Текст книги "Wed To The Alien Prince"

Автор книги: January Bell

сообщить о нарушении

Текущая страница: 9 (всего у книги 13 страниц)

“I’m human. You might not know what would hurt me.”

“Do you not trust me, prickly star?”

“Can you settle on a damn pet name for me?” I gripe. “You’re giving me whiplash.” I pop a berry in my mouth, too hungry to worry about it. If Kanuz says it’s safe, it’s safe.

“No,” he replies. “I like it too much when you scowl at me to stop.”

I chew, the flavor exploding on my tongue. It’s not bitter or gross like I would expect from something poisonous. It’s tart to the point of sour, and then it melts away into surprising sweetness.

The light grows dim under the canopy of trees, and I keep eating berries, enjoying every mouthful. Frankly, I’m not mad about being carried around, either. I’m fucking exhausted.

“You are glowing more now.” His voice is full of wonder.

“It’s darker here,” I say through a mouthful of berries. “Thank you, by the way. These are delicious. They remind me of Sour Patch Kids.”

He stops suddenly, and my head jerks. I cough on a half-swallowed berry.

“Humans eat their children?”

“What?!” Consternated, I stare up at him. “Why would you think that?”

“You said you eat kids. Children.”

“Oh, oh. No. No! It’s a type of candy.”

“Can-dee?”

“Yeah, you know, sweets? It’s a treat. Sugary and sour treat.”

He starts walking again, juggling me to push foliage out of the way. “Why did you call it kids?”

“They’re shaped like that.”

“Your sweets are shaped like small children? Why?” His tone is completely confused and I can’t help but laugh at the appalled expression on his face.

“Honestly, I have no idea. Marketing, I guess.”

“Why would anyone think eating children is appealing? Truly, the more I learn about your species, the more I worry for them.”

“Same, to be honest.” I pop another handful of berries into my mouth. “I’m so glad we’re getting out of here.”

“It should be a day’s journey to Edrobaz, where your crew awaits. And then we can begin the work of uniting Sueva.”

“Can we rest first?” I ask, not at all embarrassed by how whiney the question is.

“My flower, do you have to ask? I have not even begun pampering you. Besides, my cock will not allow you to leave the bed for at least a week.”

“That’s… a long time.” I make my face as serious as possible.

He squints down at me. “You can handle it,” he assures me.

I crack up. I can’t help it. Between whatever the fuck was in that water and the knowledge we’re done with the temple, I’m effervescent with relief and happiness. We fall quiet as we reach the outer wall, and sure enough, a massive tree sprawls overhead. The leaves are twice the size of my body.

“Here,” Kanuz says, gingerly placing me on the ground. “I do not think the tunnel is big enough for me to carry you safely, Princess.”

“I can walk,” I say, still eyeing the tree. “Can you grab me one of those?”

He cranes his neck up. “One of what?”

“One of those big leaves.”

“Anything for the goddess blessed.”

I raise an eyebrow, unsure if he’s joking or not. Hopefully he is. That’s a little much. Kanuz begins climbing the tree with ease, his talons biting into the bark. Muscles bunch under his scaley green hide, and I lick my lips, practically salivating at the site. Even his thick tail seems normal now, and he uses it to balance as he clings to the gargantuan trunk.

“Go, Kanuz,” I cheer. “You’re doing great.” I raise a hand in the air, then sigh as little sparks twinkle off of it. “Wish this came with an off switch,” I mutter.

Within a matter of minutes, Kanuz is back in front of me, hardly even out of breath.

“You made that look easy.”

He tosses his hair back, waggling his brows at me. “That is because I am a prime specimen.”

I laugh, and he holds out not one, but two torso sized leaves. “I can’t say I’ve ever heard someone say that. Maybe it will catch on as a pick-up line.”

He grins at me, and I take the leaves. “I guess we’re just gonna Eve it. Not a fig leaf, but it’ll do. I hope there aren’t any devilish snakes around here.” I wink at him, but he squints at me in confusion.

“Right.” I shake my head. “You wouldn’t know that one. Hey, can I have some vines to tie it up with? Think that would work?”

