Page 7 of Hunter's Valentine

I knew immediately I’d made a massive error in judgment.

The force of my need hit me so hard that my knees buckled and I slid to the floor. I forgot all about the world outside and instead drowned in everything that was her.

Chapter 5: Sara

I should’ve pushed away when I had the chance, but Mur’k was so warm, and I was freezing. So I’d stayed. But then the purring had started, and everything had changed. I got my warmth all right, in the form of little fires spreading all over my body from the places we touched, amplified by the vibrations. The last remaining fear I had dissolved, turning into unyielding need that surged through me so strongly I couldn’t breathe.

And then he was kissing me. His lips were soft but firm against mine, and the press of his fangs was titillating and exciting. His fingers tangled in my hair, already messy from the fight with the bugs earlier. Heat surged through me as he held me captive in his embrace.

Despite his clear inexperience he was assertive, claiming every part of me he touched. And when I responded with a surprising hunger of my own, he demanded more. He’d slid down to sit against the wall, hauling me down to straddle him. Something hard and insistent bumped the V of my legs, sending another surge of lust through me, clawing to be set free.

All the tidbits I’d ever heard about the alien hunters rushed to fill my head, the most important of which being that we were sexually compatible despite our differences. There definitelywasa size difference; they were huge everywhere. They were not human-shaped down there, either, a fact I could now confirm from what I felt, though I couldn’t quite tell what shape it was exactly.

Firm hands rolled my hips against the hard bar of his erection, and a needy moan escaped my lips.

God! What was I thinking?

I couldn’t let this continue. I had to get to New Franklin, and that wasn’t going to happen if this hunter stole me away and onto his shuttle.

I reached up, grabbed his horns and shoved, using them for leverage. But the rumbling in his chest got even louder. His hips bucked, grinding us together again.

Okay, note to self: do not grab the bull by the horns unless I want a wild ride.

So I shoved at his chest instead, hard, and he finally released me. My breath was ragged, but to my credit, Mur’k appeared even more dazed than I was. He blinked several times, like he was trying hard to regain control of himself.

I used the opportunity to put some distance between us, scrambling to the opposite side of the room.

“Don’t even think about kidnapping me back to your shuttle for sex,” I said, glad that I sounded a lot more composed than I felt. “If you do, you’ll be sleeping with one eye open.”

“There is no fear of that,” he huffed. “I’m not interested in a mate. You’re the one reeking of desire.”

I gaped at him. Howdarehe call me out!

I mean, he wasn’t wrong, but still. Thenerve.

I glanced down at the erection threatening to bust right through his loincloth. “Says the one sporting a tentpole.”

He looked confused, so I gestured to his crotch and the poor piece of leather that was straining to keep it all in.

“You are attacking me with your pheromones.”

What the hell?

“Excuse me? You can’t control yourself, and it’smyfault? You’re just as bad as the rest of them.” I crossed my arms over my chest. “Men!”

“I am not a man. I am a Xar—”

I saw the movement reflected in Mur’k’s golden eyes even as he stopped mid-sentence. My back was facing the window so I couldn’t tell if it was a flyer or one of those giant centipede-like creatures, the only two types of space bugs that could make it all the way up to the roof. Whatever it was, our arguing had drawn its attention.

“It’s behind me, isn’t it?” I whispered.

Instead of replying, Mur’k moved, pulling me away from the window and behind him. The sound of glass breaking sent fear zinging through my fingers and toes. I knew before I turned and looked what I would see.

Only the giant centipedes could break glass so easily. I’d seen them do it before by smashing the sharp protrusions on the sides of their body at windows. They were also adept climbers and ridiculously fast. Not to mention, those protrusions were tipped with a neurotoxin, so if they cut you, you were basically dead meat.

Hell, if they even saw you, you were as good as dead. And this one had seen us.

Quick as lightning, Mur’k snatched up his axe, then brandished it in front of him, the edge of it glowing white-blue with energy. Was he seriously planning to engage with it? The thing was huge!

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