Page 51 of Tempting Cargo
The more I thought about it, the more I wanted a do-over, my failing sitting heavy in my gut. It was her first time, for fuck’s sake.She deserved better.
Was she okay?
Zerena and her friend were happy, thank goodness, but the commonhouse had taken bloody ages.
Fenn and the women lingered at a clothing stall, and I drifted away, nearly bumping into a pair of kri’ith males in crisp, dark uniforms. Though they glowered at me, my attention was already on the shops and stalls ahead.
All the signs were in a mix of languages, none of which my translator helped me to read. The shop front with bright blue lights and whited-out panels didn’t need any translation, though.
I ducked inside, and, yeah, this was definitely a sex shop. I didn’t know where to start. Lewd pictures of all manner of species decorated the packets of mindboggling varieties of toys and other items.
“How can I help you?” The owner of the voice was a good foot taller than me—thanks to his oddly proportioned legs—and all four of his bright yellow arms were spread wide in a welcoming gesture.
In for a penny… “Hi, do you sell anything to help, uh, interspecies relationships?”
“I do. And you have come to the right place, my friend!” His long tail writhed with enthusiasm as he spoke, and I caught a glimpse of fangs in his broad mouth. “May I enquire as to what species you are? We get many, many people through Aurora Five, but I have never seen the likes of you before. How delightfully exciting.”
I fought back a grin. “Human.”
“Hyoo-mann.” He rolled the word around malleable lips. “Wonderful. Fascinating! It is a delight to meet you. My name is Sokoosa, and I am gylaorli; you don’t see many of us around, either. How fortuitous! I do so love meeting new friends. What is your name?”
Despite his solicitous enthusiasm, Sokoosa seemed genuine, as if meeting me was the most exciting thing in the world. It was evident in the glint and sharpness of his pink eyes and the deep timbre of his voice. Were he human, I’d have been suspicious, but out here in the galaxy, I couldn’t make assumptions. “Garrison.”
“A pleasure to meet you,Yarrisan,” he said, pronouncing my name the best he could. “And may I ask what species your paramour is? No, wait. Let me guess.”
The effusive alien exuded so much joy, it would have been rude not to go along with it. “Sure, have a guess.”
“Hmm. Nebaru? They could be similar to you, somewhat.” He tapped elongated fingers across his cheek. “Hmm, no, if you’re very similar to them, there would be no compatibility issues. Not that I know what human bodies are like…?” He looked at me expectantly, pink-haired eyebrows raised, and a giant smile spread across his face.
“Not nebaru.”
“J’tzavi?”
“Huh?”
All his limbs stilled for a moment. “Why don’t you give me a clue?”
Did I play, or did I get back to Shohari? We could be here all night at this rate. “Starts with kri, ends in ith.”
He skewered me with the kind of stare you got from a disappointed teacher.Yeah,yeah,I could have done better, but I didn’t even try. “That is too obvious a clue, my new friend. But never mind, there is a lifetime to learn the art of riddles.” The gylaorli steepled the fingers of both pairs of hands and began to walk around me in a slow circle. “Kri’ith. A female, then, I assume? Yes, unique challenges can be had with kri’ith anatomy, though once you get round it, it’s a world of pleasure. It would help if I knew what you are working with to be able to advise.” He stared at my crotch.
Thank fuck I didn’t get easily embarrassed, I guess. “Yeah, she’s female. Fairly standard dick and balls?” I glanced around at the toys, pointing out a reasonably comparable dildo with no additional features.
“Ah, there is no such thing as fairly standard, my friend.” One hot pink eyebrow rose in a perfect arch. “This is a bit big for a kri’ith. But in shape, yes, I understand.” His voice turned overly sympathetic. “Did you get locked?”
I chuckled. “How did you guess?”
“It’s the usual thing with kri’ith women. Beautifully evolved to ensure the male makes her come but somewhat challenging for others. But I have just the thing.” He wandered round the twisting aisles and came back with two packets, effervescent in his excitement.
“This is the BewilderCurl. Simply place it over your testicles, and her curl will grab onto this, meaning you don’t get trapped. Though we do recommend you always make your woman come, and we have many, many female pleasure toys to help with that.”
My grimace was all too obvious. “I’m fine in that department. I was just caught at a disadvantage.” And I couldn’t wait to get my mouth around her delicious-looking clit as soon as we got back to the ship. Not that that would help when I was inside her.
“Well, should you wish something to emulate a male kri’ith, we also have the Nodulator.” With a flourish, he held out a cock sleeve with a bumpy texture on one side and an extra bit that baffled me.
“How much?”
Sokoosa named a price more than half my entire credits, and I winced. I should not be blowing money meant for setting me up with a home or job or just a hint of stability. And definitely not on sex toys. And especially not on very specific sex toys for a woman I likely only had two more days with—even if Muzati had confirmed I couldn’t get her pregnant, which only added to my lack of reservations.
