Alien Intercourse: A Warrior Prince Romance (The Tourin Legacy Book 2) Read online

  “It feels impossibly good,” she moans. “Your kiss makes my body burn.”

  My fingers go to the leather laces of her corset, untying them enough to lift it off over her head. Her black undershirt soon follows, and she cries out at the first touch of my fingers across her pebbled nipples.

  She arches her back, leaving me cradling her in one arm, my other free to roam where it wills. I play with her nipples until she’s squirming on my lap, trying to get closer to me.

  So beautiful. So soft and precious.

  My hand slides down to her thighs, teasing them, trailing up to just below her skirt.

  Stop kissing her.

  With a growl, I force myself to raise my head.

  Her brows draw together. “Is something wrong?”

  “No. I just don’t want to go too fast.” I lean my forehead against hers for a moment.

  I have to get my mind in the right place.

  We can have sex to hold off the toxin, but nothing more. And as much as my instincts tell me to make love to her, I cannot hurt the female I love.

  I can’t give her a future with me, but I can leave her free to have a future with someone else.

  She tries to kiss me again, her lips hungry, seeking. But I don’t open my mouth this time. Instead, I give her butterfly kisses on her cheeks and the bridge of her nose before letting my lips slide to her neck. She moans and slides her hands into my hair.

  I pull her down so she straddles me, her skirt riding up to her waist.

  Instinct claws at me to take her, to make her mine. To kiss her until the mating marks appear, so no other man will have her. My hands shake with the effort of holding myself back.

  She climbs off me for a moment, reaching under her skirt to pull off her panties and gracefully toss them to the floor.

  Then she reaches down, slowly opening my pants. I suck in a breath and thrust toward her as her hand closes in a fist around me.

  She comes back over me again, placing one hand on my shoulders and positioning me with the other.

  We both groan as she sinks down on me and I enter her. Where I belong.

  As she begins to move, pulling me into her and releasing me in a mating ritual as timeless as eternity, a more insidious thought occurs to me. One I almost can’t resist.

  She isn’t sick. She could have your child.

  As a prince, I’d always known it was my duty to have children. But I never knew how much I wanted them—until I realized I wouldn’t have any.

  Resist. Children aren’t for you in this lifetime.

  I run my hands along her hips, my thumbs brushing the sides of her stomach on the way up to brush her nipples. She throws her head back in pleasure, her pace increasing.

  Sweat beads delicately on her collarbone, and not so delicately on my body.

  I cup my hands beneath her and rise from the chair, pulling her up and letting her slide down my full length.

  “Oh my gods,” she moans, wrapping her legs around my waist, a note of disbelief in her voice. Her fingernails dig into my shoulders.

  I don’t let up, angling her so I rub up and down against the center of her pleasure with each thrust. It isn’t long until she begins to come apart, her legs convulsing around my waist.

  I want to hold back, to make her cum again, but I was too close. Her release brings on my own, and I wrap one arm around her waist and one around her back as I let go.

  She buries her face in my neck and we both tremble together through the pleasure.

  When I’m done shuddering, I realize her body is still shaking. She’s crying.

  I stagger backward a step and sit in the captain’s chair, remaining buried inside her as I arrange her legs to straddle mine. “Did I hurt you?” I ask, brushing her long, black hair back over her shoulder.

  “No.” She pauses, her green eyes filled with grief. “I just can’t believe you’re dying.”

  “Shh,” I whisper to her, pulling her against me again. “It’s all right.”

  She shakes her head, burying her face in my neck. “No, it isn’t. It’s never going to be all right again. But hopefully that holds off the toxin for a little while.”

  I have nothing to say to make her feel better. So I simply hold her, letting her cry.

  Finally, I whisper into her hair, “I’m here, Ande. I’m with you.”

  She doesn’t answer, but I can hear it clearly in my mind.

  For now.

  4

  Ande’ie

  I didn’t know what to expect when we got back to Lla’ei.

  But from the moment it’s come into view, I can’t stop staring at it in horror. The beautiful, blue-green ball that has been my home for my entire life has huge plumes of red going out up into the sky. They are spreading across the planet like a thick, bloody wave. My hand goes to my throat. I wonder how anyone can breathe down there.

  “My planet used to be blue, too,” Juordin says quietly, reaching for my hand. “The red slowly takes over until the entire atmosphere is permeated with it.”

  It’s terrible. It’s so horrifying that I’m speechless for a minute, trying to grasp it. I grip his hand tightly. “Can’t we stop it?” I choke out finally.

  He shakes his head. “No. My people tried to stop the distributors in a hundred different ways. But the Ardaks have a force guarding each one. We did get through to a few though, but we weren’t able to penetrate the exoskeleton around the machine that is releasing the toxin. We even tried bombing one of them. All that did was release the toxin faster.”

  “What about taking them into space?”

  “Believe it or not, we tried that. But we couldn’t pick it up. They’re anchored deep into the ground somehow.”

  “Covering them?”

  His lips thin. “The toxin eats through whatever you try to cover it with. We don’t know how, because the toxin doesn’t seem acidic. We assume it’s a defense mechanism of the machine.