“My love, I would do anything for you, but I will not do that.”

I burst out laughing, and the befuddlement on his face grows. “Sorry,” I gasp out, the leaves shaking in my grip. “It was just funny for a minute. I’m fine.”

“I was going to offer you the lace from my pants,” Kanuz says.

“But you need your pants. A vine will work fine.”

“The lace would work better.”

I poke his pouty lower lip, and he catches my finger gently between his teeth.

“Vines,” I tell him. “You keep your pants on. We don’t need my favorite toy getting hurt.”

He puffs up his chest with pride, releasing my finger and pressing a kiss to the back of my hand instead. “If that is what my glowing flower wants, then that is what she shall get.”

“How gallant.” I flip my hair, then turn the leaf around, trying to figure out the best way to get max coverage. The foliage is thick and supple, and doesn’t tear easily like I thought it might. Kanuz yanks a thick, ropey vine from the wall, sending dirt and grit flying.

“This might work,” he says grudgingly, handing me a length of it.

“Fashion, fashion, fashion, baby,” I chant. “Make it work! Can you cut a hole in the middle of this?”

Kanuz gives me another bewildered look, then does as I ask, ripping a small hole in the middle of the leaf with his talon.

I clap my hands. “Perfect.” I thrust my head through the hole in the leaf’s center, and the edges of it barely cover my butt, but it’s a hell of a lot better than nothing.

“Vine,” I order, and he hands it to me. I tie it around my waist, securing my leaf mini-dress.

Feeling fierce, or maybe manic, who could say, I strut to the base of the tree and back. “And the star of fashion week, Genevieve Durand, modeling her latest.” I do a sharp pivot turn, my hands on my hips. The end of my vine belt slaps me in the face.

I cough and bat it down.

“It’s interactive,” I say to Kanuz, who stares at me, open-mouthed. “Couture. Avant-garde.”

“Does that mean you are pleased with it?”

“Very much,” I tell him, and he smiles as though I’ve given him everything he ever wanted.

“Are you ready to leave?”

“Fuck yes,” I say. “Let’s get the hell out of Dodge.”

“Dodge?”

“Just go with it.”

“Going with it,” he agrees, holding out a hand. I lace my fingers in his and follow him into the dark tunnel.

Well, it would be dark, if it weren’t for the glow I’m emitting, like some kind of human lightning bug.

OceanofPDF.com

CHAPTER NINETEEN

OceanofPDF.com

KANUZ

I cannot seem to take my eyes from Gen. She glitters in the dark, narrow tunnel, tiny sparks surrounding where she walks. I have to crouch to fit, the space to narrow to stand upright in. But my Gen saunters through like a queen, outfitted in leafy green.

She was beautiful before, but now? Now she is stunning. Her golden hair glows, and the greenish tint to her aura has faded to a mellow sunshine yellow.

“What?” she asks, her face scrunched with concern. “You’re looking at me weird.”

I shake my head. “I am looking at you because I am in awe of you.”

“Don’t be. I’m just trying to survive, same as you. I just got the magic water first.” Her tone is nervous, different than I’ve heard her before, and I narrow my eyes.

“Are you worried about the Crigomar?”

“Who wouldn’t be nervous about a pair of rabid red and black T-Rexes?”

“In the south, they train them. As pets and a defense mechanism.”

She gawks up at me, and I tug her hand, urging her to keep moving through the tunnel.

“They train the dinosaurs?”

“Crigomar.”

“Huh. That’s kind of amazing.”

“I think there is much you will find amazing about our people.”

“I think you’re right.” The words are soft and contemplative, and it tugs at my heart to hear her say it. “How do they train them?”

I pause, unsure, then continue leading her through the tunnel. “I do not know.”

I should know. I am the prince of this planet, am I not? But I have neglected our southern brethren. Shame fills me. I should have worked harder to unite our people before now. Instead, I listened to the words of my ill and heartsick father. I mourned the loss of my mother by throwing myself into battle with the Roth, and then soothed the pain of war by throwing myself into bed with any willing female.

