Chapter 10

CHAPTER TEN

A 'rien froze as the scent of Erica's desire reached him. He had been so intent on attending to her wounds that he hadn't noticed her response to his touch. Now he looked up to find her watching him, face flushed and eyes heavy. And her scent…

His head spun as a dizzying wave of desire washed over him. He wanted to spread her legs and find the source of that fragrance, to explore every tempting inch. But she had more wounds on her legs, and he needed to care for them first.

He began to work his way down one long, slender leg, carefully soothing each small injury, but he was no longer completely focused on his task. Instead, he was conscious of every quiver of her skin beneath his mouth. He heard her breath catch when he pressed his lips against the inside of her knee. He saw her back arch when he followed a scratch that curled around her thigh.

Even though his cock throbbed with increasing urgency, he took his time, slowly and sensually healing even the tiniest of abrasions. When he pressed a last kiss against the sole of her foot, he raised his head and looked at her.

Wide, dark eyes stared back at him, dazed with pleasure. She wet her lips, and the sight of her small, pink tongue sent a spike of remembered pleasure straight to his cock.

"I…" She hesitated. "Will you…"

He saw her struggle to find the words. Did she want him to stop? Before he could force himself to draw back, she reached for him.

That message was clear enough. He started kissing his way back up her legs, but it was not about healing this time. This time all he wanted to do was to bring her pleasure. By the time he reached her upper thigh, her body was shaking.

Her legs were parted just enough for him to glimpse the damp brown curls shielding her hidden folds. Impatient to explore, he pushed her thighs apart and she gasped. For a moment he thought he had been too rough, but then the scent of her arousal increased. Ah. She liked his hold on her.

He wedged his shoulders between her legs, spreading them even further apart, and her hands grasped his head, urging him closer.

He ran his tongue through her folds in one long, satisfying stroke. Another soft sound escaped her lips, and her thighs quivered. He held them open with a firm grasp, and this time he was close enough to see her response glistening on those delicate pink folds. He abandoned himself to the pleasure of exploration, noting every place that made her gasp or quiver.

When he probed her tight little channel, he could taste the rush of liquid easing his way. But the small nub of flesh at the top of her slit proved most satisfying. It stiffened beneath his touch as he first circled it gently, then sucked it deep into his mouth. Every muscle in her body seemed to tighten as she muttered an incoherent plea, and he carefully scraped his teeth across the heated flesh. She cried out, her body shaking so hard that she almost escaped his grip, and his hard-won control disappeared.

He had his cock at her entrance while she was still shuddering, but as the liquid heat of her arousal kissed the head of his cock, he looked down. His cock was swollen and throbbing, the dark blue a shockingly erotic contrast to her delicate pink flesh, but it was the difference in their sizes that made him pause. Even the broad head looked too big for her to take, and the frill of bayal that covered his shaft made it even larger. He had promised not to hurt her. How could he expect her small body to take him?

He changed the angle, sliding his length along her slickened flesh, instead of entering her. His bayal brushed across the swollen pearl of flesh that had triggered her pleasure, and she gasped. She tried to lift into his touch, but he gripped her hips, holding her in place, and felt the fresh rush of heat that eased his path as he rocked slowly back and forth across the small nub.

"A'rien, please."

Her voice urged him on, but instead of increasing his pace, he bent his head and fastened his lips around her nipple, tugging gently. Her body shook beneath his and he sucked harder, his control beginning to fray once more. He moved faster, harder, and when she cried out, when he felt the flutter of her entrance where he was pressed against her, his own climax rushed over him, the hot flood of seed coating her flesh as he erupted.

His knees weakened, and he collapsed down over her, burying his head in her neck. How could one small female have this effect on him? He had never doubted that he could please her, but he hadn't realized that her pleasure would affect him so strongly.

She pushed weakly at his shoulders, and he immediately shifted to the side.

"Did I huhrt you?" he asked, inspecting her anxiously. Her skin was flushed a soft shade of pink, her nipples a deeper color, and her delicate folds were swollen beneath the dark purple of his seed. His cock threatened to harden again at the tempting sight.

"Not at all." Her lips curved in a sensuous smile. "But you weigh a ton."

"I'm sorree, zenska."

"Zenska?"

If his skin could change color the way hers did, he was sure that his cheeks would be deep purple. The term of endearment had escaped before he could prevent it.

"It meens fee-mayl."

Beloved female , but she didn't need to know that.

Dark eyes studied him, and he suddenly felt as if she could read his thoughts.

"Wawt-uhr," he said quickly, and climbed to his feet. But even as he headed for the cool serenity of the lake, he suspected that nothing would wash away the change she had caused in him.

Erica stared after A'rien's departing figure in shock. She had been prepared for a cocky smile, not an apology, and certainly not for him to leave. Her surprise turned to embarrassment as she remembered how wantonly she had encouraged him.

She had never reacted like that to a man, any man, but one big blue alien held her down and she melted into a puddle of arousal. A sticky puddle , she thought ruefully as she sat up. She needed another wash. A'rien had disappeared beneath the surface of the lake, but she wasn't going to let that stop her.

