Chapter 12

12

Anna

"An-nana look what I have found," Drak sing-songs, and I hear his footsteps strutting up behind me. We've made it deeper into the forest, using the edge of the river like a guide to bring us closer to the waterfall. We'll use that as our base for the day, once we get there.

Without looking, I groan. "Drak, if it's another bug, I really don't care to see it."

He has a strange fascination with catching bugs out of the air, which usually results in him accidentally crushing them and apologizing to the dead body in his palm.

"It is not," he reports, sounding proud.

Looking over my shoulder, I discover it is most definitely not a bug.

"Drak… what the fuck?"

"Isn't he cute?" he asks, smiling fondly at the beast in his arms.

That is the biggest buck I have ever seen. It's a twelve-pointer and fucking huge. But Drak is carrying it like it's a tiny little puppy, arms wrapped around its middle while its hooves dangle. The most shocking part? The buck is just letting him. It's not struggling at all.

"I wished to find a deer, and now I have. He is a deer, right?"

"Yes, he's a deer. Why are you holding him?" I ask, too bewildered to panic.

His eyebrows scrunch in the middle. "Do you not hold them?"

"Drak, that thing is bigger than me! How would I hold it?"

"Hmmm," he hums, thinking about it. "Should I set him down? He does not seem to mind my touch."

I wince at the idea. "You should take him back to where you found him. He could literally trample me, don't put him on the ground here."

"He is a nice creature, he would not harm you," Drak assures me, sounding entirely too confident considering he's never seen a deer before.

"Let's not risk it," I snap.

"Okay," Drak agrees, looking almost disappointed about it. "I shall go set him down and give him parting pets."

He disappears back behind a line of trees, and I groan.

Shit , was I too hard on him?

No, don't be ridiculous, Anna. That buck may have been calm in his arms, but there's no way it actually wanted to be there. He was probably just too scared to move.

You like being in his arms , that treacherous voice in my head reasons.

What is it about my brain and arguing with me? It's seriously so uncomfortable. If I start talking to myself out loud, I'll know I've officially lost it.

It takes a few minutes before Drak returns, looking sullen.

It's on the tip of my tongue to apologize before I realize my harsh snapping isn't what's got him down. His pants are soaked, and he smells .

"I no longer think deer are friendly creatures," Drak mumbles. "He has peed on me like I am some tree to relieve himself on."

Seeing the large wet spot on his pants, I slap a hand over my mouth, relentlessly giggling before I can stop it. My chest vibrates and shakes harder, laughter wrecking through me. Oh my god, this can't be real.

"You find this amusing, Mean One?" Drak asks, a cheeky smile tugging on his lips.

I just laugh harder, practically doubling over as I clutch my side. I can't remember the last time I laughed so hard that I started cramping like this.

"He peed on you," I burst out, tossing my head back.

"Yes, yes," Drak drawls. "I do not see how you find this so humorous."

I'm regaining my breath, trying to quell the giggles for what's probably too long. I'm not even trying to be mean, I just can't help it.

"I will clean myself in the river," he grumbles, moving past me.

"No, no," I gasp, finally calming down. "You'll barely fit in there, you can wash off in the waterfall."

His nose crinkles. "It is close?"

"Very," I confirm, nodding in the direction. "Come on, deer pee smells bad. You can use the local flowers to get rid of the scent."

Drak nods in understanding and, before taking a step, rips his shirt down the middle discarding it on the grass. The Aprixians seldom wear shirts, so I'm used to seeing his torso and chest, but damn, I'm not used to seeing his little strip tease.

"Jesus, Magic Mike, slow down there," I snicker, trying to play off how ridiculously attractive that was. Drak doesn't need to know that I think he's hot, I'll never hear the end of it if he finds out.

"What is this Magic Mike ?" he asks curiously, following me as I lead him further up the river.

"A man who takes off his clothes to get money from women," I explain poorly.

"These females pay to see him unclothed?" he echoes, lips quirked up. "Do you owe me payment now, Mean One?"

