Order Human, and that is how we became betrothed. Your presence on this planet has been anticipated for many moons. My entire family has awaited you, Ally.
I
have waited for you all these years.” He tried to speak in as gentle a voice as possible. He hated to see her frightened. If she understood the ways of his people, perhaps she might soften toward him and open her heart.

His cock stiffened further when his eyes fell to her bare leg. Her dress had drifted up to her thigh during her tumble onto the bed. Another deep growl emanated from his throat.

“Your father told me you were usually an obedient daughter, a sweet girl. I had thought…” He had thought what? That she would spread her legs willingly? That she would drool over his massive-compared-to-human-male’s physique and fall in love with him?

Well yes, actually, he had thought she would become instantly smitten with him when she stepped off the
Starship Matchmaker
. Instead, she’d tried to run away. Twice. He supposed he didn’t know much about her culture. Was he going about this the wrong way?

The Protemeian way was to conquer. His people had long been kidnapping and claiming their mates, females from a variety of distant planets. He saw nothing wrong with taking a female. It was for the betterment of his race, the continuation of his people, and it wasn’t as if Protemeian males didn’t treat their brides with kindness. Though rough on the surface, the males of his kind became fiercely attached to their females, protecting them with their lives and putting the needs of their brides and children above all else.

He straddled her on the bed and cupped her face. “I will be gentle, Ally. Do not fear.”

She didn’t move or speak, but her eyes grew wider the longer he held her gaze. He gentled his expression, wanting her to realize how important she was to him and his people. Females were treasured.

At least humans were sexually compatible with his kind in every way. They would be able to copulate easily, without having to guess what went where. Beneath that dress, she had a sweet little pussy begging for attention. He detected the heady scent of her arousal, pungent and sweetly feminine. Despite her protests, a part of her wanted to submit.

Ah, he couldn’t wait to taste her and make her shudder with ecstasy.

“When I say you’re mine, Ally, when I remind you that my family bought you, it is not to repress you or make you feel inferior in anyway.” He paused, letting this sink in. He hoped he knew what he was talking about, but he spoke from the heart as he tried to mend the rift between them. “It is a special thing, for a Protemeian male to possess a female when we have so few compatible mates. We wanted you so badly that we gathered our resources, combining the gold my great-grandfather mined on a distant planet in order to pay Mail Order Human’s fee.”

“I spent six weeks on the
Starship Matchmaker
and every single woman aboard signed up willingly. Why did your father arrange for me to go instead of a willing woman? The betrothal doesn’t make sense. Why wait for me all these years when you could’ve had another woman sooner?”

“My father prayed to our ancestors for guidance. He had several offers of women from Mail Order Human, but only one from a man who wanted to secure a betrothal for his daughter who wasn’t even of age yet.” Naad smiled and stroked her silken locks, tangling her hair in his fingers and luxuriating in her sweet softness. “At first my father had planned to buy an older female that would be here and waiting for me when I came of age, but then after he prayed to our ancestors, his father came to him in a vision and said one word.”

“One word?”

“Ally,” Naad replied. “He said your name to my father in a vision, and then our fathers arranged for our eventual union. Once I was a little older, I began communicating with your father. He had the opportunity to back out if he determined I wasn’t of good character, according to our contract, but fortunately he found me acceptable.”

“I see. Let me ask you this. What if you lived on a planet where females were in charge, and then another female from a faraway planet bought you and proclaimed that you now belonged to her? How would that make you feel, Naad?”

He grinned. “Well, Ally, you describe a strange world. I have never heard of any worlds where females are in charge.”

She looked indignant and pushed at his chest. When flustered, he thought her the most adorable creature he’d ever seen, and he chuckled at her antics.

“Don’t laugh at me! I was trying to make a bloody point!”

His laughter died and he regarded her seriously. “Ally, if you wish to pretend you’re in charge now and again, I’m not opposed to it, so long as it’s within the walls of our cave.” He waggled his eyebrows at her, then leaned down to capture her lips, cutting off her protests.

Chapter Four

Once, at the age of fourteen, Ally had snuck a bottle of whiskey out of her father’s liquor cabinet and taken a few swigs with her friends. Though none of them had liked the taste, she’d found it delicious and probably would’ve finished the whole bottle had her father not discovered it missing.

Naad tasted a bit like whiskey, in that she couldn’t seem to get enough of him. After all her protests, she had wanted to resist him as long as possible if only to prove a point, but holding out against his amorous advances was proving more difficult with each passing second. She found herself kissing him back, thrusting her tongue against his and then squeaking when he pushed deeper in her mouth and held her in place while he took firm command of the kiss.

