Brida Pact (8 page)

“Kiss? Cuddle? I understand the words but do not understand
how they relate to sexual intercourse for procreation.”

“Well, it’s arousing for one…you know, ummmm…gets the juices
flowing.” At his blank stare she then mumbled, “Okay, so no you don’t know.
Since this isn’t even an issue tonight we can talk about it when I’m not in a
food coma and tired on top of that. Can you just show me where to sleep and we
can talk more tomorrow?”

“You will be sleeping with me.” With that he again picked
her up off the couch and carried her into a room that she had assumed was the
sleeping quarters but where she hadn’t seen a bed.

Wheaton holding his wrist up to the door caused a bed to
fold out from the wall. Poppy recognized a Murphy bed and it was pretty large
too. At least if she had to share a bed it would be with enough space to not
have them on top of each other.

After Wheaton set her down on her feet, Poppy excused
herself to go to the bathroom area to get a sleep shirt. Hoping it was enough
to cover her without her being embarrassed, she walked back into the bedroom.

Poppy guessed embarrassment wasn’t something he would
experience, because standing next to the bed was a very naked Wheaton. He was
also very aroused.

“Holy fuck,” she whispered as she stopped in her tracks.

He was a sight to behold. His body was something women
dreamed of. Lickable abs flowed into a strong set of shoulders and arms in one
direction and then into the vee of his hips and sturdy legs in the other.
Standing there staring at him, she noticed he had minimal body hair, except for
a small trail that went from his bellybutton down to his groin and then a
dusting on his legs.

“You use a lot of ‘holy’ words. My translator doesn’t
process some of them. ‘Fuck’ is translating as a slang term and earlier you
said ‘shit’, which was translated as excrement. Can you explain?” Wheaton was
now fully facing her with his hands on his hips. He stared at her as if she
were wearing too many articles of clothing and the only thing he could
concentrate on was figuring out how many layers he would need to peel off her
before they were able to sleep comfortably.

Poppy on the other hand was completely unable to think at
all. He was
ripped
. And not just ripped but also very blessed in the
privates department. Her sister would be high-fiving her right now if she’d
been able to get a peek at the manly goodness in front of her. Figuring out she
needed to not stare so hard, she tried to move her eyes away from the beauty in
front of her.

“Ummmmmm….you have no clothes on,” she was finally able to
say even though her mouth was dry.

“We do not sleep in clothing. Why are you wearing that large
cotton garment? I wanted to see my bride.” He walked toward her as if he were
prepared to take her shirt off. “Why do you step back? I can assist with taking
off your garment.”

He reached out again and Poppy was too stunned to move as he
whisked the shirt over her head. Pausing for a moment to rub the garment between
his fingers, he hummed to himself before tossing it aside.

“Fuck! I sleep in clothes, Wheaton! Give that back now!” Her
arms had automatically gone to cover her chest.

“Clothing inhibits reproduction. There is no need for it. I
understand you want to wait for intercourse but we will sleep prepared in case
you change your mind.” He lowered his hands to the band of her underwear.
“These are attractive but you will not wear them.”

“Hell yes I will. You keep your hands to yourself, mister!
People wear clothes to sleep in. There’s actually a whole line of clothes just
for sleeping in. I also happen to like to wear those clothes during the day
sometimes…okay, most of the time. But they’re comfortable, dammit. And will you
stop that?” she snapped while trying to knock his hands away.

“You will not wear these clothes in our sleep unit. I want
to inspect you and become familiar with your body. I believe I may need to
self-pleasure tonight. If you need to do so also it will be easier without this
fabric covering your pussy. That’s what they said on the videos… Is ‘pussy’ a
correct term? My translator kept saying it meant feline but I think it may not
be working when it comes to certain portions of your language.”

With that last part of his statement he had literally
shocked her still. He had her panties off and tossed into the corner before she
knew what was happening. Nudging her legs open, he ran his fingers over her
lower lips.

“This hair is not as soft as the hair on your head, but it
is short and neat. Do you groom yourself here?”

“Ohmygod, what’s happening right now?! I can’t even process
this.” Poppy buried her face in her hands as she felt his fingers run up and
down her cleft. “That tickles. Knock it off!” Her words earned her a soft smack
right on the front of her pussy. “Did you just smack me?” She had dropped her
hands and was staring wide-eyed at the man now kneeling before her. He was
essentially at face level with her privates and she was mortified but for some
reason was unable to move away. That could have also have been attributed to
the fact he’d moved his hands to her ass, where he cupped and started kneading
her skin.

