Barbarian's Taming: A SciFi Alien Romance (Ice Planet Barbarians Book 9) (7 page)

If she does not want me to be controlled, I will not be. If she does not want me to be patient, I will be an animal with her.

“Yes,” she murmurs against my lips. Her hands twist in my hair painfully, and her body eagerly rises under mine. “Yes!”

I surge into her…and my eyes nearly roll back in my head. Her cunt grips me, hotter and wetter and tighter than anything I have ever felt. It is…indescribable. I feel as if my entire world has changed in the clasp of her body.

Underneath me, she gasps. “Spur,” she breathes. “Ohmigodspurohmigod.” Her hand flutters between our bodies.

I can feel my spur, nestled in the slick valley of her cunt folds. “Is something wrong?”

“Fuckno. S’allgood,” she mumbles. “Just gonna be over here, unraveling.” Her eyes close, and the tight look returns to her face.

“Should I…get off you?”

“Do that and I’ll kill you,” she says, and her hands twist tight at my hair again. “Start moving again, because I need to feel more of that.”

She likes the spur? Pleased, I stroke into her again. The breath hisses from my lungs at how snug she is, how tight a fit. Being in her cunt is so much better than my own fist. Mah-dee has ruined me for all else.

Mah-dee moans again, and I lean in to muffle her loud noises with my mouth. I kiss her deep, my tongue dragging against hers even as I thrust into her once more. She makes a sound of encouragement, and her nails dig into my scalp.

I can hold back no longer. I push into her, faster and faster, each thrust seemingly quicker than the last. My hips have never moved so quickly. I grip her hips to hold her in place, and pound into her even harder. It is as if all of the need and longing I have felt is channeling out of me and erupting into our bodies. I feel her cunt clench hard around my cock, and Mah-dee jerks underneath me. The noises she makes are wild as she pulls at my handfuls of hair, encouraging me to move faster, to push harder.

I do. And as I do, I feel her clench tighter, her cunt milking me like a fist. All the while, her moans grow louder.

Then, like a wave rising from the great salt lake, my sac tightens and then everything I have been holding back lets loose. I growl Mah-dee’s name into her neck as I come, hammering into her soft body, losing myself in her. My hips work over and over as I spill into her body, holding her smaller form tight against me as wave after wave of pleasure washes over me. When it crests, I stiffen and collapse on top of her, balancing my weight on my arms so I do not crush her underneath me.

Time passes. I am conscious of nothing but my harsh, panting breaths, the slick feeling of our skin pressed together…

And the knowledge that this is my female, now and forever. Mah-dee gave herself to me today, and I am never going to let her go.

O
h yeah
, I needed that.

My toes curl, and I utter a sigh of pure contentment. Itch? Scratched. Antsiness? Gone. Worry about the future? Can’t worry about it when you’ve been boned into next week. Loneliness? Nah, I’m good.

Over me, the big barbarian wheezes as if I’ve killed him. I give a little wiggle, rather proud. I just rocked this guy’s world, and it was pretty awesome. Of course, it was also awesome to be on the receiving end. That had to be the best sex I’ve ever had. It’s like his equipment was made to pleasure a girl—ribbed penis? Yes, please. That wonderful, terrible spur that dragged alongside my clit with every thrust he made? Yes, please. That muscular body covered in velvet? Yes, yes, and yes, please.

I’m definitely glad I decided to shuck caution to the wind and get me some of that.

I reach up and give Hassen’s arm a little pat. He’s sweaty, his velvety-feeling skin slick with perspiration. “You okay, big guy?”

“You…” he breathes. “That was…there are no words.”

I chuckle, because I know exactly what he means. Of course, laughing means that my body shifts, and when my body shifts, I can feel his spur press against my clit, sending more ripples of pleasure through my body. “Yeah, that was pretty awesome.”

He props up higher on his elbows and gazes down at me. From this close, his face looks craggy and hard and utterly alien, the ridges on his brow pronounced. I want to reach up and trace a finger over them, but that might be an invitation to round two, and I’m not sure I have the constitution for that. He strokes my cheek with one big finger. “I am honored that you have chosen me to be your pleasure-mate.”

It’s like I can practically hear the record-scratch in the air. “Um, what?”

“I am glad that we are pleasure-mates,” he says again. “I will speak to my chief about acquiring a cave for the two of us, alone. It might be this one, but I do not mind.” His mouth crooks in a half-smile. “Much of these supplies will disappear in the brutal season.” He leans in and nips my shoulder. “And this place will now hold special meaning for me.”

