Page 6 of Taming the Alien Outlaw
“Mak, sit. Stay.” My captor rises to his feet and points at the wolf, who doesn’t move, other than to plop onto its butt.
I blink and glance back and forth between the Bohnari—who won’t meet my eyes—and the animal. The confusion remains strong. Until the fog slowly clears. I swipe at the still damp tear streaks.
“Is that yourpet?”
“Mak wouldn’t consider herself so. More like…companion.”
“Are you fucking kidding me? I thought you were being attacked. Mauled.Killed. And you didn’t tell me this was just some goddamngameyou and yourpetwere playing?” I stomp toward Janik and jab my finger into his chest. “I thought you were dead or dying and youletme think that. You let me think I was going to die! Either by being stranded out here or thinking that wolf was going to eat me next.”
Every word is punctuated with another hard jab to Janik’s chest, forcing him to step back and away from me. But I keep advancing and stabbing my fingertip against his chest harder each time, taking every ounce of my anger out on him. Tears of rage fall. I’ve never been so mad at another person in my life. Not even Craig, who deserved it.
“What kind of cruel asshole does that? Oh, yeah, the same kind who will sabotage machinery to kill another person. God, I hate you so much right now.”
I stab once more into Janik’s chest and he grabs my hand, holding it tightly against him and caressing the back of my fingers with his thumb.
“Olivia, look at me.”
His face is blurry through my tears.
“I’m sorry. Mak and I always play this game when I return to the rainforest and have since she was a pup. I didn’t think about how it would look to you. It was not an honorable thing to do, and I’m truly sorry. Will you forgive me?” There is no mistaking the remorse in his tone.
All the adrenaline leaves my body at once, and I sag with the weight of it. Janik pulls me against his chest and wraps his arms around me as I sob from the crash. He gently strokes my hairand back. By the time I’ve finished crying, his shirt is soaked. Not that I care. He deserves it, the bastard.
It’s been a long time since anyone has held me—comforted me—like this. While I might hate that it’s Janik doing it, I don’t move. The jerk smells so good. Like cinnamon and vanilla. He’s also warm, and within the shade of the rainforest, the damp air is cool against my skin. I shiver, and I’m not sure it has anything to do with the temperature.
There’s a hard nudge to my side. I glance over and nearly shriek at the sight of the alien wolf standing so close and staring at me with its—her—dark eyes, but I swallow the sound down. Carefully, I draw away from Janik in case this…pet is not only protective of him, but also gets jealous.
“Here. Give her this, and you’ll have a new friend.” In his hand is a type of fruit I’ve seen in the market in Preska.
“She’ll probably take my fingers off with it. No, thank you.”
The bastard laughs. “Mak is as gentle as a binji.”
I snort. “I have no idea what that even is, so sorry if I don’t believe you. I saw the way she attacked and put you on your ass. Didn’t you also say she’s protective of you?”
“The attack—as you put it—is all part of our game. She also sees you have no ill intentions toward me.” He shrugs in a far too human gesture and moves as if he’s going to put the treat back in his pocket. “If you’re too afraid, though…”
“No ill intentions? I guess she can’t read my mind then, because I plan on making every day of your life absolutely miserable.” I practically snarl and yank the fruit from his grasp. “Give me the damn thing.”
Janik smirks, but nothing more. Carefully, I hold out the food barely clasped in the very tips of my fingers. The ones I’d like to keep. We didn’t have pets in the bottom tier. Mangy strays roamed the streets scavenging for anything to eat, but they didn’t belong to anyone. Bottomers couldn’t afford them.
Mak sits, but leans forward and sniffs the treat. I try not to yank my hand back, but it trembles. To my surprise, she does, in fact, gently take it from me before chewing until it’s gone. With her wet nose, she nudges my hand, seeking more.
I laugh at the tickling sensation it causes. “Sorry, that’s all I’ve got for you.”
“Don’t be greedy, Mak.” Janik scolds her, but he ruffles the fur on top of her head with a smile.
That smile snaps me back to reality. I’m a prisoner, and I still don’t like him. “Maybe she learned about being greedy from you.”
My remark wipes the smirk off his face. For a second, I’m almost sorry for what I said, but then I remember Konek. I may not have known him, but the guy in front of me is responsible for his death.
“It’s getting dark. Let’s go before a predator crosses our path, and there won’t be any kind of game played.” Janik gestures for me to proceed, but in a completely different direction I’d been going. At least I think it is.
As much as it pains me to admit, he’s right. Dusk had already been approaching when I left Quinn’s mating ceremony to get her gift. My heart lurches. If what Janik said is true and Lorik was merely hurt, then he had to have made it back to the palaceby now. Which means at least Horek knows I’ve gone missing. Most likely Alik, too.
I start walking. “You’re going to regret taking me, once the commander and prince find out I’m gone.”
“Who’s to say I don’t already?”