“I have not been a good leader,” I tell her, my throat closing up.

“What? Why do you say that?” Her steps falter, and my hand goes to her hip, keeping her upright.

“I fear it is my fault that the southern Suevans are restless.”

“I thought they were just against us humans.” Her breath comes in soft pants, and I slow my pace slightly. She is not as healthy as she was just two weeks ago. That is my fault, too. “Not you in particular.”

“I’m the prince. If they are against us, they are against me. I have not been as attentive as I should have been to their problems. Now they find an excuse to use against us.”

“Well.” There’s a sly note to her voice, and when I glance back, she’s smirking up at me. “We’ll just have to show them the goddess-blessed, right?”

I stop and pull her muscled body into mine, planting a kiss on her glittering lips. “Yes, my love. We will.”

But we shouldn’t have had to. I shouldn’t have had to put my mate through the trials of the many-faced-goddess because of my own shortcomings as the leader of Sueva.

My father was right about me, and as much as that stings to acknowledge, at least now I can grow from the realization.

He was wrong about one thing, though.

I can change, and I will be the king the Suevans deserve.

And I’ll have my glittering, golden mate beside me.

Finally, the light appears at the end of the tunnel.

“That better be daylight,” Gen says, grumpy again. “I don’t think I can take it if it’s not.”

I blink at her, confused all over again. “What else would it be?”

“Never mind. It was a stupid joke.”

“I do not think you are capable of saying anything stupid.”

When I glance at her, I expect to see that same smile on her face. I frown when it’s not there. Instead, her expression is pinched, concern writ across her face.

“I hope I don’t prove you wrong.”

The tunnel narrows, the opening overhead half-concealed by vegetation. A root the size of my thigh drapes across the middle of the entrance.

“I will go first, and then I will pull you up behind me,” I tell her.

“Works for me.”

My talons latch onto the root, and I heave myself up, the walls of the opening clawing at my hide. It’s a tight squeeze, but I manage to push myself through, then lie on the ground, extending my arm to Gen.

“Do you trust me, my flower? Take my hand.”

“And you’ll show me a whole new world?”

“If that is what you wish.”

She snorts a laugh, fitting her small hand around my wrist. I clasp hers, and haul her up the opening easily. She fits through easily, sneezing as dust and dirt tumbles into her face.

“We did it,” she says, rolling on top of me. “You did it, Kanuz.”

She crawls up my chest, her leaf dress riding up to her waist as she wriggles. Her eyes search mine for a long moment, and then her mouth is on mine, her addictive taste pervading my senses.

“Gen,” I groan, my hands sliding up her thighs, her waist.

“Don’t tear my leaves!” she squeals, then carefully unties the vine belt, tugging her zitsu dress overhead. It flops to the forest floor, and she scooches it away with her toe, her muscles flexing along her thighs. I pull my pants off, too, much faster than before, thank the goddess, and they join her leafy creation.

“I will strive to not damage your new garment,” I tell her with a laugh, my hands squeezing her ample ass. “But when we return to my city, I will buy you clothes simply so I can tear them from you.”

She arches one eyebrow, pursing her lips. “That sounds wasteful.”

“I do not fucking care,” I growl, then tug her head back to mine, claiming her mouth for myself. She returns the kiss with fervor, reaching behind her to circle her hand around my hard shaft. I groan as she pumps her fist up and down, all coherent thoughts leaving my head at the pleasure of her touch.

“You are so fucking soft,” I tell her, half-sitting up, snagging her pink nipple into my mouth.

She makes a small sound of surprise and pleasure, her hand stilling on my cock before she continues stroking it up and down. My xof begins vibrating, and I growl with the force of my need. Gen’s pupils are blown, dark and wide with lust, and her scent tantalizes me.

“Need you,” I grit out.

“Then take it,” she says, her eyes flashing with challenge.

“Fuck,” I manage, my hands going to her waist, lifting her off where she straddles my chest and flipping her to her stomach, forcing her to her hands and knees.

