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  “Fairy tale?”

  “A story of supernatural beings who assist humble humans to find true love or rescue themselves from adversity. They are usually told to children.” She smiled. “Do you have stories like that?”

  He cocked his head, the horns gleaming in the light of the rising moons. “I vaguely recall tales of that sort, but I have never been one to believe in true love.”

  Sinder felt part of her fade and turn grey at that phrase. “Ah. Reality has taught you differently?”

  “The women who swayed through my doors and lifted their skirts were enough to confirm that they are just as opportunistic as the males.” His features were grim. “It is our way.”

  She looked around her at the people, some of who stopped to watch their slow procession. They looked happy enough, some in couples, some trios and others quads. “If it works for them, why complain?”

  “Would you turn to another male if you got bored?” There was a silent desperation in his posture.

  She sighed and stopped, turning to take his hands in hers. “My people generally take one mate and keep them until it becomes inconvenient. Many pair bond for their lives but others separate and seek what they thought was missing. I left my world, because I wasn’t interested in seeking either a permanent or temporary link to someone who may change their mind.

  “Fear of rejection in one form or another has plagued me all my life. Now, instead of being not enough, I fear I am too much for most males. Where does that leave me?” She raised her gaze to his and left the question hanging in the air.

  Chapter Nine

  Geor lifted her hands to his lips and heated first one inner wrist and then the other with his breath. “I think that we should continue this discussion in a more private setting.”

  Her body was tingling at the light caress of her skin. She licked her lips. “I am a big fan of discussing things.”

  He smiled, curled one of her hands around his arm and changed their direction back toward the temple at a much faster pace than they had used coming out.

  Kema’s singing took on a sensual turn, and it made Sinder ask, What are you doing in there?

  I have never had sex with a being like me. Planets usually just touch minds and leave it at that. This is a first time for me, so I am trying to keep your mood up.

  As Kema finished her thought, she sent a spike of heat through Sinder’s channel. It felt for all the world like a finger was inside her as she walked. That is really weird. Knock it off.

  “Sinder, what is wrong?” Geor slowed his step.

  She looked up at him and grimaced. “Kema is attempting to help your efforts.”

  He paused for a moment then grinned.

  She really wanted to punch him, but he increased their pace, and they moved with their guards into the temple. Once out of sight of the crowds, Geor lifted her in his arms and moved with alarming speed toward his office and their quarters.

  “I am not going to change my mind about the discussion. You don’t have to run.”

  Crixox swirled into Geor’s eyes and shared space in the consciousness. “He has been celibate a while, he is in a slight hurry to have you naked and moaning under him.”

  The shiver that ran through Sinder had nothing to do with Kema and everything to do with the image that ran through her thoughts.

  The door to his office opened just in time for him to slam through shoulder first. The door to the bedroom opened and was closed the same way.

  He set her on her feet at the edge of his bed.

  She asked the question in her heart. “What do you want from me?”

  He paused, and Geor regained control of the body. “I want you to react to my touch, I want to wake next to you in the mornings and I want you to let me help you plan your day until you get used to the High Nalu.”

  Sinder blushed, “I already react to your touch. The changes in my body have made it far more sensitive in what I consider to be strange places. I will wake next to you if you are not an early riser, which I know you are, so you might be out of luck there. As for planning my days, I will take all the advice I can get.”

  “Then I would like to show you what parts of your body will sing when they are caressed. It is important to embrace your new culture.”

  She nodded soberly. “Very important.”

  He lifted her hand and pressed a soft kiss to her inner wrist. Her pulse sped up, and when he nipped her skin, her heart thudded heavily.

  She shuddered as he used his mouth to caress her inner elbow, and when he tongued the skin, she fought to keep her knees steady. “How is that happening?”

  He smiled and turned his attentions to the other arm. “It was said that when the High Nalu were created, the women did not wish to couple with the men. The men were in a hurry, and the women experienced little to no pleasure. The gods changed the women and the men of the High Nalu so that they would continue to breed.

  “The women became sensitive to touch in certain areas that could be accessed in public. This meant that they had a better chance at reaching a climax with their partners and were more likely to pair bond with one particular male. The males were changed to crave the taste of their female and to hold back on their release in an effort to bring pleasure to their partner.”

  She shivered as his hands worked at the closure of her wrap top.

  He explained. “The clothing that the females wear is designed to conceal, flatter and yet expose certain areas to assist in their partner’s efforts.”

  She let out a low moan when he trailed his fingers down her neck, across her shoulders and down to her elbows. “This is bizarre. I have never had so many spots on my body that have driven me nuts.”

  He chuckled and stepped forward as her breasts were exposed to his gaze. He ignored them in favour of her ears.

  She held tightly to his shirt as his tongue cruised the edge of one ear and then the other. The light touch of his wet tongue followed by the cool air sent prickles of sensation through her breasts. Her nipples tightened to hard nubs, but the deep ache she was feeling was far lower down.

  She gasped as he traced minute kisses down her temple until he met her lips. Her hands clenched in reflex as she twisted up to get more of his specific taste. When he parted from her and continued his torture on her neck and collarbone, she whined low but licked her lips to catch the last taste of him.