Oh dear. He thinks we’re mates? I try to wiggle out from under him, but it’s impossible with his larger arms caging me and his cock still buried deep inside me. “No, no cave necessary. This was just a fling. An itch-scratching.”

His hard brow descends, and he frowns at me even as he cups one of my breasts and begins to play with the nipple. “No, we are pleasure-mates.”

“If you mean we ‘fucked’ then yes, yes we did. That’s all it was.”

“All it was?” Hassen looks at me, incredulous.

I push his hand away from my tit before he can get me all hot and bothered again, which, really, wouldn’t take long. But this is an important conversation to have, and we need to set some boundaries before we fuck again. “Your people only mate when there’s resonance, right? Pretty sure we didn’t resonate just then.”

“We did not. But my people take pleasure-mates.”

“Okay, and explain to me how that works. Everyone that fucks automatically mates?”

“Well, no—”

I fling my hands up. “Okay, see? So why do you assume we’re mates? Why can’t we just be fuck-buddies?”

A possessive look crosses his face and he cups my breast again. “Because you are mine, Mah-dee. I am claiming you as my female.”

“Whoa, whoa, back up. No one said anything about anyone claiming! We’re just going to be friends.”

He scowls. “Do you do this with all your friends?”

“Only the ones with magical spurs.”

A look of alarm crosses his face. He sits up, and I want to weep with disappointment when his cock leaves my body. He grabs his loincloth from where it has fallen on the floor and starts to put it on again, an indignant look on his face. “You would pleasure-mate with any hunter in this cave? I am not special to you?”

Jeez, he sounds a little hurt. If I had known there’d be this much drama, I’d have rethought things. Most Earth guys are happy to hit it and quit it, but it seems that Hassen wants a freaking wedding ring. “If it makes you feel better, you’re the only one I’ve pounced.” And now that I’ve pounced him, I’m disappointed that there won’t be future pouncings, because damn, that sex was amazing.

But it seems that it also comes with a side dish of possessiveness, and that’s not what I want at the moment.

He scowls down at me. “But you will not be my pleasure-mate.”

“I don’t think the timing’s right,” I say, trying to keep my voice light. I sit up on the furs, and my muscles are deliciously stiff. Gosh, I need a nice bath. Maybe tonight after we’ve gotten a day of hunting lessons in. “You understand, don’t you?”

Hassen stares down at me, and then turns and stalks out of the cave.

Well, poo. Looks like our lesson has been canceled by Hassen’s show of manly jealousy. I roll my eyes, hoist my well-fucked body off of the furs, and dress again.

Maybe I’ll just bathe and stick around the cave today after all. One thing’s for sure, I refuse to feel guilty about his reaction.

* * *

T
he main cavern’s
empty of all but a few of the new moms, so I take a quick dip in the community hot tub in the center of the cave and wash my hair. I’m still not a hundred percent used to the whole ‘bathing in public’ thing, but it’s easier when the vast majority of the tribe isn’t around to notice the size of my thighs.

Not that Hassen said anything about my thighs. He seemed to like them.

Okay, so maybe I’m moping a
little
over the fact that he turned out to be all possessive. Why couldn’t we just be fuck-buddies? Friends with all kinds of benefits? I don’t need a mate right now. Hell, I’m still figuring myself out. I don’t need to drag another person into my headspace, mostly because my headspace is way too much of a mess. I don’t know how these other girls handle being mated lickety-split. I heard Georgie and Vektal were a couple the moment they met. I can’t imagine.

Then again…I think of the spur and Hassen’s big, ridged cock shuttling in and out, his big body looming over mine as we had sex, and I feel another quiver of arousal sliding through me.

Okay, maybe I understand it a little.

But seriously, why’d he have to get so…attached? All I wanted was to get all the stress out of my system and to feel the touch of another human being, er, alien. I didn’t realize how lonely and isolated I was until I touched Hassen, and then I found myself craving him. I wanted more.

He apparently wants a
lot
more.

It’s clear to me that I’m obsessing, so I get out of the bath, dress, and head to my cave before someone can stop me and start a conversation. I’m actually disappointed that we’re not hunting today; I was really looking forward to that.

Maybe Hassen will get over his butthurt by tomorrow and we can pick up our lessons.

In the meantime, I guess I’m stuck with—ugh—Asha, Miss Cheerful herself. I guess I can change my clothes, since these smell a bit like sex and I don’t know that I want to get caught smelling like arousal and leather.

I head back to the cave. Surprise, surprise, Asha’s got the privacy screen up. I ignore it again and head in, moving to my furs. I have a change of clothing and I dig around in the small basket of my possessions, all the while trying to ignore my roommate. Asha is in her bed. Again.

