It was something she wanted to remedy.When she’d first arrived on the spaceship, she’d told herself that she would learn about him, befriend him.Of course, it had been for purely strategic purposes—to convince him to take her home instead of wherever he was taking her, for example—and in the back of Cara’s mind, shestillthought that it would be smart to befriend him.But now, the reasons to get to know him were for far more personal, more selfish reasons.
Because Cara thought that she was a tiny bit obsessed with the hulking alien, who turned his eyes onto her the moment she stepped onto the bridge.Who looked at her like he wanted to devour her, despite that he…well, despite that he kind of alreadyhad.
Cara grew warm just thinking about what happened in the training room earlier and a purring trill from Devix reminded her that he could smell her arousal.
Clearing her throat, she tucked a strand of her freshly washed hair behind her ear, a nervous habit she recognized but hadn’t done in years.Devix didn’t pause in whatever he was doing at the controls, but his attention was fully on her.With a last swipe of a sharp claw, dragged in a circular motion on a black pad, Devix ceased his actions, tilting his head at her.
“Did you memorize that, female?” he asked in his gruff, roughened tone.
Cara wanted to laugh, feeling some of the tension ease from her shoulders.She hadn’t known what to expect, seeing him again after what had happened in the training room.She’d felt at ease and comfortable when they’d parted, but Cara had fallen into a very, very deep sleep after she bathed.And everything always looked different in the light of day, so to speak.
“I’d need to see it one more time,” she told him softly, turning with the intention to settle into her chair.But Devix stopped her, his palm coming to grip her hip.
Immediately, she felt that touch everywhere.Their attraction was an intense thing, something she’d never felt before.And she’d noticed the change in Devix just that morning.He seemed less tense, less…broody, for lack of a better word.And he’d been touching her freely, as if he couldn’t keep his hands off her for very long.
Cara would be lying if she said she wasn’t flattered…or that she didn’t enjoy the physical contact.It had been a long time since someone had touched her with gentleness, with kindness, or just touched her because they wanted to.In all fairness, after Cara’s father died, she’d closed herself off from a lot of people, taking a lover every now and again but never letting them get too close.It had started to wear her down, the constant loneliness.
But she didn’t feel lonely right then.Not when Devix was looking at her, trying to gauge her reaction to his touch.
Her response?Cara stepped forward and sank down into his lap, maneuvering her legs around him until she straddled his hips.Devix’s palms came around to grip her ass, holding her there, his chest rumbling in apparent approval.
“Sometimes I think that all of this is so strange,” she murmured softly, looping her arms around his neck, eyeing his horns, which now were only slightly raised off his skull, instead of straight.“But other times, it seems perfectly normal.”
“What is ‘it’?” he grunted, eyes dark enough that they reflected the stars behind her, their light coming in through the large pane of glass.
She lifted a shoulder.“That you exist,” she tried to explain.“That there’s a whole universe of beings and creatures and places like colonies and planets that each have their own specific languages and customs and people.”
Devix frowned, his voice softened, “It is not so strange.”
“Did you always know that all this existed?That there were other species and planets that had the ability to travel through space?”
Another frown.“Tev.Of course.”
“Humans don’t know,” Cara said, sighing.“We didn’t know that all this was…real.”
“Then Earth is a T7 classification,” Devix murmured, his voice growing dark.“Vrax, the Krevorags never learn.”
“What do you mean?”
“The Uranian Federation has very strict policies about contacting species that have not developed intergalactic travel technology yet,” Devix explained, something like realization infusing in his tone.“It is forbidden.Yet the Krevorags disregarded direct law again.They think that the Jetutians will protect them.No doubt that is who gave them the Luxirian crystals to begin with.Vrax!”
Cara’s head spun with all the information he was telling her.“The Krevorags are the lizard aliens?The ones that run the Pit?”
The ones that had abducted her…caged her…
“Tev,” he murmured, inching his head, making a visible effort to calm down.But his horns had straightened slightly and he took one hand off her ass to run over the pointed peak.
“And these Jetutians…they are aligned with the Krevorags in some way?”
Devix blew out a breath, “Tev.”
“And…” Cara paused before saying, “Your people gave the Jetutians crystals, which can reach Earth?”
“‘Give’ implies a willingness,” he said, a scowl etching into his features.
Cara frowned.“They stole them from your people?”
Devix’s palm returned to her backside, pressing her more closely into him as if afraid she’d leave.“The Jetutians and my species have an ugly history.A very long, very bloody history.”
