“N-no,” Jodi shook her head stiffly.
“Fine. Then I’m going to bed,” Vorn said shortly.
“But…but we haven’t had supper yet,” Jodi said inanely. She realized belatedly that she’d completely forgotten about her half-placed order of Chinese food. That phone call seemed like it had been hours ago.
“I’m not hungry for food,” Vorn said darkly.
“You’re not?” Jodi frowned. “What are you saying?”
His nostrils flared again.
“I’m saying you’re not the only one in need right now, little girl. Smelling your sweet little pussy all night has me hard as a rock and I need to take care of business. So if you don’t need anything out of that room, I’ll be going to bed now.”
Oh God, was he really admitting to her that he was going to go into her office and jerk off?
A forbidden image formed in her mind—the huge Kindred lying on the spare-room bed, where she usually got herself off—with a long, thick shaft fisted in his big hand, slowly stroking up and down until he spurted all over his flat belly…
No! Jodi pushed the thought away with effort. She supposed it shouldn’t be surprising that he was admitting he needed to get off when he’d basically made her promise to do the same thing.
“Fine.” She took a step back, crossing her arms protectively over her breasts. “Just…go to bed then.”
“You should too.” He pointed at her. “You promised, remember? You need to take care of that heat right now. Otherwise it’s like putting out a damn beacon for the Varians to find you.”
Jodi felt a twinge of unease. The lizard-like aliens that had attacked her mother’s house had been horrible. Could the big Kindred really be telling the truth? Was her unrequited lust really causing her to make pheromones that made her easier for the alien predators to track her?
Or maybe he just wanted to listen through the wall while she got off and he did the same.
The idea of the two of them getting off at the same time did something strange to her—made her stomach do a fluttery flip and her pussy ache with need.
Jodi did her best to ignore it.
“I’ll go to bed when I’m good and ready,” she snapped instead. “This is still my home, even if I am forced to let you stay here.”
His golden eyes narrowed and he rose swiftly, coming to his towering height of seven feet all in one smooth motion. For a long moment, he just glared down at her.
Jodi glared right back, lifting her chin to meet that golden gaze. For a moment, his scent seemed to intensify. Then he shook his head and stepped around her.
“Good night, little girl,” he growled and headed for the spare room.
“I’ve had about enough of the demeaning nicknames,” Jodi called after him, her hands balled into fists at her hips. “I’m not your ‘sweetheart’ or your ‘baby’ or your ‘little girl,’ you big bastard!”
Vorn turned at the doorway and looked her in the eyes.
“Fine. Goodnight, Josephine,” he said, deliberately using her full name which he knew she hated.
Then, before Jodi could say another thing, he went into the room and closed the door behind him, ending their stand-off—at least for that night.
Twelve
Melinda came back from her shower all rosy-pink and smelling as fresh as a flower. Her long blonde hair was damp and little lovelocks were curling around her face, framing her big blue eyes in a way that nearly stopped Liosh’s heart in his chest.
Gods, she was lovely!
She was wearing a pair of loose pink cotton shorts and an oversized cotton t-shirt that matched, with a picture of a sleepy puppy on it. Under the puppy, in curving script Liosh read the words, “Snuggle-Pug.”
Melinda looked absolutely adorable in the silly little outfit. He just wanted to gather her up into his arms and hold her—but Liosh knew he couldn’t do that. Though he knew from listening to her private thoughts earlier that she wanted to be held and cuddled, he had to approach this in a round-about way.
“I like your sleepwear,” he remarked, smiling at her.
“Oh…” Melinda gave an embarrassed little laugh. “I know it’s pretty silly but it’s all I have clean right now. I really need to do a load of laundry.”
“It’s adorable,” Liosh said, speaking his earlier thought aloud. “Should I change into my sleepwear as well?”
“Oh, sure.” She smiled at him. “I’d like to see what Kindred pajamas look like.”
“Give me just a minute then.”
Rising, he took his carry-all cube into the fresher—what the humans called a bathroom—and did a quick change. When he came out he was wearing a long pair of black sleep trousers made of the cool, thick, satiny material which the Kindred had developed for maximum comfort during sleep—and nothing else. He’d forgotten to pack the top of his sleepwear, much to his chagrin.