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Chapter 12

Harper

My body was all aglow, tingling in more places than I thought was possible. My core was a little achy, but I savored that feeling like it was a badge of honor. Nick's arm was sprawled over my middle while he laid face down at my side, his head angled toward me, and a smile curved his luscious mouth. I didn't need a blanket because he'd covered me with one of his silky wings. A warm, personal blanket with just the right amount of weight to make me feel completely safe and coveted. I loved it.

I really loved everything we'd been doing so far, but I kept feeling this stupid niggle at the back of my mind that I was acting irrationally, that I was moving too fast with this. I mean, Nick had stolen me from the Varakartoom. It wasn't hard to see that he hadn't had permission from his captain to take the shuttle and leave with me. It was exactly the behavior they had wanted to protect me from, and I'd been the one thwarting every effort Mandy had made to keep me safe.

Why had I done that? Because I had this hunch, this feeling , that Nick was my best, biggest ally. He was the one person I could trust in the universe, the crazy big, alien-filled universe. I didn't even feel all that scared about the idea of facing Batok and his creepy huge mouth, or the vault. Okay, maybe visiting the vault still really freaked me out. I broke out in a cold sweat just thinking about that place, but I wouldn't be alone, and Nick was really good at breaking out of places. He'd proven that already.

I thought about what my grandmother, who'd raised me on her own, would say about Nick. It was a fun idea to picture him sitting at her breakfast table in her kitchen as she interviewed him. It would be an interview, the interrogation kind because my gran was a battle-hardened ex-cop. I had definitely inherited my inquisitive nature from her.

She'd demand to know what he did for a living, where he'd gone to school, and even what his parents did. Then she'd lower her chin so she could pierce him with her gray eyes from above the rim of her glasses. "And what are your intentions, young man?" she'd say.

I could picture it so vividly that I felt a wave of tears clench my throat and burn at my eyes. When gran died a few weeks before I'd started college, I'd lost all chance of ever seeing scenes like that again. Which had intimidated enough high school boyfriends to send them running for the hills. I'd hated it at the time, funny how much I missed it now.

I had a feeling that Nick would calmly weather such an interrogation and love my gran for it. I could see him sit there calmly, wings draped over the back of his too-small wooden chair; it would groan beneath his bulk. Then he'd tell my gran I was his mate, that he'd protect me forever, that he'd die for me, and that would be it.

My throat tightened up even more, my breathing growing shallow. That was so freaking intense, but I knew that's exactly how it would go down. The thing was, I wasn't sure if my grandma would love him for it, or if she'd tell me to run like hell.

"So much thinking. Does your brain ever stop spinning, my little Novi?"Nick murmured in my ear. He hadn't opened his eyes, but unerringly, his hand raised to smooth a fingertip over my scrunched-up brow. My heart fluttered in my chest, that was cute, and he was cute; smiling tenderly like he was.

His eyes opened slowly, accompanied by a soft whispering noise as the feathered mohawk lifted and slid along the pillows. "I think everything is moving so fast. I'm having a hard time adjusting…" A really hard time, and things hadn't been easy that first time I'd woken in outer space. They had been horrible, terrifying, and I didn't know how to deal. Things felt faded like they had happened long ago, but that didn't mean I felt good about any of it. Especially not the slow starvation part in the vault.

"I understand," Nick said. His wing shifted along my body, tantalizing my bare skin with their silky touch. He rolled and tucked me into his arms against his chest; as naked as I was, that meant I felt every ridge and bump along his chest. My thigh was tucked even closer with a big palm, and I could feel his cocks, both of them, as they grew and stiffened against my skin.

A shot of arousal arrowed through my body and spasmed in my core; I wanted him, I desired him. It would be so simple to raise my leg a little higher and invite him in. That would push aside my worries for a moment, and I feared it would cloud my mind, rather than help me clear it. I didn't know what was the right choice. Create distance? Cling to the guy who made me feel safe? I was always strong and independent; I didn't like the thought of needing Nick to feel like myself. So what now?

At least Nick seemed to have a much better handle on the situation than I had. He stroked his hand along my back, his wing settling back down over us to keep me warm. "It's okay, Harper. You've been through a lot, and you're still standing. I'm so proud of you." He didn't turn his gentle petting into anything sexual, though his two very impressive lengths were thick, throbbing brands against my thigh and belly. "I propose, little Novi, that you are in charge now. You want my cocks? You're the one that tells me, until then, I will hold you, I will kiss you, but nothing else."

I tilted my chin so I could look him in the eye, giving him a suspicious look that made him smirk. "Is this your way of giving me space?" I asked, "If so, that's a sucky proposal. Hugging and kissing is not exactly giving me space." The bold statement made me feel warm inside because it was so obvious that he wanted me, and that giving me space did not come easy for him, yet he was trying anyway.

His brows lowered into a frown and from this close, I wondered if those tiny strands of dark red hair weren't tiny feathers. His voice was growly when he spoke, a hint of a sharp fang peeking at the corner of his mouth. "You are my mate, Harper. I will give you all the time in the world to find your feet again, to heal. But distance? No. That would kill me." His fingers tightened against my back, hinting at the strength he carried, and then the pressure eased. "I'm sorry, I know this is new to you, but Mithrakonin heat… I am controlling it, for you. I will control it as long as you need."

He slipped away then, rising to his feet next to the bed in all his naked glory. His wings spread wide in an impressive display, feathers raised tall and proud on his head. He even put his fists on his hips, and it drew my eyes to his cocks. Still erect, and now leaking a pearly white fluid, the thick lengths made my mouth water. Definitely a distraction.