She gives a soft moan. Her cunt drips with her need, and I press my hand gently in between her shoulders, forcing her ass higher in the air.

“Look at you, splayed open for me.” I nudge her knees wider apart, and she looks back at me, her eyes wild and glassy. “Glowing and wet, the way I want you to be, always.”

Bending down, I lap at her entrance, savoring her taste, her warmth.

“Kanuz,” she says, her legs shaking.

“Tell me,” I command, and when she reaches back to touch me, I circle her wrist with my fingers, pressing it firmly behind her back. I lick her again, and she cries out.

Still, I wait. Precum drips from the tip of my cock, and I ache with the need to fill her.

“I want you, my prince,” she says, her voice low and needy.

I lick her again, rewarding her. She shudders, and I keep one hand on her wrist at her back, the other on her hips, keeping her still. She undulates against my mouth, her movements frantic.

I let out a harsh laugh, then give into my own need, slamming into her. I release her wrist, and she immediately braces herself against the ground, pushing herself harder against me.

“So demanding. So perfect,” I tell her. Slowly, I run one talon down the delicate line of her spine, and she shivers in response. I pull out, savoring the way she clenches around me.

When I slam back into her, she lets out a low cry. My teeth clench together, and my xof vibrates so hard the round curve of her ass shakes with it. The sight undoes what little control I have left, and I pick up the pace, matching her frenzied rhythm.

“Kanuz,” she breathes, and I have never heard such a perfect sound as my name on her lips while my cock slides in and out of my wife. “I love you.”

“My flower, my Gen,” I groan, my cock throbbing as I spill my seed deep inside her. “I love you, too.”

I snake an arm around her waist, pulling her up so that her back is flush with my chest. My cock pulses inside her, and I lick my fingers, then push my hand between her spread legs, working the small nub of her pleasure as I rock back and forth.

Her head falls back against my chest, her eyes closed in pleasure. I stroke her, watching the quick succession of expressions that flit across her face, raising my other hand to palm her breast.

“Kanuz,” she moans, and then she’s clenching around my cock, rippling and pulsing as her wetness soaks my thighs.

“I love you,” I tell her again, kissing against the delicate plane of her collar, the dip below her neck. “Now, my love, I think we are ready to continue to Edrobaz.”

“It’s going to take us a year, at this rate.”

“If it is a year spent like this, I am not sure I can complain.” I kiss her neck, sweaty from the pleasure I wrung from her, salty and sweet just like the woman herself.

She slides off my cock, turning to press her body against mine. Her arms wrap around my neck, her chest heaving as we hold each other. “Then I guess it’s a good thing we have a lifetime together.”

Warmth spreads through me at her words, and I kiss the top of her golden head, squeezing her to me. She lets out a tiny squeal, making me chuckle.

“Come, wife. Put your zitsu leaf back on. We are starting our journey home.”

She stands slowly, stretching with a smile on her face, and I marvel at her, at the glow on her skin, the sated, happy look on her face.

My wife.

OceanofPDF.com

CHAPTER TWENTY

OceanofPDF.com

GEN

Hiking around in the Suevan jungle without boots sucks. Even with poor Kanuz carrying me most of the way, it’s less than fun. Not to mention, my new glow attracts every bloodthirsty insect for miles. I scratch at a bump on my shoulder, hungry and tired.

That’s when we hear them.

The unmistakable sound of the hellish T-Rexes, screaming to each other. Under my bare feet, the ground shakes.

“I did not just survive my very own temple of doom to be eaten by a dinosaur,” I say through gritted teeth.

Kanuz says nothing, simply grabs me where I stand, throwing me over one shoulder and taking off at a sprint. How he still has the energy, I do not know.

“The Crigomar will not eat you while I live, my flower.”

Considering they’re chasing both of us, it’s not very reassuring, but I stay quiet and do my best sack of potatoes impression. Mmm. Potatoes. What I wouldn’t give for a giant baked potato slathered in butter and cheese. Or fries. Salty, greasy cheese fries with bacon and sour cream and little slivers of green onions.

