9 Cylene

My hip still stings from where Vitus bit me. His teeth are sharp and drew blood but summoned a glorious warmth I didn't expect. It will be a bite mark among many. But this one was of possession, not aggression.

As odd as it rings in my mind, his act makes me feel wanted.

I struggle to answer his question as he guides my wrist to his lips and inhales me again. His radiant eyes close, and his body tenses in waves.

I think he's holding back for me. He asked my permission. But I have no idea what he means by serving me.

"Please, Cylene. Let me do something for you. Just you. You can tell me to stop any time." His voice is a low rumble that sends jitters of anticipation through me. And even though he wears a the uniform of a soldier, I can tell by the stretch in the shoulders and thighs that he is fiercely robust and built to break what stands in his way.

My pulse quickens as I consider it. Maybe it's an instinct trained into me to obey or an element of curiosity that convinces me. "I don't really know what you're talking about."

His ribs swell with a deep breath. He grumbles with a soft clicking sound that makes my pussy clench.

But this isn't what I want—to be here in a room with a male—alone.

I wanted to win. And yet my conviction softens as his warm breath climbs my arm then falls over my neck.

Vitus chews a lip and hesitates. I wonder if he's changed his mind.

"You can just let me go." I don't want to find myself in someone else's control and suddenly regret ever signing up for this damned race.

"We discussed that," he counters.

I stare down his broad back to the mirror on the far wall and realize just how small I am compared to him.

"I saw how the other males looked at you," he adds. "And I don't think you're safe leaving here without a guard. Some of them will try to make you theirs. My kind believe it must be mutual, or it is dishonorable. And the dishonored are banished to space."

I didn't sign up just to be controlled by someone else.

But when he delicately peels my collar back and sees the bruises on my neck, he softens his grip. Vitus cautiously drags the zipper down my front and takes a closer look. "Please tell me who hurt you."

"My half-brother and father. I'm supposed to cook, clean, and work to pay their bills."

His handsome, edgy face quirks as if he's confused. He studies me for a long moment, then lowers his lips to my ear. "I have a proposition. I will protect you while you're here. We can go our separate ways after this, but since we both are locked into being here, let's make a show of things and let everyone else get paired so you will be safe. I can give you what you need to escape your family. A new name, money, a ship if you want it."

It sounds like a decent plan, but I don't know if I should trust an alien I've only just met. "Sounds like a bill of goods to me. Too good to be true."

"Nytheralians are known for integrity, self-sacrifice, and honor." His hot breath feathers over my neck. He hangs his head and closes his eyes. "I'm sorry."

When he looks up at me again, his eyes are filled with bright blue light. His lips press in against the bruises, evoking a tender pain that nudges my heart. "Males do not harm females on my planet, or they answer to the High Council. Generals dole the consequences."

I am a quivering, hot mess of flesh and bones as he guides me back on the bed.

"Let me serve you," he whispers. "I wish only to make you feel good and forget this pain."

I can't get the words out with the way his commanding presence steals my breath.

He slowly unzips my suit and glides a finely scaled hand inside down my navel. Vitus nuzzles inside and frees a breast from my bra, then suckles my nipple once. As he leans back, his fingers my bud and massage it gently.

A wave of scintillating passion grips me with primal force.

Vitus doesn't touch his uniform as he undresses me. His teeth graze my side as he frees my arms from the sleeves. The bra Sia packed for me is far too small. When Vitus unhooks it and I spill free of the fabric, his body tenses. His fingers, still playing in my slick folds, pause. I am more than he expected.

He beams at me, then looks away and takes a deep breath. "I am not going to lie. I want you, Cylene. But I am not a wild youngling."

I'm suddenly curious just what I've got myself into. I haven't been with a Nytheralian. The strangely shaped condoms have me wondering exactly what his manhood looks like.

Vitus caresses a breast in admiration. "Tell me what you enjoy."

"Anything is better than where I've come from." As I say it, I discover a new possibility that I hadn't before. I'm just not sure that whatever life Vitus could offer would be better than freedom.

He leans forward and curls his broad, forked tongue over my nipple. The hot, subtly bumpy texture of him floods me with unfamiliar and invigorating sensations.

He nibbles me twice before raking his teeth down my side. Vitus works my race suit off of my hips. I couldn't fight him if I wanted to. And the climbing pleasure he's evoking has me wondering where it will end.

When he lays me back and sees the bite mark, there's a mixture of satisfaction and remorse that clash on his face. Then he wraps his arms around my hips and draws my underwear down with his teeth.

