Page 12 of The Naga Maverick’s Determined Mate

Zsekhet had been grinning widely, and that grin hadn’t faltered when I started yelling at him. He fucking liked it that I was worried, should have known. I fell silent and crossed my arms, just glaring at him through my lashes. Fine, he could understand me now, so I’d just not talk. See how he liked that.

But that resolve shattered in an instant when he started gesturing out the door, trying to get me to come with him. Hell no! He wanted me to get the same thing done to me? Never! Never mind that it wasn’t even physically possible due to the damage, I was terrified of going under the knife near my ears ever again.

He was making all these sounds that were encouraging, trying to usher me with him without actually touching me. His expression was as hopeful as a puppy dog, and that just made me want to fall back on the crying. I was going to disappoint him and already I felt torn in two, the urge to please him almost as strong as my fear not to have surgery. I couldn’t do this and though I repeatedly told him no, he just kept shaking his head and urging me to the door.

With the first pinch of tears stinging the corners of my eyes and the back of my throat I finally caved. “I can’t. Look!” I tilted my head to the side and pulled my hair out of the way to reveal the irregular scarring behind that ear. He fell silent in an instant, but I forged on, tilting my head the other way to show the matching scar on the other side.

“I was taken hostage on a planet when it was just supposed to be a job to design new buildings… The rebels ripped my implants out of my head on camera to try to make my government, the UAR, surrender their lands back to them. They meant it as a symbol of broken communications. I can’t have implants again, there is too much damage.” And even if this Shaman could somehow, miraculously heal all that, I didn’t want them anyway. My fear of any surgery in that location was one of the things I was okay with. I couldn’t fix all the broken parts I had.

I hadn’t realized the first tear had managed to escape until something soft brushed across my cheek and wiped it away. A feather, one of the quills from my desk, carefully pinched between Zsekhet’s large fingers. He had the most tender of expressions on his handsome face, his eyes warm but not with pity. I just felt like he cared from just the look in his eyes. He’d heard what I’d said and now he was no longer pushing me out the door but he was moving closer.

The feather was a sign of respect, respect for my boundaries, and for how hard he could push me. I felt safe, I felt like he understood parts of me that even I didn’t. More of that crazy thinking but now that the thoughts were there, there was no putting them back. Yeah, if we touched, would his sigils light up for me? I was almost certain that they would, and equally certain that I’d be pretty devastated if they didn’t.

I didn’t want a mate, I thought fiercely, but that thought felt like a lie now. Maybe… Maybe I was coming around to the idea of having one, if that mate was as careful of my boundaries as Zsekhet was. No, he was not that careful either. He pushed me all the time.

Point in case, he lifted the tip of his tail and held it in front of my face. Again, offering it to me, asking me if I wanted to know if we were mates. When I shook my head, that tail dropped to the floor without a sound and he held the feather up between us instead. I wasn’t sure what he meant with that gesture, but when I did nothing, he flicked it forward and stroked me across my cheek.

Heat shot through me at that touch. Now I understood what he meant, he wanted to touch me, with the feather if not with his skin. He was offering me pleasure, the heat in his eyes telling me everything I needed to know.

I hesitated, did I want that? Did I want to lose myself to touch for a moment in time? Did I trust this male with my body? Yeah, I did. He’d rescued me once, and he had made no demands after, that said something too. That said I could trust him like I knew I could trust the others at Haven.

I dipped my chin down in a yes and he hissed, his tongue flicking out to taste the air. Then he leaned around me, swiping papers from my desk and throwing the furs he’d brought with him on the surface instead. Oh, he wanted me to get on there did he? That did look inviting, but I wasn’t sure what he wanted me to do.

The temptation was too much, I climbed onto the silky soft furs, my short leather dress riding up when I scooted up. Zsekhet’s eyes were on my thighs but they flicked over my hips, my breasts, and settled on my face when I froze in place. I didn’t move to pull the hemline back down, allowing him to gaze at the shadowy gap between my thighs, hinting at what lay there. Would he like what he saw if I pulled my skirt up more?

He raised the feather to my face again, gently stroking it along my cheek and along my jawline. I closed my eyes, letting that touch be the only thing I focused on. It feathered down my neck, stroking along the slopes of my breasts and I groaned, that felt good. Nerves I’d forgotten existed roared to life with sensation, my nipples growing to stiff peaks in an instant. Live wires of heat arrowed down from the tips to my core. I’d forgotten what it was like to be aroused, but this felt good. This felt right.