The terrifying cacophony from the giant reptiles gets closer, and real fear grips me. I don’t think our odds of a giant swamp snake appearing to save us are very high, considering we’re on dry land.

As my worry grows, my glow intensifies. I stare down at my hands, annoyed. Kanuz’s pace eats up the ground, ignoring the underbrush where it slaps against his thick hide.

My heart skips a beat. The noise of the giant dinosaurs dies, and it’s like the entire jungle breathes.

The tree cover ends suddenly, giving way to a roiling pool of water. A waterfall crashes into the expanse of blue. White froth bubbles and foams, the white noise nearly canceling out the sound of the raging beasts on our tail.

I swallow. After surviving the tentacle monster in the temple, I’m never looking at a lake the same way ever again.

And with the sound of the waterfall, there’s no way we’ll hear the Crigomar until they’re right on us.

“Fuck,” Kanuz says, and I can just barely hear the word. He sets me down, and annoyance steals over me as I pat my thighs for a weapon I don’t have.

Nope, all I have is my dress made of leaves and newly glowing skin.

I look like Peter Pan’s fairy sidekick, if Peter Pan were a scaled lizard man who likes to fuck.

Kanuz pushes me behind him, and I sigh in annoyance. Sure, rationally it makes sense that he would protect me, and as much as I’ve enjoyed rediscovering my touchy-feely side, I miss being able to protect myself.

Sure enough, a red and black head bursts through the foliage, and I tense, glancing behind me at the crashing waterfall. Would they follow me in? Would I be a wet tasty morsel instead of a dry one? Maybe they’d prefer that, like a cat I had growing up refused to eat anything but canned wet food, the diva.

Or would the current from the waterfall bash me to smithereens against the sharp rocks jutting into the water?

So many fun options on this planet.

The second Crigomar appears, and Kanuz spreads his arms out wide, like he’s chasing a pet dog back from something.

Adrenaline and lack of food must be making me punchy, because I laugh.

“What?” he asks, yelling over the sound of the water.

“I just… Do you think that’s going to work?”

He shoots me an injured look, then immediately goes taut.

Two Suevans appear from the edge of the jungle, their energy rifles at their sides. One has an energy knife slung across his hip, and my fingers itch to take it.

The weirdest thing though? They don’t look worried about the Crigomar. I straighten in surprise. One of the Suevans pats the nearest Crigomar’s stomach, and the dinosaur whuffs. Whuffs! Like a damn horse.

“What the fuck?”

The other Suevan points at me, and I can’t hear what they’re saying over the water, and I sure as shit can’t read Suevan lips.

They holster their weapons, smiling broadly at us.

“Who are they?” I ask Kanuz, caught between relief and the worry this is a trap.

“Southerners.”

I squint at them, the waterfall misting my back making me shiver. “How can you tell?”

“They have redder abdomens… and they are controlling the Crigomar.”

“Really?” I can’t see any difference, but whatever. “Wait. Doesn’t that mean they’re hunting us?”

One beckons, the other raising a fist. Kanuz returns the gesture, and I realize it must be some kind of greeting. They point at me again, their faces full of wonder.

Oh, yeah. My newfound bioluminescence.

“I guess we’re about to find out if you were right about the temple treasure,” I say.

Kanuz shoots me a dark look, worry clear on his face. He slings an arm around my shoulders, and we walk together towards the newcomers—and the Crigomar.

A rope of saliva stretches from one of the dinosaur’s sharp teeth, and its diamond pupils contract as I get closer. It makes an odd keening noise, and I recoil instinctively.

“No wonder they have been impossible to control today,” the nearest alien says. Kanuz’s fingers flex, talons outstretched. “Look at her.”

“What happened to you, little human female?” the second alien says, not unkindly.

They’re both staring at me with open fascination, and I glare at them. “Well, for one, your dinosaurs want to eat me.”

Kanuz makes a startled noise.

The nearest alien looses a laugh, and the other one bites his cheeks as though he’s trying not to.

“The Crigomar are not going to eat you.”

Kanuz seems as surprised as I am by that news.

