His hands flex at his sides, unsure whether to reach for me or armor himself again.
“You don’t get a grateful prize,” I tell him quietly. “If I stay—if I try—it’s because I choose to. Not because you claimed me.”
I step between his knees, forcing him to look up at me now.
“There are worse places I could have ended up. I did everything the Deenz asked of me for years,and all of that was through the lens that they’d off me if I didn’t listen. You already told me you won’t hurt me.”
He blinks once, twice, and I know there’s a question burning on his lips.
“But don’t mistake survival for surrender.” And this time, when I sit in his lap, it’s because I want to.
“What did the Deenz have you do?” he says quietly, almost as if he doesn’t want to know the answer.
“Are you sure you want to know? What if I tell you something that you don’t want to hear?” I mutter.
His hand snakes over the small of my belly, and the heat and softness of his furry fingers there feels good, but dangerous.
“I wouldn’t question the kills a warlord has made. I won’t question the things your captors made you do.” His breath is hot as it fans over the top of my head.
“And what if they had me do the same thing I did on Earth for money?” I lean forward and put my elbows on the table, keeping my eyes straight ahead. “What if I’m so good at something that the whole point of it is to entice, for money? What if I wasn't ashamed of it, but proud? Granted, I preferred being the one making bank back on Earth, but a spade’s a spade.”
“I would say you were practical,” he whispers, letting his hand trace around my hip.
Don’t do it, Mae.
“Do you want me to show you?” I turn my head around and lick my lips.
“Only if you wish to. I vowed to never force you.” Mekkra’s eyes darken as he looks at me, like I’m some tasty fruit, ripe for the plucking.
Fuck it.
I rise on my tiptoes, bracing myself against the table and hovering my hips high for a moment before I rotate my ankles until my ass gets a good twerk going.
Mekkra sighs, and I feel the heat of his palm hovering over my butt. I freeze and drop my heels as I swivel to face him.
His hands are still in the air, keeping his word, waiting for permission.
I don’t give it.
I reach forward, grabbing his wrists, and place his hands on the arm of the chair.
“Stay,” I murmur.
I can tell he doesn’t like that as his jaw tightens, but he obeys.
If I were brave enough, I’d throw in a good boy, but I know I’m already pushing it as is.
I place one pointed toe on his thigh before letting it slip over the outside to his hip. One arm loops around his neck, and I pull my other leg up until I’m straddling him properly.
I roll my hips once, just slowly enough that it might even seem innocent. Almost. The fabric of my sheer dress drags against his leather pants, and his breath catches in a gulp.
“So you think I’m practical?” I say softly, letting my fingers trail up my sides and tracing a frame around my tits. “Back on Earth, men paid just to look at me. Paid to want, paid to imagine they had control.”
I whip my long blonde hair around my shoulder, the strands splashing against Mekkra’s cheek. I arch my back and pull his head down to my chest, as best I can with our size difference.
“I was very good at it.”
I move again, slower now. My hips glide up historso deliberately before I lower myself down and rest my covered mound against his crotch.
