Page 39 of Argurma Warrior (The Argurma Chronicles #1)

T he repairs were coming along. It would not be much longer before the ship was ready to depart Earth. It would hold at least long enough to get to the nearest space station. It was a good thing that he still had plenty of credits amassed into a private intergalactic account. Like many of his species, Kaylar preferred to keep his credits secured off world where he could access them easily since he spent much of his time off world. It was so common among those Argurmas who had business off world, that the fact that he possessed such accounts had never raised suspicions among his superiors. A fact which he now appreciated. What he had begun as a matter of practicality now benefited greater than he could have ever calculated.

At least the virus did as he had hoped. There was no remaining trace of his handler or the council’s command. Not even alerts from the comms he had ignored. Just blissful silence that settled something long tormented within him.

It did not take long for other concerns to fill that empty space to serve as a constant irritant like sand caught under his scales. Chiefly among them was Doctor Ryder. Despite being the most significant at the moment, it was also the simplest of his concerns. He did not wish for her to accompany them. Although he processed the difficult situation she had arrived to and marked her efforts to repair the damage and restore communication with the explorer, he also found it as difficult to look past her willing participation… and the way she had actively attempted to replace his mate, going so far as to drive doubts and worries into Meg’s mind. The latter made him beyond furious, especially when, following the scientist’s admission of guilt, he had carefully drawn out and listened to those spoken injuries from his mate as he held her in his arms. The emotional damage to his female was intolerable.

He would leave Doctor Ryder on the island with the E302 and the explorer for company if he could get away with it. The explorer would probably thank him once he satisfied his vengeance. Oh, he wasn’t worried about the male killing her once he had the space to regain his senses—that he had been drawn out by the scientist to communicate with her when he had abandoned such efforts was a strong indicator that the explorer was likely as strongly drawn to Doctor Ryder’s pheromones as Kaylar was to Meg’s—but the male would not be an easy one to live with. Kaylar would not have envied her situation but nor would he have felt guilt over it.

Unfortunately there was no way to carry that out without his mate objecting…strenuously.

His lips quirked at the thought of his mate’s guaranteed scowl. She was as fierce as any Argurma female. She would assuredly battle him every step of the way if he tried… it almost made it worth trying just to enjoy the tussle.

His smile faded. If only she would claim him with the same ferocity that she demonstrated for everything else she was passionate about. He had hoped that it would come before they left the island but as their time ran out that was looking less plausible. Not that he would ever abandon her—he was hers for the rest of his lifespan—but once they were free from Earth and mingling among the intergalactic community, his status as an unmated male would be apparent to anyone with sensitive scent receptors to note the mingling of his scent with his female’s but the lack of hormonal change that came with mating that would create a pungent scent that those who were once mating-compatible would find repugnant. Lacking it but carrying his scent entwined with a female’s would be considered shameful for his kind.

Not that he particularly cared about the opinions others held for him but he would not pretend that he did not feel the sting of rejection burrowing within his heart. More importantly, however, he did not wish for Meg to become the subject of speculation and gossip from those familiar enough with the commonly held knowledge of his kind. If anyone caused her distress over it—

He expelled a breath. It did not bear worrying about it at the moment. It was probably that she just required a little more time. She could claim him long before anyone noticed. It would be several weeks of travel just to get to the nearest station. If not, he would handle it.

In the meantime, he would enjoy every bit that he had of his female and try not to note the way his heart ached as each day passed.

Kaylar rubbed a hand over his chest and frowned, unsettled by the direction of his thoughts. It was not like him to be occupied with things he could not change—especially not things that were not life threatening. Perhaps it was because he disliked the distance between them right now that was making him dwell on such thoughts. He did not like being parted from her. Fortunately, Doctor Ryder discovered a solution. Though it was intended for emergency communique, Kaylar didn’t hesitate to reach out and fully entwine himself the rest of the way around the faint broadcast signal that Doctor Ryder had set up at a range for him to communicate with from the ship. Although he maintained contact with the signal throughout the entire time he was away from the ship, it took considerable energy on his part to draw himself into the systems so he had not attempted it since their initial practice run.

