Page 11 of Pleasured by the Panther (The Monstrum Kindred)

MIRANDA

Miranda felt a little stunned as she let Korrath guide her from the massage grove. Her body was still trembling faintly, her thighs weak. She hadn’t come that hard in…well, maybe ever. And certainly never from someone else’s hands.

Martin had never even tried. Sex with him, especially toward the end, had been something perfunctory—two minutes of grunting and thrusting, a roll to the side, and then his snores filling the room while she lay there aching and unfulfilled.

If she wanted a release, she had to wait until he was out cold, then slip into the bathroom with her little pink vibrator and take care of herself.

Which could only be done alone in the dark and quietly, so he wouldn’t wake and make some cutting remark about her body.

The memory left a bitter taste in her mouth, but it faded quickly under the lingering hum of what Korrath had done to her. He had known exactly how to touch her, how to stroke her until her body responded helplessly. As if he’d mapped her nerves and knew the secret path to her pleasure.

God, she thought, hugging the soft, woven blanket he’d given her tighter around herself, if anyone had told me I’d start the day sitting in the Hilton ballroom and end it being massaged and pampered into an orgasm by a Monstrum Kindred Panther on a living spaceship, I never would have believed them.

But here she was and the night wasn’t over yet.

“This way,” Korrath rumbled. He parted a curtain of vines and led her into another living chamber.

Miranda looked around…caught her breath.

It was a pool—no, a lagoon, big enough to swim laps in.

The water glowed faintly from within, swirling in shades of turquoise and gold.

At the far end, a small waterfall spilled down from a ledge of flowering vines, filling the air with a soft, steady rush.

The sound was soothing, like rain on a roof at night.

Around the pool, trees that looked like a cross between a willow and a cherry blossom trailed their branches into the pool. Their pale pink flowers glowed softly, shedding petals that drifted like sparks across the surface of the water. The whole place looked like something from a dream.

“This is…” She shook her head, at a loss. “ It’s beautiful .”

Korrath smiled faintly.

“The Mother Ship provides for us in many ways. Here , you may wash, soak, and be renewed.”

Miranda stepped closer to the pool’s edge, fascinated.

That’s when she noticed the vines. A purple so dark they were nearly black, they ringed the pool like a living fence.

From them sprouted long, waxy blossoms—blue for the most part, but here and there a crimson one glistened, its moist petals parting and closing in a disturbingly lifelike motion.

“What are those?” Miranda asked, leaning closer before she could stop herself.

“Pleasure blooms,” Korrath rumbled. His emerald gaze flicked to her, gauging her reaction. “ They are… specialized plants.”

She blinked at him.

“They certainly look, uh, special.” She nodded to a crimson blossom with fleshy lips that looked a little too much like a woman’s sex for comfort.

As if to answer her, a long, blue blossom nearby—which looked disturbingly like an enormous waxy phallus—nudged forward, seeking the crimson one. The red lips quivered, then turned toward the blue blossom, sucking noisily at its tip.

Miranda’s eyes went wide as the blue blossom slid itself between the crimson petals and began to jerk and thrust.

“Oh my God ,” she breathed, unable to look away. It was obscene…in a botanical kind of way. But also kind of erotic.

The plant pair writhed together shamelessly. The red bloom clung and sucked, making wet sounds as the blue one thrust deeper, its slick outer petals glistening with some kind of secretion. Then , with a final shudder, the blue bloom plunged all the way in and went rigid.

Miranda gasped as she watched ripples run along the red petals, almost as though it was swallowing. Moments later, the blue blossom shriveled, collapsing into a limp ribbon, while the crimson bloom looked stronger than ever.

“What just happened?” she demanded, both horrified and fascinated. “ What happened to the blue one?”

“The male blossom has done its part,” Korrath said matter-of-factly. “ It deposits its seed into the female bloom, then it dies. Soon , that crimson blossom will bud and produce new offspring.”

Miranda shivered, rubbing her arms through the blanket.

