His by Right (10 page)

            Hands grabbed her knees and separated them. Meredith could feel his heat warm the skin between her thighs as he moved into position. Fingers carefully spread her folds. A slight pause, and the thick head of his erection bobbed at her entrance.

            She reached down with one hand to touch the extension, prepared to find it wholly alien in texture and design. Instead, her fingertips discovered satiny skin. Soft skin. Sensitive skin that quivered during her exploration. She tried to close her fingers around it, but she was unable to reach that far.

            The thick head played with her entrance, moving up and down, and rotating slightly. She could feel her juices coating it, until it was completely covered.

            This discovery, this cautious exploration, would be the extent of their foreplay this time, and it worked. The repeated feel of his swollen length nudging up against her channel was slowly driving her into a frenzy. Twice she moved her hips in a silent appeal for him to take her, without luck. Her impatience must have amused him. She thought she heard a chuckle come through the hair-thin opening between the wall and her neck.

            He took her wrists and pinned them down by her side. There was a tug at her neck before she felt the shift being pulled off, the tips of the filmy fabric tickling as it brushed over her skin. Now she could feel his breath on her belly where he placed a kiss. The hands released her to cup her breasts. Fingers closed around both nipples and started to manipulate them. Meredith almost reached up to place her hands over his when he shoved deep and hard inside her.

            She had no time to catch her breath. His hands massaged her breasts, lifting them and rubbing underneath them. Capturing her taut nipples and rolling them, while slowly withdrawing his erection. He was teasing her. Making her wetter and more responsive.

            Lifting her legs, she pressed her knees against his body and squeezed. Again, there was that amused chuckle.

            Suddenly, without warning, he snagged her feet and hooked her heels over his shoulders. Before she could think about what he might be up to, hands roughly grabbed her thighs, and his erection was jammed back inside her.

            It was all she could do to hold onto the sides of the table as he rode her hard and mercilessly, shoving into her with such force that her shoulders made indentations in the wall. Mr. Bumpy was back. Somehow, the perfectly smooth skin on the Alcatian's dick developed small nodules on the surface, that ran roughshod through her channel. The effect was like a knobby match being pulled across the striker, making pleasure burst through her with such intensity that she cried out.

            He stopped for a second, and she knew he'd heard her. The chuckle came again, followed by a wall of heat bearing down on her as he bent over and redoubled his efforts. His breath came in loud grunts as he repeatedly plowed into her.

            Unable to hold onto the table any longer, she grabbed her breasts and pinched them as her completion boiled upward like steam ready to vent. She felt a sharp sting as one hand was slapped away, and a mouth clamped over the nipple. At the same time, he shoved a hand between them to find her clit.

            She screamed as wave after wave of released passion rolled through her. There was fire, followed by more fire, and there was nothing she could do to stop him as he never faltered, keeping his pace and driving rhythm steady to keep her skimming along the uppermost lip of her orgasm.

            Suddenly, he stopped. He was plugged all the way inside her, and she could hear his labored breathing as he drew air into his lungs with loud gasps. She started to reach for him as her body continued to relish in the last drops wrung from her, when he rested his cheek on top of her breasts. Slowly, she touched his face, a face that was so close to hers, separated by the thinnest portion of a wall. She found a cheek, a strong jaw, up to an ear that came to a point. Thick, silky lengths flowed over her knuckles, and she wondered what color his hair was. His eyes closed while her fingers traveled over them, to the nose that was curiously broad and flat.

            "My one. My
seela.
"

            His voice was low, but she could hear the words he whispered.

            "Thank you. Thank you for coming back," she told him.

            He took her hand from his face and kissed her wrist, then laid her hand along her side as he got up and withdrew from her body. In his wake, her skin grew chilled from the lost warmth.

            Stranger still, she felt something being dragged across her belly. His hand lifted her by the waist, arching her back, until the thin, cold length completely encircled her. Whatever it was he wrapped around her, it stung when it first came in contact with her skin, then quickly cooled. When he was finished, he laid her flat. A gentle kiss was placed below her navel, and she sensed him leaving the room. A slight breeze confirmed it.

            The wall lifted. As soon as she was able, Meredith looked down to confirm what her hands already told her. He had placed a chain of tiny irregular-shaped beads, like iridescent pearls, around her body. Once the room brightened, she rotated the piece of jewelry around, searching for the hasp. As far as she could tell, there wasn't one, or at least one she didn't recognize.

            "What did you give you?"

            She glanced up to see Gleeth standing in the doorway. "I don't know. Some kind of waist-size necklace."

            The alien scuttled over, and a tentacle lifted the chain. "Evadium."

            "What?"

            "The stones are evadium. This waistlet is priceless."

            Instinctively, her hands clutched the object. "He gave it to me."

            "That alone would pay for your services for years."

            "How about to buy me?”

            "Easily. It is worth four times your price."

            Anger began to simmer inside her. Was that jealousy she heard in the creature's voice? "This is mine," she whispered. "He gave it to me."

            Sighing, Gleeth retracted its tentacle. "The waistlet is yours to keep, as are all gifts given to the products." The creature stepped out of her way. "Go wash yourself and put on another shift." It spoke curtly, almost angrily.

            Meredith slid off the table onto wobbly legs. Once she steadied herself, she exited the pleasuring room, but she didn't return to her cubicle. Instead, she went straight to the lounge to find out more about what sat loosely on top of her hips.

Chapter Sixteen
Attack

            She walked into the lounge where four others were relaxing. It was the first time she had gone anywhere on the ship bare ass naked, but she didn't care. It wasn't as if the transparent material hide anything from sight, anyway. She wanted to show off what she'd received, and to get their response to the piece of jewelry. Before she could tell them, Avalanth brought everyone's attention to her new acquisition.

