Mated (10 page)

get his fill of her. He had waited so long, after all.

But more than that, he was surprised at the intensity of his emotions for her

already. He wanted to protect her, to comfort her. What would it be like once they had well and truly mated? He could only imagine the bond growing stronger, and it both

frightened and excited him.

“What are you doing even now, my Natalie?” It must be difficult for her, leaving

the only home she’d ever known. Traveling farther away than she’d ever imagined.

Though he was confident that she would come to care for each of them, she had

scarcely had time to become accustomed to the idea.

When the Spygian females had still lived, bonds were created instantly amongst a

female and her mates. It had simply been accepted that the mating bond was unerring

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and unbreakable. But his female had not been raised the same way. What level of

uncertainty must she be feeling now, wondering if she made the right choice?

With a muttered oath he rose from his bed. He needed to see her right now. Though

it tortured him that he would not be able to have her in the way he wanted her until the ritual could be completed, he still felt the desire to be near her.

“I will simply not touch her.” He shook his head, uttering a harsh laugh. “Well, at

least not overmuch.” He’d be lying to himself if he said he would be able to keep his hands off her completely.

* * * * *

Natalie took her time soaking under the hot spray of the shower. She’d woken

feeling relaxed and energized. Pretty much the way any woman might feel after having

had the best sex of her life.

Times twenty.

Just thinking about Andros, about the way his eyes had glittered with emotion as

he’d stood over her, made her knees shake. She knew she was attractive, but she’d

never considered herself particularly beautiful. But somehow she’d managed to attract these perfect specimens of manhood. And the way they looked at her, with obvious

unbridled desire, made her feel that she truly was beautiful. Figures they’d be out of this world, literally.

She finished her shower and put her tunic back on, looking in the vanity mirror and

coloring once more. Did they expect her to wear this all the time?

As exciting as the notion of easy access might be, they couldn’t expect her to be

having sex all the time.

Somehow, with those three lusty aliens, she had a feeling that was exactly what she

would be doing if she walked around dressed like this.

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The door leading into the bathroom slid open. Natalie jumped and whirled around.

Zafron was on the other side. Seeing her in her tunic, he leaned against the entrance to the bathroom, his eyes glittering as he said, “Natalie.”

“Wha—What are you doing here?” She crossed her arms, trying not to appear too

nervous.

“I but came to see how you were doing,” he said innocently, lowering his lids so

that his eyes were half-closed.

She thought he might be scared of frightening her away with the naked desire so

evident in them. “Really?” she asked suspiciously.

“Of course, female. It must be frightening to be leaving your planet and the only

home you have ever known. I but wanted you to know that you could confide in me,

should you wish to do so.”

Natalie’s heart skipped a beat. That was very sweet of him, to be considering what

this journey would mean to her. Even if his impatience was shining through in his eyes.

“Thank you. It is a little scary, but exciting too.”

“You are a brave one, my beautiful flower,” he said in an admiring tone. “That is as

it should be for a Spygian mate.”

“I…” Natalie felt a hot blush coming to her cheeks and looked down for a second.

Just the way he said the word “mate” made her think all sorts of naughty thoughts.

“Thank you.”

Zafron smiled, his expression taking on a faraway look. “Wait until you see Spygia.

It is a beautiful place. Our forests are a veritable rainbow of color, with so many

varieties of flower and plants that it boggles the mind. To my mind, it is the most

beautiful of the planets we have come across, though yours does come in at a close

second.” He looked over at her confidently. “You will like it there.”

She inhaled at the look of childlike happiness on his face. He was devastatingly

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innocent delight, it made him absolutely breathtaking. “How many other planets have

you seen, besides Earth and your own?”

“Hmm…let’s see, there’s Arethra, Keulot, Enduve.” His smile dimmed. “Chivea

and Fresahkna, before their people were decimated by the Malucons.”

Natalie couldn’t help but gasp. “The Malucons killed off all the people of two

different planets?”

“More than two, as far as we know. And yes, once they successfully invade a

planet, they annihilate the entire native race. It is barbaric, but the Malucons are crazed.

They take delight in complete and utter conquest.”

Oh my god. When she’d considered the possibility of alien life in the past, of course she’d thought about the chance that it might be hostile. But she’d never considered that there would be aliens that decimated entire planets just for fun. It was terrifying.

“Do not worry,” he said, taking in her expression. “That will not happen to Spygia.

Our people will protect her. We will defeat the Malucons.”

“But…but what about Earth?” The Malucons knew it was there. It had clearly been

in their view when they had approached the ship.

Zafron’s expression softened. “Not to worry, Natalie. Your planet is safe for quite

some time. The Malucons are only driven to planets that contain some sort of

technological advancement they covet. Earth is simply too new to be of any interest to them. And by the time it has become advanced enough for this to be a concern, the

Malucons will have been defeated.” His face took on a fierce expression once more.

“This I swear.”

Slowly, she relaxed once more. Worrying wasn’t going to help matters. “Thank you

for taking the time to make sure I was okay.”

“Of course. You are our mate,” he said. His voice became seductive once again. “Is

there anything else I can do for you?”

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She tried not to blush as she took in the obvious meaning behind his words, turning

instead to face the mirror as she considered her appearance ruefully. “You wouldn’t

happen to have any clothes that would provide a little more coverage, would you?”

Zafron grinned mischievously. “You need but ask, my mate, though I think you

look ravishing as is.” He strode to the far end of the bathroom and touched his hand to the wall. A hidden panel slid open, revealing a closet stocked with undergarments and tunics of all lengths and colors.

