Chapter 8

Chapter

Eight

LYRA

W hen I woke, it was to the sun streaming in through the floor-to-ceiling windows, a rhythmic banging coming from the terrace, and… full-on body aches.

Sore indeed , I thought, moaning a little as I rolled, blinking some of the sleepiness from my eyes. My cheek was pressed into the most comfortable bed I'd ever laid in. Like I was sleeping on a cloud. A puffy, perfect cloud.

"What time is it?" I whispered, feeling like every last muscle in my body was tight and throbbing.

Groaning, I managed to push up from the bed and gently slide from underneath the covers.

And what was that banging? Droxan must be doing some work outside, I decided. It sounded like hammering.

Which only served to remind me of my dreams. I remembered that at some point last night, I'd woken up in the throes of an orgasm—not something that happened particularly often though I hadn't been surprised by it in the least. I was stressed and aroused. A perfect time for a wet dream about my Luxirian rescuer.

Though…I hoped that Droxan hadn't heard me. He'd slept out in the sunken living room and I was pretty certain I'd been moaning as I swirled my hips against his bed, seeking friction in my half-asleep state. I'd dropped back into the dream immediately afterwards but gods , that would be embarrassing if he heard.

Blowing out a calming breath, I stood, wincing. I should have taken the pain injections last night before I went to bed.

I hobbled out of the room and into the bathroom. Quickly, I did my business and splashed my face with cool water. Combing my fingers through my hair, I peered at myself in the mirror. My hazel eyes were surprisingly bright. Despite the soreness, despite my tight neck, and the bruises that were starting to bloom on my arms from where they'd hit the life pod walls, I felt…good. In a good head space considering the events of yesterday.

I'd wanted a vacation, hadn't I? Before I got pregnant? Before a baby came? While this wasn't exactly what I'd had in mind, there was no denying this planet was beautiful. The climate was agreeable. This house was like a luxury hotel with a hot chef to match.

I shook my head, watching my lips quirk up in the mirror at the direction of my thoughts. Then my smile slowly died. Droxan had done a lot for me already when he hadn't needed to. I'd meant what I said yesterday. I didn't want to take advantage of his hospitality. If I could help him with anything while I was here, I was eager to do it.

I'd been independent my entire life. Growing up without parents, without a support system I could count on…I wouldn't wish it on anyone. But I'd been fortunate. Eventually, I'd been placed with a quiet human family near the outskirts of Brune. Though they'd never been particularly warm , they still provided a safe home for me and five other children of varying species, three meals every day, and an education. I'd taken that education and took the first job I'd found. In a docking port office on Qa'r, where I'd stayed for two years until it got too sketchy for a single female to live alone.

Then I'd seen the advertisement for a merchant's assistant on Wero and I'd taken it without a second thought. Wero was a small colony but known to be safe. I'd been there ever since, creating my structured, dependable life. Creating my routines.

And this place? It definitely breaks my routine , I thought. I still wanted to be useful, however. If Droxan wouldn't take my money, then he should accept my help . With whatever he needed. I refused to freeload off his kindness.

Though it's nice to be taken care of , I couldn't help but think. For once .

It still brought shivers racing down my spine when I thought of him telling me he'd take care of me. It soothed some deep-seated fear that was rooted perpetually in my belly. I responded to it.

I left the bathroom, smoothing the tunic down my hips, and went off in search of him.

When I stepped outside the domed dwelling, I was confused when the sun was bright overhead. How long had I been sleeping? It was warm, hotter than it'd been yesterday, the air humid.

I followed the banging, venturing down the wraparound terrace, my bare feet meeting warm stones.

Peeking around the corner, I spied Droxan, his back to me. Shirtless and gleaming. Luxirian's skin reflected light and he looked golden, the sun's rays mixing with the color glinting off the terrace. His sculpted back muscles flexed as he hammered, striking what looked like a metal pipe.

There was a large machine set up down the terrace wall and Droxan was straddling the banister as he worked on it. My mouth went a little dry watching him, a dull throbbing beginning between my thighs, remembering my dream, remembering the sharp, aching pleasure of my unsatisfying orgasm.

He can satisfy me , I thought.

I knew he could.

He was all male. All masculine, hardened planes of muscle and strength. How would he feel over my body? How would he feel pressing me down, swirling his hips, that ridged cock seated deep inside me?

I must've made a sound because the hammering stopped and Droxan turned. I felt flushed where I stood and embarrassed that I'd clearly slept for half the day when he was out here working so hard.

