Page 84 of The Alien's Private Redemption

His hands came up her back and his claws raked downward on her shirt, shredding it into pieces around her body. She stepped back to let it all fall away and realized it was her uniform with her rank picked out in red thread, like a scarlet letter.

Her belt was next, followed by her trousers. He stared at her boots for a long moment, his breath coming hard, and he licked his lips.

"I kinda like the boots," he admitted.

Angela laughed and turned to unlace them. "We can indulge that little fantasy later," she told him. "Right now, I don't want any barriers between us."

His hand slid across her back and down her backside while she dealt with her boots. The touch on such delicate parts while she was in such a vulnerable position made her shiver with anticipation.

The sound of their breathing echoed against the stone walls. The scent of the mutual desire mixed with the mineral tang of the rocks surrounding them. Their Bond sang with the electric pulse of their desire, pushing her need higher in response to his.

"I didn't think you'd be so open to this so soon," he told her, his hands moving reverently across her skin.

She knew how he felt, what each of his touches meant, and it melted her a little more inside.

"It's a dream," she told him. "There are fewer inhibitions in dreams."

"I'm awake," he told her.

"And wearing far too many clothes," she said, walking back into his embrace, her feet bare. "But I'll allow it for now. Because this is my dream and I get to be vulnerable this time. When it's your dream, you can be as naked as you want."

"What if all I want in my dream is for you to be naked?" he teased.

His arms felt so good around her. The rough leather of the strange kilt contrasted with the soft feel of his skin, abrading her gently and making her aware of his every movement.

"Then I'll be naked," she answered. "As long as you keep touching me like this, I'll be as naked as you want."

Zoric's eyes sparked with desire and his tongue darted out to run along her neck, then her collarbone. Swift, gentle strokes that sent shivers of delight through her. Every lick stoked her desire until she could swear she was going to combust. Fire danced through her veins to settle as liquid heat in her core, as he worked his way down her body, setting every nerve alight.

He worked his way around the part of her that wept for him, down her thighs, to the backs of her knees. When they gave out, he caught her, arms around her waist and tail around her calves. He laid her down in front of him, legs spread wide, while he licked his way down her calf and around her ankle.

When he nipped gently at her achilles, her toes curled, and she started to writhe. The reaction startled both of them but she caught the pleased grin that crossed his face before he placed a long, delicate lick across the top of her toes.

She squeaked and covered her mouth in sudden embarrassment. He moved up her body to her face with a speed she couldn't quite process, until he was covering her entire body with his own.

"Don't hide from me," he demanded. "Every sound you make, whether from pleasure or pain, belongs to me now. I want to hear everything."

His intensity shocked her, and sent another bolt of heat to her core, until she was certain she was a moment from exploding.

"Why?" she asked. Her body screamed at her that this was the worst possible time to have this conversation but she needed to hear him.

"Because you are my Mate. You were made for me and I for you, and by some miracle we have found each other. I may not know you as well as I'd like to, yet, but I will spend the rest of our lives learning every inch of your body, mind, and soul. Because they are mine to protect, to cherish, and to love. Every inch."

Angela ached for the beautiful man who was holding himself so carefully on top of her. She wanted everything about him, wanted to know everything there was to know, and she felt a tear slip from her right eye. It didn't match the flood of desire that had already leaked from her but it felt like she was letting him in to more than her body.

His tail was still curled around her right ankle, so she lifted her left and wrapped it around his waist, her heel resting just above the base of his tail. He squirmed against her and she grinned with the discovery of a sensitive spot.

"Then know me, Zoric," she demanded. The feel of the leather kilt disappeared from against her skin, and something hard and solid smacked against her clit.

She moaned with pleasure when his hips moved back, dragging that hard length against her weeping pussy. The tip was at her entrance, and he started to push, gently at first to give her time to adjust, then faster.

Angela was more than ready for him, her body fairly aching to be filled, and she sighed with relief as he slipped deeper inside.Her arms were wrapped around him and her fingers dug into the muscles of his shoulders as an anchor when he started to move.

His emotions spilled across their bond and she could feel his desire to taste her pleasure. She relaxed into the moment, allowing herself to enjoy every stroke, every clench of her body, until she was balancing on edge, waiting for the next hard breath that would push her over.

Between one breath and the next, her anticipation rose - then a metallic taste flooded her mouth, sharp and wrong like copper pennies mixed with battery acid. A sharp pain in her shoulder yanked her away from the moment. Her body screamed with the failed orgasm and she reached across to grab whatever had knocked her from the peak.

A slippery, snake-like thing had bitten her, its scales feeling oily and unnatural against her fingers. The air in the cave grew thick and heavy, the previously comforting mineral scent turning acrid and chemical. She could see toxic, green liquid oozing from its mouth like mercury, only to be stopped by a very thin layer of Zoric's scales. They'd grown under her flesh with a sensation like ice crystallizing, spreading in a protective shield. The snake-thing reared back to try again, its presence creating static interference in their Bond like a badly tuned radio, but Angela grabbed hold of it behind the head.

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