3. Harper

"She's where?" I said, joining the chorus of voices behind me.

Lily had just told us Ivy had gone missing. She was no longer in the prison and hadn't been seen since the riot broke out.

She wasn't in the Prize Pool, wasn't anywhere down the infinite hallways or exercise yards. She wasn't even in Kren's cell.

To cap it all off, Kren wasn't in any of those places either.

They had both disappeared.

"So where did they go?" I said. "They just up and vanished into thin air?"

"We're not sure," Lily admitted, turning to survey the gathering members of the Pool. "There are reports of a commotion having taken place in the science lab, followed by the former Supervisor's shuttlecraft taking off soon after the riot started but there's no way to verify who might have been on board."

I shared a look with the other girls. They wore the same shocked expression as me.

I felt a tingle of excitement that began in my stomach and rose up through my arms and down my legs.

I hoped Ivy had managed to escape.

Somebody deserved to escape this shit show.

"What about the others?" I said, addressing the two other empty cots in our shared bedroom. "What about Jixam and Agatha?"

They hadn't returned to the Prize Pool either. After the guards had retaken the prison, there was no reason for them not to come back.

Unless something had happened to them.

Lily suddenly became very interested in the worn outer edges of her boots. She had the look of someone who had something to tell us but the words stuck in her throat.

"There is something…" she began before shaking her head, causing her shoulder-length curled braids to bounce off her cheeks. "No. It's probably best not to discuss it."

A compulsion pushed me forward. Later, when I came to think about that moment, I would have sworn I felt a physical shove.

"Tell us," I said. "We're their friends. If there's some way we can help them, we'll do what we can."

"Yes," Lily said. "You're good girls. That much is obvious by the way you comport yourselves. But there's nothing that can be done for them. Not now."

I gasped and a hand went to my mouth.

It was strong validation of the darkest thoughts that crowded my shocked mind.

"You mean, they're dead?" I said.

Some of the slower girls joined in my gasp and muttered among themselves.

Lily sighed, evidently revealing more about the situation than she'd intended.

"I really didn't want to have to tell you this," she said. "But as you've already guessed… And well, you are right. You are their friends. You deserve to know the truth. As you know, Jixam was chosen as Prize by a Lizik by the name of Lark. She was with him last, and while they were together, a gang of prisoners broke into his cell and… They took her. The guards investigated the details and discovered her body. She won't be returning to us."

I shut my eyes to block the images that sprung, unbidden, before me. The same thing could have happened to me if Trayem hadn't rescued me.

Jixam had been a sweet girl, kind and decent. More than once, she had lent me her hairbrush. And now, to think she was dead, forced to serve an uncountable number of monsters that she'd been abducted to service…

It was too much to bear.

A couple of the other Prizes sought comfort in their friends' arms. They wept freely and no one judged them.

I felt like weeping myself.

I cleared my throat and thumbed a tear from the corner of my eye.

"And what about Agatha?" I said. "Where is she? Is she dead too?"

"She was chosen by Egara," Lily said. "Since that moment, we know nothing more about what happened to her."

I shut my eyes, refusing to believe the news. Agatha was human, from England. She didn't deserve to meet whatever end had been brought to her.

"She could still be alive somewhere," Lily said. "All we can do is hope."

Hope.

That was a joke.

Hope died the moment we arrived in this place.

Hope was escaping this place and there was precious little chance of that happening.

Except in a body bag.

"Listen to me," Lily said over the wailing cry of the others, still grieving for their lost friends. "We need to put all this nasty business behind us. We survived, holed up in the Prize Pool. There is a lot to be thankful for."

"Thankful?" I said incredulously. "They murdered one of us. Maybe two for all we know. And you want to put it behind us?"

Lily turned to face me. It was never wise to confront her. Anyone who did ended up becoming the example she set to warn everybody else.

She walked down the steps and stood before me, nose to nose. We were of a similar height, but even so, I felt her glaring down at me.

But I didn't back down. I was too angry to do that.

"Okay, Harper," Lily said. "Let's hear it. What you suggest we do?"

