Page 22 of Stolen Fire (N.O.A.H (Nostradamus Outerspace Advancement of Humanity) #2)

Cifer hesitated. “I wouldn’t have been kidnapped if I didn’t have this…skin.”

Blaize trailed her fingers up his torso, and it was all he could do to quickly camouflage the trails left from his reaction to her touch. Not that it mattered. She knew his secret.

At least part of it.

The other part he didn’t share with anyone. Ever. Because if she saw his true form, she wouldn’t want him at all. He wasn’t stolen for his aesthetics; the pirates took him because they could use him.

Her exploration continued, waking every part of him. His body vibrated with need for her, which made no sense. He’d come undone earlier, experiencing an orgasm that tore through him with a force he didn’t know he was capable of. But as long as she was near, he would want her.

He wrapped his arms around her and rolled her on top of him.

Her hum of pleasure pulsed through him, her soft body molded to his, and he met her lips in a soft, slow kiss.

She traced his face with her fingertips.

He stroked his hands slowly down her back, along the curve of her amazing ass.

He’d only had glimpses of her form under the work uniform she continually wore on the ship.

When she’d shed her clothes, it was like a surprise present revealed.

Exactly what he hadn’t known was possible but was absolutely perfect. His cock stiffened between her thighs.

She wiggled around until the tip rested at her hot, wet opening.

Cifer groaned. “Don’t tease me.”

“I’m not. I’m savoring you.” She rocked her hips, taunting him with her sweet pussy. “Too fast last time.”

“Slow and easy, as you command.”

She arched her back to gaze at him. “I don’t think anyone commands you.”

“You could.”

She slid farther down his cock, and he moaned.

Her body and his delayed gratification made for the most exquisite test of his patience—a gentle seduction as she took him deeper.

She peppered kisses over his chest, his neck, even his ears, which had never been sensitive before but had become an erogenous zone. For her.

The silken slide of her skin overwhelmed his control.

Without regard for where, he let his hands roam across every part of her body.

He parted the soft globes of her ass, caressing the forbidden space.

A small part of him concentrated on maintaining his illusion, because she could make him forget himself and completely let go.

And that would be a disaster. But he couldn’t resist the temptation of extending part of his authentic body to her sensitive opening.

As soon as the tip of his tail connected, her pussy clenched and released another wave of excitement, but she stiffened.

Damn .

He retracted and reformed, still teasing and gripping but not testing.

She hid her dark desire from him. It was only fair since he still hid from her.

If he could have forever with her, he would come out of hiding and bring her out of her shell at the same time.

But while he’d intended to figure out how to extend their time together, there was no forever.

She was committed to The Treasure . And he was committed to the orphans.

For as long as they could have, he would hoard every moment, lock it away in his memories. Her movements up and down his cock intensified. He lifted his hips to meet her with each descent, seeking the depths of her, to memorize the experience of her owning his body.

She moaned and panted. He took over lifting her in his grip, taking their connection into the realm of the impossible. She held on to his forearms and gave up control.

“Touch yourself.”

She released one arm, and her fingers went to the tiny center of pleasure that would detonate them out of orbit. Her pussy clenched around his cock.

His back arched, and his balls drew up hard. “Fuck,” he roared. “Come. Do it.”

Her fingers sped up, and he slammed deep into her channel and held her tight. Hot jets of cum erupted from his cock. Her sweet pussy answered with an ocean wave, and for a brief moment, he let himself float away.

She collapsed onto his chest, eyes closed, murmuring about how amazing and good it was. Thankfully, she was so lost in her own sensation, she wasn’t aware that he’d lost control and his natural skin color had taken over. He quickly camouflaged and fought the urge to relax into his natural shape.

He slowed his breathing to match hers, his cock eventually softening and falling from her body. The parting twinged his heart. Her face was obscured by her hair, and he brushed it back to check her. Gorgeous…and asleep. Good.

“You’re a good person, Blaize. I wish I could say the same. But I can’t. I’m a bad guy and I don’t deserve you, but I won’t let you go until I have to.” His words were soft. He didn’t want to wake her, but the urge to be honest compelled his confession after connecting so deeply.

A chime sounded, and he carefully freed himself from Blaize’s body. He’d rather stay in the room in her arms or at least admiring her, but no one came to his door by accident. He tugged on his discarded clothes and pulled the bedroom door almost closed behind him.

Cifer scowled at the person in the hallway. “What’re you doing here? How did you find me?”

