He bent over. Their foreheads almost touched. “How did you do that, just now?”
Kat felt his breath caress her face. She shook her head. “I don’t know what you mean.”
“You did something to us, you stunned us both.”
“No. I didn’t do that. I don’t know what happened, but I didn’t do that.”
The captain tilted his head and lifted his ridges. “So, when I touch your face, I won’t get electrocuted again?”
“I…I don’t think so,” she stammered. Truthfully, Kat had no idea what had happened before. She hoped it wouldn’t happen again, but she wasn’t quite sure it wouldn’t.
The captain lifted a hand from the wall, hesitated for a moment, and then stroke his knuckles softly over Kat’s cheekbone. Kat flinched, worried she might get shocked again, but she felt nothing. No, that wasn’t true. Kat did feel something, but luckily it wasn’t electricity. Or better said, not the numbing electricity from before. His touch was electric, though. It felt both gentle and dangerous, and the sensuality of the gesture made her quiver. A gasp escaped her mouth when his claws caressed the sensitive skin behind her ear.
“Fascinating,” she heard him say.
“W-what is?” Kat whispered.
“The way you react to me,” he answered, closing his eyes for a moment. His nostrils flared. “And the way you smell. It’s intoxicating.”
Kat licked her lips. He was standing so close she could feel the heat radiating of his body. She could also see a faint scar running from the corner of his mouth to his cheek. Kat suppressed the urge to stand on her toes to reach his face and trail the scar with her tongue, tasting his warm skin.
Focus, Kat, focus, she told herself. It was difficult, though. The way he touched her felt so thrilling. And his warm breath tickled her cheek, making her lady parts flutter. And then there was his delicious manly scent. He smelled so good she wanted to dip his body in chocolate sauce and lick it off him. But this wasn’t the time or the place to fantasize about insane cravings, she reminded herself. And certainly not cravings that involved an alien that had threatened to fling her body into space only minutes ago, an alien she should fear.
“Please, don’t kill us. We will pay you when we arrive at Cassidiri. I promise. We have the credits, just not with us.”
He continued exploring her neck with his claws.
“You are called Kat?” he asked hoarsely without responding to her plea.
Kat nodded, doing her best not to moan out loud when his claws reached her collarbone.
“According to my translator, a cat is a small animal on Earth with claws. Do you have claws, Kat?” He lifted his other hand from the wall and took her hand in his. His thumb circled the skin of her palm. This small touch gave her goose bumps.
Inspecting her fingernails, he chuckled low. “With these claws you won’t even be able to scratch an itch on my back. You can’t protect yourself with these. You’re as defenseless as an infant, as a baby cat. What’s a baby cat called?”
“You mean a k-kitten?” Kat stammered.
He grinned. “Yes, kitten. Maybe, I should call you Kitten instead.”
Kat’s heart was beating so loudly she was afraid everyone could hear it. His nearness was almost overwhelming, and he oozed sensuality.
“I…I was named after my great-grandmother Katerina, and Kat also means rose in Cassidi,” Kat explained, her mouth as dry as a desert. She didn’t know why she was telling him that. He probably wasn’t a bit interested in the origin of her name, but he made her nervous. And when she was nervous, she started rambling.
“I think Kitten suits you better,” he replied in a low voice. “So, Kitten, what am I going to do with you?” His claws descended from her neck to the skin just above the edge of her shirt. The captain’s fingers were so close to her breasts that her nipples hardened.
Someone cleared his throat, reminding Kat that they were not alone. This Makaen’s touches had made her forget everything and everyone around them. The captain flung his head around and Kat tilted hers to glance past him, seeing four pairs of curious eyes staring at them.
“Do you still want us to throw them out of an airlock, Captain?” the biggest of the two Makaen asked.
Lirid and Mitha opened their mouths to say something but shut them when the captain held up a finger, gesturing they should remain silent. Then he turned his attention back to Kat.
“That depends on if I get a better deal. What are you willing to offer, Kitten?”
What was she willing to offer? Everything he asked her for, Kat thought, confused. He wanted her. It was as clear as water. She read it in his eyes, felt it in every touch, heard it in every word. She only had to offer herself to him to save their lives. It was that simple. And the strangest thing was, she didn’t even find the thought of being with him repulsive or frightening. On the contrary, the thought of him inside her, his lips and claws on her skin and his body against hers, made her core heat. The warmth spread inside her and she felt herself getting wet. She should be afraid of this Makaen. She had been told a thousand times over she should be afraid of Makaen. But the only thing she felt was…lust. Unexplainable desire. Want for this stranger.
Kat took a deep breath. “If you take us to Cassidiri, we will pay you fifty thousand credits on arrival, and as long as we’re aboard your ship I will keep you company in your quarters as long as you want me.”
“Kat, no!” Lirid shouted. “He’s a low-life space pirate. You can’t let this filthy bastard touch—”
Before Lirid could finish the sentence, the captain had him pinned against the wall on the other side of the corridor, his hand around Lirid’s throat, the claws piercing his skin.
“I’m negotiating with your sister. I advise you not to interfere, or insult me, again. I don’t appreciate that. Do you understand?” He squeezed a little harder, making Lirid gasp for air.
“Please let him go, you’re hurting him,” Kat cried out. “I’ll do everything you want, but please let him go.”
The captain flung his head to Kat. His gaze rested on her face for a moment and then returned to Lirid. “You made me upset your sister. That’s not nice of you. For her sake, I will forgive you for that comment. Next time I won’t be so lenient.”
He let go of Lirid, who immediately took in a deep breath. The captain didn’t give him another look and turned back to Kat.
“Where were we? Oh yes, our deal,” he said softly, as if he hadn’t just attacked her brother. “Just to be clear: by ‘keeping me company,’ you mean you will let me fuck you as often as I wish, until I’ve had my fill?”
“Y-yes. If you take us to Cassidiri I will have sex with you.” She should be offended by the crude way he had put it, but it only excited her, heating her core even more.
The captain lowered his head, almost touching her ear with his mouth. “Oh, my sweet Kitten,” he whispered. “We won’t be having sex. We are going to fuck. I will fuck you so long and hard that you’ll be screaming my name so loudly they will hear you back at Blackway space station. Is that what you want?”
Kat swallowed, a blush spreading over her cheeks, and she nodded again.