I clenched my teeth and my hands formed fists at my sides. It was all I could do not to slap her across the face.

"Refuse to give the prisoners what they want," I said. "We won't play along with this stupid game of theirs. We won't let ourselves be their prizes any longer."

I tore my eyes from Lily and focused my attention on the other girls. If I was going to win this argument, I would need them on my side.

"None of us asked to be here," I said. "None of us submitted to this unending torture. We were abducted from our homes and forced into service. Now, I say, enough is enough. We put our foot down and together we tell the fighters and the new supervisor we will not play along with their twisted games any longer."

The girls nodded one by one, dabbing at their eyes at what had become of their friends.

"We'll insist they return us home," I said. "Take us back to our homeworlds where we belong. We've been in this hell long enough."

"And when they refuse to take you home?" Lily said, folding her arms.

"Then we insist on being paid. A fair wage for a fair day's work. And we insist on leaving the moment we earn enough for our tickets home."

The Prizes were timid by nature, either naturally, or forced into submission by the endless torrent of fighter lovers. But they nodded in agreement.

None of them wanted to stay here.

Least of all me.

"If we stick together, if we do this as one, they'll have no choice but to listen to us," I said.

I stood before the other girls and turned back to face Lily. She stood by herself and looked more alone than ever.

She had a sinister curl to her lips, straightened her back, and raised her chin.

"Go ahead," she said. "Speak to the new supervisor and make your demands. But there's one thing you've forgotten, one little thing you've failed to take into account."

"What?" I said with a sneer.

"They don't need to give you anything at all. They could promise you everything you ask for and then turn around and bundle you into a shuttlecraft and sell you to the cheapest bidder. Or maybe they'll save themselves the expense and shove you outside. How long do you think you'll survive in the desert? Or else they'll gun you down. They have an army of guards at their command. They can do whatever they want with you and toss you aside just as easily. There's no escaping this prison. I've been here longer than all of you. It's a lesson I know better than any of you."

Some of the girls' heads drooped, defeated already.

I wasn't surprised. They'd been downtrodden and forced to pleasure imprisoned monsters. It was the lowest low there was in the galaxy.

"To ensure you understand that, the new supervisor has passed down a new rule," Lily said.

She licked her lips and couldn't even bring herself to look us in the face.

What was it? There was nothing they could do to us they hadn't already done.

I raised my chin to meet the assault head-on.

"The new supervisor has ordered birth control to no longer be dispensed," Lily said.

A vacuum of silence sucked the shock from me.

After the initial disbelief, a couple of the girls howled with fear. Others screamed.

"No!" they cried.

Most stood dumbfounded, the same way I was.

"But… we'll get pregnant," I said, the words dribbling from my lips.

"Eventually, all of you will," Lily said. "Those of you who don't… I guess you'll be put to… other uses."

Lily's mouth twisted as if she'd swallowed a lemon. Even she didn't agree with this new order.

No one in their right mind could.

Being a whore forced into servitude to thousands of marauding alien criminals was one thing but to be forced into being a broodmare was another.

I wrapped my arms around my stomach as if I could already feel the spark of life growing inside me.

"Why?" I said. "Why would they do this?"

"Because they can," Lily said offhandedly. "And if we refuse—if you refuse—you will be taken away and never seen again, replaced by newly abducted creatures who won't be quite so difficult to handle."

"But why would they want us to get pregnant?"

Lily's skin was drained. She might have aged ten years in the past few minutes.

No birth control.

No control over our lives whatsoever.

WAAAAaaaaaaaaaa!

The alarm sounded, signaling the arrival of another victor.

The first since the riots had ended and the guards regained control of the prison.

Half of us were numb to the noise. The other half immediately burst into tears.

"You must make your decision," Lily said. "And you must make it now. Do you resist and be destroyed or do you submit?"

One by one, the girls peeled off, washed their faces, put on their makeup, and dressed from the gaudy collection in the wardrobes.

I didn't move a muscle and just stared at Lily.

I expected to see a look of triumph on her face.

But there was no triumph in this situation.

Not even for her.

Only defeat.