She sits up when I start to undress, though, studying me. “What are you doing?”

“Changing.”

“Why?”

“These leathers smell. Who are you, my mother?”

She’s silent at that, and so I pull my new tunic over my head and glance over at her. There’s a knowing smirk on her face.

“What?” I demand, and I can feel my face heating up. What is it she thinks she knows?

“If you take a pleasure-mate, I suggest that you learn to be quieter.” She fluffs her pillow—one that she’s stolen from my bed, it seems. “You and Hassen woke me up.”

Oh, god. Guess we weren’t all that quiet. It’s even more embarrassing to think about considering that the storage cave is a fair distance from my cave. Whoops. Guess that cat’s somewhat out of the bag. “You heard?”

“I would have to be deaf not to.” She smooths a hand along her blankets. Before I can ask if that’s a dig at my sister, she continues, “I do not think anyone else heard, though. I did not see others around.”

I relax a little at that. “So are you going to blackmail me with that bit of information?”

Her head tilts. “I do not understand.”

“Use it against me. Make me do what you want so you don’t say anything.” I cross my arms over my chest. “I was kinda hoping to keep things quiet about the whole situation.”

Asha gives a delicate snort. “Then you must learn to be quieter. As for manipulating you, I have no need. I do not care if you mate with all of the unattached hunters.” She shrugs. “It is your business, not mine.”

She’s got my back? That’s…nice. Unexpected, but nice. “Thank you.”

Asha shrugs. “I was the same, once. Before I resonated, I had my pick of the hunters. They all wanted me. It was enjoyable.” Her expression grows sad again. “Then everything changed.”

I say nothing, because I know she’s thinking about the mate and baby she lost. And really, what can I say to her that she hasn’t heard a million times before?
Chin up, kiddo?
Everything’s going to work out for the best?
Somehow I doubt Asha wants to hear that.

She twists her hands in her lap for a moment and then glances up at me. “I would choose more carefully if I were you.”

“Choose?”

“If you are going to mate with the hunters, pick the ones that will be grateful for any attention. Taushen is young. He will follow where you lead. Harrec, too. Vaza is older, but he will be discreet if you wish it, I imagine, simply so he does not have to compete with the younger hunters.” The look she gives me is calculating. “Hassen is a poor choice in a lover.”

“I don’t know if my girl parts agree with that.” I squeeze my thighs together because, mercy. I’m still all noodly on the inside from the sex. Poor choice in lovers? Not in my book. “I thought he was pretty dang great. I mean, untrained, sure, but I can work with that.” Actually, I kind of like that, because I can teach him to lick a fierce pussy for hours and I won’t hear any bitching if I take too long to come. I dated a guy once who went on and on about how long it took me to get off compared to his previous lovers. It was a real pain in the ass, so he got the boot. Hassen’s a blank slate in bed. I’m kinda turned on by that.

Not that we’re going to have round two, of course. Not if he’s going to be all Mr. Clingypants on me.

Asha rolls her eyes at me. “He is a poor choice in a lover because he is going to want to claim you. That one desperately wants a mate and a family. He is lonely. He will not take whatever scraps you toss him and be content. He will want more.”

I chew on the inside of my cheek as I consider her words. She’s not wrong. There’s a ferocity to Hassen, an almost brutal eagerness. He held me down on the furs and plowed into me like the world was ending around his ears and he had to get his rocks off right then and there. And as he held my hips, there was a wild possessiveness in his eyes, and so much damn satisfaction. Like half of him getting off was entirely due to the fact that he was possessing me. And not just any chick. Me.

A little shiver moves through me. Okay, for all that it’s not smart to toy with a guy that wants to be mates after one romp in the furs, he was hot as hell to play with. “Hassen doesn’t know me very well,” I tell Asha. “If he wants more, he’s going to have to let me call the shots, not him.”

She just shrugs her shoulders as if to say ‘whatever’ and lies back down in bed, amused.

* * *

H
assen avoids
me for the rest of the day. Which, okay, isn’t exactly hard given that I’m hanging around the cave and he’s out in the wild, being an exile and doing exile stuff. He doesn’t come around, and I’m pretty sure he’s avoiding me.

His absence does mean that I spend most of the day hanging around Stacy, Josie, and a few of the other women. They’re all nursing and baby-crazy, (except for Josie, who’s just pregnant and baby-crazy) so I feel like an outsider, even though I know they’re doing their best to include me. I don’t belong with the Baby Bunch, and after a few hours of talk about milk production and the best way to keep a baby’s tail clean, I’m starting to wonder if I should go hide in the cave with Asha.