Arak paced. What was taking so long? He eyed the door. The urge to barge in and demand answers rose with an insistent beat. They wouldn’t appreciate his presence, but he needed reassurance Caitlyn would be okay.
His delicate little human had put on a good front, but he’d recognized she was in pain from the way she walked. She should have told him she was a virgin. He would have tried to be gentle. He might not have succeeded, but he would have tried. Desire had obliterated his restraint. She’d felt so fucking good, so perfect, he’d lost control, failed to comprehend the significance of her extraordinary tightness.
Self-loathing had prompted him to lash out even though it was his fault.
He should let her meet some nice human male, but he couldn’t. She belonged to him, now, and nobody would take her from him. If she didn’t agree, then he would step up his campaign to convince her because letting her go was not an option. Perhaps if he hadn’t tasted the nectar of her desire, felt her body clench and convulse around his cock, and heard her cries of rapture, it might have been possible. Now it wasn’t. Even knowing he’d hurt her, he still had to have her. All of her.
He would have to take extreme care with her tight little ass. He intended to claim every part of her, so every cell of her being knew him. Once her body was convinced, maybe her mind would be also. He knew she had reservations about being with a K. He twisted his mouth. Sooner, rather than later, they needed to clear the air about her transceiver and camera.
He’d never thought he’d want a charl, but in a flash, she had changed his mind.
What was happening in the exam room? Enough was enough. He charged toward the room, but the door dissolved, and they emerged.
“How is she?” he asked Ellet, but scrutinized Caitlyn. Her face pink with embarrassment, she clutched a small box to her chest, but she moved much easier than she had before.
“Fine,” Ellet replied in a calm tone. “She experienced some minor abrasions, tearing and bruising, but it’s been reversed, and I’ve given her something to use in the future so you won’t need to summon me—not that I mind. Feel free to call whenever you need anything.”
“Thank you,” he said, his eyes on Caitlyn.
“If there’s nothing else, I’ll go back to Lenkarda,” Ellet said.
“You just arrived from there?” Caitlyn asked.
Ellet nodded.
“Isn’t Lenkarda in Costa Rica?”
“That’s right.”
“How did you get here so fast?”
He and Ellet exchanged a chuckle. “Our modes of transportation are much faster than yours,” he explained.
The doctor left. Arak tucked Caitlyn’s hair behind her ears then cupped her neck. “I owe you an apology. I should not have taken my worry out on you. I’m responsible for what happened.”
“I’m fine,” she said. “And I was fine before, but all the little aches are gone now.”
Her aches had been more than little. He started to unbutton her blouse.
She grabbed his wrist. “What are you doing?”
“I need to see for myself that you’re okay.”
“Trust me. I’m fine.” Her cheeks bloomed with color.
“We’re not leaving this room until I check.” He paused, and, taking a guess at her reluctance, added, “I’ve already seen you naked.”
“In the heat of passion. It wasn’t like some cold examination.”
“Does this feel cold to you?” He grabbed her hand and brought it to his erection. “This is what you do to me. I don’t think I could ever fuck you enough for the passion to dissipate for longer than a few moments.”
Her blush deepened, and she yanked her hand away. He stifled a smile of amusement. Humans were so peculiar. They placed all sorts of arbitrary restrictions and protocols around their sexuality: when they could do it, how they could do it, with whom they could do it. Some had to get permission from their religious authorities first. Behind closed doors, they fucked like rabbits, but, in public, pretended they didn’t.
Before she protested further, he dispensed with the fastenings of her blouse, spread the lapels wide, and unclipped her front-closure bra. He shoved it out of the way. Her skin was smooth and unmarred; the abrasion from his raspy scruff had vanished. Nipple color had muted from an irritated red to a dusky pink.
Gaze averted, face rosy, she asked, “Are you going to check me down there, too?”
“You mean your pussy?” he asked and was rewarded with a deeper blush. Her embarrassment mimicked her coloring in the throes of orgasm. She’d really be embarrassed if he told her that. He cupped the undersides of her breasts, and thrummed her nipples. They beaded to stiffness. “I will if you think I should,” he teased.
