“Wait.”
“Done talking.”
He could tell she meant it, her back ramrod straight as she marched. He couldn’t let her leave. Not yet. Not until she felt it, too, the madness within that wanted him to touch her and be with her.
“I would strike a bargain with you.”
She kept walking, not even deigning to reply.
In the silence, he knew she couldn’t miss hearing his next claim. “I know where there is a human settlement.”
It caught her attention, and she whirled. “Where?”
“I will tell you where but only if you give me a chance to prove we are mates.”
“You want sexual favors in exchange for a coordinate?” Her nose wrinkled. “No thanks.”
“No coitus required. What I want from you are eight days spent in my company.”
“Doing what?”
“Getting to know each other.”
“Don’t you mean convincing me I should ride the lizard and promise to be your wifey poo?”
His lips quirked. “I have no idea what you just said; however, I am going to assume it was rude and counter with, what are you afraid of?”
“I fear nothing, especially not you. But I want to know what happens at the end of those eight days. What if I still hate you?”
“If you still want to leave, then I will give you the coordinates to the human settlement.”
“You’d let me leave?” The query emerged dubious.
“I won’t force you.” He trusted in fate even if Karma could be obtuse about it.
“How do I know you’re not shitting me about knowing where a colony is?”
He surmised what she meant. “I have no reason to lie when I can prove my claim. I began searching for more of your kind the moment we parted.” He held out his palm, and a light shone from it, coalescing into a hologram. The colors went from fuzzy to crisp.
It caught her attention, and she stared at the video footage of a town.
Her lips parted. “It looks so much like Earth, except the coloring is wrong. Orange instead of green grass. And those look like rocks but made of some kind of smoky glass.” She appeared fascinated as she studied the mishmash of materials and styles of the buildings, but her true interest sharpened when she noticed the inhabitants.
“Are those humans?” She reached out to touch, only to disperse the image.
“Yes, and by all indications, they are from your planet Earth. Most are second and third generation with little recollection of your world other than stories passed down by the first wave of settlers.”
“Tell me where it is.”
“Eight days,” he repeated.
The glare in her gaze would have incinerated him if she were from the Draegz world. “You won’t get me to love you in eight days.”
“Maybe not, but I predict we will be intimate.”
Her laughter proved bright and shining. “I am not going to screw you.”
This time he understood her slang. “You will. And enjoy it.”
Her good humor faded. “Rape me and die.”
“I won’t force you to do anything. I will wait for you to seduce me.”
Her expression clearly expressed her belief that she’d never be the one to initiate. He understood that feeling. Given her intense repulsion of him, he’d be stubborn if pressed to seduce, too.
There was fate and then his situation. Perhaps she was right and they would be in that small percentage that failed. Somehow, he doubted that Karma would allow that to happen.
“Well, look at that, the planet isn’t a lifeless waste of time after all.” Ishtara’s voice sounded entirely too bright.
Immediately suspicious, Clarabelle glanced at her friend. “You knew he’d be here.”
“Suspected, yes. Our notes on this galaxy did mention a race of beings with bronze-colored skin, Serpion origin in nature.”
“It is said the serpent God and our goddess Karma lay together and birthed a race that combined their best traits,” he declared, reciting one of the many theories of their evolution.
“I should have known you were a snake the first time I met you.” Belle scowled.
Did she not know how attractive she was despite it? It surprised him to find her paleness not as shocking as before. To him at least. When he presented her to his tribe, though, there would be much complaint. Marriage outside their species didn’t happen often. It wasn’t banned as such, more just they tended to be a solitary race. They had no interest in the affairs of others.
“Do we have a bargain?” he asked.
“A deal to do what?” Ishtara quickly asked.
“He knows where I can find a human settlement, but he won’t give me the coordinates until I spend eight days with him.”
Ishtara nodded. “Eight days should be enough time for him to plant a warrior babe in your belly.”
He had to bite his inner cheek lest he laugh at Clarabelle’s expression.
“We are not screwing!”
“I should hope not. Spinning around is likely to confuse his already less intelligent sperm. With your kind, it’s best if you maintain a single position,” Ishtara replied with sage advice and a nod. “On your back seems most productive, with your legs held in the air above your head after for maximum effect, allowing the seed to travel more easily to implant your womb.”
“We are not talking about this.” And then Belle did the oddest thing. She stuck her fingers into her ears and hummed loudly.
“What is she doing?” he asked the Zonian.
“Ignoring me. So let us discuss my accommodations, given we’ll be here for at least eight days.”
Clarabelle chose to hear that. “You can’t tell me you’re agreeing to this ridiculous deal.”
“Sounds reasonable to me.”
“It’s blackmail.”
“It’s a business transaction,” Ishtara corrected. “He gets something, you get something. I fail to see the issue.”
He knew just the thing to goad her. “It’s because she is already fighting her attraction for me and fears I am right when I tell her we are meant to be mates.”
“Why would she fear mating with you?”
“I am well endowed,” he declared in all seriousness.
Ishtara nodded. “My research says her kind like them large. And lubricated. I have creams if needed.”
“I’m sure we’ll manage,” he choked out.
Clarabelle ground her teeth. “I hate you both.” She stomped in the direction of her ship.
“Is she leaving?” he asked.
“Having a tantrum. She’ll come around. According to the other orphans, the redheaded humans are known for their fiery tempers.”
Was it the wrong time to wonder if that would extend to passion as well?
Seven
Clarabelle paced inside the ship. She didn’t want to stay on this planet, but at the same time, she did need to prove a point to him and nothing more.
Soulmates indeed. The guy had a freaking tail. And glowing eyes. And broad shoulders. Did he have wings, too? She’d not yet seen his back. The lack of lumps under his cloak seemed to indicate a flat surface, but the same cloak had also hidden the tail.