Hera stared straight ahead, too cowardly to look at Damon. She couldn’t deny the growing attraction she had for him, but he was in love with someone else–a queen, at that. He said he saw something in her that she didn’t see in herself. Was he telling the truth? Or was he just saying that, so she’d kiss him and eventually sleep with him? As far as she could tell, mates didn’t need to love each other. It was more procreate rather than love. Not a life she’d have chosen.

Damon groaned. She stole a sideways glance, then frowned.

Sweat poured down Damon’s grim face, and he gritted his teeth. His color had turned ashen, then he huddled over the bed, as if he was in excruciating pain.

“Damon, are you all right?”

He released a low moan.

“Do you want me to get Tryker?” She scanned the room, hunting for an intercom, or debating whether she’d have to run and get the good doctor.

Damon shook his head, then covered his ears. His whole body trembled violently, as if he was about to go into convulsions. Hera took pity on him and reached to comfort him.

But when he let out a loud shriek, she jerked her hand back and jumped off the bed. “Oh, God, Damon!”’ She put her shaking hand on her chest, her heart banging against her sweaty palm.

“The voice…it’s telling me…to kill. Don’t want…to.” He panted.

He released a low growl. She backed way, afraid any minute he’d shape-shift into his terrifying dragon and hunt down the captain. Last time on Earth, when he’d changed, he was in control.

But she wasn’t on Earth.

And he wasn’t in control.

Taog’s life hung in the balance.

He looked at her with pleading eyes. Her fear lessened. Even if he was in love with another woman, he needed her. Swallowing her fear, she put her hands on his cheeks and kissed him hard on the lips.

He slowly lowered his arms and was panting hard. “I thought…you didn’t want to…kiss me.”

“Shut up and let me help you.”

She inhaled his warm breath and pressed her mouth over his. It was a tentative, light effort, hampered by his pain and her reluctance, but then something pulsed inside her–something she couldn’t fathom brewing in her chest. More images floated in her mind of her past–unfamiliar faces, strange books, and the mountains, always the Rocky Mountains. She needed answers and became more insistent. He relaxed and stopped shaking.

She looked into his taut face. “Is the pain lessening?”

“Yeah, it is, but I fear it will come at full first. You don’t have to do this.”

“I know. But there’s something I need to tell you.”

He gently bit her lip. “Tell me.”

“I have no memory.”

He jerked back. “What?”

“I’ve lost my memory. I woke up in a park three months ago. Anything before that, I can’t remember, no matter how much I try. But when I kiss or touch you, it’s like a fog is slowly lifting.”

He smiled. “Then let’s make some memories.”

She pushed him gently back onto the bed. His heart beat fierce beneath her hands, and he was breathing so hard she thought he was going to pass out. She carefully straddled her legs over his hips and wrapped her arms around his stiff neck.

He watched her with hooded eyes but kept his mouth set tight and his arms pressed to his side. He had to be fighting the voice.

She tilted her head, captured his lips, and was more insistent. He obliged by parting his lips and allowing her tongue to slip inside. She sought the silky heat of his mouth, hoping to push back any misery and replace it with sweet pleasure. It seemed to be working. He wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her close to him. She tried to ignore her tingling breasts, which were crushed against his broad chest. She could feel his growing erection and couldn’t help but wonder whether his anatomy was like a human’s.

But that didn’t matter. Whether her memories returned or not, she refused to let him suffer. She forced his lips apart and thrust her tongue deeper, determined to silence the hated voice driving him mad. It was his tongue doing the seeking and thrusting, his lips suckling and molding and persuading hers wider, wider, until she could scarcely catch a breath.

She curled both her fists around his neck as he kissed her desperately, probing his tongue deeper and deeper. He was roving and seeking, urging…no, expecting she’d do the same. He slipped his hands into her hair, raking his fingers through it. He rolled her onto the bed, his large frame pinning her.

A woman’s face flashed in her mind. She had dark brown hair, but the shape of her eyes were the same as hers. Hells Bells, she knew her! It was her sister-Pandora.

But then as suddenly as it appeared, the image vanished.

She broke off the kiss. “Damon,” she panted. “I remember. I have sister.”

He captured her lips again and kissed her soundly. “So, you have a sister,” he murmured. “Where is she?”

His kiss turned more aggressive. The intensity was too much. She was afraid he was going to take her against her will, but he hadn’t made a move to rip off her clothes. More haunting images and strange sensations swelled inside her as if he’d opened the flood gates. Pleasure and fear battled within her, and she trembled.

She turned her head and gasped. “Please, stop.”

He nibbled on her neck. “Sweet Hera, you’re killing me.”

She froze, not sure what he would do. She tried to pull away, but he wouldn’t stop. The same swirling energy that had been present with her on the bridge emerged inside her. Tingles swept over her, then suddenly, something wet sprinkled onto them.

