Angie's Gladiator: A SciFi Alien Romance Read online

  I look over at him, awed. “You were making this for me?”

  He says nothing, his arms crossed over his bare chest. He’s wearing leather leggings, but his feet are bare against the wood and his hair is rumpled. His jaw is fuzzy with dark growth, and even in the flickering firelight I can see there are deep circles under his eyes. He looks thin, too. Hard.

  My poor Vordis.

  “It is not done,” he says after a moment. The words come out slowly, as if he’s struggling with them, or his thoughts. “I wanted to do more for you. To build Glory a play area for when she gets older, and an attached outhouse so you do not have to race out in the snow at night and…” He looks around, shrugging. “I wanted it to be perfect.”

  My heart aches at the thought. He’s making it even though there’s no chance of winning “anything” in the contest. I think of what Thrand said—that he was making this just because he wanted me to have a nice place to live. “Vordis,” I say with a shake of my head. “If you like me so much, you didn’t have to build a damn hut. You could have just kissed me—”

  Before I can finish speaking, the big alien’s cupping my face in his hands, and his mouth is on mine. In the space of a breath he’s crossed the distance between us and he’s kissing me, and it’s so wonderful that my toes curl in my boots. I sag against him as his tongue drives into my mouth with hot, relentless need. He’s never kissed me so hard, or with so much hunger. Over and over, his mouth claims mine, each stroke of his tongue making me feel weak in the knees. Eventually, his mouth breaks from mine and then we’re both panting. I’m clutching at his arms, dazed and a little surprised to feel the hot stirring of desire. It’s been dormant since Glory was born, and I figured that was just another part of having a baby, that my libido would take a long time to recover. I liked kissing him before, but I was content to wait.

  But right now, in Vordis’s arms, my veins feel like liquid heat and I’m hungry for more.

  I touch his jaw and look up at him. “Tell me that kissing me isn’t part of some contest. Tell me that it’s not because you want to win over Thrand.”

  He groans and closes his eyes, his fingers on my cheeks, in my hair. “It has never been about Thrand, Angie. It has always been about you. From the first time I saw you, you made me want too much, things that a clone has no right to want.” His thumb skates over my bottom lip. “For Thrand, it was about a contest, a prize, a victory. For me, it is about Angie’s smile, her soft hands, her gentle nature.”

  I fling my arms around his neck and press my mouth to his again. “I’m sorry I’ve pushed you away,” I tell him between kisses, peppering his face. “I didn’t understand.”

  “I wanted to give you time,” he tells me, his hands gliding up and down my back as if he can’t stop touching me. “If you did not want me, I did not want to press the issue.”

  “I’ve always wanted you,” I admit, breathless. “But I wanted you to want me for the right reasons. Not because I’m a prize.”

  “I want you for my mate,” Vordis suddenly says, voice fierce. His eyes are blazing with need. “This hunger I feel for you, it tells me that you are mine and no one else’s.”

  “I don’t want to belong to anyone else,” I agree eagerly. “I only want you. I’ve only ever wanted you.” And I kiss him again.

  He groans my name and then we’re kissing again for a very long time. His hands slide down to my ass and he clenches me against him, and a pure, sweet thrill shoots through my body. I moan against his lips, heat singing through my body. I no longer feel like a tired, achy woman that just gave birth. I feel like a woman, period. In his arms, I feel sexy and delicious and I love it.

  “I can’t sleep with you,” I whisper to him as our mouths reluctantly part. My lips feel swollen with the force of our kisses, but I want to do more of them. “Not yet. I have to check with the healer.”

  “Angie, my Angie,” Vordis murmurs, kissing my nose and then moving to my eyebrows and then just pressing his lips against every inch of my face. “If you are so tired, I will not stop you, but you should know that when I kiss you, the last thing I think of is sleep.”

  I giggle. “It’s an expression, Vordis. I didn’t mean sleeping. Real sleeping.” I let my hands glide down his back and then rest on his hips, at the waistband of his leather leggings. “It means, well, fucking. Mating. Coitus. Penis in vagina.”

