I hold my breath. Orien’s eyes ignite. His long hair has been smoothed and brushed away from his handsome face, which is still streaked with tears. His hands begin to tremble, and his shoulders tense.

Is he going to attack me? He takes a step forward, then another. His pace becomes faster as he approaches me. Then, before I can blink his hands are on my waist. He lifts me up.

I let out a gasp as my back hits the wall. His mouth finds mine

“Orien,” I try to speak, but he’s drowning me in slow, deep kisses. He slides his tongue into my mouth, and his hands squeeze my ass. He groans. I can feel his cock stiffen against me. Every kiss warms my body, and a heated tingle surges through me.

“I need you,” he growls.

He sucks on my tongue when it enters his mouth. Every movement is frantic and furious, like a famished man eating for the first time in years.

I need him, too. My body and heart are aching for him. The whole trip home, I’ve been fighting with myself over him. I know I should be on Earth, but I love Orien. Every ounce of me burns to be with him, and I can’t imagine us being apart.

He backs away from the wall and throws me on top of the bed. His hands shake as he undoes his belt. My pussy is smoldering with desire. He rips away his pants, as well as his shirt. Still, I am completely mesmerized by his body. He grabs his hardened shaft and strokes himself several times. His tilts his head from left to right.

“I’ll try not to destroy the bed this time.” He grabs my hips, then flips me over onto my stomach, lifting my ass high into the air. I tremble at the vulnerable state he has me in. I am completely at his mercy.

His fingers push the shirt I am wearing away from my ass and find my glistening, wet slit. Two fingers slide in, and I moan, falling face-first into the mattress. He keeps my ass upright, though, and my breathing increases, as do the number of fingers he pushes into me. I buck under the power of his touch.

Then he bends down, and I feel his tongue run along my pussy, to my ass. I shudder at the erotic sensation. My whole body is in need, now, and I savor every flick of his tongue. I moan in complaint when he pulls away.

I want more, and he knows it. He stands up and runs a hand down my back to my ass. Then he rubs his dick along my clit, sending spirals of pleasure to my center. I gyrate my hips to increase the sensation and sigh with the building of arousal.

“I can’t wait any longer,” he says. His stiff cock presses past my pussy lips, and his full piece thrusts into me.

I gasp at the sensation of sudden fullness. It shakes my being like an earthquake. His hands find either side of my hips, and push them away, only to yank them back onto him, demanding entry. The thrusting exhilarates my body and drives me wild. He thrusts every inch of himself deep into me, and I feel myself stretching to hold him.

The only pain I feel is the ache for more. I match my movements to his to create a tantalizing dance, which pushes me deeper and deeper into the sea of lust. How could I have ever denied myself this pleasure?

I groan and sigh as he continues his relentless fucking, driving himself deeper into me. His hand slides down and finds my throbbing clit. He matches his touching to the rhythm of his force.

The intensity of pleasure causes my whole body to collapse. I suck in air as his weight falls onto me. I squirm and moan as he continues to fuck. His face buries itself into my neck. He is completely dominating me, taking me.

My walls come down all at once, and the intense orgasm propels its way through me, sending shocks of delight with each pulse. I can’t help but scream out.

His hands reach out and grip the edge of the bed tightly.

“Fuck,” he growls. I see the veins in his arms bulge, and his tattoos start to shimmer. His breathing is intense and ragged. He pulls out of me slowly, then rams himself in. He is trying to slow himself down, but the sudden shift of motion and speed causes a spiral of pleasure to take control of me, and I cum again, bucking and shifting underneath him as the power of release consumes me once more.

All his muscles flex, and he fills me. The pulses of his ejaculation match with mine, and he groans as his hips wildly drive into me. Our bodies swell with satisfaction.

No one’s ever made me feel this, and no one but Orien ever will.

And when it's all over, he rolls onto the bed beside me. Our bodies glisten with sweat and the traces of love. We don’t speak for a moment, but the release of tension between us creeps up on me, and a trickle of tears find their way into the corners of my eyes.

I roll to my side to try and avoid Orien, but he senses my emotion.

His arm scoops around me. “Why are you crying?” he whispers.

I don’t respond. Instead, I bury myself into his chest. His body is warm and comforting. We lay like that for a moment. Then I sit up abruptly. “So, we arrived?”

“Yeah.”

I fumble with the oversized shirt I’m wearing to cover up my body. I don’t know what to say or do. “Guess I should get going, then.”

“Guess you should.”

But I don’t move an inch.

“Do you need help with anything?” His eyes bore into my soul.

I wipe my eyes and clear my throat. “No.” I’m trying not to cry again.

“Okay.”

But then the tears start to swell in my eyes. I blink hard.

Orien watches me with a perplexed look. His hand holds my cheek. “Hey—hey. I don’t like to see you cry.”

