“I’ve been vanquished,” Kenji panted, his face so cold he could barely feel it any longer.
Qylar grinned. “And now, I shall take my reward. A kiss for the victor.”
The second Qylar’s cool lips hit his, Kenji moaned, his body reacting instantly. The hot, desperate need was back, aching inside again.
“Qylar…” Kenji whimpered, writhing under his mate.
Qylar’s eyes narrowed, and he searched Kenji’s face. “Are you okay?”
“I need you…”
Qylar searched for another few seconds before rising and carefully hauling Kenji over one shoulder. He made his way inside quickly, taking the stairs up two at a time. Kenji burned under all the layers, his body feeling like an oven. Qylar took him straight to the adjoining bath and stripped everything off him.
“You need a shower to warm you,” Qylar said, turning the knob.
“I’m hot,”Kenji argued.
“Your skin is like ice, Kenji,” Qylar said, concern in his eyes.
He urged Kenji under the spray, which felt better than he’d expected. Qylar stripped himself and joined him inside the shower.
Kenji lunged at his mate, the need overwhelming. Qylar collected him in his arms and pinned him against the showerwall, feasting on his mouth. His tentacles appeared, wrapping around Kenji’s wrists and ankles and positioning him just so, lifting his legs and opening him to Qylar.
One thin tip of a tentacle teased around his hole, testing the opening. Slowly Qylar filled him, the girth growing the deeper it went. Kenji’s low moan filled the bathroom as his body expanded to fit his mate’s thick impalement. Warmth radiated from his core, pleasure building.
The connection made whole, Kenji shuddered. This was where his mate belonged.
Qylar collected Kenji’s face in his hands, searching his mate’s eyes. Kenji’s pupils were blown, his eyes almost black. Worry filled him. “Baby… what’s gotten into you?”
“I need you,” Kenji whispered. “Please…”
Qylar lowered his lips to Kenji’s. His mate’s desperation seemed to grow by the day, starting right after their dip in the ocean. Kenji had mentioned experiencing the world more vividly since. Had it changed something else within him? He’d joked about something in the water, but he was beginning to think it might’ve done something to Kenji. They’d checked in with the doctors who’d oversaw all of Alex’s pregnancies, and they’d given him a clean bill of health.
Kenji was only the second hybrid to get pregnant, and they had no standard of care yet. No two pregnancies were ever the same, and all the data the doctors had compiled came from Alex’s three. That wasn’t much to go on and who knew whatcomplications could occur. Part of him wanted to take his mate back to Nefyria, but he wasn’t sure they’d be much help.
His odd reaction showed signs of a hormone rush, but that usually happened much earlier in a pregnancy and as far as Qylar knew, wasn’t accompanied by unrelenting lust. When they went back to the ship to send the messages, he’d also send one seeking help with Kenji’s recent restlessness.
Until then, he would sate Kenji’s need as best he could, taking care not to overuse his body. He slowly drove his tentacle in and out, coiling it inside to stretch the tender tissues wider. Kenji’s head fell back against the tile, his mouth open as he panted.
“That feels so good,” Kenji whispered.
Qylar rocked into his mate, carefully watching Kenji’s expressions for signs of pain. None came, thankfully.
Kenji’s skin began to turn shades of pink, dotted with small specks of blue. Qylar stopped, leaning his head back to search his mate. A few seconds later, Kenji rapidly shifted into his cephalopod form, still mounted on his cock tentacle. He tried to withdraw, but Kenji sucked him deeper. He wrapped his tentacles around Qylar’s arms and torso and moved himself up and down on the thick appendage.
“Fuck,” Qylar said, his head falling back. He’d never experienced anything like it, the forceful sucking of his most sensitive tentacle nearly sent him to his knees—if he’d had knees at that moment.
He spread his lower tentacles to the walls around them to steady himself and his hand to pull Kenji off him, worried it was too deep. Kenji refused to let go, impaling himself on the swollen appendage over and over again.
Qylar could sense Kenji’s desire for him to fully shift. At least it felt as if Kenji was calling him to do that—but there was no way he could allow that. His animal form was much too large, and he’d tear Kenji in two. All he could do was hold on and let Kenji sate himself.
It didn’t take long. Kenji’s boneless body violently spasmed around his cock. That sent Qylar over the edge, and he cried out as he came deep within Kenji. As soon as he slowly withdrew, Kenji returned to human form. Qylar quickly reached out with his tentacles to prevent him from landing hard on the tiles.
Kenji wasn’t moving, his eyes closed. Terror struck Qylar. He checked for breathing and a pulse—and finally took a shuddering breath when he found both. A couple of seconds later, Kenji’s eyes opened and he blinked a few times.
“What was that?”
“I don’t know,” Qylar said, trying to keep his tone even when he was spiraling inside. What was happening to his mate?