His hardness poked at her center. She felt it through the layers of their clothing, and an ache resonated in her core. Without conscious thought, she parted her legs and lifted herself to press against his bulge.

He broke away from her, leaving her gasping in the aftermath of his fierce kiss. She had never felt so feminine before as she did now, flushed and breathless beneath him as he pierced her with a dark, feral gaze. His nostrils flared and his dark eyes blazed with desire. His cock seemed to throb against her pussy. She actually felt the heat of it pulsing through their clothing.

“I will protect you, always, Ally. The troubles you had on Earth will not follow you here. You will never know hardship again. I would give my life to keep you safe. Do you understand how valuable you are to me?”

Her throat constricted. How could he go from saying ‘you’re mine’ and ‘don’t you realize how much gold my family paid for you?’ to saying such heartfelt things? Her soul stirred to life, her insides warming. She’d built a hard shell around herself after her father and Heath died, but now she felt it cracking, felt the heat of Naad’s passion and devotion penetrating through those tiny fissures.

He removed both their clothing in a frenzy, ripping her dress in his excitement to have her naked beneath him. When his bare skin first brushed against hers, a heated spasm rocked through her, causing her nipples to tighten painfully and wetness to seep from her pussy onto the insides of her thighs. Though a virgin, she realized her body was preparing for his entrance, and her pulse quickened at the thought.

The affection in his eyes shone bright as he cupped her face once again, staring down at her with his muscles tensed, his body vibrating with heat and longing. She could feel how much he wanted her, not just in the hardness that insistently pressed between her legs, but in his dark lustful gaze. Would it be so terrible to surrender to him?

Do you have any idea how much gold my family paid for you?

You’re mine.

She shivered at the memory of his words and his declaration that she belonged to him. Confusion spiraled through her and her thoughts became a jumbled mess. How could she resent the manner in which he’d acquired her and want him all at the same time? She couldn’t restrain herself from rubbing her pussy against his long, thick cock. His muscles rippled as he leaned over her, preparing to claim her. Would it hurt? Endorphins prickled her hair when he stroked her locks. She didn’t care. She wanted him inside her, wanted to feel his hugeness thrusting in and out.

“Please,” she said.

Another growl rumbled from him. She felt surrounded by his scent, his touch, and when he leaned down to kiss her again, his delicious whiskey taste. She drank him in as he gave her one last kiss before drawing back to hoist her legs above his shoulders.

A clicking noise drew her attention to his hands.
Holy shit
. He had sharp nails and they were getting longer and longer. Claws, she thought,
retractable
claws.

“Look at me, Ally.”

The gentleness in his voice calmed her a bit, and she met his dark eyes, still aching and eager for his entrance.

“I won’t hurt you, little human.” His skin flushed redder than she would’ve thought possible, and then he surged forward inside her, filling her completely with his hard shaft. He glided in fast, pushing past her virginal barrier. She winced and cried out at the sharp but brief sting.

To her relief, the pain faded fast, and soon he was moving in and out of her, grunting or growling with each delicious plunge.

“Oh God,” she moaned, unable to move. He held her legs high over his shoulders, leaving her at his complete mercy. She couldn’t meet his thrusts, she could only lay there and take whatever pleasure he gave her.

* * *

Naad’s claws lengthened as his desire grew. Ally no longer appeared afraid of them though and hardly noticed each time they slid out of his fingers another notch. He hadn’t expected this to happen while he claimed her. When faced with danger, his claws shot out of his fingers, and he’d experienced this a few times while facing down beasts in the forest. But being inexperienced himself, he hadn’t known what to expect as he claimed her.

Stars above, he never wished their joining to end. He would be content to remain submerged inside her, pounding her, for all eternity. She was tight and slick, a perfect fit for his cock. He kept her legs high and rocked his hips forward and backward, slamming into her as he prepared to fill her with his seed.

He reached for her stomach and teased her with the tip of his claws, leaving behind faint scratches. She arched her back and her eyes flew shut. Moans drifted up from her, as well as the most endearing whimpers he’d ever heard. He wanted to make her moan and whimper all day, every day, for the rest of their lives.

With some effort, he drew his claws back into his fingers, then focused his attention on the plump circular nubbin between her thighs. When he thrust particularly hard and hit this spot with his front, she responded beautifully, her nipples growing tighter and her whimpers more urgent.

A few strokes to this throbbing nubbin, and she wriggled around desperately while he maintained his fast pace of fucking her. He pressed down on her pleasure spot and circled it until she convulsed around him, her inner muscles clamping down on his cock.

Her release pushed him over the edge. Dark spots danced in his vision as he came hard, his length pulsing as his seed spilled into her in a series of violent spurts.