The same defeat we suffered every day of our lives in this place.

I turnedand trudged off to get ready for the victor.

The other girls worked to ensure their makeup was perfect, their dresses as revealing as possible, all an effort to please our new masters.

I spent most of my time ensuring my makeup wasn't perfect. I didn't want to be claimed by the victor.

I needed time to think.

So, I put on my make-up but used the wrong colors. I chose the least flattering dress we had in the wardrobe—a disgusting pink number with too many frills that hadn't been worn by any of the girls since I arrived in this place.

I would figure out a way to acquire the ingredients I needed to control my reproductive system and ensure I never got pregnant.

And what would happen when I'd been with multiple fighters and I still showed no sign of being pregnant?

That was a problem for another time.

I thought about Ivy and the idea of her screaming through space on a shuttlecraft with her champion alien fighter at her side.

I didn't know if that was the truth or not but it brought a smile to my lips anyway. The thought alone girded my spirits.

If she could get out of here, why couldn't I?

The girls hurried through the archway and stepped onto the dais to present ourselves to the latest victor.

The girls did a sterling job, smiling, beaming, fluttering their fake eyelashes, to look as beautiful as they could.

I didn't affix a smile to my face. Instead, I wore a frown and scowled. The lines on either side of my eyes turned down, gaving me a grumpy look.

I'd need to be careful about which fighter I would project this expression at. Some species actually found it attractive.

My mind whirred, worrying over what I would do next in this nightmarish situation.

I barely even noticed the guards as they stepped aside to let the fighter through. He stood at the front of the Prize Pool.

Lily stepped forward to assume her role as the gracious owner.

"Wonderful victory!" she said. "Please, come see my wares. We have a new shipment coming in. It should arrive any day now but until then, feel free to use—and wear out if you can!—the old stock!"

The fighter paused, uncertain if he wanted to enter the room further.

It happened rarely enough that I glanced up and immediately looked away.

I froze.

I hadn't just seen what I thought I saw, had I?

It wasn't him, was it?

I slowly raised my eyes up and peered through my eyelashes in an attempt to avoid eye contact.

And there he stood.

Trayem.

He looked directly at me, not even pretending to notice the other girls on the dais.

My lips quivered and my stomach fell through the floor.

He had a thoughtful expression on his face. His smile was small, approachable, and more than a little cautious.

He was hesitating.

Finally, he sighed and nodded as he made his decision.

So much for extra time.

I had just been thrown to the wolves.

Don't panic. Don't panic.

Everything was going to be fine.

How did I get myself into these situations?

The prisoners were busy clearing up the mess left by the riot as we weaved through the hallways, heading back to his room.

I couldn't recall a single step. My mind was far away.

I was meant to remain safely tucked up in the Prize Pool, keeping myself out of reach of the prisoners until I figured a way out of this situation.

Instead, what happened?

The first fighter came through the doorway and chose me.

Now, I was heading toward his room to consummate the activity he'd claimed me for.

I kept my eyes down and surveyed the floor as if I might find the solution there.

But there was no solution to my problem.

Except maybe a bullet in the head.

At least then all my problems would be well and truly over.

"Is something wrong?" Trayem said softly.

I almost missed a step, surprised at his kindness.

We marched ahead of the guards, who maintained a healthy distance behind us, just far enough for them not to hear me so long as I lowered my voice.

"Nothing," I squeaked.

I cleared my throat and tried again.

"I mean, it's a surprise to see the prison this way," I said, hedging.

There was a genuine look of concern in his eye. Any other time, I would have been touched.

And yes, it might have affected me in other ways too.

But not right now. Not when I feared for what might happen after the sun rose and I had to leave his cell.

With no birth control at my disposal.

A thought occurred to me then.

He wasn't like the other prisoners. He was kind, considerate, and not many would have rescued me the way he had during the riot. Most would have joined in and never given me a second thought afterward.

Maybe if I told him about the situation, he would understand…

What was I thinking?

He might be kinder than the others but he was still one of them.

He was a victor and expected to be rewarded for his successes in the fighting pit.

