“You expect me to get naked here?” She doesn’t deny me but clearly fears someone else walking in on us. Good; I’m a possessive man. I won’t share her with another. I doubt the Prince will interrupt us, but I kick the door closed with my foot just to be certain.
“Do I need to strip you?” I ask, my voice a velvety purr. My smile turns feral, and I bare my sharp teeth fully. She looks up at me with wide eyes and a hint of alarm but doesn’t attempt to flee.
The scent of her arousal fills the air. I nearly groan aloud as my body responds—the rush of blood flowing to stiff muscles, swelling my cokas. How does one little female have such a strong impact on my libido? I’ve never been affected by anyone as much as her.
Raising her chin, she strips off her clothing piece by piece. I watch intently, memorizing each curve of her soft form. I long to trace her skin with my claws, to feel her writhe beneath me. I want to lick and taste her. Lord, she has no idea how I long to sink into her hot flesh and lay my claim.
At my guidance, she steps into the glass tube of the scanner. Her body shakes, and my arousal dims when the tang of fear overwhelms her sweetness.
“You may feel a slight tingling as the machine does its job, but you are perfectly safe. I will keep you safe,” I tell her. I’d happily hunt and kill anyone who meant her harm. It disturbs me that for some reason my Elana feels genuine fear at what is a fairly common device.
Elana gasps as the light from the scanner runs over her body. She jolts when the machine pings loudly, indicating it’s finished, yet doesn’t make a move to leave. Not until I hold my arms open and say, “Come.”
The way she rushes into my embrace touches my heart. She trusts me when she genuinely should not. I should let her go and walk away, but she feels so right. I want her here, desperately.
Pushing her at arm’s length, I step to the fabricator. It’s nearly completed the first job, one that I picked at random. I barely paid attention to my selection when her delightful body occupied my thoughts, simply picking a design familiar to my species. I keep my back to Elana, the ache of my throbbing penis my punishment for not falling to my knees and worshiping her in that moment.
As soon as the machine is done, I withdraw the slinky fabric. The cloth is black, and fine strands of fabric glitter in the light. The material is soft between my fingers, and I can only imagine how it would feel on her sensitive skin.
Elana allows me to dress her, raising her arms elegantly above her head. The action lifts her breasts. My imagination floods with images of tying her hands above her head, keeping her in place while I lavish attention on her without mercy, until she screams and begs for me to stop.
The material slips down her body, catching slightly on the tight buds of her nipples. She sways, her half-lidded eyes flickering. A soft moan escapes her lips as the slits in the sides from hem to waist allow the fabric to glide over her wide hips, covering the shine of her slickness peeking through between her legs.
She’s beautiful.
It’s only as I look upon her fully that I realize I’ve dressed her in a traditional Volscian mating gown. One she’d wear to celebrate a full bonding.
Horror engulfs me. My heart pounds in an erratic rhythm, and the world becomes a dark haze around me.
This female is like none I’ve ever met before. For the second time in my life, I flee the room.
ChapterTen
ELANA
Ihurry after Sutek as fast as my legs can carry me, but the twisting hotel corridors seem deliberately confusing. Navigating these halls was so much easier with him by my side. For a moment, I’m transported back to fleeing down the spaceship, with dragons hunting me.
My nerves are strung as tight as a bowstring. I nearly scream when I round a corner and collide with a solid body. At first, I think it’s Sutek, with his crimson skin, but then my gaze catches on a new addition—black horns jutting from his skull.
I stumble back from the stranger, my pulse hammering.
“Sorry,” I stammer, unable to peel my eyes from those wicked horns. Could Sutek have his own hidden beneath that inky hair? Is that what I felt earlier? Is that why he pulled away so suddenly?
“Ah, the critic, I presume?” the male asks, his tone smooth, filled with confidence and authority. And an oddly British accent, of all things.
I falter, completely at a loss.
Of course, it makes sense that Sutek isn’t alone in this massive hotel, but this is my first encounter with another alien who’s not trying to capture me.
“I am Rist, proprietor of this fine establishment,” he introduces, with an elaborate, old-fashioned bow. “Welcome to the Alien Hotel.”
I return a clumsy curtsy. His lips quirk—I must have botched the proper etiquette. Thankfully, he doesn’t press the issue.
Rist’s jet-black eyes sweep over me, lingering on the delicate gown that Sutek dressed me in. “You wear the garb of one pledged to bond.”
My breath catches. “Bond? What does that mean?”
“Those are courtship clothes. I’m surprised Sutek offered them when you’ve known each other for only a few hours. You must have impressed him deeply.”