“You told me it tickled and to ‘knock it off’. I translated
that you wanted me to tap you. I have seen that in the videos.” He winked and
then skimmed his eyes down her bared skin. “I think you may be mistaken and the
videos are realistic. We have already performed many of the actions that I
witnessed in the images and from your lubrication you are showing arousal.” He
looked up, smirking, and licked his lips. Seemed his mouth was practically
watering at the thought of licking her pussy.

“Okay, time out.” Pausing to smack the top of his head, she
shouted when he didn’t stop. “Hey! I said time out. I didn’t say you could put
your mouth there! Back up. Back. Up,” she said through clenched teeth when she
felt his breath get close to her lower lips. She wasn’t mad at him and her
anger was coming from embarrassment more than anything.

“I’ll sleep naked. That’s fine.” She was already naked in
front of him so that door had already been thrust wide open, no point in trying
to hide what he’d been face-to-face with. Literally. When he reached for her
again and moved to speak, she shushed him up quickly with that finger he’d
gotten poked with earlier.

“Do. Not. Talk. Only listen. We will
not
have sex
tonight. You are
not
allowed to touch me unless I give permission. That
includes taking off my underwear in the future. And no smacking me anymore.
Well…at least not right now. I didn’t mind it too much, so we can negotiate
that in the future when the time comes.
Comprende?
” Poppy had never had
the chance to experiment with anything kinky but from what she’d gathered so
far, Wheaton didn’t seem at all shy and seemed eager to do whatever she let him
get away with.

“I cannot translate that word,” he said, crossing his arms.
“But fine, we will not partake of intercourse this night. Would you like to
explore my body?” he said, lying down on top of the cover on the white bed.

“Explore your…? Ummmm…sure,” she said with a smile. She
wasn’t about to pass up the opportunity to touch the type of body that was
usually only viewed in a fireman’s calendar. Trying to ignore the fact that she
was naked as a jaybird, she stumbled to the side of the bed.

He tossed her a small grin. Getting an unencumbered view of
her body, he was very happy that Poppy had been matched to him. Some of the
other warriors who had seen his new bride on the transport had given him
pitying looks and he had not only felt anger but had actually considered
hitting a few of them. The more he talked to her and discovered her little
quirks, the more he liked her. Her plush little body was a bonus. It was also a
bonus that his body seemed very grateful for, if the throbbing in his cock was
an indicator.

“Are you going to stand over me or would you like to recline
while you do it?” He folded his arms behind his head to give her complete
access.

“Oh, well I guess I can lie down too. Yeah, I can do that.”
Acting like this was something she’d done a millions times before, she lay down
at his side. Hmmmmmm…where to start. Taking her hand and running it along his
chest, she felt his stomach muscles tighten up.

“Did that tickle?” Poppy asked in a breathy voice she didn’t
recognize as her own.

“No, it felt nice. Do it some more,” he whispered in a soft
voice but didn’t move again. She felt he was trying not to scare her off. He
probably knew her sexual experience was limited, with only having had two
partners in her past.

Stroking his chest and tracing his nipples rewarded her with
a breath from his chest that expanded his torso. Taking her fingers and running
them up and down his stomach muscles, she decided to count and discovered his
six-pack was more like an eight-pack. By the time she was happy with her exploration
of his upper torso, she moved her way down with a shaking hand when it came to
the gorgeous vee of his hips. Those were something she had only seen in a
magazine and she was drooling at the fantasy of tracing that area becoming a
reality. Pulling her hand back and making a fist so she wasn’t tempted, she
made a decision…one her lady parts wasn’t too happy about.

“I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I think I may need to
stop if I’m going to hold to the no-sex rule.” Biting her lip, Poppy could not believe
she was going to stop touching the superb manliness in front of her. She felt
as if she were going to have to sneak off to the bathroom to masturbate.
Clenching her thighs together, she realized, yep…definitely time to stop.

Wheaton could tell Poppy had been holding herself away a
little. And when she had leaned forward to trace his chest, it took all he had
in him to not take her hand and roughly drag it lower.

“Go ahead and rest then. I need to self-pleasure.” Unfolding
his arms from behind his head, he lowered them to his waist, bumping her now
hard nipples that were close to his side. He started stroking his cock in a
relaxed twist and pump of his hand. Watching her face as he did it, he was
aware that she could feel the rumble coming from his chest.

