“So are you.” Gia hugged me then shooed me toward the door. “Now be off with you and have a great time.”
With one last glance at Gia’s grinning face, I opened the door and joined Zikkar, feeling the magnetic pull of his presence. It was as though an invisible thread tethered us together, drawing me inexorably closer to him.
“Lead the way,” I said, boldly clasping his hand in mine.
Zikkar looked at where we were joined. A tinge of delight swirled behind my sternum, mirroring the fluttering butterflies in my stomach.
Could the Huren tech truly be mine? The question lingered, echoing with each step we took side by side, toward the edge of the dome. As we walked, the thrum of connection was undeniable and growing stronger with every passing second.
Perhaps Gia was right. Maybe Zikkar was meant to be mine, the silver scholar who had captured my heart from the first moment I set eyes on him.
Chapter Four
ZIKKAR
“You’ll need this.” I draped the fur I carried around Rowan’s slight form.
“Really?” She let the fur slip off one shoulder. “It’s gotta be seventy-five degrees out here.”
I tugged the fur higher around her, my fingertips sampling the softness of her flesh. She shivered, and the hint of something wild and alluring sweetened the air. My cock kicked in response, my sack tightened and grew heavy with seed.
The erotic scent wafting off her meant she was as affected by me as I was by her.
I swallowed hard, trying to suppress the sudden surge of desire. “Outside, the cold season approaches, while inside, the dome absorbs the rays from the twin suns, warming the air.”
“The air isn’t the only thing heating up in here,” she muttered under her breath, holding the two halves of fur together at her throat.
More of her exotic fragrance drifted my way and I bit back a moan. Her words weren’t meant for my ears, but it was impossible not to hear them.
I was a logical male by nature, but something primal stirred to life at her presence. A dark craving urged me to claim what was mine. I fought back feral instincts, but deep down, I couldn't deny the animalistic urges threatening to consume me.
With Rose, I could control my baser instincts, stay focused and maintain a level of civility.
But not with Rowan. She was unlike any other. Her very presence ignited a flame that beckoned my primal urges. I longed to brand her with my scent, my head dizzy with a fevered hunger. To scent her body's yearning for mine only heightened the urgency of my need.
I swayed on my feet, ready to toss her over my shoulder like a slavering beast would its prey and carry her to my hut for a suns-rise-long rutting that would leave us both gasping for breath.
“Are you okay, Z?”
The hand Rowan laid on my forearm might as well be a branding iron. The heat of her touch seared me to the core. Mutual attraction aside, Rowan was not ready for what just played out inside my lust-induced mind.
I gazed down at where her hand touched me. My scales flashed a riot of blues and silvers.
“Fine,” I lied, tamping down the raging beast inside.
“We’re ready, Zaku,” I pinged our Moktian ally on the comm, my voice raspy with need. “Open the gate.”
“Stand by.” The giant, purple male who had crash landed on our world with his human mate was right where I’d left him inside the control room. I had been working with him and Wynnter to realign the energy enhancers on every cellpod.
As always, my gaze flipped skyward, searching for any signs of the Yulineons Zaku was certain would return. The main gate, controlled from a room inside the palace, opened in silent welcome to the jungle beyond. With an excited grin, Rowan clutched my hand in hers, and together, we stepped through the portal and into the cool breath of the jungle.
The rich scents of moist earth and lush foliage wrapped around us, a stark reminder that we were no longer under the protection of the dome. Brunnex of Clan Jurigon and Truxxet of Clan Trisess, our stalwart escorts, stood flanking the gate like sentries of old in their silent vigilance.
“We’re through. You can close the gate.”
Zaku acknowledged and the portal whispered shut behind us.
“Oh, it is cold out here,” Rowan shivered. “What about you? Aren’t you cold?”
