Page 396 of Gladiators of the Vagabond Boxset

Unfortunately, there were no obvious hiding places.

There weren’t any cabinets or extra doors, the couch was too low to crawl under, and the weird round bed had no crawlspace at all.

My skin itched at the back of my shoulders; it felt like I was about to be discovered.

I shuffled past the walls and peeked into the bathroom with the enormous tub.

I couldn’t hide in there either, and whoever lived here would probably need to use it.

I crawled around the nest on hands and feet, searching for a way to get underneath that thing, and accidentally bumped my shoulder into the wall.

A panel hissed open, revealing a deep drawer filled with belts, rope, and other leather bits and pieces.

I had no clue what all of that was supposed to be for, and I was pretty sure I didn’t want to know.

The drawer was only half full and big enough to fit me, so I crawled inside.

With my palms, I could push myself and the drawer back in, but I didn’t want to close it all the way, in case that thing was airtight or couldn’t be opened from the inside.

The tiniest gap at the top was like a sliver of gray light, not enough to see by, but enough to know I wasn’t entirely shut in.

I was coming to realize on this adventure that big spaces and small spaces weren’t my favorite.

I just had to suck it up and make this work.

I’d figure out what to do next later, once this ship was no longer docked at the station and I was clear of the asshole smugglers that stole me from Ker.

All thoughts of the future, of discovery, and hopefully freedom at the end of the line fled my mind when the door to the apartment suddenly swished open.

Light spilled in from the open doorway, even piercing my cramped little hiding space.

I didn’t hear any footsteps coming into the room, just heard this soft, susurrating noise like a whisper without words.

My body raised goosebumps all over, fear that I couldn’t really pinpoint striking me hard.

Was it that noise? Why was I suddenly absolutely terrified?

I licked my lips, swallowed roughly, and winced when that sound seemed audible in the strange silence.

A light flicked on, the door swished shut again, and I felt like I was trapped; trapped with a monster.

A very primal part of my brain had suddenly been activated, instincts telling me that a primordial beast was on the other side of the flimsy drawer front.

Like a giant crocodile that was just lying in wait, ready to snatch me in its maw.

I barely dared to breathe and my heart was thumping so wildly in my chest that I was certain whoever was on the other side could hear it.

I thought they weren’t moving at all, just hovering there in the center of the room and waiting for me to mess up.

Then I heard the sound of water splashing in the bathroom area, and a deep, heartfelt kind of groan that was definitely male by nature.

Oh fuck, whoever lived here was taking a freaking bath now?

Fear was riding me hard, but the desire to actually see what was going on was much stronger.

I shouldn’t be taking this risk, but I pushed the drawer out just a tad, allowing myself a sliver of view around the edge.

My eyes found the open bathroom doorway instantly, and then I had to muffle the squeak that wanted to rise from my throat.

I bit down on the meaty part of my thumb, hard.

So hard that the taste of blood flooded my mouth.

The alien creature that stood in the bathroom wasn’t far off from my imaginary crocodile.

Scales of shiny black covered him entirely, they were edged with hints of gold and speckles of bright green.

His shoulders were wide but shaped like a man, with arms and hands that he had perched on his hips.

His body was completely bare, and long black hair draped down his shoulders, highlighted with bright strands of the same green that speckled him.

It was his body that gave me pause. The upper half was humanoid, the lower half tapering into a powerful, muscled tail.

That tail coiled through the open doorway, long and sinuous, and thickly muscled.

The tail lay in a long sprawl out the door and partially around the weird round bed.

I could vividly picture his long body coiled up in it now, like a freaking snake.

The tip of that tail came shockingly close to pressing against my damn drawer, and he was all the way across the room, about to slide into the bath he was drawing.

When he moved, his body was visible to me in side profile, and my breathing stuttered in a gasp when I saw him slide his hand across his belly and palm the erection that jutted fiercely from his groin area.

Holy crap, that thing was huge and thick!

Even from where I sat, I could see the tip of it twisting and writhing as though it was split.

I bit down again on my hand, hoping the renewed shock of pain would jar me from my fascinated staring.

I shouldn’t be looking, but a scent was filling the room that hooked me.

Sweet and salty like caramel popcorn. My nipples perked, my panties were soaked, and my belly clenched and cramped with a sudden, sharp lance of desire. What the fuck was happening?