Dragging her gaze away from his strong hand, she noticed his
gaze on her breasts. Poppy’s nipples were already so painfully tight she could
feel them start to tingle. As the rumble get louder and deeper, she scooted
slightly closer so her breasts were touching the arm that was now moving faster
with his stroking hand. The action was basically allowing him to rub her
nipples without actually doing so with his hands. Poppy peeked back down at his
hand as he came. She had never wanted to place her lips somewhere so badly
before. In fact, she hadn’t really ever been a fan of oral sex but watching him
stroke his cock made her want to lick every place his hand touched.

Trying to control his breathing and his movements, Wheaton
knew he would be unable to hold back his climax. Her hard nipples bumping his
arm with every movement and the scent coming from the haven between her legs
were enough to push him over the edge quickly.

Wheaton rumbled loudly as he felt himself come. Instead of
closing his eyes, he watched her face. Her own gaze was glued to his
now-softening erection and he was satisfied she seemed to still be on the edge.
If watching him self-pleasure had that effect on her, then he would make sure
to do it every night. She would not be able to hold out too long before she
gave in, if her pink cheeks, rough breathing and red lips were anything to go
by.

He rolled slightly away from her, reached into the bedside
cubby and pulled out a towel to wipe his hands and abs. Poppy felt as if she
were panting and one second away from saying “fuck it” when he tossed the towel
down onto the floor, waved his bracelet at the headboard and rolled to his side
away from her.

“Good sleep, Poppy.”

She heard a sigh and then nothing.

Well holy shit. Poppy rolled onto her side facing the wall
and punched her pillow a couple times. Wanting to scream into it but figuring
that would scare Wheaton, she compromised with whipping the cover out from
under her neglected body and kicked it a couple times for good measure. She
tucked the cover around her shoulders, her mind racing as she tried to calm her
breathing and her body. Why had she said no sex tonight? For the life of her,
she couldn’t think of one damn reason.

As Poppy tried to get some sleep, she kept thinking of
everything that had happened that day. It seemed like a whole week had passed
since she’d had her first cup of coffee that morning and she’d need to be on
her game tomorrow. She willed her body to calm down and eventually drifted off,
but not before she felt Wheaton’s arm slip around her waist and cuddle her
closer.

The next morning came way too soon if the sleep in the
corners of her eyes was an indicator. After a cup of coffee from the generator,
Wheaton had been all business when he’d laid out some plans for the day. First
thing that was on the list was getting Poppy acclimated to life on the ship.
Wheaton had taken her to get fitted for a bracelet, which Poppy still had yet
to be able to figure out. Inspecting the device, she was unsure how to take it
on and off. After she’d fiddled with it a couple times, Wheaton pointed out it
was not meant to be removed. Ever. It was sealed onto her body and was
waterproof so there would be no need for it to be taken off. When she asked
about what would happen if her arm swelled, he said that the medical unit would
be able to remove it with a special tool if needed.

Their next stop was to get her translation device implanted.
Wheaton explained that normally the ship’s doctors would fit it, but they were
in meetings, so a communications officer would do it. A chip being inserted
into her head was something Poppy had been nervous about but she had to admit,
the device was pretty nifty. She had felt a small pinch at the back of her ear
and voilà, she could apparently understand their language. Reading it was still
a no-go but understanding the voice commands would help her figure out her
surroundings a little better. Wheaton’s chip allowed him to speak English but
with her now chipped as well, she would be able to speak with warriors in their
native language. After Poppy was outfitted, Wheaton walked her around the ship
for a tour.

Exploring the ship was an eye-opening experience. Squadron
One seemed to be endless and Poppy was awestruck whenever they went by the
glass that separated her from space. They toured the dining hall, the
recreation room, the med center and the media area. Even though she walked the
entire ship, or what felt like the entire ship, she still felt slightly lost.
Every single hallway seemed the same and was marked with symbols, which she
figured were signs and room numbers, but that was about it.

Poppy was having an interesting morning, but so far it had
been disappointing in regards to her soon-to-be husband. She wasn’t sure what
his problem was but Wheaton was acting like a robot again. The horny guy she’d
become familiar with the night before had disappeared. When he spoke to her, it
was as if he were conducting more of a formal tour than showing his girlfriend
around. The few times she’d reached for his hand he’d pulled away or moved at
the last minute. Hoping that he was simply uncomfortable with physical contact
in front of the other warriors and not taking it personally was hard. Many men
they’d passed had given her a simple nod to say hello but there hadn’t been one
smile or handshake. She was hoping the coolness from him was a cultural thing.