“Oh. Thank you.” She shot him a grateful smile.

“You are most welcome.” Zafron stepped away from the closet and slowly stalked

toward her. Natalie stiffened. What was he doing?

He came to a standstill in front of her, sliding his hands up her arms. Shoving her

hair to one side, he lightly nuzzled her neck. “Would you like me to help you change

your dress, mate?”

Natalie opened her mouth to respond, but he pressed up against her, his erection

prodding insistently at her stomach, and she gasped instead. Zafron kissed her,

sensually sliding his tongue across hers and sucking lightly on the tip.

God, I just become a quivering pile of flesh around these men.

Zafron’s hands came up to cup her breasts, kneading them gently before he pulled

down the fabric of her tunic and freed them. “Gods, female,” he whispered. “You entice me unbearably.”

Cupping one breast in his hand, Zafron moved the other down the short length of

her tunic, finding the juncture of her thighs and sliding his fingers along her center.

Natalie moaned, her head falling back forward onto his chest. The pressure of his

fingers on her felt so good. She bit her lip to keep from crying out as one long finger pressed inside her.

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“Do you know how good your cream tastes, Natalie?” he said softly as he circled

his finger inside of her, placing his thumb at her clit and rubbing against it. “I almost spent myself last night, just tasting you. That is how I knew you were my mate.”

She moaned again as he withdrew his finger and brought it up to her mouth. “Taste

it,” he said, pressing his erection further against her with a soft thrust. Her lips parted to accept his finger and she sucked greedily on it, enjoying the taste of her feminine essence mingled with the salty flavor of his flesh.

“By severn, you are amazing.” His hand came down her body again, more

impatiently this time as he thrust two fingers in her heat.

She cried out at the sensation of his fingers sliding in and out of her moist center.

“God, that feels so good.”

Zafron groaned. “Heavens, Natalie, I must taste you again.” Withdrawing his

fingers, he slid the cool, silk fabric of her tunic up her body and over her head. Then he stepped back.

Natalie’s heart thumped furiously as Zafron perused her naked flesh. Heavens, she

wanted him. Desperately. How could he make her feel so wanton, even though she’d

known him such a short period of time?

“Go sit on the counter,” he ordered softly. She moved to obey, her breath catching

in her throat. “Good. Now spread your legs so that I can see.”

Biting back an excited moan, she opened her legs wide.

Zafron placed his hands on the inside of her thighs and pressed down gently to

spread her legs a little farther, groaning harshly as he looked down at her. “You are beautiful like this. With your body opened to me.” With his index finger, he rubbed her clit again, then traced his finger down to her opening, sliding his finger inside once more as he looked down on her.

Zafron thrust his finger in and out, then leaned down to give her a hot, open-

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added a second finger as he moved his mouth down to her breasts, taking turns tugging and sucking one nipple, then the other, into his mouth.

“God, that’s incredible.” She fisted a hand in his long dark hair, jerking her hips up and down as he explored her body.

He moved down her body with a harsh groan. “Much as I would love to fuck you,

Natalie, I can only taste your sweet nectar this time. Once the ritual has been

performed…”

His words trailed off, the dark promise behind them evident as he stroked his

velvety tongue down her center, then plunged it inside.

Natalie cried out, fisting the other hand in his hair and holding his head to her as

his tongue began to slide in and out, the long length of it slithering inside her. “Oh god!” He thrust his tongue in more fiercely, grasping her hips to hold her in place.

“Ohhhh…”

She felt herself fall apart, her split legs starting to shake uncontrollably. She came wildly with one final thrust of his tongue, his face pressed to her heat.

With a growl, he lifted his head, looking at her with barely repressed desire. “Lords, your taste is unbelievably delicious.”

Her breath coming out in panting gasps, Natalie said, “Zafron, you are amazing.

That was absolutely incredible.” Every bone in her body felt like liquid. She was

amazed she didn’t slide to the floor in a boneless puddle.

Standing up straight, Zafron pressed her knees together and lifted her bare body up

to his as he enveloped her in a crushing hug, his hands on her backside. His head

buried in her hair, he groaned again. She felt the force of his arousal as he pressed the heated length to her stomach through the thin fabric of his loincloth.

How could she be aroused again so soon? It seemed her libido knew no bounds

around these men.

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Regardless, it certainly didn’t seem fair that he’d given her pleasure—twice now,

actually—while selflessly denying his own. She wanted to end that.

Brushing Zafron’s erection through the loincloth, she asked, “Can I please you

now?”

He froze for a moment, then backed away, looking down at her questioningly. “You

do please me,” he said, but the hopeful look on his face was almost amusing.

Stifling a laugh, Natalie pushed him until his back hit the wall, dropping down to

her knees.

“By severn,” he exclaimed in rough excitement as she lifted his loincloth and freed

his large arousal, grabbing it in both hands.

“God, you are huge,” she said with a laugh. She was met by an answering grunt as

he grasped her hair and gently pulled her head toward his body.

Natalie closed her lips around the engorged tip of his cock. She sucked in lightly,

loving the sound of Zafron’s deep groan. With one hand over the other, she encircled

him as much as she could with her fists, rubbing them up and down his velvety shaft as she traced her tongue around the head of his shaft, then sucked in the tip.

Heavens, this man is amazing.

His large tool was built for pleasure, giving and receiving. And receiving it was all she could think about as she sucked in as much of his length as she could, bobbing her head up and down in tempo with her pumping hands.

“Lords, Natalie, I cannot hold back anymore,” he said, his hips jerking violently

against her.

“Don’t. Please don’t.” As turned on as she was, she wanted to taste him.