  “Ah.” He gives me a sheepish smile. “I wondered at your sudden exhaustion just as my mouth was on you.”

  “Oh, I’m not tired,” I reassure him. In fact, I feel anything but. Right now, I’m not thinking about sleep in the slightest. I’m thinking about how tight his muscles are under my hands, and how much I want to keep touching him. “We can’t do official penis in vagina until I get the okay from Veronica, but we can do…other things.”

  And I boldly caress the front of his leggings, where his cock is straining against the leather.

  21

  ANGIE

  Vordis’s breath hisses from his throat and he stiffens against me. He doesn’t draw away, but his hands clench tight against me. “Angie.”

  “Want me to stop?” I whisper, nipping at his jaw.

  “Never.” He closes his eyes, his fingers knotting in my hair as if to hold me against him. “I am yours to do with as you please.”

  I can’t help but smile at that. Mine to do with “as I please”? “What if I please to put my hand all over your cock?” I’m feeling frisky and powerful as I touch him. It doesn’t matter that he’s tall and hard-bodied, stronger than any human and without an ounce of fat on his warrior’s body. I’m the one in control right now and I love watching his face as I touch him. “What if I please to touch you until you come?”

  He makes a guttural sound in his throat that’s half groan, half joy. “I want to touch you, too.”

  “There’ll be time for that,” I tell him softly, and stroke the length of his shaft through the leather again. “Right now, though, I want to touch you. I want to see you come.”

  “I have not done this with a female before,” he says, his tone as stiff as his cock. “What will you have me do?”

  “Take your pants off—” I can’t even get the words out before he’s ripping them off, shoving the leather down his legs and exposing his hot, hard length to my gaze. “Oh my.”

  Vordis and Thrand have never been shy about nudity, so I’ve seen him naked before. Of course, naked and erect is an entirely different thing, and I can’t stop staring at the ruby-red length as I press my palm against him. He’s long and hard, and the crown of his cock is thick, a vibrant, deeper shade than the rest of him. Veins trace up and down his length and his sac is covered with a slight black fuzz, which looks touchable and inviting. There’s no weirdness here, no ridges or spurs like with the sa-khui, and I’m actually really glad for that. I like him just as he is, big, thick, hard and ready for my touch.

  “You do not have to touch me if you do not wish it,” he says when I pause for a moment and take in the sight of him.

  I glance up to meet his eyes, and a little laugh escapes my throat. “You think I don’t want to touch you? Vordis, I’ve been wanting to touch you forever.” I move closer to him, one arm going around his waist and my hand settling on his ass. Oh, mercy, it has to be the tightest ass I’ve ever touched. If I had a quarter, I’d bounce it off one of his cheeks right about now. “There’s nothing I like more than your skin against mine.”

  “But you are dressed,” he murmurs, cupping my jaw even as I stroke his shaft with my other hand. “I want to feel your skin against mine, too, Angie. I have thought about it so many times.” Vordis swallows hard. “I have…even stroked myself to it.”

  “Have you?”

  “Yes, but not for long. I stopped quickly.” The look on his face is one of chagrin.

  I want to giggle again, but I bite it back. I don’t want him to think I’m laughing at him. “You make it sound like that’s a bad thing.”

  “I have never done such a
thing before,” he admits.

  “You haven’t?” I’m shocked.

  Vordis shakes his head and caresses my cheek, devouring me with his gaze. “Clones are given sexual suppressants to ensure that they do not focus on anything except the task at hand.”

  I stare at him, open mouthed. Never had sex? “You’re a virgin?”

  “This is bad?” He looks disappointed.

  “No! It’s just…surprising.”

  “Why?”

  I squeeze my hand around his cock, eliciting a hiss from him. “Because you’re so sexy. And wonderful. And caring. I’m surprised some woman gladiator never snapped you up.”

  Vordis shakes his head. “I am a’ani. We are nothing to everyone.”

  “Not true. You’re everything to me,” I tell him softly.

