Page 26 of Claimed by an Alien Warrior

“Fine.” She stormed toward the door and switched off the lights.

The room was plunged into complete darkness for a few moments before Rendash’s eyes adjusted to the faint light creeping through a tiny gap in the window coverings. He watched Zoey haltingly walk back toward the bed, arms extended in front of her. There was a thump, and she stumbled.

“Fuck!” Placing a hand on the end of the bed, she bent down and released a high-pitched whine.

Rendash pushed himself up and took a step toward her. “Are you all right, Zoey?”

“I’m fine,” she gritted. “My suitcase decided to jump out in front of me.”

“Is it a living organism, or some sort of artificial intelligence?”

“Of course not,” she snapped. Keeping a hand on the bed, she limped around to the open side and tugged back the coverings. When she slipped onto the bed, she lay on her side at the very edge, wrapping the bedding tightly around her body.

Frowning, Rendash peeled back the blankets on his side of the bed and climbed on. The bed creaked and groaned beneath his weight. He froze, worried it would collapse beneath him. Slowly, he eased into a more comfortable position —relativelymore comfortable, anyway, as whatever supports were inside the bed poked at him regardless of how he lay.

Perhaps the accommodations in the cell had beensuperior to these.

He eased onto his side, facing her, and inhaled deeply. There was an odd, musty smell to the bedding. It was made bearable only by Zoey’s scent, which had strengthened after her shower. It lured him a little closer.

“You already have three-fourths of the bed. Stick to your side,” she grumbled.

Rendash stilled again but couldn’t help smiling to himself.

He lay for a long while, staring at her through the darkness, watching her little movements as she battled both for her own comfort and to maintain her precarious position at the edge of the bed. Eventually, her breathing slowed and deepened, and her body eased. He waited until he was certain she was asleep before he gently drew her away from the edge.

I am merely ensuring she doesn’t fall off while she sleeps, he told himself,fulfilling my word to keep her safe.

But he couldn’t deny the truth; that thinking was only a poor attempt to justify succumbing to an urge he could neither understand nor resist.

Zoey stirred, sighed, and settled again. He smirked. She possessed the spirit of a warrior, but she slept like the dead.

Rendash wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close. Her soft body molded against his, and her warmth seeped into him, triggering a surge of heat in his blood. He bit the inside of his lip against his body’s reaction, against the rush of arousal and desire.

Instinct.

The urge to mate, theneed, roared through him. He’d never experienced it with such intensity before.

He shifted his hips away from Zoey so his hardening cock wouldn’t prod her.

There was something about this human that triggered instincts far deeper and more powerful than those instilled in him during his training.

Aligarii women were powerful, as strong and capable as any male. They didn’t need protection. But something about Zoey awoke Rendash’s protective nature in a way he’d never experienced, in a way he’d subconsciously latched onto and could not easily dismiss.

Rendash held Zoey a little tighter, pressed his face into her hair, and closed his eyes.

He breathed in her fragrance. Its blend of familiarity and exoticism settled him; it reminded him of the home he’d left behind and inspired hazy mental images of the home he might one day have.

Chapter Seven

A high-pitched ringing woke Zoey with a jolt. Her body jerked as arms —Ren’sarms — were yanked from beneath her. She opened her eyes to a flash of morning light, which was promptly snuffed out as the blankets were tossed over her head.

Zoey wrestled the covers and flung them aside to find a very naked Rendash prowling the room. The ringing continued.

“There is an alarm sounding,” Rendash said. “We must leave immediately.”

Trying hard not to look at Rendash — okay, so shetotallypeeked, and boy did he have huge morning wood! — Zoey swung her legs over the side of the bed and stood up.

The ancient digital clock on the nightstand read 8:23.

---