The young woman shrugged. Her multicolored hair was pulled back in a tie, and her dress was in need of a wash. “Wasn’t easy. But you’re the only who can help.”

“With what?” The back of Cifer’s neck prickled.

“There’s a shipment coming in.” She stepped closer. “Kids.”

The instinctual clack of his jaw made the girl jump back. “From where?”

“All over. They’ve been recruiting from everywhere.”

Cifer narrowed his eyes at the misuse of the word recruiting . But coming to Cassan with a ship full of kids didn’t make any sense. How would they get past— Credits. Low-paid security people were easily bought.

He glanced over his shoulder toward the bedroom, but all was quiet. He could wake Blaize, but she’d want to help him. The unknowns made this far too dangerous a mission for someone with no experience and no ability to blend. He’d explain himself when he returned.

There was no way of knowing what time it was.

The room was dark, but the screen was still in privacy mode, so the station’s virtual sky illumination wouldn’t come into the room even if it was daytime hours.

Blaize rolled over, missing Cifer’s heat.

Voices had awoken her. Both were familiar, but they didn’t belong together.

The female who spoke had a distinctive lisp, a result of having her tongue split as a child.

A crude punishment for lying in the house where she’d been sold.

Elaya. The girl who had left the engineering academy, despite having two more years of eligibility. What was she doing at Cifer’s?

Shipment of kids?

The front door snicked shut, and the voices were no longer audible.

Blaize leaped from the bed and fell right back down.

Damn, she was sore. First order of business—find the bathroom.

Walking was a challenge, but she hobbled out of the bedroom and through the only other door in Cifer’s place.

It was utilitarian and white, but it did have a bathtub, which she eyed longingly.

Unfortunately, there was no time. She peed, wincing as the liquid hit the areas that had been chafed.

That done, she washed her hands. The muscles in her legs were starting to recover now that she was moving around.

The ache inside only seemed to intensify, demanding more of him, but he’d left.

She hunted for her clothes. Her panties were nowhere to be found, but the rest she threw on. Maybe Cifer and the girl would still be on the other side of the door. A chime sounded. She rushed to the door, curious why Cifer wouldn’t just let himself back in. Did he need help?

Varik filled the doorway. Blaize stepped back and tried to close the opening, but he grabbed her shirt and tugged her forward. “Where’s Jarn?”

“Get your hands off me.” She pushed at his chest but stumbled forward when he didn’t let go.

“Jarn,” Varik yelled in her face, spittle dotting her skin.

“I don’t know who you’re talking about.”

He wrenched her into the hallway and slammed her against the opposite wall.

Cifer’s door auto-closed. There’d be no getting back in.

She rammed her knee between Varik’s legs as hard as she could.

His blue skin paled to nearly match hers.

She wrenched her arm against his elbow, breaking his grip, and screamed, “Fire!”

As she ran down the curved hall, she smacked her hand against the doors, bellowing, “Fire!” over and over again. She didn’t wait for the power lift. Instead, she headed for the stairs. As soon as she pressed open the door, an alarm sounded. Let Varik fight his way through the crowd.

With each stair, another question occurred to her. Why had Cifer left with Elaya? How had Varik found her?

She escaped the building and slapped her pocket, relieved to find her data pad where she’d left it. At least she could pay for transportation to take her back to the ship.

The Treasure looked the same when she exited the hired sled a few minutes later. As if time hadn’t passed at all. She’d been gone for…hours? A cycle? But her world was completely different.

Different, but the same. She still hated Varik, more since he physically attacked her. She was still obsessed with Cifer, and he was the guy who’d left her in his bed to run off with a young woman—probably for a good reason, but it still hurt to be left behind.

Of course, the ship looked the same. She only wished things were different.

She keyed in the security code and lowered the entrance ramp.

The ship echoed in the way that only spaces devoid of life did.

Everyone was likely still enjoying the dinner she’d skipped.

Maybe she should have used that as an excuse to leave instead of jumping into bed with Cifer.

There was no way to go back and change it.

She closed herself off in her quarters, a space that felt more like home than her rented room.

After stripping off her clothes, she took her time under the hot spray of the shower.

Her body missed Cifer’s touch. Her brain tried to imagine all the reasons he could have left that didn’t have to do with her being inadequate.

He was an excellent lover, but what if she wasn’t?

And nothing explained why Varik had known where she was or even cared.