Page 183 of Pets in Space 10

Kari wondered if she was about to make a big mistake, but she’d be lying if she didn’t admit to curiosity about Luka’s disclosure regarding his need to drink blood. She couldn’t think of any other species who required such. Unless, it was a closely guarded secret.

She crawled near his hips, sitting back on her knees. Green eyes watched her closely and she swallowed down another spurt of nerves. Uncertainty about what she’d agreed to danced at the corner of her mind, but she needed him at full strength to get them through this.

Blowing out a breath, she said, “Walk me through how this works.”

His gaze gentled and he cupped her face in his broad hand.

“I promise I won’t hurt you.” The sensation of comfort and warmth flowed from his touch.

She wanted to close the small sliver of space between them and curl into his lap.

“I’m going to take from your wrist. It’s easier for me to stop that way. ”

“Wait.” She blinked. “Do you often have difficulty stopping?”

Chuckling, he gave her jaw a soft squeeze and let his hand fall away. “You won’t have to worry about that.”

“Right.” She rolled her eyes to hide her sudden onset of fear.

Before she could change her mind, he reached for her wrist and arched a brow. “May I?”

Her abrupt nod was all she could manage. Heart pounding, she waited and watched him closely. He raised her hand to his mouth. She caught a glimpse of his curved canines, more pronounced than a moment ago.

After another glance to check her consent, he kissed the underside of her wrist, licking the skin with repeated strokes. Her breath caught from the silken touch of his tongue.

She squirmed on her knees as arousal began a slow curl through her senses. He tightened his hold on her wrist right before a slight pinch of pain pierced her flesh. She gasped. His eyes flicked up to her face, lips pressed firmly to her wrist.

“I’m good. Fine. Keep doing whatever,” she panted between breaths.

Lust shot through her loins from the light suction that followed. It felt as if he had latched onto the intimate place between her legs and set it on fire. Each suck caused moisture to gather below and she bit her bottom lip to keep from moaning aloud.

The deep draws created a sensual pull she couldn’t resist. Her head fell back on her shoulders and the fingers of her free hand curled into a fist at her side.

Stars! If he didn’t stop soon, she’d orgasm.

Her lips parted to tell him, warn him, or maybe beg him not to stop. She whimpered and pushed up on her heels. Close. So close. Her hips rocked upward and he adjusted his hold on her arm to continue sucking.

His eyes stayed on hers. They were lit by an inner green fire she couldn’t break away from. The draw on her wrist grew more pronounced. How much was too much and did she care?

Her breathing became ragged with each exhale. She was torn between demanding he stop or letting the oncoming orgasm reign free. Her body begged for the latter.

More, more. Her lower region clenched in anticipation, the rasp of her shirt curling her nipples tight. When he suddenly pulled away, she wanted to cry out in disappointment. Instead, she moaned and dropped back onto the side of her hip, shuddering.

Blood formed a wet pool at the corner of his mouth. His chest rose and fell rapidly. Feeling the same way, she took several deep breaths to slow her heart rate and ease the ache between her legs.

Color had returned to his pale features. The lines of strain around his mouth no longer looked as pronounced. He licked the trace of red from his lips and pressed his thumb over the tiny punctures on her wrist. His heavy-lidded look smoldered. Nothing about the heat between them had faded.

“Done?” she managed to ask with some clarity despite her world remaining in a haze of desire.

He smirked. “Done. Thank you for your generosity.”

“What’s next?” She scooted back, rubbed her wrist and sat cross legged from him.

He glanced around. “We stay here until night. It’s too dangerous to move during the day due to the bounty Gubu set on you.”

They’d left Ahain’s camp first thing in the morning so there were still a lot of hours in the day before the sun dropped and they could move. She gazed around the cavern. “Are we safe here?”

“As safe as can be expected. Have you eaten? There should be nutrient bars in the kit. We’ve got hours until we head out. It’s best to relax while we can.”

Eating was the last thing on her mind. She absently rubbed the spot on her wrist one more time, ignoring the imaginary throb. “I’ll eat later. Now is a good time for you to explain what’s going on. Why did Gubu want me? What made you come back for me? And what’s with your tattoo of Zsusa?”

As she asked each question, her voice grew shrill to match her mounting frustration. He stood and paced away, gripping the back of his neck. The muscles in his shoulders flexed and tensed. His pants clung to his frame, drawing her eye to his narrow hips and powerful thighs.

“I can’t tell you everything.”

She leaped to her feet, anger coursing through her. “Really?! After what I did for you? I saved your life. The harenae venom would have killed you if not for me.”

He spun on his heels and snapped, “I can’t tell you because I don’t know everything. I don’t know what Gubu wants with you.”

“What do you mean?” He was the one who took her to Gubu. How could he not know what the other man wanted with her?

“Look, my brother got into a bit of trouble. He made a promise on my name and let’s say things would have gotten very ugly for me if Zair didn’t make good on the promise.”

She didn’t understand how that was her problem. It was the nature of criminals to expect betrayal but she stayed on topic. “What was the promise?”