  His hand moved ahead of his mouth, touching, caressing, arousing and teasing all in slow strokes. A few short tugs and her skirt was around her ankles, leaving her in her open shirt, her skirt at her ankles and sandals on her feet.

  She was in a haze of pleasure and swaying dramatically when he finished stroking the base of her spine and her knees gave way.

  “You held out longer than I thought you would.” With a grin, Geor lifted her and placed her on the huge expanse of his bed.

  She learned something very important about the men of the High Nalu, their horns kept their partner from crushing their skulls with their inner thighs. The cool horn rapidly warmed as it was pressed against her straining thigh. As Geor used his tongue to taste the slick honey that he had encouraged her to generate, she twisted on the sheets, her arms flailing for a grip.

  Geor reached up and grabbed her hands, placing them on his upper horns as he continued to feast at her sex, his tongue flicking at her clit before sliding lower and delving deep.

  The ridges of horn under her hand were a distracting sensation, but as she used her grip to control his rhythm, she found herself on the edge of release. It was a powerful feeling, Geor was giving himself for her pleasure, and she wanted nothing more than to return the favour.

  “Geor, I want you inside me.”

  Her low whisper got an instant result. Fabric flew, and soon, his dark blue body was sliding over and into her with deliberate attention. Her sex stretched, and in her mind, Kema made some adjustments.

  Geor slid into her until he was fully seated, and her body clasped him in a slow even rhythm.


  Sinder knew that his ability to fit inside her was part of Kema’s renovation. No way would that ten-inch cock have fit into her otherwise.

  She looked into his eyes, and his bright red gaze made her smile. “Just you and me.”

  He threaded his fingers through hers and pressed her hands next to her head. He rocked his hips against hers, and the slide and drag of the wide head inside her became central to her focus.

  The room was dark, Geor was dark, so it was only when his thrusts took on a sharp frenzy that she noted the glow that was coming from her skin and his. Despite what they had agreed on, the planets were with them as their bodies approached release.

  The feeling of his thighs sliding against hers with every thrust, the slow rub of his palms against hers as he mimicked the motion and rhythm within soon had her at the edge of orgasm once again.

  When the fire inside threatened to flare out of control, she opened her mouth, only to be silenced with Geor’s kiss as her scream came out in a broken surge of gasps. Geor groaned into her mouth in exchange, and she shuddered as she felt his cock bucking and twitching inside her.

  He shoved into her with jerky motions as his cock spewed the last of his cum inside her. His lips moved against hers slowly, coaxing her into a kiss that urged her to lean up into his oral caress.

  She licked his lips and tasted him, rapidly growing addicted to the flavour. It was one of the best things she had tasted in her life, and she wanted to stay lost in his kiss forever.

  Geor raised his head and smiled. “That took the edge off. Now, a little tidying up and we can begin all over again.”

  She shivered at the delight in his expression. It was going to be a very educational evening.

  Chapter Ten

  Kema was purring happily in Sinder’s mind. Why are you so happy?

  Crixox’s energy signature feels wonderful. In Sinder’s mind, Kema was tumbling around in her own afterglow.

  Sinder shifted, and Geor’s arm clenched around her. Smiling, Sinder laid her arm on top of his, weaving her fingers into the spaces between Geor’s.

  He didn’t speak, but she heard his horns sliding across the pillow a moment before he trailed his lips up and down her neck. “Good morning, Avatar.”

  She stretched and shifted her legs to straighten out the twinges. “Good morning, Avatar. I am surprised that you are still here. Usually you are in your office before I wake up.”

  “I have no plans for my day other than spending time with you.” He pressed soft kisses to her shoulder and she sighed and turned over to face him.

  The ridge of his erection was hot and throbbing against her belly as she pressed to him. “Geor, you can’t ignore your schedule just because I am here now. You do your thing, and I will find mine, eventually.”

  He blinked in surprise. “You don’t wish to spend every minute of every day with me?”

  She chuckled. “If Kema’s estimate of my new life span is accurate, we will have plenty of time together. We don’t need to mesh our lives into one mass. You can have your interests, I can have mine, and we can meet in the middle for others.”

  His red eyes were glowing with a confusing welter of emotions, but his body was speaking loud and clear. Geor reached down and lifted her thigh, draping it over his hip and opening her to his touch. His fingers caressed the back of her knee, and slick moisture crept out with his delicate touch.

  She reached between them and stroked the column of his cock, gently moving her hand on his slick dark blue skin until he was flexing with every shift in her palm.

  Sinder levered herself upward to put his cock at her entrance, and with a coordinated flex of their hips, they joined together. He slid one hand through her hair to cup her skull and brought her head to his for a kiss as they leisurely met and retreated in a slow-motion recreation of the frenzy of the previous night.

  Her body flexed and caressed the column of his erection as he thrust and pulled back in a lazy, heady rhythm.

  Her over-sensitized skin took every touch of his hand and turned it into flames running along her nerves. She moaned into his mouth when her body tightened around him until he could barely move.

