FIVE
VIKAN KEPT HIS gaze resolutely forward on the open, darkened horizon of Luxiria. They were facing the western lands, where the outpost he oversaw, Lopixa, jutted high over the shimmering silver sea of Lopitax.
His home.
Vaxa’an had made him Ambassador to Lopixa shortly after Nitav’s death. In hindsight, Vikan had been in no position to oversee an outpost, not in the emotional and mental state he’d been in during that time. But Vaxa’an had known it would be a much needed distraction and in many ways, Lopixa had saved Vikan. Lopixa had given him purpose.
Just behind him, however, curled up against the side of the hovercraft was his new purpose in life. And she could hardly bear to look at him.
Taylor.
She’d been silent ever since she’d told him her name and Vikan waited, just on the edge of his patience, until she was ready to speak. It was not in his nature to wait for others to act first, but he would learn for her.
It was for the best, he reasoned, considering he was still trying to process what she’d revealed to him, unknowingly or not.
She’d been dreaming of him and of their potential future.
Somehow, the Fates had shown her visions through their connection, a connection she didn’t yet know existed.
She’d known his name. When he’d come for her at the command center, silently so as not to alarm the other human females that shared the quarters with her, he’d scented her arousal and it had almost been his undoing. He knew what happened as she slept, because he’d been plagued with the same erotic dreams. But when she’d woken and his name had fallen from her lips so sweetly, he’d felt…strong. He’d felt…not empty, so opposite from what he’d felt for a long while.
Determination had fueled him in that moment. And when she’d reached for him, touching his forearm…her touch had sparked what he had always feared.
An inextinguishable need. And potent, dizzying desire.
Not only lust, but desire for the look in her eyes at that moment when she’d woken from a deep sleep. The look in her eyes had been soft, familiar, welcoming, knowing. It was one of coveted intimacy and it had been meant for him. All for him.
That look had almost brought him to his knees.
If Vikan gave up Taylor, if he let her return to Earth like any honorable male would, he now knew just how much he’d be losing. And he didn’t know if he should be relieved about that, knowing he made the right choice in exploring this, or whether he should feel shame and guilt, for betraying Nitav so easily.
It was a constant war within him, even then. Torn between old duty and new desire.
Just as they were flying over the plains of the Virax, he perceived movement behind him. A subtle shifting as the human female rose to her feet and then slowly approached him, as if he was an untamed beast.
He heard her make an odd sound in her throat and then she said, “I think…I’m ready to talk now.”
Vikan immediately turned to her, tapping on the automatic flight control blindly. The hovercraft slowed in reaction, but it allowed less wind to whip away their words.
He neared her, unable to resist the pull—and honestly, not even certain he wanted to resist—but she held out a hand, pressing her palm into his chest. Her fingers were warm, soft, and Vikan barely held back a pleased growl. She touched him easily, but then she seemed to realize she was touching him and immediately snatched her hand back.
“No,” she said, lifting her eyes. She ran that soft hand through her silky, dark hair that fell just past her slim shoulders. “You…you stay there.”
Vikan’s lips downturned, but he grunted in agreement, crossing his arms over his chest. For a moment, her eyes ran over the cords of muscle that lined his forearms, built and strengthened by rotations and rotations of warrior training and battle. Her pink lips parted as she stared and a purr kicked up in his chest, his Instinct’s automatic reaction to his mate’s blatant perusal.
Vikan stifled the purr when he remember Nitav had also liked to look at his body, had often admired it and his scars after matings.
He looked down to the floor of the hovercraft, his jaw clenching, before returning his gaze to Taylor, waiting for her to speak.
“First,” she started, “why am I here? Why did you take me away from the others?”
A complicated question, but Vikan would be honest with her. He sensed that she needed honesty. And lying to her would accomplish nothing, especially since they had such little time before Vaxa’an would pursue them. Even then, Vikan wondered if Vaxa’an had already been alerted to Taylor’s absence, if one of the other human females had woken only to find one of their own gone.
