Page 49 of Fallen from the Stars

Vasil shifted his gaze toward the sky, which had gone black. The console was the only remaining source of light, but its gentle glow did not extend beyond the invisible walls of the pod.

Was it really that simple? Just…let go, and be free? She’d said earlier that there would always be relapses — flashbacks to those moments that haunted him — but hewasstronger than those memories, just as Theo was stronger than hers.

He nodded. “They cannot control us anymore.”

Theo smiled. “Right.”

Lightning flashed through the tumultuous clouds, lighting up their surroundings and displaying, for a few fleeting instants, the intensity of the storm. The nearby vegetation thrashed wildly, and the dark sea churned. Theo jumped and turned her wide eyes skyward. She nearly pulled her hand away, but Vasil laced his fingers with hers before she could.

Thunder vibrated the pod, beginning just before the world went dark again and lingering for several moments afterward, but its sound was greatly muted from what he’d expected.

“I’ve never seen a storm before,” she said, staring at the sky. “Not like this.”

“Did it not rain on your homeworld?”

“Not nearly this much, and not very often. It was usually pretty dry where I lived. Kane, could you turn the exterior audio up a little more?”

“Of course,” Kane replied through the console speaker.

Vasil had forgotten about the computer’s presence; he wouldn’t have believed it possible for Kane to remain so quiet for so long. His mind was quickly turned away from those thoughts when the sound of wind and rain grew louder, heightening the immediacy of the storm.

His mind couldn’t quite wrap itself around the situation — he was in the middle of the storm, witnessing it, hearing it, feeling the thunder rumble, yet was somehow so far separated from its touch.

He turned his head toward Theo. She was still looking skyward, her face bathed in the soft light of the console. The next pulse of lightning made her jump again. She squeezed his fingers, body tensing for a few moments.

Dipping his gaze to her bare legs, he stroked her knee with one of his tentacles. She drew in a sharp breath and glanced down but didn’t break the contact between them. Emboldened by her acceptance, he coiled the tentacle around her calf, brushing its tip along her shin while he simultaneously brushed the top of her hand with his thumb.

The storm raged around them, but he wasn’t aware of any of it — not the lightning and thunder, not the torrential rain, not the violent ocean or rolling clouds, not the invisible walls upon which the falling water shattered. All his attention, all his awareness, was directed toward Theo — toward the taste and feel of her skin against his, toward her nearness. Toward the fragrance of her arousal, which permeated the air.

He inhaled deeply, and his body heated in response to her scent. His cock ached behind his slit, and he tensed to keep from extruding, unwilling to spoil the moment. He wanted her.Neededher. From the first time he’d seen Theo, he’d felt an undeniable pull toward her, and he knew he wouldn’t be able to resist it for much longer. She was meant to be his — Vasil’s body knew the truth of it, even if the words had not been spoken. Fate had dropped her from the sky for him to find.

All he needed to do was make her understand that, too.

Chapter 9

The storm raged, and the howling wind, roaring sea, and pounding rain were so loud and clear it was as if Theo and Vasil were standing in the middle of it, exposed. But it was the thunder and lightning that fascinated Theo as much as it frightened her, making the hairs on her arms and the back of her neck stand on end. It electrified her senses, increasing her awareness of Vasil — of his touch, especially, as he slowly, sensually stroked her skin and sent little thrills straight to her core.

With every arc of lightning that lit up the heavens, with every boom of thunder that rattled the pod, her body grew tenser with anticipation, fear, and…arousal. She stared at the sky through the blur of water hitting the pod as another forking bolt of lightning streaked across the dark clouds, but most of her attention remained on Vasil. His touch soothed her worries and heightened her desire.

She was out of her element here; every time she’d had sex in the past, it had been a passing thing, a moment of weakness, the mere scratching of an itch. There’d never really been words involved, and, despite what she’d wanted in her heart, there’d never been expectations established beyond a quick screw.

But Vasil wanted more. He wanted it all. He wantedher.

And I want him.

She wanted him here, now, at the peak of this storm. She wasn’t concerned with tomorrow, she justwanted.

She sent a thought through the neural link.Kane?

Kane released a soft sigh in her mind. “Go to sleep, right?”

Yes. Good night, Kane.

“Good night, Theodora.”

Theo slipped her right hand out of Vasil’s grasp and turned toward him, lying on her side against the seat. She briefly met his eyes before lowering her gaze to his chest. Extending her left arm, she settled her palm on his abdomen. His muscles twitched, but he didn’t pull away from her. His skin was warm and velvety, so different from her own. Slowly, she smoothed her hand down, absorbing his heat, relishing the feel of his flesh. When she reached the slight bulge at his pelvis, she paused, catching the inside of her lip with her teeth.

His breath hitched, and his tentacle tightened around her leg. Theo knew the faint tremor that ran through him had nothing to do with the rumbling thunder and wailing wind.

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