Page 75 of Alien Jeopardy
She makes an indistinct noise of frustration, her brow wrinkled, then she stares at me a moment longer and lets out along laugh. “No. No—I don’t know why it’s called that. It’s just a picture cut up into little pieces and then you put them together.”
“Why would you cut up art?”
Her lips purse. “The whole thing is just for fun.” Brown eyes narrow. “Why aren’t you worried about this puzzle?”
“Probably because I am not being squeezed to death by a serpent while my mate bleeds into the water and I can’t get to her.”
“Ah.” She nods. “That does sound slightly more stressful.”
The way Ellison says it is so dry that I can’t help a laugh of my own.
We both grin at each other across the puzzle table, and then she taps the little screen displaying a ticking clock.
“We better get to work.”
I nod, turning as much of my full attention to the puzzle on the table as I can. There are two screens, one with the clock, and the other displaying what I can only assume is the puzzle we’re supposed to solve. It’s a diagram of sorts, a series of rectangles, each with an opening.
“It says: draw a continuous line through each of the doors without the line ever intersecting or using any door more than once.” Ellison drags her finger through a series of the doors, and a trail of color follows the motion.
Soon, though, she’s stuck, and the screen flashes red before the line erases.
“This isn’t going to be easy,” she mutters. Her stomach growls, and she claps a hand over it, cringing. “Ignore that.”
I won’t. I can’t. How can I ignore the fact my mate is hungry and that I have the ability to earn a meal for her, if only we can solve this?
I trace my finger over the diagram, thinking hard. No one has ever accused me of being overly intelligent. In fact, very much the opposite.
“When I was on the streets, I was smart enough to make myself smaller, to do what I had to do to survive. I didn’t start fights I couldn’t finish, and I stayed away from those who were always looking to start one.”
Ellison looks up from where she’s examining the screens, a curious look on her face.
“I did not attend any of the fancy schools for the young in the capitol,” I tell her by way of explanation. “These sort of logic problems, they wouldn’t have fed me. I will, however, do my best to make sure you are fed tonight.”
Her cheeks turn a bright pink, her eyes shining. Without a word, she walks around the table, cups my face in her hands, and pulls me down to plant a kiss on my lips.
It sets my soul on fire.
It also gets my cock incredibly hard, which is a distraction I don’t need.
Not that I’m going to tell her to stop, not when her mouth meets mine like that.
“You are full of surprises, Ka-Rexsh,” she says.
“So are you,” I tell her, and I mean it.
“I hope we get that luxury tent.” Ellison’s teeth flash as she nibbles her lower lip.
“No matter what happens, I will ensure you are safe and comfortable this night, I promise you that.”
Giving me a mystified look, she turns back to the screen.
I spend a moment just watching her. The beautiful slant of her cheekbones illuminated by the light of the fire, the warm brown of her eyes and the lush curve of her lips. She doesn’t have horns, like a Draegon female would, but there is something delicate about her smooth forehead that makes me want to take care of her even more.
She ismine.
From the ragged, tangled ends of her silky brown hair to the dirty soles of her feet, Ellison is a dream come true. Capable, smart, brave and kind.
I want to give her everything she dreams for, from dinner and excellent sleeping accommodations to as many orgasms as her human body can take.