He sighed and met her gaze. Weariness glinted from the green depths. “My brother likes to gamble. He always believes he’s going to win. On this particular occasion, he bet an open-ended promise. Gubu claimed the promise and only said he wanted a specific woman brought to him.”

Her heart pounded. “Me.”

“You. He told us where you’d be and when. We scoped out the station and decided I’d be the one to coax you from the bar.”

Of course. Because there was no way she would have given his brother the time of day. While Zair and Luka had similar attractive appearances, Zair’s personality was abrasive and no woman in her right man would go anywhere with him.

“After you turned me over to Gubu, you could have left me there. Why did you come back?”

He cursed and avoided her gaze as he muttered something under his breath.

She planted her hands on her waist and glared.

If he had a hidden agenda she deserved to know.

“I’m putting a lot of trust in you, Luka.

You’ve already admitted to abducting me as payment for a debt.

Tell me why you came back when you were in the clear. ”

No one would have caught him or known he’d been involved in whatever happened to her.

Luka faced her. “I couldn’t let him hurt you.”

Her pulse leaped at his stark admission. She cleared her throat and crossed her arms over her chest. “Why? I’m nobody to you.”

“Harming a female goes against a vow I made to myself long ago. I’ve seen what the Rudurian are capable of. I couldn’t stomach the thought of what Gubu would do to you.”

Flutters erupted in her belly. She tried to wrap her head around what his words implied. “I’m just the victim of your brother’s bet. I shouldn’t matter to you.”

His left brow arched higher than the right and his lips twisted in a ragged half smile.

“Are you going to look me in the eye and pretend you don’t feel the attraction between us?

I know you felt it, Kari. As soon as I touched you in that station bar, I wanted you more than I’ve ever wanted another. ”

And just like that, the desire which had cooled to a simmer flared back to life. She wasn’t sure who moved first, but she was in his arms and his head dove forward to kiss her. Their mouths crashed together like waves in a storm.

***

Having Kari in his arms settled Luka in a way he hadn’t expected. Tension drained away and he kissed her with all the pent-up desperation surging within him. Her response was more than he hoped as she moaned and looped her arms around his neck.

She leaned in until their hips bumped. He spun her around and pressed her against the wall of the cavern, one hand going behind her to protect her back from the jagged texture.

The sweet taste of her blood lingered on his tongue but was nothing compared to the slick swirl of her tongue in his mouth. He groaned and thrust against her, needing to get as close as possible. Her hands raked down his bare chest and a shiver rolled from his neck to his toes.

“Luka,” she gasped into his mouth, burying her fingers in the hair at his nape.

Pulling away, he braced one hand on the wall beside her head. “I need you.”

“Yes, yes.” She lowered her hands and tore at the fastenings on his pants.

There was no way he’d do this with her against the rough cave walls. He wrapped his arms her waist and tugged upward. She helped by lifting her legs and clasped him around his hips. He stumbled back to the blanket on the ground and lowered her gently, holding his weight in a crouch above her.

Face flushed, brown eyes warm, she reached up and gripped his shoulders.

The light tug brought him down atop her.

When her legs came around his hips again, he groaned and buried his face in her neck.

She smelled like fruit, a little floral and the faintest tinge of sweat from their frantic flight on the bikes.

“I want you,” she growled.

Her sexy plea was a balm to his senses as he kissed his way along her jaw, nipped at her ear and swirled his tongue around the rim. Her heels kicked at the backs of his thighs and she made the cutest sounds as she tried to manhandle him.

Snorting, he braced on his forearms on the blanket and whispered, “Slow down.”

Another little aggressive sound came from her. She hooked her toes in the waist of his pants and managed to get them to his knees. He chuckled out loud and kicked them the rest of the way off.

Wanting her bare as well, he wrestled her clothes off in between desperate kisses and whispered words exchanged in hush sounds. They came together in a clash. Any attempt to slow them down went out the window. He cupped her hip in a firm grip and slid between her legs.

The first clasp of her wet folds left him reeling. With a subtle push, he eased deeper until seated within her tight embrace. Her internal muscles milked his shaft in a pulsing beat he was helpless to follow.

Hard groans mingled with soft moans, building the passion. Soon, they rocked against each other, making no attempts to muffle their cries. On the verge of release, he leaned up and stroked his finger against the hard nub between her thighs.

Her gaze met his in stunned ecstasy before she exploded in his arms. He bit his bottom lip and rode her hard until nothing remained but gasping sighs. Then he slammed home, tucked his face at the curve of her smooth shoulder and let go.

Behind his closed eyelids, an array of colors splashed over his vision. He clenched his thighs and cursed as the waves rolled over him and down his spine.

Gradually, his senses returned. He pushed up to his forearms. He brushed his nose across her cheekbone and trailed tiny kisses over her jaw. She arched into him as he nuzzled the side of her throat, his craving for blood absent.

She met his gaze and a slow smile spread across her face. “Again.”

“Again,” he agreed.