He stared at the grass. “No. Not until I met you.” The corner of his mouth curled. “Against all odds, you somehow pried me open.”
My heart lifted. I was right—hewasopening himself to me.
“Oh, I’m so glad! Do you feel better now?”
“Yeah, I do.” Jaeyoung blushed, then glanced down with a cough. “Don’t tell the other humans about my little episode, okay? I’m supposed to be the cool one who has his shit together.”
“I will not,” I promised, happy to hold his secret.
He smiled. “Thanks for bringing my stuff, by the way. I can’t believe I left my precious research tools behind. And the onesie we made together.”
To my surprise, he didn’t reach for the onesie. I assumed he would want to clothe himself right away and hide his cock. Even after the cultural misunderstanding and his emotional confession, it was still hard. I couldn’t help but notice it straining against his belly. It was so cute and small. My tentacles itched to curl around it, working it until he cried out in pleasure...
Jaeyoung was quiet, his brows slightly furrowed. By now I recognized that look on his face as being deep in thought. I waited for him to speak.
“I should put that on,” he suggested, but his words were slow and hesitant, like he didn’t believe them.
“You do not have to,” I said.
“If walking around with an erection is a signal to every Maeleon in the village that I want sex, I’d like to avoid that.”
And yet, he still didn’t reach for the onesie.
I regarded him closely. His cheeks were flushed, his dark eyes glossy. His body leaned in my direction. He looked like he craved something but wouldn’t admit it.
“Jaeyoung,” I said. “If I am your so-called ‘therapist,’ then please tell me your true feelings.”
He chuckled. “Well, you’re not supposed to dothiswith your therapist.”
“Do what?”
He swallowed, the slope of his throat bobbing. “I...” He paused to bite his lip. “God, this is difficult. How does anyone do it?”
I held his gaze. I already knew he felt safe with me—I only had to give him patience and the space to finish his sentence.
Finally, Jaeyoung blew out a sharp breath and blurted out, “I want you to touch me.”
7 /Jaeyoung
There.I did it. I confessed my true desires.
Now what?
The next few seconds went by in slow motion. As my heart rate ramped to eleven, I watched Linn’ar’s feelers float into the air like released balloons—an unmistakable display of excitement. His magenta eyes gleamed, his pupils shrinking to pinpricks, and at that moment, he looked truly alien.
I swallowed hard. It felt like my racing heart was trapped, thumping against the confines of my throat.
My symptoms mirrored ones of fear, but I wasn’t scared. I was eager.
Way more eager than I thought I’d be for a huge, muscular alien to touch me.
Linn’ar wasn’t just any alien. He was... a friend. I trusted him. I couldn’t have asked this of anyone else. Only him.
But, as I reminded myself, there was no deeper meaning behind it. This was just an exploration of my base carnal desires. Humans used each other for sex all the time, and apparently, so did Maeleons. Sex and romance weren’t necessarily intertwined.
The burning heat in my face and the jittery nerves in my chest when Linn’ar leaned closer, casting a shadow over me—they were simply physiological responses. My body anticipated sex, so my temperature rose and my pulse sped up. That was it.
Fed up with my spiraling thoughts, I put down a firm mental block. No more thinking about emotions. I’d done enough of that for one day. I just wanted to enjoy the ride.