No. If I was going to get out of this, I would have to use that thing between my ears—and I wasn't talking about my neck.

I was a prize. I had been for five years. This wasn't the first time I had to get out of unsavory situations.

I succeeded then and I would succeed now.

With a new sense of confidence, I raised my chin and followed him the rest of the way to his cell.

It seemed a lot further today than it did last night. I suppose it always did when your life was on the line. Time distorted, bent, and morphed depending on your state of mind.

And last night, I was beside myself.

The fighters bent over their buckets and mops, scraping tools and paintbrushes. They scowled at us as we passed.

In all fairness, we weren't the ones responsible for the damage, so why should we be the ones to clean it up?

Finally, Trayem came to a stop outside a nondescript door.

I tried to recall if this was the door to his cell but couldn't. Last night was largely a blur.

The door shunted upwards and I stepped inside. Trayem followed and the unsavory guards turned on their heels, marching away.

There was nothing in his room, save for the single bed. The sheets were still rumpled from when we had emerged from it this morning.

The bed might have screamed for the amount of attention it absorbed. I was sure Trayem felt the same way.

We shared a look. It was both shy and awkward.

Why did it feel so different now compared to last night? I wondered. Perhaps it was just the frantic nature of the situation. I'd read about soldiers who formed incredibly close bonds under stress compared to the years they'd spent with their friends back home.

Was last night one of those situations?

"Have you eaten yet?" Trayem asked.

"I had breakfast earlier," I said.

The silence returned with a vengeance.

"Would you like to have a seat?" he said.

Yes, but not on a bed we recently vacated.

"I'm okay," I said.

Now what was I supposed to do? Stand there? Were we supposed to just look at each other?

He gained a misty look in his eye and drifted toward me.

He placed one hand on my hip, the other to my face.

He stroked my cheek with the back of his hand.

Trayem looked like he wanted to say something but the words lodged in his throat.

I wanted to speak too but with his lips so close, they turned to ice.

I felt his breath on my face. It was warm and smelled like raspberries.

Raspberries?

I sniffed and caught that fragrance again. There was no denying it.

Definitely raspberries.

As if he couldn't be more alluring.

His eyes drilled into mine. They were all I could see.

I sank into him, unable to prevent myself from falling under his spell.

We inched closer slowly, slowly, but deliberately.

It was going to happen.

We were going to have sex and all my fears about the lack of birth control were going to come true.

I couldn't let this happen.

I just couldn't.

He leaned forward and gently slid his bottom lip over mine. His breath massaged my nose and cheek.

I shut my eyes, ecstatic with the sensation. It was almost painful to have something I wanted so close.

The anticipation only heightened the sensation.

"I thought we weren't going to see each other again?" I said.

"Is that what you want?" he said, not taking his lips from mine.

You don't know what I want.

Or, maybe, you do.

"No," I said softly.

"So, tell me what you do want."

My mouth turned dry and I could hardly breathe.

I want you.

I couldn't say it. But it was plainly written on my face if he were to open his eyes and look.

I wanted him more than I could express.

Words were too poor a substitute.

They could never plumb the depths required to explain that feeling, that desire, that need.

That obsession.

"I want…" I said.

"Yes?"

"I want…"

Not to get pregnant!

The voice of logic and reason hit me like a bucket of ice water.

My eyes bolted open and I shoved him back.

The door hissed open and he fell out.

He lay on the floor in the hallway.

The prisoners working on where a barricade had been set up the night before looked over at us.

Seeing me standing over Trayem, one blew a wolf whistle.

"Take it easy on him!" he yelled. "He's just a boy!"

The prisoners joined in, smacking each other on the back and roaring with laughter.

The guards barked an order at them to continue working but they didn't stop chuckling as they bent back over their tools to restore the wall.

I reached down a hand to help Trayem up.

He didn't take it and rose up by himself.

"Sorry about that," I said.

He dusted himself off and shook his head.

"I can't say that's ever happened before," he said with a grin. "How about we try that again?"

We entered his room for a second time. He drew up close to me and resumed his pose with one hand on my hip, the other on my cheek.

But the magic was broken.