My lip trembles in response. I feel torn between two worlds. I know I belong on Earth, but I know I love Orien. I could never bear going back to a normal life and being with Josh.

My lip begins to tremble, and I hide my face in my hands.

He continues speaking. “I know it's been a wild ride. I mean, not too many people can say they’ve been to a whole new system, fought a bunch of monsters, and escaped from the ruler of a whole planet? It’s a lot.”

“Yeah.” My voice is nothing more than a whisper.

“It’ll be okay.” He sits up and presses his forehead against mine.

I close my eyes. His arms wrap securely around my curvy frame, and he pulls me back into him. “I love you, Emily.”

I begin to melt into his words. I make my decision then and there. I pull away. I need to look at him when I say this. “I can’t,” I mutter.

“Can’t what?”

“You—I can’t.”

“I know.”

“No.” I grow suddenly flustered and start to chew on my fingernails. My anxiety rises through the roof, and my heart rate has skyrocketed. I could be about to make the biggest mistake of my life, but I have to trust myself. More teardrops trickle down my face, and he catches them with his fingertips.

“What?”

“I can’t leave you.” The words struggle to come out. My mouth twists from a frown to a smile, and I start to full-on cry. There’s no pretending, no acting—but everything in me is telling me to yes, and. “I want to, but I just can’t. God, why did you have to be such an asshole?” I’m laughing now. “You make me crazy, but I just—I just can’t imagine my life without you in it.”

Orien starts laughing as well. His arms tighten around me. “You make me crazy, too, but I fucking love it! I love every second of being with you. I never want it to end. You are my everything.”

I stop crying and shake my head. “I know that I’m scared.”

“Me too.”

“But Orien, I know that I love you.”

I kiss him, and his hand falls on the back of my neck and pulls me in for a long deep kiss. My mouth trembles.

“Oh, I love you. I love you so much,” he murmurs between our kisses. “Marry me.”

I rip away from him. What did he just say to me? I’m in complete shock. “What?”

“I said, ‘marry me.’”

“That’s what I thought you said.”

“Be my wife.”

I laugh. This is too much, but my heart is racing, and I feel the happiest I’ve ever felt.

He watches me with amusement and eagerness in his eyes. Never once in my life did I think I would marry an alien. But I know I want no one else. “How does that work? Like do we get married wherever?” My mind is in a thousand places. I’ve finally gotten back to Earth, but now, I want to leave it.

“Well, we could do it here on Earth or—”

“Is everything okay?” Mor’s massive blue head peaks around the corner of the hallway. A look of confusion is plastered across his face. He ducks his head out of view, seeing that Orien is still completely naked. “Sorry to interrupt!”

“Mor, we’re getting married!” Orien shouts.

“Well, that’s good—rather unexpected. I’m a bit confused, but overall delighted.”

“I feel the same way.” I giggle.

“This means we are going back to Baroma for the crowning ceremony.”

“Mor, come on. Don’t talk about that,” Orien breaks in.

I tilt my head. “No secrets!” I poke his chest. “Not if I’m staying with you.”

“You might want to tell her,” Mor shouts. “I’ll leave you two alone now.”

“Ignore him,” Orien mutters.

“What?”

He sighs and rolls over. His eyes flicker with golden light.

“Do you remember how I said my past is complicated?”

I nod.

“Well, that’s because I’m the ex-Prince of Baroma, and my father is dying—”

“Wait. What?” Now I am really confused.

“My dad—the ruler of the Centaurus System—is dying, and—it’s complicated. I could return—I mean, we can return and perhaps rule. Me as an emperor, and you as my queen, but it’s whatever you want.”

“This is a lot,” I whisper, taking everything in. One minute, we were saying goodbye, the next, fucking; now engaged, then he drops this bomb.

“I know.”

“So, you’re like, really important?” I press my fingers against my temple. Everything starts to make a bit more sense.

“Yes. Like I said, there’s a lot to explain, but we have a lifetime together. And I’ll tell you everything you want to know. No secrets. We can do whatever you want.”

“I mean—I don’t really know where to start. Should we go to Baroma? I would love to see it.”

“Yeah,” he says with a smile. “See if Baroma is everything it's cracked up to be? But first, let’s make you my wife.”

“Yes. That’s what I want. I love you, Orien.”

“And I love you.” He holds me in his arms, wrapped tightly to keep me safe.

“Being with you is home. It’s all I need.”

“Well then, Emily of New York, dweller of the planet Earth, will you please take Orien Elvdon of the House Xaenor’s hand in marriage and soar through the cosmos with him? He would like nothing more.”

“Yes,” I whisper.

His golden eyes flicker in response, and his whole face lights up. All my fears seem to melt away as I look into his eyes.

I know that no matter what the universe throws at us, together we can handle anything.