Page 21

N aomi

Flying was a thrill for me. I was grateful to have Ryker’s hand to hold during takeoff and was fairly certain I was crushing some bones I was gripping it so tightly.

Seeing my city state from the air and watching the only civilization I knew recede was frightening and exhilarating.

Then came the combination of feelings that came with seeing the vast lands that had been ravaged by the wars.

There had been many times that I glanced out the window to see the remains of a large crater, evidence of a bombing long ago.

The land was scarred in places, dead in some and flourishing with nature in others. So much of it looked to be uninhabited.

Late that night, we landed somewhere near the coast of central Mexico.

I clasped Ryker’s hand again when the plane descended.

He had warned me the landing might be rough and he had been right.

The old derelict airstrip was overgrown with brush and the pavement was broken and crumbling in places.

The wheels bounced several times, and the rush of movement was terrifying as the pilot hit the brakes.

I was profoundly relieved when we finally came to a halt.

“Takeoff is far better,” I breathed. Ryker chuckled and I remembered to let go of his hand. Even though I’d been holding onto him tightly again, he didn’t rub his hand or anything. I secretly bet he’d have bruises tomorrow.

The book he’d picked out for me had kept me distracted for much of the flight.

Occasionally, I would look out the window and marvel at the Earth far down below, but the storyline about a girl being abducted by a tall, handsome alien had kept my attention.

I didn’t tell Ryker, but there was even a scene between the two where he put her over his knee and spanked her to tears when she questioned his love for her, after which he held her and kissed her tears away.

I blushed thinking about what he did with his fingers, his tail, and his cock after that.

All of it had been so impossibly romantic I knew I would never forget it.

I’d put it back where he’d taken it from before we deplaned.

With a wary look, Ryker left me with one of the security team members while he went back onboard the cargo bay of the plane.

He drove one of the smaller off-road vehicles down the gangway.

Seth and Vince returned with two extra vehicles that would follow.

Without a second thought, I climbed into Ryker’s.

When one of the security members made a move to join us, Ryker drove off before the guard’s fingers even brushed the door.

“I loaded all the supplies we may need to find Cressida Labs: maps. the books you collected and referenced. Anything you said you might need is in the cargo hold,” he explained.

“That’s perfect. I’ll make sure to catalogue them all when we stop for the day,” I grinned.

He glanced up into the rearview mirror. The other two vehicles were following closely behind us.

His eyes narrowed with distrust for the briefest moment, but then it was gone.

A harsh bump jostled the car, and I looked out the window, finally fully taking in my first view of the wastelands from the ground.

I’d appreciated it from far above during the flight and it satisfied some of my personal curiosity.

Seeing it close-up was something different altogether.

I was accustomed to living in a city, forever surrounded by buildings and pavement with little greenery except what was planted in designated areas zoned for plant growth, but most of those were used for food production so none looked anything like this.

In New Englandia, everything was planned and had a purpose.

It was all very different out here from the ground.

The trees were even more massive than I could have imagined.

Some of the trunks were bigger around than the four by four we were driving.

There were colorful wildflowers blooming on the rolling hills around us.

The overwhelming wildness was all so very beautiful in its unruly grandeur that I found myself stunned to silence time and time again.

I turned my head, glancing at the man beside me. He was quiet, but contemplative as he assessed the path ahead of us. There was no road to follow, but the ground was flat enough in most places. It wasn’t the smoothest ride, but I didn’t complain.

When he noticed me looking in his direction, he smiled.

I couldn’t help but notice that he’d been keeping his distance, especially around the security team.

I knew he was being respectful and protecting me from any intrusive suspicions those men might have, but it still hurt my feelings a little bit all the same.

He lifted his hand from the steering wheel, then hesitated a moment as if he was undecided, glancing in the rearview mirror again, before reaching for me and taking my hand in his. He squeezed it tight, reassuringly.

“Do you remember what I said back at your home?” he asked pointedly. There was a slight hint of command to his tone, and I looked quickly back toward him. Maybe I’d been imagining that distance after all.

“Yes,” I replied, blushing hotly.

“Unbutton your pants,” he dictated.

“But I…”

“Little girl,” he warned, his voice only just above a growl. Immediately, my entire body heated with arousal. The rapid rise in my internal temperature took me by surprise, and my clit pulsed eagerly as if it was egging him on.

Without another word, I unbuttoned my jeans.

“Push them down past your knees, all the way to your ankles,” he instructed.

Slowly, I did as he asked, blushing heatedly with every terrible moment. With my underwear in place, I still had some measure of propriety, but not much. That didn’t last long.

