Page 26 of Possessed By the Leonid King

Marcus growled low in his throat. “Rupex! Listen to yourself. Have you learned nothing from all we’ve lost?”

“I have. No, Marcus, I have. Those are reasons I would have given in the past. I will change my thinking—for my sons and daughters. But first, we have to make it to the point where I could even take on a full crew again. You heard the news?”

With a heavy sigh, the older Leonid tapped a few keys and a different screen projected an ominous headline. “Dock by Daybreak says Servali Prime Minister.”

Rupex pushed himself out of the chair. “Will Layla survive a lightspeed jump?”

“Not comfortably.”

“Then I’m going to switch to manual and put the Comet Stalker through her paces. We’re going to be at Leo Falls by the time the Leonid Prime Minister makes his declaration.”

It wasn’t a question anymore.

Chapter Eleven

Layla had never been so lonely or so horny in her life. For the past two days, she had only seen fleeting glimpses of Rupex when he’d come to his quarters to eat. She’d waited in the hall near the sliding silvery door to his rooms in the morning and the evening, expecting him to pull her inside and take her to his bed with a passionate lunge.

He hadn’t. He’d politely, almost formally invited her to share his meals, but they hadn’t been romantic, or even social. The DDS on the ship (Dietary Delivery System, Layla quickly learned) was stocked with healthy, nutritious foods for Leonids. She could eat her fill of meats, veggies, fruits, starchy tubers, and grains. Rupex had ordered for her, insisting she eat meals that were clearly meant for Leonid-sized physiques. Somehow, she’d gotten through them, suddenly ravenous.

But she’d eaten them alone. Every meal for two days, Rupex had drunk two cups of liquid, one steaming and black, the other steaming and reddish-brown. “Protein and caffeine. Optimized energy and nutrition. I’ve got to get back to work, but you take your time. Nap or watch the media viewer in here if you like.” He’d make the same offer every meal as he gulped down both beverages and then raced back to the flight deck.

Finally, after the third morning meal, Layla had protested when Rupex tried to dash away.

“Look, I know you're busy on the ship, but this isn’t the deal we made.” Layla ran a hand down between her breasts. “I’m not earning my credits.”

“We’ve mated twice in a short span. It’s too soon to know if either mating was successful. This satisfies our contract as far as I’m concerned.” Rupex put down his mug.

“Fine. Well, what about you?”

“Me?”

“Yes! You have to hold up your half of the bedroom action, too. You can’t get me addicted to awesome Leonid breeding sex and then rip it away from me without a warning.”

Rupex stared at her for a minute, muzzle twitching, eyes narrowed.

Maybe I shouldn’t have said anything, Layla thought to herself, chest tightening. She realized she wasn’t afraid of the giant, furry man before her. The sensation was more like expectation. It wasn’t even a wholly unpleasant feeling. Other parts of her tightened as well. The breath vanished from her lungs as Rupex growled and rumbled deep in his chest.

In the next second, the towering Leonid bounded over to her and gripped her shoulders, his claws poking through the soft warm pads of his paws as he kissed her hard. Layla could feel his hardness pressing into her middle as he half-lifted her, half-bent to meet her lips with his own.

“You have no idea how hard it is for me to stay away from you. I'm doing this to get us to safety as fast as I can. I would advise you to watch the news, except I hear stress isn't good for women who are trying to conceive.” His chest heaving, Rupex pushed her away and shook himself. He gave her one last burning look through golden eyes as he marched from the room.

NATURALLY, SHE WATCHED the news. It seemed to be the only thing on.

The quarantined Sirius Federation ship that had started all of the trouble was now reporting deaths in the dozens. The new mutation of the Queen Fever didn't just affect Canid females but also males if they were in “rut.”

Layla shook her head. Some “primitive” instincts had not gone away, even over the centuries. While the Leonids, Canids, and the like could control their behavior, their hormones and blood levels still told the tale of ancestral mating and breeding patterns. Hormone injections were keeping people alive and battling febrile seizures if administered early enough. Others were too far gone to save. To make matters worse, some of the passengers on the ship had left the ship during the previous week at various excursion points, including Servali moons.

Even the unconcerned Leopardine newscaster that Layla had taken to watching finally seemed rattled by this revelation. Passengers who had disembarked without symptoms had later developed them—and the mutated virus was spreading again. Ships were being grounded, planet-side excursions and events were being canceled, and people were being told to remain at home unless they were in designated “vital” professions.

As usual, Layla saw no mention of Sapien-Three or its sister planets. So many other galaxies tended to avoid them. Interactions were becoming more common, but she supposed they would dry up again.

“Quarters. Turn off the media viewer.” Layla sat weakly on the edge of the bed, hands gripping her knees.

Wow. I’m actually glad that I got sent off-world when I did.

What if that jerk Paul hadn’t tried to ship her off to some depraved Lynx-man? She shuddered. What if Rupex hadn’t been honorable?

Was he though? He wanted something out of her. He could be acting.

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