Page 39 of Wrecked By My Alien Mentor

I grit my teeth, my claws extending as I swipe at him. He ducks, his laugh grating against my ears. “What’s the matter? Can’t keep up?”

Another blow, this time to my temple. My vision blurs, but I shake it off, lunging forward. I catch him by the arm, twisting hard enough to hear something pop. He snarls, his free hand slamming into my side. Pain flares, but I hold on, slamming him into the pavement.

“You’re outmatched, Luhr,” I growl, my voice a low rumble.

He grins, blood staining his teeth. “Am I? Or are you just too stubborn to admit you’re losing?”

Cora’s voice cuts through the chaos. “Orion, watch out!”

I turn just in time to avoid a kick aimed at my head. Luhr’s speed is relentless—every move he makes is a blur. My body aches from the hits I couldn’t dodge, but I force myself to stay focused.

He lands another blow, this time to my gut. I stagger, but I’m not done yet. I grab him by the throat, my claws digging into his scales. His eyes widen as I slam him into the ground once, twice, until the green of his scales is stained red with his own blood.

“Nobody threatens my Cora,” I roar, my grip tightening. His claws scratch at my arm, but I don’t let go.

Luhr chokes out a laugh, his voice weak but taunting. “You think this is over? You think you’ve won? I’ll keep her as a pet until I get tired of her. Then I’ll sell her on Gur…nice and cheap.”

Rage burns through me, hot and consuming. I lift him again, bringing him down with all my strength. The ground shakes beneath us, and Luhr’s body goes limp. His scales are almost completely red now, his breaths shallow and labored.

“You’re done,” I snarl, my voice like thunder. “You’re never touching her again.”

Cora runs to me, her small frame colliding with my chest like a storm breaking against a mountain. Her arms wrap around my waist, and I feel her trembling—not from fear anymore, but from the adrenaline crash, the sheer relief of being alive. My hand finds the back of her head, fingers threading through her soft brown hair. I press my lips to her forehead, inhaling the faint scent of sweat and the coffee she must’ve had earlier.

“You came,” she whispers, her voice muffled against my chest. “I knew you’d come for me. I knew it.”

My heart clenches, a strange, unfamiliar warmth spreading through me. “Always,” I say, my voice low but firm. “I will always be there for you.”

She pulls back just enough to look up at me, her green eyes searching mine. There’s a flicker of something unspoken there, a decision made in the heat of the moment.

“Fuck it,” she says suddenly, her voice steady despite the chaos around us. “Yes.”

I blink down at her, my brow furrowing. “Yes what?”

“Yes, I’ll be your mate. Marry you. Whatever.” She waves a hand dismissively, but there’s a fire in her eyes that tells me she means every word. “I don’t care what we call it, I just don’t want to be apart from you any longer.”

For a moment, I’m speechless. This isn’t how I imagined this moment—not that I’ve spent an unhealthy amount of time imagining it. But Cora, ever unpredictable, has a way of throwing me off balance in the best possible way.

“I thought you wanted the most romantic proposal ever?” I ask, my voice tinged with amusement.

She shakes her head, a small laugh escaping her lips. “Oriyn, you not only saved my life today, you saved the lives of every single person who was in that dreadful basement meeting with me.” Her hand rests on my chest, right over my heart. “I’m not sure if it gets much more romantic than that. At least, not for me.”

I cup her face with one hand, my thumb brushing across her cheek. “We’ll see about that,” I murmur, leaning down to capture her lips with mine. The kiss is slow, deliberate, a promise sealed without words. Her body molds against mine, and for a moment, the chaos of the world fades away.

When we finally break apart, she’s smiling, that same mischievous glint in her eyes that always makes my chest tighten. “So,” she says, stepping back and crossing her arms, “what’s next, Mr. Weller?”

“Next,” I say, my voice laced with determination, “we make sure Luhr can’t hurt anyone ever again.”

CHAPTER 19

CORA

The riverboat’s polished wooden floors creak faintly under my heels as I step inside, the exhaustion from the shareholder meeting already melting away. The familiar scent of mahogany and something faintly metallic—Orion’s scent—welcomes me. I drop my bag by the door, the weight of the day slipping off my shoulders.

“Orion, are you home yet?” My voice echoes through the grand foyer. The chandeliers catch the last rays of the setting sun, casting the room in a warm, golden glow. “I’m finally done with the meeting.”

Out of the shadows, he steps forward, his golden scales shimmering like molten metal. The red light of the sun catches the edges of his ridges, making him look like something out of a dream—or a fantasy. His purple eyes lock onto mine, that sultry, predatory look that always makes my knees weak.

“On your knees.” His voice, low and commanding, sends a shiver down my spine.

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