“Panties too. I want that pussy entirely bare for me,” he commanded.

“Ryker,” I gasped.

His hand quickly struck the top of my thigh. I yelped at the unexpected sting.

“Yes, sir,” I quickly corrected. I slipped my thumbs beneath the waistband of my panties and hesitantly pushed them down a few millimeters.

He cleared his throat, clearly expecting me to go a bit faster.

I whimpered quietly, using my legs to lift myself up off the seat a little bit so that I could slip my panties down past my backside.

I paused for a brief moment with my fists in front of my pussy before I pushed them all the way down to the tops of my jeans.

He brushed his fingers over the top of my left thigh.

“Open your legs for me,” he instructed firmly. I stared down at his hand, watching it slink toward my pussy and my thighs opened of their own accord.

“Sir…” I breathed.

“I told you I was going to make you come for me, didn’t I?”

“Yes… but…”

His fingers dipped toward my pussy, and I stopped breathing.

The moment they touched my glistening folds, I sucked in a mouthful of air as a bolt of pleasure spiraled straight to my core.

Without meaning to, my hips lurched upwards of their own accord, seeking out his hand.

It was mortifying to see myself like this.

His fingertip traced over my clit, just lightly brushing its sensitive surface enough to drive me wild. Steadily, he increased the pressure, and I had difficulty keeping my thighs open as fierce volleys of desire tore through me at every turn.

“Someone might see,” I mumbled, but I bucked against him anyway.

“There’s no one out here,” he answered.

“But the security,” I began.

“They’re behind us. They won’t see anything either, little girl,” he continued.

“But…”

He slapped my pussy hard enough to sting.

“Do you need your little pussy spanked first, naughty girl?”

Fuck. I didn’t know why that made my clit pulse even more. I shouldn’t like it when he took control like that, but I did, and I couldn’t deny it, at least not to myself.

“No, sir,” I whispered, biting my lip and shaking my head quickly. The stinging burn simmered across my flesh and his fingertips rubbed against my clit hard enough for it to feel like a punishment.

“Then be a good girl and come for me.”

I didn’t need to be told again. At once, my muscles seized with my orgasm. His presence was so overwhelmingly dominant that I almost forgot about my surroundings.

Almost, but not completely.

The trees rushed by us on either side as his fingers worked between my thighs. My legs quivered and I arched back against the seat, shamefully riding his hand as pleasure burned through me. He didn’t slow down or stop. If anything, he pressed a bit harder.

I came with a shout.

Burning pleasure spiraled through me, fast and hard.

I grasped his wrist, not to stop him, but simply to touch him.

He seemed to understand, and I didn’t get in trouble for my uncontrollable impulsiveness.

My hips bucked back and forth as my eyes rolled back in my head.

I bit my lips, trying to keep quiet but it was useless.

I was moaning embarrassingly loudly and when I glanced over to him, there was a grin of quiet victory written all over his features. He was proud of himself!

That only made this orgasm even better.

My pleasure came in waves, one after the other with each growing more powerful until it finally crested and began to fade. My inner walls fluttered greedily as I slumped back against the seat. He drew his hand away and I made a move to pull my panties and jeans back up.

“You will wait for permission to cover yourself,” he smirked.

My hands stopped and I lowered them to my thighs, not really knowing what to do with them. He slowly entwined his fingers with mine and I blushed when I noticed that they were still glistening with the evidence of what had just happened all over them.

It felt deliciously naughty to be bare from the waist down like this and as much as I wanted to hold my head high and be proud, I felt a little uncertain.

I squeezed his hand a bit tighter. I knew I shouldn’t be allowing this to happen or encouraging him.

If anyone back home knew about the things that happened between Ryker and me, I would be ostracized, or worse.

What we were doing was dangerous. I knew that and I had a sneaking suspicion he knew that too, but I couldn’t stop myself.

He’d given me a taste and I craved more.

With every interaction between us, I felt my heart expanding with feelings I knew I should not be having.

He was thoughtful and respectful at every turn, kind and generous, intelligent and just so masculine.

He was undoubtedly a bit heavy handed at times, but I knew that he only meant well by me.

I felt safe with him, even, maybe, admired by him in return.

His fingers squeezed mine. Maybe he knew what I was thinking or maybe he just knew I needed the reassurance of his touch. I turned to face him, still embarrassed by my nakedness but thankful for his attention all the same.

“Good girl,” he purred.

My heart exploded with forbidden feeling.