“What the hell?”

They looked up, and the yellow flowered plant was floating over their heads, dropping water onto them. Then as if by magic, it descended back onto the table by itself.

Hera couldn’t stop trembling. Had she’d done that? What was happening to her? Maybe it wasn’t her. “Did you do that?”

“No.” He studied her. “Was it you?”

“I don’t possess any powers,” she said, but she was beginning to believe she might be wrong.

“Maybe the thing inside you did this.”

He shook his head. “No. It would have smashed our skulls with it.”

Not wanting to think about it, she touched his cheek. “How’s the pain?”

He lay his forehead on hers. “Better. I can’t hear the voice, but it’s not gone. It’s waiting for me to become weaker.”

“So it can possess you again?”

“It wants this ship. But to get it, the captain needs to be dead.”

She frowned. “Why?”

“Our captains are different than yours. Taog’s thoughts are imprinted into the computer banks, and the ship truly will only answer to him. It makes it extremely difficult for anyone to take over the ship. If he were to be killed, then a new captain would emerge.”

“The thing wants you to kill Taog, so you can be captain?”

“Yes.”

She lifted an eyebrow. “Somehow I don’t think it’s that easy.”

“No, it’s not. The Fates choose the captain.”

“The Fates?”

“They are the first-born dragons that possess a power greater than any Zalarian. They are the ones who decide our mates-and our captains.”

“Where are they?”

“They’re not on the planet, if that’s what you mean. They appear in our sacred temple in the castle and only come in great need.”

“Why couldn’t they protect your women?”

“They will not interfere.”

“How frustrating.”

He rolled off her and lay next to her. “Tell me about it.”

Pulses of desire still pumped through Hera, and perspiration doused her sensitive skin. They both lay side-by-side, breathing hard. Hera’s heart pumped madly, but she wasn’t ready to go to the next step.

She wanted to continue to kiss Damon, but she couldn’t get the queen out of her mind. She needed a distraction.

“What happens if you kill the captain and try to take the ship? What will happen?”

“The ship would fight me.”

“Doesn’t that thing inside you know that?”

“It knows my thoughts, so yes.”

“Then why is it on this loser plan?”

He sighed. He picked up her hand and kissed her knuckles. “Don’t worry about it.”

Her hand tingled where he had lightly kissed her. She sat up and looked down at him. “Damon, I need to know.”

“Why?”

“Because maybe I can help you.”

“There’s nothing you can do.”

“Ah, I think kissing you has been quite effective.”

He smirked. “For now. I doubt the thing will be put at rest with that kiss.”

“You didn’t like it?”

“You know I did.”

“But you’d rather be kissing the queen?”

His eyes twinkled, and she immediately regretted saying it.

“There’s that jealousy streak.”

“Damon, no woman wants to be second-fiddle. It sticks a craw in my pride.”

“You’re not used to this, are you?”

At Murphy’s, men had wanted her, but she’d always been the tease–the one to have them wrapped around her little finger. She avoided his gaze. “No, I’m not. I have to admit that I don’t like being the consolation prize.”

He laughed. “I gathered that. You want to be the blue ribbon?”

“Of course.” She flashed him a haughty look. “Would you want to be second-best?”

He sighed and clenched his fists, then put them on his thick thighs. “Every time I see Cosima with the king, I know I was second-best. That’s how I know I wasn’t good enough.”

“So, does the queen know how you feel about her?”

His face darkened. “She knows.”

She struggled to sit up. “And?”

“She told me to move on with my life. Greum was her mate–the love of her life–and she said she’d never leave him. She broke my heart that day.”

“I’m sorry, Damon. She must be a very special woman.”

“She is, but she’s not my mate.” He pushed her hair back over her shoulder. “You are,” he said softly.

His warm caress had sent chills over her, and her lips were still tender from where he kissed her. Not wanting to give into temptation again, she stood, straightening her shirt. “From where I come from, mates don’t pine after other people.”

He lowered his head. “I know.”

She crossed her arms over her chest. “How are you feeling now?”

“Better.” He raised his head and smiled–a smile that would have most women creaming their pants.

“Then let’s go tell the others.” Not that she wanted to do this. They’d all know she and Damon had been exchanging body fluids, which Tryker had so elegantly stated. But sooner or later, they’d be knocking on Damon’s door with their knickers in a knot, asking for progress.

“You’re right.” He slowly got up. He clasped her chin, caressing her skin with his rough thumb.

Tingles tiptoed down her nerves, and she shivered. She was almost tempted to kiss him again but braced herself. Kissing would only lead to heartache.

He stared at her with half-hooded eyes. “For what it’s worth, thank you.”