Burrowing into the laboratory’s systems, he located the route to their quarters. There were no security cameras in the private rooms so he was relying on chance that he would find her there.

Tapping into the room’s audio wiring, he cast an approximation of his voice through the audio range of the communication device in the room to call out to his female.

“Meg?”

There was a short pause and then he heard the tell-tale click of his mate activating the communication system to answer.

“Kaylar? Is everything okay?” she demanded in a quick, breathless voice.

He calculated that she had run the short distance to the communication device, perhaps believing him to be endangered. He felt a brief pang squeeze his chest that he worried his female but hurried to reassure her.

“I am well, anastha. I just experienced a need to hear your voice. I dislike not having you with me,” he grumbled, admitting more of his true feelings with those few words than he had dared to in order to respectfully wait for her choice.

Her breath released in a soft, barely audible sigh through the device but he caught the hint of a feminine laugh that confused him. Was she laughing at him, or was it a reflex born from relief?

“Well, I don’t feel so guilty then for thinking of doing that every day you’ve been out there since Beverly hooked all of this up.” She made a soft sound in her throat that reached straight down to his civix making it writhe in his sheath. “Actually, the fact that you caved first makes me feel a lot better about it,” she admitted with another soft sound of laughter. “If it weren’t for the fact that I would much rather you get back as fast as possible, I’d almost be tempted to tease you a little.”

He chuffed, amused at her observation, though the sound was a bit strangled due to his civix swelling with interest as he comprehended her suggestion. Such flirtations were not unheard of, though they were a source of embarrassment whenever the individuals were overheard spurring on each other’s arousal to the limited levels of pleasure they could experience without access to sexual stimulus. Although he was far more interested in pinning his female beneath him than engaging in teasing flirtations, he loved that this had quickly come to her mind. Among Argurma it was the sweetest and tenderest shows of affection within their capacity as a species to flirt with one’s intended mate and show a lack of hindrance and restraint that they would otherwise refrain from demonstrating.

“I will admit that I enjoy this knowledge that you have had similar thoughts, but likewise prefer to return quickly so that I can demonstrate them instead,” he purred. “I will be more than pleased to show you upon my return.”

“Really?” There was a distinct sound of interest in her voice that made him shiver. “I definitely think that I would be up for that.” To his frustration, she fell silent and he strained to hear any hint of what she might be occupied with.

“Meg? Is there something amiss?”

“What? Oh, no. Nothing like that.” She gave another soft laugh that bore a hint of self-deprecation that he did not like. “I feel kind of stupid for worrying about it, actually.”

“If it is a genuine concern, it is impossible for it to be stupid. Tell me,” he insisted.

She hummed uncertainly. “It’s just that… I know we talked about mating… and the thing is…”

His heart plummeted with the stark apprehension that filled him. Was she about to say that she did not desire it.

“Meg, I have said that I will adhere to whatever you desire,” he blurted out, and bit back growl when she fell frustratingly silent. “Meg?”

“I’m still here,” she replied. “I’m a little confused here. Do you still want me for your mate? Or just willing to mate me if I want to because we’ve been fucking.”

He growled, full voiced and unconstrained so that she would have no doubt as to what he thought as to the latter suggestion.

“I am yours, entirely and completely,” he rumbled thickly, suddenly frustrated with the inadequacy of the communication system to speak of such things. They should have been speaking of this in person, but he was not about to terminate the conversation now.

Her answering huff of irritation tugged at his heart. “Then why the fuck haven’t you done anything about it?”

He blinked slowly as he tried to work out why she would assume such. Then he recalled what she spoke of regarding the way her social hierarchy—such as it was—existed. Males took power which had made her feel powerless, but she did not comprehend that typically among Argurmas, mating decisions, once the interested male made the initial overture, were entirely at the discretion of the females. As their clans were matri-lineal, it was the female who initiated mating. For this reason, it was natural for him to wait on her… but she had not understood.

