“They no longer think we’re just smart monkeys?” Mia said, only half-jokingly.
Delia smiled. “Some still do, I’m sure. But it’s no longer the consensus view. And the more relationships like yours and mine there are, the more accepted humans will become in the Krinar society.” She paused for a second. “So you see, Mia, you don’t have to be fighting the Krinar to help your people. You just have to get one of them to fall in love with you.”
* * *
Five thousand miles away, Saret got up and smiled at the human girl lying curled in a little naked ball in his bed. She was petite, no more than five feet tall, and her dark brown hair fell in soft waves around her narrow face. Other than her brown eyes, she looked very much like Mia. He’d found her in Paris yesterday.
She stared at him, and he could see the fear and hatred on her small face. It was unfortunate that she’d been engaged when he met her, with her wedding planned for next month. She had been understandably resistant to his attentions, and he didn’t have the time to seduce her properly.
It had been wrong to take her, of course. Saret knew that. At this point, however, it didn’t matter. Everyone already thought him a monster, and stealing one human was a harmless prank in the grand scheme of things. He had bitten her during sex, so he knew she’d found pleasure with him too. She wasn’t Mia, but he had still enjoyed fucking her, pretending that the slim body in his arms was the one he truly wanted.
Saret knew he had no hope of eluding the guardians for much longer; it was only a matter of time before he would be captured. Now that he had gotten a chance to think, he realized how Korum had known what to expect. It was very simple, really. His enemy must’ve been monitoring his charl even more thoroughly than he had admitted to Saret. In hindsight, Saret should’ve expected something like that; it was his own fault he’d underestimated Korum’s obsession with Mia.
No, Saret knew he wouldn’t be able to hide for much longer. He’d been utilizing various disguises, but he could sense the guardians getting closer. Yesterday, he had taken a risk and connected to the Krinar network. He’d tried to hide his identity, but he was sure Korum would eventually find his traces in cyberspace. Still, Saret had needed to know what was happening in Lenkarda and whether the Council had found out about his plan.
What he’d learned had made him both angry and excited at the same time. Angry – because his carefully planted nano dispersion devices had already been discovered and neutralized. And excited – because he finally knew how to get rid of Korum once and for all.
His enemy’s upcoming fight would be his last.
Saret would make sure of that.
Chapter 13
The first thing Korum saw when he entered the house was Mia, curled up on the long float and absorbed in whatever she was reading on her tablet.
At his entry, she looked up and smiled, her face bright with excitement. “Hi,” she said. “How was your day?”
Korum felt a surge of tenderness, even as his body reacted predictably to her nearness. “Hello, my sweet,” he said, stepping toward her and bending down to give her a brief kiss. He had been thinking about her all day today, reliving every moment of the previous night in his mind. He couldn’t wait to re-introduce her to the pleasures of lovemaking, to taste her delicious body over and over again.
He wanted to take it slow again, but the second his lips touched hers, her slender arms came up, looping around his neck, and all his good intentions evaporated in an instant. Her mouth was soft and sweet as he deepened the kiss, her scent warm and feminine. He could hear her breathing speeding up, smell her desire, feel her body arching up toward him . . . and his blood almost boiled in his veins.
Without a conscious thought, his hands went to her dress, and the fragile fabric ripped underneath his fingers, exposing the delicate flesh underneath. She gasped, and he could feel her nails digging into the back of his neck as he sucked at the tender spot near her shoulder. Her heart rate spiked, and she moaned as his hand went to her thighs, pushing between them to get to her tight opening.
She was hot and slick around his fingers, and Korum used the last vestiges of his self-control to bring her to orgasm by rhythmically pressing his thumb ag
ainst her clit. As soon as she convulsed with a soft cry, he knew he could not hold out any longer. Tearing off his own clothes, he grabbed her legs and pulled her toward him until only her upper body was lying on the float. Then he pushed inside her in one powerful thrust.
She cried out, her body tensing, and Korum groaned as her inner muscles squeezed his shaft, preventing him from going deeper. Her eyes snapped open, focusing on him, and Korum held her gaze, knowing that she could see the dark craving written on his face. His cock throbbed inside her snug channel, and it wasn’t enough. The animal inside him needed to possess her on a level that went beyond the sexual, to imprint himself on her mind as well as body.
“You’re all mine,” he whispered harshly, hardly realizing what he was saying. “Do you understand me?”
She just stared at him, her face flushed and her lips slightly parted, and Korum could feel his temperature rising. A wave of pure possessiveness swept through his body. His buttocks tightened as he pushed deeper into her, holding her thighs wide open to aid in his penetration. She gasped, her face contorting with a mix of pain and pleasure, and he could hear her breath catching in her throat.
Leaning forward, he let go of her legs and slid one arm under her upper back, bringing her closer. His other hand found its way to her hair, holding her head partially arched back, her slender neck exposed. “Say it, Mia,” he commanded, driven by a primitive need to claim her. “Say you’re mine.”
“I’m . . .” She seemed to have trouble saying the words, her blue eyes clouded with some unknown emotion, and the urge to dominate her grew stronger. Bending his head, he took her mouth in a savage kiss, his hand slipping down to her folds and his thumb pressing hard on her clitoris. Her inner walls tightened around his cock like a fist, and she moaned into his mouth.
“You’re mine,” he repeated, drawing back for a second, and she nodded, staring up at him, her lips swollen and shiny.
“Say it.”
“I’m yours.” Her whisper was barely audible, but it satisfied his craving for now.
Leaning down, he kissed her again, more gently this time, even as he began thrusting with a smooth, steady tempo. His balls drew up against his body as pure, unadulterated pleasure coursed through his veins, all courtesy of the small girl in his arms. Closing his eyes, Korum let the sensations wash over him, reveling in her taste, in the feel of her soft skin under his fingers . . . in the tight clasp of her body around his cock.
And just when the pleasure became too intense, he felt her convulse around him with a soft cry, sending him over the edge.
* * *