“No!”
Laughing, he bent his head and captured a hard tip in his mouth. He flicked his tongue and sucked. Easy on her, torture for him. His cock ached with the need to take her again. But he could wait until tonight. He treated the other nipple to a lingering kiss then refastened her clothing. He stepped away. “Go home now. I’ll pick you up at seven o’clock for dinner.”
She huffed. “Are you telling me we’re going out on a date?”
“Isn’t that what humans do?”
She snorted and planted her hands on her hips. “The custom is to ask a woman—not dictate.”
His lips twitched. “Would you go out with me this evening?”
“Well, since you asked so nicely…yes, I will.”
He grabbed her and kissed the smirk off her face. When he released her, her breathing came in little gasps.
* * * *
Arak strode up to the apartment complex. Tiny balconies overlooked the busy street, more than a few of them with missing awnings. The overall building appeared dirty, dingy, and in need of paint. He didn’t like the rundown appearance or how men loitered at the front entrance. He scowled at them as he entered, and they slunk away. He added living conditions to the list of required changes.
He bounded up to the third floor. The building didn’t even have an elevator—not that it would have worked, judging from the state of general disrepair. He tightened his lips and charged on.
He was somewhat relieved to see two sturdy dead bolts and a peephole in her door. Locks wouldn’t stop a Krinar, but Ks weren’t a threat to her, and she wouldn’t be living here much longer. He rang the bell—it didn’t work—and then knocked.
She opened the door, and the breath left his lungs in a whoosh. She might be fragile, but her attributes were generous, and the slinky fabric of her short lavender dress hugged every delectable curve. The color gave her skin a glow—although he suspected Ellet’s impromptu medical treatment may have enhanced it also. The neckline teased him with a peek of cleavage. Strappy high-heeled sandals in a matching color added several inches to her height, but her head still didn’t top his shoulder.
Makeup highlighted her pretty eyes, but the glossy lipstick was a complete waste—it wouldn’t last long.
“You look beautiful,” he said.
She smiled. “Thank you. Come in?” She stepped back. “I have to grab my purse, and maybe a wrap. Where are we going?”
“It’s a surprise,” he said, and glanced around her living room. Human furnishings were uncomfortable, built for one-size-fits-all, which they never did, but Caitlyn had done her best to make her dwelling homey and attractive. An ottoman fronted a small sofa upholstered in a pretty floral pattern. Too small and flowery for him—but it suited her. White distressed tables, none of them matching yet still complementing each other, were positioned within easy reach. A good-sized television—humans did love their programs—sat atop a cabinet with built-in storage space. Her tablet sat on a desk in the corner.
She snagged a shawl from the sofa arm and dropped her phone into a tiny beaded bag. “Okay, I’m ready.”
“Before we go, I have something for you.” He withdrew a velvet box from his jacket pocket and handed it to her. “A replacement for your lost necklace and earring. I do regret your losing a family treasure.” Would she confess?
Her face did, but her words did not. She blushed and said, “You didn’t have to do this.” Ducking her head, she opened the box. “Oh my god. Arak!” She lifted her head. “It’s gorgeous, but you shouldn’t have. Is it from Krina?”
“More or less.” With a rearrangement of atoms, he’d fashioned the pendant and earring set to look like jewelry from Krina, the “stone” a periwinkle that brought out the blue of her eyes. A delicate metal wrapped around the stone in an intricate design and then formed a chain. The earrings matched. “You only lost one earring, but two came with the set,” he said.
And just in case he needed to locate her, the pendant’s stone came with a tracking device.
She unclasped the pearl-drop necklace she wore and held out his pendant. “Will you put it on me?” She lifted her hair and turned around.
Arak kissed the slope of her neck. Beneath his lips, her pulse throbbed, and he couldn’t resist a small lick. Tonight, he would bite her, taste her. Forcing back his urges, he fastened the necklace.
