Alien Prince: (Bride of Qetesh) An Alien SciFi Romance (41 page)

“
Odrik,
”
I quietly began,
“
do you think
— ”

“
I will be climbing a rather steep incline for the next league or so,
”
he growled,
“
and would prefer not to exert any more energy than is absolutely necessary.
”
This was his polite, indirect way of telling me to shut up and let him carry me across a small mountain.

And so I did, my legs wrapped around his torso so that the quill of his spine pressed between my thighs. We moved in silence together, and I squinted my eyes against the early daylight, trying as best I could to enjoy the strange and beautiful scenery of this lush and foreign land. But I couldn
’
t
—
to me, nothing compared to Odrik
’
s own strange beauty.

I wondered what his home planet looked like, wondered if his people were used to the extreme temperatures of day and night or if they had simply been forced to adapt. I wondered how far away it had been, what the journey had been like for those who made it. I wondered how far I was from home.

I rested my head against him, pressing my cheek to the back of his neck, and let the world go by. I saw a small patch of bushes with the bending, greedy heads of carnivorous flowers, red and pink and yellow to attract the large, buzzing insects into their hungry little jaws. I saw another still pond and wanted only to dive into it with Odrik and feel his wet skin against mine.

The day was hot and we were weary when we paused to eat. He practically dumped me onto the dirt like a sack of potatoes before dropping down onto the ground himself.
“
Are you all right?
”
I asked, but he was panting, and he waved me off so he could catch his breath.

“
I
’
d like to wait,
”
he breathed,
“
for a time. Let the hottest part of day pass and go into the village as the light begins to fade.
”

“
Sure,
”
I said, surveying the immediate surroundings.
“
Go in under the cover of night?
”

He quirked a brow at me.
“
The winternight will freeze us.
”

“
Right.
”

We were at a relatively high elevation, and I allowed my gaze to rove idly over the vast tracts of land behind us. The day was glistening and bright, and it felt somehow like we were the only two living creatures on the entire planet. There were no birds in the air above us, no beasts growling nearby. Just Odrik and me, and the grasping little teeth of the
rimosha
plants.

Odrik was sitting under a tree, drinking deeply from the skin he
’
d filled with water, and I sat down nearby, perched on a rock. I stretched my leg out in front of me, hoping to draw attention to my wounded extremity. Maybe then he
’
d offer to rub salve into my skin or bandage me up again. Something, anything to get him touching me.

No.
No
. Stop it, Novalyn.

There was something about him
—
pheromones, perhaps
—
that drew me inexplicably toward him at all times. I wanted him, like a hunger. I shook my head, trying to clear it of thoughts of him, naked, emerging from the waters of the still pond.

“
Have we got anything to eat?
”
I asked, hugging my arms to my torso, ready to substitute one kind of hunger for another. Odrik canted his chin toward the pack.

“
Plenty,
”
he said.
“
Have at it.
”

The pack itself was constructed of more raw leather and heavy stitching, a satchel with an unsecured flap that lay over the top of the bulge of its contents. I opened it and rifled through: knives, furs, the tarp that became our tent each night, skins full of water, and finally one of the white plastic boxes from the pod. I opened it, and it was filled with berries. Another, with salt meat to cook over an open flame. I took the berries and moved slowly, hobbling just a little bit less than I had the day before, over to where he sat. I held out the open box to him and he hesitated a moment before reaching forward to fill his fist with berries and unceremoniously stuff them into his mouth.

“
What type of fruit is this
…
?
”
I asked, plucking one out of the box and holding it gingerly between my thumb and index finger.

He answered in a word I did not recognize, a word that did not translate. The berries themselves were large and plump, the color of a strawberry, the shape of a blueberry, the size of a small fig. I popped one whole into my mouth and bit down: my taste buds were flooded with a tart sort of sweetness, kind of like a grape, but not as crunchy. I had found my new favorite fruit.
“
Mmm,
”
I hummed.

Odrik smiled.
“
You like them, then?
”

“
Very much.
”

I took a seat on the rock nearby and cradled the box of berries in my lap. Odrik finished off the water in the skin and leaned back against the trunk of the small tree, which shook slightly when he moved against it.
“
My mother used to make pies from those fruits,
”
he mumbled.
“
In fact, that might be the only real memory I have of her.
”

“
How old were you when she died?
”
I asked, my tone low and quiet.

“
Very small, just walking. She was one of the last remaining women in our tribe. That belt was hers,
”
he said again, but he was trailing a finger in the dirt, not looking at me.

