Zhim carried Ryan out onto the balcony. The warm, desert breeze brushed over their sweat-slicked skin. He felt good. Really good.

For him, sex was always fast, hot, and over. Before a woman had even left his bed, the feelings always started to fade, and he was eager to get back to his work.

But the complex feelings mixing in him now, heavily dominated by pleasure, weren’t fading.

No, instead, he wanted more.

He tightened his hold on Ryan. He liked the warmth of her small body against him.

As he approached the small plunge pool at the end of the balcony, the pool lights clicked on. Ryan gasped.

“Oh, the pool goes right over the edge of the building!”

“That’s right.” When Zhim had first purchased the penthouse, he’d wanted the best.

“My God, it’s gorgeous. Is it safe?”

“Yes. It’s very well engineered.” He set her on her feet and she instantly shot away from him, wading into the water. He watched the water lap up her legs and then the smooth curves of her ass. His cock tightened.

“This is so great, Zhim.”

She ducked down under the surface, then came up with water streaming off her hair and slim body. She was beautiful.

Zhim felt everything in him go still. He’d always attached a value to things. Always needed to know, to have, to collect. He’d come from nothing, and he would never, ever go back.

But looking at Ryan, he didn’t feel that ever-present drive to know and have. Instead, just watching her was enough.

She ducked back into the water, swimming over to the clear edge of the pool that extended off the building. Not many people who lived on Carthago could swim, and her movements were mesmerizing. She looked like some elegant water alien from an ocean planet.

Need exploded. He had to have her.

Zhim waded into the water.

Ryan turned with a wide smile on her lips and her dark hair slicked back. When she saw his face, she froze.

“You’re mine.” His words were a guttural promise.

Her gaze lit. “You’ll have to catch me first.” She ducked under the water and darted away.

Zhim lunged after her. She sliced through the water quickly and elegantly. Slim limbs brushed his hands and kicked away. But he had a longer reach, and as she darted to the side, he grabbed her. He brought her back to his chest, and she laughed. It was a gorgeous sound. He knew she hadn’t had much to laugh about lately.

He pulled her head back and kissed her.

“Zhim.” A husky murmur before she opened her mouth and kissed him back.

He walked through the pool until the tiles beneath his feet gave way to clear glass.

“Look down,” he murmured.

“God.” Her fingers tightened on his forearms. “It’s like walking on air.”

Far below them, transports whizzed through the sky, and the brilliant lights of the district sparkled and blinked, all slightly distorted by the water. He reached the clear edge of the pool and nudged her forward, until she was pressed against it. Her hands curled over the side, her gaze on the city beyond.

Zhim ran his hand over her ass, cupping the fleshy globes, kneading them. His cock was throbbing hard again.

She pushed back against him, and he slid a hand between her legs, stroking. He couldn’t wait any longer. He nudged her legs apart and moved forward, his cock sliding along the crack of her ass, then lower. With a single, hard thrust, he lodged himself inside her.

She moaned.

“This is your new world, Ryan.” He started thrusting, moving his hands to cover hers on the pool edge. “It has so much to offer you. It’s what you make of it.”

He kept plunging inside her, feeling hot pleasure coil around the base of his spine. He knew his release wasn’t far away. He wouldn’t last long in her tight, hot body.

She was shoving back against him, giving as much as she took. That was his Ryan.

Lowering one hand, he slipped it into the water, and ran his fingers down her belly. She quivered against him, and then he delved between her thighs. He found her swollen clit and rubbed.

Her body clenched down on him and Zhim groaned. He kept thrusting, mindlessly now, and continued to work that fascinating little nub.

“Zhim!” She cried out, her back arching. Her body clenched on his cock, tight and hot.

His name on her lips. It was the greatest thing he’d ever received.

As his release hit, he roared out her name. As he jetted inside her, it occurred to Zhim that Ryan wasn’t the only one facing a new world.

He was, too—all because of one small, smart-mouthed woman from Earth.

The thought terrified him.

* * *

Ryan stared at the data on the screen, and tapped a fingernail against her teeth. The first of Carthago’s suns was due to rise soon.

And that meant it would be time to rescue Neve.

“Here.” Ryan pointed to a spot on the map. “We can get the team in here.”

Zhim leaned over her shoulder. Boy, the man smelled good. She pulled in a deep breath.

She was seriously in lust with him. After they’d christened his pool, they’d gone to his bedroom and messed up his big bed. Afterward, she’d spent a nightmare-free night curled in Zhim’s arms.

Ryan suppressed a shiver. She’d always liked sex, and appreciated an orgasm as much as the next girl, but what she’d done with Zhim…

She was on the edge of becoming addicted to her sexy, arrogant alien.

“It’ll work,” he murmured, his brow furrowed as he looked at the screen. “And we’ve already planned how to punch a hole through Gabriez’s security system.”

Ryan let her gaze trace his face. She’d seen no evidence that Zhim had relationships. No indication that he ever let anyone close.

A sour feeling moved through her stomach. One night with him had made Ryan question everything. She wasn’t sure hot sex alone was enough for her. But what did he want?

