Page 25 of Chieftain (The Outlander Book Club… in Space! #1)

I wanted her. My desire for her was a part of me now, just as the blood running through my veins.

It curled along my neck and over my shoulders like smoke from a flame spiraling in the air.

The memory of her sweet scent tickled my nose and caught at the back of my throat, pooling and curling toward my heart.

The desire to feel the soft, sweet taste of her lips was hunger as keen as anything I'd ever known.

How her fingers flexed around my arm as we came aboard the Bardaga filled me with savage pride. When Orzon spirited her away to Medi-Bay, I nearly throttled the diminutive Framaddi, despite knowing he only completed the duty assigned to him.

She would be in her quarters by now. The stench of Lernax Centauri washed from her skin, curls still damp from her bath. I could let myself imagine her smile as I walked through the door. Would she eagerly come into my arms? Or would she be flirty and playful, making me earn another kiss?

She can never be your true mate.

Charick’s words taunted my fantasy.

Emmy wanted me. I knew that from the way she reacted when we kissed.

Would she want a life in the shadows, never being seen as anything more than my mistress?

Would she want a life knowing that despite how I treated her in private, publicly, she would be regarded as less?

Emmy was smart and strong, and fearless, a jewel among females.

Could she tolerate being considered less?

Perhaps Charick was right, and I should suggest to Emmy that we find pleasure together without the idea of it being anything more. When the time came, we could part; her to Tau Ceti and me back to my duties in Earth’s orbit.

The problem was... I wanted more.

Much, much more.

And I knew, deep inside, where truth lived without logic, I knew I could never let her go.

Finding myself stopped in front of Emmy's door wasn't surprising. Neither was how my hand shot up and tapped on the metal sharply. What surprised me was the soft giggle preceding a breathless invitation.

“Come in.”

I waved my hand over the access panel and stepped inside.

At first, I didn't see her, noticing the tray of untouched food sitting on the low table and her discarded at the foot of her bed.

Another musical navigated my gaze to the cleansing room doorway.

Her vibrant curls were damp from the cleanser, and her soft skin gleamed.

She held a white drying cloth around her body and gazed up at me with sparkling green eyes.

The sight of her eddied every thought from my brain, along with every argument that I shouldn't be here, that she shouldn't be in my arms.

"I'm so glad you came. I've been thinking about you,” Emmy said in a low, sultry voice sending shivers down my spine. She stepped closer, and the towel around her waist shifted, barely covering her curves. I felt my heart stumble as I tried to move toward her, but my feet stayed rooted.

"I thought of you, too," I uttered with an involuntary smile. The mere sight of her had such an overwhelming effect I could scarcely remember how to speak. "I would like to learn more about kissing.”

“Hmmm,” Emmy’s smile went straight to my groin. “I think I can go along with that on one condition.”

"What's that?" At this point, I would do anything she asked. Fight a Kerzak with my bare hands, blast myself out of an airlock. Anything.

A faint sigh escaped her lips as she looked up at me, her green eyes half-lidded and heavy with desire. Her body moved towards me, radiating heat in the small space between us and a heady arousal aroma.

“This time,” Emmy began, her voice throaty and breathless. “You have to kiss me all over.”

There was only a moment to register her words before the towel fell away from her naked body.

Holy Valana!

I was enraptured by her beauty. Her ample chest rose and fell with each breath she took, and the swell of her hips and the curve of her belly was perfection.

The creamy smoothness of her skin highlighted a small patch of red curls between her legs that begged for my attention.

Every muscle in my body tensed as I felt desire bubbling within me.

She had an aura of power that made me feel like I stood in the presence of a goddess—one whose mere glance could turn me into a puddle on the floor.

“Emmy.” Her name left my tongue like a prayer, and my fingers trembled as I lifted my hands to cup her face. “I will kiss you anywhere you want and as many times as you want.”

She giggled, leaning forward, her hands resting lightly on my chest and sending a charge of electricity coursing through me.

Her face was exquisite—her small nose dusted lightly with freckles, eyes as green as deep Vaktaire seas surrounded by a mane of luxurious red curls, and full pink lips slightly parted in anticipation.

I could smell the faintest hint of floral perfume tinged with something spicy, musky, and minty.

What was that human word again?

Fuck!

“Emmy?” I sounded strangely calm as she rubbed the tips of her breasts against the fabric of my tunic, purring with pleasure. “Did you take a bath?”