At least, for the time being.

"How about you take a shower first?" I said. "You've been fighting all day."

"Actually, it didn't take more than ten minutes."

"Still, wouldn't you feel better after having a wash?"

He took the hint.

He didn't smell, save for that delicious raspberry aroma I couldn't explain. Even his boots were hardly dusty from the fighting pit floor.

"I suppose I could do with a little scrub," he said.

He moved to his wardrobe and collected some fresh clothes.

"Help yourself to anything you want to change into," he said.

He pecked me on the cheek as he left the cell and headed for the communal showers.

The door hissed shut and I leaned back, pressing my back against the wall.

I had dodged a bullet.

Narrowly.

There was a lot more time to negotiate before the night was over.

Just how was I going to keep him—and myself—at bay?

By the timeTrayem returned to his room, his fringe was wet and his clothes were still damp from rushing to dry himself off.

I was tucked away in his bed, the blankets drawn up to my chin, prepared, and ready with a plan.

He smiled at me as he crossed the room to his wardrobe and deposited his dirty clothes in a separate box.

"Comfortable?" he said.

"Very."

"I was going to ask if you wanted to use the showers. But I guess it's a little… uncomfortable considering there aren't any female showers and you'd have to share with the other male prisoners."

I chuckled. Then I reached over and tapped the other side of the bed for him to join me.

Although the bed might have only just been big enough for the likes of him and the other prisoners, it swamped me. It wasn't a king-size, or even queen size, but roughly one and a half times the size of a regular single bed back home.

More than big enough for me but nowhere near big enough for him. With the two of us sharing the one bed, it was even worse.

Usually, it resulted in me being crushed by an oversized muscular leg or an arm wrapped around me like a teddy bear. I'd long since learned the most comfortable position to sleep with these giants was on top with my head balanced on their chest.

Trayem took a seat where I patted as I rose into a sitting position.

"I have a favor to ask you," I said.

"What is it?"

"After last night, I still feel a little tired."

I gave him a shy smile.

He smiled and placed a hand on my leg, outlined by the shape of the blanket wrapped around it.

"Would you mind if we—" I said. "What I mean to say is—"

He surprised me when he spoke at first and finished my question for me.

"If we take it easy tonight? Of course. I assumed that would be the case. It's not every day there's a riot in this prison. We were lucky to have survived through it. I still feel a little tired myself."

After his fight with the gang and his other battle in the fighting pit, that should certainly have been true, but his eyes seemed very bright and his movements were not sluggish or slowed with exhaustion as I'd expected.

He stood up and rubbed at his wet hair with a towel.

I leaned back, relieved he didn't mind us not having sex tonight.

"You look surprised I said that," Trayem said.

"I just thought…" I said, shaking my head. "Never mind."

"I guess most fighters would have refused. But I'm not most fighters."

No, he wasn't. I was quickly learning that to be the case.

He stripped off his clothes and, quite comfortable with his naked form, stood before me, his muscles hard and toned, his body built for fighting.

Among other things.

He really was a fine specimen. The other prisoners were built too but they lacked his grace. Then there was his kind eyes and gentleness to contend with.

Perhaps, in another time and another place, something might have happened between us.

But not here. Not now.

I gripped the edge of the blankets and pulled them up for him to slip into the bed beside me. Doing so revealed the long black T-shirt and pants I'd borrowed from him.

A grin curled his features and he burst out laughing.

"What?" I said, looking down at my clothes. "I'm comfortable."

"Would you like a couple of padlocks to make sure I don't take advantage of you in the middle of the night?"

Okay, so I might have gone a little overboard with my preparations to ensure we slept and nothing else happened but my current getup really wasn't much different from what I usually wore when I went to bed alone.

He climbed into bed beside me and immediately wrapped his arm around my head so I could sleep more comfortably across him.

"Did you hear anything else about the riot?" I said.

"Some of the prisoners got killed, some survived, some of the gangs extended their territory, some lost it," he said with a shrug. "Pretty much what you'd expect."

