6. ALICE

ALICE

Just like every morning during the past weeks or months—I had long lost track of time—I woke on a soft mattress, covered by a soft and light blanket.

Different from waking up like on the other days, though, was the way the air smelled. Where it was usually filled with many cloying, sweet scents, this morning it smelled fresh instead, with just a hint of a flowery fragrance. Also different was the lighting. I blinked my eyes open and was pleasantly surprised and momentarily disoriented when they didn't meet the usual artificial low glow I had grown accustomed to, but by a slightly violet tone that, aside from the color, reminded me of home. Most of all, it was the void of sound that caught my attention. No, not complete void; there was something. Something I couldn't quite place yet, but none of the usual sounds of snoring, crying, low voices talking, or even the occasional farts—yes, when left to their own devices, a group of females could be just as disgusting as a group of men.

My mind still felt a bit fuzzy, like waking up after a night of heavy drinking and partying hard. With that, first came back the sensation of walking on clouds, accompanied by a feeling of lightness where nothing unpleasant could touch me.

At that thought, the image of a blue alien came back to me. Rushed through me like a lightning bolt, and without thinking about consequences or anything, I sat up straight, making myself dizzy in the process, but the pounding of my heart overshadowed that sensation too.

My head swiveled left and right, surveying my unfamiliar surroundings. The sound of his voice directed my gaze straight toward the object of my musings.

"You're awake."

Belying his size, he moved gracefully and quietly like a giant cat. His orange glowing eyes and—I gulped—fangs emphasized the image. Not even his blue coloring deterred from the image.

"Hel—lo." I stuttered, watching him reach my bedside with three easy strides, even though he had been at the other end of the large room.

He sat down on the edge of the bed. I scooted back against the headboard as far as I could, clutching a sheet to my chest while realizing at the same time that I was nude underneath it.

"I'm glad you're awake. I was worried," he said in a deep voice that reminded me of smooth old whiskey.

"Where… where am I?" I asked, heat rising into my cheeks at the memory of him stroking me, seeing me naked, touching my breasts, and—I cut my train of thoughts off right there.

"You are on a planet called Zypheria, I am Zayden."

"Alice." My lips twitched at the absurdity of courtesy in our situation.

I lowered my lashes, afraid of his answer but needing to know. "Why am I here?"

"Alice," he said instead, rolling my name, making it sound almost sexual and arousing. So much so, I needed to take a steadying breath to suppress shivers of pleasure running down my spine.

Who was this man arousing more sexual desire in me than I had experienced during the last ten years of my life? I had always been more of an intimate girl, preferring snuggles to the actual act of sex, which frankly left me more often craving satisfaction than giving it unless I took matters into my own hands. Not this man, though. Oh no.

This blue alien, who should have made me run out the door faster than my feet could carry me, kindled embers inside me that I sensed he would be able to sustain and stroke until they became an inferno that would consume me and leave me boneless.

I sensed it with every instinct of a female inside me, long buried, primal instincts, from a time when a woman had to find the strongest, bravest man to ensure her and her children's survival.

His hand moved up, and his long, thick fingers caressed my cheek so gently that it nearly brought tears to my eyes.

"You are going to be my queen, Alice."

All kinds of thoughts moved through me at that statement. None of them believed that when he said queen, he actually meant queen. I had met many men who referred to their wives as the queen of their heart or world, or whatever, so that's what I thought Zayden meant.

Yes, I had noticed my palatial surroundings, but I had already concluded that a man who would buy a woman from whatever these creatures were who took me would have the means to live a luxurious life. I couldn't imagine universal sex trafficking to be any cheaper than Earth sex trafficking—not that I had the first clue on that or the prices of it.

"What does that mean? That I'm going to be an honored sex slave?" I asked more bitterly than I meant to, but with him, I felt strangely safe and able to put some of my pent-up anger into words.