"I read up on humans," he said, not as roughly as before, but still with a hint of that feral side of him. "They date, and then they get married. We will date first." Like that settled it, he spun away and disappeared into the tiny bathroom area tucked away against one wall of the ship. It left me with even more wildly spinning thoughts, a deeply aroused body, and no idea what I wanted.

It didn't strike me until later that morning when we were sitting in the cockpit area. Yeah, he was right. A bit of dating sounded like the normalcy I needed to steady myself again. And when he pulled up newsfeeds for me to research Batok, I had something to focus on too, a project. I could work on being this asshole's downfall, or at least write the best damn article about him ever. Combined with Nick's skills? We'd make one hell of an investigative team.

A purpose was exactly the answer I was looking for. And some fun on the side, to make good memories, light memories, while we got to know each other. That I liked too.

"So," Nick said after tapping away at his screens for a while, a silver orb humming gently by his head as it floated in the air. He said it was a recording drone, and he was tweaking its systems for optimizations, but that sounded complex and confusing. I liked how much his brains and rational side clashed with his primitive mating drive. "My research indicates we should have dinner together, and that we should talk. But I couldn't figure out what we were supposed to be talking about?"

I wanted to smother a laugh at his slightly baffled expression, and felt extremely flattered that he was doing research on how to date a human. Maybe dating a human was as foreign to him as it was to date a winged dude for me.

"We talk about the things we like, and we share about our past. Will you tell me how you became part of the Varakartoom's crew? I mean, it's probably a very selective process considering they claim to be the best of the best…" That had been hammered into me more than once everyone I'd met on the ship. They were proud of their reputation, and Mandy told me because she thought it would make me feel safe.

Nick tapped at a button and his drone lowered to the console in front of him and shut off. He turned his chair, so he was facing toward me, and then he leaned forward and propped his elbows on his knees. I was the center of his universe, and I felt like I was falling into him when I met his tigerite gaze.

"Okay," he said. "It's a long story." I thought he would deflect the question, but it was only a brief hesitation. He'd said okay, and if there was one thing I was sure of by now, it was that Nick always told me the truth. No, he was pulling a canteen of water from a nearby compartment and pressed it into my hands. I felt more at ease to be holding a source of water. "I have a strap for that one. You could carry it with you if you'd like," he offered.

I nodded eagerly, sipping from the cool water, and settled in for his story. Swept away by his low voice, the deep steady tones, as he told me in his own words what I'd already learned from Aramon the other day.

He painted a lovely picture of his homeworld and the brothers he'd shared the skies with before an intrepid raider had stolen him one day. His planet was advanced enough to teach him many computer skills, something he'd always been adept at, but they had had no warnings before that ship had swooped in and taken some of their number.

As far as Nick knew, nobody had tried to rescue them, but they were placed in stasis almost immediately. By the time he'd woken, none of his people remained on the Krektar raider ship, and they'd reached the Zeta quadrant. They put him to work in the engine room of the limping spaceship to help get it to their destination. Then they sold him to some rich guy who'd trained him for a few months before putting him on the arena sands.

That part sounded baffling to me, and I made a note of the practice so I could research it later. It was enough to know that enslaved males, and even females, were pitted against one another in primitive fights for the entertainment of the rich. Nick had actually been grinning when he talked about that period in his life like it wasn't something awful but a fun outlet for his aggressive side.

"Yeah," he agreed when I asked him, "My species is very volatile as young males and adolescents, and I was only eighteen cycles. The sands let me act out so I could control myself and hatch my escape plan. It only took me a few months to break their security system. I got all the males in that stable out, and then hitched a ride to the Yengar space station. It's a very lawless place and I could blend in."

"And that's where you met the captain of the Varakartoom?" I asked while I wondered about the stealing part that Aramon had implied. I couldn't picture anyone stealing from the forbidding, scary-looking Asmoded, he was just too intimidating.

Nick rolled a shoulder, his wings rustling behind his back. "Oh that, I would have gotten away with it too, but Solear bumped into me as I made my escape. I only stole enough of his credits so I could live for a week. He looked rich, so I figured he wouldn't miss it." I expected him to add "and the rest is history," like Aramon had, but he explained how his stealing had impressed Asmoded, and he'd offered him a job.

He grinned, "And as you know, I apparently have a penchant for stealing things. These days it's data I steal, but I'm making a special exception for you. Mithrakon actually find that a very acceptable courting practice."

His feather mohawk rose along his head in a proud display, his wings raised too, spreading to show me how big they were, and the bright red that tipped them. I was suitably impressed, and a little amused, not to mention a tiny bit turned on. Nick was sexy, and it was extremely intense and flattering to be the center of his attention, like I was. I had never had a guy want me this much, and I really liked it.

I'd been leading this conversation, constantly plying him with questions, and he'd let me. But when he flipped the tables, I found I didn't mind talking about my own life to him. Usually, I was a guarded person when it came to the private stuff, but I already had so much history with him that it felt natural to talk about my badass police detective gran, and how my parents had died in a car crash when I was young.

An alarm went off when I was fondly recalling how my grandma had bailed me out at school after a practical joke gone wrong. Nick's eyes lingered for a long second on my face, those alien tigerite orbs promising me that he wanted to hear the rest, that our conversation wasn't over. Only then did he focus on what his computers were telling him. The alarm should worry me, but I felt safe; Nick would take care of this.

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