I ran a finger around his purple nipple and wondered how much of the recent developments in the Prize Pool I ought to share with him. It was entirely possible he knew something about Ivy or Agatha's whereabouts.

"Three of the other girls went missing," I said.

"During the riot?" Trayem said.

"They wouldn't dare go missing otherwise. One was called Ivy. She was in a relationship with Kren, the former champion. They disappeared at the same time. Apparently, the Supervisor's shuttlecraft disappeared too. It got some of us wondering if maybe they escaped."

"It's possible," Trayem said without commitment.

What else did I expect? He was a regular prisoner. There was no reason to think he would know anymore more about it than I did.

"Wait," Trayem said. "Ivy? Did you say she was claimed by Kren?"

"Yes. He chose her every day."

Trayem's chest rumbled. When I looked up at him, I saw he was chuckling to himself and shaking his head lightly.

"What is it?"

He waved a hand.

"Nothing. I thought… Never mind. I don't know if they escaped. But it doesn't take a genius to figure out. If they're gone and the supervisor's shuttlecraft went missing, and they happened to be in his apartment when all those things happened… I would say it's pretty much a shut case."

I had barely allowed myself to believe she had escaped. I hoped it was the case but from the very first moment, I had long since learned hope was not a valuable commodity in this place.

It made me grin to imagine Ivy somewhere out there among the stars, her fated mate at her side, leading the kind of life the rest of us could only dream of.

Now, I was the one chuckling to myself.

"What's wrong with you now?" Trayem said.

He ran a hand over my arm soothingly, sending goosebumps prickling my skin.

"Nothing," I said, snuggling in closer to him. "It's just a nice thought."

"What about your other friends?"

"What other friends?"

"You said more than one of your friends went missing."

That's when my good feelings subsided.

"One…" I said, finding it hard to say the words. "The thing that almost happened to me actually did happen to her. She… She didn't survive."

Trayem was silent for a long moment.

"What about the other one?"

"She disappeared. Her name's Agatha. She was always kind. I sure hope they don't find her cut up into tiny pieces."

"I'm sorry you're here," Trayem said. "I'm sorry things didn't work out better for you."

"Things didn't work out well for anybody in here. That's why they're here. Everybody's a prisoner."

"Yes, but they deserve it. They're guilty of one thing or another. Even if they weren't guilty of the crime they were eventually banged up for, they must have done something to deserve being here. They don't just send anybody to Ikmal prison."

"What about you? Why are you here?"

Trayem was silent again. I'd never asked another prisoner about their past before. They fought in the fighting pit and if they were victorious, chose their prize. The reason they did that was to forget about this hellhole for a while.

I never wanted to make them angry or break that illusion. But things felt different with Trayem. I felt like I could talk with him about anything.

"Wrong place, wrong time," he said. "The same old story."

I wouldn't ask him for more detail. It was one thing to ask a question and quite another to keep prodding at it.

I ran my foot up and down his hairy leg and tucked myself tighter around him. He was so warm, so strong. He was a rock I could cling to.

I felt a bulge pressing against my inner thigh.

I might be dressed up but he most certainly was not. I was grateful he would allow me to rest tonight. At least this way, I could come up with a plan for how I was going to prevent myself from falling pregnant.

It was only a matter of time. I wondered if there was a herbal remedy that would serve the same purpose as the medicine. I would have to make inquiries and figure something out.

I shook my head. What was the new supervisor thinking? Why did he want us to get pregnant? What purpose would it serve? We were there to pleasure the fighters. Pregnancy and babies would only get in the way.

The sound of clinking buckets and rasping paintbrushes from the workers fixing up the walls where the barricade had been built had faded. They must have moved on to another section of the prison.

Every so often, footsteps tapped down the hallways and disappeared again in the opposite direction.

Other times, there was a cough or the soft shink of an automatic cell door as it slid open and thunked into place.

The prison might not be the most pleasant place to live but it could have its moments. After a recent storm, where the tension and pressure had been released, the prison could, for a short while, relax and ease back into a regular pattern.

Trayem stirred beneath me and poked me even harder with his thick trunk. Despite myself, I began to feel my body reacting to his stimulation.