Poppy was really trying to give him some leeway but their
alone time before they went to get errands done had been no better. He hadn’t
spoken to her when they woke up…no “good morning”, no smile…nothing. After
dressing, he’d walked to the kitchen area while she finished up. She was
finishing putting her hair in a bun when she noticed a familiar smell: coffee!
Poppy practically sprinted to where Wheaton was standing. Without ceremony, she
snatched the cup he held out in his hand.

“Thank you, thank you, thank you.” Before sipping the
coffee, she saw that he’d already doctored it for her.

“How did you know I took my coffee with milk and sugar?”
she’d asked after a moment of surprise.

“It was on your profile.” With that being said, he’d turned
to the door. “Please follow me. We will get your band now and I have time to
give you a tour.” Not even waiting to see if she followed him, he’d walked
right out the door.

Hoping they could have some time together this afternoon,
she was thinking of “get to know you” questions. Excited about being able to
grill him about his favorite things and what it was like growing up on his
planet, she made a mental list. During their walk back to their quarters, they
were stopped by another warrior in the hallway. Giving Wheaton privacy, she
moved over to the window in the bright hallway. Everything was so beautiful up
here. So clean.

While Poppy was gazing out toward the stars, Wheaton took
his own time to study her as he talked with the other warrior. Being around her
this morning was causing him some trouble. He liked her company but had made a
decision last night that he would not get further attached to her until she had
made up her mind about staying. The last thing he wanted was to form either a
physical attachment or even a more personal one and then have her leave.
Walking her around that morning, he had spent more time watching her than where
they were going.

Wheaton had not really been in favor of her receiving a
translation device. Knowing that it would make her time on the ship easier to
manage, he relented to the directions of the Council but he was not going to
encourage her to talk to the other warriors. He had only been with her for a
short time but he felt proprietary over her time and attention. If he was in a
meeting, he would prefer that she stay in their quarters and wait for him.

Wheaton trusted very few warriors with his new bride.
Dathrow had been his warrior brother for many years and had accompanied him on
multiple missions. Thorne was another warrior he trusted, a Council member who
had been in favor of the Bridal Pact but who had shown no interest in applying
for his own. When it came to friends, there were only a select few who shared
that title.

“Poppy?” Poppy jumped when she heard Wheaton’s raised voice,
realizing he’d been trying to get her attention.

“My presence is needed in negotiations. Thorne will escort
you back to our quarters.”

With that small statement, Poppy was staring at Wheaton’s
back as he walked away from her.

So here Poppy was. Sitting alone. Yet again.

Not knowing how late he would be back, she decided to make
herself some food. Using the food generator was easy peasy now she understood
how it worked. With a full stomach and her e-reader, she found her iPod and
scanned the music. She felt she was in either a Liz Phair or Patty Griffin mood.
Griffin won out and Poppy was soon rereading one of her books with her favorite
songs on in the background. Before she knew it, she was drifting off to the
sounds of Griffin’s soothing voice ushering her to sleep.

Waking the next morning to a buzzing noise, she was still on
the couch. And her neck hurt. Apparently Mr. Wonderful hadn’t made it back to
their rooms yet. Wondering what could have kept him gone for so long, Poppy
heard someone moving around in the other room.

“Hello? Hellooooooo?” Poppy called out as she followed the
noise. “Wheaton? What are you doing here?”

“These are my quarters. I sleep here,” he said in a very
matter-of-fact voice while pulling on his boots. Somebody seemed crabby this
morning. Had he wanted to spend more time with her before they…pleasured
themselves, and been disappointed she’d fallen asleep on the couch?

“What time did you come in this morning?” Leaning against
the bedroom door, she watched him.

“Morning? I arrived last night after you had fallen asleep,”
he said, completely oblivious to her annoyance.

“Why didn’t you wake me up? You just let me sleep on that
tiny couch?” Now she was really peeved. She walked toward him to stand toe to
toe. “What happened to carrying me to bed like the first night?”

“You are now aware of where the bed is placed. I assumed you
fell asleep there on purpose.” He walked past her into the kitchen area.

Wheaton did not have time to argue with her this morning.
Between the meetings yesterday, where he seemed to answer endless questions
about his new bride, and his lack of pleasure last night, he was not in a good
mood. At the Council meetings it seemed that half of the Council was trying to
figure out how to get him out of his match and the other was applauding his
luck in being assigned a bride so quickly. There had been a few members who did
not understand how a diplomat could be assigned someone who on paper was not
compatible with a government official. Wheaton had to admit the doubts that
other warriors expressed had made him question the match even more than before.

“Seriously?” sputtered Poppy. Wheaton seemed completely
oblivious to the anger she was feeling and that was starting to piss her off.

