Page 31 of The Arabis Triad

“It is my pleasure to carry you,” Paxt said.

As they progressed down the corridor, the smell of fresh, warm, humid air greeted her. She glimpsed into open rooms as they passed, counting four bedrooms, a room filled with supplies, and another with bits and pieces of technology she had no idea about.

“Yes, but I need to walk,” she said. “It will be good to stretch my legs after so long not being able to.”

Paxt stilled and let her slide down his body. She was aware of every ridge and dip of his muscular frame, and of the hardness from a part of him that had her blushing. Surely he still couldn’t be aroused?

“Forgive me. It is hard to control my base bodily functions when you are so close,” he said.

Well, there was the answer to that question. He could. He was. And he was completely unashamed, if the heat in which he looked at her was any indication.

An answering quiver of excitement pooled low in her belly.

His fingers tightened infinitesimally on her shoulders. “The exit is just here. Come, let’s go before I act rashly.”

She nodded and turned around to the full force of a tropical, warm day. She breathed in deeply. It was so good to feel fresh air in her lungs. As she ascended the threshold, she was reminded how it felt stepping from the cocooned coolness of a plane and onto the tarmac in far north Queensland.

Around her, a slight breeze brushed enormous bright-green leaves. Talk about accelerated growth in a tropical climate. She hadn’t realized how thick and lush the flora was when she’d stumbled through it before. Then again, she hadn’t been thinking too clearly at all, given the circumstances.

Running from the safety of the jet was such a stupid thing to do. There could be anything out here, but when she looked to where Ashir and Coltan waited at the base of the ramp, grinning, she knew she wouldn’t have to fear anything that might be lurking behind a leaf.

She walked down the ramp, her boots clanging with each step. She was going to get hot in them, but for the moment, a lightness touched her heart and no amount of hot feet was going to pull her out of it. She’d gone through too much not to take a small measure of enjoyment when she could. She only hoped the other girls were doing okay.

When she reached the ground, Ashir caught her chin beneath his knuckle. “Hey, your mind slipped for a moment. Everything fine in that head of yours?”

She smiled, willing the cloud of darkness away. “Just wondering how the others are doing. I never asked about them before. I should have thought of that.”

Coltan nodded, forking his fingers gently through her hair. “I don’t think you were in any condition to think about anything else but yourself. As you know, Lucie is in the care of the Erion royals.”

“Is she their… mate… also?”

“They wouldn’t have taken her without knowing that to be true,” Ashir said. He was so serious, she almost asked for him to smile again. She liked seeing him smile. “They will take great care of her. You have our word.”

Deep down, she knew it was true. If Lucie was treated with the same consideration she was, then her safety would be assured. These aliens didn’t seem to mistreat women. In fact, they seemed to find anything like that completely abhorrent.

They should come to Earth sometime. It would be an eye-opener for them. They could teach a few things to a whole lot of men.

She placed her hand over Coltan’s. “I believe you.”

His expression softened, the lines around his eyes easing.

“As soon as we hear more about your friend we shall share it with you, but for now, you are our concern. You need our date and that is what we are going to do,” Paxt said. “Come. Let us show you the lake.”

He took her hand, and they walked after Ashir through a path only he could see, followed by Coltan. She was surrounded by big, burly bodies that were poised to protect her from anything untoward.

The tight muscles bunching her shoulders eased as cool, dewy leaves brushed her arm. Paxt slowed, and the next she knew, he presented her with a gorgeous flower. The blood-red petals were delicate and frilled. Perfume filled the air. He brushed her hair and placed the flower behind her ear.

He smiled at her. If she thought he was handsome before, he’d just transformed to stunning.

“Perfection,” he whispered.

Her heart stuttered.

He didn’t want her to answer, but simply took her hand and kept walking as though what he’d gifted her was no big deal. She’d never had a boyfriend who’d given her even supermarket flowers for Valentine’s Day, and none who had taken her out for dinner without expecting ‘payment’ when they’d brought her back home. In the end, she’d given up. It wasn’t worth the effort.

Still, it was more than that. Her heart hadn’t stirred one little bit with any of them, but now, there was a lightness—a rightness—in her chest. One simple gesture was more thoughtful, and more honest, than she’d ever experienced. Even from her mother.

She had to think about something else, otherwise she was going to be a mess.

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