  I’m almost afraid to go back, but I shake it off. My duty is to my people.

  He examines my expression. “If it’s any consolation, you won’t be infected with the toxin now. For some reason, people who came back to my planet after the first day weren’t infected. The toxin they are releasing now is different—not infectious. It simply permeates the atmosphere.”

  “Why are they doing that?”

  “We really have no idea. If we knew what effect it had, we might be able to do something to counteract it.”

  I don’t know if I feel better or worse now that he’s told me. But as the ball comes closer and I see it change color before my eyes, all I can think of is getting home. To my family and friends. My people.

  Juordin pilots the lander with careful precision, but the gardens are too small so he has to land outside the castle in the street. When he opens the door, I see that guards have run from the entrance to the castle and they greet us, guns and swords drawn. When they see me, they bow their heads briefly, but don’t drop their guard.

  My attention is caught by the scene behind them. The street is littered with broken glass, trash, and even a few bodies. I wonder if the cats landed here, or if they died from the red dust. Without looking closer, it’s impossible to tell. A long line of people waits to get into the castle, and a few start crying when they see me.

  “We have no time to waste,” I tell the captain of the guard. “This is Juordin. He’s the prince of his people, and he has information about the toxin.” I take in the line of people. “I will speak to as many as I can on the way, but need to get to my parents as soon as possible.”

  He nods, and we begin a steady progression up the line toward the entrance to the castle. At first, I’m besieged with questions. Who is invading? What is the red dust? Is there a cure? What will happen to us?

  But as I provide answers, word spreads down the line in both directions. Then people simply want to tell their story, what happened, who died, and what they need. Most need food and clean water. Some simply want a hug and reassurance that w
e are doing everything we can, even if the outcome is uncertain.

  Before too long, we reach the gates of the castle, and once inside our pace quickens considerably. The captain of the guard points me in the direction of the family wing. I glance back over my shoulder to see Juordin close behind, flanked by the other guards.

  We reach the family suite, but the captain pauses with us in the entry room. He nods to me. “Only you.”

  “Why?” I have a sudden sinking feeling in my stomach and my mouth goes dry.

  He shakes his head. “We’ll be out here.”

  I nod to Juordin. “Don’t let anything happen to him. My father will want to see him right away.”

  The captain nods.

  I open the inside door with trembling fingers.

  The room has a stillness I’ve never felt before. I would have known something was wrong even if the captain hadn’t been acting so strangely. But when I enter my parent’s room, I can see why.

  My father is sitting on the edge of the bed, his head in one hand. As I walk closer, I can see he holds my mother’s hand with the other.

  My footsteps make a small noise and he looks up, a wave of intense relief coming over his face. He jumps up and crosses the room with his arms held out. “Ande’ie. Thank the gods.” His arms envelop me in a great hug, and I almost give in to tears again.

  After a minute he grabs my shoulders, holding me back to look at me. “What happened to you? I sent the guard to look for you and they brought back news of your valiant street battle in Pluria against the cat invaders. But no one knew where you’d gone.”

  As his eyes search my face, I suddenly realize that what I’m about to tell him will seem outlandish, at the very least.

  “Father, I was taken up into a spaceship by a man from another planet. His planet has already been attacked by these cat invaders. He calls the red dust a plant toxin. He was taking me back to his planet, but I convinced him to bring me back.”

  Any other father might doubt his daughter’s word if she told a story like that. But I’m not given to flights of fancy, and have made it a practice not to tell untruths. Even still, I waited for him to do the same.

  But to my surprise, he nods once. “I must meet this man immediately.”

  “You believe me?”

  “Daughter of my heart, we have been attacked by strange cat beings, a noxious red dust is being blown into the sky from every corner of the globe, and our people are either falling down dead or sickening at a rapid pace.

  “If you tell me you have met a man from another planet, I will simply reply that I hope he’s on our side. After the past three days, I doubt anything else could surprise me.” He throws an arm around my shoulders and guides me toward the outer doors.

  I stop abruptly and run back to the bed, leaning over my mother. Her face is pale as death against the ivory pillowcase, and when I kiss her forehead, she doesn’t open her eyes. I hurry back to my father.

  “She’s resting.” He squeezes my shoulders slightly. “There’s still time—though I fear not much. Let’s find out what your man from another place has to say.”

  My heart sinks, because I know the news is not going to be good.

  We cross to the outer doors, and when he opens them, Juordin is standing just on the other side. My eyes immediately find his questioning gaze, and I know he’s silently asking if I’m all right. I give a tiny nod. He straightens and his gaze goes to my father.

  My father looks between us and one eyebrow raises. He holds out a hand to Juordin. “Alfedor Lla’ei’thal.”

  “Juordin Thorvane.”

  Their handshake is sturdy. Strong.

  My father addresses the captain of the guard. “Please take the men and wait outside.”

  The captain nods, and they exit the entry room, guarding the entrance to the suite.

  Once the door closes behind them, my father turns to Juordin. “My daughter tells me you have information about the cats and this red dust they are releasing.”