“Meg, among Argurmas mating is initiated by the female if she accepts the overture from the male courting her,” he explained. “When I said that I would be pleased to wait until you were ready—I was doing exactly that.” His head cocked. “Truthfully, I was attempting to determine the route of the delay just before tapping into the communications system. I was not enjoying the direction of my thoughts.”

She released a sharp breath with a groan and laughed. “Seriously? Here I’ve been waiting on you, wondering if you changed your mind and you’ve been pretty much thinking the same thing about me.” Her latter words were slightly muffled as if speaking through a hand swiping down over her face as she so often did. “So how does this work?” she asked, her voice suddenly clear again.

He shrugged; the gesture now habitual even though she could not see it. “The female decides on the method in accordance to her temperament. It is often a demonstration of the important part of the courtship. If it has been aggressive or playful she might demonstrate similarly. If it is of a softer nature, she may reply in such a manner. The mating act itself, however, is always initiated by a sting from the mandibles, usually to the neck. Our tongues release a sap to seal the wound, but the sting itself not only has a pleasure-inducing venom but deposits nanos that aid to secure the bond in cooperation with the hormones we release during implantation that can only occur at that point. It also allows the glands we carry in our neck access to our saliva to bring about hormonal changes that make a chemical imprint.”

It made him sad that humans did not possess such a gland. His female would experience some changes due to his nanos, but it would be nothing like the incredible changes that he would, and he felt that loss keenly for her as it was considered a most beautiful moment among his kind.

“Hmmm, well that has potential,” she replied, innocently unaware of the pleasures she would not enjoy though she would retain her freedom from a complete binding shared between Argurmas.

The intrigue in her voice paired with his own piqued curiosity pushed back the bleakness that had stirred his shadows once more and instead brought a smile once more to his face. “Will you share your thoughts?”

“Nope,” she replied cheerfully. “I have a feeling that the initiating of mating can come as a bit of a surprise and I see no reason to ruin a perfectly good tradition. Just be prepared for anything when you return.”

His smile widened at her gleeful laugh even as it sent a shiver of desire down his spine. “I shall eagerly anticipate it upon my arrival.”

She sighed. “So how much more work do you have to do before you can get back?”

“I am nearly done for the night. There is not much more to be done and there are a few things I need from the lab to complete the repairs.”

“Complete them? Already?” Her voice sharpened with unmistakable excitement. “How long?”

“Two days,” he replied, his eyes sliding over his work. He was pleased that he was finally able to offer her some good news regarding it and make her happy. “I need to finish sealing the patch on the hull and we will be ready. There is a repair compound you have that I can alter with some of my supplies on board—or rather, Degarath can—and then we will be ready.”

The AI disparaging remarks regarding the damage to its ship had been taxing to Kaylar’s patience since he brought the system fully back online earlier the day before.

“Degarath is back? Thank fuck. Between us, your AI makes life on your ship a bit easier for someone entirely unfamiliar with any of your technology.”

He chuffed. “That is comprehendible. The AI system suffers a few power glitches on occasion due to the inferior replacement pieces but it is adequate for now. Everything is proceeding toward departure.”

“That’s a relief,” Meg sighed. “I was thinking that we were going to have to endure this nonsense for another week.”

He clicked in agreement. “Once I was able to restore power to the engine, I prioritized restoring function to one of the droids and… tweaked it, as Doctor Ryder refers to it.” He grimaced at the droid clumsily reinforcing and soldering weak areas. It worked slowly due to its cumbersome movements as it attempted to carry out its assigned task, but it had increased his speed satisfactorily. “Once the repairs progressed to a certain point, I was able to restore power to the AI without worrying about the hull damage causing power drainage.”

“I hate that I couldn’t come down with you and lent a hand. With the droid, we would probably be done by now,” she grumbled, returning a smile to his face.