  He groans and then he’s kissing me again, his mouth ravenous on mine. I moan as his tongue strokes deep, and I move my hand against his length. I know from past experience that a dry tug can be painful to a guy, so I just let my fingers lightly dance over his length, playing with the head and tickling the underside of his shaft. When he thrusts against me, gasping, I make a circle with my forefinger and thumb and tighten it just under the head of his cock. They don’t quite meet, but the motion is enough for him. He jerks against me again, his hand tightening against my back. “More,” he grits, then buries his face against my hair, breathing hard. “Angie, more.”

  “Vordis.” I love rolling his name on my tongue, just as I love that sexy, purring way he says my name. “Do you want me to stroke you?”

  “Yes,” he says immediately, voice thick. His hand clasps mine over his cock. “Do it.”

  I just give him a wicked smile and lift my palm to my mouth. I lick it hard, getting it good and wet before putting it back on his cock and giving him a quick, tight stroke. “Better?”

  His hand clenches against my shoulder and his head falls back.

  I’ll take it that’s a yes. I stroke him again, and the breath hisses out from between his teeth even as he thrusts against my hand, pushing harder, demanding more. He pumps into my grip a few more times, and then, with a low cry, his release explodes all over my hand, covering my fingers in sticky warmth. I keep stroking him, his lungs working like bellows and his body shivers with the force of his release.

  Then he goes utterly still.

  “Vordis?” I ask, caressing him one last time before pulling away. “Are you okay?”

  He kisses my brow. “I…it is nothing.” He presses his forehead to mine again, and I can feel his skin is slightly damp with sweat. “Did you find that pleasurable?”

  “Of course. I wouldn’t have done it if I didn’t.” I smile up at him.

  “May I service you?” He touches my cheek. “After you wash your hands?”

  I wrinkle my nose. His pillow talk clearly needs some work, but I’ll let it slide since he’s an epic virgin. “Can I stay here tonight? Just sleeping? And kissing? And touching? I’ll go see Veronica in the morning and if she gives me the all clear, we can do more. But tonight I’d be happy to just stay with you.”

  He brushes his lips over mine. “I want you at my side. Always. Forever.”

  Oh, I want that too.

  22

  VORDIS

  Despite the wonder of my beautiful Angie in the furs next to me, I do not rest easily. She sleeps at my side, her baby retrieved from Gail and now tucked against her for warmth, and my body pressed against her other side. I stay awake, my thoughts wild and chaotic. I cannot stop thinking of last night and our touching, and of the promise of more. Even after we touched and she went to sleep, she woke me up with more kisses and worked my cock until I came again.

  Twice I have been gifted with her touch. It fills me with joy, even though I am full of concern over one part in particular. I have questions, and no answers yet.

  When dawn finally lightens the clouds seen through the smoke-hole in the roof, I extricate myself carefully from our bedding and begin to dress.

  Angie stirs, her eyes opening sleepily. "Vordis? Is everything okay?"

  "All is well, my precious one," I tell her, moving to her side and brushing a knuckle against her cheek. It is pink with warmth, and I want nothing more than to climb back into bed and touch her again. "I must do something and then I will return."

  "With breakfast?" she asks, tucking the blankets tight around Glory as the baby sleeps for a bit longer.

  "Yes, with food," I agree. I am pleased the moment she gives me a tired smile and drifts back to sleep. It is hard to have a new baby. Glory is less fussy than some of the other young children, but she still must be fed and changed and rocked and requires attention constantly. Even now, her fists flail and she wakes up, blinking her bright blue eyes at me.

  Angie stirs with a groan.

  "Sleep," I tell her, leaning down to scoop up Glory. "I will take care of our daughter." Because she will be mine now. Angie will be my mate, Glory will be my child, and I will be the happiest of males.

  "Are you sure?" Angie asks, but she's half asleep before I even answer. She is exhausted.

