Page 16 of Alien Devil's Wrath
“Careful,” he growled against my ear.
I turned my head slightly, near enough to see the tension in his jaw, the way his pupils had dilated in the darkness. My usual words tangled on my tongue. “Always am. Just testing the structural integrity.”
The air crackled between us. To move felt like it would shatter the fragile tension, and neither of us was willing to be the one to break it.
I pulled out a small light when we finally reached the bottom, its beam revealing walls of smooth stone that curved away into the distance. The surface gleamed with moisture, and strange formations jutted from the ceiling like fossilized teeth.
“Welcome to my shortcut,” I announced, though my voice came out breathier than intended.
Zarek dropped down beside me, his landing silent despite his size. In the light’s glow, his face looked tense, but there was something else there too. Something that made me want to reach out again, test if his skin still ran warmer than human normal.
“You realize,” he said quietly, stepping nearer until I had to tilt my head back to meet his stare, “that if you’re wrong about the timing, we’re both going to die down here.”
I smiled up at him, though for once the expression felt less calculated and more genuine. “But think how memorable it would be if I’m right.”
His fangs extended slightly, and I found myself staring at them, wondering what they’d feel like against my skin. The thought should have been academic. Instead, it made warmth gather low in my core—a primal response that bypassed my analytical mind entirely.
The darkness pressed around us, warm and intimate, full of sleeping monsters and uncharted territory I was only beginning to explore.
ZAREK
The tunnel opened into something that belonged in fever dreams.
Fungal growths clung to the ceiling in vast colonies, their pale blue glow casting everything in otherworldly light. The formations stretched across the cavern roof like a second sky, pulsing gently as they fed on whatever nutrients seeped through the stone. Spores drifted through the air in slow spirals, each particle catching the phosphorescent light as it fell.
“Don’t breathe too deeply,” Bronwen warned, but her voice carried wonder rather than fear. “The spores are paralytic. Small doses won’t kill you, but enough concentration will drop you where you stand.”
She moved through the drifting particles like she was dancing, her path weaving between the heaviest concentrations. Every step was calculated, every turn deliberate. I followed, hyperaware of every breath, every movement she made.
This was her domain. She wasn’t just surviving in this place. She was thriving, making it look effortless. The way she navigated dangers I couldn’t even see reminded me why she drew me to her so completely.
Competent. Lethal. And in her element.
A tremor ran through the stone beneath our feet. Then another, stronger this time.
“Rock Borers,” Bronwen said, tilting her head to listen. “They tunnel through the walls, looking for mineral deposits. Usually, they stay deeper in the system, but when they swarm...”
She was already moving as she spoke, scanning the ceiling, reading patterns I couldn’t see. “We need cover. Now.”
The cavern shook violently. Chunks of fungal matter broke free from the ceiling, and a cascade of glowing spores erupted into the air like a toxic snowstorm.
Bronwen moved without hesitation. Her small hands grabbed my gear straps, hauling me against the cavern wall before I could react. She pressed her back against my chest, facing the toxic cloud, using her own body as my shield.
“Don’t move,” she breathed. “Don’t even think about moving.”
My hands found her waist instinctively, holding her steady against me. She was soft where I was hard, and having her pressed against me like this sent need racing through my blood despite the mortal danger surrounding us.
The spores drifted past us in streams of blue-white light, beautiful and lethal. One wrong breath and we’d both be paralyzed, easy prey for whatever scavengers lived in these depths.
But all I could focus on was the woman in my arms. The way she fit against me, the trust she showed by making herself my shield. My fangs extended despite the danger, claiming urges triggered by the primitive need to protect what was mine.
She was risking her life to keep me safe, and my body responded by wanting to mark her, claim her, make sure the entire universe knew she belonged to me.
“Almost clear,” she whispered, watching the spore patterns like she was reading a display.
My thumb traced the curve of her ribs through her shirt, and her breathing changed. The small shift made my cock twitch, made worse by the way she leaned into my touch instead of pulling away.
The spores settled finally, their glow dimming as they lost their airborne luminescence. But neither of us moved immediately. The moment stretched, charged and silent.
