Chapter 10

CHAPTER 10

A fter I got dressed, and Seiwa cleaned up the panel—and put the wires back better than before because it wasn't pulsing anymore—he alerted everyone else that they could come back to work. Before they arrived, I hustled Seiwa out of the room because I did not want to see a single Norlon sniffing the sex-filled air and possibly smirking at us.

"The air filtration system will remove any trace?—"

"I don't care," I said as I pushed him from the room. "They'll still know."

He reached back and pulled me around to stand in front of him. "Are you embarrassed for others to know we're together?"

I shrugged and stuffed my hands in my pockets, momentarily freaking myself out because my phone wasn't in there. "Um. I mean, no, I don't care if people know. I just don't want to see them knowing we just did something in their workplace. That's all."

"Anyone who walks by us will be able to?—"

"Just let me have this!"

Seiwa chuckled and held out his hand. I clasped it as we took an incredibly long walk to his quarters. Like, seriously, it was a significant hike. How big was this ship? My ass was not happy about the distance. I developed a hitch in my step, in fact, and then Seiwa was noticing.

"Are you injured?" he asked when we were alone in a lift.

"Well, that was kind of vigorous back there and this walk has been—" I cut myself off when he gasped and immediately scooped me into his arms. "Oh, good grief, Seiwa! You don't have to carry me."

"I should have thought to bring the healing salve with me as well. I apologize for my thoughtlessness."

Unless I was willing to throw myself to the floor, it was clear he wasn't going to put me down. And, sure, feeling his thick muscles flex as he easily carried me out of the lift was kind of a treat. I'd never had someone pick me up before.

But when we passed a couple of Norlons, I noticed their raised eyebrows and curious looks. I wasn't going to be embarrassed, though, and didn't want to holler an excuse. It wasn't anyone's business except?—

" Aye fuh-tier-uh ," Seiwa said to the pair of Khess walking by us who looked a lot like snow leopards.

Immediately, both of them smiled and nodded as they went passed us. I got the impression they weren't curious anymore.

I stared at Seiwa's profile as he marched along, knowing I was going to have to ask him what that phrase meant. I might already know the meaning because guaranteed income hadn't been the only thing I'd read about. This thing was a favorite topic of several social media personalities who shared gossip and rumor as easily as the truth. But could it really apply to me? To me and Seiwa? Wouldn't he have told me long before now?

And since he hadn't said a word about it, what did that mean?

We must not have been that far from his quarters when he'd picked me up because I only had a few minutes to ponder all that before he set me on my feet in front of a door. He needed a free hand to unlock the door by pressing his palm to a panel on the wall, so it wasn't like I minded being set down. I walked in first, trying to psyche myself up for the conversation we needed to have. I just had to ask the question. Just say it out loud. Just say it .

"What does aye fuh-tier-uh mean?" I sucked in a breath after that because wow, I could've waited until the door finished shutting.

Seiwa blinked at me, looking caught again. "That's a Norlish phrase."

"Yes, I know." And now I was sure he didn't want to talk about this either. "You've said it to Norlons a few times, and I think you're saying something about me. Or maybe, um, us? They always look at us differently after you say it."

He nodded and took a deep breath, not looking at me. "I didn't want to put any pressure on you. I know these things are different for humans."

Oh, god, I was right. My heart started pounding and my hands got sweaty. Was this a good reaction or a bad one? I needed the words. "Tell me what it means," I whispered.

"It means…" He gulped and took a couple more deep breaths. "It means ‘he's my mate'."

I closed my eyes and pressed a hand to my chest. So while I'd thought we were sort of dating, what we'd actually done was gotten married. That was what being mates meant to Norlons. It was a monogamous, committed relationship between two or more Norlons that got its start through scent. What scent? It was different for everyone, but it caused an instant lust that made claiming said mate an absolute necessity.

Seiwa hadn't exactly jumped me the first time he'd met me, but he had paid a lot of attention to me. He'd been respectful and that whole consent thing he still did told me it wasn't like he couldn't control himself. But he also hadn't held back once he got me to say yes either. And, if I was honest, there had been plenty about him that I hadn't been able to resist. Maybe I couldn't consciously scent his pheromones, but I could still react to them.

"Please say something, Ellis," he whispered hoarsely.

