“Wait! What?” Vegas squirmed in Solan’s iron-tight grip. She was being a lust-led idiot letting this get to the kissing stage. Her adolescent crush had gotten the better of her.  “That’s not the point of this training. You already have a mate.”

“I choose you. I want to breed with you. Right now. You are fertile. You are clearly willing.”

She slammed her fist into his chest. “Put me down. It’s not your business if I’m fertile. And I’m not willing to do anything with you. This is a demonstration only, an exercise to show you what to expect when you do meet your mate.”

“Your racing heart and swollen lips tell a different story.” Solan slowly lowered her to the ground.

Vegas brushed her fingers across her treacherous mouth. “It’s a physical reaction. Nothing more.” She waved her hand at him. “You’re not bad looking, that’s all. There would be something wrong with me if I wasn’t responding to your touch.”

“I want you.”

The feeling was mutual. Vegas stepped back, putting some much needed distance between them. “I’m not available. You have a perfectly good mate waiting for you when I consider you ready to meet her.”

“If I tell you I will love you, will you change your mind?”

For a six-foot five alien, he was doing an excellent impression of a harmless puppy, with those big, confused eyes seeming to gaze into her soul. Vegas had also noticed the enormous bulge in his tight pants. He was as turned on as she was.

“It doesn’t work like that. I work for My Single Alien. I am not on the books. It’s not permitted.”

“It should be if you find someone you want to mate with.”

“Well, it’s not.” Those were the rules. Vegas loved her job. She wasn’t going to mess things up because she’d met the fantasy figure who lived on her screen saver.

“You can continue to do your job if it brings you satisfaction,” Solan said. “I will be busy defending the stars for the majority of our time together. I will not be a distraction.”

“That’s hardly a bonus,” Vegas said. “Most women want their men around at least some of the time.”

“I will be there for the breeding part,” Solan said. “You can guarantee that.” His hands reached for her, but she stepped out of his grasp.

“Love is more than breeding.” Vegas sighed. They’d gotten nowhere. She’d been stupid to think that showing him what affection was like would make any difference. He was nothing more than a horny alien.

“I am trying to understand your obsession with love. Your ways are confusing.”

“Then take time to learn them,” Vegas said. “You won’t make your mate happy until you do.”

“If I need to hold your hand and stroke your hair to make you happy, then that’s what I’ll do. It is not unpleasant.”

“No! It’s about you being around. Being there for your partner when she needs you.”

“I can do that. I’ll do that for you.”

“Not for me,” Vegas said. She kept her gaze fixed on the wall behind Solan. He was not an option for her. He was paired with somebody else. “You must learn to do that for your new mate.”

“Is it not enough that I provide her with pleasure when we are breeding?”

“That’s a bonus.” Sneaking another sly look at the bulge in his pants, Vegas was certain he would provide any woman with plenty of pleasure. “It’s more than what you can do with your... package. That will get boring after a while.”

His chest expanded. “I assure you, no woman has ever been bored when she’s with me.”

Pinching the bridge of her nose, Vegas closed her eyes. There he was again, the arrogant Galaxar. He wouldn’t change. His focus was on breeding and nothing more. The thought of sending him off to some female who would spend most of her time either pregnant or alone did not fill her with joy.

This pairing would help her to hit her ridiculous key performance targets but nothing else. Vegas wouldn’t be spreading happiness by joining Solan with his match. Somewhere along the way, she’d lost sight of what matchmaking was all about.

There was something else. Something about this infuriating alien that made her pause. Vegas could blame it on the hours she’d lusted over his picture before he’d arrived at the space station. There had been too many opportunities to leer over his muscles when she was alone. Now he stood in front of her, and she had his taste in her mouth. But this fantasy wasn’t going the way she’d imagined.

Most new alien clients were so desperate to sire children, they’d agree to everything. Whether it was an enormous price tag or a willingness to learn a new way of interacting with their mate, they did it. Solan wasn’t like that. He was so laser-focused on the thing he wanted.

She opened her eyes and jumped. Solan was right in front of her. Without saying a word, his lips pressed against hers again.

Vegas briefly thought about protesting, but Solan’s kiss was demanding and urgent as his tongue tangled with hers, barely giving her time to take a breath before he intensified their contact. His huge hands stroked up and down her back, sending swirls of desire to her core. The woman who got naked with this alien would be a lucky one.

Her morals became a shaky as her breath as Solan’s fingers tweaked the zip on her jumpsuit. Maybe they could fuck. It would be a one-time thing. Nobody would need to know. The irrational part of her mind battled with her logic. It would be more practise for Solan. He could sample her breasts, explore her clit with his mouth, and see what worked best. He’d need tuition in how to make a human orgasm. Yes, those were important skills to master.

Vegas’s thighs shook at the thought of a naked Solan caressing her body and giving her pleasure.

They would fuck, and she’d get him out of her system. That could work. It would have to. Then, Vegas would be rid of her fantasies about Solan. She could get on with her job and pass him on to his mate, once he’d been given a proper training session.

She’d need to be careful, though. If she was as fertile as he reckoned, she’d need to use protection. Vegas could not afford to get knocked up by this alien, no matter how hot he was. She wasn’t going to risk her job because of a one-night stand.

His fingers slid down the zipper on her jumpsuit.

“Tell me what I need to do,” he whispered in her ear before raining kisses down the side of her neck.

Vegas repressed a groan. “You seem to know exactly what you need to do.”

“Not with the lovemaking. I know how to fuck a female. I mean, what I have to do to feel love?”

“Do nothing. Feel it. Don’t let your logical mind control you.”

Solan’s kisses slowed. “To do anything else would be foolish.”

Vegas’s passion died as her irritation flared. She untangled her arms from around his neck and stepped away, her hands going to her zipper and pulling it up. “You choose not to feel love. There’s nothing I can do about that.”

The lust in Solan’s eyes disappeared. “That’s not true. It is not a priority. I am trying to change for you, but you’re being difficult. You are a prime example of why following emotions is ridiculous.”

Vegas yanked the zipper up almost to her neck. “The practical session is over.” What had she been thinking? What was between her legs had been making all the decisions over the last couple of minutes. She needed a session with a steamy e-book and the shower head set to maximum power to calm herself down. There was no way this would happen again.

This big, dumb alien was not going to trick her. She would not be his hook-up. He might pretend he wanted her as his mate, but all he could smell was the possibility of getting himself a child. He’d said it himself. When the child was born, he would take it away. Solan would throw money at the unlucky female who gave him a child and disappear from her life. He wasn’t committed to the process. This wasn’t what Vegas wanted. No woman would want this, no matter how hot the alien or how much money he offered.

“I do not understand.” The confused expression on Solan’s face suggested he was telling the truth.

“That’s not important now.” Vegas straightened her jumpsuit and turned away. “We will finish this induction another day. I can get another teacher to spend time with you. Yes, that would be better.” She sounded like she was convincing herself.

“I do not want another teacher.”

The training room door opened. Heather looked in, her gaze going from Solan to Vegas. “Is this a bad time?”

Vegas ran a hand through her hair. “This is perfect timing.”

Heather nodded. “Colonel Solan, your troop is happy with their quarters. They are eating in the dining hall if you would like to join them.”

“I appreciate you making them welcome.” Solan turned to look at Vegas as if he expected something from her.

She ignored him. “Thanks, Heather. We’re done here.”

“I’m glad to hear it. I could do with your help,” Heather said. “Boros has arrived.”

Vegas groaned. The day had just gone from dire to absolute crap.