“That’s… morbid. And kind of obscene.”

Korrath gave a low rumble, somewhere between amusement and sympathy.

“It is simply the cycle of life. The Mother Ship creates what is needed—even pleasure and release.”

Miranda tore her gaze away from the blossoms, though she could still hear their wet, sucking noises. She looked at the glowing pool again, at the soft petals floating on the water.

“I think I’ll stick to the bath,” she said dryly.

“As you wish, lovely one.” Korrath moved closer, his hand brushing the small of her back. “ Come —the water is warm. Wash away the oils, and let yourself be soothed.”

Miranda hesitated only a moment before stepping toward the edge. The steam rising from the water curled around her bare skin, caressing her like invisible fingers. She clutched the blanket tighter, suddenly aware of how naked she was beneath it.

Korrath’s purr deepened, low and unmistakable.

“Do not be shy. This place is for you. Let the water touch you as I long to do.”

Her pulse jumped and her heart started beating faster. Was this just about washing off the oil from the massage…or something else?

She clutched the blanket tighter and cleared her throat.

“Are you… coming in with me?”

Korrath tilted his head, his green eyes catching the glow of the blossoms.

“Of course—if you want me to.”

She hadn’t expected that. And she certainly hadn’t expected her stomach to do a slow, startled flip at the thought of seeing him naked. God help her, she did want him to.

“Yes,” she heard herself say. “ Come in with me.”

A pleased rumble vibrated in his chest. “ Whatever would give you joy would give me joy as well.”

With that, he stripped off his red uniform shirt in one smooth motion.

The carved muscles of his chest and shoulders rippled beneath sleek black fur, and Miranda’s mouth went dry.

Then he pushed his thumbs into the waistband of his tight black leather trousers and peeled them down.

She tried not to stare—but of course she couldn’t help seeing at least a little.

Her gaze dipped lower… and she frowned when all she saw was a furry pouch between his legs. No shaft. No evidence of the huge, swollen erection she’d half expected. She’d heard all the Mostrum were hung like bulls. Where was it?

Korrath’s lips curved in amusement as he caught her looking.

“Would you like to see my shaft?” he asked silkily.

“Oh no!” Miranda blurted, her face flaming. Oh God , he’d caught her looking! She spun away and all but threw herself into the pool to hide her embarrassment.

Unfortunately, she misjudged the depth. One moment her foot was firmly planted on the sandy bottom, the next she was plunging down with a startled yelp, her blanket swirling around her.

There was a splash and then strong arms wrapped around her, hauling her effortlessly back to the surface. Miranda came up coughing and spluttering, pushing her wet hair out of her eyes. So much for a sexy entrance into the pool, she thought wryly.

“Are you all right?” Korrath asked, concern etched in every line of his face.

“I didn’t…didn’t hurt anything,” she managed between coughs. “ Except maybe my…my dignity.”

“Don’t worry about that.” His voice gentled. “ Come —let us swim to the far end and rinse beneath the waterfall.” He cocked his head to one side. “ Are you able to swim? I never saw you swimming in my dreams.”

“I can swim,” Miranda said a little defensively. “ I just misjudged the depth, that’s all. But I’m fine in the water.”

“Then let’s go to the other side.”

Korrath set off and she followed him, stroking through the warm, glowing water. At the far end, the small waterfall spilled down in a refreshing cascade.

Miranda ducked under it at the big Monstrum’s urging. It was cooler than the pool but not unpleasant, sluicing away the oil still clinging to her skin.

Feeling clean and refreshed, she leaned back against the edge of the pool, her hair trailing down her back and her breasts floating just under the surface of the water. Korrath relaxed beside her.

She tried not to stare, but he looked like some kind of carved obsidian statue come to life.

The water beaded on his sleek black fur, sliding down over muscles that looked like they’d been chiseled from stone.

He looked like he didn’t have an ounce of fat on him anywhere—which must be nice, she thought dryly.

Then again, he didn’t seem to mind that she was plus-sized and curvy. In fact, he really seemed to like it, which was nice.