I opened my eyes to see him gazing at me with big sad eyes and felt a lump in my throat. Finding someone who wanted me forever and ever wasn't a bad thing. How could that be anything other than a reason to celebrate? Finding your fated mate was… Well, it was fate . It was true love and The One and meant to be. None of that was?—

"Ellis, please. I'm sorry."

Oh, goddamnit, I didn't want him thinking there was anything to apologize for, but when I tried to speak, all I did was croak. Fuck it, then. I ran over to him and jumped up, confident that he'd catch me. When he did, I wrapped my arms around his furry neck and held on as tightly as I could.

I gasped and looked up when he suddenly dropped, but he landed in a chair and kept holding onto me. Face to face with him, I could see that his pink eyes were brighter because of the unshed tears filling them. He blinked, and they fell. That lump in my throat choked me up even more as I shook my head and wiped away his tears. My first act as an official mate, and I'd made him cry.

"It's okay," I managed and cleared my throat. "I kind of knew."

He ducked his head to press his face into my chest and let out a shaky breath. I petted his furry head and turned to kiss the long ear pressed against my cheek, giving both of us a minute to calm down. Or maybe chill one thing and rev up another because, hi, I was petting him and his fur was extra soft like maybe he was using a new conditioner or something. When he lifted his head and pulled me in closer, it was nice to discover that both of us were working on semis.

"I'm not going to apologize," I said with my nose in the air.

Seiwa huffed a laugh. "Of course not."

"It's the petting. It's like a side effect from having my hands in your fur."

"You like what makes me Norlon."

"I do."

He nodded and ran a claw firmly over my ass and all the way up my back. I frowned at him, not understanding why I could feel a bit of a breeze now. But then I looked over my shoulder and pulled at my shirt to discover that he'd sliced right through it!

"Seiwa!" I tumbled off of his lap and realized he'd shredded the seam in my pants and underwear, too. "I would've taken them off, you shit. Now what am I supposed to wear later?"

He stood up over me and whisked off his tunic like it had tear-away seams. "Do you accept that you're my mate?"

Damn, he was quite the sight right then as I stared up at him from the floor. Furry muscles on display, cock straining his pants, ears pointing right at me as he waited… I cleared my throat. "Yes, I accept that I'm your mate." I grinned. "And you're mine."

He smiled and used that damn claw to slit his own pants open, letting his cock and balls swing into view just over my head. "Then what makes you think you're going to need clothes any time soon?"

A shiver went through me and my aching ass drunkenly said he could bring it on, but I knew better. "Where's that salve you mentioned?"

The growly dominant in him immediately turned into a concerned bunny and he scooped me up from the floor to gently set me on the bed. The salve was, apparently, sitting right there on his bedside table because he grabbed it up before snatching a glove as well. Those gloves… I'd never be able to go to the doctor again without having to explain that blue latex was part of our foreplay.

Thanks to the slicing he'd done on my clothes, I was able to pull everything off without getting up from the bed after I kicked off my shoes. Then there Seiwa was, leaning over me and kissing me as he eased a slick, gloved finger up my ass. The nanobots in that stuff worked immediately, bless their tiny tickers, and I was moaning into Seiwa's kisses in no time.

But then Seiwa pulled away and stepped back. "Hey," I couldn't help pouting, "where are you going?"

"I mentioned a surprise, remember?"

I happily popped up and grinned at him. "What'd you get me?"

Seiwa sauntered over to the small table and chairs and reached for the wall. I thought maybe he was turning on a light, but no, a square section of the ceiling clicked upward and then moved aside. A moment later, a jumble of black rods and straps dropped down.

Oh, my fucking god, it was a swing! I gasped a huge breath and clapped my hands against my chest.

"Come here," he commanded with a little smirk.

I eagerly bounded over and looked up at the ceiling. There was a lot of gadgetry up there—maybe a pulley system—and, yes, a massive hook. My mate and his hidden hooks… Woo!

The seat of the hammock-like swing felt a bit like nylon as I hopped up onto the seat and carefully lay back. Seiwa moved around me, securing cuffs to my wrists and then my ankles so that my arms and legs were raised above me. Given that the four rods had metal loops soldered here and there, it was probably possible to put my appendages in several different positions. A giddy excitement was making me all hot and twitchy.

"This is the best surprise ever ," I gushed.

Seiwa shook his head. "This isn't your surprise."

"It's not?"

"No. I simply wanted you positioned properly before I did this…" From behind his back, he brought into view a thin silver chain.