“Oh, really? Is that why they tried to eat us only…” I falter, unsure of how much time has passed since we fled into the temple ruins. “A few days ago they did!”

“No, they did not. And that explains why we could not find them.” He exchanges a weary glance with the other Suevan, who still seems on the verge of laughter.

“Find us?” Kanuz says, and there’s none of the easygoing male that’s been quick to laugh with me the last few weeks. No. This Kanuz drips condescension and command, every inch of his body transformed into someone I hardly recognize.

This is Kanuz, Prince of Sueva. I blink. I like this Kanuz, too.

“What do you mean, find us? Do you know who I am? Do you see her? Do you know what that light means?”

“Of course we know who you are, Prince. We may be working together with Warlord Draz, but we are not going to bow and scrape to you. And as far as the princess, that light means she ingested a large amount of Nidoth. Enough that she’ll likely glow for years.”

“I give it seven to ten,” the other Suevan adds, a speculative look on his face. “Did she bathe in it?”

I bark a laugh. “Nidoth?”

“Yes, pretty human, Nidoth. It’s what we use to help train our Crigomar.” His green taloned hand stands out on the black and red hide of the dinosaur. “It’s a light trigger. They respond to it like lures. Only thing that works when they’re freshly hatched. It’s an ancient formula we have kept secret, passed down by the handmaidens of the many-faced-goddess herself. We make it in small batches, as it is time intensive and hard to find the ingredients. The only real function for it is training the Crigomar to respond to commands when they are young.”

“That’s why they’ve been chasing you. Once they get old enough, they don’t need it anymore, but with you radiating it like that…” He scratches his chin. “I am relieved to know that it was not a sign they had slipped our control completely.”

The Crigomar whuffs in response, and I stare up at the big animal, whose gaze is still fixed on me. Kanuz’s arm slips lower, around my waist, his fingers just under my breast. It’s possessive, and he juts his chin out aggressively at the southern Suevans.

“So you do not recognize this as a symbol of the goddess? Her glowing skin?” There’s a faint hint of confusion and disappointment in his voice. “Is this not a sign that human females are meant to be here?”

Both males shuffle, distinctly uncomfortable. “About that. After we met a human female, we are not so opposed to them any longer.”

I blow out a huge breath, sagging against Kanuz. That’s a damn relief to hear. So glad I’m not going to be fed to a dino, after all. Surviving Jurassic Park, one alien at a time, that’s me.

“But her glowing skin… the gift of the goddess—” He breaks off. He doesn’t say it, but I know what he’s thinking. All that fucking work… and for what?

The Southern Suevans were already convinced to join our side.

“The glowing skin is lovely, to be sure, Princess. We mean no disrespect.” They glance at me nervously, then away, like they’re afraid Kanuz might smack them around if they look at my Tinkerbell-sparkling-self too long. “Useful, if you knew how to train a Crigomar.”

“Honestly,” I take a deep breath, pausing, “I’m relieved.”

Kanuz stares at me, something like shock on his face. “It is my turn to apologize, my flower. I did not consider how you felt about this.”

“Hey.” I shrug, grinning at him. “It all turned out for the best. Now I don’t have to do anything but glow, no pressure at all.”

He bows his head. “I should not have made you feel pressured in the first place.”

“Kanuz,” I say, then pull his head to mine, touching our foreheads together. “It’s okay. I’m relieved, but I would have done it. If it would have helped, I would have done it.”

“I am truly the luckiest male, to have a wife such as you.”

“I won’t argue there,” I say, winking, and start to lean forward, wanting to kiss him, wanting to—

“Warlord Draz is sending for more human females for us,” one of the Southern Suevan interrupts. “He will be thrilled to know you are both safe, as will his Ni-Kee.”

“Ni-Kee… Niki?! You’ve seen Niki?” My throat closes up, emotion choking me. Kanuz squeezes my shoulder. “Is she okay? Is everyone okay?” I step closer, out of Kanuz’s grip. The Crigomar nearest me lowers his head, and hot breath cascades over my head. Saliva drips onto my shoulder, and the beast nudges me gently with a giant nose.

