Page 73 of Infala: The Alien's Bond
“Hey, listen, you guys go on ahead,” Shalia said. “You’ve already done so much, and it’s going to be a lot of work returning the freed captives to their people. I’ll stay here and help out while you two head back to the village. I can just have Kuxx drop me off when they’re all done making their runs.”
“Don’t be silly, we can wait for you,” Darla objected. “The others take priority, of course, but we can wait.”
Kuxx flashed his human counterpart a quick look.
“No, really, it’s okay,” Shalia said, leaning in close to Darla’s ear. “Besides,” she whispered, “we want to leave you two free to enjoy some quality alone time.”
Darla blushed, but only a little this time. Her shame had been replaced with the very hot idea of forest sex that her friend had put in her head. Shalia saw the thought register and somehow managed to keep her mirth in check.
“Okay, then, it’s settled,” she said with a conspiratorial wink. “I’ll see you back there in a bit. Enjoy the hike, and don’t do anything I wouldn’t.”
CHAPTERTHIRTY-THREE
The opportunity to retrace their steps at a more leisurely pace was a surprisingly welcome change of plans for Darla and Heydar. Already knowing the route and the potential pitfalls was an added bonus. Merrily walking hand in hand for a spell wasn’t bad either.
There was still the potential threat of the Raxxians returning to search out the wreckage of their ship, but an approaching landing craft would be easy for them to spot, and evasion would not be a problem.
As for the other crashed sections, Kuxx and Shalia would be making survey runs as best they could while returning the freed Dohrag captives to their rightful homes. That meant that, for the moment at least, they were free to let their guard down a bit and enjoy the moment.
Darla had no problem keeping pace with Heydar now that her runes were nearly fully settled and providing her with abundant endurance and strength to spare. The rocky climbs and descents, as well as crossing over wildly uneven terrain barely fazed her on the return trip.
It was warm out, but not uncomfortably. Even so, Darla felt no hesitation peeling off her top as the sun traveled high in the sky. The fresh air felt amazing on her bare skin, and seeing Heydar’s trousers bulge at the sight of her exposed flesh was one hell of an ego boost.
They trekked out of the direct sunlight and under the cover of a copse of trees that stretched on for a good distance ahead of them. It was cooler there, but Darla’s top remained off. Heydar shed his as well, his radiant skin glistening with a thin sheen of sweat from their labors.
Darla felt her body react viscerally to the mere sight of him exposed like that, her pulse rising slightly and her nipples hardening at the fresh memory of his hands on her, their bodies pressed together. Hard.
“Let us pause for a moment,” Heydar said, pulling the water skin free and offering it to his lover. Darla accepted, drinking deep, before handing it back to him.
Always the gentleman,she mused.Except when it’s time not to be,she added with a faraway grin.
Heydar drank his fill then tightly capped the skin, his violet and gold eyes locking on hers as a droplet of water trickled from the corner of his lips, his gaze flaring with unbridled desire. Darla’s runes began to tingle. Not the itching of healing ink, but something else.
Heydar stepped closer and leaned down, pressing his lips to hers, his tongue darting out to taste her damp mouth with an audible groan of pleasure. He pulled back, staring at her with such a deeply intimate look it made her heart skip a beat.
“You have become quite strong,” he said, reaching out and gently caressing her bare skin, tracing the lines inked on her body in a way that made her very essence feel aflame. “And you are developing your own runes,” he noted, not nearly as surprised as she thought he would be. “Only the most powerful have ever been known to do this, and even then, it is a most rare event.”
“You’re saying I’m strong? I mean, like, my power is going to be strong?”
“Incredibly. You have connected with the pigment more than I had ever imagined a human capable of.”
“Wild,” she said, her pulse rising as his fingers continued tracing their way around her body, lingering on her breasts, barely brushing her straining nipples, sending electric jolts to her clit.
A painfully sexy smile creased his lips as he watched her react to his touch. His fingers slid to the dark ink on her clavicle, lingering there with unspoken intent.
“This also means your pigment is very nearly settled. Soon you will develop your final Infala rune.”
Darla’s stomach tightened a little at his words. The Infala rune. The powered symbol that would draw her close and bind her to her mate. It was a little overwhelming if she was honest with herself.
She hadn’t really placed much credence in the whole magical rune thing when she first received her ink. It was something she had to do to fit in with her rescuers, so she simply accepted it as such. But as she saw the power the living pigment endowed her the more she came to believe that maybe, just maybe, the tales were true.
Perhaps a human female really could be bonded to her lover just like they’d described.
Her thoughts were abruptly interrupted by the pair of warm, large hands now cupping her breasts, teasing her nipples until her juices began to flow and her knees felt weak. She felt her labia slicken with desire, swelling in anticipation, her clit throbbing with her every heartbeat.
Heydar’s erection was clear through the fabric barely containing it. A fire flared in his eyes and a moment later it was freed, springing up in the open air, fully engorged and hard as a steel rod. The ridges were pulsating, raised and radiating heat. His lids drooped slightly with lust, matching Darla’s wanting gaze.
Without a word his grip shifted, grabbing her shoulders and spinning her around. A warm hand pressed firmly against her back, bending her over until her hands rested on the nearest tree.