I made grabby hands at it even though I was stuck. "I saw you making that!"

"Mmm-hmm."

I watched in fascination as he opened little clasps and hooked one to my right nipple, and then one to my left. The chain was in a Y shape, so the third clasp was for my— "Oh, my god , Seiwa. This is so hot," I said as he connected the chain to my cock.

He gave me a little grin, and I laughed only to realize that just by doing that, I was tugging on the chain. Each breath pulled at both nipples and my cock, the little bit of added pressure making me shiver. When Seiwa grasped my cock and stroked it, the motion tightened the chain yet again. And if I thrust my hips— "Oh, fuck me…" I said on a moan as everything got a tug.

"I plan to," he quipped.

I snorted at him and wiggled around, making the chain and all my cuffs say a firm hello. I groaned, worried now. "Seiwa, you might need to hurry here."

"You can come as many times as you like," he said as he got a palmful of lube from the dispenser by the bed. "I won't stop until I'm satisfied."

Well, that made me feel all tingly inside. As long as he kept stuffing those magical nanobots into me, yeppers, he could fuck me all night and into tomorrow if he wanted to. If he could last that long. I suddenly really wanted to find out if I could make him come first.

While Seiwa lubed my ass with two gloved fingers, I rocked my hips and let myself make all the good and sexy sounds that the chain and his fingers were inspiring. He watched me closely, a pleased smirk on his pink lips and those big ears trained on me. I started to really notice how I was strung up, open and helpless, totally at his mercy. It kicked up my heart rate and pooled desire low in my belly.

He noticed. Seiwa leaned down and licked up the length of my cock at the same time that his fingers pegged my prostate. I hollered in sharp pleasure and thrust my hips up, momentarily mashing my cock into his face. He chuckled as he backed away and snapped the glove off.

"Seiwa," I whispered as he fit his cock to my hole.

"Yes, my mate?"

I gasped shakily at him calling me that. It was so new and it felt so good to hear that truth.

"Ellis? Do you want me to stop?"

"No!" I shook my head hard, not even sure why I'd said his name anymore. "Don't stop."

Seiwa met my gaze and steadily thrust his way into me. I moaned so long I had to take a breath to finish it as he settled his groin up against my ass. He ground himself on me, his fur so soft and his hands holding the straps of the swing. I gasped when he suddenly shoved the swing away, his cock leaving me, and then I wailed in shocking pleasure as I swung back and got impaled on his cock.

"Oh, my fuck," I managed before he pushed the swing away again.

Over and over again, he had the swing do his fucking for him. Goddamn, I'd thought he could kill me with being slow and steady before, but now? I hung at the perfect height for him to just stand there with his cock pointing right at me and there he was up my ass again. The pace was glacial but he was going deep in one stroke, forcing a grunt from both of us every single time.

I needed to come. It was so close, but the swinging wasn't enough to get me off. I tried wiggling around to use the chain to help me. And then Seiwa grabbed my hips.

"If you keep wiggling, you're going to ruin my aim."

"Fuck! Seiwa, I can't." I sounded like I was about to start crying.

He cocked his head at me and smirked. "Do you need to come?"

"Yes! Come on. Please…"

I was about to tell him to fuck off, but he grabbed my throat with one hand. Feeling like my eyes might pop out of my head, I stared at him staring back at me, and then— "Oh, god!" I hollered as he started fucking me in that overzealous jackhammer way that had my teeth rattling, his hand on my throat keeping me still for it.

I came like a geyser seconds into that, but he didn't stop. Not for a moment did he pause that pounding until I shook and shot one final time, going limp in his hold. Then he scraped his thumb across my bottom lip and went back to holding the straps of the swing and pushing me away to let momentum bring me back onto his cock.

All I could do was lay there in a blissful stupor, twitching with every swing as he claimed my ass over and over again. He was playing with me, using me, and I couldn't stop moaning from the overwhelming sensations and the constant reminder that we belonged to each other forever now.

"Ellis," he grunted at me.

I opened my eyes as he stared at me, his mouth open while he panted and ground against me. He reached up and grabbed my shoulder, pulling us tighter together like there was any more depth for him to gain inside me. And he finally came with a long guttural groan.

"Thank you," I whispered, "for my surprises."

Seiwa chuckled weakly through his panting and nodded. "Give me a few minutes and we can use them again."

"Oh, my god ..."