In her gaze, tenderness intertwines with a paradoxical strength that doesn’t line up with her diminutive stature. This softness tugs at something uncharted within me, threading an unfamiliar warmth through my veins.
“Ravok, are you okay?” Leelee’s voice finally reaches me when the cryo-chamber lid retracts.
I sit up from where the chamber has me reclined, swinging my feet to the side and standing up. What a relief to finally feel how a warrior should once again.
I give Leelee a wide grin. “I feel much better.”
Leelee blinks at me, her face dropping slack in shock. She stares at me, her eyes wide and unblinking for a moment before she shakes her head. “Wait a minute, you can understand me now?” she blurts out, her eyes lighting up with excitement.
“The cryo-chamber… It didn’t just heal my injuries,” I elaborate, tapping a spot behind my ear. “My universal translator has been fixed.”
Leelee squeals in delight as happy laughter spills from her mouth, echoing around us. “Oh, Ravok, that’s… that’s fantastic!”
Her happiness kicks off a sudden burst of joy in my heart. The corner of my lip quirks up, and I struggle to keep myself composed.
Before I realize what is happening, Leelee is bounding forward, throwing her arms around my neck. She is small and warm against me, her soft form comforting. Suddenly, she realizes what she’s done, makes a shocked gasp, and then tries to pull away. But I don’t want this to end, especially now that I feel like myself again. I quickly wrap my arms around her, pulling her firmly against my front. She makes a slight squeaking noise like the silbi, a small desert rodent from my planet. I press myface into her nest of hair and enjoy the scent clinging to the strands, “Yes, Leelee. It is good. Very good.”
Why shouldn’t I have this for myself? The comfort and gentle touches that Leelee so freely offers. We are fleeting in this universe – a spark that extinguishes almost as quickly as it is lit. I can’t stay here on this planet, but I can savor the moments I do have. To receive – and to give – comfort and caring is something I may never have again, so I want this experience, just this once.
Cradling Leelee in my arms, it feels as though I’m holding something rare and precious. Her petite form fits perfectly against the rugged contours of my torso as if she is made to fit me. I feel filled with a tranquility I never even thought to imagine. I take a deep breath, letting her unique scent intertwine with the cool, metallic tang in the air of my ship. When I brush back a loose curl from her temple, she tilts her head back to meet my eyes. She is a beacon of vulnerability and strength, her eyes twinkling with unspoken trust and happiness. Her presence, a balm to my raging heart, somehow numbs the last lingering hostility for her species. Even if she is an anomaly among her people, her existence means that all humanity must be protected. I wonder briefly if there are others of her nature among the population. Even if there aren’t, she is worth saving an entire planet for.
With a gentle touch, I brush my fingers along the soft, downy skin of her jawline. Her eyes reflect surprise for a mere second before shifting to something almost hungry-looking. Her gaze flutters between my eyes and my lips. She rises onto her tiptoes, edging closer to my face.
My stomach lurches with adrenaline, and my heart echoes the rhythm of a war drum just as she brushes her lips feather-light against mine. It is just like the ‘kizz cam’ from her sportz, but better than I could’ve imagined. The planet seems to pause in its pivot as if all the elements of nature have chosen to bearwitness to this intimate moment between an earthling and a Cryzorian.
My body stiffens like I am suspended in a photon beam, freezing me in space. With a silken caress, Leelee traces a soft pattern on my lips. The warmth of her lips causes a tremor to pass through me. Without thought, I curl my arm around her waist, pulling her as close to my body as possible.
Blazing want flickers in the depths of my soul as Leelee starts to pull away.
“I—I’m sorry… I shouldn’t have—” Leelee starts to stutter, her pretty eyes wide and shiny. She is so close that our breaths still mingle.
I need more.
Instead of allowing the distance to grow, I slide my hand within her curls, cupping the back of Leelee’s head. I meet her gaze, staring into her lovely eyes which are filled with a strange blend of hazy shock and something nameless – perhaps desire. The look in her eyes mirrors my own turmoil. Even now, as I hold her captive, Leelee returns my stare without fear, perhaps the first sentient being to do so. If you’d asked me a week ago, I would’ve said I want all beings to cower before me. But now I know that is no longer true. Leelee looks at me like I am something wondrous. Her admiration fills a spot inside me that I never knew was empty until she pulled me from the wreckage of my ship, bringing a warmth and brightness that I hadn’t realized was missing.