His husky voice was breaking down her resolve. She was as nervous as a long-tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs. Her jittery heart threatened to turn and run, but she was frozen, unable to move.

He leaned over and brushed his lips over hers. “Let’s go.”

Prickling tickles brewed inside her as if something was being unleashed. No other man had ever her stirred her like Damon, but then again, he wasn’t a man. He was an alien–a Zalarian.

He clasped her hand, and she numbly followed him out of the room. Surprisingly, he was trembling, and she wasn’t sure whether it was from fear or pain, but she was too much of a yellow-bellied coward to ask.

* * *

Too soon, the doors slid open to the bridge. Taog swiveled around in his chair, his face grim. He looked between them. “Well?”

Damon released her hand and stood straighter. “I’m ready, Captain.”

Padean turned away from his monitor. “Damon, even infected, those creatures could swarm all over you. We don’t know what will happen if another one stings you. It could possibly kill you.”

Hera sucked in her breath. “I thought you said he was right for the mission because he was infected and they wouldn’t attack him again.”

He avoided looking her. “Sensors are showing that the creatures are attacking Zalarians already infected.”

Hera didn’t like his foreboding tone.

“And?”

“They are becoming more violent, killing each other.”

Hera grabbed Damon’s arm. “Then you can’t go.”

Taog got out of his chair. “The only way we can learn to how to defeat these things is by examining one. My people and yours depend on us finding a way to destroy it.”

All she could think about was how terrifying his dragon had been on Earth, but a violent one? She thought of every movie where dragons had ripped humans apart or burned them to a crisp or smashed towns to smithereens. She glared. “But what if it makes him more violent?”

Taog put his hands gently on her shoulders. “But Damon has one thing they don’t have.”

“What?”

He tilted his head toward Damon. “His mate.”

She jerked her shoulders free. “But I haven’t done anything, Captain.”

Damon ran his hand down her arm. “Yes, you have. The voice is at bay–for now.”

A jolt of desire shot through her, making her skin hot and her feet shift uneasily.

He stopped his sweet caress. “I’m stronger–for now.”

Hera touched his arm and could feel how tense he was. “But you don’t know for how long. Good lord, you’re going to go down there and try to capture one of these evil things. What’s going happen if those monsters try to jerk a knot in your tail.”

“I’m the only who can do this. I know it. They know it. And you know it.”

She opened her mouth to bicker, but any rational argument sizzled like a rain drop on a hot skillet.

“Let’s do this,” Damon said.

Hera met his determined gaze. He was brave, willing to sacrifice himself to save his people. She’d never met anyone like him. Or at least she didn’t think so. Her long-term memory was as good as last year’s lost Easter egg.

She didn’t care who was watching or what they thought. She slipped her arms around his stiff neck and pulled him down. She molded her body against his, feeling his heart pumping as fast as hers. The minute their lips touched, shivers shot straight down to her toes. Her tongue parted his lips, inviting him into the warmth and wetness of her mouth, and he groaned.

He wrapped his arms around her, crushing her to him. His tongue traced delicate patterns in and around her mouth, and she responded, willing him to stay alive, to chase away the darkness threatening to overtake him. She shamelessly moved her hand up to his neck, her fingers clawing at his thick hair. Their kiss turned desperate, hot, and passionate. Time was forgotten between them, and the only thing that mattered was each other.

Damon was the one who pulled away from her, panting. “I have to go.” His eyes were filled with regret.

She clung to him, reluctant to release him. “Come back to me.”

“I will.” He carefully clasped her wrists and moved them down, her fingers slowly untangling from his hair.

“But what if you’re wrong?”

“I’m not.”

Taog put his hand on Damon’s shoulder. “It’s time to go. Tryker has prepared a titanium box to put the creature inside. It should keep it from attacking anyone on board the ship.”

Hera grabbed his hand and squeezed it tight. “Maybe I should go with you. In case–”

He seized her shoulders and shook her. “No! Under no circumstances are you to go to that planet. Promise me, you won’t go there.”

She thought her teeth were going to fall out of her hand. “Stop!”

“Promise me!”

“All right. I promise. Stop hurting me.”

He immediately released her. “Sorry, but I don’t want you to go through what I’m going through. You wouldn’t survive.”

Suddenly, the box flew out of Tryker’s hands and slammed into the wall, then fell on to the floor with a loud crash.

Taog frowned. “What the hell are you doing, Tryker?”

Tryker looked at his hands. “It wasn’t me, Captain. Something ripped it out of my hands.”

“Obviously, the thing inside Damon must have done it.”

But Damon and Hera looked at each other. He touched her lips, then leaned close to her ear so only she could hear. “See, there’s more to you than meets the eye.”

She watched him walk away, stunned. Great horny toads, what was happening to her?