Page 16 of Prison Moon
Chapter Six
Her name was Sarra. Toren searched the vegetation that grew along the riverbank, looking for bryna reeds to make a soft nest out of. The tall, bushy grasses grew along the bank in thick patches, if he could find them. He walked a good distance down the river before spotting a cluster of them and gathered enough to make a thick bed, bundling the reeds tightly to carry them back. Tucking what he had under one arm, he stood, stepping back under the canopy of trees and saw several shoots ofsidrahiding under a bushy leaf. He pulled the roots free and searched for more. They’d eaten nothing in two days but a handful of nuts and berries and hearing Sarra’s stomach grumble in protest caused more guilt than he liked as his own hunger was sated from the teshen he’d eaten after finding her.
Pulling all the roots he could find free, he headed back to the clearing. He’d have to scout the area once he’d made a comfortable nest for them and see what else he could find for her.
Carrying the reeds and roots back to the clearing, he found Sarra sitting by the small stream at the foot of the waterfall. She stood when she saw him. Dropping the reeds, he held out his hand, offering her the roots. “Wash these while I get the reeds laid out.” She took them from his hand, a question in her eyes. “Sidra roots,” he said. “They’re not as filling as meat but they’ll do until I can find something better.”
She took them to the stream and bent down to give them a wash. The short garment she wore left very little to the imagination and he knew if she bent over just a fraction more, he’d be able to see the rounded curve of her bare bottom.
He turned away. He seemed to have a one-track mind where she was concerned. He knew it was because he’d been so long without the company of a female. He’d have plenty of time to think about bedding her later, but for now, he needed a soft nest for her.
Gathering the fallen reeds he spent long minutes breaking each shaft apart down its length and exposing the fluff inside. The stalk turned soft in his hands. He tossed it under the overhang and grabbed another reed, breaking it apart, exposing the fluff until he had a soft mat. It was a sorry excuse for a bed. He stared at the reeds, wondering if his lair in the mountain was empty. He had no idea how long it had been since he’d been there. After seeing three dragons killed for no other reason than they were dragons, he’d found the crumbling temple and crawled into its depths. If it hadn’t been for the wyvern, he’d probably still be sleeping in his mountain lair, tucked away from the seeing eyes of those who now controlled the world.
His chest heated, fire licking through his veins as he thought of them. His two-legged brethren had been accepted here, welcomed by the Draegon, only to have them sell out to the invaders and became enforcers of their evil. They now patrolled the sky and bullied those on the ground into doing what they wished. One-on-one, the dragons were evenly matched in skill to the wyvern, but getting caught meant death. He’d yet to see a dragon captured who’d been allowed to live. The Draegon were destructive and he burned to end them all. It would take so little to fire half the world but what would it accomplish other than putting a target on his back?
Sarra touched his shoulder and he jolted, his black thoughts clearing. There was a question in her gaze. He scattered the reeds, making the thick nest spread out more until he had a thick blanket of it, then stood. She was holding the sidra, her hands still wet. “Come,” he said, taking her free hand and tugging her toward the nest. “Come sit and eat. I’ll find something more for you later.”
Her mouth turned down into a frown as she looked at him. He motioned for her to sit. She stared at him for long moments before doing so, raising her hand and holding up the roots. He took one, bit off half of it and chewed. She stared at the rest of them, then raised one to her mouth, biting off a piece. He watched her as she ate, took in the way the single shaft of light peeking through the canopy filled the alcove and shined off her hair, the creamy smoothness of her exposed shoulders and the way she had her bare legs tucked up close beside her. The barely-there garment she wore did little to cover her and as much as he enjoyed looking at her, she’d need more clothing. Where he’d find it he had no idea but that was a problem for another day. For now, his only concern was making her comfortable—and making her his.
* * *
The “nest” as Toren called it, was nothing more than fluffy reed-like grasses but it was so soft Sara sank right down into them. She leaned back against the rock wall, then shivered as the cold stone sent a chill up her spine. Toren left again, saying he would find her something else to eat and as hungry as she was, eating was the last thing on her mind. She had to figure out what to do, find Marcy if she was even alive …
She sighed. She couldn’t think like that. Marcy was alive. She just had to find her. But beyond that, she had no clue what to do. If she found Marcy in the next five minutes, she’d still be exactly where she was now. Stranded on an alien planet with the worst criminals in the galaxy who were probably, at this very moment, looking for her.
