“Khiva!” Evelyn gasped, her back arching, before a silent scream tore from her throat.

Khiva growled, pistoning his hips faster between his female’s lush thighs. The sound of their mating filled their sleeping quarters, flesh slapping against flesh and the slick sound of arousal. Combined with his female’s cries, Khiva knew it was one of his favorite sounds, this symphony of pleasure and sex.

Khiva hissed when he felt his leeldra’s cunt clasp down harder, so strong and forceful that it almost pushed his cock right out. Another moment, another few pumps and Khiva couldn’t hold back any longer.

With a muted bellow, he released his teela inside her body, his orgasm blackening his vision for a brief moment, though he never stopped his thrusts.

And when he finally drifted down from his high, he slumped next to her, pulling her close, though his cock never left the tight, warm confines of her body.

It was a close second, he decided, watching her with a half-lidded gaze as the teela began to work inside her. Watching her accept his teela, accept the never-ending pleasure while it was inside her body, was a close second only to mating her. There was no better sight than watching his lover, his leeldra, in this state.

At first, her breath began to quicken as her nerve endings fired. Her nipples budded tighter and tighter, if possible, and a rose-colored flush spread across her breasts, up her neck, and settled in her cheeks.

Beautiful, he thought. Vellka. His mate was beautiful in every way and most of the time, Khiva wondered what he’d done in the demav’s eyes to deserve her.

His teela, while inside her body, kept her at the peak of orgasm, that dizzying moment when one begins to descend into pleasure, where it is most potent and powerful. Except, with his teela, she never landed from that fall. She was left, suspended in that pleasure until he took mercy on her.

And since she was no longer his client at Madame Allegria’s, since she no longer paid for his body and since he no longer had to adhere to her requests—not that she’d ever demanded anything from him—Khiva gave her mercy whenever it pleased him.

He’d learned to read his leeldra well. He knew when she could take more pleasure and when she was reaching her breaking point, though Khiva had tested her threshold time and time again. It aroused him, seeing her in this state. It had always aroused him.

So, he kissed her soft lips and gently stroked down the curves of her body, wanting and needing to touch her everywhere. It was the Keriv’i in him that needed to mark her as his, not just with his teela, but with his touch, his kiss.

Gently, he nibbled at the sensitive skin just below her earlobe, knowing that spot drove her to madness. He sucked and laved the skin there before ducking his head to kiss down her delicate collarbone, going even further until he could tongue and suckle on her nipples. They were so pink from her pleasure that they appeared almost red in the morning light filtering in through their window.

“K-Khiva,” she moaned and gasped, writhing on their bed, before her voice was stolen from her.

He made sure to be gentle, knowing that she would grow more sensitive with every passing minute. Yet, he continued slowly, patient, wanting to bring her to the brink of her pleasure threshold.

And as if sensing how erotic he found it, his little female held onto that pleasure for as long as she could.

Eventually, however, he knew when she couldn’t take anymore and he carefully retreated from her body, feeling cool air rush over his engorged cock.

With gentleness, knowing she’d be sensitive, he dipped his fingers inside her and cleaned as much of his teela from her as he could, before using a damp cloth to finish.

It took Evelyn a few moments to catch her breath after that onslaught of pleasure. Though some of his teela might linger, the peak of that pleasure faded, leaving his leeldra with flushed cheeks and glazed eyes and a relaxed body.

After another brief moment of recovery, she finally smiled over at him, pressing her lips to his, chuckling slightly when she felt his hard cock already ready for her again.

“You are insatiable,” she whispered against his lips with a wide grin.

“You are fortunate I need to be at the depot soon,” he growled. Transportation to the mines always left on time and Khiva had never been late for a departure. It was important to him to do well at his job. It was important to him to earn a steady stream of credits so that he could provide for his female.

Though she doesn’t need providing for, he thought. She had a sizable inheritance, left to her by her father, who’d been a successful merchant trader. It was only her willingness to finally use those credits that had allowed them passage off Everton, that had allowed them to pay for their dwelling and their food, clothes, necessities.