The head of his cock was only a few inches from my opening. I was wrapped up tight and there was no way that sucker was getting through multiple layers of clothing.

Not unless I wanted it to…

I shook my head and repositioned myself so I was less stimulated by him.

He kissed me on the top of the head. His cock turned toward me, pressing, probing, aching.

I could have turned away, could have refused him any attention, but my breath had already turned heavy, and my eyes turned steamy with lust. When I turned and looked up at him, I saw the same expression reflected back at me.

He wasn't about to take the next step. Not after I had already asked him not to.

He was a gentleman, I realized. The only gentleman in the entire damn prison.

I surprised myself when I was the one that leaned forward and pressed my lips against his.

He gave way beneath me easily as I probed at him with my tongue.

I let out a breath I didn't realize I'd been holding and ran my hands over his firm muscular physique.

Then I worked my way down to his firm member. It quivered and grew stiffer when I wrapped my hand around it.

I reached down and cupped his balls. They were big. They had to be. They would have looked ridiculous if they were small and attached to his thick meat.

I slid down his body and took him in my mouth. He was so big I barely managed to take half his size, and that was with taking him to the back of my throat.

I let him thrust his hips into my mouth. I gagged around it.

I could take it.

I pulled back when I needed air, sucked in a lungful, and went back to work.

I ran my hand along his shaft, pumping him with one hand and playing with his balls with the other.

He groaned and it only made me want him more.

I licked his full length, lubricating him for a crescendo it would never see.

I used both hands to stroke him, slurping with the juices he gave me.

I looked up at him.

He smiled at me.

It was no use.

I wanted him.

To hell with my concerns. Everything would work out fine.

I took the medicine every morning. It'd only been a day since I last took it. I'm sure it would take another day or more to pass through my system completely.

I pulled my T-shirt over my head, stepped out of the bed, and pushed my pants to the floor.

Trayem just watched me.

"I thought you didn't want to do this."

"It has nothing to do with want, honey. Sometimes a lady needs."

I climbed on board and straddled him.

I was already soaking wet with anticipation. As I serviced him earlier, I slipped a finger inside myself, pleasuring myself, warming up.

As good as it felt, it wasn't enough.

Only he could satisfy me.

His length and girth were incredible. Some species were not made for mating with humans. They were far too large and made the sex awkward.

Trayem was just on the outer boundary of what a female human could take.

I reveled in the challenge.

Sparks shuddered across my skin as I took him and a fresh blanket of dimpled sweat broke across my body. I hissed through my teeth and sucked a breath of sweet luxury as I rode him.

It felt so good, enhanced by the sense of forbidden fruit.

I knew I shouldn't be doing this.

I knew I shouldn't let him inside me.

But looking at him, how gorgeous he was, how kind, how gentle, how aggressively he fought for me…

I knew the favor I asked of him earlier was nothing but a token.

There was no way I could resist him.

I felt my legs shake. I flattened them to the bedspread as he lifted his hips, pumping inside me, and felt another shudder as he tore a scream from my throat.

I went up into a squat position but before I could begin to pump him, he pounded me from below.

I leaned back. His strokes were so ferocious, I lost my balance.

He reached up and grabbed my arms, holding me in place as he speared relentlessly from below.

He grunted, striking, and stimulating me like no one ever before.

He sat up. Suddenly, we were face-to-face. He ground deep inside me.

Our mouths were close, within an inch and a half of each other, our breath panting back and forth, exchanging sweet air as we exchanged body blows.

He wrapped his arms around me, pinning my arms to my sides, a thin film of sweat merging our bodies.

He leaned forward to whisper in my ear and I hoped, I prayed, he wouldn't say the words I was desperate to hear.

"You're mine," he said.

He'd uttered the words to my secret kingdom, the words I wished he would not say.

Yes, I was his.

He grew harder, stiffer in my pussy.

And in a moment, his seed would be mine too.

He released my arms and let me fall back on the bedspread. He pulled himself from me and groaned as his seed spread across my stomach, the blast so powerful it reached my bare breasts.

He'd controlled himself where I had failed.