After the remnants of his orgasm faded, he withdrew from her tightness and collapsed beside her on the bed.

“Ally?”

She made a delirious noise but said nothing.

“Ally, my mate, are you all right?”

She gave him an exhausted look, before her lips curled up and her eyes twinkled mischievously. She stretched and settled beside him, placing a hand on his chest. “Yes, Naad, I am fine. That was…wow.”

He couldn’t help but beam at her compliment.

Outside the cave, darkness had fallen. Naad rose after a while and prepared a light meal for Ally, forcing her to eat despite her insistence that she wasn’t hungry. He didn’t know how well she’d been fed aboard the
Starship Matchmaker
, and he wanted to see her well-nourished, especially if she was to carry his child.

After their meal, he held her close as she drifted to sleep. Joy abounded within him. He couldn’t get enough of her and felt as if her heart had fused with his. What happiness it was to possess a mate of his own, to finally have Ally in his arms.

He hadn’t expected to experience such an intense need for her, or such an intense desire to protect her. Though strong and skilled in combat, he had only learned how to fight out of necessity. Violent urges had never overtaken him. He’d never killed for sport or wanted to hurt another.

But Ally made him feel a wide range of emotions, from tenderness to thankfulness to violence. If anyone threatened her, he would give them a most agonizing death. He would take pleasure in the murder of any person or creature who dared harm his sweet mate, his little human.

Her steady breathing tickled the hairs on his chest. He stroked her back while she slumbered, thinking perhaps there had been something to his father’s vision.

Ally.

His great-grandfather must have had a reason to speak her name during the vision. Perhaps that explained the murderous rage he felt at the prospect of anyone harming her. She was meant for him, meant to be his mate and bear his children, and meant to share a life with him here on New Protemeda.

The next day, he shoved inside her and roused her to wakefulness with a series of slow, drawn out thrusts. She moaned in her sleep until her eyes fluttered open, and then she grinned up at him and parted her legs wider. She was so slick that he wondered what she’d been dreaming about.

“Well, good morning to you too.”

This time he loved her more gently than the night prior, but he made her come just as hard, and he again spurted his seed deep in the depths of her tightness.

After a morning meal, he eyed the stacks of packages outside the cave as he got dressed. Many gifts had been delivered overnight. He’d been so caught up in claiming her, he hadn’t noticed his friends and relatives dropping them off outside the protective barrier.

“Remain here,” he said, pointing at the bed, “while I carry in our wedding gifts.”

“But, I’m naked.” Her eyes shot open wide. “Don’t open the barrier!”

He smiled at her. “You’d best get under the covers then, little human.”

She made a flustered sound and cast a mournful look at her torn dress on the floor, muttering something about him being a barbarian before diving under the fur covering.

Chuckling, he deactivated the barrier just long enough to carry the many packages inside. He stacked them on the wall next to the bed.

“It is the female’s job to open and put away wedding gifts,” he announced.

“Is that so?” He delighted in the look of excitement in her eyes as she approached the piled up gifts. “I must confess, I’ve never seen so many presents in one place before. It’s very nice of your people to leave all these for us. I’m touched by their generosity, especially considering none of them have met me yet.”

“I told you our females were treasured, little human. You are here, on New Protemeda now, and you are mine. That is enough reason for them to welcome your presence with a joyful spirit.”

Her cheeks reddened, then she gave him a questioning look. “Naad, I, um, wanted to ask you something first.”

He arched an eyebrow. “Oh?”

“Last night, and this morning, when we, um, made love.”

His cock came to attention at the reminder, and he resisted the urge to adjust the growing bulge in his pants. He cleared his throat. “Yes? Please, go on. You can ask me anything, Ally. Don’t be shy.”

At this, she blushed a deeper red. “Your skin. You turned bright red while we were joined together, and you didn’t change back to your normal color until after…” Her eyes went wide and she pressed her lips firmly together.

“Until after I spilled my seed into your tight little pussy, Ally? Is that what you are trying to say?”

“We-well, I-I, not ex-exactly,” she said, fumbling and stuttering. “I wasn’t going to say it like that, with those words, but yes. Why do you change color?”

This time it was Naad’s turn to flush. “Ally, last night was the first time I’ve changed color, but it’s normal. It happens every time a Protemeian male joins with his mate.”

“You mean…” She stared at her feet for a moment, then her gaze flew up to his. “Oh my God, you were a virgin too! Why didn’t you tell me, Naad?”

His face had never felt so hot, and he had to force himself to answer her. “Well, I didn’t want you to think I didn’t know what I was doing.”