“
I know,
”
I said.
“
It
’
s beautiful.
”

“
She had my coloring, I remember that. She sang to me, I remember that. And she made pies. That is the sum of all I can remember about my mother.
”
He smiled a rather sad sort of smile, and turned his dark eyes on me, the flecks of gold in his horns glinting in the broken shafts of light.
“
What about your mother?
”

“
I hardly remember my mother, too,
”
I murmured, peering down into the box of fruit instead of looking Odrik in the eye.
“
She was very young when she had me. My grandmother raised me.
”

“
Oh?
”

I nodded.
“
Mm. On her farm.
”

“
And your father?
”

I shrugged. I didn
’
t often speak of my family, I guess because I had always been a little embarrassed by how easy it had been for them to leave me.
“
They were younger than me when they became parents.
”
I quirked a brow and peered at Odrik.
“
How old are you?
”
But then I gave a shake of my head. Chances were, a year on this planet wasn
’
t the same as a year on Earth.

“
I am in my middle age,
”
he said.
“
The Qet divide our lives into sextants. Infancy, childhood, adolescence, young adult, adult, and elder. I am in the early fifth sextant.
”
He eyed me up and down, smiling faintly.
“
You, no doubt, are a young adult.
”

“
I suppose I am,
”
I said and popped another berry into my mouth before passing the box to Odrik.

“
Will you go back to your grandmother
’
s farm when you return to your home planet?
”
he asked, sorting through the berries so he wouldn
’
t have to look me in the eye.

“
No,
”
I said.
“
She passed away a while back.
”

“
So you
’
ve no family to speak of, then?
”
he asked, his expression one of pitiable sadness. I shook my head.

“
No. None to speak of.
”

“
Then why do you insist on going back?
”
His tone was edged with an obvious desperation that made my heart drop down into the pit of my stomach. My jaw hung slack, I gaped at him: I didn
’
t have an answer.
“
Is there someone else?
”
he went on.
“
Another man?
”

I softened, slumping slightly where I sat.
“
No, Odrik,
”
I murmured.
“
There is no one else.
”
I cradled my hands in my lap and dropped my gaze to the dirt beneath my feet, because that
’
s just about as low as I felt in that moment. Odrik pushed himself suddenly to standing, the tree he
’
d been leaning against rattling with the force of the propulsion.

“
So, what is it, then?
”
he demanded.
“
Why are you so eager to leave me? Do I repulse you?
”

“
What?
”

“
Am I too strange, too
…
alien?
”
He was pacing back and forth in front of me, and I was reminded of his sheer size. I peered up at him, the sun glinting out just behind his head.

“
No! No, that isn
’
t it at all.
”

“
Then
what is it
?
”
He gripped me by the shoulders and gave me a slight shake. I realized I was trembling under the force of his grip, for though I trusted him, I had known him an extremely short amount of time and wasn
’
t entirely certain of what he was capable. If I angered him enough, would he hurt me? Force himself on me?

No. I didn
’
t think he would. But I didn
’
t know for sure. I wrenched myself free and stood up, trying to make myself seem larger than my comparatively small stature.
“
I don
’
t
know
.
”
I said.
“
All I know is that this planet is strange and nasty and I want to go
home
.
”

He seethed a moment longer before all the air seemed to go out of him.
“
Fine,
”
he breathed.
“
Fine. I
’
ll just go with you.
”
He nodded as though it had all been decided.
“
Yes, that
’
s the best solution. I
’
ll go with you.
”

I shook my head, feeling the tears begin to pool in my eyes.
“
You can
’
t do that, Odrik,
”
I said, my voice cracking as I tried to keep myself under my own control.

“
And why can
’
t I?
”

“
They
’
ll kill you,
”
I said, one sob wracking my entire body as I quickly wiped at my eyes with the heel of my hand.
“
They
’
ll see how different you are, and they
’
ll capture you, experiment on you, and kill you.
”
I shook my head frantically.
“
I can
’
t let that happen to you, I
won
’
t
. Please, please promise me you won
’
t try to come to Earth with me. Please. I couldn
’
t bear it, I couldn
’
t bear if anything happened to you, please
— ”
And I deflated into tears. I pressed my hands to my face and shuddered with the force of my weeping, and it wasn
’
t long before I felt his strong arms encircle me and pull me close. I buried my face in his chest and cried, even as he stroked my hair with his large, powerful hands.