"Are you sure?" Her words elated me, but I didn't want her to see how much. I didn't want to sway her with my emotions, my desires. Something I had never cared about before. But she made me… made me a different person. No, just a different version of myself. A better one, I hoped.
She nodded. "I'm sure."
I leaned forward to kiss her forehead. "You're amazing."
"Yeah, I know," she quipped, and her grin widened.
This time, I wasn't satisfied with a simple kiss on her forehead. I pulled her closer and devoured her lips as if my life depended on it. I felt her slight hesitation. "Alice?"
"Yes."
"Don't overthink this. The Lord Protector and Lady Silla know. I stopped by Astrionis," I reassured her, feeling that this was where her mind had gone.
"I feel bad for leaving them like this," Alice admitted.
"Don't be. We'll come back if you like." I sat up, pulling on my pants, deciding I might as well get the ship finally going to its destiny—my destiny… ours, it seemed. That made me smile, and a sense of warmth coursed through me.
"We'll see what happens." She yawned, "What are you doing?"
"If you're sure you want to go with me, I might as well get us going. Is there anything you need? Anybody you need to say goodbye to?"
Her mouth opened, ready to say no, but then she changed her mind. "You know what? There are a few people I should say goodbye to. Daisy, at least. And probably the Commander before he thinks you took me against my will. I should also get some of my things. Can you wait a little bit longer before we leave?"
I wasn't sure if her worry about the Commander coming after me flattered or insulted me. I could take the Pandraxian with my hands bound behind my back. But smartly I decided to let it go and said, "Take as much time as you need."
It was getting dark by the time we left the ship to search for her friends and get her things. The air was cooling and fresh, the slight breeze laced with moisture from all the water around us. It was soothing. It was a nice place, I mused.
ALICE
It wasstrange lying in this bed with him. Strange and comforting. His arms and legs were wrapped around me as if he never wanted to let me go again, and I didn't mind it.
I had never been the spooning type. I enjoyed sex, but I had always preferred to sleep alone after. Now though…I think I can get used to this, my mind whispered as I listened to Xyrek's slow and deep breathing. He had fallen asleep soon after our second round of sex.
That sex!
Oh my God, I could get used to that, too. It was addictive.
I wiggled my ass closer against his already growing erection. Even in his sleep, he wanted me, which gave my self-confidence a boost I hadn't expected. This man was unlocking parts of me I hadn’t even realized were locked down. Slowly, steadily, he was shifting the ground beneath my feet—and somehow, I didn’t want to run from it. He was changing me in ways I never saw coming… ways that felt good. Real. Like happiness wasn’t just possible but already happening, right here—with him. It was like he was making himself my anchor… no, that wasn't right. I was the one forging the attachment, like Iwantedto be anchored to him. It should have been impossible given the short while we had known each other, and probably would have never been possible on Earth. But here, now? Things were so different. Near-death experiences had a way of changing your perspective.
I had never been a live-in-the-moment kind of girl. I liked plans. But what good had that done for me? It got me abducted by aliens, that's what. So, for the first time in my life, I decided to live dangerously and allow myself to fall.
I closed my eyes, smiling, still waiting for my mind to let go and allow me a few hours of rest. But there was too much traffic in my brain to take my exhausted body into consideration. It was hard to believe how I was changing, how one person could make me change like this.
My independence had always been my greatest motivator. I had always told myself I didn't need anyone and had made a point of not letting anyone close to me. Not even my friends who had sheltered me. Even after I realized it was a defense mechanism born from years of neglect and abuse, I never felt the urge to change it—until now.
I thought back over everything that had happened today since Xyrek’s ship landed. Daisy had been a pain in my ass the entire journey to Rottvan, but part of me had enjoyed her company. I wouldn't have sought it out, but Daisy had done enough of that for the both of us. She was traveling on to Pandrax in the morning, and I was glad I’d had the chance to tell her goodbye. Hopefully, I would get to see her holocasts soon and become her biggest fan. After leaving Daisy and sorting things out with the Commander, I’d packed my few belongings, a lot more than I had when I came to Astrionis, including the comm and tools Xyrek had given me, and we went back to his spaceship. He set course for Darlam, the planet he mentioned earlier. As he did, he filled me in on what Lord Protector Garth had told him. The other Space Guardians and their mates were probably already there.
I wasn't sure how long I lay there, and I was just about to drift off when Xyrek stiffened behind me—not the part that was already hard, his entire body. His feet began to move as if he were running, and his breathing increased. He screamed out a name, startling me into an upright position.
"Allisaahn!" his voice sounded so tortured, so full of pain, that tears welled in my eyes.
I turned and began shaking him. "Xyrek! Xyrek! Wake up!"
He lunged up and wrapped me in his arms. "Allisaahn!"
The eerie similarity to my name sent goosebumps down my spine. I broke free of his hold and grabbed his face with both hands. "Xyrek!"
His startled eyes ripped open. I stared into their black abyss, and all I saw was pain. With a cry, he pulled me back into his arms and kissed my face; his hands moved up and down my body as if he were trying with all his might to reassure himself I was still alive.
