Page 34 of Beauty and the Alien Beast
“Yes,” I barely managed. I couldn’t move much. I didn’t want to either. Instead, I just kissed him under his chin and laid my head back down.
He chuckled gently and murmured something in his own language that I couldn’t understand.
“What was that?” I mumbled sleepily.
A long silence. I was about to lift my head when I heard a faint snore.
Smiling, I closed my eyes.
22
Teken
If the firstkiss stole my reason, the first climax brought it back… for a while. My Wulfaen side had come to the fore in our joining, very nearly starting the mating ritual. It had been all I could do to keep from flipping her over onto her stomach and pummeling her hot, gripping sex with a fiery friction that would push her into a fierce orgasm just as I sank my elongated fangs deep into the muscle where her throat met her shoulder—giving her the mating bite. As it was, I’d nearly nipped her sensitive throat at least once in my dominance.
When I woke from my slumber, I felt content, as if some missing piece of me had finally been returned. Ella’s scent was all over me, and mine, as she lay in my arms, was all over her, a warning to all other males to keep their hands off the treasure that was mine alone—if they wanted to live.
The warm weight lying atop me stirred and sighed as I lifted my head and then settled back down.
I smiled.Still fast asleep.
It was nice to know I’d pleased my female, even though I had to proceed with caution so I wouldn’t hurt my fragile human. I hadn’t known for certain that I’d made the right decision to mate with her in what I assumed to be the human way until I had felt Ella’s sex shudder and contract against my lips.
I had found my mate and pleased her. I knew from the way her body had reacted. And the sounds she had made—they were so gratifying.
My sheleki.
I felt a deep swell of pride at having pleased her enough that she now slept so deeply. I might not have put a pup in her belly yet, but now I knew I could coax her into approaching the effort with real enthusiasm.
I buried my face into my mate’s neck, pulling her scent into my lungs. Her sweet fragrance tamed and calmed my Wulfaen, starting in my nostrils and winding its way through my body. Darting my tongue out, I tasted the skin along her throat, lapping reverently at her dark, soft flesh.
How I adored her, especially right now in this first quiet moment amid the mating frenzy. If anything, I was even more determined to get us back safely.
I rolled over to gently deposit her on the padded floor, got up, and walked outside, not bothering with my loincloth. Brax was watching, ears up as he peered out into the rainy darkness. I got us both some jerked meat and patted his ears as I offered him some.
Nude, I stood at the mouth of the cave, watching the water sluice past on its way into the jungle-clogged valley below. I filtered some for Brax and myself, then stepped out a little onto the ledge, letting the rainwater pour over my sweaty body. I tossed my head, sighing a little with relief as the itch went away. I only regretted that it took Ella’s scent with it.
It was now raining so hard that the hoverbikes couldn’t fly at all. I couldn’t see their lights anywhere. They had either returned to base or were huddled in some dark, miserable camp somewhere in the jungle.Good.Either way, they wouldn’t be able to see us or travel.
It was a stroke of luck. I was going to need more time with Ella. She was not yet marked, and that bothered my Gladiator and inner beast. Without Ella wearing my mating bite, another Gladiator could try to challenge my claim. Not likely—ever—but instincts were instincts.
In my current state, the sharp sting of rain on my tingling skin was enough to arouse me all over again. Soon, my thoughts would get blurry again, and the mating urge would take over.
As I held the drinking vessel for Brax, in the back of my head, I felt the briefest worry.
What if the storm lets up before I get full control of myself again? What if they catch us while I am helpless here?
I would fight like a wild beast to protect my mate while in the frenzy, but if caught mid-mating, we would both be vulnerable.
I had even tried to warn her, though our language barrier might have gotten in the way. I would have wished that she had not kissed me until we reached my pack, but I felt too good about the results to worry much.
I filled the vessel a last time and brought it to Ella. She lay there half curled on her side, head on her arms, a faint, relaxed smile on her face. My heart swelled a little to see her that way—free, at ease, and happy in mating with me.
Once we got to my sector, I would present her to the elders and have our union acknowledged. We would have our whole lives to learn each other’s ways and find joy together.
Now I just had to find a balance between my urge to consummate our bond and the need to get her to safety.But how?
In my bag, I had the suppressant spray I’d used to break her own mating frenzy, but that had been artificial. What Ella and I had was completely natural. The urges to mate would keep coming back until her scent changed and I knew my seed had taken. The suppressant wouldn’t work as well on me; it would only lengthen the time between urges.