  In a shock of pleasure, the tension broke, and her moan was lost in a gasp as she gripped his arm for support. He thrust rapidly a few times before shuddering into her, giving her a low groan in exchange for her sigh.

  She went limp, dazed and sated.

  Geor pressed a string of soft kisses across her brow, eyes and the tip of her nose.

  Sinder was exhausted. Her night had been broken into half a dozen encounters that had brought her and Geor together in a rush of pleasure and eagerness to learn each other. The morning was a soft, slow confirmation that there was no hurry.

  After a shower and having Geor help her with the banding on her hair, Sinder dressed and shared a breakfast with him in his office.

  “So, what are you up to today, Geor?”

  He gave her a look through half-lidded eyes. “I was planning on staying in.”

  She shivered but gave him a stern expression in return. “I am going to go out and meet people today. You can come with, or you can stay here, but I am on a new world with only you to talk to. That is a recipe for disaster if ever I heard one.”

  He quirked a brow.

  “I can talk for days, weeks even. I was used to being alone on my shuttle, so I amused myself. Being around people now and then keeps me from blathering along incessantly.”

  He chuckled and sipped his tea. “Not that I have seen.”

  She made a face and got to her feet. The heavy bands on her hair swung and clicked against the desk as she leaned over and pressed a kiss to Geor’s lips. “I promise to take no less than three guards, but I will need Alif.”

  Geor nodded and Crixox was sharing space when they said, “We will remain here, have Kema call if you need anything, and be home before dark.”

  “I will. Wish me luck.” She went to the door and picked Alif out of the six in the hallway. “Alif, you and two others will show me around Sissithan and to Aliaha. She has offered to introduce me to your family.”

  Alif nodded, and she could see a smile in the shadows of his cowl. “Of course, Lady Sinder. She will be only too happy to show off her new connections.”

  Sinder didn’t care what Aliaha’s motives were. She simply wanted to meet some of the locals to take the pulse of the people.

  Something Aliaha had mentioned was also humming in Kema’s thoughts, and to assess the situation, Sinder needed to be out where the people were.

  Alif bowed slightly and led the way out of the temple. One guard was in front and one behind them, but few, if any, folk were coming near.

  Aliaha was delighted when she entered the shop with Alif. “I didn’t think you would come today.”

  “I want to find my way on Crixox. The fastest way is by meeting the population. Take me to the town you were mentioning yesterday, and we can meet your family.”

  Aliaha laughed, “I have already met them.”

  Sinder rolled her gaze, and when Aliaha handed her shop over to her stunned assistant, they left with the older woman chattering nonstop.

  The passersby who had ignored Sinder, flocked to her now that Aliaha was next to her. Introductions were made, and a seven-minute walk took forty-five minutes.

  Once they reached the rail transport, Sinder had counted five Purists who wavered upon meeting her. Their hostility and curiosity faded as they got a close up look at her. From a few feet away, Sinder appeared to be a High Nalu woman. Her nose was a little sharper and her pupils were the wrong shape, but Kema had made the obvious characteristics to match her surroundings.

  The rail transport got them to the village in ten minutes. Aliaha was almost rubbing her hands with delight as they approached.

  “Did you warn them we were coming?”

  Ali nodded and grinned, “When I went to the back of my shop to get my bag. My daughters are delighted and terrified.”

  With the guards
watching the approaching station, Sinder leaned close and asked, “Where is the woman you were mentioning yesterday? The Purist who tried to join with Kema.”

  Ali’s face sobered, “We will go there first. You will need a jovial atmosphere after you see her.”

  Sinder held her mind still as she followed Ali and the guards through the village. Several people ran to Aliaha for introductions, but she fended them off and told them that she and the Avatar would return shortly. The woman took her directly to a dark house at the end of the block and knocked.

  A worn, sad woman opened the door. “Aliaha, to what do I owe the pleasure?”

  “The Avatar would like to speak with Tish.”

  “You know that Tish doesn’t make any sense. What would Geor need with her?”

  “Not Geor. Kema’s Avatar. She wishes to see Tish, to find out what damage was done.”

  The exhausted woman looked at Sinder in surprise. “You? Kema finally took a body?”

  Sinder nodded. “She did, and she regrets the madness that some experienced. There was no way for her to tell you that your minds would not match hers, and some of your organizers did not take the hint from the first waves of attempts.”

  The woman blocked the door. “I won’t let you hurt her.”

  Sinder shook her head. “I am not here to hurt her, but I need to see her to understand what happened.”

  When the woman hesitated, Kema surged to the fore. “Out of my way woman, I can feel my power calling me.”

  Stunned at facing the mind of the meteor, the woman backed away from the surge of energy as Sinder entered the home.

  She heard the music as soon as she stepped inside. It took seconds to find the High Nalu woman sitting and rocking on the floor, crooning music from a planet long dead.

  The energy signature of her body was muddled. Sinder sat next to her on the floor and took her hand.

  Kema surged through the contact and collected all pieces of herself that she could find.

  Sanity returned to the young woman, and she blinked at Sinder. “Was I successful?”

  Kema spoke, “You were not right for me, Tish, but you need to return to your life. Enjoy and know that you have touched a power that was never meant to hurt you.”