Page 57 of The Alien's Private Redemption

"Of course," he said, and settled back onto the stool.

A blanket of warmth wrapped around her, followed by a feeling of contentment she'd never experienced before. She closed her eyes and relaxed into it, craving more than anything to be held by the arms she had found herself in yesterday.

"Describe what you're feeling," Zoric said, his voice soft and low.

Angela relaxed more into the sensations and sighed. "It's like waking up in a fluffy blanket in the middle of winter. The only thing that will make me move is to roll over and cuddle."

"Do you want to cuddle?" he asked, and she could hear the longing in it.

"Yes," she answered. "I haven't cuddled in years."

He sighed and she could feel his regret a moment before the warm and fluffy feeling disappeared. It was followed by a sharp stab of pain in her left thigh.

Her eyes flew open and she saw one of his claws pressed hard against his left thigh.

"There are downsides," he said simply, and took his hand away. The pain in her leg dissipated, though the ache remained a little longer.

"I can see that," she said. "Do you mind if I try?"

Chapter 6

Zoric nodded his assent and Angela sat up on her cot. While he'd known digging his claw into his leg was going to hurt, he hoped that the comforting warmth he'd sent her first had eased some of the pain from her ordeal. While the chill in the air didn't bother him much, he knew the thin hospital gown hadn't offered her much warmth. The clothes he'd left for her had been better, but her fingers and skin still showed the tell-tale signs of being too cold.

He was prepared for her touch to be hesitant and awkward, maybe a little painful. So when he felt a gentle stroke along his jaw, he was certain he was imagining it. Then it continued down the side of his neck and he growled.

It stopped abruptly and he looked up to see her eyes wide with fright. It was an unpleasant echo of his first bond and he knew she felt the spasm of pain from the memory.

"Did I hurt you?" Angela asked. "I didn't mean to hurt you. It didn't feel like I was."

"You did not hurt me," he assured her. "My kind do not purr. I'm sorry for frightening you."

"You wanted to purr?"

She sounded pleased with herself and Zoric couldn't help his chuckle. This was a much better reaction than fear and he found himself trying to pull more of it from her.

"Yes, I did. Your touch was very gentle. What were you trying to do?"

"I wanted to know what your skin felt like. My hands were restrained behind my back when I was close enough to touch you." Her cheeks flushed and he wondered why she was embarrassed by her desire. If he hadn't tasted her hormones on the air, he'd wonder if she'd caught a sudden fever, and he was filled with a desire to see her in the sun.

"Would you like me to move closer?" he asked. "I can let you actually touch me?"

"Are you allowed? I know there are people in the surveillance booth."

He tilted his head. "How do you know that?"

"Because you do," she admitted.

"Are you reading me?" The idea filled him with excitement. If their bond had progressed that quickly, if she was doing it on purpose…

She shook her head. "Not exactly. It's more that I focused on you and felt something. Like a phone cord? And I could hear what you were worried about. It was running through your mind like a mantra."

"You felt our Bond and used it to hear my thoughts without me projecting them to you?"

"Is that what that was?" she asked.

Zoric focused on the Bond and sent how pleased he was down it. When she gasped, he enjoyed the blush that rose up her cheeks. Then, she sent the same thing back and it was his turn to shift uncomfortably.

"Oh, the scales on your cheeks change color when you blush," she said, the joy in her voice a balm to his soul.

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