“You sense that there is an energy between us,” Vikan said, his voice a dark rasp. “You dream of us. You are drawn to me and yet you do not know why.”
He waited for her to deny it, but knew she wouldn’t. Vikan spoke the truth.
“Or perhaps you do know why,” he added, wondering how much the mated humans—Kat, Beks, and Sessela—had told the rest of the group.
Taylor didn’t shy away from his gaze, but her lips pressed together in a thin line. Vikan marveled at her courage.
He heard her swallow before she said quietly, “Even if I suspect…” she shook her head and then, blowing out a sharp breath, said, “We were supposed to leave this planet soon. What did you actually want to accomplish by taking me away?”
“You were set to leave once the twin suns rose,” Vikan told her bluntly. “Vaxa’an told me as much. I could not let you go…not without knowing.”
There was a fire that began to burn in her gaze. “Without knowing what?”
“Whether you were mine,” he growled.
Taylor’s breath hitched, but then he saw her fists clench together at her sides. “You’re out of your mind. You have to take me back. I will be on that ship leaving in the morning. I have to be.”
For the first time, a dark thought crossed Vikan’s mind and he was startled by the intense jealousy that ripped through him.
“Do you already have a male?” he grated, taking a step towards her.
His Instinct prowled in his chest, thoughts of a faceless human male flitting across his brain. His teeth gritted together at the thought of that male touching what was his.
Vikan pulled himself up short when he realized how quickly his mood had turned and tried to regain control over the primal instincts rushing through his blood.
Taylor was studying him, but he noticed she hadn’t backed away from him, even when he’d approached. She’d stood her ground and even tilted her chin up.
“Even if I did, it’s none of your concern,” she said, narrowing her eyes.
Vikan inhaled a sharp breath. So, his female had claws.
He…liked that.
“It is my concern, female,” he rasped. “Everything about you is my concern now. Do you have a male?”
“If you honestly expect me to—”
“Do you have a male?”
“No,” she snapped and relief almost made him want to sag to the floor. “This is ridiculous. Just take me back to wherever we were being kept. We’re wasting time.”
Vikan swallowed, slightly unnerved by his reaction. He’d never been a jealous male before. Even with Nitav, he wasn’t threatened by other warriors if they made their interest in her known.
So why was he so possessive of this human female, whom he had barely spoken to?
It was just his Instinct, he reasoned. His Instinct had never woken for Nitav. He’d accepted that, had loved her regardless. Fated mates were rare and he had never expected to discover his in his life span.
Yet…his fated mate was standing right in front of him, looking like she was on the verge of tearing his head clean off his shoulders.
If she weren’t so little and could reach, Vikan wouldn’t be surprised if she tried.
“Nix,” he grumbled.
Her eyes narrowed and she repeated slowly, “Nix?”
“No,” he said, in English.
“No? No, what?” she repeated, her eyebrows furrowing in what Vikan suspected was the human expression for confusion.
“I will not be taking you back. Not until…” he trailed off, not even sure what he would say.
Not until he was certain.
But certain about what?
He didn’t know.
Again, he felt…unhinged, that taut thread slowly unraveling.
But then he stilled. Because for the first time, he realized that he felt no pain. For the first time, he realized he wasn’t trying to keep the visions at bay because there were no visions. Usually, they would rise and bubble up in his chest before bursting, like intense white light, in his mind. Usually, Vikan would have to strain and fight against them until they dissipated, which only led to that pain he dulled with yikava.
For once, there was no impending pressure in his mind. His shoulders were relaxed, his muscles loosened.
His lips parted as he studied the female in front of him. A strand of her dark hair curled over her cheek with the unseen wind, but her green eyes stared back at him. It was because of her, he realized with a start. His body and mind and Instinct were at peace in her presence.
Vikan let out a purr and Taylor shifted at the sound of it, flat white teeth flashing when she began to nibble on her lip.
“I will not be taking you back,” he rasped, edging towards her. She straightened, her eyes flickering from him to around the hovercraft as if looking for a place to hide. “Not yet.”