"You wouldn't know how to use money if I gave it to you," I snark.

"Perhaps there is something else you might wish to give me instead?"

The way his voice dips into a smooth, lusty tone makes my stomach go all warm.

"We're here," I croak, breathing out hard. "You can go stand under the spray like a shower, and I'll get you some flowers—wait, no. I actually have a bar of soap. Hold on."

Drak keeps his eyes narrowed on me as I riffle through my bag, finding an Irish Spring soap bar in a ziploc bag.

"I don't have a new one, so you'll have to use this," I say, taking it out of the bag and passing it to him.

He holds the little green bar, looking at it with wide eyes. "You have used this before?"

"No need to look disgusted," I sneer, putting my things back together.

"Oh, Mean One," he drawls, his tone husky. "I am far from disgusted."

He takes off, heading for the water while my jaw hits the floor. Did he just imply he's aroused? That's the furthest thing from disgusted, isn't it?

First, he's calling me beautiful, lovely, and mesmerizing, and now he's excited to have my used bar of soap? Aliens are weird fucking friends.

Collecting myself, I peek over my shoulder to find him already in the water.

Butt.

Ass.

Naked.

My face flushes hot, and I smother a gasp, turning away with lightning speed. I just saw his whole backside, thick thighs, rippled back muscles, ass, and everything. And wow, was it a sight to behold.

Unable to resist, I angle myself to see him from the corner of my eye, watching as water rolls down his body, glistening under the sun. He slicks his hair back, the moisture extending the length to his lower back.

I lick my lips, my throat going dry while my cheeks flame. Shit, maybe I'm a weird friend, too, because I'm totally ogling Drak's ass right now.

He's rubbing my soap directly on his skin, too, lathering it all over. He's so precise that he probably doesn't even smell anymore. But hell, if I'm going to tell him to get out earlier than he wants to. There's a dirty little part of me that hopes he'll stay in there for hours.

And when he turns, fucking hell .

My eyes fall down his soaked stomach, tracking a rush of water all the way down to his cock. His thick, long, and hard cock. Either Drak is always ready for action and just good at hiding it, or he really is turned on by the simple fact that he's using the soap I've cleaned myself with before.

Taking him all in, I think, how on Earth did Stee-vee and Marrec do it?

I mean, logically, I knew he'd be large, but whoa . The girth on that thing alone would have me walking bow-legged for weeks after one fuck. His shape is similar to human anatomy, but it's much larger—a lot like the rest of him. Drak doesn't seem to have any kind of foreskin or pubic hair. Just a bulbous but proportionate tip and smooth skin all over. Even the darker veins decorating his shaft look velvety soft. His dick is so thick that I know it has to be heavy.

He'd ruin me, and the longer I look at him, the more I think I'd love every second of it.

When my eyes trace back up his stomach to his chest, I stop short, finding his eyes locked on my face. There's a hungry, filthy grin on his lips that makes my knees weak. I squeeze my thighs together, freezing like a deer in headlights.

Drak holds my gaze, dragging the bar of soap down his front, massaging it in small circles. Eventually, his hand moves lower, washing his cock with long soapy strokes. Fuck, is he jacking off or just getting clean?

It's impossible to stop watching either way.

Once he rinses off and starts to get out, I whip my head away from him, finally snapping out of whatever haze he just caught me in.

I keep myself busy while he takes his pants into the water, cleaning them thoroughly under the spray of the waterfall with his remaining soap.

By the time he's done, he's still obviously wet, but the sun will dry him off. He finds me picking some berries, wearing his soaked jeans and no shirt.

"Ready to move on?" I ask, avoiding his eyes as he approaches me from behind.

When I feel him getting closer, I bite the inside of my cheek. He stops just before walking into my back, lowering his head to my level.

Drak's lips graze the shell of my ear. "Did you watch me while I bathed because you think I am beautiful too, Mean One?"

I shudder, refusing to answer.

I don't trust myself to lie to him anymore.