Love Without Boundaries (20 page)

Leah didn’t realize her lips were tilted in a smile as she drifted off into sleep.

“So I was thinking the categories of the spreadsheet would be their different efforts, like dating websites, singles events and places they’ve either gone or plan to go in order to meet women,” Leah announced, looking over her notebook she’d balanced on her lap.
 
Pam had insisted on driving again the following morning and after a quick stop at Cleo’s where they’d armed themselves with more caffeine than they probably needed, were making their way back to the ‘house of warriors’, as Pam called it.

“You’re gonna have to do some research as well because I don’t think our boys are tapping
all the
good ass in the area, if you know what I mean.”
 
Pam shot her friend a huge smile that was accompanied by a waggle of her carefully shaped brows.
 
Both women were again in jeans and girly t-shirts, but Pam’s read “It’s Only Kinky the First Time” in sequins where Leah’s was emblazoned with the name of a local bar.
 
Since that day had been specified as an info gathering session, neither one had either the drive nor felt the necessity to dress to impress.

“Noted,” Leah agreed, applying pen to paper.
 
“Did you get the magazines?”

“Yep but do you know the ratio between women’s fashion magazines to men’s is almost ten to one?
 
Geesh, don’t editors know that guys need just as much help and encouragement with their looks as we do?”
 
Leah thought Pam had a point.

“But how many men are willing to be seen going through the check-out with that stuff?”

“You might have a point,” Pam conceded, taking one of the last turns into the exclusive area of Troon North a little too fast.
 
Fast enough that the smaller blonde seemed to clutch the steering wheel as the car leaned sharply to the left.
 
“I’ll do an internet search too, just to see if I’m missing the crap all guys secretly want to know but are too studly to purchase.”

Leah tucked her notepad and pen into the tote bag she’d brought along for their first official meeting with the Picari warriors.
 
She’d brought along her laptop, hoping to be able to put her findings into her computer to track each man’s progress in securing a mate.
 
Bronsyn had let it slip that his group was the first of several missions that the combined Galaxian and Nutrolite council had approved.
 
So Leah figured by documenting their efforts, any subsequent quests might have a better advantage if the men knew what worked and what didn’t.
 
“Did you bring your camera?”

“I was just going to use the one on my phone,” Pam replied, pulling into the long, long driveway and stopping before the then closed gates.
 
Rolling down her window, Pam peered up at the camera mounted on one of the high walls before she called out, “little pigs, little pigs, won’t you let me come in?” gaining an honest giggle from her dark-haired passenger.

“They don’t know our nursery stories,” Leah mumbled in her mirth.

“Yeah, well.
 
It made you laugh, didn’t it?”

As the gates opened and the SUV went the last fifty or so yards to the front door, Leah saw they had a welcoming committee that included every warrior in residence.
 
And each and every face was wearing a smile.
 
“I think they’re glad to see us.”

“Wouldn’t you be?
 
I mean, from what they told me, our gender is the stuff of dreams to them,” Pam shot back before quickly exiting the car and running to the stairs.
 
Leah saw Rykhan break away from the group as he came to greet her.

And what a greeting it was!
 
Yanking open her door, he didn’t even wait for her to unlatch herself from the seatbelt before settling his lips over hers.
 
Not that Leah complained.
 
Even though, when they finally disengaged, she murmured an, “Impatient much?” through swollen lips.

“I have missed you, my Leah,” he breathed, pressing his forehead into hers.
 
With her sitting in the SUV and him standing outside, they were almost eye-to-eye.

‘And I couldn’t have a better view,’
Leah told herself, but aloud said, “Good morning, baby.
 
How are you?”

Rykhan laughed in answer and quickly had her and her tote out of the car as he steered her along the driveway.
 
“I was impatient for you to arrive.”

With only the hand he had pressed to her lower back as if it
guide
her up the stairs, Leah again felt her armband heat and begin to beat in small pulses as if it, too, was happy to be near him.
 
“What is in the bag, my Leah?”

“Things that I hope will help you and your brothers,” she replied, smiling in greeting at the group that
were
still standing outside the front door.
 
She saw that Pam was leaning against Wyst but was holding the fingers of Laxon on one side and Tyshar on the other.
 
Raising an eyebrow in query as she walked by, Pam only responded with a grin that was accompanied by another eyebrow waggle.

Making her way to the huge dining room table, Leah took her bag from Rykhan and began plugging in her laptop.
 
Arbrynt was standing next to Rykhan watching her every move.

“What is this device?” he
asked,
his eyes going from the computer to Leah before trailing back.

“A portable computer,” Leah said, looking around the room for the nearest plug.
 
While she’d brought an extension cord, she didn’t want to use it if she didn’t have to.
 
After locating the nearest outlet, she pulled out the chair closest to it, opened the device and pushed the power button.
 
“I thought I’d use Excel to document your dating efforts to see what works and what doesn’t.”

Both Rykhan and Arbrynt’s faces were scrunched in confusion at her careless tossed out words, so Leah did a bit more explaining.

“This device holds a program that is a spreadsheet.
 
I believe that in order to quantify the results of your quest, documenting what methods you’ve employed in order to meet the highest number of…ah, females, and which areas you have not yet used, would help identify what efforts have the highest percentage of success in your quest.”
 
While she felt like a total ass spouting off the techno-speak, both the warrior’s faces relaxed in understanding and Leah felt like she’d won some kind of contest.
 
She waved the men over and pointed to the screen that was just then lighting up in front of her.
 