I don’t know what Leelee sees when she looks at me, but it must be pleasing. “Leelee—” I start to say, but my words are cut off when she presses her lips against mine again. This time I have a better idea of what she wants from me.
With a single, swift movement, I lift Leelee off her feet, bringing her face to mine. I curl my fingers around the base of her skull, cupping her nape in my hand and tugging her lips tomine. My other arm is wrapped around her back, supporting her weight. I worry for a millisecond that I am being too forward with a female, but Leelee wraps her legs around my waist, using her ankles to pull me further into the cradle of her body. Caught in the unexpected softness of Leelee nestled against my chest, a low, deep growl – a sound of pure, untamed desire – escapes my lips.
Keeping her in my grasp, I press my lips to hers, mirroring her earlier actions, exploring this strange, new sensation. Leelee makes a soft sound as her eyes slide closed. She gives a little happy groan before placing one hand on my shoulder, kneading the thick muscle under her hand, much like Mango and his ‘maykin beezcutz’. Her other hand cups my jaw as if she is trying to make sure I can’t escape. Our breaths intertwine in the tight space between us as I close my eyes. As my lips meet hers, a surge of unfamiliar warmth envelops me. She grazes her mouth over mine, then does it again. I mimic her movements, pressing light, fleeting kizz cams on her lips. When I part my lips on a low growl, Leelee darts her tongue into my mouth, flicking it against my own. I shudder and shake, almost overwhelmed by this intimate touch. When my cock thickens and hardens, I don’t send my nanites to repress my reaction this time. With the apex of her sex pressed against my member the feeling takes me back to this morning when I’d awoken with her body pressed against my cock. At the time I had been mortified and worried about Leelee’s response. Thankfully, she seemed only slightly embarrassed, so I had faked sleep until Mango had made my subterfuge impossible.
It is a relief to allow myself this indulgence, of allowing my cock to rise. My senses, heightened, relish the tender play of her lips and tongue against mine. Her sweet flavor spreads through me, an intoxicating thrill invading each of my senses. I pull her closer, her tiny body fitting perfectly against my broad frame.
Her essence begins to etch itself into my being, forever branding my heart with the imprint of this moment. The taste of our shared breath spirals a heady feeling through my body, sending electricity surging through my veins, too profound to comprehend, yet gloriously beautiful.
Leelee makes lovely, enchanting sounds as I trail my lips along her jaw and down her neck. Her scent is strongest in the small, sweet divot beneath her ear. I suck on that spot, wanting to take her scent into my body and make it my own. To catalog and keep it. What I am doing would be a death sentence on Cryzor – to touch a female without authorization – but this feels right. Leelee is pulling me closer, wanting more and I desperately want to give her everything she asks for.
Leelee murmurs my name in a low, gasping voice that electrifies me and plunges my reeling senses into a tailspin of lust and want.
The loud, incessant beeping of the ship announcing that the diagnostic report is complete startles us apart. I immediately feel the loss of Leelee’s warmth and see the same regret mirrored in her lovely eyes. I struggle to recapture my breath, my skin tingling where we had touched.
“What is that noise?” Leelee asks, her voice worried as she looks around as if expecting an attack.
“Ship report,” I answer as the beeping finally ends. “I need to check it.”
When I turn to head back to the cockpit, Leelee catches one of my hands in hers, lacing our fingers together. I stare at our entwined hands for a moment before lifting my gaze to meet Leelee’s. She gives me a small, shy smile that makes my breath freeze in my lungs. Together, hand in hand, we head to the cockpit. Leelee slides into the seat next to me, pressing her hip against mine. She watches me with curious eyes as I clicka button to display the report. “The diagnostics are complete. I need to find out what’s wrong with my ship,” I explain.
CHAPTER 31