“Do you like what you see, lovely one?” His deep, purring voice made Miranda realize that she’d been staring at him.

“Um, yes. You’re kind of…impossibly perfect,” she said, looking quickly away.

“If my body pleases you half as much as yours pleases me, I will be content,” he murmured.

Miranda found him very pleasing. But she couldn’t keep staring at him—it was making things awkward.

Her eyes darted away—only to land on the strange blossoms again.

Pleasure blooms, he’d called them. She watched, fascinated and horrified, as a long blue bloom thrust eagerly into the sucking lips of a crimson one. The wet, obscene sounds filled the air.

And then some of the blue “male” blooms began drifting toward her.

She gasped as one brushed against her nipple under the water. Another trailed slickly down her thigh, trying to wedge itself between her legs.

“Oh, no you don’t!” she exclaimed, batting them away. “ I’m not a female plant. What are they thinking?”

“They sense your arousal,” Korrath murmured. “ That is why they are attracted to you. Just as the female plants would be attracted to me, if there was one that was not occupied by the male blossoms.”

“But why would they be attracted to you? Do you smell like a male plant to them or something?” Miranda asked, frowning.

He shook his head.

“It doesn’t matter if you are a plant or a person—the pleasure blooms react to the hormones and scents of a male or female in heat. In fact, our warriors sometimes use the female blooms to release tension—by putting our shafts inside them.”

Miranda immediately imagined him thrusting a long, girthy cock deep into one of the crimson sucking plants and her cheeks got hot.

“That’s… you really do that? That’s kind of disgusting.”

His lips twitched.

“It is part of the Mother Ship’s cycle. And it is not disgust you feel, Miranda —it is desire.”

She wanted to deny it…but the truth burned in her body. Even though he’d just given her the most intense orgasm she’d ever had on the massage table, her nipples were tight and her pussy was pulsing with renewed need.

What was wrong with her? She hadn’t felt this horny in well…ever.

“Nothing is wrong with you,” Korrath said softly.

Her head snapped toward him.

“Did I say that out loud?”

He nodded.

“Yes. You’re wondering why you’re still so aroused. It is the fruit you ate…the wine you drank. But most of all, it is your body’s truth. You are deep in your Second Heat .”

“My… Second Heat ?” she echoed. “ What’s that?” He’d mentioned something about it back in the Hilton ballroom, but that seemed like a lifetime ago now.

“You humans call it ‘menopause,’” he explained.

“ A time when a woman’s body changes. But it is more than that to us Monstrum .

It is a second period of fertility and desire.

When a human woman in her Second Heat is around a Monstrum Kindred , her body awakens.

It is filled with hunger, with need…the need to be bred. ”

His words stirred something inside her…but Miranda wasn’t about to admit it.

“Well, I’m not letting you breed me. The last thing I need is another baby at my age,” she said firmly. “ Besides , I don’t think you could get me pregnant if you tried— I’m too old.”

His slow smile made her knees weak, even underwater.

“Wouldn’t it be fun to try, though?” he purred.

She swallowed hard, her lower body clenching at the thought. Oh God , now she was picturing him inside her—filling her with himself. She wondered again what his cock looked like. Was it huge? Was it alien and strange? What would it feel like inside her?

The male blooms teased at her again, brushing her nipples, curling toward her thighs. She slapped one away, her pulse racing. How dare they tell on her and come sniffing around just because she was horny?

Korrath’s voice lowered, a deep purr that seemed to vibrate through the water itself.

“Why do you keep pushing them away. Why don’t you let them pleasure you, lovely one? I would enjoy watching.”

Miranda gaped at him.

“Just… let them touch me?”

“Why not?” His green eyes gleamed in the glow of the blossoms. “ If it pleases you, it will please me.”

She nibbled her lower lip as she looked down at the long blue blooms swirling near her breasts, their petals glistening. The thought of letting them touch and caress her was scandalous… unthinkable .

And yet…

Should she?