“Galen’s confirmed that Magnus is coming,” Zhim said, interrupting her musings. “He has several cyborg implants that will help immensely in the labyrinth.” He tilted his head and regarded her, his face expressionless. “You should stay here. You’ll be safe—”

Ryan pushed to her feet and thrust her hands on her hips. “Did you really think that would work?”

He shot her a frustrated look. “No, but it was worth a try.” He blew out a breath. “Besides, your skills will be vital in the labyrinth.”

Warmth bloomed inside her. “You say the sweetest things.”

“I’m not sweet.”

“Uh-huh.” She turned back to the screen, and started pulling up more data from Zhim’s storage area. She scanned the information for a moment, and then she frowned. “Zhim, what’s this?”

“What are you doing? You shouldn’t be in there!” He reached out to touch the controls.

She batted his hand away, staring at the screen. Her brain working through what it was seeing.

“You’ve only been charging Galen for a fraction of the work you do for the House of Galen. You’ve been supplying him with all kinds of data on abused and underage slaves who need saving. And the calls to Earth via the wormholes…” Her eyes widened. “Jeez, the tech you need to make the calls alone is worth a small fortune.” She looked up at him. “You’re losing money.”

He scowled. “I have plenty of money.”

“So does the House of Galen.” She shook her head. “You come across as so arrogant and…mercenary.”

“I am.”

She tapped the screen. “You’ve done work for other people, as well, for ridiculously cheap amounts. Almost for free.” She scrolled through the files. He’d helped people to track down missing kids. He’d supplied data to people in danger of losing their homes and businesses. “And there are thank-you messages in here from all the students you’ve worked with from the Kor Magna College for Information Systems.”

She looked up at him.

His body was rigid, his jaw tight. He stared over her shoulder at the wall.

“Why?” she asked.

“I came from nothing,” he bit out. “I know what it’s like to lose what little you have.” His chest moved with a ragged breath. “I know what it’s like to befriend someone, to finally not be alone, and then have them disappear two days later. Or worse, to have them stab a knife in you, so they can take your food.”

Ryan felt her heart crack open. “How did you survive?”

His gaze moved to her now, those nebula eyes hot. “I got older, wiser, and learned to trust no one. I learned to evade the predators who came to my planet looking for kids no one would notice went missing.”

A bad taste filled her mouth.

“I learned that I could only depend on myself.” He dragged in a breath. “One day, I saw a man drop a portable comp. It smashed, and since it was broken, he left it. I collected all the pieces and fiddled with it for days. I pulled it apart and put it back together. I got it working.” His face changed, the tension smoothing out. “I taught myself to use it, and then I started hacking into the public terminals. That’s where I first learned that knowledge is power. And once you know something, nobody can ever take it away from you.”

Ryan felt tears pricking her eyes. He was another survivor. She walked up to him, pressing against his chest. “Why don’t you tell Galen that you’re helping him and the others? Why hide behind the façade of the arrogant information merchant?”

“I am an arrogant information merchant. Like I said, knowledge is power, Ryan.” He lifted a hand and stroked her back. “If you give people too much, they always betray you.”

Zhim didn’t even know how to connect with people, and it was clear he was afraid to. She cupped his cheek. “I won’t betray you.” She went on her toes and pressed a kiss to his lips.

Suddenly, he nudged her back, and her butt hit the edge of the desk. As he lifted her onto the smooth surface, things fell to the floor.

“You could.” His big, hot body pressed against hers. His mouth traveled down her neck, nipping at her skin. “You terrify me most of all.”

“And that makes you angry.”

“Yes.” His teeth nipped at a tendon in her neck.

Ryan’s head fell back and she cried out. “There’s no reward without any risk, Zhim. You can’t simply hide up here in your tower.”

“I can do whatever I want.” The arrogant edge was back in his voice.

She pushed him away. She wasn’t going to let him keep hiding. She’d bust through that shell of his, no matter what she had to do. “If you’re mad at me, then maybe you should punish me.”

He stilled, and Ryan turned over, her hips pressed to the desk. She wiggled her ass at him.

A gleam entered his eyes. “Item number three on your list. Spanking.”

“We need to meet the others in an hour.” Another wiggle. “So you’d better be quick.”

His big hand palmed her ass. He lifted the edge of her borrowed shirt up, and cool air hit her skin. She hadn’t bothered with panties, since he’d destroyed hers.

“Your skin is so smooth,” he murmured.

The sharp smack of his palm on her bottom made her gasp. Her entire body quivered. The sweet pain didn’t really hurt, it enhanced the desire growing inside her.

He smacked her other cheek, and she swallowed a moan.

His hands dipped between her legs. “So wet. I think you like it, Ryan. A lot.”

He spanked her again. She anticipated each slap of his palm, whimpering. He started a pattern of two smacks, followed by fondling her, teasing her with a thick finger.

“Do you like it?” Smack.

She cried out.

“Tell me, Ryan.” Smack.

“Yes.” She pushed against his palm. She was dripping between her legs, her belly tight with need.

He spanked her a few more times, and then she heard him open his trousers. In the next moment, his long cock was filling her. He grunted as he lodged deep inside her.

“Fuck me, Zhim.”

“I am.” As he thrust inside her, she heard him murmuring her name over and over.

Ryan gave herself up to the pleasure. There were so many secrets in her sexy alien, and she wanted to learn them all.