  Juordin’s eyes flick to me briefly, and I wish I would have taken some time to prepare my father for what he’s about to hear.

  “Father,” I begin.

  But my father cuts me off with a glance. Perceptive as always, he’s seen the look that passed between us. His jaw tightens. “Tell me. Do you have a cure?”

  Juordin shakes his head. “No. Nor a way to kill them. The most we can do is slow the progression. My people are dying, as well.”

  My father clenches his fists and closes his eyes for a moment. When he opens them, his gaze falls on Juordin and his eyes narrow. “Then, as happy as I am to see my daughter, why did you bring her back? You’ve probably just doomed her to die with the rest of us from this red poison in the air.”

  Both Juordin and I answered at once, but I let him continue. “Your daughter will be fine, sir. The toxin being released now isn’t going to hurt her. We found that everyone exposed to it after the first twenty-four hours didn’t sicken. We’re still not exactly sure why that is.”

  “Or whether the same will be true for my daughter.”

  “Father, I made him bring me back,” I argue.

  But Juordin looks stricken. Then he nods as if I hadn’t spoken. “You are correct, sir. She was my responsibility and I acted without care for her safety.” He looked at me and his eyes softened. “But please know that I never meant to endanger her in any way. I could not.”

  My father eyes him for a moment. “I believe you.” He turns to me. “Why don’t you go and spend a few minutes with your mother? Perhaps you should…say good-bye.”

  I hesitate for a moment, looking between them. I really want to know what they’re going to discuss, but from the look on my father’s face, he isn’t going to tell me.

  Why fight it?

  I walk back in to the room and sit down next to the bed, reaching for my mother’s hand.

  5

  Juordin

  As soon as the door closes behind her, King Alfedor turns to me. “You care for my daughter, don’t you?”

  I had hoped to avoid this conversation so soon. But her father is too perceptive by far, and circumstances necessitate a speedier timeline. I look him straight in the eye. “Yes.”

  “But your world has been hit with the toxin, too.” His piercing gaze searches mine.

  I look out the window to avoid it. “Yes.”

  “You, too?”

  I swallow. “Yes.” The word sticks in my throat.

  He sighs and runs his fingers through his hair. “Then you cannot protect her.”

  “I will protect her until my dying breath.”

  “Which will be when?”

  This time I run a hand through my hair. “Six months. Probably less. The toxin affects people in different ways, but with those that didn’t die, we find that it slowly attacks the nerves. Our people have slowly been losing control of their bodies, until they are unable to eat or care for themselves. They have fits of uncontrollable shaking, and succumb not long after. We estimate that even the strongest of us will only last one year.”

  He glances back over his shoulder. His pain is obvious. His wife is dying, his daughter has no hope of a future here, and his people need him. Even before he turns back to me, I know what he’s going to ask. Because I would ask it for my daughter.

  “My daughter is the light of my life.”

  “I understand.”

  For a moment, a twinkle lights his eyes. “Perhaps.”

  My lips quirk up at the corners. I can tell that if circumstances weren’t so dire, her father wouldn’t give her up easily.

  But the moment of levity passes quickly. “Do you know a place where she can be safe?”

  “No place is guaranteed forever, but there is a planet we trade with that may be suitable. It’s rather far from the cat territory, and the cats are expanding in the opposite direction.”

  He doesn’t hesitate. “Then I would ask you to take my daughter and leave. Drop her on that planet or another where she
can live a full life. Then I can go to my grave knowing that at least she will live on.”

  His gaze searches mine, and there is almost a plea in his eyes. I know I will do as he asks.

  “It was already my plan for her.”

  His shoulders sag with relief. When he recovers, he places a hand on my shoulder. “I have known you only minutes, but I believe I would have enjoyed getting to know you better. To watch my daughter lead you on a merry chase.”

  Against my will, I feel my eyes grow moist. Just one more thing those damn cats have stolen from me.

  He places a tired hand over his eyes. “I don’t know why the gods have forsaken us. That such horrors should have come to pass in my lifetime, I could not have imagined it in my worst nightmares.”

  “It is a tragedy beyond belief,” I agree.

  “I meet with the doctors tonight. Is there anything else you can tell me about the red dust or the cats?”

  “The red dust is a toxin from a plant on their homeworld.”

  “Do you mean a poison?”

  “Yes. Also, the effects of the toxin can be slowed by endorphins.”

  “What are those?”

  “They are something the brain makes when a person is happy, or after having sex.”

  His eyebrows rise and he unconsciously glances back over his shoulder. I almost want to smile at his protectiveness of his daughter. Almost. Alfedor is one of the toughest men I’ve ever met—solid, strong, and I can tell he has an iron will. His society is still ruled by might, not technology.

  I try to distract him. “One last thing, the cats are pumping a lot more toxin into the atmosphere than it would take to kill the population. We believe they’re addicted to it, or need it for some other reason.”

  He nods, although I can tell he’s biting his tongue. “I’ve called for the most knowledgeable people on Lla’ei to come together. Hopefully we can work together to solve this.” His lips quirk upward. “Nothing brings a planet together like a common enemy, or staring death in the face.”