I lifted my hands to the straps of my dress and pulled them down, exposing my breasts to the air and Zsekhet’s eager eyes. He groaned at the sight, his free hand going to his groin to press against the center there. His cock, which according to the mated girls, had a dual tip like their tongue. I was shocked by how strongly I desired to see it, so I waved my hand at him, “Show me.”

When he instantly dropped his hand from his groin to reveal the slightly gaping slit, I realized it was kinda nice that he could understand me. The bifurcated tip was pressing out, two finger-thick tips that writhed in the air, followed by a thick, veined erection, covered by the tiniest of scales. It was shimmering golden, but the hue was slightly darker towards the tips and white precum was already beading on them.

He was rearing to go, and all he’d seen was my boobs, that did a girl’s ego good. I smiled, feeling it stretch against my cheeks as I shimmied my skirt higher and spread my legs for him. He could look, and that feather could touch, but that was it. I didn’t even need to say that out loud, I knew he knew the rules.

He swirled the feather over my breasts, teasing the tips, then skated it from my knee up to my core, flicking it firmly over my still panty-covered clit. He kept flicking his tongue out to draw in my scent, my taste. His expression was heated and pleasure-filled. His golden cheekbones were flushed with color, darkening the scales in two stripes along his face. And with his fist, he palmed his cock to give it rough strokes.

I watched him stroke himself, fascinated by the way his dual cock head kept curling against his fist. No wonder the mated girls were so happy, that cock had to feel amazing inside. It was almost enough to tempt me to cross the line and find out if he was my mate or not. But the idea that I might discover that truth was still too scary so I focused on my own pleasure, on the feather insistently stroking along my clit in a maddening rhythm.

Was a feather enough pressure to let me come? I didn’t think so, but I was happy to let him prove me wrong. I bit my bottom lip, trying to hold back the moans that wanted to escape. Heat spiraled tighter and tighter, and then it exploded. An orgasm rushed through me like an avalanche.

I was shocked by the intense pleasure, which caught me so quickly. It had been a long time, so long that this felt new, different. This felt like a part of me was coming alive that I had forgotten existed, the part I’d put into deep storage the day I’d been taken hostage. I felt warm, alive, and for the first time I felt like I had made it. I’d made it out of there, survived, and I’d make it on this planet too.

Meeting Zsekhet’s eyes, I was shocked to discover that a man could look both passionate and tender at the same time. I lowered my eyes along his chest, taking in the black leather bands that crisscrossed it, emphasizing his muscles. The glint of golden bars through his nipples, and the hint of a gold chain that circled his narrow waist above a belt with pouches and knives.

His cock rose proud and fierce below that, his fist working roughly to stroke himself. I licked my lips at the sexy sight. The fact that it was my scent, and the sight of my body, that had him this excited was playing havoc with my mind. Already, I felt myself craving another orgasm. Another round of those feather touches along my skin to remind myself that I was a flesh-and-blood woman, and I could feel pleasure if I wanted it.

The girls at Haven had giggled about the special properties of Naga seed, how it made them go into a kind of ‘heat’ if they consumed it. I wondered if I’d react the same way to those tempting pale drops clinging to the tips of his cock. It certainly smelled good, rich like a savory dish but with a hint of sweetness. It made my mouth water to find out what it was like on my tongue, but I reeled myself back from those thoughts. No, not yet, maybe not ever. I wasn’t going to let myself get lost in passion.

“Show me,” I encouraged Zsekhet, just to let him know that I liked what I saw. He raised the feather, now damp from between my legs, and brought it to his mouth. It was extremely erotic to see him flick his tongue out to taste the hints of my come on the silky surface. His heartfelt groan and full-body shudder were even hotter.

He was close, his fist moving even faster. “Hey, Cosima? Are you in here?” Naomi’s cheerful voice interrupted the moment and I wanted to curse. I scrambled from the desk, straightening my clothing in a rush. Zsekhet, the poor man, groaned and snatched the nearest fur up to hold in front of him. With a last challenging look, he held up the feather in front of his face, and then made a show of tucking it behind the band of leather over his heart.

He darted from the room without another word, right as Naomi hobbled inside with a crutch beneath one arm. She gasped in surprise, looking over her shoulder to stare after him, “Woah, I didn’t realize you had company.” She grinned at me and a blush heated my cheeks, did she know what we’d been up to in here?

My panties were a wet, squishy mess between my legs, but she couldn’t see that. When I glanced at the last furs on the desk, and the mess of papers on the floor, I groaned too. Damn, there was just no way Naomi could interpret this as anything else. Still, I snatched up the top fur and held it against my chest, hoping she hadn’t seen the wet stain blatantly at its center.

Chapter 8

Zsekhet