            "Merry! You were given a gift!"

            A couple of products hurried over to eye the waistlet up close.

            "It looks like evadium," F'Orlo observed.

            Diad shook herself. "That is evadium. Pure grade two."

            "Grade two? What about grade one?" Meredith wondered aloud.

            Pudrith waved an arm. "You cannot wear grade one. It is a gas."

            "So, what I'm wearing is a solidified form of a gas? Is there a grade three?"

            Veleetee made a giggling sound. "There are only a few known places in the galaxy where one can find evadium, and those places are very dangerous to get to. The gaseous form is prized as an inhalant. The solid form is priceless, and often used as currency."

           
Similar to gold,
Meredith silently observed. "Gleeth said this waistlet was worth four times my price."

            F'Orlo flushed a bright yellow. "Four times? You are worth that much?"

            "But it's mine, right? Gleeth said products could keep whatever gifts they were given."

            "She told you correctly," Avalanth replied. "But I do not think anyone has been given something that extravagant. Why would the client do it?"

            The alien had a point. Meredith could see being given something simple, like a keepsake. The waistlet was neither simple nor a keepsake.

            "Maybe I should keep it hidden, in case someone tries to steal it."

            F'Orlo snorted, a sound that reminded her of a balloon blat. "No one will try to steal that, Merry. It is too unique and costly. If anyone tried, everyone else would know who it really belonged to."

            F'Orlo was right, with one exception. "Unless that person got off the ship with it. Then he could take it anywhere and sell it."

            "Not quite," Avalanth corrected. "Evadium bonds to the owner. Did you feel anything unusual when he put it on you?"

            She thought back to the moment. "Yeah, I did. It sort of stung a bit, but just for a second."

            The alien flipped an arm. "There you are."

            She hooked a thumb underneath the waistlet. There was less than an inch of give, more if she sucked in her stomach. Lifting the chain as high as she could, Meredith stared at the unusually glassy depths of the stones, and remembered not finding a hasp. "Does that mean I can't ever take it off?"

            "You can take it off, but it will never react to another person the way it did with you. If someone tried to take it away from you and resell the stones, the evadium would be worthless."

            "Do not take this wrong," Diad added. "I do not intend to demean your worth, Merry, but why would a client spend what most species consider to be a fortune equal to several lifetimes, on a product on a—"

            The ship literally shook, as if it had been hit with an enormous earthquake. Seconds later, the lounge dimmed, and a sound like cats squalling and screeching blared overhead. Meredith dropped to the floor in surprise as a few of the others shrieked in panic.

            "Go to your room!" F'Orlo yelled, trying to be heard above the din. The ship jumped again, sending everyone and pillows temporarily flying. With the gravitational drive still operable, they landed hard.

            Meredith hit the wall sideways, but found herself not too far from the doorway. Remaining on her knees, she hurried for the entrance, pushing aside pillows and other debris that had fallen in the way.

            Loud buzzing sounds filled the corridor, and appeared to be getting closer. Grabbing the door frame, she managed to crawl into the narrow hallway and start for her cubicle.

            The ship must have rolled. Still clinging to the floor, she felt her equilibrium somersault. Her stomach also did a three-sixty.

            Crawling along wasn't getting her anywhere. If she didn't get to her room soon, no telling what else would happen to her. For once, she was glad her cubicle was small enough to prevent her from sustaining any major injuries if she was going to be tossed about, or in the event the ship lost gravity.

            Jumping to her feet, she sprinted down the corridor. Racing around the corner at the first intersection, she was nearly hit by a beam of light that exploded into a rainbow of colors when it struck the wall. Her survival instincts ramped up several notches as she continued down the hall without looking back to see what had fired at her.

            "Get her!"

            The yell sent cold shivers down her back as she ducked and tried to evade being hit. The ship jiggled again, and she was hurtled against the ceiling. Gravity was gone, leaving her unable to run any further. Recalling what she'd seen astronauts do, she got her feet beneath her and launched herself from the ceiling, much like a swimmer into a pool. Another bolt of light sprayed above her head where she'd been seconds before.

            She made it to the last intersection, and grabbed the corner to pull herself around. Her room was ten yards away. Close.
Not much further!

            Gravity was restored. The shot aimed at her missed by a mile.

            She fell hard on her side, banging her head against the wall. Vaguely, she could see fuzzy figures running toward her. Something glinted. She was jerked sideways, and the shot struck the floor.

            "Merry!"

            "Pudrith?"

            "Come! This way!"

            The creature undulated over the wall, moving with a grace and speed Meredith would never have imagined the alien capable of doing. She found herself hard pressed to keep up. At some point, someone had turned off the howling cat alarm, and she said a prayer of thanks. Maybe she would be able to hear those things coming now.

            Pudrith led her down a hallway, then turned and took another avenue. By this time, Meredith was completely lost, but the little creature continued as if it knew what it was doing. It paused momentarily in a tiny alcove, heaving for air. She bent over her knees as she labored to catch her breath.

            "Where...are we...going?"

            "To the big room."

            "Where?"

            "Come! Hurry!"

            Pudrith took off again. "Is it far?" Meredith called out, rushing to catch up. She could still hear weapons firing, but they sounded muffled and distant. For all she could guess, the ship was under attack, which left her to wonder if there was any safe place on board.

            The alien disappeared around another corner. By the time she got there, the hallway was empty. Meredith slumped against the wall.

            "Pudrith! Where'd you go?"

            A doorway slid open inches away from her arm, and the alien reached out for her.

            "In here!"

            As soon as she nearly fell into the room, Meredith knew where she was. Over in the distance, cubes sat stacked in neat, orderly rows. And many of them were still filled with creatures.