Khiva was beyond the point where he felt uncomfortable that she’d been providing for him. He knew his female well enough to know that in her mind, it didn’t matter, as long as they were together, safe, happy.

But the Keriv’i male in him loathed it, that small part of him that still remained. There was a driving need within him to provide for his mate, though he knew that Evelyn would never want him to. Not solely, at least. She had her own work at the archives that brought in credits. Now that they were settled on Dumera, his own work brought in ample credits as well.

A partnership. He’d simply needed to shift his mindset. When he realized that Evelyn loved him enough that she wanted to provide for him too, it had become easier to accept.

Still, Khiva had come from wealth on Kerivu. His line had been one of the wealthiest on his home planet because of his ancestor, the creator of firestones. And Khiva? Well, he’d been called the Prince of Firestones.

And he’d lived like one.

He wanted to give Evelyn whatever she desired. But then he’d begun to realize that his female was happiest with the simple luxuries and with a simple life. She didn’t desire jewels or the latest technological innovations or a larger home. She only wanted him and their cozy little dwelling in their jivera tree and the life they were building together.

It only made him love her more, which he didn’t think possible.

Dumera’s depot was the busiest and yet most organized section of the colony’s center. Males from all different planets, all different Quadrants, who had made Dumera their home, just as he had, raced to queue for the transport vessels that would take them to the mines.

Khiva had made it on time, but just barely, and he made a spot for himself in line, behind a Luxirian, whom he’d seen and spoken to before.

Khiva nodded at the warrior, who turned to eye him with what he knew was an amused expression. Naxava was his name. They worked in the same section of the mines.

“Your female almost made you miss the vessel,” Naxava commented, just as the line began to file inside. There were only a few males—and one Laoti female—behind him.

Khiva had never spoken about his leeldra to any of the males he encountered at the mines. “How do you know I have a female, warrior?”

Khiva had seen his female roll her eyes whenever she was exasperated about something. And Naxava made a similar expression. “Any being with even one eye can see you have a female tucked away somewhere.”

Khiva knew it probably was quite obvious and his back straightened slightly. Still, he didn’t need a Luxirian warrior sniffing around his female, so Khiva said nothing in reply.

Luxirian males had their own infamous reputation when it came to sex. Judging by the way the Laoti female was eyeing Naxava, Khiva knew that reputation stretched even to small colonies like Dumera.

“Relax,” Naxava said, no doubt sensing that the male’s curiosity had put Khiva on edge. “I mean nothing by it.”

Khiva jerked his head in a nod.

“Is she a Keriv’i?” the Luxirian asked.

“No.”

Naxava trilled in amusement and shuffled forward towards the vessel. “A Nha’ta? A Bimbarva?” He cast a glance behind Khiva. “A Laoti?”

Khiva almost wanted to laugh. He knew that the Luxirian was still poking at him, but Khiva sensed it wasn’t malicious.

“A human,” Khiva said, cocking his head to the side to study the Luxirian’s reaction. Human DNA was imbedded deep within Luxirians, after all. And while Luxirian genes were dominant, long ago humans and Luxirians had created the first known and first successful hybrid offspring.

Naxava’s huffed out a sharp laugh, drawing others’ gazes to them.

“I am proof that human females are difficult to resist,” Naxava murmured, a small smirk on the edge of his lips.

“Are you a direct hybrid?” Khiva asked, curious, his eyes studying the Luxirian male’s features with intensity, trying to discern the familiar traits of human bone structure and expression.

Naxava shook his head. “No. But long ago, there was a human female at the head of my ancestry. They are always a part of us.”

Khiva couldn’t help but wonder that if Evelyn was somehow able to bear him a child, what traits would be more dominant? The human or the Keriv’i?

It was Khiva’s turn to enter the vessel and he wound his way behind Naxava to find an open seat.

Naxava found one first and the Luxirian nodded at him. “See you down in the mines.”

Khiva nodded at him and strode past, continuing to walk down the long, seemingly endless stretch of the transport vessel.

He finally found an open seat in the second to last compartment. It took him even longer to register that the occupant in the seat next to it was a Keriv’i.

A Keriv’i he recognized.

The realization jarred him.

“Kavik?”