Caught between horror and fascination, I stare up at it, momentarily forgetting my question. Hard to focus with a red T-Rex acting like a dog who wants to be petted. I scratch under its chin, and it makes the strangest sound, somewhere between a purr and a low whine.

“That one is only going to respond to her now,” the alien says forlornly. “You’ll have to take it as a mating gift, Prince.”

“Your Ni-Kee is fierce and beautiful,” the first Suevan responds finally, longing clear in his face. “As are you. She does not glow, however. She disarmed several of our men. And the Roth.”

“That’s right, she is clever and a master strategist. She single-handedly brought him down.”

“We helped.”

They both nod, and I stare at them with wide eyes. I’m so fucking relieved to hear Niki made it out unscathed, it takes me a moment to register the other bomb they’ve dropped.

“A Roth?” I finally manage.

“What do you mean, a Roth?” Kanuz growls at the same time.

The dinosaur nudges my forehead again, and I resume scratching it, only slightly terrified of what happens when I stop.

“Is he alive?” I ask. “Or did Niki kill him?”

The dinosaur makes a soft roaring sound, and I try not to jump.

“It knows you’re upset,” the Suevan says, scowling at me like it was my choice to take his dinosaur from him. “And no, she did not kill him, though she did maim him. It was a stunning sight to see. However, in her brilliance, she decided it best to leave him alive for questioning.”

“I will rip his spine out and gift it to you, my flower,” Kanuz tells me.

My lips twist to the side. “Ah, that won’t be necessary. But thanks. That’s really thoughtful of you.”

“Say the word, and—” He closes his fist and makes a yanking motion. “No more Roth.”

“Uh, if Niki thought he had information we needed, then I think we should save the spine-ripping for later, don’t you?”

“Later,” he agrees. The dino whuffs again, sending more slobber down my leaf. “Why are the Roth here?” Kanuz asks.

“The same reason the females are here for us. The virus hit their people, too. They seek a cure. Or they did. Now? They seek human females.”

My jaw drops open.

I turn to Kanuz. “When will the tech shipment get to Earth?”

“It is already on its way, my flower,” he says gently, but I know him well enough now to tell he’s troubled, too. That he’s thinking what I’m thinking.

If Roth wants human females to procreate with, Earth is in big trouble.

“We need to get back to my crew.”

“Take us to Edrobaz,” Kanuz says at the same time.

“I hope the newest shipment of human females has many just like you and Ni-Kee,” one of the southern Suevans sighs.

A wet, rasping tongue licks across my ear, and I shove the dinosaur’s head away in disgust. “Stop it, Steve.”

“Steeeve?” one of the aliens repeats. “What a strange, foreign name.”

“Very formidable,” the other adds. “Wise choice, Princess.”

Steve lowers his head again, butting my chest so hard I nearly fall on my ass. “We don’t have time to lose, my dudes. Let’s go.”

It’s not a great princess impression. I don’t have the same panache as Kanuz does, but the other Suevans stare at me, something like awe on their faces.

“She called us her dudes,” one whispers.

“Is this a high rank amongst your people?”

I glance sidelong at Kanuz, trying to figure out how I should play it.

This is just too fucking weird. I nod my head, pursing my lips. “Absolutely. From now on, you’re my dudes.”

They both drop to one knee, fists held up.

Right.

What problems could possibly come from this?

Kanuz grins at me, that too-hot-for-his-own-good smirk back in place.

“To Edrobaz!” I yell, losing my head completely.

They don’t cheer or repeat me though, unfortunately for my delusions of grandeur. They just get up, nod at me, and set off through the jungle.

“Did that play out like you wanted it to?” Kanuz asks, sly amusement in his voice.

“Not exactly, but it sure as shit could have gone worse.”

All in all, I’m not mad about it. My limbs are intact. I have a dinosaur friend I’ve dubbed Steve, and I’ve added two former separatists to my troupe of dudes, which now totals… two.

I don’t know what having them as my dudes means yet, but I’ll figure it out. Probably.

OceanofPDF.com