“I am always serious,” he deadpanned, appearing unsure why
she questioned him.

“Yeah, I’m getting that. The polite thing to do would have
been to let me know you got home…and the carrying to bed would have been nice
also.” Did she sound as if she were pouting? Poppy hated people who pouted.

Wheaton turned to face her after making himself a drink.
Staring at it for a few seconds, he placed his cup back on the counter. “I do
not understand the interaction you want. Did you want to procreate last night?
I have a small amount of time if you would like to do so now.”

If Poppy had been angry before, she was even angrier now.
She was silent as she stared at him for a moment. He actually had the balls to
appear hopeful at possibly getting some sex. Poppy was done.
Done.

“Wheaton, we need to talk. And I need you to listen.”
Walking over to the couch, Poppy waited for him to follow.

“I really have to go, Poppy. There are many items that need
my attention this morning.” He turned toward the door to leave.

“Wait, you have time for sex but not talking?” Stunned at
what she was hearing, all she could do was just stand there staring at him.

“Yes. Sex is more important than talking so I would have
made time.” And with that he simply turned and walked out the door.

Wheaton thought it was better to leave before he did
something to make her even more upset with him. Considering he did not know
what had set her off in the first place, that seemed like a solid plan.

As the door closed behind him, he tried to think of what
could have angered his new bride but was quickly distracted when he ran into
another warrior in the hall. Going over meeting notes for the day, his mind was
occupied more with items that would need to be discussed and less with his
prickly bride. Hopefully tonight would be better and she would calm down enough
to explain why she was so upset. Even better would be if she completely forgot
about it and they moved to physical relations. As he walked with the warrior
away from the door, he thought he heard a loud huff come from their apartment
but must have been mistaken. She couldn’t be that angry, could she?

In the apartment, Poppy stood glaring at the door.
What
the hell had just happened?
Wheaton had to have known how angry she was,
right? She did understand that he had limited experience with humans but the
emotion of anger was broader than just her species. He had essentially brushed
her off and acted as if she were only there as a physical vessel when he needed
her.

Poppy let out a frustrated scream. Not only had that
douchebag left her alone again, but he hadn’t even realized how not cool that
was. She’d better try to calm down before he came back, whenever that may be,
and try to figure out a way to communicate to him she wasn’t going to be
treated as an afterthought. This was supposed to be their bonding time, dammit!
How was she supposed to bond with someone who only showed up when she was
sleeping?

Staring at the door, she had one word running through her
head.

Fuck.

For the next three days, Wheaton and Poppy saw each other in
passing. Barely any words were spoken and the physical contact and any
“exploration” they’d had the first night didn’t happen again. Poppy did wake up
snuggled into him but going to bed alone sucked. She had a feeling she would
actually fall fast and hard for him if given the opportunity. From what she was
able to see of Wheaton, she could tell he was honest, sincere, and loyal to his
warrior brothers. A day didn’t go by that he wasn’t busy with everything he
needed to do and Poppy admired his work ethic. It made some of the boyfriends
she’d had in the past seem like the losers they were.

Listening to the
Rain
album on her player, she sat on
the couch and decided to have a pity party. The album was a compilation of
music Poppy always listened to when it rained outside and she felt blue. Poppy
had to admit, when she wallowed, she went all-out. The only difference was that
she didn’t have Oreos to gorge on or Pixie to call and complain to. Thinking
about Pixie ended up being the push to make her actually start crying. As hot
tears tracked down her face, she had never felt so alone in her life. Closing
her eyes and leaning her head against the back of the couch, she didn’t notice
anyone behind her until she felt a finger trace a tear on her cheek. Opening
her eyes, Poppy glanced up into Wheaton’s concerned face.

When Wheaton had walked into their quarters, he had been
taken aback to find Poppy looking so miserable on the couch. Thinking she might
be feeling unwell, he walked closer until he noticed that she was crying. His
first experience with her tears had been when she was sad as she was leaving
Earth and her sister, and his gut clenched to realize that maybe she was missing
her old life. Walking up quietly so he didn’t startle her, he touched her face.

“What is wrong?” he asked. Since she still had her
headphones on she couldn’t hear him but was able to read his lips. Taking off
her headphones, she tossed her player onto the table in front of her.

“I’m sad,” she whispered, wiping her face on her hands.

Wheaton might be dense when it came to humans but he could
tell she was sad. He wanted to know
why
she was sad. She had food,
clothes and entertainment to keep her occupied in their rooms when he was gone.
Unsure if he should even ask what was wrong, he did and braced himself for the
answer.