Page 11 of Tempting Her Grumpy Protector
“Ah, Dr. Craythorn…you are most welcome here.” The Chief gave her a nod as Sunny bowed to him as gracefully as she could. He wasn’t bad looking in an alien kind of way, she thought. His two regular eyes were studying at her face but his third eye—which had opened wide when he first saw her approaching—was fixed on her breasts.
“Thank you, Chief Lowhung,” she said, smiling up at him. “I am honored to be here.”
“And which of our ways do you wish to study?” he enquired, leaning forward on his throne.
“Why…your mating habits and marriage or Joining customs,” Sunny answered, smiling. “Your people are fascinating to me—I hope to write a scientific paper about how you find your Bonded Mates.”
“I see…” Chief Lowhung nodded gravely. “And perhaps you are looking for some firsthand experience?”
“Er…I’m not quite sure what you mean,” Sunny faltered.
“I mean…perhaps you are looking for a Bonded Mate yourself?” The Chief gave her a lascivious look—raking her naked breasts with all three eyes this time. “It seems clear to me that any male would be lucky to have you—though you have only two milk-makers, they are large enough and lush enough to make plenty of milk for the many babies the lucky warrior who won you would plant in your womb.”
“Oh, uh, thank you.” Sunny blushed and nodded, but inside she was feeling extremely uneasy. Where was Greer? This was the point where her big Kindred Protector should have jumped into the conversation to stake a Claim on her, but when she looked over her shoulder, she didn’t see him anywhere. He usually never left her alone so long when they were on an alien world. What was going on?
“Are you looking for someone, beautiful one?” Chief Lowhung purred, leaning forward on his throne.
“Oh, er, just my companion. He was supposed to stay with me, but he’s not here. I wanted you to meet him,” Sunny said, hoping that all the male pronouns would throw him off.
Chief Lowhung frowned.
“And is this companion your Bonded Mate? For you wear no Claiming Pigments upon your luscious milk-makers.”
Sunny opened her mouth to say that yes, Greer was her mate and make an excuse about the pigments, but the guide who had been standing silently by, answered before she could get out a word.
“No, your Chiefliness—he is but her Protector, not her Bonded Mate,” he said and shot Sunny a sly wink from his third eye.
Sunny wanted to stamp her foot in irritation. The guide thought he was doing her a favor by preserving the illusion that she was single, which was going to make it twice as hard to fend off any advances by the Thropp’ian Chief! He was still eyeing her “milk-makers” in a way that made her distinctly nervous.
“Perhaps your Protector is choosing a Bonded Mate himself—or rather, being chosen as one,” Chief Lowhung speculated. “This first night of our Binding Week is the time when the women of our clans choose which males appeal to them and make their intentions known. Later, of course, we males are allowed to return the favor,” he added, giving her a knowing smile.
“Oh—that’s right!” Sunny wanted to smack her own forehead. Hadn’t she been telling Commander Sylvan about this very custom right before they left?
She remembered that Greer had been surrounded by a knot of Thropp’ians the last time she’d seen him—had they been mostly females? Sunny couldn’t remember but what if they were? They might be trying to stake a Claim on Greer right now!
“Would you please excuse me, Chief Lowhung?” she said, nodding at the Chief. “I must go find my Protector—I fear he might be in trouble.”
“Well in that case, who’s protecting who?” The Chief gave a low chuckle that she would have found attractive if he wasn’t still eyeing her breasts so openly. The novelty of going around bare breasted had pretty much worn off and his lustful scrutiny was making her really uncomfortable.
“I’ll bring him back to meet you as soon as I find him,” she promised, smiling.
“Very well, beautiful one—but hurry back. I long to see more of your luscious milk-makers,” Chief Lowhung growled.
“Uh, thank you.” Sunny nodded nervously and turned to go back the way she’d come.
She had to find Greer!
7
GREER
Greer was getting fucking sick of this planet and they hadn’t even been here a whole solar hour yet. All around him were a ring of interested Thropp’ian females. They were jostling for position and trying to rub their small breasts against his chest and back to “stake a Claim” on him, he supposed. Of course, he was strong enough to push them out of the way and get free of the knot of tall, thin, blue women gathered around him, but he didn’t want to hurt any of them or cause offense.
“I’ve always wanted to breed with an alien warrior,” one of them cooed, looking up at him adoringly as she pressed her three breasts against his side.
“Back off—I saw him first,” another hissed, pushing her out of the way and rubbing herself against his chest like a cat that wanted to be stroked.
“He’s mine!” a third Thropp’ian female insisted, elbowing her way into the mix.