  I can do this. I tuck Glory against my skin, juggling her carefully as I finish pulling on leggings and boots. It is not easy with an infant in my grip, and I wonder at how Angie makes it all look so easy. Glory sucks in a breath that makes me pause, and her face screws up as if she's about to cry.

  "Shhh," I murmur, giving her another bounce. I touch her head, the soft, soft pale hair on her scalp, trying to comfort her. If she cries, Angie will never go back to sleep.

  Her face scrunches up again and for a moment, Glory has a look of intense concentration on her face. Then, she burps. No, wait. That smell tells me it is not a burp. My nostrils flaring at the horror of the stench coming from such a small, adorable creature, I take her over to the far side of the hut, spread out a skin, and then change her wraps, biting back a choked groan at the disaster inside them. Glory just wiggles her legs and watches me with big eyes, but she's not crying.

  I manage to clean her mess, wash her tender skin, and then spend a few moments scrubbing my own hands with icy water before I wrap Glory in new leathers. The soiled ones I dump outside of the hut to take care of later, and then I hike across the camp with Glory in my arms. She burbles happily at me, her little red face the only thing visible from all the furs I have wrapped her in. Her small mouth is covered in drool, and I absently wipe it away before it ices in the cold weather. "We will visit the healer this morning while your mother sleeps," I tell her. "And then if you are hungry, I will make you…tea." Do infants drink tea? I have never seen her drink anything except for milk from Angie’s teats, but I do not know much about children. If one of the mothers is awake, I will ask her for advice. "Perhaps an egg." I remember the four-armed child sucking on one of those.

  The camp is quiet, but I see N'dek—he of the missing foot—by the main fire, his crutch at his side. He sits on one of the rocks, stirring at the coals, and gives me a silent nod as I pass by. He is always alone, that one, even when he sits amongst the others, and his expression is always that of misery. I am glad that whatever I have had in the past, I am whole of limb and can take care of Angie and Glory.

  I cannot stop thinking of last night and the way Angie caressed my cock. I came twice in one night, spirits have mercy. Surely such a thing is not done.

  I cross the camp and finally arrive at the healer's tent. Veronica and her dragon have set up in the midst of the clusters of the others who camp together to show their allegiance, as if they are unwilling to choose one side or another. Either that or they want quiet as they mate. I can understand that, after listening to A'tam and the human female's soft cries all night long. Those did nothing to ease the ache in my body, especially as I held Angie close and thought of the way she touched me. It made for a very long night indeed.

  I move to the healer's tent and wait outside the entrance. I clear my throat. No one comes out.

  I scratch at the screen.

  "Go away," s
ays an irritable male voice, and I hear a low female murmur, then a gasp.

  Are they about to mate? Is everyone in this land constantly mating? Irritated, I catch one of Glory's waving little fists before she can thump my chin and kick at the screen since my hands are full. "I must speak with the healer."

  "She is busy," comes the surly reply.

  I definitely hear a low female giggle that time. If she is awake, she can hear me, then. I lean in, speaking against the tent leather. "I have ejaculated."

  "What?" the male voice barks out and there is a flurry of noise inside.

  "Twice,” I add helpfully.

  There is a low snarl inside the tent and then Ashtar shoves the screen aside. He is naked, his cock erect, and his face is flushed, his hair mussed. Definitely mating. He glares at me furiously, baring his claws. "You came here to tell my mate this—"

  "It is concerning," I say, offering Glory my finger to hold onto as I sidestep before Ashtar can rush at me. "Clones are sterile."

  The low female laughter starts again, and then Veronica pokes her head out of her tent. She looks even more flushed than Ashtar, holding a fur to her teats. "Dude. You came to tell me this?"

  "Yes." I frown at her. "This is problematic, is it not? Clones are sterile."

  "That doesn't have anything to do with ejaculate," Veronica begins, only to giggle as her mate casts her a fiercely possessive look. "Uh, I'm just speaking from a science perspective, babe. Not from experience."

  "I need to know why I am ejaculating," I tell her, urgency in my voice. I can feel tension increasing through my body. Does she not understand the severity of this problem? "Something is wrong."