Kate bit her lip, swallowing hard at his implication.“And what time do we leave for the Rav-rav…rav-rix—”
“TheRavrax’tor,” he finished for her.“We will depart just before the suns set.”She’d noticed that the days seemed longer on Luxiria, so they still had hours to go.“And later tonight,” he growled, pulling her close.He skimmed his hand down her body until he touched the place between her legs.“I will be here.So deep inside that we will be one.”
Her breath went shallow.Yes, she realized.She wanted that.With him, she was completely honest with her desires.And even if it didn’t make sense, why she would involve herself with someone she was very much in danger of falling for…dammit, shewantedhim so bad.
“I will send for our first meal,” he murmured in her ear, inhaling her scent.“And then begins thelongestspan of my life time.”
* * *
The labs were near the docking port they’d initially arrived into.As the hovercraft zoomed over the vast, expanse of Luxirian land, Kate saw that they were approaching a silver dome, much like the domed homes on the city, at the base of the mountain.
They landed in front of it and Kate got her first real look at the black sand that spread over the planet’s surface.She reached down to touch it when they disembarked the hovercraft—it was so fine that it felt like silk—but pulled her hand back quickly because of the heat.She mentally thanked Keriva for the thick sandal-like shoes she’d crafted for her.Briefly, she remembered the hot sand on the first planet she’d been on, the one that Vaxa had taken her from.She remembered the chanting crowd, the paralyzingfear.
It was such a stark difference to how she felt now: nervous, yes, but cared for andsafe.And she realized that she was grateful Vaxa had saved her that day.She trusted him to protect her.She knew he would.
For the first time, she wondered if therewasa rush to get back to her planet, but then shook her head, knowing that this was not the time to be thinking such things.
They approached the doors of the lab, tucked just underneath the dome, and Kate realized that while Luxirians seemed to enjoy the rustic aspects of their culture, with their homes made out of mountain rock and hot springs as bath tubs, theywerevery technologically advanced.Of course, she’d known this.They could travel through space.But walking through the automatic doors of the labs, she was struck by how far they’d come in comparison to Earth.
Everything was pristine.They entered a chamber and Vaxa told her to stand still as a laser swept her body.He told her it was so they wouldn’t bring any unwanted bacteria into the lab and once they were done, they stepped through.
She was greeted by a series of hallways.Vaxa immediately walked down one and as they passed panels of windows, Kate snuck glances inside each room.Most seemed empty but some were occupied.
Inside one room she saw a Luxirian man, dressed in the Luxirian version of a hazard suit, it seemed, as he experienced with brightly colored liquids.Smoke filled the room so thickly that she wondered how in the world he could even see what he was doing clearly.
“Most are researchers,” Vaxa told her, “trying to find a cure for the virus the Jetutians attacked us with.”
“Oh,” she said quietly.“And Privanax…he is a researcher or a doctor?”
“Somewhat of both.”
They approached the last door of this particular hallway.This door had no window panel so she couldn’t see inside.Vaxa slid his palm on the silver pad next to the door and after a series of high-pitched chirps and beeps, the door unbolted and he pushed it open.
An older Luxirian stood near a monitor that projected a blue-hued hologram, something straight out of a movie.When she realized what the hologram was, however, she gulped.It was a skeletal image of a human body…or something that looked very much like a human.
“Prime Leader,” the man greeted, who she assumed was Privanax.He peered at the both of them over the hologram.“I was not anticipating your arrival so early in the span.”
“I see that Kirov had the foresight to give you a language implant,” Vaxa said.
“I requested one, actually.I knew that I would be in contact with thelavrix’aneventually,” Privanax said, looking towards Kate with a scientific curiosity.“I am most pleased to see you,lavrix’an.I have been studying your race most thoroughly this past span.”
“Oh,” Kate said slowly, not sure if she should be flattered or worried.
“Very interesting biology and not very different from Luxirians,” Privanax said, turning back to his hologram.“All major organs are in almost the same places.Although your body temperature is much higher than a Luxirian.Our planet must feel very hot to you.”
“Yes,” she said.“It’s sweltering.”
She thought that perhaps she’d get used to it within the month.The evenings were nice and cool once those twin suns set, but during the day…it was like Florida in the middle of summer, only twenty degrees hotter.
“Once a blood bond is formed during theravraxiaand renewed every rotation, I believe that your body will adapt to the heat with time,” he said, as though to soothe her worries.Before she could ask about that, he moved onto another question.“Are human females fertile all spans of the rotation or just at certain times?Luxirian females have,” he frowned, “orhada half lunar cycle breeding period.”
“Um,” Kate murmured, glancing up at Vaxa, her cheeks burning.He looked just as curious, gazing down at her with heat in his eyes, and she inhaled a sharp breath.“I—well, it’s technically a week…but there is a better chance for only a day or two.”
She couldn’t believe that she was talking about human female ovulation with an alien doctor/researcher while her alien lover—almost lover?—stood by and intently listened.Talk about one of the more ‘what the fuck’ moments of her lifetime.
“One or two spans?” Privanax said, his tone rising in what Kate assumed was surprise.She saw him glance at Vaxa.“I suppose I will need to run calculations on when this time period will be once I take blood samples and observe thelavrix’an.Prime Leader, you will most likely need to take an absence from your duties to be with your female when she is in heat.Or else you may miss the opportune time to impregnate—”
“We’re not here about getting me pregnant,” Kate cut in, face flaming.She couldn’t quite meet the doctor’s eyes.“I mean, we don’t even know for sure if hecanget me pregnant.”