Those eyes zeroed in on me. There was an intensity in his gaze, an intensity that had awareness spiraling through me. Deep awareness of his presence. I held my breath.

He rose from the bannister, swinging those long legs over it effortlessly and gracefully. But Luxirians had once been a warrior race before many had scattered among the stars. They'd been known for their agility, their ferocity, the command they had over their bodies.

"Good morning," I said. I'd meant for my tone to sound bright and chirpy and what I got instead was husky and low. I cleared my throat, trying again, when I smiled at him a bit sheepishly, "I guess I slept in a little late, huh?"

Droxan approached me, his legs eating up the space between us. And when he got within an arm's length of me, he froze. His nostrils flaring. His pupils dilated, the black widening, and his shoulders seemed to bunch.

Shit .

One thing about living with different alien species was that it made you realize how lacking humans' senses truly were. Once, I had a neighbor—a hulking Tyul with a lizard-like snout—three doors down complain about my perfume and whenever I cooked braised skitter fish.

Humans? We were blissfully ignorant.

He smells how turned on I am , I knew, frantically, my pulse pounding.

He could smell my arousal.

Droxan stared at me hard .

Inhaling a sharp breath, I pretended that I didn't see the growing erection in his pants. He was a male. Living alone on this planet. He'd just scented a female's arousal. Of course he'd be affected, I reasoned.

Captain's Log, Day Two…how the fuck am I ever going to get off this planet before jumping this Luxirian's bones?

Thankfully, a stiff breeze blew between us right at that very moment, blowing away whatever he was smelling.

He blinked, his shoulders loosening, the metal hammer hanging loosely in his hand.

The breeze did nothing to help his obvious boner, however, but I would be polite and try not to stare too hard.

His voice was absolutely delicious—husky and deep—when he said, "Did you sleep well?"

"A little too well, I'd say," I murmured, peeking up at him from below my lashes. "You have a very comfortable bed."

I could hear his swallow and it sent an addicting thrill through me.

"It's Horrin made," he said.

My eyes widened, my jaw going slack. "It is?"

Horrin beds were like…the top of the top of luxury. Crazy expensive because each one was stuffed to the brim with Horrin grown ree fibers, which took five years to mature. I'd never thought to see one in person, much less sleep on one.

His smile went a little sheepish— adorable —and he rubbed his hand over the back of his neck, which drew my eyes like a magnet to his chest. A purring sound came from his throat.

"I'm horribly spoiled," he told me, his voice dropping again. "I visited Horrin to source supplies once and now I cannot sleep if it's not on one of their beds."

Which made guilt wiggle in my chest, mixing with my arousal. Because he'd slept in the living room while I'd taken up the entirety of his massive bed.

But I knew he hadn't wanted to make me uncomfortable with that fact because his face went stricken.

I smiled, feigning ignorance, and said, "Now I'll be spoiled when I leave. How will I ever go back to my peasant cot after this?"

A deep rumble of a laugh left him. I nearly gaped. It was rich and velvety and wonderful . I wanted to hear that laugh again, even as soon as it ended. I found myself missing it as soon as it was over.

"You had a rough day yesterday," he murmured next, stepping closer, making my heart jolt in excitement. "It's only natural your body would need the extra sleep. How do you feel? Sore? Would you like a pain injection?"

"Yes, please," I said. Moving around helped a little but there was still a deep ache. A pain injection would melt it away almost immediately.

Droxan inclined his head before jerking it towards the front of his domed house. "Inside," he murmured. When I turned, he fell into step beside me, his hand coming to the small of my back, guiding me forward.

I didn't know why I found that so sexy, but I did. It made my bones feel like jelly and I figured that there was no way around it: Droxan better get used to scenting my arousal because it would be everywhere .

It's definitely the fertility pre-treatments , I reasoned again. My hormones were spinning out of control. My body wanted a baby and here was a very virile looking, strong, protector of a male, whose lap I'd figuratively fallen into.

My hormones never stood a chance, I realized, barely hiding my groan.

"What's wrong?" he asked, frowning. "I can give you a double dose if you need it."

"No, it's nothing," I said quickly, shooting him a smile. "One will be fine."

It was much cooler inside, making me realize I'd begun to sweat out on the terrace. Droxan went to the washroom and I followed him, watching as he wiped his palm across a tile of the wall, a hidden shelf whirring out smoothly.

He gestured for me to come closer as he prepped the injection. Then he maneuvered me bodily, stilling when he saw the line of bruises up my arms, a rough sound escaping his lips.