“You have to,” she said, the tone of her voice rising higher and higher. “They’ll be leaving…” she trailed off when he stepped close enough that he could scent her and he breathed her into his lungs further, just as he would the yikava.
His eyelids fluttered closed, his mouth watering with need. Fates, she smelled like a crisp morning on the coast of the silver sea. Light and delicious and dizzying.
“Vaxa’an will not send the vessel away without you, female,” he found himself murmuring, his voice going thick as he looked down at her. He heard the way her heart began to race in her chest. “I promise you this.”
“Vikan…” she murmured and he detected nervousness. “I don’t think you should—”
She cut herself off when he brushed back that maddening strand of hair from her cheek before rubbing it between his fingertips. It was soft and thick and lush. He wondered what it would feel like dragging across his flesh, or what it would look like spread across his furs.
Vikan felt himself slipping. His eyelids went heavy, his cock thickening from its semi-hard state until it pulsed against the seam of his leg coverings powerfully. He almost groaned. He’d forgotten how heady and potent sexual arousal was.
“What did you dream of, luxiva?” he rasped down to her.
She inhaled sharply through her nose, her widened, astonished gaze meeting his and holding. Fates, she had beautiful eyes. Green with streaks of silver from the moonlight.
Under her thin tunic, he saw her nipples tighten and Vikan let out another purr, barely restraining himself from cupping her there. His female possessed soft curves that threatened to undo him.
Her eyes were slightly unfocused when she whispered, “What?”
“What did you dream of?” he repeated softly. “When I came to you this night, I smelled your arousal. Your cunt was wet and aching for your male, was it not?”
Taylor gasped and she shook her head, like she was trying to clear the fog he knew too well. But even then, Vikan’s nostrils flared because he scented her again, hints of her interest and the memory of her dream.
“N-no, we have more to…to talk about,” she said, but her voice was nothing more than a husky whisper.
Vikan brushed his roughened fingertips down her exposed arms, from the hem of the shortened sleeves of her tunic all the way to her slim wrists, where he encircled them easily. He groaned at the softness and warmth of her skin.
Taylor let out a shuddering breath at his touch, her eyelids closing for a brief moment before snapping open. She felt it too. The pull. The need. The connection. It was undeniable and almost impossible to resist.
“Tell me,” he murmured, dipping his head closer to her ear. Her scent was growing stronger, her arousal making his head swim with pleasure. “Were we mating, female? Was I taking your cunt hard and strong, or soft and slow?”
A small whimper sounded from her throat and she swayed towards him for a brief moment.
“Or, perhaps, you were taking me,” he amended, his cock throbbing at the thought.
“I—I…” she tried.
“There have been more dreams, tev?” he asked. “Many more before this night.”
He heard her swallow thickly and his body shot tight with desire when she softly rasped, “Yes,” in response to his question.
“How many?” he asked.
“I—I don’t know,” she murmured. She bit her lip, her eyes catching on her slim wrists which were ensnared in Vikan’s grasp. When her unfocused gaze returned to his, Vikan realized she looked slightly frightened. “W-what’s happening to me?”
Vikan stilled, reality piercing through the haze of lust in his mind.
Too fast, he realized. Too much. Get control.
Slowly, he managed to extricate himself from the tantalizing desire that whipped through his body, although it was no easy feat. Especially considering his fated female was within reach and the scent of her arousal was so potent he could taste it on his tongue.
An impossible feat, he realized. But he did manage enough control that he released her wrists and took a step back.
As if coming up for air, Taylor blinked and inhaled a startled breath, reaching behind her to steady herself on the edge of the hovercraft.
She stared up at him, her lips parted, drawing in harsh, ragged breaths.
In answer to her question, he rasped, “Nothing that is not happening to me as well, female.”
Suddenly, a loud trill made his head snap towards the control panel of the hovercraft, his stomach dropping with the sound.
It was the fuel gauge.
And that loud trill meant they were running dangerously low on it.