His smile quirked. "You're not my sex slave, Alice. You're going to be my queen. We will be officially married as soon as you're better, and then you will be crowned. The gods have willed it so."

"The gods have…" I trailed off, realizing that he was serious. That I was going to be a queen of an honest-to-God alien species. I should have been relieved. This was the best outcome that could have happened after my capture, but I wasn't. Instead, more anger boiled inside me.

"You had me taken from Earth, without asking me if I wanted to, and expect me to marry you?" I accused, even though my mind and heart both told me to shut up. That this was a good thing, and I was only endangering myself with my little temper fit.

He leaned back from me, his expression turned distant. "I did not have you abducted. That's on the traders. I did, however, purchase you from them."

His head tilted. "Considering who else might have purchased you, maybe you should display some gratitude."

I knew I should have kept my stupid mouth shut, but for some reason, his arrogance only infuriated me more. "Gratitude?" I spat. "You don't get me to be grateful to you." I moved off the bed, grabbing the sheet with me to cover myself. "If you want me to be grateful, you would take me home, to Earth."

Now he looked downright stricken as I moved farther away from him. Toward the wide open balcony, where silky curtains fluttered slightly in a breeze coming from outside.

My curiosity overwrote my anger momentarily, and like a moth drawn to the light, I stepped out of the room and onto the balcony, while my breath caught in my throat. The view was amazing. Stunning. Alien and yet beautiful.

He moved fast, and had I not been so captivated by the sight, I would have noticed the alarm on his features, but I only registered a hard grip on my upper arm as if he worried I would jump.

"Alice." It was the tone in his voice that alerted me to his suspicion.

"Oh no." I nearly laughed at him. "I'm not gonna make this easy on you and jump."

I never took my eyes off the aqua-clear water ahead of me nor the silvery sand on which shimmering waves broke. The horizon was dipped in a light purplish hue, the same as the iridescent clouds far above. To the left I saw a foggy outline of another planet that appeared to be incredibly close, and if that wasn't enough to make me realize I truly was on an alien planet, a deep red sun, and small alien spacecrafts flying this way and that through the sky, like light grey cigars, would have. Between the balcony and the beach was a city, sparkling and, from the looks of it, flourishing. There, too, the same kind of cigar shaped spaceships moved through the air, reminding me of cars on Earth, except that these flew in lines instead of drove.

The streets below were filled with mostly the same kind of blue aliens as the man standing next to me, still holding on to my arm, but there were others too. Shorter, taller, thicker, thinner. Different colors, but that was all I could make out from the distance.

The buildings came in all shapes, round, square, cylindric. Some reminded me more of tall, skinny towers or obelisks, making me wonder if anybody lived in them.

"It's beautiful, isn't it? It's only part of your new realm." Zayden said, prideful.

It was. It truly was, but like a petulant child, I repeated my earlier words, "I want to go home."

"Won't you give it even a chance?" He sidled closer, his hand relinquished my arm and slung it around my waist instead. "You didn't seem to mind my embrace yesterday."

"I was drugged," I reminded him, not willing to admit that, yes, part of me was sexually attracted to him. Very much so.

That seemed to take the wind out of his sails, though, and his posture stiffened slightly.

"You wish me to return you to the traders?" he demanded.

I swallowed at the reminder that it was him who bought me, him who held all the power over me, and that my little childish temper tantrum was only that. Like a child, he could have me punished.

"I want to go home," I insisted despite my better judgment and the sudden fear threatening to choke my throat.

He sighed audibly. "I cannot send you home. I'm sorry. I can send you back to the traders if you wish, or I can set you up in my city if I'm truly that repulsive to you. There are other pale blondes among your group I can pick instead."

Each of his words were like a stab to my heart. To my surprise, the idea that he might find Luisa or Kristen more attractive than me and would pick one of them didn't sit well with me, even less than the prospect of returning to the traders. Worse than that, the idea of one of the others lying with him on that bed, enjoying his embrace, filled my stomach with dread.