Page 22 of Stardust Paws and Alien Claws

He trailed off, sinking to his knees before me in a move so sinfully graceful that it stole my breath. His hands splayed possessively over my thighs, gently coaxing them further apart until I was utterly exposed, utterly vulnerable before him.

I started to protest, a flush of self-consciousness rising, but the words died on my lips as he leaned in and placed a single, scorching kiss to the apex of my thighs. My back bowed, a strangled cry tearing from my throat as he proceeded to worship me with his lips, his tongue, stoking the flames of my desire until I was hovering on the razor’s edge of sweet oblivion.

“Doanor...oh god, I can’t...” The words dissolved into a litany of broken pleas as he relentlessly drove me higher, his wicked mouth and dexterous fingers rendering me a quivering mass of pure sensation.

Just when I thought I couldn’t take any more, he surged up my body and claimed my lips in a bruising kiss, swallowing my cries as he thrust into me in one powerful stroke. We both froze for a breathless heartbeat, savoring the feeling of being so intimately joined.

Then he started to move, and all coherent thought flew from my mind. His pace was unrelenting, each punishing thrust driving me deeper into the dizzying spiral of ecstasy. Our harsh pants and muted cries echoed off the storage room walls, the air thick and heady with the scent of our passion.

I clung to him like a lifeline, my nails scoring paths down the slick expanse of his back as I gave myself over to the exquisite maelstrom of sensations. Pleasure coiled tighter and tighter, building to an unbearable peak until, with a broken cry of his name, I finally shattered around him.

Doanor followed me over the edge mere heartbeats later, his hips stuttering as he spilled himself deep inside me with a hoarse shout. We clung to each other, trembling, our ragged breaths mingling in the aftermath as we slowly drifted back down to reality.

Eventually, he pressed a tender kiss to my brow, his arms tightening around me in a surprising embrace. “You never cease to amaze me, Cassidy Bennet,” he murmured gruffly.

I huffed a breathless laugh, nuzzling into the curve of his neck. “Is that your way of saying you had a good time, Captain?”

He pulled back just enough to pin me with one of his signature gruff looks, but the corner of his mouth twitched with suppressed amusement. “Just shut up and enjoy the moment, would you?”

Grinning, I simply nodded and snuggled closer, basking in the warmth and solidity of his embrace. Because in that moment, surrounded by his strength and the lingering echoes of our passion, I had never felt more content.

DOANOR

The proximity alarms blared, piercing the quiet stillness aboard the Koloss. Red lights flashed urgently as I jolted upright from the bed, my heart pounding. Cassidy stirred beside me, her brow furrowed in sleepy confusion.

“What’s going on?” she mumbled, rubbing her eyes.

I threw on my clothes hastily. “Raiders. We’re under attack.”

Her eyes widened with alarm as reality sank in. I cupped her face, forcing her to meet my intense gaze. “Listen carefully. You need to hide in the secure cargo bay with the Lazamai enclosure. Now.”

“But Doanor, I can help! Let me?—”

“No arguments!” I cut her off sternly, my voice edged with the command of a captain. “Your job is to protect those creatures at all costs. That’s an order.”

She opened her mouth to protest further, but I silenced her with a fierce kiss, trying to convey the urgency and my need to know she was safe. When I pulled back, her cheeks were flushed, lips parted.

“Please,” I added gruffly. “I can’t focus if I’m worried about you.”

Cassidy gave a reluctant nod. As she hurried out, I caught a whiff of her sweet floral scent lingering in the air, reminding me of the tender moments we’d just shared. Shaking my head clear, I rushed to the bridge.

“Report!” I barked at the crew frantically working the controls.

“We’ve got a heavily armed raider ship closing in fast,” Kylari said, her fingers flying over the screens. “They’re hailing us.”

With a flick of her hand, the main viewscreen crackled to life, revealing the masked visage of the raider captain. “Cargo hauler Koloss, prepare to be boarded. We have a force cannon targeted at your hull. Any resistance, and we’ll blast you into space debris.”

My blood ran cold as I realized the trajectory of their weapon - aimed directly at the hidden cargo bay where Cassidy had gone to shelter. If I refused, she and the priceless Lazamai would be obliterated.

I clenched my fists, jaw tightening as I glanced around at my confused crew. They had no idea about our precious, secret cargo. To them, this was just another raid, another negotiation.

Swallowing hard, I met the raider’s soulless gaze through the screen. “Very well. You may board. But I warn you, we carry nothing of value here.”

Zylith shot me an incredulous look. “Captain, we can’t just let them?—”

I cut him off with a sharp gesture. “Prepare the docking bay. That’s an order.”

With obvious reluctance, my crew complied, no doubt questioning my uncharacteristic decision to surrender so easily. But they didn’t know - couldn’t know - the terrible choice I’d been forced to make.

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