I am exposed and vulnerable on his bed and wondering if this is how things are supposed to go.

His eyes narrow as he parts my legs and inhales another deep breath of me. The heat that pours from his lips makes me clench and ache to be filled.

Vitus roots his mouth deep in my delicate flesh and hungrily suckles my center.

Fiery need courses through me, making me arch and squirm, straining to find release.

Vitus grunts in victory and licks me. "Progress."

His short beard tickles my thighs and makes me yelp a laugh. I cover my mouth, surprised and embarrassed. But Vitus isn't deterred as he flicks his tongue over my clit, raising my high to a deliciously uncontrollable urge to pull him into me.

He seems to pick up on my need and lowers himself until only the top of his head is visible. Vitus plunges his tongue inside, satisfying a pathetic fraction of what I crave and building it into something stronger.

He pushes deeper, and I start to wonder just how long his tongue is. The heat of him as he withdraws and penetrates me again has me struggling for breath. I clench around him as my ecstasy climbs.

Vitus's hands claw into my thighs and draw me firmer over his face. He doesn't stop for air as he takes me with his powerful tongue. He mutters his encouragement into me.

An exhilarating frenzy takes over as I buck uncontrollably on his thick, forked tongue. I tense hard as the orgasmic tremors devour me.

Vitus gasps when he finally surfaces from between my legs. His clawed-up hands relax and rub my skin. The monster of an alien kisses the inside of my thigh, then gets up, walks into the bathroom, and shuts the door.

He growls. Something cracks and shatters.

I push myself up on the bed, still out of breath, and climb back into my race suit with shaky limbs.

Vitus groans like he's in agony.

Concerned, I get myself upright and knock lightly on the door. "Are you okay?"

He sighs. Three footsteps later, the door cracks open. His uniform top is missing. The scales that decorate his body shimmer with iridescence under the bathroom's light. "I'm fine."

He moves to close the door when I catch the dark patch on his chest.

I stop him. "Don't lie to me."

He looks down. "Let me clean up, and I'll be out in a second."

"Can I get you some ice?"

"No." Vitus shuts the door.

I jump back at his abrupt change in attitude and glance at the door leading out of his room. I could run.

I could disappear, and no one would ever find me. Right?

But I think Vitus might have known what I needed because he's been hurt himself. I think it might be something we have in common.

The door opens, and Vitus appears in his uniform with a damp spot on his front. "You didn't run."

"I thought about it," I admit. "But—" I point to his chest. "You're hurt."

"I'm past the worst of it." The dismissive way he says it makes me think he isn't, not entirely.

"Can I help?"

"Maybe." He rubs a smudge off of a gold badge on his dark blue uniform and inspects himself. "Perhaps I should change."

I can't get over the fact that he's blue. The theory we all originated from the same ancient species millennia ago and adapted to our unique worlds comes to mind as I reflect on the various alien shapes and colors from the race arena. I can definitely see the similar human characteristics, but his forked tongue is not something I can relate to ever having encountered in a man before.

Vitus slips past me, grabs a fresh uniform out of the closet and returns to the bathroom. But when he shuts the door this time, it doesn't latch, not completely. I hesitate, afraid of what he's capable of when his kind gets angry. But curiosity drives me to look.

I nudge the door just enough that I can watch him slip into his pants. The rippling muscles in his thighs and back bulge as he zips up and puts on his gear belt. When he leans forward to collect his shirt from the counter, my interest grows too strong. I bump the door just enough that it catches his attention. Vitus' eyes meet mine with surprising precision.

His glance startles me. I turn away and press my back against the wall. I'm starting to think he doesn't want me to see him, and it's why he didn't mate with me. I just can't figure why he would be self-conscious when he's clearly a prime soldier that's tough enough to take hits and still chase me down.

Vitus steps out, face washed and in a clean uniform. "Are you still up for pretending for a week? I will give you the money you need and your freedom."

"What if I want something different?" I ask, eyeing his broad shoulders. I've never had anyone make me feel quite like he did.

"I will give you whatever I can."

"And what do I give you in return?"

"I don't need anything." He reaches for my face and then seems to change his mind. "Are you ready for the Mingle Celebration?"

"If we must."

I follow him out the door and down the hallway, all the while wondering what it is that he needs. He told me he wanted me yet refused to give in to his desire. There's something buried deep I need to uncover.

Perhaps I can help him like he plans to help me. Either way, I'm certain we're not meant to be mated. He's a soldier: honorable, daring, and protective. I'm an escapee of servitude: an illegal hunter, a runaway, and aimless without the prize money.