His little mate’s desire to be by his side to provide assistance and keep watch when he was unable to filled his systems with warmth and adoration. As much as he worried about allowing her outside the safety of the laboratory, he had hated to see her disappointment when he was forced to report that the helmet was well and truly gone. Along with a number of his other supplies that, upon closer inspection, seemed to have disappeared from the cargo hold, dumping out through the massive tear in the upper side of ship’s belly. The helmet, like everything else, was likely on the ocean floor somewhere between the beach and the half ring of sharp stones jutting out in a barrier some distance away.

He did not know which of the jagged stones took out his ship, but he collectively took to cursing them every afternoon that he returned to the beach and had to contend with fixing the repairs that they had contributed to.

“I prefer you safe and comfortable and eager to receive me so that I may lick your quin when I return,” he replied bluntly as he grabbed a tool and proceeded to tighten a bolt.

He registered her soft gasp.

“Okay, well I won’t keep you then. Just hurry.”

His eyes narrowed on the bolt, the corners of his mouth curling. “One hour. Be ready for me, anastha.”

“Oh, you better believe it,” she rasped.

With her breathy promise lingering in his database, he hurried at his task, tightening each of the bolts securing the soldered metal sheets one by one. When he finally powered down the ship and left for the night, he did so quickly, fueled by hot excitement licking through him. He was less attentive than he should have been as he raced through the forest but in his current highly roused state, he silently dared E302 to choose to attack him at that moment. Not only was his cannon charged and anchored to his shoulder, but he was primed to the point that any interference would bring out an instinctive aggression in him that was treated warily even by other Argurmas. Of course, the recklessness that tended to accompany it also meant that he would also suffer terrible injuries, but that did not stop his heated blood for thirsting for an enemy to tear apart so that he could offer its remains to his female and prompt her desire to initiate mating.

It was as basic as it came and yet, when he stormed into the lab he was unprepared for the small body that hurled toward him and the painful tug of his vibrissae that exposed his neck at a vulnerable angle. With a snarl he swung his opponent around, his blood roaring as he ripped his attacker from him and lifted them high. A glint of metal was all he saw, and his hand snapped up to disarm his opponent but not before the blade lightly nicked the flesh of his neck, marking him. The piercing sensation in such a vulnerable placement over his glands sent pleasure flooding through him as his body trembled. A moan shattering through him, and through the pleasure he finally concentrated on the small body he held, his female’s beloved face coming into focus just as her delicious, pheromone-drenched scent filled his lungs.

She grinned at him, her blade still held in her hand. Her smile widened as she leaned in, the new growth of hair at the top of her head fluttering down over her brow. Her dark eyes sparkled with the intensity of her emotions, and he was immediately captivated.

“Surprise,” she whispered as she leaned even closer and swiped her tongue slowly along the cut over his glans.

He gasped, a growl vibrating through him as sensation exploded within him. His mate had marked him, claimed him. He was truly hers now… and it was time to make her his… eventually. First, he had a promise to keep.

With a smirk, he yanked the blade from her hands and hoisted her more firmly against him.

“Kaylar?” The heat of her breath stirred against his bleeding neck.

She didn’t have the ability to clot it since she apparently lacked sap and ventor glands in her tongue but it was of no matter to him. He would seal them with his own sap presently, but first he needed to get her alone to their quarters. Argurmas were intensely private when it came to mating to the point of being territorial about it, and he was no exception.

Snarling, he turned his head and rubbed the back of his mandible against her neck until she trembled in his arms from the promise he offered as his black tongues slipped out of his mouth and trailed along the path his mandibles made.

“Soon,” he growled. “I need inside of you…but not out here. I will have you pinned to the bed before I mount you properly.”

“Fuck, yes,” she whimpered and his pace increased as his civix surged with renewed interest.

Quite. There would be a great deal of fucking to come. It was a shame he didn’t have a head to offer her but that could come later. If she was pleased even without, then he would expend further effort to make sure that she was quivering on his civix gushing her sweet release—repeatedly—before he was done.

His tongues slipped over his lips, his mandibles widening slightly to be further soaked in her pheromones and the richness of her arousal. He could not wait.