"It's okay," I told him, reacting on instinct when my gut told me he was upset to see them. That alone made me soften towards him. That alone made me realize how incredibly safe I was with him…if he didn't even like seeing me bruised . "They don't bother me."

His eyes connected with mine. We were close. So incredibly close and I could see every fragmented, glittering shade of icy blue in his eyes. Beautiful.

Slowly, I reached out my palm to touch the center of his bare chest. His shoulders seemed to rise at the gentle contact, his eyes flickering dangerously. Beneath my palm, I felt the thud of his heart, faster than mine.

A little pinch came against my arm but I never took my eyes off him. Mere moments later, I felt the injection begin to work as I squeezed my thighs together. The soreness in my body slowly melted away.

"Better?" came his soft voice, nearly a whisper in the small space between us.

"Yes," I responded. I slid my fingers down the very center of his chest, hearing his hitched breath, and then I dropped my hand back down to my side. "Thank you, Droxan."

He swallowed and inclined his head. The air seemed to have been sucked from the washroom and I struggled to fight the lust-fueled fog in my brain. I'd wanted to speak to him about something, right?

"Oh," I said. "Um, there's something I wanted to talk to you about."

His brow furrowed and I took that moment to step back, putting space between us, my hip nudging the sharp counter of stone.

" Tev ?"

"Since I'll be here for a week?—"

"At least," he amended, grunting.

"Yes, since I'll be here for a week at least , and since you won't accept payment for?—"

He growled.

And I dropped it entirely as I said, trying to brighten my tone so it didn't sound like I worked at an inter-Quadrant sex hotline, "I want to be of use to you."

He stilled.

Immediately, my dirty mind processed those words, thinking of all the ways I could be of use to him, most of which involved me bending over this counter and lifting the tunic that he'd loaned me. A part of me just wanted to leave the words as they were…to let him decide what he wanted to do with them.

I cleared my throat, adding, "To help you if you have anything for me to do. I…I'm not really the manual labor type of girl but I can try!"

"You…" he trailed off, running a hand over one of his black horns as he peered at me intently, "you think I would ask you to do manual labor ?"

Uh oh, did I offend him?

Abort, abort, bend over the counter and lift your tunic , my ridiculous mind screamed.

"Or I can do…organizing! Office work, I mean. That's what I do on Wero. I'm a merchant's assistant, so I know my way around the coms," I scrambled. "I'm also a pretty good cook, if I do say so myself."

Droxan blew out a sharp breath. "Lyra."

I swallowed. Liking it too much whenever he said my name like that.

"Yes?" I asked, smiling up at him.

"What do you know about Luxirian males?"

That…wasn't what I expected him to ask.

What everyone else knew, I supposed. That they descended from great, albeit brutal, warriors. That they purred to their mates when they were distressed. That they had a fated mate Instinct, like a few select races through the Quadrants. That they were a strong, powerful, wealthy, respected race among the universe.

That they have very grippable horns , I silently added.

"Um, not much," I squeaked instead.

"One thing you should know is that we do not expect our females—or our guests—to repay us for anything ."

Why did my heart skip at our females ?

I sniffed, meeting his eyes. "And what do you know about humans?"

He took a step closer and it only made me squeeze my thighs tighter together when his musky scent reached my nostrils. I had the insane urge to rub my cheek against him, to breathe him in, fill up my lungs with him.

"That you apparently have this driving need to repay things you consider debts," he grumbled.

I couldn't help but laugh. A soft chuckle that had his eyes softening and his shoulders loosening. That was interesting.

"I don't want to take advantage of your kindness," I told him honestly, reaching out my hand to take his own. His palm was rough and I squeezed to emphasize my point. "I've been independent my whole life. So it's hard for me to just sit back and not try to help you in some way when you've already helped me so much."

Droxan went quiet, studying me, those crystal blue eyes flickering back and forth between my hazel ones.

"Please," I said quietly. "Anything at all. You'll make me very happy if you'll let me help you with something ."

Then he squeezed my hand.

I wondered what he heard in my voice to make him change his mind, but he finally relented and said, "I'm working on repairing the water catch system today. You can…keep me company and hand me my tools when I need them. Tev ?"

My lips threatened a smile. His tone made it seem like he was asking me to haul boulders on my back up a cliff all day.

I think I might like him , I thought.

It was as good as I'd probably get from him. Lounging on the terrace on a beautiful, sunny day as I watched him work up a sweat? As I was forced to keep this Luxirian company who I was steadily becoming a little besotted with?

The horror .

"Deal," I said, beaming.