The air was still a bit stale, but since he’d left the door open since yesterday, it was acceptable as they were only staying one night. There was even an old pair of boots next to the desk in case Commander Chaos’s teeth got itchy. The pup found them and started chewing immediately.
Ranek carefully lowered Maya onto the bed, which was probably the only bed large enough in the station for them both. It would be so much easier to sleep next to her on it than on two cots pushed together.
“I will bring clean blankets from the infirmary and our clothes. I will return soon.”
“Thanks.” Maya stretched out on the bed, making him want to climb in with her.
By the time Ranek returned with all their belongings wrapped up in a fresh blanket, Maya was already softly snoring.
He moved quietly, spreading the blanket over her soft, curvy form, and then climbed into the bed next to her.
***
Ranek blinked away the remnants of sleep, stretching against the warmth pressed along his body. Maya’s limbs curled around him, her breath brushing his chest slowly and steadily.
Memories of last night filled his head. He’d reveled at the way their bodies had pressed together, her voice rising in soft,breathless sounds, and the way she’d moved beneath him, surrendering to his every touch. Both his heart and cock swelled at the memory.
Mate. Mine!
There it was again, the insistent voice in his head that claimed she belonged to him. His mate. But no matter how loudly his brain proclaimed it and how much he’d enjoy it if it were, it could not be true. Channa had been his mate, even if he’d barely known her. Even if they’d only shared sex twice and never had that connection that he and Maya had last night.
Back in the prison, near the end of his coerced stay, he’d convinced himself that Channa really hadn’t been his mate and that his true mate was still out there. It was delusional, but that delusion had fed him and kept him going. He still sometimes believed it when he’d had too much to drink.
But a partnership of convenience was not delusional and completely possible.
It was for the best that Maya was not his mate anyway. The males of his line had horrid luck with mates. Apparently, many had even called it a curse after what happened with him and Channa. Not a single male from his father’s side had experienced a successful mating for generations until Ranek’s brother, Vasek. Some found their mates only to lose them tragically to illness or circumstance. Others were faced with unfulfilled mate bonds and went mad in the process.
When he was young, Ranek had thought himself immune to the curse. And for that arrogance, the Goddess had punished him by letting him find Channa, and then survive both being rejected by her and losing her to the cold hands of death.
And if that wasn’t enough, Ranek had, in his rage, attacked his own brother, injuring him gravely.
When they’d locked Ranek up, he’d already gone mad. The first few years had been spent mourning the life and the female he would never know. But as the days turned into nights, and winters turned into summers, he’d slowly found himself again, even if he was no longer whole. Slowly, he forgot what Channa even looked like. Forgot that feeling in his chest when he looked at her. Even the fury of realizing that she’d chosen another male instead of him had started to fade as if it had never really been there.
By the time he’d decided he needed to escape, he’d already come to the conclusion that if he’d already lost one mate, then he could not lose another, since one could only have one mate. That realization had freed him from the prison of his own mind.
He could have a good life after all. Not with his mate, but with a partner of convenience. Which was fine by him. He had such a bad experience the first time around that he wasn't interested in a mate anymore. A partnership of convenience was just fine by him.
Could the female in his arms be the one? He remembered the disappointment on her face when he had told her that she could never be his mate. He understood that for many Tallean females, that would be a deal-breaker. Maya lived on Reka 5, and she had clearly picked up that belief as well. Would she be happy with a simple partnership of convenience? Or would she always be trying to find a better male, one who would call her his mate?
Somehow, he had thought that this dilemma wouldn't present itself when dealing with a human female; how wrong he had been!
Maya stirred in his arms, her arms tightening around him. His body responded to her without hesitation, drawn to her scent and the soft weight of her against him. Every cell urged him to pull her closer, to keep her tucked under him where nothing could reach her.
But a faint noise cut through his lust. That sound had dragged him from sleep, though he had forgotten it the moment he felt Maya against him. His muscles tightened as awareness sharpened. Commander Chaos was sound asleep next to a barely recognizable boot, his breathing slow and rhythmic. He wasn’t the source of the sound.
Someone, or something, was inside the station with them.
He focused, trying to discern if the sounds were made by a wild animal or by people. Those footsteps were too regular and sounded like they were trying to be stealthy. That didn’t bode well.
His senses locked onto the hallway beyond the door, every instinct ready to defend the female in his arms. No threat would get past him, not while she rested against him, trusting him with her safety. His protectiveness surprised him.
Maya woke in his arms, making a loud, dramatic yawn.
Shit! He quickly threw a hand over her mouth. “We are not alone. There’s someone in the station with us.”
Maya’s body stiffened, and she nodded in understanding. Quietly, they got up and started to put on their clothing.
But as he pulled on his pants, a shrill, “Yip, yip, yip,” rang out by the door. Commander Chaos was up, and he wasn’t happy about their intruders.