“Thank you.” She let her hair drop, removed her earrings, donned his, and checked her reflection in a mirror. “The set is beautiful, and I love it, but you really shouldn’t have.” She ran back and kissed him.
Arak deepened the contact, sliding his tongue into her mouth and staking his claim. When he let her go, there wasn’t a trace of lip gloss left. Before the evening ended, he would imprint himself on her so she would understand who she belonged to.
“I-I’ll uh, set these here for now.” She deposited her old jewelry on one of her little tables then flashed a cheeky grin. “I can leave these here because my furniture won’t eat them.”
“The bench and pool deck at the K Technologies building doesn’t eat jewelry, either—only electronic devices,” he said quietly. “Is there something you want to tell me?”
Caitlyn paled, and her pupils constricted.
He stalked toward her, and she retreated until the back of her knees bumped against her sofa. She had nothing to fear from him. She desired him, he’d been able to seduce her, and her emotions had softened toward him, but she still regarded the Ks as alien invaders. Because she didn’t entirely trust him yet, he couldn’t bring her into his full confidence. That would come, step-by-step, with time. In the meantime, keeping her off-balance suited his purposes.
She sank onto the sofa.
He settled next to her and stretched his arm over the back. He toyed with a strand of her hair, winding it around his finger. “The pendant didn’t belong to your grandmother, did it?”
She twisted her hands in her lap. “No.”
“What was it?”
“A-a video camera.”
“And the earring?”
“A…transceiver.”
Because she’d told the truth, he decided to help her out. “For Viral News?”
“You know?” Her expression was so comical, he had to stifle a bark of laughter.
“And Mike Jacobsen is your producer who spoke to you on the other end of the transceiver?”
“How?” She gaped then shook her head. “Krinar technology, I suppose.”
“Our information retrieval methods are far more advanced than any human technology. Once I suspected what was going on, ferreting out the details proved simple.” He tilted his head. “I could hear your producer speaking to you.”
She groaned. “So, you knew from the beginning.”
Arak nodded.
“Did you destroy the pendant and earpiece on purpose?”
“Yes.”
Her nostrils flared, but then she sighed.
“I can’t allow recording devices in K Tech. I’ll show you what I can show you, and afterward, if you wish, we can sit down and I’ll do an open, on-camera interview.”
“You’d do that?”
“For you, I would.” He looked at her. “Did you tell your producer what happened?”
She grimaced and nodded. “I had two calls and three text messages from him after you threw me in the swimming pool and the transceiver died.”
That had been a fun moment. Arak grinned.
“It’s not funny. I have to report in at VN tomorrow. Mike will ream me a new one.”
His blood went hot. “If he so much as touches you—”
She grabbed his forearm. “Figure of speech. He’s never laid a finger on me. That would be assault. We humans frown on that.”
“He’d better not.” Arak fumed.
Her cheeks dimpled. “But it’s nice that you care.”
“I more than care,” he said. He hauled her onto his lap and ravished her mouth. She moaned and opened to him, her body going pliant in submission. His lust surged, a primitive, demanding force. He broke away and lifted his head. “The supplies Ellet gave you—did you put any of it in your purse?”
She blushed and nodded.
“Good. You’re going to need it tonight.” He laid claim to her mouth again, and while he kissed her, he found her tightening nipple and plucked and pinched it to greater hardness. Her sweet whimper of desire shot straight to his groin. Her dress had ridden up, and he capitalized on the opportunity to run his hand along her thigh.
“Arak…” She gave a token protest.
“Let me.” He pushed aside the scrap of lace covering her sex and dragged a finger through her slick cleft to penetrate her channel. She was just as tight as she had been earlier, squeezing his digit as he pumped inside her. Starting this before dinner had been a bad idea. He withdrew and focused on the pearl of her clitoris, stroking it in a rhythmic manner. She panted, her mouth parting, and her eyes squeezed shut. He brought her to orgasm quickly, watching her face the entire time.
She definitely blushed when she came.
She was beautiful.
And all his.