“See?”

“What is this thing?” Arbrynt asked again as he watched Leah press some keys as she pulled up a new, empty Excel workbook.
 
His eyes went to her before settling on Rykhan.
 
“It is old, slow and only has this plastic piece to view the information!”

“Hey, wait a second!
 
I just bought it right after Christmas and I happen to know it’s the top of the line!” Leah countered
heatedly,
watching the blonde giant as he blithely closed the cover and disconnected the power cord.
 
Scooping the unit off the table, he tucked it under his arm and thumped his way to the hallway, quickly disappearing around the corner.

Leah turned to Rykhan with her hands on her hips while she sputtered, incredulous at the other warrior’s imperialistic actions.
 
“What the hell was that?”

Rykhan gathered her in his arms and as soon as he touched her, she felt her frustration begin to ebb.
 
“He is just going to make it better,
mica tisha
.
 
It will take him only a little time to improve it.
 
Trust me when I tell you your computer will be better when he returns it.
 
More superior to any other computing or communication device you can purchase here on Earth.”

Somewhat mollified by Rykhan’s explanation as well as the calm that had
spread,
Leah relaxed into his embrace and gazed up into his clear blue-green eyes.
 
“How long will it take him?” she asked, feeling their shared look down to her toes.

Seeming to catch on to her train of thought, Rykhan pressed her closer.
 
“Twenty lesps would be my guess.”

“And a ‘lesp’ converts to what in Earth time?” she breathed, feeling the pulsations of her bracelet begin to beat in a number of sensitive places on her body.

His eyes were heated and only added to the desire building within her as he answered.
 
“One Earth minute, give or take.
 
So Arbrynt should return your unit in ten to fifteen minutes.”

“Oh, goody,” she breathed, lifting her mouth towards his but just before their lips touched there was a flurry of movement at the front door as the others came inside the house.
 
Grabbing her hand, Rykhan moved quickly into the little den that they’d met with Bronsyn the day before.
 

As soon as the door closed, she was again within the circle of his arms, their mouths fused, tongues undulating as they allowed their passion to flow between them.
 
Several minutes passed before Rykhan lifted his head.
 
“That couch looks comfortable.”

Turning her eyes away and training them on the large piece of furniture covered in plaid, Leah decided not to play coy.
 
She wanted him too much to play any kind of game.
 
“It certainly does.
 
But you could always bend me over one of the chairs…”

The light in his eyes flared as he caught onto her suggestion and just as he was shuffling her to the area behind where the pair of armchairs
sat,
there was a bump at the door.
 
As they both stared in the direction of the sound, the door crashed open as Pam and Wyst tumbled in a flurry of tangled bodies.

It took Leah a couple of seconds before her sex-crazed brain made sense of the scene, but once it did she quickly covered her mouth to hold in the laugh that wanted to escape.
 

Wyst was fully supporting her petite friend.
 
He had to, because the smaller woman’s legs were clamped around the large warrior’s waist, her arms encircling his neck in what appeared to be a death grip.

It seemed Pam’s protestations of the night before had been just a denial regarding marriage and had not held the truth in her feelings for Wyst.
 
Not if what Leah was avidly watching was true.
 
In how the two couldn’t take their mouths off each other long enough to determine if the room was empty or not.

“You need to take yourself and your female elsewhere, brother,” Rykhan announced on a low note and Leah saw Wyst’s eyes shoot to where she and her warrior stood even though Wyst still didn’t disconnect from Pam’s mouth.

“Honey, please,” Pam begged against his lips, wiggling in supplication as she pulled Wyst’s t-shirt up.
 
A move Leah figured was a pretty difficult thing to do considering the hard-pressed twining of their bodies.

“Sorry,” Wyst offered, but Leah could swear it was on a moan as he backed out the door, snatching and missing the handle as if to close it.

Turning to look at the man standing behind her, she couldn’t stop her smile.
 
“So we aren’t the only ones, huh?”

“I do not think their attraction is the same as ours,
tersa blay
,” Rykhan intoned slowly as he caressed her waist before lifting a hand to indicate her
wahrom
.
 
“Perhaps you could warn your friend that Wyst…”

“I can’t warn Pam about shit, baby,” Leah interrupted, fully moving to press herself into the man who was beginning to ensnare her heart.
 
“She’s got her own mind, her own way of deciding what’s good and what’s bad.
 
Between right and wrong.”
 
Looking back at the still opened door, she sighed.
 
“And if she’s set her sights on your Wyst, then…”

“He has stated many times that he will mate with as many human females as he can before he is required to pair with just one, my Leah.”
 
His voice only reflected the concern she was able to see in his face.
 
“I do not wish the sister-of-your-heart to become hurt by his inability to settle.”

Raising her observation from his mouth to his eyes, she saw pity reflected and knew she needed to warn him as well.
 
“What happens if
she
breaks
his
heart, hmm?
 
My girlie likes men and isn’t shy about her need for variety.”

His eyes took on a steadier gaze, something that spoke of his thoughts and almost warned her about his next question.
 
“And you, my Leah?
 
Are you the same about needing variety, several men to assuage your needs?”

She stared up at him, shocked that Rykhan could even entertain that particular notion after what they’d experienced yesterday in his bed.
 
But as she opened her mouth to blast him and his thoughts all to hell, she heard Arbrynt call.
 
Even if the blonde warrior was only bellowing, “Rykhan’s female?
 
Where is Rykhan’s female?”