She took a bite from the sidra root. It tasted a bit like a mix of raw potato and turnip. She had no idea how filling it would be but hoped it replaced her lagging energy. She took another bite and kept chewing as she wondered how her life changed so much so quickly? Being kidnapped by aliens had been a harsh adjustment but those same aliens tossing her out into a violent environment, forced to run and hide, then saved—sort of—by a dragon, then escaping him only to be caught by Toren left her weak. The fear she hadn’t had time to let sink in before now caused her skin to break out into a cold sweat, gooseflesh dotting the skin on her arms and legs. Fatigue made her weary and lethargic and her ordeal was only beginning. She still hadn’t decided if Toren was one of the good guys or not and she was too exhausted to try and figure it out at the moment. Crazy as it was, she felt safe with him. So far, he hadn’t tried to hurt her. He’d done the opposite by protecting her without reason to do so. Oh, she wasn’t stupid enough to not know why. The Big Heads had told them what the aliens on this planet wanted. They wanted women and whoever caught them first got to keep them—if they were strong enough to do so. Just because she was with Toren didn’t mean she’d stay with him, so she had to weigh her options. Stay with the good-looking alien who probably wanted to play house or run and let one of the ugly ones find her—and play house with him instead with no guarantees he’d treat her kindly.
She wasn’t stupid. She’d take door number one, thank you very much.
The sidra roots were more filling than she thought they’d be and she left a few for Toren, laying them close by, and stretched out on the soft reed bed trying to keep her ridiculous excuse for clothing pulled down enough her ass wasn’t shining, then closed her eyes. The past few days played out behind her closed eyelids and every bit of it was enough to scare her stupid if she gave it more thought. The dragon alone would give her nightmares. She had no delusions about the fact he was probably going to eat her. Why else would he have snatched her from the sky? Of course, he had dropped the carcass of some beast by the river. The thing was more than enough to fill his belly. Much more than she would have been, so maybe he hadn’t been saving her for lunch.
Sleep dragged her down and she didn’t wake up again until she felt movement behind her. She jolted, then froze when something clamped down on her waist and tugged her back. She noticed the heat next. Hot, bone-melting heat warmed the entire backside of her body from foot to neck and she sighed a bit, sinking deeper into the reeds. It was Toren, the sweet, spicy scent that clung to his skin hit her next and even though she knew she shouldn’t be laying with him like this, that he’d get the wrong impression if she stayed and let him continue to wrap himself around her, she couldn’t make herself slide away.
She shifted and his arm moved, his hand coming to rest between her breasts. Grabbing his arm to shove his hand away, she realized some sort of cloth covered her. It was draped over her shoulder and fell all the way to her calf. Where had he—
The thought dropped off when she realized what it was. The cloth Toren had worn wrapped around his hips was now serving as her blanket. Had he been wearing anything underneath it?
She shifted again to look over her shoulder. As dim as the light was she knew that was his bare hip she saw, which meant that heat against her bottom was a very naked alien with his naughty-bits tucked nice and flush against her backside. The barely-there dress wasn’t pulled down enough in the back and the more she thought about him pressed up against her, and the heat radiating into her skin, the more aware she was of him.
What did she do? Pretend she was sleeping and ignore it? Move away so his naked flesh wasn’t flush against her skin.
He shifted behind her, his hand sliding over to cup her right breast. She gasped, and he stiffened behind her, then moved enough to let her know he was now awake. The hand cupping her breast tightened and she tried to slide away but he held firm and buried his face into her hair, that heat pressed against her backside growing a bit hotter. The moment she thought about him pressed so intimately against her, an ache throbbed between her legs, her brain automatically dragging her back to the last time she’d had sex. New Year’s Eve, two years ago, with who she thought wasThe One—only to find out he wasThe Onefor three other girls as well.
The hand on her breast shifted and her nipple tightened, that tingle between her legs growing. Her traitorous body reacted on instinct and she tried to think of anything other than sex.
“Sleep, Sarra. The sun will find us soon enough.”
He said nothing for long minutes then lifted his head, his knees pressing more firmly into the back of her own. “Unless you would rather mate. I will stay awake for that.”
Had he read her mind?Oh hell, please don’t let him be able to read minds!
She laughed. It was a nervous reaction, nothing more, but it must not have seemed that way to him. He flipped her onto her back so fast, she barely had time to realize he’d done it before he was laying half on top of her, one muscled leg draping over hers to rest between her thighs and there was no mistaking the growing hardness pressing against her hip or the fact her dress was halfway up her backside, her girly parts now exposed.
“Why do you laugh?” He’d let go of her breast but his hand lay flat between them. “I said nothing amusing.”
She didn’t reply. He wouldn’t have understood what she said anyway, so what was the point?
The hand resting between her breasts slid up to the small strap on the ridiculous dress she wore, his fingers brushing it off her shoulder. “I can make it very pleasing, Sarra.”