“Uh-huh.”

Fuck!

My hands gripped her shoulders, trying to quell the enticing movement. “Emmy, what kind of bath did you take?”

“I don’t know relaxation or something,” She sighed, with a small shrug as she wiggled against my hold, trying to move closer.

Fuck!

Trying not to think about what I was doing and where I was headed, I scooped Emmy up in my arms, covering the few steps necessary to sit her on the edge of the bed. Her sigh was the perfect mix of desire and anticipation, as was the smile curving her lips.

Those perfect, full, kissable lips.

Fuck!

Emmy lay back on the blankets, her creamy skin exposed and glistening.

Her lips parted in anticipation, and her every breath was an invitation.

I felt a primal urge to take her then and there, to bury myself in her soft, perfect body.

The heat of the moment blurred my reasoning, and a nagging voice granted me some control.

Turning, I staggered toward the cleansing room.

The door swished shut behind me, muffling Emmy’s sultry voice.

I caught the spicy, musky, minty scent immediately. The pale purple water remained in the large copper tub. The water was tepid, but my fingers tingled with something that felt like small blasts of electricity as I skimmed my hand across the surface.

Fuck, fuck, fuck!

Emmy hadn’t taken a bath imbued with relaxing herbs and Medicaments.

She’d taken an arousal bath.

The Bardaga traveled towards the Tau Ceti star system many moons ago when we intercepted the hedonism ship, Kailisibi.

One of my crew, a seasoned Vaktaire warrior looking forward to a night of pleasure, indulged in an arousal bath before the last-minute call to emergency action forwent our visit to the Kailisibi.

Though he performed admirably on the mission, my crewman degenerated into a delirious state once it was over, requiring convalescence in Medi-Bay for a full week.

An unrequited arousal bath brought one of my strongest warriors to his knees.

Emmy was human—how would her body handle the effects of the bath?

Especially if her arousal went unfulfilled.

I punched the comm unit on my wrist while remembering Hakkar being off the ship. I reproached myself at the chief healer for being AWOL when Emmy needed him.

“Chieftain!” Toovis greeted me, his voice holding too much excitement for my liking. He should be more like Hakkar, who exhibited a sense of dread every time I summoned him.

“Toovis, I need to know if there are any records of a human taking an arousal bath.”

A deep clearing of his throat followed a squeak. “Did she… did the human on board…?”

“I need the information, Toovis. Now!” I cut him off. I’d go to the Medi-Bay and check the records myself, but I didn’t want to leave Emmy alone, and I couldn’t take her with me in her state.

"Yes, Chieftain."

In the background, I heard the Medi-Bay computer give a series of clicking and whirring sounds before Toovis let out a long "Hmmm."

“What?”

“I have found a record of two human females bathing in the arousal concoction many moons ago.”

“What happened?”

Toovis took a beat to answer, which seemed like an eternity. Reproach weighed on my tongue when he finally spoke. “Hakkar’s notes say the first female exploded.”

“Exploded?” My blood ran cold. “What do you mean exploded?”

"I'm sorry, Chieftain, that's all the note says," Toovis sounded as shaken as I felt. "The second female fared much better. Hakkar managed to ease her arousal with the portable Medi-unit, and his notes state she fully recovered."

"Ease her arousal…." I repeated, remembering that the portable Medi-unit was no longer than my forearm and half its width. I groaned, realizing what Hakkar did to help the woman.

“The Medi-unit has several vibration settings. We use it for scanning bone density, but I could bring it and…."

“No!” I snarled, my hands curling into fists at the thought of Toovis daring to lay a finger on Emmy. Possessiveness swelled my chest as waves of intermingling desire and worry coursed through me.

“I will take care of it,” I told him and disconnected the comm.

Holy Valana, be merciful!

Emmy lay on the bed, breathtakingly nude, knees drawn up and swaying in a dance to an unheard melody.

Valana. Please give me strength.

“Emmy, tell me about your bath.” I remained in the doorway, not trusting myself to venture nearer.

“I took the one that smelled like lavender,” she hummed, then sighed. "I love the smell of lavender."

It wasn’t intentional. Somehow, the knowledge feels like a kick in the gut. A part of me—a larger part than I realized—wanted her naked body reveling in the arousing waters with me on her mind.

"I do not know this lavender," I sighed, stepping closer. "But you took the arousal bath, little human.”