This time when she slipped into the water, there was no lingering sting. She lifted her arm, examining it more closely. Only a few pink traces of the myriad scratches remained. He really had a magic tongue. In more ways than one…

Her cheeks heated at the ribald thought, but she couldn't help smiling. She felt wonderful, in spite of A'rien's abrupt departure. And it wasn't as if he could go far. When he returned, they could talk.

In the meantime, she refused to worry about it.

She dipped under the surface long enough to wet her hair, and when she surfaced, Peri was chittering at her from over where the lake lapped against the rock wall. Guilt immediately filled her as she waded over to meet him.

"I'm sorry, sweetie. I wasn't paying any attention to you at all, was I?"

He gave her a pitiful look, blinking up at her. She laughed and scratched behind his tiny ears. He nestled into her hand, then turned and disappeared behind a curtain of vines.

"Are you playing hide and seek? What's back there?"

She pushed the vines aside, expecting to see him peeking up at her, but instead she found a tall opening in the rock. "You found a cave. Aren't you a clever boy?"

Curious about his discovery, she climbed up after him. The opening was almost as large as a full-size door, but the angle of the rock and the trailing vines had successfully concealed it. She ducked inside and found a surprisingly spacious cave. A crack higher in the wall let in some additional light, enough for her to see moss growing against one wall and Peri foraging for what looked like small snails clinging to the moss.

"I should have known food was involved."

Despite the heat of the day, the air in the cave was cool and damp, and she shivered. "Come on, Peri, let's go back outside. A'rien will be looking for us."

Peri abandoned his snails and climbed into her arms. She had her hand on the curtain of vines when she heard A'rien call her name.

"A'reka!"

He sounded surprisingly frantic, and she quickly pushed the concealing vines aside.

"I'm over here."

He was at the far side of the small lake, but he swung around instantly at her reply. He dove beneath the surface and reappeared in front of her with shocking speed. Whatever had driven him to leave her earlier didn't seem to have affected his protectiveness.

"Wow, that was fast?—"

"You are sayf?" he interrupted, joining her in the opening and running his hands frantically over her body.

"Yes, I'm fine. Peri was just showing me his cave."

"Cave?" For the first time, he seemed to realize where they were as his gaze traveled back over her shoulder. Did he shudder?

Before she could decide, he lifted her and Peri into his arms and started back around the lake.

"Didn't you want to see it?"

"No." His voice was abrupt, but his hands were gentle on her skin.

"Why did you leave me?" The question popped out before she could stop it.

He sighed, and the lingering tension seemed to leave his muscles as he placed her gently back on the mossy shore.

"I swor not to huhrt yoo."

Her heart gave a funny little skip. "You didn't hurt me."

"Yoo ahr vair-ee smawl," he answered, somewhat obscurely.

"I'm not that small."

His big hand briefly cupped her mound, sending a shocking streak of arousal straight to her core.

"Vair-ee smawl," he repeated.

Oh. She remembered her excitement when she felt his massive cock at the entrance to her pussy, just before he pulled away and slid his shaft between her legs instead. Her disappointment had been forgotten in a haze of pleasure as the strange spikes that covered his cock massaged her clit like firm little fingers.

Would he have hurt her if he had entered her instead? She couldn't resist a speculative glance at his cock, and it jerked under her scrutiny. Warmth filled her cheeks when she looked up to find him watching her.

"Women are designed to stretch," she murmured, despite her embarrassment.

He groaned. "Doo naht tempt mee, zenska."

Before she could respond, her stomach gave an embarrassingly loud gurgle.

"Tiem too eet," he said firmly, and promptly disappeared into the trees. He returned a few minutes later, his hands filled with the blue fruit she had found on the beach. Or had she? She rather suspected he had left those for her as well.

He placed the fruit on a large, flat rock, then pulled her down onto his lap. He handed Peri one of the fruits and he attacked it as if he was starving.

"He's always hungry," she laughed.

"Then we will feed him. Now you." He tore off a little of the fruit and pressed it to her lips.

Mmm. It was as sweet and juicy as she remembered, but having him feed it to her added a new level of pleasure to the experience. When he fed her another bite, she deliberately closed her mouth around his fingers and sucked gently.

Silver flared in his eyes.

His reaction to her was intoxicating. She didn't feel like her father's plain, unsatisfactory daughter. She felt alive and sensual and… in control.

Her hand drifted casually down across his chest until she touched the base of his cock.

"Zenska," he groaned.

"Hush. You're not hurting me. I'm just exploring."

She stroked those deceptive little spikes. Despite their frightening appearance, they were firm rather than hard and they massaged her fingers. What would they feel like inside her? The thought made her empty pussy pulse, and she saw A'rien's nostrils flare. Could he scent her arousal?

She gripped him more firmly, trying to close her hand around his shaft, but he was too big. Her fingers didn't meet. Another ripple of excitement went down her spine.

"Maybe we could explore a little more," she whispered. "See if my stretching theory is correct."